Chapter 17
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: The Skeleton Knight
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Swoosh-
A desolate wind swirled up from the stairs leading underground.
In the pitch-black darkness, Yuhyeon relied on his lantern as he slowly walked forward.
I would've been in big trouble without this.
If he hadn't received the lantern from Charles, it wouldn't have been surprising if something terrible had happened.
This place was so dark you truly couldn't see an inch in front of your face.
What kind of monster will appear?
Just before entering the labyrinth, Yuhyeon had used the community system to do some research on the dungeon.
They said dungeon mobs are unconditionally given the first strike.
Field mobs included non-aggressive monsters that don't attack users first.
The hunting grounds near the starting town were particularly famous for having only non-aggressive monsters.
This was a consideration from the game developers to help players easily adapt to hunting.
I think they said dungeons are meant for level 15 and up, at a minimum.
I heard that for dungeons teeming with aggressive mobs, you're supposed to form a party starting from level 15.
Dividing roles, with someone to draw aggro, someone to deal damage, and someone to heal or provide ranged support.
I heard that without dividing roles, it's impossible to withstand the onslaught of the aggressive monsters.
And now, Yuhyeon had to handle it all by himself.
At level 1, no less.
What's more, he had no information about the dungeon.
In other words, he had to fight in a place with a higher difficulty than a normal hunting ground, and without any information.
It was no different from listening to a song by ear and performing it without any sheet music.
The first players must have all gone through trials like this. That means someone has managed to do it.
Despite that, Yuhyeon's competitive spirit burned brighter than his anxiety.
The rankers were able to surge ahead not just because they obtained legendary rewards, but more so because they had the strength to overcome such trials.
Why can't I do it too? I'll find out once I face it head-on.
If he just kept trying, a moment would surely come when he found the answer.
Eventually, his vision began to adjust to the dungeon.
There's something over there!
At that moment, he realized a pair of white, glowing eyes were staring at him.
Instinctively certain it was a monster, Yuhyeon drew the iron sword from his waist.
Shing.
The sound of the longsword scraping against its scabbard echoed through the dungeon.
Soon, the darkness receded, and the source of the glowing eyes slowly revealed itself.
Grrr.
It appeared to be about 180cm tall, and with every step, the sound of bones clattering could be heard.
A creature of nothing but bare bonesa Skeleton.
Yuhyeon assumed a middle guard stance, signaling his readiness for battle.
They said this is the most basic monster in dungeons.
According to his research, the first monster to appear in a level 15 dungeon was the Skeleton.
It was a familiar creature to anyone, but it also meant there was a 15-level gap between it and Yuhyeon.
For now, it was time to be defensive and assess the opponent.
Screeech.
The Skeleton dragged its sword along the ground as it slowly entered his range.
Its sluggish movements were just like watching the scarecrow from the special training.
Just as Yuhyeon was thinking that.
Thump.
The Skeleton suddenly kicked off the ground and lunged toward Yuhyeon.
It had switched the sword at its hip to a two-handed grip and brought it crashing down toward his head.
Clang!
Yuhyeon reflexively blocked the Skeleton's attack with an upward slash.
It knows how to jump?
He had never imagined a Skeleton would suddenly kick off the ground and leap at him.
If he hadn't already been in position, he would have taken the hit.
Right now, while the Skeleton's attack has failed!
Yuhyeon used the force from parrying the attack to execute a downward slash of his own.
Perhaps because he had already experienced it with the scarecrow, the entire sequence of movements felt incredibly natural.
Soon, Yuhyeon's iron sword struck the Skeleton's skull squarely.
You have succeeded in a Perfect Stance, activating Powerful Slash.
Inflicting 150 additional damage!
Thwack!
With a dull thud, a large crack appeared on the skeleton's white skull.
The immense impact of its skull splitting caused the skeleton to stagger.
You have dealt a fatal blow to the Skeleton!
The monster has entered a groggy state.
Groggy state!
Yuhyeon's eyes lit up.
He'd heard that just as humans can't move after a fatal injury, mobs in a groggy state are immobilized for a few seconds.
This meant it was a golden opportunity to attack without restraint.
Scree.
The iron sword, held high in both hands, descended with ferocious speed toward the skeleton's head.
A moment later, with a loud noise, the Skeleton's head split in two.
Crack!
You have defeated a Skeleton Soldier.
You have gained a large amount of experience for defeating a stronger monster.
.
.
Your level has increased by 1.
You have acquired 1 Skill Point.
A flood of message windows appeared before Yuhyeon's eyes.
A level up from just one kill.
Not only had he leveled up, but his experience bar was already up by nearly 12.
It seemed the combination of the first-dungeon buff and killing a high-level monster resulted in an explosive amount of experience.
Heh.
Yuhyeon clenched his fist tightly.
Not only had he succeeded in his first hunt, but he had done so nearly perfectly, without a single scratch.
Perhaps he could clear this dungeon more easily than he'd thought.
I'll save the stat points for now and pick a skill first.
Yuhyeon carefully recalled the words Sangcheol had told him.
He had definitely said there was a formula-like set of skills to learn up to level 10.
That beginners should prioritize learning the common skills used by all classes.
Bash? My damage is good enough, so I'll save that for later. For now, let's go with Critical Hit.
Among them, Yuhyeon chose the Critical Hit skill.
Since his Perfect Slashes were already dealing plenty of damage, there was no need to fixate on an attack skill.
You have learned Critical Hit!
Critical Hit: 20 chance to inflict 200 additional damage to an enemy. The chance of a Critical Hit increases dramatically when attacking an opponent's weak spot.
The interesting part was that the chance increased dramatically when attacking an opponent's weak spot.
Perhaps this was the reason why real-life martial artists and gold medalists were so strong.
With a superior physique and dynamic visual acuity, attacking an opponent's weak spots would be that much easier.
Well then, shall we keep going?
Yuhyeon murmured, lightly gripping his iron sword.
His expression was much lighter compared to when he had first entered the dungeon.
I can do this.
What process had he gone through to defeat the Skeleton just now?
He had blocked the opponent's attack and used its force to counterattack.
This was something he had already experienced once before with the scarecrow.
The instructor's teachings work everywhere.
This was the moment that proved Olsen's teachings were effective not just against scarecrows, but anywhere.
Now that he realized that, there was nothing to fear.
With eyes full of conviction, Yuhyeon moved forward.
Thwack!
You have gained a small amount of experience for defeating a monster.
Crack!
Critical Hit has been activated!
You have gained a small amount of experience for defeating a monster.
Hoo.
Yuhyeon caught his breath, wiping the beads of sweat from his forehead with his hand.
The lifeless Skeleton Soldier lay collapsed before him.
I think I've killed about twenty of them now.
He seemed to have reached the center of the dungeon, or somewhere deep within it.
When he turned to look back, there was no sign of the entrance, only distant darkness.
I've already hit level 7.
He had managed to raise his level all the way to 7 on his way here.
Considering it took an average of one or two days to leave the starting town, this was explosive growth.
This was because he had continuously defeated Skeletons that were many times stronger than him.
It wasn't just his level that had gained experience.
Sword Mastery (C-Rank): Inflict 140 damage when attacking with swords. Attack speed increases by 8.
The instructor did say I would grow quickly with practical training.
While fighting the Skeletons, his Sword Mastery had also grown to C-Rank.
When he had raised it through training, it had taken over a full day. Compared to that, this growth was unbelievable.
Once their pattern was figured out, the Skeletons were no longer a match for Yuhyeon.
All he had to do was block or parry, then attack, so it wasn't particularly difficult.
It was actually easier because the Skeletons always attacked first.
The monster's first strike, which other players struggled with, was actually an advantage for Yuhyeon.
Because the monsters came to him first, he was able to attack and defend from a perfect stance.
The Skeletons, with their high attack power but simple patterns, had turned out to be the perfect practice opponents for Yuhyeon.
It was then.
Ting!
All Skeleton Soldiers have been defeated. An Elite Monster will now appear.
Groooaaan.
From the distance, a chilling voice spread out along with a desolate aura.
It had an aura on a completely different level from the monsters he had faced so far.
A being several times larger than the other Skeleton Soldiers, clad in full plate mail from head to toe.
It stood tall in its spot, exuding the calm confidence of the strong as it glared at him.
Skeleton Knight
It was the Elite Monster, the Skeleton Knight.
The boss monster that appears after defeating a certain number of monsters in a dungeon!
Elite Monsters were beings whose attack power and health were anywhere from several to tens of times greater than normal monsters.
And its grade is black. Black means it's a top-tier Elite Monster.
Their health and attack power varied by grade, and the black grade signified it was among the highest tier of Elite Monsters.
In other words, its health and attack power were tens of times stronger than a regular Skeleton Soldier.
Of course, the rewards were also far superior to a normal mob's, but that was only if you could actually beat it.
Even a regular Skeleton was a much higher level than me.
After a moment's hesitation, Yuhyeon gripped his sword and took a middle guard stance.
What kind of strategy would be best to take down that monster?
Let's not overthink this.
He had made it this far simply by following Olsen's teachings to the letter.
See, block, parry, and attack. It was perhaps the simplest, yet most effective method.
Was there any reason to handle an Elite Monster differently?
I'll just do what I always do.
The moment Yuhyeon resolved to show what he did best.
The Skeleton Knight glared at him, its ominous eyes glowing.
Groooaaan.
The standoff between the two stretched on endlessly.
The Skeleton Knight stood its ground, showing no intention of approaching.
It just stood there tall, as if blocking the path, and stared this way.
It has no intention of moving.
Until now, Yuhyeon had always fought by turning his opponent's attacks against them.
And now, for the first time, a monster that wouldn't attack first had appeared before him.
Looks like I have to go to it.
Either way, having come this far, he had no intention of backing down.
If it wouldn't come to him, then he would just have to break through.
After a moment of thought, Yuhyeon tightened his grip on his sword and steadied his breath.
I just have to do what I've been doing, but on the move.
Thump!
Kicking off the ground, Yuhyeon leaped forward, his sword aimed at the Skeleton Knight's head.