Ascension Through Skills

The goblin grasped a greatsword as tall as a human in their hand. In the face of this surreal sight, Taesan took a step back.

‘A Lord?’

A monster with a name. A named monster. The Lord of Goblins. As the title befitting a ruler suggested, it was likely much stronger than an elite goblin. The ghost lets out a groan.

[Uh… This isn't good. Why is a Lord here?]

“Do you know anything about it?”

[It's literally the king of the race. It is a single entity that exists and has broken free from the concept and limit of its species.]

“It seems so.”

Its body was three times the size of other goblins.

At that size, it was even bigger than Taesan.

Its eyes were indifferent, and its muscles were perfectly sculpted.

Its stance was also unwavering.

It was so different that it was embarrassing to call it a goblin. Even its clothing was far from its kin’s ragged, bare-bones attire but instead was as neat as a human’s.

[No matter how goblin-like it is, a lord is still a lord. It's not a monster that should appear on such low-level floors. Why is it here?]

The ghost kept muttering, clearly finding this situation out of his predictions. Taesan took in the information and readied his stance.

The Goblin Lord silently observed Taesan.

“Is it signaling for me to approach?”

There was no reason to refuse, and Taesan put some strength in his ankle.

Thud!

His body accelerated, and the wind harshly blew against his face. He reached the Goblin Lord in an instant and brought down his sword.

Clang!

The metallic sound of their clashing sword rang through the room, and Taesan frowned.

The Goblin Lord, while seated, did not move at all and blocked his attack. The Goblin Lord, who had been staring blankly, opened his mouth.

“I don’t blame you.”

The voice was not sharp like the goblins he had encountered before; it was incredibly smooth.

“You are just a plaything being manipulated by them as well. But… I am assigned the role of a monster in this place.”

The Lord’s hand tightened on the grip of his greatsword, and he calmly spoke.

“So, I will kill you.”

His power exploded.

Taesan felt as if a truck was charging at him, a several-ton truck fully loaded with cargo.

[You activated Deflection. The next attack is parried.]

He used the skill almost like a reflex. The path of the sword twisted, and it struck a wall, leaving behind a large scar.

“What.”

Clang!

In the same seated position, the Lord moved his hand, and his sword moved like a storm. Taesan gritted his teeth and put strength in his arm.

Clang!

With a harsh sound, both swords clashed and were knocked away. A faint admiration flashed across the Lord’s face.

“You are strong.”

“What the hell.”

Taesan was surprised. His Strength stat was 37. It was a stat value that would have allowed him to go through the 50th floor of Easy Mode with no problems.

But the Lord’s greatsword was clearly heavier than that. A foe that couldn’t be handled even with a strength stat that was near 40. Was this a monster on the third floor?

“This balance is nuts.”

While Taesan spat out curses, the Lord swung his greatsword calmly. The weapon, as big as a person, aimed to slice Taesan in half.

Taesan made a quick decision.

The shield was not needed. If it was the Lord’s strength, blocking wouldn’t make a difference. He threw away his shield and gripped Lakiratas’s sword with both hands.

Clang!

The swords clashed, and Taesan’s knees bent, but he didn’t touch the ground.

He could endure it even if he needed to use both hands. Taesan slashed away his sword and rushed towards the Lord. Sparks flew.

Clang!

The current situation was favorable for Taesan. The Lord’s sword was in a downward strike position. While the Lord needed to raise his arm to attack again, Taesan was pushing in from below. At the very least, attacking with the greatsword would be difficult.

Taesan intended to take advantage of this timing to inflict significant damage. He assessed that he had an advantage in close combat, considering the opponent’s weapon was a very large greatsword.

However, the Lord, expressionless, pulled his sword around.

Instead of swinging down his sword, he aimed the hilt at Taesan’s face.

Faced with this certain countermeasure, Taesan clicked his tongue and activated a skill.

[You activated Parry. The next attack is deflected.]

The trajectory of the hilt was twisted. It tried to graze and hit Taesan’s shoulder with some force.

Skills were absolute determinants in the labyrinth. The only way to overcome them was to counter with a higher-level skill.

[Goblin Lord activated Power Strike. The next attack inflicts significant damage.]

The calm system window blocked Taesan’s view.

The hilt, which was about to be forced to bend away, was now aimed squarely at Taesan’s head.

Taesan’s pupils wavered momentarily, but he quickly assessed the situation. He lodged the sword into his body to block it.

Crash!

“Damn!”

[You have received a strong shock. All actions are slowed for 10 seconds.]

His body tingled with tremors, and his movements became noticeably slower. The situation was the worst. Escaping the Goblin Lord’s attack range was impossible in this physical state.

There was only one answer.

He must endure for 10 seconds.

Taesan steadies his breathing.

The Lord raises his sword.

Clang!

Sword and sword collided. There was no area where Taesan had the upper hand, not strength nor agility. Even his movements were slowed, making it overwhelming just to block one attack.

[You have activated Counter. It retaliates against the next opponent's attack.]

His body moved automatically. The skill controlled his body and tried to find the optimal path to counter his opponent’s attack.

But there were drawbacks. If, for any reason, it was impossible to retaliate against the opponent, the skill would end at the level of dodging the attack.

Still, that was important since he dodged an attack that would have hit him otherwise. The greatsword grazed beside his head, and his cut hair flew in the air.

5 seconds.

The Lord pulled his sword to the side and swung it.

The sound of the air being split sent chills down his spine.

Taesan had to nearly lay down to dodge it.

3 seconds.

His posture was broken. He couldn’t avoid the following attack.

[You activated Parry. The next attack is deflected.] [The opponent activated Power Strike. The next attack inflicts significant damage.] [You activated Deflection. The next attack is parried.]

The trajectory of the attack twisted, returned to its original path, and then twisted again. The greatsword bent towards Taesan’s waist.

[You receive 46 damage.]

0 seconds.

His physical condition returned to normal.

As he bounced back, Taesan stood up and put distance between them. Instead of pursuing, the Lord calmly corrected his posture.

“Oh, well.”

A hollow laugh came out. What was that? The opponent still hadn’t gotten up from the jade throne.

[The opponent is an invincible enemy.]

Even without the system telling him, he could tell. That creature was absolutely not something that should appear on the 3rd floor. It was a level of monster that one could understand if it came from the 7th floor.

[You need to run away.]

The ghost’s voice was serious, not as playful as usual.

[That isn't an enemy you can face right now. First, you have to run away, get stronger, and then come back.]

“And what does that make me?”

[What?]

Taesan calmly looked at the Lord, who was still sitting on his jade throne. The ghost tapped its chest in frustration.

[That's the Lord, you know? It's not something a 3rd-floor adventurer should face! Anyway, it's not going anywhere!]

“Then, I get nothing. The rewards for each floor drastically decrease the moment you descend.”

The grumbling ghost paused.

[...Do you know that?]

“Of course.”

In the labyrinth, moving between floors was free - but that didn’t mean the rewards remained the same.

The moment you descended, the rewards for the previous floor dramatically decreased. The acquisition of experience points and gold drops to one-fifth, and all special rewards disappear. That’s why there were no people endlessly grinding on the lower floors.

He needed to resolve this issue if he wanted to obtain everything from this floor.

“I have no intention of going down.”

He would defeat it here.

At Taesan’s determined stance, the ghost muttered as if it couldn’t understand.

[You're being reckless. After being so careful and raising your proficiency, you're challenging it like this?]

“What are you talking about? That’s what all this is for.”

It wasn’t about grinding for safety or to avoid danger.

If he were a cautious person, he would have chosen Hard Mode. Just clearing Hard Mode would make him much stronger.

However, he had chosen Solo Mode.

Not for survival.

It was a risk that gambled his life.

A move made to maximize the rewards.

Disarming traps, acquiring skills, raising proficiency - they were all to raise the chances of that, even if just a bit.

[You... ] [No judgment needed. You haven't lost heart in the face of an enemy that seems impossible to defeat!] [No judgment needed. Your fighting spirit has increased against an enemy that seems impossible to defeat!] [No judgment needed. Your willpower has risen against an enemy that seems impossible to defeat!] [All stats have increased.] [You never yield in battle.] [You have gained the eye to discern an opponent's weakness.] [The awe-inspiring unyielding you have felt admiration.]

“You’re a brave warrior.”

Admiration seeped into the indifferent eyes of the Lord. He gripped his sword with a serious expression.

“If you do not retreat, then I, too, will face you with dignity.”

Taesan carefully observed the Lord. They wouldn’t have placed an entirely unbeatable enemy on the 3rd floor. There must be a chance of victory. The judgment reward of facing an impossible enemy began to reveal the enemy’s weakness.

The Lord had never once left his jade throne. At first, he thought it was due to disregard, but it was not the case upon closer inspection.

“…..leg.”

[Huh?]

The Ghost also noticed belatedly.

[His leg is mangled, isn't it?]

There was a large wound on Lord’s leg. Intimidated by his presence, they hadn’t noticed it before, but the scar that covered his entire thigh made it seem difficult for him to stand.

[Was he driven out in a territorial dispute?]

“Does that happen?”

[It does. Either another species invaded, or someone challenged the Lord and won. For various reasons, monsters kill and are killed.]

Thinking about it, the Lord was a goblin before. That he wasn’t a goblin lord now meant something.

Regardless, the opponent was limited in mobility. Taesan kept his distance. The Lord did not chase him but stayed in his place.

Confirmed. The opponent couldn’t move out of the throne.

In that case, there was a chance of winning.

“Aren’t you coming?”

The goblin asked with a bored face. Taesan had been standing still for almost half an hour.

“Just wait a moment.”

Taesan’s mind was spinning rapidly. He was calculating tactics and how to finish this fight.

And then the answer came.

The Lord gave a slight smile.

“Come, brave one.”

[Oh dear. This doesn't seem right...]

The ghost grumbled, but its previously pessimistic look was gone.

[But give it a try. I'll be watching in anticipation.]

Taesan approached the wall and caught his breath.

[You have activated Infinite Fury.]

He gathered his strength. To the limit, to the point of muscle rupture.

And then, he struck the wall roughly.

KWAAAANG!

The vibration spread along the wall. His strength wasn’t enough to break the wall, but it was enough to knock off the things attached to it.

There were countless decorations in the room. Animal bones, ornate wooden decorations, and so on. Heavy and large things were hanging from the ceiling.

They all fell at once.

Decorations started to collapse as if a hailstorm was falling.

“Is this how you’re coming?”

The Lord laughed cheerfully and drew his sword. The falling decorations were quite large, and if hit directly, even he would take significant damage. He had no choice but to strike them away with his sword.

Tae-san quickly pulled out his staff.

[You have activated Fireball.]

As soon as the flames gathered, he transformed the staff into a bow. He then quickly drew two arrows.

Whistle!

Paralysis Arrow and Poison Arrow were launched.

As they passed through the flying fireball, they became Flame Arrows. He then pulled out the Staff of Mind Control.

[You have activated Confusion.] [Judging…….]

The Lord let out a small moan.

But he shook it off easily, which Taesan expected. The use of the Staff of Mind Control was only for a very slight gap.

The decorations obstructed the view. With them falling all over the room, Taesan had nowhere to dodge.

But instead of blocking, Taesan dug his heels in. He ran towards the Lord inside this collapsing room.

[You have activated Forced Duel. For 10 seconds, no one but the Lord can inflict damage on you.]