Chapter 65
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Promotion Exam (2)
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"Kieek!"
"Damn it!"
I slashed at the monkey leaping down from the tree to attack me. But the blade met strong resistance and failed to cut all the way through, leaving the monkey alive.
"Kiee!"
"Urk!"
The moment my sword lodged into the skin of one monkey, another seized the opening and pounced from the opposite side.
I dropped the sword I was gripping and drew the pitch-black knife from my belt, thrusting it straight into the incoming monkey. It was the knife infused with a Curse of Decay that I'd looted from the beast that ambushed me last time. After the investigation wrapped up, I'd gotten it back from evidence storage and brought it along for this exam. Better to use this instead.
"Grurk!"
Seeing its flesh turn black and rot away, I kicked the dying creature aside, finished off the first monkey where my sword was stuck, and retrieved my blade.
Ever since the screams of that earlier monkey echoed through the forest, these ambushes had been coming sporadically.
And even though it felt like six hours or so had passed already, the monkeys kept attacking irregularly, driving me insane. No matter how much I moved under the cover of [Stealth], they pinpointed my location just like the first ones—like they could see right through it.
"Kieeee!"
'[Sensory Block]'
-Shwick!
At first, when they came one by one, I'd hit them with [Sensory Block] the same way and drop them easily. But afterward, they started coming in groups of two or three from different directions. To cast [Sensory Block], they had to be in my line of sight, but whether they figured it out or it was instinct, one would draw my attention while another struck from behind.
"Gotta find the exit fast..."
If the ambushes kept up like this, camping on this floor was out of the question. I had to get off this level ASAP. The problem was that my detection skill, [Scouting], excelled at spotting enemies but fell short at locating the portal to the next floor.
On top of that, vines blocked paths during movement, and detours around swamps ate up stamina. With no chance to camp right now, I needed to conserve energy as much as possible...
"There it is!"
While crashing through the trees in a frenzy, I spotted a glow in the distance—the color of a portal.
"Kikikgek!"
"Shit!"
At that exact moment, a horde of monkeys unlike anything before swarmed me all at once. Were these things insanely smart? Did they predict I'd find the portal and set up an ambush here?
Facing what looked like about twenty of them, I gave up fighting and triggered [Limit Break]. With the portal in sight, there was no need to tangle with them.
"Kieeeee!"
"Get lost!"
I hurled the monkeys clawing at my armor and blocking the way using my amplified physical prowess, charging toward the portal. I ignored the minor scratches along the way. Now at level 4, [Regeneration] would heal scratches like these in seconds anyway.
"Kigek!"
As if they knew I was heading for the portal, the monkeys desperately lunged, grabbing at my legs. A few more piled on, but I sheathed my longsword and drew the cursed knife instead, stabbing it into the ones in my path.
"Kieek!"
Against these tough-skinned bastards, the longsword was less effective than this knife. Seeing their kin turn black from the curse and die made the others hesitate for a moment. Seizing the chance, I kicked off the ones holding me and leaped into the portal.
"Eat shit, you monkeys."
My parting shot.
*************
"Hmm..."
Vivian had watched the entire ordeal.
"Triggered within line of sight, huh..."
She also recorded observations on Ian's [Sensory Block] skill, whose nature she hadn't fully grasped. The monsters Ian faced on the first floor were ents, quintessential plant-type beasts. She'd hoped he'd use the skill on one to see if it worked against them too, but no such luck.
"Plenty of chances ahead."
Having already scouted the altered second floor, she analyzed Ian's entry point and likely path, pre-identifying the monster types he'd encounter.
She was curious to see it used on plant-types later too. Would he show her if she granted a wish or something?
***************
"...Where's this?"
Feeling the aftereffects of [Limit Break], I surveyed my surroundings after passing through the portal. The first floor had stayed perpetually bright like midday no matter how much time passed, but here withered dead trees loomed under a dark, gloomy sky. Less a forest, more like a graveyard... The mana in the air felt cursed. Reminded me of the ninth-floor ruins.
"Feels like ghosts could pop out any second..."
-Hee hee hee...
"........."
Damn mouth of mine.
No sooner had I spoken than the laughter echoed. With a sigh, I drew my knife again. A hazy figure approached from the direction of the sound.
A ghost this time? Come to think of it, this was my first spirit-type monster...
-Hee hee hee...
Ghosts were classic spirit-type monsters that ignored physical attacks without mana infusion. They couldn't interact physically either, so they unleashed curses instead—making them a nightmare with their immunity to melee and tricky debuffs.
-Shwick!
-Kyaaaa...
Of course, my cursed knife counted as mana-infused gear, so it worked. Heck, the curse might even make it more effective...
-Shhh...
"Tch."
I took it down quick, but as it died, I felt its curse seep into my body. From the sensation... 'Curse of Hunger'? I was already starving from keeping [Regeneration] active, and now an overwhelming emptiness hit me.
'[Sensory Block]'
I shut down the hunger pangs with [Sensory Block] instantly, of course. But since I really was hungry, I pulled out some rations to eat while triggering [Regeneration]. After finishing my meal, I massaged various spots on my body with bare hands while scanning the area.
[Heavenly Touch] activated, purging the curse and aiding recovery. What a money-maker skill. No level-up yet?
-Clatter. Clatter.
"Undead monsters, huh?"
Got the second floor's theme now. Each floor of the exam had different environments, and this one seemed tuned for spirits and undead in its dark, eerie vibe.
And...
"Jackpot?"
'[Sensory Block]'
A skeleton approaching me froze in confusion, unable to sense my life force once I blocked its senses. It just stood there blankly, having marched straight at me moments before.
First floor was a bitch, but second floor's a cakewalk?
*******************
"Works on undead too..."
Vivian was genuinely surprised watching Ian's skill in action. It affecting undead? They'd sense life force or vitality, so... intriguing stuff.
She itched to throw in a high-tier undead for him, but her role was pure observation—no interference.
Her curiosity about this new skill surging, Vivian unwittingly meddled with the exam system's setup to prep a powerful high undead. But the defense system kicked in, blocking her access.
-Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep...
"Tch."
As the defense alerted the exam's designers about her—excluding herself—she used her authority to restore the system.
Too bad. Might've seen something good with a high-tier undead.
****************
I tested [Sensory Block] on the next ghost just in case, and it worked fine. It wandered the air aimlessly, unable to detect me once I blocked its life sense.
Downside: no food sources. I had rations left, but constant [Regeneration] could burn through them. Wanted to stock up, but undead everywhere meant nothing edible. Even the plants were dead.
The area's thick cursed mana bumped my [Curse Resistance] up a level. It was only level 1 before, so easy gains, but it showed how curse-saturated this place was. With constant [Heavenly Touch], I barely noticed.
While scouting the second floor, I spotted a welcome monster.
-Clatter. Clatter.
"Skeleton mage?"
A skeleton mage, like the ones from the ruins. Not controlling others or wielding artifacts like before, but a mage was a mage.
"...!"
The moment it spotted me, its jaw clattered, and a black orb shot from its skull staff toward me. I tried [Sensory Block] just in case...
"...!"
But this skeleton mage had enough intelligence to blast magic my way even without detecting me directly. I triggered [Limit Break], dodged, closed in, and shattered its ribs with one sword swing.
"...!!"
Only as its body crumbled did it finally pinpoint me, twisting the staff at the last second to fire...
[Magic Resistance Lv.1]
[Attribute Resistance Lv.1]
I tanked it with resistances. Level 1 ones didn't nullify completely, but armor and resists reduced it to negligible damage.
"Oh."
With the skeleton mage down, I spotted the third-floor portal beyond. Didn't rush through—instead, I pitched my tent and prepped to camp.
Undead section on two was easiest for me thanks to [Sensory Block]. Time to rest properly.
********************
"Agh, seriously."
Maybe because the second floor felt too easy, the third floor turned into hell.
-Grind...
"Agh, why are they all non-living?!"
The third floor resembled shattered ruins, and from the debris emerged jointed doll-like enemies that attacked me. I'd prepped poison, but [Poison Arts] didn't work on inanimates. Turns out the knife's 'Curse of Decay' only affected living things after one test.
The silver lining...
'[Sensory Block]!'
-Clunk.
"It works!"
No clue why, but [Sensory Block] stuck on these dolls. What? Inanimates have senses? Never tried on tenth-floor stone golems, but surrounded by dolls, I cast it in frustration—and it landed.
Specifically, it blocked their 'mana detection' sense. No eyes or nose, so they sensed mana... Does mana detection count as a 'sense' regardless of living or not?
Seemed like alchemical or magitech puppets, but I lacked knowledge there...
Need to experiment later. Test on stone golems next labyrinth run.
Of course, [Sensory Block] landing didn't make fights easy. They'd auto-attack if I got close but stayed dormant otherwise, evading [Scouting].
But the real killer was...
-Bang!
"Fuck, why do they have guns?!"
These things sniped from range.