I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 447

Nick was well aware that these bamboos were no ordinary plants. They sang a sleep-inducing song that was difficult to resist without Faceless’s stimulant or natural immunity. Surprisingly, this powerful sleep ability was the mildest of the bamboos’ capabilities.

“You may not believe it, but the bamboos are at their most peaceful in their current state. We must not anger them,” Nick explained. As a senior Player, he calmly continued, “If we disturb the Singing bamboos, they’ll get furious.”

“Oh?” Jin-Hyeok said.

“This is not the time for you to be excited! Of course, you must be an incredibly skilled Tank. Your act of helping Furface escape the first checkpoint and coming here without Faceless’s stimulant, speaks volumes about your abilities. I acknowledge that you’re an exceptional Tank!”

Jin-Hyeok remained silent, realizing it was pointless to insist he was an Eltuber. He simply recorded Nick’s desperate explanation.

“Let me give you an example,” Nick said. He picked up a fallen bamboo leaf from the ground. It still had some life in it, emitting a faint song.

Nick took a deep breath and applied pressure to the leaf with his fingers. Instantly, the leaf split into hundreds of strands, transforming into long green needles that pierced his palm. Blood dripped from Nick’s hand. All of this had happened in the blink of an eye.

“Did you see that?” Nick said.

“Yes, I did.”

“This is considered a weak attack. The Singing bamboos have various unpredictable ways of attacking Players.” Nick felt slightly dizzy. “It seems that the attack contained some of the bamboos’ poison.”

Jin-Hyeok nodded and handed him a Chul-Soo Potion. “This should neutralize the poison.”

“Thank you.” When Nick drank the potion, his eyes widened. His head suddenly cleared, and he felt energy coursing through his body.

‘A potion that detoxifies, energizes, and heals all at once? I had no idea it existed!’ With his flexible thinking, Nick reasoned that the world was vast, and potions came in many varieties. However, such a potion had to be incredibly expensive.

“You must be quite wealthy... You have a lot to lose if you die here,” Nick said. He then repeatedly emphasized the dangers of the bamboos and tried to dissuade Jin-Hyeok.

When Jin-Hyeok showed little reaction, Nick’s expression turned slightly menacing and he said, “If you disturb them, some bamboos will spew hot flames. This will provoke the surrounding bamboos. It’s an extremely dangerous act that can wipe out everyone in this camp. I won’t stand idly by and let that happen.”

After listening to everything, Jin-Hyeok casually said, “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“Earlier, when the bamboo leaf split and attacked...” Jin-Hyeok constantly grappled with the question of what constituted common sense, so he was genuinely curious. He struggled to come to terms with just how weak these ordinary Players were. After all, since they had made it to the Dragon’s Nest, they were likely top-ranked in their respective Servers. “Did you intentionally not defend against it?”

“Huh?” Nick said. While Jin-Hyeok wanted to ask if Nick had done that to provide a dramatic effect, Nick interpreted it differently. ‘Is he saying that my defensive abilities are inadequate and that he could have easily blocked it? Did my demonstration only increase his confidence?’

This young, capable Tank was indeed overestimating his abilities. Surely, he meant that he could have easily blocked such an attack.

“Do you think there is only this one leaf in the area?” Nick asked, pointing around. “There are countless leaves here. All of them can become unpredictable weapons against us. And as I said before, the leaves are just the beginning. If we anger the main trunk, we’re in real trouble.”

Seeing Nick get angry without answering his question, Jin-Hyeok sighed softly. It seemed Nick lacked some social skills.

“Can’t we just ask them to move aside?” Jin-Hyeok said.

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‘That’s impossible!’ Nick almost lost his temper, but befitting his seniority, he calmly replied, “Are you serious?”

“You said you’re a Tamer, right?”

“Yes, but...”

“Then why haven’t you thought about taming the bamboos?”

“Sigh...” Nick wondered where to even begin explaining. “Not all Tamers are the same. Some specialize in mammals, which itself has numerous subcategories. Others specialize in insects. There are dozens, even hundreds, of types of Tamers based on their specialties. For your information, I am a Tamer specializing in rodents.”

Nick had never heard of a Tamer who specialized in plants. Usually, those would be Botanists or Plant Mages.

“Your thinking seems quite rigid,” Jin-Hyeok said. ‘He’s not even going to attempt to tame bamboos because he specializes in rodents. How can someone think so inflexibly?’

Baffled by this comment, Nick looked at Furface with an angry expression. He expected the experienced Furface to take his side.

‘Why are you shaking your head?’ Nick thought. ‘Is he telling me to stop interfering with Chul-Soo’s work?’

Nick realized that Furface was not in his right mind either. Perhaps it was because Furface had just left the first checkpoint, but he seemed a bit unhinged.

“Hey, bamboos. Can you make way for us? We’re trying to get to the Dragon’s Nest,” Jin-Hyeok shouted.

***

Nick dropped to the ground. The bamboo actually opened a path.

“See? All we had to do was ask nicely,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Nick struggled to comprehend what was going on. ‘If it were that simple, why would we camp here for one hundred days, enduring harassment from all sorts of insects and the constant bamboo chorus?’

“Has anyone else ever tried asking the bamboos?” Jin-Hyeok inquired.

“No...”

“That’s why.”

Nick began to doubt himself. ‘Was it really that easy? What was the point of everything we’ve done here?’

Furface, who was slightly less shocked, cleared his throat. “Ordinary Players probably wouldn’t succeed if they asked, Chul-Soo.”

“But a Tamer should...”

“Tamers aren’t as versatile as you think. I’m starting to understand you a bit better now, Chul-Soo.” Realizing how unusual Chul-Soo’s standards were, Furface helped Nick to his feet. “Nick, I understand how you feel. I nearly gave up several times myself.”

“...”

“He single-handedly wiped out the Demon army summoned by Faceless. Do you know the Demon Lord Dragan?”

“I’ve heard the name. One of the four Demon Lords, right?” Nick said.

“He had become the Grand Lord after devouring the other three Lords. Chul-Soo ordered him to return to his Realm. And he did. Though to me, it looked more like he fled.”

“That’s impossible. I’ve never heard of Demons running away.”

“Have you ever heard of bamboos opening a path when asked?”

“That’s true...” Nick came to what he thought was a rational conclusion. “Chul-Soo, are you perhaps a Mage who specializes in mental spells?”

Nick knew that those Mages could force their opponents to do whatever they wanted with their mental spells.

“No, I told you I’m an Eltuber,” Jin-Hyeok insisted.

“Eltuber...? You’re really an Eltuber? Not a Tank?”

Just then, Jin-Hyeok spoke to the bamboos again. “Hey guys, could you please quiet down? I’m trying to talk to this guy.”

***

The bamboo chorus abruptly stopped. This time, the bamboos had sung for a much shorter period than usual. Players in the camp regained their senses one by one.

“Is the song over already?”

“But the sun is still high!”

“So strange... I have a bad feeling about this.”

Changes in the Dungeon were never welcome. They usually meant unpredictable dangers were approaching.

“Oh, a newcomer?”

“Hey, isn’t that Furface?”

Players surrounded Jin-Hyeok and Furface. Some recognized Jin-Hyeok.

“I-Isn’t that IntenseMan?”

However, not everyone knew him accurately. Top-ranked Players tended to be absorbed in their interests.

“A great Swordsman has joined us. Isn’t he the winner of the Sword Emperor Tournament?”

“He is the up-and-coming ranker. The leader of the K-Force!”

“I heard he’s the master of Angel Girl. Isn’t he a top-tier Thief?”

“What are you talking about? He is a large-scale combat specialist, an area-of-effect bombardier.”

“Wasn’t he the founder of Absolute Barrier, the godfather of Tanks?”

“I know him as Park Terse’s rival...”

Most of the Players had different opinions on who Jin-Hyeok was. He was slightly surprised by these new perspectives.

‘They know so little about me.’ Jin-Hyeok realized he still had a long way to go. ‘Even when shown the same thing, they all interpret it as they please.’

Everyone seemed to see only what they wanted to see. It was probably a side effect of short-form content.

Jin-Hyeok said, “I’m heading straight to Dragon’s Nest. Anyone want to join me?”

“But our current strength...”

“I heard that if we inflict a certain level of damage on Julius, a door to the outside opens.” Jin-Hyeok transformed his right hand into the Babylon Cannon. “I’m going to use this on Julius.”

“T-That’s the Babylon Cannon!” shouted a Player, recognizing the ability. When others asked what it was, he explained, “It’s a bombardment-type attack boasting the highest output among area-of-effect Skills!”

“But Julius is a single entity...” another Player said.

Area-of-effect attacks were typically better against an army of opponents, not individuals.

“But with the Babylon Cannon, we might be able to at least scratch Julius,” another Player said.

Surprisingly, the Dragon’s Nest had a very low threshold for what was considered as inflicted damage. Even a slight scratch was enough to open the escape portal.

“What’s the point of that?”

“We didn’t come here to run away!”

The Players had all gathered to hunt Julius. None of them had escape in mind from the start.

“I can’t wait long. I’m leaving right now. I’ve already spoken to the bamboos, so we’re okay,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Seeing the looks in some Players’ eyes, Nick felt a bit wronged. Their expressions seemed to ask why he, a Tamer, could not do what an Eltuber had done.

Furface patted Nick on the shoulder reassuringly. “They will understand when they experience it themselves.”

A few confident Players followed Jin-Hyeok.

“Isn’t this too dangerous?”

“Nick, shouldn’t we stop them?”

“Our strength is far too inadequate.”

Nick shook his head. “You don’t understand...”

Nick was, after all, a Tamer. He could communicate with various creatures. Thanks to this, he could tell how terrified the bamboos were.

‘He subdued the entire bamboo colony with just a few words. And he did it with such a gentle request. Maybe Chul-Soo can do this!’

He thought that maybe they really could clear this Dungeon. Eventually, he started following Jin-Hyeok as well.