Chapter 4
Chapter 4
BOOM!
The guardian's foot slammed into the floor.
Sang-hyeok ducked sideways, avoiding the descending foot.
His target was the opposite ankle, the one bearing the guardian's weight.
He avoided the foot itself.
But the moment the guardian's foot touched down, the impact burst outward through the floor in every direction.
WHUMP!
The shockwave slammed into Sang-hyeok's back.
His body pitched forward, but he caught himself with a hand against the floor and barely held on.
He hadn't even taken a direct hit, yet his breath seized up.
His feet slid, and the soles of his shoes scraped long tracks across the gray floor.
Flying stone fragments struck his back and shoulders right after.
Sang-hyeok was shoved back several more steps before he managed to steady himself.
That was the impact of a single step.
If that foot ever came down on him even once, it would be over.
Without even a moment to catch his breath, Sang-hyeok reached toward the ankle glowing red.
'<Erasure>.'
Whoosh!
The black energy extending from his fingertips touched the ankle.
Ssssss.
A palm-sized patch of the silver outer shell turned to black sand.
But as red light showed through beneath it, new outer shell sprouted over the gouged spot.
It wasn't that <Erasure> didn't work.
The guardian's regeneration was simply faster.
Sang-hyeok forced in more mana, but the hole didn't deepen, and only his mana drained away quickly.
Rumble...
Then the foot he had been targeting slowly lifted off the floor.
Sang-hyeok withdrew <Erasure> and immediately backed away.
The guardian raised that foot higher, bringing it above Sang-hyeok's head.
Because the movement was so slow, it was easy to read where it would come down.
The moment Sang-hyeok pulled his body clear.
BOOM!
The enormous foot slammed into the empty spot.
The floor caved in, and stone fragments flew in every direction.
Sang-hyeok covered his face with his arm and braced his body as he was pushed back.
The instant the foot stopped, he reached out again.
Whoosh!
Black energy covered the same ankle as before.
The silver outer shell melted away, but once again red light flared and new outer shell covered the gouged spot.
Just like the first time, a few seconds later not even a trace remained.
The thing's regenerative power hadn't diminished in the slightest.
Meanwhile, as the guardian lifted its foot again, Sang-hyeok backed away from where it would land.
BOOM!
Right after the foot drove into the floor, Sang-hyeok reached toward the same ankle.
This time he gathered <Erasure> more narrowly and fired it.
He intended to bore deep into a single point.
SSSSSS!
This time a fist-sized groove formed.
But as red light welled up, the groove quickly shallowed and finally returned to smooth silver.
The results of all three attempts were the same.
<Erasure> fired from a distance only erased the outer shell; it couldn't reach the weakness inside.
[Time remaining 07:12]
Thanks to the Tutorial Adjustment, his mana was recovering little by little.
But because he had used <Erasure> three times, his remaining mana was less than half.
'Long range won't work.'
He had to place his palm directly against it, just as he had when he knocked the Adamant Dummy's arm off.
Only then could he target the weakness inside the ankle before the outer shell regrew.
Sang-hyeok studied the guardian's steps.
The motion of lifting its foot was slow, and where it would land was plainly visible.
The danger was the shockwave that burst outward on landing.
But right after it brought its foot down, the enormous weight delayed its next movement by a beat.
He had to aim for that opening.
Sang-hyeok widened the distance enough to withstand the impact and waited for the next attack.
Rumble...
The guardian's foot slowly rose.
Sang-hyeok moved out from where the foot would fall and lowered his body in preparation for the impact.
BOOM!
The foot drove into the floor and the shockwave burst.
Sang-hyeok's body was pushed back, but thanks to the distance he had kept beforehand, he didn't fall.
As soon as the impact passed, he kicked off the floor.
Before the guardian could recover its center of gravity, he charged straight for the ankle he had targeted.
Whoosh!
The enormous ankle filled his vision.
'Now.'
Without hesitation, Sang-hyeok pressed his palm against it.
SSSSSS!
The outer shell, which had only been shallowly gouged no matter how many times he attacked from a distance, crumbled all at once beneath his palm.
Black sand poured out, and the red light inside was exposed.
'It's working.'
Without lifting his hand, Sang-hyeok forced more mana into <Erasure>.
VMMMM!
As the red light spread, the gouged spot rapidly filled with new outer shell.
The newly grown outer shell tried to push Sang-hyeok's palm away.
Sang-hyeok planted his feet firmly and pressed down harder.
At that moment, the guardian's upper body slowly bent forward.
An enormous palm came down to peel Sang-hyeok off.
There was no time.
Sang-hyeok forced more mana into <Demonic Dragon’s Eye>.
"Ghk."
Pain like needles scraping the inside of his eyes surged in, and blood trickled from his nose.
[The output of <Demonic Dragon’s Eye: Weakness Perception> has exceeded its current limit.]
[Prolonged use may cause temporary visual paralysis.]
Sang-hyeok ignored the warning.
The colors around him blurred, and only the red light inside the regenerating outer shell stood out clearly.
It was the weakness in the ankle he had been searching for.
Even as the outer shell welled up again, the red light remained in the same spot.
He didn't need to fight the entire outer shell.
There was only one place to target.
'There.'
Sang-hyeok focused the <Erasure> he had been spreading wide onto a single point.
The black energy pierced through the new outer shell and covered the red light.
The shadow above his head rapidly grew.
The guardian's palm was now close enough to see without even lifting his head.
Sang-hyeok didn't dodge.
If he pulled his hand away here, it would be back to the beginning.
The more mana drained away, the duller the sensation in his fingertips became.
Sang-hyeok clenched his teeth and pushed <Erasure> as hard as he could.
CRUNCH!
The red light was dyed black.
Soon the sound of metal tearing burst from inside the ankle.
CRACK!
The guardian's ankle bent sideways.
"ROOOOAR!"
The guardian roared for the first time.
At the same time.
LURCH!
The enormous body lost its balance and tilted backward.
Sang-hyeok pulled his hand away and threw himself aside.
The guardian's palm swept past, nearly grazing his back.
If he had been even a little later, he would have been crushed on the spot.
BOOM!
The guardian collapsed onto the floor.
The floor shook violently, and Sang-hyeok's body was flung sideways.
He only managed to stop after rolling several times.
"Ghk......!"
RIIIIING——!!
A long ringing echoed inside his ears.
His whole body ached, but he could still get back up.
Though the edges of his vision were still narrowing into blackness.
Meanwhile, the fallen guardian groped at the floor with its hand.
As the enormous palm pressed against the ground, its upper body began to rise little by little.
The broken ankle only scraped against the floor, unable to properly exert strength.
Even so, the guardian didn't stop.
Using only one hand and its remaining leg, it was raising its massive body again.
[Time remaining 05:48]
Sang-hyeok's gaze shifted from the numbers to the guardian's head.
Over five minutes still remained in the trial.
But with his remaining mana and narrowed vision, he had no capacity left to bring the guardian down again.
He had to settle this before the thing fully stood up.
This was his last chance.
Huff.
As the Tutorial Adjustment continued, the trembling in his limbs gradually subsided.
The mana that had bottomed out also began to rise again.
Sang-hyeok looked at the guardian's forehead.
Even within his narrowed vision, the red light there was vivid.
The more the guardian pressed against the floor and raised itself, the stronger the light grew.
It was the same kind of weakness he had found in the ankle.
This time, the target was the forehead.
Sang-hyeok pushed off the floor, stood, and immediately ran toward the guardian's head.
Stone fragments lay scattered chaotically across the floor the guardian had shattered when it fell.
He stepped over the larger debris and twisted his body to avoid the sharp shards jutting up.
Every step sent aches through his back and sides.
Still, he didn't slow down.
Even as he ran, the guardian's head kept rising.
Sang-hyeok clenched his teeth and forced more speed.
Whoosh!
A massive hand covered the path ahead of the running Sang-hyeok.
Even a single finger was thicker than Sang-hyeok's torso.
One of them slammed down across his route.
BOOM!
The guardian's hand struck the floor right behind him.
The floor shattered, and stone dust burst upward.
A groove deep enough to fit a person was gouged into the spot where he had been running just moments before.
The impact surging from behind shook his body, but Sang-hyeok didn't slow.
Through the hazy stone dust, the red light on the forehead was clearly visible.
Without killing his speed, Sang-hyeok kicked off the floor with all his strength.
Whoosh!
Sang-hyeok soared into the air.
As the forehead drew near, he reached toward the red light.
The moment his feet touched the silver outer shell, he pressed down on that spot with his palm with all his strength.
As the guardian raised its upper body, the footing beneath him tilted steeply.
The floor also fell away in an instant.
As his feet slipped, Sang-hyeok lowered his stance and put his strength into his palm.
If he fell here, there would be no second chance.
'<Erasure>.'
SSSSSS!
The silver outer shell beneath his palm crumbled into black sand.
The pouring sand slid down the tilted forehead.
Beneath it, a deep red light was exposed.
VMMMM!
New outer shell rapidly sprouted from the edges of the gouged spot.
But Sang-hyeok didn't try to erase the new outer shell again.
Because he had already realized what he needed to do when he broke the ankle.
The only thing Sang-hyeok needed to target was the single red light pulsing inside.
Sang-hyeok concentrated his remaining mana on that one spot.
FWOOOOOSH!
Black energy spread over the red light.
New outer shell crept up and wrapped around his wrist, but he didn't let go.
As his remaining mana bottomed out, the black energy visibly thinned.
'Just a little more···!'
That was when it happened.
Flash!
Vmmmm.
Thanks to the Tutorial Adjustment, his mana rapidly surged back.
"......!"
Sang-hyeok's eyes lit up, and he immediately forced the recovered mana into <Erasure>.
But the crisis didn't end there.
WHOOOOSH!!
A fierce wind poured down from above his head.
When he tilted his head up slightly, the guardian's palm had already filled his vision.
It was barely a hand's breadth from Sang-hyeok's head.
But Sang-hyeok didn't dodge.
Instead, he pressed his palm down even harder.
"It's over."
CRRRRUNCH!
At that moment.
The black energy swallowed the red light.
The red light flared once, brightly, then went out.
Black sand poured from where the red light had vanished.
FSSSSSH!
At the same time, the guardian's descending hand stopped in place.
Above Sang-hyeok's head, barely a hand's breadth away.
The enormous palm could not come down any further.
The red fire in its two eyes went out.
Then white cracks began spreading across the steel outer shell.
FLASH!
Dazzling light burst from between the cracks.
From the guardian's head to its torso and limbs, it scattered into particles of light in sequence.
As the forehead beneath his feet vanished, Sang-hyeok's body fell downward.
Thud.
The moment both feet touched the floor, the strength drained from his legs.
Sang-hyeok dropped to one knee and braced himself with a hand against the floor.
As he gasped for breath and raised his head, the particles of light left behind by the guardian filled the gray space, slowly scattering.
Sang-hyeok watched the sight in silence until the last light disappeared.
[Time remaining 04:59]
The timer kept ticking down.
But now there was no longer anything left to threaten Sang-hyeok.
The Indestructible Guardian.
An entity the tower had declared from the start was not meant to be defeated.
For the past four years, players who passed through this gate had simply avoided it and endured for the set time.
The guardian that no one had ever thought could be brought down had been completely erased by Sang-hyeok's hand.
And yet the system remained silent.
Even though the guardian had vanished, not a single destruction notification appeared.
The silence lasted longer than when he had knocked the Adamant Dummy's arm off.
It was as if even the tower itself had stopped, unsure how to process the result before its eyes.
Sang-hyeok steadied his ragged breathing and waited.
A moment later.
「An unanticipated clear result has been confirmed.」
[Impossible Achievement Attained]
[You have defeated an entity that was not designated for defeat.]
[The Indestructible Guardian has been annihilated.]
[Achievement Name: One Who Achieved the Impossible]
[This achievement will be announced across all Eastern and Western channels.]
[South Korea Achievement Points +100,000]
The notifications didn't end there.
[As a reward, <Demonic Dragon’s Eye: Structural Analysis> is unlocked.]
[As a reward, you obtain <Demonic Eye Record Stone>.]
[As a reward, you obtain <Seal Key of the Demonic Dragon Treasury>.]