Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Challenge, Failure (1)
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'Weapon. A weapon I can make full use of with my cheat.'
Ever since yesterday, when the team members had talked about their own items, my mind had been filled with thoughts of weapon items.
To be honest, my Cheat Mode and skills were all heavily skewed toward offense.
Immense strength and speed, the Weak Point Detection and Assassination skills I'd gained from quests.
And furthermore, the experiences I'd been through.
To fully leverage those frightening, violent experiences of destroying monsters.
Even if fighting monsters terrified me, a weapon item suited me best.
I set aside the other categories for now and headed to the [Weapon] section.
Daggers, pistols, electric shockers—on the surface, they looked like fairly ordinary weapons.
Of course, given that they were here, none of them could be truly ordinary.
I calmly narrowed down the candidates.
First, I excluded firearms that wouldn't let me utilize my stats.
Things like pistols or electric shockers couldn't make use of my strength.
I also excluded weapons with fatal drawbacks as I read their info.
Perhaps because they were equipment permitted for lower teams, every one of them hid trap-like details.
And finally, something caught my eye.
A plain-looking sword, complete with its scabbard, rested on a rack.
It wasn't flashy or intimidating, but it looked sturdy and reliable.
I checked the info on my tablet.
---
[Item Name: Returning Sword]
[Type: Weapon / Special Alloy Longsword]
[Description: An extremely sturdy steel sword forged through a special process. Once a week, tap the side of the scabbard twice to regenerate the sword inside it.]
[Info 1. If the scabbard is damaged, the sword will not regenerate.]
[Info 2. Scabbard durability varies by user. More testing needed for benchmarks.]
ㄴ[Exploration Team 2 Leader: Scabbard was tougher than the sword itself.]
ㄴ[Research Team Intern: Strength of a wooden plank.]
[Info 3. If the owner takes damage exceeding a certain level, the Returning Sword is destroyed instead and absorbs part of the damage.]
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'Regeneration...!'
This was it. Whether it broke or got lost, it would always come back.
No downsides, infinite durability, no worry of losing it.
On top of that, it even took damage in my place.
The once-a-week limit didn't matter with my cheat.
The only concern was that I'd never swung a sword in my life.
'...Can't I just use it like a club?'
It'd work out somehow.
The scabbard hardness varying by user—that was something I'd have to test.
There was no info on what determined the hardness.
"I'll take this one."
Without hesitation, I returned to the researcher and pointed at the Returning Sword.
He seemed a bit surprised by my choice but soon proceeded with the issuance routinely.
"...It's rare to pick a weapon item as your first one."
"Is it?"
"Yeah, you might have to rank up a few years for that..."
Once the procedure was done, the researcher walked into the warehouse and carefully retrieved the sword.
I received the Returning Sword in its scabbard and fastened it to my waist.
The scabbard even had a convenient hook, making it easy to attach to a belt or pants.
Shing.
Grasping the hilt, I slowly drew the sword, its subtle steel gleam reflecting the warehouse lights.
A real weapon. The cool sensation transmitted through my fingertips brought a mix of slight fear and, somehow, a sense of reassurance.
[Quest completed.]
[Reward issued.]
[Check your Status Window.]
[Name: Kim Minjun]
[Stats: Strength 6, Intelligence 7, Agility 5]
[Skills: Cheat Mode, Weak Point Detection Lv.1, Assassination Lv.1, Martial Arts Lv.1]
A new skill had appeared in my Status Window.
As if kindly urging me to make good use of the item, the quest had granted Martial Arts.
I'd have preferred swordsmanship, but...
Since I'd thought of using the sword like a club myself, I had no room to complain.
Eager to show the item to the team as soon as possible, I hurried back to the Exploration Team building.
"Huh...?"
But the moment I entered the building, the lobby felt different from usual.
Fewer people than normal, and even those few were mostly rushing off somewhere.
As I stood there dazed, an announcement blared from the speakers.
"...Emergency! Management Area Basement Level 3, Isolation Room 7, 'Interrogating Slab' status change! Contact lost with Exploration Team 12 currently in charge! Team 15, deploy for support immediately!"
"Team 15?"
With the urgent broadcast from HQ, I dashed down the corridor amid blaring emergency bells toward the isolation area.
The 'Interrogating Slab' was a monster our team had managed a few times before.
It posed simple quizzes three times a day, and as long as you got them right, it stayed docile—a very stable monster with a low threat rating.
For its status to suddenly change...
This was no ordinary situation.
And Team 12—
"Team 12! Team 12!"
Reaching the isolation room, Park Cheolwoo, the team leader who'd arrived first, was pounding on the door and shouting.
But no response came from inside.
Instead of an answer, black mist-like smoke seeped from the slightly ajar steel door.
"...It's too dark; I can't see anything."
Seo Ji-hyun shouted while shining a portable flashlight through the gap.
No matter how much light she shone, the interior remained invisible.
"What the hell happened..."
Han Sora muttered worriedly. Right then—
"We need... one more person...!"
From the darkness beyond the door, Rahee's faint but distinct voice echoed.
She was inside.
"You're in there?!"
Park Cheolwoo shouted urgently, but no further reply came.
He tried to fling the door open, but hesitated, wary of the dark smoke billowing out.
The team leader grimaced.
"How are we supposed to go in and support them in a situation like this...!"
HQ kept broadcasting nonstop to support Team 12.
I quietly raised my hand.
"I'll go."
"Minjun, you just got your item?"
"Yeah."
"...It's dangerous."
The team leader glanced at the sword on my waist, and Seo Ji-hyun tried to stop me.
If one of us had to enter that darkness, based on items and stats, I seemed to have the highest survival odds.
And uncharacteristically, I felt confident this time.
I'd gotten a new item, and the Interrogating Slab wasn't the type of monster that terrified me.
I held up the Returning Sword and said,
"It's fine."
"...Team Leader, what about support from higher Exploration Teams...?"
"They're all out on assignment; we can't expect any right now..."
Hearing the team leader's response, Seo Ji-hyun looked down at the floor, then back at me.
"...Be careful."
"Yeah."
Beyond the door roiled pitch-black darkness.
I took a deep breath, drew the sword from my waist, and stepped into the shadows.
An oppressive pressure crushed my body as my vision went completely black.
In the impenetrable darkness where I couldn't see an inch ahead, I instinctively advanced with the sword out front.
In that instant, the darkness lifted as if by magic.
"...What is this..."
The scene before me wasn't the isolation room.
It was a bizarre space decked out like a game show set.
Smooth walls enclosed it on all sides, and in the center stood a podium with two buttons.
One red, one blue.
Above the podium, a massive electronic board flashed on the wall.
[Challenge: Lift 100kg barbell for 5 seconds]
[Red Button: Challenge / Blue Button: Forfeit]
[2 Forfeits = 1 Failure Count]
[Success: 0/10 | Failure: 0/10] [Forfeit 0/2]
[10 Successes = Reward / 10 Failures = Punishment]
[Starting Personnel 5/5]
"...Challenge?"
I was dumbfounded.
What kind of situation was this?
"Oppa Minjun!"
Turning at the familiar voice, I saw Rahee and a young male team member I'd never met before slumped in exhaustion and fear in the corner.
Both looked utterly drained and terrified.
And nearby, two middle-aged men and women lay collapsed.
"Rahee! You okay? What happened?!"
As I approached, the male team member clung to me desperately.
"I-it's my fault... It was supposed to be easy, just answer three quizzes a day... But the questions suddenly got so hard, we missed all three, and then the room turned into this..."
He couldn't continue, choking up.
Rahee supplemented with a trembling voice.
"The slab monster suddenly glowed... and the space changed into this. Then that board appeared, telling us to press the buttons..."
"...What about those two on the ground?"
"They tried using their item on the wall, hoping to escape... but the attack bounced right back..."
Looking closely, a ballpoint pen lay near them.
Was that the one I'd seen before?
I turned my gaze to the board.
The slab had transformed into that board?
It felt like a completely different monster.
The space too.
Only the button area and where we stood were brightly lit, like a quiz show, surrounded by walls.
'If I smash that board, does everything end?'
Having the sword in hand sparked that thought first.
But that should be a last resort.
I didn't know what might happen if I attacked it, like those two who'd gotten their attacks reflected.
The starting personnel read [5/5].
Rahee had said they needed one more—that must've been why.
A high-pitched voice emanated from the board—light and almost flippant.
[Challenge: Lift 100kg barbell for 5 seconds]
[Red Button: Challenge / Blue Button: Forfeit]
"100... 100 kilograms? That's super heavy, right...?"
"Y-yeah..."
Honestly, it seemed like a hefty weight.
I didn't know exactly how much force my numerical strength could produce, so I couldn't say for sure it was doable.
Still, worth a shot.
I pressed the red button, and the board lit up as a massive barbell dropped from thin air.
Thud!
Clang!
"Ugh!"
Someone let out a small scream at the sound of the 100kg barbell crashing down.
"Sh-should've forfeited..."
The Exploration Team guy muttered fearfully.
I was a bit taken aback by the barbell's larger-than-expected size too, but I trusted my cheat.
I trusted the strength and experience that had bisected and pierced monsters.
Sheathing the sword for now, I cautiously approached, gripped the barbell, and lifted.
"Hup...?"
It rose before I could even properly exert force. I stared blankly at it for 10 seconds before setting it down.
Thud!
[...Challenge succeeded.]
[Success: 1/10 | Failure: 0/10]
[10 Successes = Reward / 10 Failures = Punishment]
The board's voice sounded oddly deflated as the success count ticked up to 1.