Chapter 133
Chapter 133
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: Receive the New Recruits! (2)
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“Damn it! It’s got flame immunity!”
“Eek! This thing’s speed is insane!”
Mitty and Hamel, who had taken over fighting the Gluterni in Rokan’s place, immediately started groaning and screaming.
Yet, in a way that belied their complaints, they handled the creatures superbly. They might whine a lot, but their skills were the real deal.
“Freeze Trap, Pillar of Wind! Wind Cutter!”
Mitty made full use of his strengths. Using his gnome body, customized to be as small as possible, and the mage class’s ability to create variables, he began scouting, checking, and exploiting the enemy.
The Gluterni he was facing had been designed to take no fire damage, and unfortunately, fire magic was Mitty’s specialty. But he wasn’t limited to fire spells alone, so he bound its feet, restricted its movements, and dealt damage to probe for weaknesses.
Squeeee!
“Ow!”
Meanwhile, Hamel the half-elf was similar yet different from Mitty. Instead of shrinking his size through customization, he had made himself as “thin” as possible.
Hamel, who had thinned his already slender half-elf frame to near-skeleton levels, rendered the Gluterni’s rapier thrusts futile. Attacks with narrow hitboxes just couldn’t connect against someone so thin.
“Hammer of Light!”
“Counter Attack.”
On the other hand, Hamel’s weapons were blunt instruments.
The moment heavy, superhuman strength—unexpected from such a thin frame—smashed down on the Gluterni, its body twisted around. It countered as if it had been waiting, finally landing a hit.
Pffft!
Blood spurted from Hamel’s deeply pierced body. But his face, which should have been contorted in pain, only wore a mischievous grin.
Sizzle!
The wound closed up in an instant. It wasn’t just stopping the bleeding—flesh miraculously reattached itself in a display of phenomenal regeneration.
“It tickles, you bastard!”
It was regeneration ability so immense that calling him a troll wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
Combined with the user-exclusive pain reduction effect, Hamel suffered no psychological damage and swung his hammer again. The sight was downright terrifying.
‘Just as I thought.’
What exactly was Hamel’s true nature? Despite customization suited for evasion, his main class was “Paladin.”
A “Paladin of Life,” specialized in healing and regeneration, no less.
True to a Paladin who revered the World Tree as his god, he had ballooned his vitality with the Blessing of Life, poured all his abilities into regeneration and recovery, and covered himself in combination skills, creation skills, and titles all related to life. His nickname was “Living Zombie.” An even more famous moniker was “Holy Cockroach.”
A Paladin with cockroach-like vitality that refused to die no matter how many times you killed him! Maximizing racial and class traits to their limits—that was his fighting style.
“Verdict of Light! Hammer of Judgment!”
Thwack!
A beam of light shot from Hamel’s left hand, binding the Gluterni’s body. It lowered all resistances and amplified incoming damage. Then came the devastating blow on top!
In that instant, damage exploded, and part of its body burst apart. It was the power of amplification, distinct from a critical hit.
“Good. This level’s decent enough. You pass.”
While Hamel landed a few more hits to silence his foe, Mitty had fully subdued his own Gluterni.
Mana consumption had been considerable, but he had geared for mana regen with that in mind, so most of it had already recovered.
Rokan had already guessed their combat styles and skills, but he confirmed they were quite capable—even if not quite at their past-life peaks.
At this level, they wouldn’t hinder his plans. They only needed to shine in one battle anyway.
“Aaah! Thank you! Leave it to us!”
“Hehehehe, you flatter us. These guys have special traits, but their other combat abilities are average. If you entrust them to us, we’ll do our—”
“No, I’ll take it from here.”
The two beamed at Rokan’s praise-disguised-as-praise.
But Rokan had no intention of leaving everything to them. He shoved aside the pair, who approached like puppies begging for pets, and blocked the Gluterni horde charging from afar.
“Eek!”
“My God, all those are the same kind as before?”
Leaving the two with trembling pupils behind, Rokan strolled toward the enemies.
He had already checked each one’s traits via their names. No physical resistance, so he casually swung his axe.
“Whirlwind.”
Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!
He began mercilessly shredding the magical lifeforms that charged confidently.
“......”
“......”
Mitty and Hamel, spectating the gruesome slaughter, were speechless. They knew Rokan was strong, but this overwhelming?
They could claim relatively easy hunts after figuring out traits, but this was like watching a high-level player wrecking a low-level zone.
For a moment, they wondered if these were different from what they fought, but no—they were the real deal. Rokan was just overwhelmingly stronger.
“Let’s go.”
Rokan, having butchered the Gluterni in a flash, cleared the path with a nonchalant face. The level gap was huge to begin with, and this was just the entrance.
Like with the shamans, this place was littered with failed experiments.
“Wheel Wind!”
Rokan had no plans to deal with them one by one. He herded and mulched them instead.
“As expected of Rokan!”
“Monster......”
Meanwhile, the two handled the few stragglers Rokan missed. More practiced now, but nowhere near his hunting speed.
By bulldozing every Gluterni in sight with overwhelming force, they reached stairs leading to the next floor, as befitting a dungeon layout.
‘Nice haul.’
Before the stairs down, Rokan glanced at his inventory. What did these alchemy-born homunculi drop?
[Flame Essence × 7]
[Earth Essence × 4]
[Magic Resistance Potion × 3]
[Physical Resistance Potion × 2]
Alchemy materials and potions, indeed. Plenty of rare consumables hard to obtain normally.
But what Rokan truly wanted hadn’t dropped yet.
‘Maybe next floor?’
Rummaging through hazy memories, he descended another floor. Similar to the first, but with even stranger ones.
[Gluterni of Flame and Frost][Lv 265]
A 10-level jump was minor. The key was multiple traits now.
Some had three or four, and combos like physical and magic resistance were possible. Rokan warned the two and advanced first.
Wheel Wind wouldn’t cut it anymore.
But against Rokan’s combat power, they weren’t hard. He cleared faster than Mitty and Hamel had on the first floor.
And as hunting got tougher, alchemy item drops increased.
[Acquired Intermediate Growth Potion.]
[Acquired Intermediate Experience Potion.]
‘Yes!’
Finally, slaying a giant Gluterni, Rokan got what he wanted.
Intermediate Growth Potion: Boosts EXP gain by 50% for a duration.
Intermediate Experience Potion: Grants massive EXP instantly on use.
Any user would covet them, but Rokan had a specific reason.
‘This’ll speed things up.’
It could dramatically advance a certain quest.
“Woo! Level up!”
“Me too! Me too!”
While Rokan filled his pockets, Mitty and Hamel partied like it was a holiday. Party settings shared some of his hunting EXP.
With the huge level gap and speed, their mid-230s levels rose multiple times easily.
In The Lord, where achievements and titles mattered long-term, it wasn’t ideal, but a few levels wouldn’t hurt, so they rejoiced.
Unaware of how they’d soon regret it.
“Get ready.”
Gulp.
They cleared the second floor easily too. Pure bus-riding, but facing the third-floor entry, Rokan spoke meaningfully.
Ready for what?
“Wha—aaaargh!”
No time for questions—their bodies were sucked into the third floor. Rokan had shoved their backs.
Unlike prior floors, the entrance was a drop hole.
[You have arrived at the Altar of Pain.]
[Will you offer a sacrifice and pass?]
As they barely regained balance, an unknown prompt appeared. While the two gawked at “altar sacrifice,” Rokan shoved again.
He flung Hamel out of the magic circle.
“Waaah! Rokan!”
Bewildered Hamel turned back, but the system explained.
[Sacrifice offered.]
[You face the Trial of Pain. There is one way to overcome the Trial of Pain. Survive.]
“Just hold out till the boss fight ends.”
Rokan added his final words.
This Trial of Pain wasn’t meant to be cleared. But if they survived till Rokan beat the boss, he’d snag another unbelievable survival title.
Grrrrr.
“......Hedgehog?”
Then, this floor’s star appeared.
[Gluterni of Thorn Armor][Lv 270]
A Gluterni covered in porcupine-like spines. But its true trait wasn’t just “thorns.”
“Argh, whatever. Charge!”
Seeing his abandoned comrades heading to the next floor, Hamel bit his lip. No choice but to fight.
He ignited his will and stamped it with Light Brand to amplify damage.
“Hammer of Light!”
Crack.
“......Guh!”
Pffft.
The moment he shattered its charging spines and drove in the hammer, Hamel’s body bent into a ㄱ from the impact. Then the thorn counter.
Sharp spines pierced holes, burrowing in, but Hamel reflexively retreated, avoiding lethal damage.
“What the hell?”
He could only push it back and focus on healing, not daring another attack. A brief clash, but something clicked.
“No way, damage reflection?”
Damage he dealt matched what he took on hit. Even the smashed skin and broken spines had regenerated.
Was this its trait? Reflecting attacks?
Hamel’s face hardened with resolve.
“Hammer of Judgment!”
Whoosh. Thud!
He tested again.
“Urk!”
This time, he reacted faster. He pulled back before the follow-up, enduring the pain.
His eyes stayed glued, capturing the wound, smash, and heal cycle perfectly.
“Ugh, should I call this lucky?”
He figured it out. A guess, but nailed it. Its traits.
Thorns, Damage Reflection, and Regeneration.
It reflected damage but took it too—just healed fast.
Mana drained on heals, but they’d run out of life first.
Unless it was Hamel.
“Fine, let’s see who drops first!”
In that moment, Hamel’s expression mirrored Rokan’s.