Ascension Through Skills

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: Don't accept it.] [Kang Junhyeok[Solo]: Hmm… It's tempting... Can't I do anything about it?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: Lee Taeyeon is too scared, which is a problem, but you have no fear, which is also a problem. I'll give you a simple example. You were too scared to earn Endurance, weren't you?] [Kang Junhyeok[Solo]: Yes. How can I possibly get it?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: If you accept, you might get it.] [Kang Junhyeok[Solo]: What does that mean... Ah.] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: It's either get it or die. It's one or the other. Accept the quest if you're confident.]

First, he checked the dagger, and the information window for the dagger appeared.

[Slightly Rusted Dagger] [[Attack Power + 1] [It seems usable, to some extent]

Its attack power was the same as the rusted sword. This dagger, which had a faster attack speed, was superior in performance. However, he didn’t switch to it.

Goblins used weapons, and when fighting with the same weapons, reach had a greater value than attack speed.

But it’s not a bad weapon. It should be useful in close combat. Taesan placed the dagger in his inventory and checked the small shield.

[Wooden Shield] [Defense + 3] [It's not large. It can block most attacks, but it seems like it would break under a very strong attack]

In terms of performance, it was inferior to the tower shield. It was 2 points lower in defense and lacked any attack power. Still, Taesan considered it.

‘From here on out, the tower shield isn’t going to be of much use.’

Unlike the Big Rat, goblins came in large numbers and were quick. They cooperated with each other to pressure him. The tower shield had an advantage in one-on-one fights. Still, it was not suitable for battles against multiple opponents.

Furthermore, it couldn’t be held with one hand, making him unable to equip another weapon.

Also, it was too big. It was large enough to cover Taesan’s entire body, which limited his vision.

It also created problems for his movements since he needed to focus more on blocking than avoiding attacks beyond what was necessary.

Taesan made his decision. He put away the tower shield and pulled out the rusted sword.

Shield in his right hand and the sword in his left. Usually, it would be the other way around, but he was left-handed, so this felt more comfortable.

His defense was now two points lower. However, when facing goblins, this was the optimal setup.

A sword and a shield.

This was a combination he had used for quite a while.

He had obtained 200 gold. It was 50 gold per pair of goblins. Not bad.

Having finished his preparations, Taesan headed towards the passage.

In the next room, he found a goblin with a bow, one with a spear, one with a dagger, and one with a longsword. There was a slight change from before, but Taesan’s actions wouldn’t change much.

Taesan charged at the goblins.

“Kwak!”

“Kieek!”

He blocked their attacks with his shield and stabbed them with his sword.

It felt much safer than when he was using the tower shield. Although minor damage did come through, it was manageable. The damage would be fully recovered by defeating just one of them.

[You inflicted 8 damage to the goblin with a dagger] [You have defeated the goblin with a dagger]

“Kaaaah…”

The goblin collapsed. The eyes of the goblin holding the bow, who had just seen its comrade killed, widened in fear. Suddenly, the goblin with the longsword also halted as it saw its comrade killed. Taesan didn’t miss this opportunity and charged at the goblin.

“Kieek!”

Thump!

He slammed down on the goblin’s arm with his shield. The hand holding the weapon was forced wide open. He then thrust his sword straight in.

[You have defeated the goblin with the longsword]

“Kieeee…”

“Kaaak!”

The spear was thrust at Taesan. He parried it with his sword, deflected the attack, and blocked an incoming arrow with his shield. The goblin with the spear roared and swung its weapon toward Taeesan.

At that moment, Taesan noticed that the goblin’s grip on the spear was incredibly sloppy. It had lost its sanity to rage.

Taesan moved as his senses instructed. He deflected the spear with his shield and lifted his sword to strike. The spear whistled through the air.

“Ka, Kaak.”

He struck down the weaponless goblin.

[You have defeated the goblin who lost its spear]

The system message responded quickly. All that was left was a single goblin with a bow. It shot arrows at him desperately, but Taesan casually swatted them away with his sword. A bow without support was not scary.

“Ka, Kaak”

He walked towards the trembling goblin. His sword descended.

[You have defeated the goblin with the bow] [Your level has increased] [You are in the best condition] [As a reward for leveling up, your health has increased by 10] [As a reward for leveling up, your strength has permanently increased by 1, agility has permanently increased by 2, and intelligence has permanently increased by 1]

The stats had increased in small but significant amounts. Balanced growth was always the best way.

The reward for leveling up remained the same. Four new intelligence increase windows appeared.

“Status Window.”

[Kang Taesan] [Level: 4] [Health: 165/165] [Mana: 15/15] [Strength: 18] [Intelligence: 24] [Agility: 32] [Attack Power + 3] [Defense Power + 5] [The subject is in the best condition]

His current stats were almost laughably absurd. This was what his stats looked like before he returned to the past.

[Kang Taesan] [Level: 57] [Health: 1021/1021] [Mana: 820/820] [Strength: 105] [Intelligence: 100] [Agility: 98] [Attack Power + 49] [Defense Power + 58] [The subject is in the best condition]

His level now was 5, yet his agility had already reached a third of the value he had achieved in the past. And this was happening not on the 10th or 20th floor but while he was still exploring the 2nd floor.

The more he thought about his growth rate, the more he found himself laughing.

What he had once thought of as Lee Taeyeon’s overwhelming stats didn’t seem all that impressive now.

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As she had carelessly overlooked a lot of things, her stats were likely below average for Solo Mode.

It was just that no one knew this, as no one else had survived.

Taesan, who had been contentedly checking his status window, quickly verified his equipment.

“Longsword. Show me the longsword.”

There was one goblin carrying a longsword. If the dagger had an attack power of 1, it was highly likely that the longsword had a power of 2.

Two arrows, one bow, and a longsword.

“Yes!”

Taesan quickly confirmed it.

[Rusty Sword] [Attack Power + 2] [It looks usable enough]

“Good.”

An increase in attack power of 1. It looked very shabby, but it was more valuable than anything else.

In the labyrinth, additional attack power was calculated cumulatively.

If the attack power increased by 1, the damage of 8 became 9.

At this stage, when the base damage was low, the difference between 1 and 2 in attack power could mean having to hit an enemy one more time or not.

Attack power was far more important than any other stat at this moment.

The sword alone was more than satisfactory. But there were more rewards. Taesan’s eyes widened when he checked the bow.

[Bow] [Attack Power + 1] [Accuracy + 40%] [It looks usable enough]

“This is also good.”

The bow he was currently using had no attack power, so he relied solely on his arrows’ attack power.

Thanks to his Airak Weapon skills, he was doing decent damage, but without that, he would have been terribly weak.

His accuracy was also extremely low at 20%, requiring a lot of focus when firing arrows.

Two problems were solved at once as Taesan happily organized his bow.

“You’re banished now.”

He stored the rusty sword in his inventory and wielded the less-rusty sword.

He had become stronger once more. He had already managed to take out four goblins without using a skill, simply by switching to a sword and shield. Now, he could probably handle them without using arrows.

Having finished organizing, Taesan turned again towards the corridor.

Similar to before, he cracked the door open slightly to check inside.

“Huh?”

Taesan entered the room. There were no goblins inside. However, it wasn’t simply an empty room.

Inside the room, there was an altar for a god.

[You have discovered the Altar of Lakiratas] [First Discovery Bonus] [Intelligence has permanently increased by 1. Mana has permanently increased by 2.]

Intelligence and Mana. They were always good stats. Taesan looked at the altar.

It was a circular altar placed in the center of the room.

It was grotesquely dotted with blood, and the sharp, line-like decorations gave an idea of the nature of the altar’s owner.

The gods of the labyrinth had various personalities.

There were gods who were friendly towards the player and those who were hostile. Some regarded the player as a target of mockery, and there were also gods who showed compassion.

However, as Lee Taeyeon had said, most of them considered the players their playthings.

Taesan saw the name Lakiratas in the system message. He tried to recall what kind of deity it was.

‘The god of struggle and death.’

That was all he knew. Lee Taeyeon didn’t care to know more about the gods as she was often their object of scorn and ridicule. Taesan raised his hand toward the altar.

[Altar of Lakiratas] [An altar made by the followers of Lakiratas. It serves as a passage to the god. Lakiratas can exert his influence through this place.]

The altar of the followers of the god. Each time Lee Taeyeon arrived here, she said she received a quest. A bloody mist spread throughout the room as soon as he finished his thoughts.

A great presence could be felt from beyond the altar. It was a denser and heavier force than any monster he had encountered before.

If what was felt beyond the passage was this intense, most people would go mad upon seeing it directly.

‘So this is a god.’

These entities only existed in Solo Mode.

Lakiratas was one of them. A quest window appeared.

[Sub-Quest Begins] [Lakiratas wants to test you, the one who came to his altar. If you accept, a trial will come to you. If you overcome it, a reward will follow.] [Reward: Determined by Lakiratas according to your achievements.]

Upon arriving at the altar, one could take on the challenge posed by the god. Lee Taeyeon also discovered the altar of Lakiratas on the second floor and received a similar quest proposal.

However, she declined.

Lee Taeyeon had instinctively felt that the trial was beyond her capacity to handle. She escaped the room as if she was fleeing. Therefore, she had no information about what kind of trial it was.

But Taesan was considering accepting.

‘Risk and reward.’

After risking his life and breaking through the secret room, he had obtained the Staff of Flames.

He had also blocked Ainzhar’s strike.

And acquired the Airak Weapon Technique.

When an achievement deemed impossible was achieved, a reward beyond that was given.

Although it was the same in Easy Mode, the rewards here were more.

There was no thought of running away like a coward as Taesan accepted the sub-quest.

[Sub-Quest Begins] [Lakiratas is pleased with your choice.]

The bloody mist that filled the room gathered in front of the altar.

The mist clumps together to form legs. Riding up the legs, knees were formed, followed by thighs. The chest and stomach, and even the head, were modeled, revealing a human figure.

But it didn’t end there. The mist engulfed the formed figure once more.

Eventually, the mist disappeared, revealing a blood-red armor.

Clank.

The blood-red armor extended its hand.

The remaining mist congealed into the shape of a sword.

[You have encountered the Servant of Lakiratas [Fake]] [Lakiratas' Trial: Achieve victory against the Servant of Lakiratas [Fake]]

Taesan distanced himself and scrutinized the Servant of Lakiratas.

It was wearing armor similar to that of a medieval knight. It firmly covered all parts of the limbs, and the head was perfectly protected by a helmet. No matter how closely he looked, it was difficult to find a gap.

Clank.

The bloody knight raised his sword and pointed at Taesan. Even without fighting, its nature could be understood just through this stance.

It was infinitely stronger than the goblins.

Taesan held his shield and sword.

After a moment of staring at Taesan, the knight moved his foot.

Whoosh!

Despite being in armor, he rushed at Taesan with incredible speed. However, Taesan didn’t panic. He had seen countless beings whose appearances contradicted their abilities. He swung his shield towards the descending sword.

Clang!

Taesan was the one who was pushed back, and he grimaced at the numb feeling in his arm.

[You have taken 25 damage.]

“Heh.”

A ridiculous amount of damage caused him to chuckle. Even if he blocked, this much damage made the shield meaningless. Taesan took a step back to increase the distance, put away his shield, and pulled out his rusty sword.

“Twin swords, it’s been a while.”

Whoosh!

The knight stamped his foot again. The heaviness that made the entire room vibrate reverberated through the floor. The knight slashed across its body roughly.

Taesan swung his sword to meet it.

The sound of steel clashing rang out. Once again, Taesan was the one pushed back.

From these two exchanges, Taesan realized that the Servant of Lakiratas had the upper hand in strength. The difference wasn’t huge, but if they competed head-on, it would inevitably lead to Taesan’s defeat.

Then how about agility? Taesan turned his body and began to flee. The knight pursued.

Clank! Clank!

Observing the knight chasing after him with heavy metallic sounds, Taesan realized.

He had the upper hand in agility. The distance between him and the knight was gradually increasing. It wasn’t a huge difference, but it was not small either.

The opponent had the advantage in strength, while he was superior in agility. Taesan, who had been fleeing, suddenly turned his body. He ran towards the knight and immediately swung his sword downwards.

The knight, who had been chasing after him, hurriedly raised its sword.

Clang!

Their swords clashed, their hands locked, but Taesan wielded twin swords. With his free left hand, he stabbed the knight’s flank.

Crack!

[You have dealt 6 damage to the Servant of Lakiratas [Fake]]

The armor split apart. Although he was wearing armor, which mitigated the major damage, this was sufficient.

Taesan began to press on relentlessly. He jabbed his left hand into the knight’s waist. This time, it displayed 5 damage.

The knight wouldn’t stand idle, either. He put strength into his sword and struck an attack. He slashed in a diagonal line directly toward Taesan.

Instead of blocking, Taesan took the strike head-on, positioning himself right beneath his opponent’s hand to dodge the attack.

Taesan did not have space to swing his sword in this position, but he had martial arts skills. He quickly sheathed his sword and swung his fist.

[You have dealt 4 damage to the Servant of Lakiratas [Fake]]

It was a wise decision to have purchased the brawler’s gloves. If he had hit the armor barehanded, it would have inflicted more damage on Taesan.

The knight tried to create space to swing his sword, but Taesan clung closely.

As a last resort, the knight attempted to swing his sword, but Taesan reached out and grabbed his wrist. He struck his legs, hit his neck, and pushed with his shoulder.

4, 3, 4. A total of 11 damage was inflicted.

‘Not bad.’

Taesan had swept through all 100 floors of the labyrinth. Though it was on Easy Mode, that experience didn’t go anywhere.

The method to fight an enemy with superior strength.

The way to handle an enemy with superior agility.

He knew all about how to fight multiple enemies.

The knight’s strength was superior, but Taesan had the upper hand in agility. So, he just had to stick close to him, creating a situation where the knight couldn’t fully utilize his strength.

As strength stats increased physical power, sticking so close that there was no room to exert strength greatly diminished their value.

He was using a strategy he had enjoyed in the past.

He approached the staggering knight once again.

The knight abandoned swinging its sword and attempted a knee strike.

Taesan blocked it with his foot.

Even though the knight had a strength advantage, the difference was not substantial. If Taesan could intercept before the knight’s strike gained momentum, he could suppress it.

‘Easier than I thought?’

Taesan thought this while swinging his fist. But, of course, this was to be expected.

This was the 2nd floor. Regardless of being in Solo Mode, they wouldn’t give enemies that are impossible to clear.

The Servant of Lakiratas, a 2nd-floor enemy, had surprisingly high stats but lacked the intelligence and sensibility that would match those stats. A certain level of balance was maintained.

Players who were initially overwhelmed by the superior stats had to come up with all sorts of strategies to secure a hard-fought victory.

That was the picture Lakiratas probably desired.

But Taesan’s stats weren’t low.

He gained significant power from the Soul Ascension enhancement, and the additional rewards from sweeping the first floor also added to this. Even when compared to the Servant of Lakiratas, he was not outmatched.

Even if he was a player at the beginning of the labyrinth, with Taesan’s current stats, a fair fight would be possible. Besides, Taesan was already a player who had cleared the labyrinth.

He understood the countermeasures perfectly, so he could defeat the enemy easily.

And there was an entity that was displeased with this.

[Lakiratas feel slight bafflement]

Despite his servant being a formidable entity for a 2nd-floor player, Taesan was fighting flawlessly without receiving any damage after the initial contact. Even to a god’s eyes, this was an impressive feat.

But Lakiratas was the god of strife and death.

He desired to watch the struggling inferior being strategize and employ skills and wisdom to win intense battles, not one-sided fights. That was the realm of power and deception.

After some contemplation, Lakiratas made a decision.

He decided to give back what he had taken.

He allowed the strong knight to reclaim what once belonged to him.

[Lakiratas's divine power manifests. As a price, the influence zone of Lakiratas is reduced.] [The Servant of Lakiratas [Fake] regains intelligence. The Servant of Lakiratas [Fake] regains skills.] [The rewards for the trials are significantly enhanced.]

“What?”

Suddenly, Taesan squinted at the windows that blocked his vision. A red light emerged from the dead eyes inside that blood-red helmet.

[You have encountered the Servant of Lakiratas]

The term ‘fake’ attached to its name had disappeared.

Clang.

The knight grasped his sword with both hands. Taesan tried to block, but his stance was lowered. Conversely, the knight was completely upright. Given the knight was taller, Taesan’s hands couldn’t reach him.

The knight brought down the sword in the same posture it was held. The end of the hilt, the pommel, was aimed at Taesan’s head.

“Tsk.”

He could no longer engage this way, and Taesan retreated. The knight swung his sword again.

A full-powered strike from an upright posture. It was hard to block as it contained all his strength. Taesan barely dodged it.

Utilizing the force of the downward strike, the knight advanced and thrust his sword.

It wasn’t a mindless swing like before, but a perfectly controlled thrust.

Without room to evade, Taesan tried to force the knight’s sword away, intending to deflect its path.

“Damn.”

The knight twisted his wrist, and his sword began to curve under Taesan’s sword. Despite Taesan’s attempt to force it away, it was perfectly blocked.

Just like that, the knight raised his sword.

Thud!

Already dealing with a powerful adversary, Taesan’s sword moved in a direction where he couldn’t exert full strength. Caught off guard, Taesan’s hand was lifted high.

The knight moved his foot as it was as Taesan wrapped his body with his forearm and kicked.

“Argh!”

[You have received 12 damage]

The damage wasn’t substantial as it was not a weapon but a foot. However, his posture collapsed due to that kick.

The knight didn’t miss the chance. He rushed quickly and thrust his sword as Taesan rolled on the ground.

Clang!

The sword stuck into the ground. It was fairly deep, and it took some time to pull out. Thanks to this, Taesan could distance himself and regain his stance.

“Damn. What’s he trying to do?”

Taesan gritted his teeth.

Suddenly, the situation had changed. The knight, who already had high stats, became incredibly strong after gaining intelligence.

Above all, the quality of his skills was exceedingly high. Even when their swords clashed, it was to the level where Taesan’s attacks were deflected.

Looking solely at skills, he was superior to anyone Taesan had met so far.

The servant of Lakiratas, who regained intelligence, tried to carry out his master’s order and charged Taesan.