Chapter 67
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Minos
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Bang!
The glaive slammed into the ground. At the same time, a shockwave rippled out in all directions.
“Guh! What the hell is this?”
“It’s a shockwave, Master! During a shockwave, it’s best to stay off the ground.”
“Damn, to think it’s pulling out skills like this right from the start... From 3-stars onward, these things might as well be boss-level monsters.”
If the naga specialized in swamp terrain and Centaurus Khan had reached the pinnacle of mobility, Minos was raw power incarnate.
It would hunker down like a turtle, then swing its glaive like lightning, sending shockwaves through the area each time.
“G-Gh... w-water...”
Gobling trembled in fear. No, it wasn’t just Gobling—even Pork and the other orcs were frozen stiff.
The hierarchy among monsters was absolute. That gap only widened with higher ranks.
That was why the monsters weren’t charging at me like they used to.
Now that my presence had reached 3-star level, they couldn’t even muster the nerve to attack.
“Everyone, fall back!”
In the end, dealing with Minos was on me.
“Perfect timing, actually. I’ve been itching for a worthy opponent.”
I’d leveled up plenty while kiting lizardmen, but my real combat senses had dulled in the process.
Since things had turned out this way, I planned to test every technique I’d picked up against this Minos.
I started, as always, with a dart toss.
Whoosh-whoosh!
The darts flew straight for its vitals. But Minos didn’t even bother blocking.
Clang! Clang-clang!!
Its body was so tough it rang like metal on metal. If darts bounced off like that, even a shuriken probably wouldn’t penetrate.
‘Still, a sling should deal some damage.’
But every time I tried to whirl the sling, that damn shockwave shook the ground.
A sling relies on maintaining centrifugal force, but the shockwaves were too powerful to keep it spinning.
“Moooo!!”
Minos smashed the ground again. I could see the shockwave racing toward me along the earth.
‘You think I’ll fall for it twice?’
I timed my jump perfectly. But as if it had been waiting, the beast lowered its horns and charged.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
A earth-shaking charge. Getting hit by that would punch a hole straight through my chest.
“Tch!”
No choice—I dropped the sling strap and grabbed its horns with both hands. Then I pulled my knees to my chest, curling into a ball.
“Diablo Jump!”
With a quiet mutter, I thrust both feet out with all my strength, slamming them into Minos’s crown.
Bang!
A thunderous boom echoed as Minos staggered back. Even so, it swung its glaive in retaliation.
But I was already gone. I’d activated ‘Leap’ mid-kick, launching myself high into the air.
Swish—
I twisted 180 degrees, standing on my hands in midair as I drew the meteor hammer from my waist.
One end had a shuriken, the other a heavy weight—an asymmetrical meteor hammer floated before me.
‘I’ll hit it with the weight.’
The shuriken was too weak to pierce Minos’s hide. Better to use the weight for maximum impact.
Whirr-whirr—
The rapidly spinning meteor hammer plummeted toward Minos’s crown—aimed right at the spot I’d kicked earlier.
KABOOM!!
Blood trickled from its crown. Minos’s eyes rolled up, its tongue lolling halfway out.
It looked like it had taken a solid hit. Time to finish it—I reached into my inventory. A gentle breeze began to stir.
“Gentle Breeze!”
Using my falling momentum, I swung the axe down.
Crack!
The sensation of something thick shattering transmitted through my palms. Moments later, the bull-headed beast collapsed, foaming at the mouth, its skull split open.
“Whew. If you can dodge the shockwaves, it’s not that hard to win. The problem is...”
I let out a small sigh as I eyed the pitch-black staircase ahead.
“How the hell do you dodge shockwaves in there?”
What chance did you have against shockwaves in a labyrinth packed wall-to-wall?
Outside, you could leap sky-high or swing a meteor hammer freely—but not inside.
‘Fight with Gentle Breeze? No, that’s too disadvantageous.’
Battling a massive bull monster wielding a glaive with short-range throwing axes was idiotic.
A meteor hammer wouldn’t work either—the space was too cramped. I needed something between an axe and a meteor hammer in length.
‘Maybe... try a spear?’
Truth be told, through steady spars with Branch Chief Park Byung-su, I’d picked up a few spear techniques.
They were just things I’d glimpsed over his shoulder, so I couldn’t be sure how well they’d work.
‘Still, worth a shot.’
I turned to Moe-chan.
“Moe-chan, take everyone back to the Demon King’s Castle. I’ll handle things from here solo.”
“Huh? But Master...”
“Even if you came along, you’d just take more damage. I don’t want to see any of you get hurt.”
“Then let me at least. I’m a spirit body anyway—I’m immune to physical attacks.”
“No, if you don’t guide them, those guys won’t make it back safe. You think Gobling or Pork memorized the way?”
“...No.”
“That’s why I’m asking you. You know the path, you can lead them, and you can cast illusions too.”
“...Understood, Master. I’ll get them back safely. So please, take care of yourself.”
“Ha-i!”
“You can’t stay serious for even a minute, Master...”
Moe-chan stared at me with the worried gaze of a mom sending her kid on an errand, then led the raid party back the way we’d come.
“Hmm. Alright. Time to dive into the labyrinth for real.”
Gripping Gentle Breeze and the spear in each hand, I slowly descended the stairs.
* * *
Bang!
The shockwave started at the ground, flowed along the walls, growing stronger until it filled the passage.
‘Guh! It’s a world of difference from fighting outside!’
I’d thought Minos was strong regardless of terrain, but I needed to revise that.
This thing was optimized for labyrinths.
‘And that charge skill. It’s several times stronger than an orc’s.’
Whenever I lost balance from a shockwave, Minos would charge in like a ghost.
Staring down a Minos filling the passage as it barreled toward me, I had no idea how to dodge.
‘That’s it! Counter with a spear wall!’
Dodging was hopeless. I gripped the spear tight and braced myself.
Fortunately, the spear was longer than its horns. If I could withstand the impact, victory would be mine.
Bang!!
“Gahk!”
I held... but the recoil snapped my arms.
‘Damn, I shouldn’t have called orcs stupid. The impact is no joke!’
But Minos wasn’t unscathed either. The instant the spear pierced its crown, it was done for.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Even dead, inertia kept it charging. Its twin horns speared toward my chest.
I had to dodge fast, but the shock left my body unresponsive. The ground still shook, my limbs trembled.
Boom!
Minos’s horns finally struck home.
Blech!
I tried to scream, but blood welled up in my chest and choked it off. My breath caught; my vision went red.
“Ngh!”
Ducking my head, I saw the horns embedded in my sides. Those long horns had snapped off, a third of them lodged in me.
I struggled to pull them out, but the corpse wouldn’t budge. It had pinned me down in its collapse.
I tried lifting it, but with broken arms and a gut wound, I had no strength.
‘Damn it, I can’t die like this. I have super regeneration. If I can just pull out the horns, I’ll recover somehow.’
Crack!
I clenched my teeth so hard a molar shattered. Amid the pain, I somehow raised my legs to shove it off.
The horns inched out, bit by bit. Agony like nothing else.
‘Ugh... uuuugh.’
The pain was so bad my teeth chattered. No—my whole body shook. But I kept pushing with my quivering legs.
Finally, the horns came free.
Pop!
‘Seriously, what a ridiculous sound effect.’
It was straight out of an anime—I couldn’t help but chuckle despite myself. Meanwhile, my body regenerated rapidly.
[Recovery: 36.7%]
[HP: 47(-36.7%)]
Damage over 36%. A miracle I hadn’t gone into shock.
“Hah! Hah! Thought I was a goner for real.”
My body had healed, but the pain and memory lingered. Cold sweat drenched me.
“Ngh!”
Leaning on the spear, I rose and eyed Minos’s corpse. I’d underestimated it as just another 3-star like the naga—nearly paid with my life.
“But the EXP is generous.”
Two Minos had pushed my EXP past 20%. Nearly 10% per kill.
“Even so, I can’t keep hunting like this.”
Even with recovery, my mental stamina wouldn’t hold out.
To hunt Minos, I needed a way to endure the shockwaves first.
“Guess I’ll head home for now.”
* * *
I was hurt so bad I spent a full day resting at home. Thinking it over, I realized I needed to see Branch Chief Park Byung-su.
“Power is everything for a man! Especially lower body strength! Spear arts are the same—stable legs are what transmit power to the tip.”
It was something he’d say all the time.
When I’d asked him to teach me spear arts before, he’d insisted on starting with lower body training—I’d been terrified.
Maybe he’d have some trick up his sleeve.
“...What brings you here?”
Park Byung-su, whom I hadn’t seen in ages, greeted me with an unusually listless face. He wasn’t exactly lively to begin with, but today he looked especially down.
‘Huh? Something bad happen? Should I come back later?’
Truth be told, I felt guilty for turning down his repeated recruitment offers.
I hadn’t even visited the training hall lately, so asking for spear lessons now felt awkward.
‘No, what if the labyrinth wave hits? No choice—gotta suck it up and ask.’
Like Jeong Dae-man bowing before Teacher Ahn, I hung my head low.
“Branch Chief! Spear arts... I want to learn spear arts!”
“Uh, huh? What’s that about?”
“I’ve always wanted to learn your spear arts, Branch Chief. But after refusing recruitment, asking for lessons felt too shameless—I couldn’t bring myself to ask.”
“Wait, is that why you haven’t come around lately? Because you felt bad about me?”
His gloomy face lit up. He stared at me, looking deeply moved.
His gaze was so intense I rolled my eyes away.
“Uh, y-yeah?”
“Yeah? ...Y-yeah?”
“Anyway! No matter how hard I try to forget, the image of you whirling that trident won’t leave my head. That’s why I’m here.”
“R-Really? It was that cool?”
“Yes! So please, shameless as it is, teach me spear arts, Branch Chief!”
“Ahem. Well, if that’s the case, I suppose I must. It’s not that big a deal. No, it’s an impressive art, but it’s nothing special for me.”
“Thank you!”
“But!”
I swallowed hard, bracing for his condition. What came out was unexpected.
“From today, call me Master. Then I’ll teach you.”
“Yes! Master!”
“Kuhahaha! Good, good! Love that crisp response! Hahaha!”
Who knew a few words would seal the deal? Branch Chief—no, Master—was more human than I’d thought.
“Alright. Grab your weapon and head up. Time’s short—let’s start.”
“Yes!”
Exactly what I’d hoped for.
Before Black Bear’s expedition hit the labyrinth, I needed the skill to handle Minos freely.
“The essence of spear arts is...”
“The essence?”
“Right here in these legs.”
Master tapped my legs with his trident shaft, spreading them apart.
“A low, stable stance—one that can withstand any shake—that’s the foundation of spear arts.”
“A stance that withstands any shake...”
That was the answer I’d been seeking.