Chapter 4

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 4

Chapter Title: Click? Nah, It's Screeech!

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A stone chamber shrouded in thick darkness.

The narrow passage, barely wide enough for a single car to squeeze through, was dimly lit only by torches spaced sporadically along the walls.

It had that eerie, deep-dark vibe where some creepy monster could leap out at any moment.

"Kinda gives me the chills."

Regardless of my mood, I preferred this enclosed space over the wide-open plains.

Getting ganged up on in the first floor had felt like total bullshit, honestly.

I gripped the War Hammer tightly with both hands.

Thanks to the level correction boosting my physical abilities, I could finally swing this hefty blunt weapon around.

I cautiously explored the stone chamber.

After walking a bit, a faint sound echoed from deeper in the passage.

Clatter—

Wait, I've heard this sound somewhere before.

As if answering my uneasy premonition, a skeleton warrior emitting pale ghostly light from its eye sockets appeared.

"Gasp, shit."

An unexpected monster showing up left me flustered.

This was a variable I hadn't accounted for. Undead? Seriously?

How the hell do I even hurt it? Hell, does it even feel pain in the first place?

Just in case, I chucked a flame vial at it.

Clatter—

No dice, as expected. The skeleton warrior just dragged its axe along, advancing silently.

There was an intimidating presence about it.

"This is bad."

I backed away slowly, racking my brain on how to get out of this mess.

Before long, I'd retreated all the way back to the starting point.

A dead end with nowhere left to run.

Whoosh—clang!

"Urk!"

The skeleton's swung axe smashed into the wall, sparks flying.

I dodged on reflex, but if my level were any lower, I wouldn't have reacted in time.

This thing's swing was insanely powerful, despite its leisurely approach.

But that big motion left it wide open.

I swung the War Hammer at it. Nngh, my back's gonna snap.

Crack!

I hit its side, but it just staggered a bit—no real damage. Figures without combat skills.

The skeleton warrior glared at me impassively. No facial muscles, so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠no expression, but it sure felt that way.

"Fuck, what do I..."

Cold sweat trickled down my spine.

The Tower saw deaths every day, but I'd never imagined it'd be me.

It hurt like hell, but I had Heal.

But how did I end up in this shitty situation?

Panic was creeping in, but I barely calmed myself and thought it through.

Fleeing the other way would just get me pincered from both sides.

I had to fight here. If only I had some useful skill.

"...Ah!"

Suddenly, I remembered the new skill I'd gotten. No idea if it'd work, but worth a shot.

I cast it at the skeleton.

Grrrk—

The skeleton suddenly dropped to one knee, writhing as if screaming in agony. Like the wail of a tormented soul.

I didn't miss the chance and smashed the War Hammer down on its skull.

Thud—thud—crack—snap!

"...Did I get it?"

Insane. This is totally that effortless click thing.

Means I don't have to go through all that hassle to deal damage?

As a debuff skill, it couldn't deal direct damage, but immobilizing it like this was plenty effective.

Awesome! Just like this!

Then a bad feeling flashed through me.

"...Wait, the skill description..."

Chills ran down my spine the moment I checked it.

All that painstakingly gathered pain, blown away in one moment of ecstasy. A total spendthrift's click skill.

The pain I'd have to rack up again for the next use? That's all on future me. Can't I ration it out like a miser?

Beep, insufficient pain value. Alas, no traces of self-harm detected.

I could almost hear a mocking system alert somewhere.

"Ha, this is driving me nuts."

19 monsters left. That means self-harming 19 more times to clear Floor 2. Reality hit hard. Solo... maybe quit?

"No way, can't waste this chance. Just up to Floor 4."

I shook off the wavering and pulled out the cuffs and paralytic needle from my inventory.

Kept 'em just in case, good thing I didn't toss them.

I undid my belt and dropped my pants.

After doing this so many times, I'd learned: the ass hurts the least. No wonder muscle shots go there.

I jammed the paralytic needle in and cast the skill.

Thud—thud—snap!

The grueling three-hour conquest of Floor 2 finally came to an end.

The fights themselves were click-level easy and didn't take long.

Recovering my shattered spirit after all the self-harm? That dragged on.

In the process, I picked up some item info too.

Alternating between the Masochist's Cuffs and paralytic needles: they boosted pain resistance by 10% and 5% respectively.

The needles didn't stack, sadly. Wasted paralytics.

The Sadist's Riding Crop felt about 10% stronger—pretty satisfying performance.

Anyway, I just wanted to rush home. My whole body was shivering—definitely coming down with something. No surprise after all that self-harm shuddering.

As if reading my mind, the compilation finished, and clear rewards popped up.

The next day.

Maybe because I'd been plagued by nightmares all night, my condition was the worst from morning.

So I decided to rest today. Needed prep for Floor 3 anyway.

The Tower allowed only one entry per day, so I briefly considered farming Floor 1, but no achievements meant crap spoils, so pass. Flame vials from flame grass weren't cheap either.

Anyway, maintenance day it was.

I called up my status window.

Soloing really gave insane level-up speed.

Party hunting to Floor 2 would've left me at Lv 3 tops.

Solo was the way. Party hunting might be poison in the chalice.

Every floor was a precious opportunity in hindsight.

EXP only for first clears by the whole party.

Almost blew it on a farming party—good thing no party picked me up. Blessing in disguise.

"Nearly fucked up from the start."

This info wasn't on Hunter Net; had to learn the hard way.

Why I turned down the Management Bureau too.

Info valuable enough to redo my growth path—who'd hand it over?

Major guilds might share it under the table. Heard they skip full parties unless boss floors.

Ah, that's why Celestial Radiance Guild ditched me?

Body hurts, mind wanders.

Shoving short reflections aside, I checked Floor 2 spoils.

Emergency Escape unlocks at Lv 25 for supporters—a unique skill evacuating user and party safely.

The epitome of the class identity.

Without it, mid-to-high boss clears would've been impossible.

This scroll was the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠degraded version.

Infamous for abysmal drop rates and sky-high prices, but lifesavers justify it.

Single-use, user-only evac, yet a spare life to hunters.

"Lucky break."

Two items worth tens of millions each? Massive luck.

Suddenly felt better.

New skill was bound to be a jackpot too.

"Oh?"

Unexpected info. Market healing potions made by healers?

Explains why they skip farming. Sit and mint money daily.

Noble class indeed. Slight beef with them before, but now I'm a potion brewer too.

Couldn't stop grinning.

Hypocrite much? But now I get why they're pricey. Hell yeah, five a day—who wouldn't?

Couldn't resist testing right away. Grabbed an empty soju bottle and cast.

Grinning like an idiot watching the soju bottle fill up. This was pure cash. Kim Seon-dal's vibe?

Checked the exchange: 300k each.

"Whoa, fuck. 1.5 mil a day? For real?"

Tempted to dump them all, but S-Rank healer pride.

My heals packed a punch. Better effects could fetch more, right? Had to check.

Slice—

Cutter knife out, boldly slashed my heel.

Self-harm routine now? Piece of cake.

How's the effect?

Smirking, I poured the soju bottle over the wound.

Something's wrong.

A pain like my soul ripping out hit me.

"Gah! Screeech!"

Fuck! Why does even this hurt?! Not a single normal skill in this class!