198. The Despair of Atraxium, the Legendary Dancer, the Being of the Void
198. The Despair of Atraxium, the Legendary Dancer, the Being of the Void
***
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
As the sound of the cave shaking grew louder, Serin made a quick decision.
Spinning around and sprinting across the ground, she carefully scanned the cave walls, floor, and ceiling as they flashed past.
The area was full of triggered traps, and there was nowhere suitable to hide.
When she spotted a relatively recessed section of wall, she threw herself toward it and immediately activated a skill.
—Ghost Dance.
Following the frantic motion of her hands as she began swinging the Crescent-Moon Weight at the cave wall, the blood-tinged weapon once again began its dance of destruction.
Boom, boom, boom, boom, BOOM!!
[What the hell is that??]
[Isn't that the thing?]
[What do you think it is, it's the sound of a boulder the size of a house rolling toward us lol]
[This is where the newbies get filtered out]
[Shouldn't she just go back the way she came?]
[Is Rin making the right call smashing the wall right now?]
[Dunno?]
Then, up ahead in the cave, its outline gradually came into view.
A boulder the size of a house, rolling forward with terrifying force.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
With the boulder bearing down fast, the entire cave was now literally vibrating.
Serin glanced at the sight, then swung the Crescent-Moon Weight like a woman possessed, her speed increasing even further.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each strike burst into a massive spray of blood-red light as the blade of the Crescent-Moon Weight hammered the cave wall without pause, shaking it with every impact, and gradually began carving out space.
Whoosh!
Once a large crack had spread across one section of the cave wall, Serin quickly reeled in the Crescent-Moon Weight and immediately activated her next skill.
—Explosive Spike.
KABOOM!!
The wall, already heavily cracked by Ghost Dance, burst open explosively from the Explosive Spike, and at the same moment Serin hurled herself toward the wall as fragments scattered through the air.
RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE!!!
Then the house-sized boulder thundered past, shaking the cave floor where Serin had just been standing.
Pressed flat against the shattered wall, Serin watched the scene and blinked.
If her judgment had been even slightly slower, she would have taken a direct hit from that boulder—or she would have had to turn all the way back down the path she'd come from, fleeing a boulder that only kept accelerating.
The house-sized boulder trap was one of the terrifying trap types, and it could never be met head-on with skills. It absolutely had to be avoided.
Rumble, rumble...
As the sound of the rolling boulder gradually faded into the distance, Serin let out a long breath and stepped out of the space. She brushed off the clumps of dirt and various debris covering her body.
Pat, pat.
She noticed the cave floor had a subtle slope. The thought that the boulder would have picked up even more speed if she hadn't carved out a place to dodge sent a chill through her.
"...Hah."
Shaking her head and dusting the dirt from her hair, Serin started walking again.
Ching! Clank! Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh! Whizz-whizz-whizz-whizz!
After that, countless traps triggered repeatedly, but Serin, fully tensed and on guard, didn't take a single direct hit.
And when the familiar sight of the fork in the road finally appeared in the distance, Serin stopped in her tracks and let out a laugh.
"Seriously. I'm so sick of this."
Her fed-up tone echoed hollowly.
She hadn't managed to avoid a few traps properly and had taken a certain amount of damage. A spear had pierced her shoulder, and a large scar had been carved into her side.
The countless blades that had grazed her neck still made her reach up and rub it for no reason.
Step.
And so, thinking at last it's over—the moment Serin relaxed and stepped toward the entrance of the fork.
CLANK!!
An unusually loud sound rang through the space.
"......"
Serin instantly looked down and stared blankly at her right foot.
A sound that was far too ominous.
She'd felt herself step on something, but right now she no longer felt anything under her foot.
If it were one of the usual traps, it should have gone off or activated immediately, but no phenomenon occurred.
What is this.
What on earth is it.
What does this sound even mean?
Why isn't it activating right away?
A landmine?
In the span of barely a second, all sorts of thoughts raced through Serin's mind.
[Clank... damn damn damn]
[Wow, even I'm getting chills just watching this, seriously;]
[The way Rin froze the second she heard that sound though]
[Don't tell me it's another trap?]
[This is genuinely creepy;]
[Another trap goes off right in front of the entrance?]
[That's just pure evil, seriously]
Serin glanced at the chat window. She had no idea what she'd stepped on.
In the first place, even in Black Ark, she'd rarely entered dungeons alone, so she wasn't particularly knowledgeable about traps. Specialists like thieves or rangers had handled anything trap-related, so Serin had never bothered to pay attention.
Steeling her nerves again, Serin activated a skill.
—Swift.
A red haze began to settle eerily over Serin's body.
She did think it was a trap, but no matter what, an unreasonable trap like a landmine that blew up your body the moment you lifted your foot made no sense.
That would be the kind of trap a user couldn't possibly counter.
The thought made Serin let out an involuntary chuckle. She wondered how many of the traps she'd faced so far had actually been reasonable... but still, she wanted to believe it wasn't something like a landmine.
After mulling it over, Serin slowly parted her lips.
"...Bloodstained Step."
At her voice, which echoed softly through the space, another change came over Serin's body as the red haze rose from her.
Her pale legs took on an even deeper blood-red tint.
With this, she was prepared to react no matter what situation came at her.
Even so, Serin was still agonizing over which of two options was correct.
—Should she burst forward and enter the fifth fork up ahead?
—Or should she pull back the way she was?
Thinking simply, the former—entering the fork—was clearly the right choice.
Because the moment she entered the fork, the Stage 4 trial would be over.
But this trap placed right in front of the fork's entrance felt like it was pushing her to do exactly that, and that made her hesitate to act.
This was no longer Stage 1 or Stage 2. This was Stage 4.
Would it really let her through that easily?
Considering the unusual activation mechanism and the loud sound, it had to be one of the 'terrifying' trap types.
Serin let out a small sigh and, after much deliberation, ultimately chose the latter. Once her mind was made up, her movements were incredibly fast.
Whoosh!
She kicked off the ground with force and threw herself backward.
SHRRRRRK!!
At the strange sound that rang out, Serin stared blankly at the sight before her eyes.
She hadn't blinked—she'd been watching everything—yet she couldn't even tell when it had activated. Blades burst out from every wall around the fork's entrance.
Dozens upon dozens of blades jutted out so densely they practically covered the entrance to the fork.
Serin stared at it and let out a hollow laugh of disbelief.
If she'd thought about it for even a moment less, she would have died a pointless death. And the trap had been placed precisely at the moment a person would let their guard down after reaching the end—she could practically feel the malice behind it.
"That's seriously too much."
[Wow lolololololol]
[That's genuinely vicious]
[If Rin had run forward she would've been skewered by that]
[No but how is anyone supposed to deal with that lololol]
[What even is Rin for seeing through that]
[When did those even come out?]
[I was watching the screen the whole time, when did those even appear]
The spear-blades that had shot out quickly turned into light and began to fade away.
Watching them vanish, Serin slowly started walking. She was still tense, but she didn't think there would be anything more here.
Step, step.
And so, when she entered the fifth fork without incident, Serin finally smiled brightly, as if she could relax at last.
"Finally, the last trial."
Having to think about psychological warfare while passing through a trap zone was exhausting in so many ways.
Then, suddenly, she imagined what it would have been like if she'd chosen option 1—having to break through a trap zone with far more terrifying traps—and shook her head.
She didn't even want to imagine it.
Ding!
And so the final hologram choice appeared.
The last choice at the Stage 5 fork was quite special, unlike the previous ones.
The number of options was different, and the difficulty came with additional explanations.
The rewards were just as extraordinary.
It had truly changed in every way.
"...Wow."
Even Serin, who rarely got surprised by anything, was momentarily speechless when she saw the options for the final Stage 5 trial.
***
*
————
Left.
Despair of Atraxium: Reward item rarity increases by 150%, and the minimum starting grade of reward items is adjusted to Unique.
—The Great Demonic Beast 'Kellashium', which destroyed Atraxium, the great city that once boasted a magnificent civilization, appears. The space transforms into the city of Atraxium.
Middle.
Legendary Dancer: The number of final reward items is 'unconditionally' reduced to 1, but a Mythic-grade item is guaranteed.
—The Chaldea Empire of the distant past. 'Daji', a Dancer-class hero and one of the Great Heroes who saved the nation, appears. The space transforms into the Chaldea Imperial Grand Banquet Hall.
Right.
Being of the Void: Place all items acquired so far into the Void Rift to craft one 'special' item suited to the user's class.
—Difficulty is close to 'impossible' for the user's current level. A Being of the Void appears, and the space transforms into the Void Dimension.
————
*
"...Guaranteed Mythic item?"
Minseong muttered, staring at the screen as if he couldn't believe it.
"Isn't Kellashium a large-scale raid that requires at least 20 people?"
Minha asked, puzzled, and Minseong nodded blankly.
"Yeah."
Even as he answered, Minseong's gaze was fixed on the Mythic item and the special item written in the rewards.
In Another World, for something to be emphasized as 'special' like that meant it was an item of rarity on par with Mythic grade.
"What's a Void monster? Minseong, do you know?"
"That... there's one dungeon even Jeanne d'Arc couldn't clear. From what I know, it's content the Another World side has left alone while they're still adjusting the difficulty."
"I've heard of people facing heroes in the Cave of Trials, but a Great Hero is a first."
Minha was puzzled by the phrase 'Great Hero', and Minseong was just as puzzled.
"The rewards and difficulty are all abnormal."
As he spoke, Minseong suddenly had a thought.
Cave of Trials —【Difficulty adjusted to the user's level】
The Cave of Trials measured difficulty by combining the user's level, equipment quality, skill proficiency, and everything else related to combat.
'Then just what level did it measure Rin at?'
From the moment the Grim Reaper appeared, the difficulty of the Cave of Trials Rin was challenging had already gone far beyond normal.
Thanks to the rewards and difficulty displayed on screen, even the chat window was practically exploding as messages flew upward.