I Gave Up Being Stronger

“Pfft!” Furface laughed. He had spent ten years confined in this Dungeon and had become prideful of being the foremost expert of the first checkpoint. This had hardened his thinking. “At least ten other people have made proposals like yours.”

Escaping this place had once been his dream. At some point, however, he had stopped dreaming. Too many failures had broken his spirit. Smiling self-deprecatingly, he said, “But that’s impossible.”

“Why?” Cha Jin-Hyeok asked.

“I have a very tough body and tenacious vitality.”

“You look like it.”

“But I’m a bit on the stupid side.” The orangutan Beastkin tapped his head. “The first checkpoint is basically a labyrinth. The path is well-known, so those with a certain level of skill can pass through it, but I can’t overcome the barrier of the first checkpoint’s gatekeeper, the Riddle Sphinx.”

“Why not?”

“The Riddle Sphinx plunges challengers into illusions by posing riddles. Only those who overcome these illusions can move on to the second checkpoint. And I do not have the intelligence to do that.”

“It’s not that your intelligence is lacking, but rather that you were born with weak mental fortitude.”

“Well, whatever.” Furface had tried hard for ten years but ultimately failed to overcome the illusions. Now, he had given up.

“Then what about the people behind you?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“They lack basic abilities.”

This labyrinth was filled with various monsters and treacherous traps scattered everywhere. No matter how excellent the guides available for the labyrinth were, one needed basic abilities to follow them.

“Nevertheless, if they keep trying here, they will eventually grow and pass through the first checkpoint at least,” Furface added. He looked a bit bitter. “But I’m different. My physical abilities alone are not good enough for me to escape this place.”

“No, I think differently,” Jin-Hyeok interjected.

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve studied this place thoroughly. I believe it’s possible to escape it with physical abilities alone.”

Furface, who had been laughing earlier, now became slightly angry. ‘What can this newcomer possibly know about me?’

Of course, since this Player had started as a non-combatant Player yet become the Sword Emperor Tournament’s winner, he definitely had extraordinarily exceptional talent.

“It seems your exceptionalism has made you arrogant,” Furface said. He snorted and continued, “I will not help you. Go ahead. Try to pass through the first checkpoint with your strength.”

No matter how skilled a Player was, it was impossible for them to pass through the first checkpoint on the first attempt, unless they were a top-tier Navigator from Arvis. If everyone who knew the path could pass through this checkpoint, this Dungeon would not have been called the worst in history.

“If you need help, raise your hands. I will help you then. But at that time, you will have to apologize for your rudeness. Your words disregarded my past ten years. You arrogant brat.”

***

Jin-Hyeok walked toward the first checkpoint. “This is the entrance to the labyrinth. I’m going in.”

The labyrinth was filled with all sorts of magic circles that could make one lose their sense of direction, block their vision, or cause disorientation. Sharp blades would spring out, and poisonous mists would be released. Before entering, Jin-Hyeok checked the livestreaming system.

[Don’t worry! We have set your livestream to have a five-minute delay, with plenty of buffers! We will edit and review it sufficiently before airing! >_<]

After a previous livestream of his had led to numerous viewers being cursed, he had realized that a fully live livestream was not entirely a good idea. So, Jin-Hyeok had opted for a delayed livestream. Wang Yu-Mi would review the footage, and Kang Chul would edit certain parts before airing.

[Oh, and remember, no first-person view! Please use third person!]

Jin-Hyeok nodded somewhat regretfully and switched to a third-person perspective. As he entered the labyrinth, a dark energy rushed in and enveloped him.

Furface, who was following him, smirked. ‘Of all things, the darkness magic circle had to be the one this time…’

Whenever someone entered the labyrinth, one of the five magic circles would inevitably activate. Among them, the darkness magic circle was the most troublesome. While it did not have an immediate drastic effect, it would become the biggest obstacle to escaping this maze.

As time passed, it would make one lose their sense of direction and induce inexplicable fear. Eventually, they would fail to maintain composure in front of the gatekeeper Riddle Sphinx and be consumed by illusions.

‘If you had studied the strategy thoroughly, you would turn back now,’ Furface thought.

The darkness magic usually remained in effect for about twenty-four hours. The general and efficient strategy to deal with it was to detect the darkness magic immediately, retreat, and try again after twenty-four hours.

‘But he is continuing!’

As expected, Chul-Soo was a novice full of misplaced confidence. Even though an efficient method was widely known to the public, he had entered the Dungeon without even knowing that. Surprisingly, the Dungeon had many such fools. The more exceptional one’s abilities were, the more likely one was to do such stupid things. Nevertheless, something was a bit strange.

‘Why did it dissipate?’

Generally, the magic that rose from the darkness magic circle clung to the Player’s body like leeches. It was supposed to slowly eat away at the Player’s body, but for some reason, the aura of darkness magic had vanished around Chul-Soo.

‘Did it get absorbed into his body?’

That was the worst case. The effect was less severe when the magic influenced the Player from the outside.

‘Direct influence of the darkness magic is the worst.’

Although Furface disliked Jin-Hyeok, he had no intention of letting him die here. He was prepared to rescue Jin-Hyeok the moment the young man collapsed. However, Jin-Hyeok did not collapse and instead reached a fork. The left path was faster but more difficult and the right path was slower but easier. Here, strategies diverged based on style; those with sufficient strength chose the left, while those who felt lacking chose the right.

‘He should obviously choose the right path.’

Jin-Hyeok made another foolish choice. He started walking to the left. Unable to hold back anymore, Furface said, “A Fire Dragonling will be waiting for us if you choose the left path.”

“I know.”

“Okay. If you’re really the Sword Emperor Tournament’s winner, you should be able to handle the Dragonling alone.” Furface knew that Chul-Soo was capable of defeating the Dragonling. But the Dragonling was not the end of this Dungeon. The young man had to consider conserving stamina. “I understand you’re confident in your stamina, but you should conserve it when you can. You never know what might happen in this Dungeon”

“Thanks for the advice. I will conserve when I need to.”

Contrary to his words, Jin-Hyeok continued forward and eventually faced the Fire Dragonling. The Dragonling breathed fire, and Jin-Hyeok did not dodge. The concept of this expedition was not creating tension, but showing overwhelming power. He just kept moving forward while activating Absolute Barrier.

From the perspective of Furface, a veteran of the first checkpoint, this was extremely inefficient. Furface was also quite a capable Tank. From a Tank’s viewpoint, such an advancement was truly foolish. A fool who blocked everything just because they could did not deserve to be called a Tank. A good Tank’s attitude was to dodge what could be dodged.

‘His mana consumption must be enormous!’ Furface could not believe Chul-Soo was wasting his stamina and mana when the Fire Dragonling was not even the final boss. It seemed like Chul-Soo just wanted to show off his abilities.

Finally, after breaking through the flames head-on, Jin-Hyeok swung Miri. Golden streams burst forth from Miri, striking the Dragonling’s temple.

-Whew~ Thank you for the food!

Furface flinched. ‘He just killed the Fire Dragonling in one hit!’

While many could handle the Dragonling, those who could kill it in one hit were rare. Even if that were possible, people rarely did so. Several efficient attacks were far more advantageous for conserving stamina than one overly powerful attack.

However, Furface began to feel confused.

‘His breathing is completely normal!’

This was not something that could be faked.

***

Furface had to admit it. ‘He is a monster…!’

Chul-Soo should have been affected by the darkness magic. Yet, after facing the Dragonling alone and breaking through all sorts of traps with his strength, he had not even broken a sweat. It was indeed the kind of skill befitting the Sword Emperor Tournament’s winner from a non-combatant Job. Chul-Soo had made even Furface, who had been mired in frustration for ten years, want to feel a little hope.

‘What the hell am I thinking?’

It was better not to have hope—the greater the expectation was, the greater the disappointment would be. He had experienced too much disappointment and suffered accordingly. Hasty expectations would only hurt him more.

‘In the end, the Riddle Sphinx won’t let him pass.’

The maze was essentially a preliminary battle for the Riddle Sphinx. No matter how skilled a Player was, they would inevitably become physically and mentally exhausted passing through the maze. In that state, when faced with the Riddle Sphinx, they would succumb to its enigmatic riddles and illusions.

“Furface, can I ask you something?” Jin-Hyeok said.

“I won’t give you any advice that might help you.”

“Look at this wall.” Jin-Hyeok placed his hand on the stone wall. “If we break through here, don’t you think there might be a shortcut?”

“Ha…” Furface sighed. He was a ten-year veteran. At least regarding this place, he had better eyes than even the Navigators. “All the strategies for this place have long been thoroughly uncovered. Even before I came here, numerous Navigators explored and found the optimal path”

Just because a Player won the Sword Emperor Tournament, it did not necessarily mean their abilities as a Navigator would be exceptional too. That was physically impossible. But occasionally, after achieving greatly in one field, some arrogant geniuses harbored the vain belief that they would be a genius in other fields too.

“Do you think you’re better than those Navigators?” Furface asked.

“Probably not.”

“Right.”

“But I think there is a path here.”

Jin-Hyeok began pushing the wall with all his might. Simultaneously, a purple cloud about three meters in size formed above his head, and dozens of lightning bolts rained down.

Furface’s eyes widened. ‘Oh no!’

This was a trap even Furface had never seen before. It felt like the most powerful magical storm among all the traps at the first checkpoint. These were spells with tremendous destructive power.

‘I need to rescue him!’

Furface rushed toward Jin-Hyeok. But when his hand touched Jin-Hyeok’s back, Furface had to stop in his tracks.

“Huh…?”

Jin-Hyeok was grinning.

“See? I told you there was a path here,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Behind the wall that Jin-Hyeok had pushed away was a space. In that space was a darkness as black as the universe. In the middle of that space was a path made of white light.

“Are you alright?” Furface asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Just now, that lightning…”

“It stung a little.”

Furface could only wear a dumbfounded expression for a while. Even putting it mildly, it was far more than just a little sting. He finally gathered his wits and continued, “Chul-Soo, this place is…!”