152 – Training of the Returner (13)
Currently, my number one goal is ‘to clear the 12th floor at least once.’ The reason is simple. Because I was feeling like my mental state was going back and forth. Spending 11 days doing nothing was much more painful than I thought. I needed to meet Choi Ji-won again, relieve her worries, and get my mind together.
Then, a very obvious question comes to mind. ‘How’ to beat the 12th floor? There are two main problems at present. First. A man who doesn’t really know the limits of his abilities and takes on challenges that are too difficult. Second, the short-haired woman who screams and roasts the rest of her colleagues when they die. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but there were two main problems we faced.
Here, like the previous floor, I swing my sword to scare them, activate the fear trait, and then force them to listen to me? I don’t think this is the right answer. Because their egos were too strong.
‘There is a high probability that the fear trait will not activate.’
The fear trait was not easily activated against those who were arrogant or thought themselves to be strong. The fear trait is very effective against opponents who are mentally concentrated or whose strength is significantly different from mine. Of course, the difference between their power and mine is significant… It seems highly likely that you won’t be able to understand that in your heart.
If I just squeeze it, wouldn’t it activate on its own? It is certain that the side effects will be greater if this is ‘just’ scared. Since no one can intervene when choosing a reward, I may be in trouble if I only choose the most difficult reward in the final test, such as ‘Let’s die together.’
Of course, one cruel possibility remains. If this test continues even after the person dies, or rather skips the step of selecting compensation for the dead person… You can definitely beat it if you kill all the remaining four.
But of course I pass this. Taking it easy by killing people is not my way. In web novels and comics, the comments of regressors who proceeded in that way were all bad. If you kill this person for this reason and that person for that reason, there will be no one left by your side. In the first place, Choi Ji-won and I do not want to become accustomed to murder.
In any case, forcibly intimidating people for the reasons mentioned above is a no-go. So, this means that we need to encourage people to break this floor without threats or violence…
“Do you remember what I said earlier? “The mannequin in [1] Was incredibly weak.”
“… But what?”
“But you said that the mannequins in [6] And [7] Were still quite strong, right?”
In the last round, I chose [10] And then [1], So others had to pay 9 or 8, but this time, I chose [1] And paid [1], So the number was a little lower. That’s why the woman’s glasses weren’t broken, and there were no injuries to people.
“I think the strength of the mannequin increases dramatically as the number increases. “You have to be careful.”
Therefore, the carelessness and arrogance were greater than in the previous episode, and that is why I pointed that out.
“Ah, yes.”
“Um… “
However, other players just pass it on as if it’s just like that. They are overflowing with confidence, and since they just won easily, they won’t even listen to me. I expected this. However, these seemingly meaningless words will later gain great power.
-Then, before starting the second test, we will each choose our own reward. Please everyone please take your seats.
[10] Custom Item Box (A- ~ C+)
[15] Elixir of experience (medium)
[20] Random Trait Box (Unique)
And as I sat down again following the voice’s guidance, a message window appeared before my eyes. As in previous rounds, [10] Was the lowest reward. Is this fixed? Or who really lied and chose [10]? You won’t know unless you kill the other four people.
“Hmm.”
After thinking for a moment, I pressed the [10] Button. Then, the protective shield disappears, and the number [85] Floats above the elevator.
“I told you in advance, I chose 20.”
“Me too.”
A woman with short hair and a man with a mole proudly say that they chose [20].
“I picked 15.”
“Oh, me too.”
A woman with glasses and a man with acne claim that they chose 15.
The sum of the numbers they chose is 70. However, the number floating above the elevator is 85. Considering that I chose 10, there was once again a liar. In the last episode, the snowball rolled by that lie led to the death of the man with the dot.
“Oh, I chose 15. “This time, the numbers are just right.”
But what if I lie too? If someone sings 5 lower, I sing 5 higher. Then the cause of all these conflicts will disappear. Of course, if I do this, there is a high probability that I will be suspected of lying… As long as you wake up, it doesn’t matter.
“Really? Then let’s go. “I’ll go in first.”
“No, wait a minute.”
“I’ll be back?”
A man who gets on the elevator as soon as he realizes that the number is correct, regardless of whether others are confused or not. The number he entered this time was [20].
“That’s right.”
I had a big smile in my heart. This was my target.
The man with the dot was narrowly defeated when he entered [25]. (I guessed.) So, if he enters 20 instead of being greedy with 5… At least he won’t be defeated.
After about 20 minutes had passed.
“Oh, I’m here…” What’s wrong with you? Are you okay?”
“Uh, ugh…” “
As if to prove that my guess was correct, although he is more of a slut mate, he is still a man who came back alive. His dwarven armor is badly distorted and his clown face is badly damaged, but his life is still hanging on. Maybe that’s why his short-haired girl’s skin was a little red, but she didn’t give off any sparks.
“Potion, drink some potion first. Wow, I can see the shoulder blades… “
“Whoo, whoo, whoo…” “
The distorted armor itself was a weapon, so it had to be forcibly removed. A man whose complexion had slightly returned after tearing off his precious dwarven armor and drinking the potion. There may be some scars left, but the big fire is still put out.
“So, what happened?”
“Mannequin, mannequin… So f*cking strong… “
A man who is said to have a mannequin wielding a scythe as his enemy. He said it was his first time fighting with a weapon called a ‘scythe’.
“I didn’t use any special superpowers or anything. Just… You fight so well. “That’s it.”
A fight between spears and scythes. It is the spear that has the advantage in range. In the first place, a sickle was extremely unsuitable for stabbing or cutting, and its shape itself was suitable for cutting.
However, the mannequin pushed the man with the mole to his limit. He held the scythe briefly, constantly narrowing the distance, and persistently aimed at the man’s neck.
“If it wasn’t for the attack using the armor… “I might have died a long time ago.”
While the man gets tired, the mannequin never gets tired. He is a man who has made a decision after realizing that he will be at a disadvantage as time goes by. It is said that he believed in the effectiveness of his armor and used his shoulder to catch a scythe aimed at his neck, and then took advantage of the gap where his scythe was stuck in his shoulder to knock down the mannequin.
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“Damn, I let my guard down… If I had known it would be this difficult… “
A man with a mole who glances at my face without talking. Now he must have remembered. That he warned me, ‘You better be careful because it could get a lot harder.’
That’s right. This is the picture I derived. The man with the mole barely survives, and warns of the dangers of this floor.
“… “
“… “
In fact, even the guys who were full of confidence were completely depressed as the audio-visual material was in front of them. It’s as if he’s saying, ‘Am I going to end up like that too?’
“Then, I will go in next.”
Therefore, I was able to board the elevator and type [20] Without any interruption. Shouldn’t I enter [15]? Right. I just wanted to check how difficult [20] Was.
Wow.
After about 30 seconds, the elevator door opens and a pure white space appears.
-Let’s start the test.
“Hmm.”
Perhaps because it is the same difficulty level [20], The black mannequin holding the scythe that the man mentioned stands up. I also took out my sword from its scabbard and approached him.
“Come.”
If you are really lucky, you will be able to break it in one go. But I was prepared to go back at least three times. ‘Defeating the enemy without any injuries’ was never an easy task. The fact that I never reach the top when evaluating myself includes the fact that I will regress even if I get hit just once. Unless there is a significant difference in skill, it is impossible to win without getting hurt.
The distance between me and the mannequin gradually narrowed, until it reached the distance I could reach if I swung my sword.
“… !”
A mannequin momentarily rushes forward while holding a scythe. At first glance, it swings horizontally low and deep as if it is targeting my abdomen, but the stepping foot is shallow. In other words, that attack was a mistake.
Whoop!
At the same time, the blade that was lying on its side is raised upward, and a sharp sickle is aimed at my face. Due to the long-bladed nature of the scythe, just rotating the weapon slightly creates a threatening change. However, there is no way it will work for me as I was already expecting it.
“It’s a bit slow.”
Moreover, perhaps because his physical ability was not particularly great, the speed of the attack itself was quite slow. If I had to judge it, I think it would be like Doksuhee on the 3rd floor. In other words, he is not my current opponent.
He tilted his head to avoid the scythe, and at the same time grabbed the handle of the scythe with his left hand. I am far superior in terms of physical ability. It was possible to handle both of his hands with just one hand.
Hook!
The mannequin immediately let go of the scythe in my hand and lunged at my lower body. It was a ploy to knock me down using wrestling techniques.
Bah!
However, as the mannequin ran towards me and at the same time I hit its chin hard with my knee, its neck was bent about 90 degrees and it no longer moved.
“Whoa.”
The closed elevator door opens. It wasn’t an easy enemy, but it wasn’t that difficult either. The man with the mole was worse than I expected. Is not it? Am I too used to fighting?
“Still, at this level, difficulty level 15 would be quite easy.”
This time, I boarded the elevator feeling relieved. The short-haired woman definitely looked stronger than the mole-haired man, so she should be able to beat the difficulty level of 20… The problem is with the glasses woman and the acne man.
I guess they can break it safely since I added 5 more. The second test has a high probability of success with this.
However, I didn’t know at the time.
The real challenge is the final test.