I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 61

Arachne.

It was a spider-type monster with a shimmering blue body that was much larger than a bull. It had six flickering red eyes on its head, and while it was not as imposing as the Flying Toad, it had its own sense of intimidation.

[Skills]

[1. Biting Fangs]

[2. Spider Web Spray]

[3. Hidden Tentacles]

It was at a higher Level than the Arachne Cha Jin-Hyeok knew of, and it even had a Skill that he had never seen before.

‘I’ve never seen that Hidden Tentacles Skill before.’

Instantly, Jin-Hyeok reflected on what he had just thought.

‘It’s natural not to know the opponent’s Skills in the first place.’

This was the reason why he did not want to get too accustomed to Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance. It was natural to engage in combat without knowing the opponent’s Skills. Normally, Players would learn while fighting, but if Jin-Hyeok kept reading everything through Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance, it felt like his battling ability was declining.

He needed to be careful.

“Jae-Hyeon.”

“Got it.”

Mok Jae-Hyeon was still frightened, but he took the lead and unleashed his Wood Fortress. He performed excellently in his role as a Tank.

Arachne had a split jaw and sharp teeth. The monster moved sideways along the wall, gnashing its teeth in mid-air.

“That’s its Skill, Jae-Hyeon,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Jin-Hyeok could see where the monster’s Skill was landing, but there was no time to explain each and every detail.

‘I have no choice but to trust Jae-Hyeon’s Wood Fortress.’

It was undeniable that Jae-Hyeon’s proficiency in operating the Wood Fortress had greatly improved.

‘Good. Right there.’

Tooth-shaped ‘effects’ were generated around the Wood Fortress.

Crunch.

Crunch!

It left tooth marks on the vines surrounding the Wood Fortress.

“Good job!”

That ability was the monster's long-ranged attack Skill, Biting Fangs. Although the tooth marks varied slightly, the monster used a total of three Biting Fangs.

“Remember the feeling just now. You are an excellent Tank, and you can definitely sense where it’s attacking,” Jin-Hyeok told Jae-Hyeon.

It should be known that just using the Wood Fortress alone could not completely circumvent Arachne’s Skills. Jae-Hyeon had to increase the intensity of his Skill usage at specific areas where the monster’s Skill directly hit, and he did an excellent job in that task.

“I need you two to split up and approach from the left and the right,” Jin-Hyeok told the Seo sisters.

“Got it!”

Jin-Hyeok purchased a laser pointer from the Broadcaster’s Shop in order to indicate a more precise location to his party.

Seo Ji-Soo tended to be overly enthusiastic and tended to hurry if Jin-Hyeok did not indicate the exact path.

“Ji-Soo, I need you to follow the points I indicate with the laser.”

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Jin-Hyeok pointed out each point with the laser pointer. He could not create points as precise as an actual Ruler, but he could mimic it to some extent.

He started explaining to the viewers in his own way.

“I believe that this monster avoids close combat. All three of its Skills are considered long-range attacks. Among them, the Spider Web Spray can entangle its enemies. It can be a lethal attack for our agile party members who prioritize mobility.”

Ji-Soo moved following the points Jin-Hyeok indicated. She looked like a flying squirrel.

“From looking at the monster’s movements, I believe it will attack Jae-Hyeon with its main attack, Biting Fangs, while restraining our party members with its secondary attack, Spider Web Spray.”

Ji-Soo ran toward the next point. Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance kept Jin-Hyeok informed about what was going on.

[Arachne used its Skill 「Spider Web Spray」.]

Squirt!

The monster shot out its spider web. Ji-Soo, who was prepared in advance, quickly stepped to the side. Even though she was prepared, avoiding it completely was impossible. The spider web landed around her ankle. However, Ji-Soo calmly cut the web with her dagger.

“The cooldown for Spider Web Spray is twelve seconds. Ji-Ah, I need you to approach the monster and stab its eyes.”

Seo Ji-Ah ran toward the monster and stabbed her dagger into the monster’s red eyes.

Squirt!

Green monster blood sprayed out!

“Just as I expected, the eyes seem to be its weak point.”

Arachne swung its front legs toward Ji-Ah. She used her Stealth Skill and stuck to the wall, narrowly avoiding the monster’s front legs.

“Jeong-Hyeon, it’s your turn now.”

The aggro was still focused on Jae-Hyeon. With Jin-Hyeok’s party members adequately diverting it's attention, it was not surprising to introduce Kim Jeong-Hyeon, who had a bulky physique.

Also, Jeong-Hyeon had acquired a Skill called ‘Heavier Punch’ upon reaching Level 50.

‘I’m counting on you, Jeong-Hyeon.’

Jeong-Hyeon jumped high and swung his fist with mighty force toward Arachne, who was hanging on the wall. His fist was aimed at its red eyes.

Bam!

In mid-air, he swung his fist twice, popping two of Arachne's eyes.

Squirt!

Green blood sprayed out again. Meanwhile, the Spider Web Spray Skill, which had a cooldown of twelve seconds, was usable again.

“Jae-Hyeon, extend the tree branches.”

“Roger that.”

Jae-Hyeon understood Jin-Hyeok’s words well. He extended one of the tree branches of the Wood Fortress to protect Jeong-Hyeon.

[Arachne used its Skill 「Spider Web Spray」.]

The spider web that targeted Jeong-Hyeon tightly bound the tree branch instead of him. The tree branch that came into contact with the spider web could not overcome its toxicity and rotted away. Jae-Hyeon severed the tree branch and created a new one.

‘Hm… This is…’

Jin-Hyeok didn’t know if he should even think like this as a Streamer.

‘...This is kind of fun!’

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

The Korean Region Minor Gallery was filled with comments and posts.

⌜Regarding Kim Chul-Soo’s main Job.⌟

⌜It is certain that Kim Chul-Soo is a Ruler-class Streamer.⌟

⌜Is Kim Chul-Soo really a Streamer?⌟

Since communication was impossible on Kim Chul-Soo’s livestream, viewers who wanted to chat flocked to the Korean Region Minor Gallery. Moreover, even the Korean Region Minor Gallery had a limited number of participants, so only the most proactive viewers who desired some sort of communication could enter. As a result, its enthusiasm surpassed other online communities.

-But Kim Chul-Soo doesn’t have any Ruler Skills at all.

┗How is it possible to have such fluent commands without any Ruler Skills?

┗I’ve been watching Chul-Soo since he was Level 1. It’s true. He does not have Ruler Skills.

-Stop kissing his ass. I’m pretty sure everyone can do this at low Levels. I don’t understand why everyone is making such a fuss about him.

┗That would be true for Servers where all the Players have access to all the strategies.

┗This is an Open Beta Server. Who can do that without any Ruler Skills in an Open Beta Server? With that much potential as a Ruler, Chul-Soo might have just picked the wrong Job for himself.

┗But even so, if you look at the overwhelming number of viewers, he might’ve just picked the perfect Job. MoneyShower, MoneyShot, Wind Wanderer… All these Named viewers are watching his livestream. I would call this a huge success.

┗Oh shit, you’re right. I just checked and he is in first place by miles!

Various discussions were circulating. While it was true that Kim Chul-Soo was showing tremendous growth as a Streamer, there were still differing opinions that he should have chosen the Ruler Job.

However, Jin-Hyeok (Kim Chul-Soo) was also experiencing similar emotions.

‘Wow… What is this…?’

It was a completely unfamiliar sense of euphoria. He did not engage in the battle directly, but it stimulated his essence with a sensation that was no less, or perhaps even greater, than actually participating. It was said that the Ruler-class Players had their own unique sense of pleasure and it felt like that statement was true. Some Rulers even referred to this sensation as Rulergasm.

‘Why is this so fun?’

[You have defeated Arachne.]

Even to Jin-Hyeok’s own standards, this was a remarkably excellent raid.

[You have leveled up.]

[You have acquired the Achievement 「Outstanding Team Play」.]

[You have acquired 「Incombustible Spider Web」.]

Arachne’s eyes were all destroyed. The protective barrier surrounding its head was shattered by Ji-Ah and Ji-Soo’s relentless attacks, and Jeong-Hyeon’s powerful strike crushed Arachne’s head. Although Arachne’s final strike, the Hidden Tentacles that emerged from its back and inflicted a fatal blow that pierced through Jeong-Hyeon’s back, Jin-Sol, who was prepared in advance, immediately healed the wound.

‘The coordination… was perfect.’

Jin-Hyeok felt like he had just felt some sort of pleasure that he shouldn’t have felt. It was like stepping into forbidden territory. And he even acquired an Achievement from it.

‘When Playing together with party members who share the Achievement, an additional four percent attacking power and four percent defensive power are added. In addition, a twenty percent reduction in cooldowns of Skills.’

It was an Achievement that would have a significant impact in the low-Level stages. Everything made Jin-Hyeok’s heart beat faster.

‘And… what was that notification I heard in the middle?’

Jin-Hyeok was sure that he heard it.

[You have acquired the Latent Skill 「Wide Vision」.]

Wide Vision was a skill that Ruler-class Players acquired at Level 40. It granted a wider field of vision than ordinary humans. As the Level increased, it allowed for a 360-degree view, and even the ability to see beyond, such as the sky or underground.

‘While it made some sort of sense for the Swordsman Skills, why is this Ruler Skill latent?’

The reason was unknown. However, it pleased Jin-Hyeok.

The fact that Ruler Skills were latent within his body meant that someday he could truly unleash those Skills.

‘If there were a few more Arachnes, I could have learned even more clearly.’

Jin-Hyeok sincerely felt regret. This feeling was similar to the sensation of stepping into the Sword Realm.

The Arachne raid had come to an end, and Navigator Han Sae-Rin muttered to herself as she observed Jin-Hyeok and his party, “...Beautiful.”

Sae-Rin had a gleam of madness in her eyes as she smiled.

Jin-Hyeok, unaware of that gaze, spoke, “The Arachne raid has come to a close. Once we find the exit, it will be over.”

Jin-Hyeok no longer wanted to focus on livestreaming. He wanted to surrender himself to the pleasure he had just experienced.

“Thank you all for watching. I will see you on my next livestream!”

He turned off the livestream, leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and enjoyed the lingering excitement. The party members, who thought Jin-Hyeok was just exhausted, waited patiently without approaching him.

After a while, Jin-Hyeok opened his eyes.

“Oppa… Are you okay?” Jin-Sol asked in a worried manner.

From Jin-Hyeok’s perspective, Jin-Sol’s cautious manner of speaking was puzzling. From the look on her face, it looked like she was sick or something.

Jin-Hyeok reluctantly used the Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance to confirm.

[...#Incredible leadership. #Of course you are tired. #You can rest a little bit more.]

Jin-Hyeok was dumbfounded and almost burst into laughter.

‘She is great and all, but sometimes she worries about really strange things. How can she be worried about such trivial things?’

However, he understood her feelings. In fact, even since his regression, he had been experiencing similar emotions toward his sister.

“Sae-Rin, find the exit for us.”

“Got it.”

Finding the exit was not too difficult.

[You have cleared the Hapjeong Station Exit 1 Dungeon.]

From Jin-Hyeok’s perspective, the clear reward itself was not anything special.

Afterward, Jin-Hyeok became more determined to find the materials to enhance the Berklev Necklace. During the process, Sae-Rin joined the party. She was the one who asked him to let her join the party for a while.

“Let me join you guys for a while. I want to enjoy those beautiful moments. I was so ecstatic back then,” she said.

Others might not understand, but Jin-Hyeok understood what she was talking about immediately. He allowed Sae-Rin to join, and for five days, they actively explored Dungeons together. Unfortunately, they could not experience the same pleasure as they did when facing Arachne.

And so, five days passed, and it was Friday.

“As you all saw on the livestream, my party generously gave me their items.”

Incombustible Spider Web.

Frozen Green Eye.

Faded Gem of the Eastern Fiend.

Aged Lizard’s Claw.

Red Spring Water of the Moonlight Pond.

Jin-Hyeok had obtained all five ingredients.

“For this week’s final livestream, we will be focusing on enhancement. I am going to attempt to enhance the Berklev Necklace.”

Jin-Hyeok headed straight to Jongno-gu.

He arrived at the workshop of the master of enhancement, the one-eyed giant, Mulinus.

As Jin-Hyeok entered the workshop, the over-two-meter-tall one-eyed giant, Mulinus, spoke in an irritable tone.

“I don’t take requests from kids.”

“I came here to request an enhancement.”

“I said I don’t take requests from kids. Now, get out of here.”

“I have all the materials.”

“Didn’t I just tell you to get lost?”

“I came here to request an enhancement, you sky sniffer.”

“Get the hell out!”

Mulinus swung his massive fist. It was a much stronger attack than Jeong-Hyeon’s fist, and it contained a destructive power that the current Jin-Hyeok could not handle.