Jeonbung-i
I took down the golem without much fuss, but honestly, the three of them weren't all that impressive. Sure, their specs were lower than mine and their attack power was weak—that's just par for the course, so I won't nitpick. No, it was everything outside of specs that sucked.
I couldn't really judge Kim Jin-a, the mage, but the two up front were the problem. First off, Kim Jin-seok, the level 45 gladiator. Even with a dedicated tank, who the fuck dual-wields swords? Back on Floor 3, I experimented with all sorts of weapon arts, including dual swords. Didn't take long to realize it had zero practical value, so I dropped it. Dual-wielding is for shitheads.
Forget the demerit of ditching a shield— you just can't effectively use two swords at once. People think it'll double your attack patterns and let you unleash flashy combos, but that's pure fantasy. It actually makes your movements way more rigid than wielding a single two-handed sword. With a two-hander, you can flow endlessly with subtle wrist and elbow flicks. Dual swords? You'd have to twist your whole goddamn body like a lunatic just to chain anything decent.
I tried every which way to maximize both blades, but the punchline? The best result was using one sword purely for offense and the other just for defense. In other words, dual swords are a strict downgrade from sword-and-board. Sure, you could mix different-length swords for surprise attacks... but hell, if you're going that route, swap one for a hand axe—way more unpredictable and versatile.
And get this: Kim Jin-seok's dual swords were two identical longswords. If they'd been shortswords, maybe there'd be some merit, but nope. The kicker? He carries a small buckler too. Says he switches to sword-and-board when he needs to tank instead of DPS. What a joke.
Next, the level 44 holy knight asshole. That prick's just toting a hammer for show. Focusing purely on tanking isn't bad, but even when he had openings to land solid hits with it, he never swings. Just holds up his shield one-handed and blocks on repeat. If that's all you're gonna do, why not ditch the hammer for a two-handed shield? I'd buy it more if that "hammer" was actually a hammer-shaped wand.
And their shared issue: overusing skills. Sure, you gotta spam 'em to level proficiency, but even accounting for that, they waste them constantly. Mastery skills trigger automatically once you start the motion—meaning no mid-animation tweaks. Lucky for them there was only one golem each time, but what if another jumped in? How the hell would they adapt?
Beyond that, every damn move in combat was sloppy as shit. They fought like it was a given their party would cover their asses. You could call it "trust" if you wanna sugarcoat it, but to me, it just screamed vulnerable to variables.
Is this just 'cause I'm a solo player? Who knows.
After that, golems popped up one by one at regular intervals, blocking the path. The trio handled them with their own combos each time, and the loot was pretty decent.
This time, one golem dropped three items. Kim Jin-a lit up at the loot.
"Whoa, another fragment? That's three already—jackpot!"
"Drops a lot, huh?"
"Yeah, normally in this level dungeon, you only get 2-3 from the boss."
She was bouncing around, saying we'd gotten super lucky with three before even hitting the boss. "Do I have a luck buff or something? Why's it dropping so well?"
Oh, right. I'd forgotten. I chug White Rolls every meal, so I'm always rocking that luck buff. When I told her, she freaked out even more, saying that explained the insane drops. She went on about luck totems and how glad she was I'd joined, squealing like a fangirl.
"Jin-hyeok, you don't have to do a thing today—just stick that luck buff on us and you're pulling double duty!"
The holy knight prick pulled a sour face, but I ignored him. What're you gonna do about it? I get why he's salty, but understanding doesn't mean I gotta play nice. He hasn't crossed any real lines yet, so I'm letting it slide... but keep being a dick, and I won't hold back.
A bit later, as we walked with hyped-up Kim Jin-a, shit hit the fan.
-Rumble!
The ruins' floor started shaking. Like when a golem spawns, but on a massive scale. The holy knight snapped up his shield and hammer, Kim Jin-seok drew his dual swords... sigh, dual swords make me sigh every time.
Anyway. No clue where monsters might pop, so we circled Kim Jin-a in the center.
-Boom!
The quaking floor cracked open with a deafening roar. A massive hand rose from the split—looked just like the golems' we'd fought.
But that wasn't all. More hands emerged one by one, until full golems hauled themselves up, surrounding us slowly. Same as before: one, two, three, four, five, six... damn, that's a lot.
"W-what the hell...? Trap? No strategy post mentioned this!"
Kim Jin-a panicked at the horde. Figures—variables break her brain.
The Tower of Trials has been fully conquered for over a decade, but Festival mini-dungeons? Different story. Events like this only run every three years for a short window, so strategies aren't solid. Even leaked info wouldn't cover rare-ass systems like this.
"Jin-a, behind me!"
The holy knight yanked her back, shield forward. Still posing even now? This screams "tank up front and clear a path." What good's hunkering down gonna do?
Actually, perfect. Stay shielded and hide, then.
-Step.
I fiddled with my sword, then stepped forward. The holy knight suddenly barked.
"What the fuck you doing, solo scrub?! Suicidal much?!"
Oh? Telling me to hang back? Dickish, but maybe not a total asshole after all?
"I ain't dying, so chill, holy roller fuck."
I smirked, pulling a heavy iron ball from inventory.
Throwing's been a staple since Floor 1—one of my go-to attacks. As a solo scrub, I needed ranged options, whatever worked.
This iron ball's junk from Floor 6—sells for peanuts. But paired with my honed Throwing skill? Stronger than most weapons.
Opponents: big, dumb golems with a clear weak spot—the chest core. Tough enough for two of Kim Jin-a's magic missiles to shatter. Don't know her exact power, but party average gives a rough idea.
Shoulders tensed, I hurled the iron ball with everything I had.
-Bang!
It exploded like a bomb, pulverizing the core golem's chest. As expected—my throws outdamage her spells. Sheathed the sword, grabbed more balls from inventory.
-Bang! Bang! Bang!
One toss, one golem down. "Level 40-50," my ass—these trash mobs were weak as hell. Cores too fragile; takes full power to one-shot, and it's iron balls, not pebbles... but still.
Yeah, I could've solo-cleared this easy.
Who dares cause chaos in my temple!
Once I'd smashed every golem that crawled up, a golden statue-like figure burst through the cracks where their hands had emerged.
I drew my sword again.
"B-boss! Let's fight too—hurry!"
"Nah, just stay put."
I waved off Kim Jin-a trying to jump in late. Help now? No thanks. Watch the solo scrub do his thing.