Survive the labyrinth with EX-grade traits

The party began to move towards the escape portal.

Derek and Bernard led the way, consulting the map as they went.

Rustle.

As they continued, they spotted a goblin village in the distance, surrounded by a crude palisade and fence.

The closer they got to their destination, the more they noticed the grass beneath their feet was intricately twisted or had crude traps set up at irregular intervals.

Click.

Thankfully, Bernard’s careful searching and disarming of traps, along with my own eyes, ensured no one was injured along the way.

‘I’ve only been with the party for a few days, but I’ve realized that every role is important, no matter how insignificant it may seem.’

Bernard, who stood out in non-combat situations, and Hans, who initially seemed underwhelming, were now silently fulfilling their roles as porters.

Regardless of their personalities, things would have been more difficult without them.

“Halt. We’re almost at the entrance. Remember what I said?”

The types of monsters that would come from the village, their characteristics, combat positions, and emergency responses.

After seeing the party members, including me, nod in agreement, Derek said,

“Alright, let’s go!”

Their goal was the center of the village.

As soon as they reached the entrance, a goblin scout began to alert the others of their intrusion.

“Ker-uck! Ker-uck!”

Shhick!

Before the other goblins could gather, I dashed forward and slashed the scout’s throat.

“Gurgle, gurgle.”

The goblin fell to the ground, clutching its bleeding neck.

“It’s too late. They’re already coming. From now on, we need to be quick and decisive.”

“Yeriel’s buff! Keep it refreshed when it runs out! Bernard, escort Yeriel and make sure you’re heading in the right direction!”

“Yes! The light of righteousness will guide us to vanquish evil!”

[The effect of Divine Weapon increases Strength by one level for 10 minutes.]

After receiving Yeriel’s buff, I channeled my magic to activate my enhanced body.

[Enhanced Body Activated]

[All physical attributes increase by one level.]

My blood boiled.

────

[Ahren]

[Strength: D] [Agility: E+] [Endurance: E+]
[Stamina: D-] [Magic: EX] [Luck: E-]

[Acquired Traits] (Expand)

────

These were my stats after Yeriel’s buff.

Thanks to my heart, which continually replenished my magic, I could maintain my enhanced body state as long as I endured the overall boost.

[Chaos asks you not to get hurt.]

‘Of course! I’ll make sure we get out of here safely and reach the city.’

“Let’s go, Ahren! I believe in you!”

Derek’s shout signaled the start of the battle.

“Ker-uck!”

A goblin charged at me.

Screech.

I dodged its attack and slashed its torso.

“Ker-uck.”

‘No, this isn’t the main damage dealer position Derek mentioned.’

Since falling to the third floor, I had been fighting by dodging attacks using Chaos Eye and then counterattacking.

But upon reflection, I realized I had been doing that out of desperation or because I had a powerful mage in front of me to deal heavy damage.

How could we reach the center of the village if we just waited for the goblins’ attacks? Time was not on our side.

With my stats boosted by Enhanced Body, it was time to fight the goblins differently.

From now on, I would take the lead.

“Yaaah!”

I charged forward, slashing at the goblins.

Shhick!

Caught off guard by my swift movements and powerful strikes, the goblins fell one after another as I carved a path through them.

Screech. Crack!

When I slowed down and a dangerous attack was incoming, I used Chaos Eye to dodge precisely.

Grind.

If I couldn’t dodge completely, I’d expose the less vulnerable leather armor parts of my body.

“You damn little green bastards, get out of my way or die!”

The silver trail of my blade sliced through the green monsters, leaving a trail of blood and screams in its wake.

“Ahren! We need to turn right!”

I had been so caught up in the excitement of the battle that I almost missed Bernard’s warning.

‘Is it because I’ve been seeing so much blood? I need to calm down.’

Pew, pew, pew—

Crap, it’s the archers. They’re firing from all directions, and I’ll have to take at least one hit no matter how I try to dodge.

But…

“May the holy light shield us.”

[Divine Shield]

Thud, thud!

Of course, my party members wouldn’t just stand by and watch.

Yeriel’s temporary divine shield blocked all the goblins’ arrows, and Bernard took advantage of the opening to pick off the goblin archers one by one.

Derek steadily blocked the incoming attacks, taking one step at a time, while I furiously swung my sword to clear the way.

“Hey, over there! I see the portal! We’re almost there!”

Hans shouted with excitement and urgency.

As I turned my head to look, I saw the portal.

Wait, there’s more than one portal?

“Why are there two portals? I don’t remember hearing about this! Which one do we enter?”

I thought it was just a choice between going down or escaping.

Which one is the escape portal, the yellow or the blue one?

Derek looked surprised and said,

“Sorry, Ahren, I forgot to mention it because it’s such a basic piece of knowledge for adventurers! We need to go through the yellow one! The blue one leads to the next floor!”

I was relieved to know this now.

Damn it. Once I get out of here, I’ll make sure to memorize all the basic knowledge an adventurer should have.

The goblins’ attacks had almost ceased, and the portal was clearly visible, just a few hundred meters away.

“Good job, we’re almost there! We’ll meet at the entrance to the Great Dungeon. I’ll go ahead!”

Derek turned back and shouted, then let out a cheer as he sprinted forward.

Just then—

Fzzz, fzzz—

‘What’s that sound?’

──Kaboom!

“Ugh!”

“Derek?! No!”

A purple lightning bolt struck Derek out of nowhere, causing him to collapse.

‘What’s going on here?’

Regardless, I couldn’t leave Derek behind, so I rushed to his side. As I approached, something appeared in front of the portal and waved its hand.

Fzzz—

The world slowed down. …My feet? I’m standing right here!

In the slowed-down world, I saw a large circle appear right beneath my feet and, without a second thought, I jumped out of the circle.

Kaboom!

I dodged the lightning bolt, just like the one that had struck Derek.

‘There was a buzzing sound before Derek fell.

‘The lightning was too fast, and the slow-motion effect wore off quickly. I need to dodge as soon as I see the trajectory, or I’ll die regardless of the slow motion!’

I looked at the source of the lightning and my eyes reacted.

[Named Entity Detected.]

[Retrieving limited information.]

[Purple Cicero]

A mutant Hopgoblin that rarely appears on the third floor of the Great Dungeon.

Among them, he with purple skin wields purple lightning befitting his color.

Surviving his devastating attacks won’t be easy.

[Acquired Traits] (Locked)

Purple Lightning
Lightning Resistance

────

Damn it. When I fell to the third floor, my misfortune wasn’t just about the fall itself.

Due to the lock symbol, I couldn’t view the details of the traits.

I had wondered why we only encountered goblin warriors and archers until we were almost at the portal, when the goblin shaman and the chieftain-level Hopgoblin were mentioned.

I never expected a mutant Hopgoblin with shaman-like abilities, let alone one that manipulates a special type of lightning, to appear.

Could I defeat such a creature and escape?

No, it’s not a matter of ‘could I,’ but ‘I must.’ How could I have come this far, lost 2 billion won, and even killed someone, only to be defeated by a mere goblin?

‘Damn it. If I die like this, I’ll feel sorry for Scarlet. Let’s give it our all!’

I steadied my sword, and the creature laughed in my face.

“Ker-uck. Kra-rak.”

Yeah, go ahead and laugh.

“While I fight this creature, if the lightning focuses on me, Bernard and Hans, carry Derek and move far away!”

“Yeriel, stay at a distance and refresh my buff. If I instruct or it seems necessary, use your shield to protect me! Your safety comes first, so don’t come too close!”

As I finished speaking, the creature waved its hand as if I had finished my last words.

Fzzz—

Here it comes! Where is it this time?

This attack had a trajectory in the shape of a cross, starting from the creature’s body.

I quickly rolled out of the range.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The chain lightning struck in a sequence, from close to far, but fortunately, none of it hit me.

However, even being near where the lightning struck the ground caused a gradual accumulation of damage.

“Yaaah!”

As if there was a delay between its lightning manipulation and its next attack, I charged at the creature, who was standing still, and swung my sword.

Zing.

Damn it. The creature’s body transformed into lightning and dissipated.

But I felt like I had struck something.

[Chaos attribute attack partially ignores the opponent’s derived technique, Electrocution.]

That’s it! The ability attached to Enhanced Body!

──When used, the attack deals weak Chaos attribute additional damage.

I had wondered if this additional damage was effective since the goblins I had encountered so far died with a single blow to their vital spots.

I never expected this ability to work in such a way.

The trait description mentioned weak additional damage, but it seemed to be effective since it carried the Chaos attribute.

Despite the creature transforming its body into lightning, my attack still cut its chest, causing blood to flow. The creature dropped its playful attitude and clenched its teeth.

“Ker-uck. Kisha-at!”

The creature let out a monstrous roar, raising both arms.

I slowed down again. Where is it this time? Damn it. The circles had multiplied, surrounding me completely.

I was trying to figure out where to dodge when the circles started to disappear one by one.

The smallest one is right there!

“Yeriel, shield above my head!”

Fzzz—

Paking!

The creature had filled the area around me with small lightning bolts, so I dodged by moving to the smallest circle.

Fortunately, Yeriel’s shield took the small lightning bolts, breaking and protecting me from any damage except for a slight tingling sensation.

Now’s my chance!

Shhick!

Zing.

I quickly rushed forward, steadied my stance, and slashed the creature’s neck, just as I had done before.

This time, the cut was deep enough to make the creature’s neck bleed, and it staggered, clutching its neck and spitting blood.

“Khe-uck.”

I was about to deliver the final blow to its heart when—

Thud!

“What?”

The creature, without using Electrocution, grabbed the blade of my sword with the hand that wasn’t clutching its neck.

Then, it glared at me and let out a menacing roar.

“Kera-ak!”

In the slowed-down world, I sensed something was wrong and tried to release my sword, but it was too late.

Just as I was about to let go of the handle, my vision flickered.

Rumble.

“Ugh…”

[Chaos demands that you snap out of it!]

The purple lightning traveled up my sword and electrocuted me from the inside out, making me feel like my body was popping like popcorn.

“——.”

My mind was hazy, and a ringing sound filled my ears.

Fortunately, Enhanced Body’s weak magic resistance and my heart core seemed to have saved me.

I barely managed to open my blurry eyes and look at the creature.

It seemed that the creature had also exhausted its strength with its gamble, as it lay on the ground, gasping for breath.

Even its arm, which had been clutching its neck, was now limp.

I forced my parched lips to speak.

“I… I won, you… bastard.”

I tried to reach for the sword on the ground but failed.

My right hand, charred on the outside, seemed to be the problem as it trembled when I tried to grip the sword.

‘Damn. I’m completely useless. I wish I could heal with a healing spell.’

I had no choice but to hold the sword with my left hand and press the pommel with my right palm.

“Hahaha, you bastard. You were so smug, and now look at you.”

The creature, despite being on the brink of death, gritted its teeth and glared at me with malice.

I stared into its gleaming eyes and plunged my sword into its heart.

Thud.

“Khe-uck.”

“You’re a persistent one. Farewell.”

The light faded from the creature’s eyes, and a gray glow appeared in the center of its body.

“Hah… Ahh.”

I felt a sense of relief as I lay on the ground, my body weak.

‘Wow, what a stroke of luck. I’ve been through so much, and now I’m being rewarded!’

[Chaos wipes away her tears, slightly worried.]

“Ahren!”

Yeriel rushed over, saw my condition, and sat down, her eyes welling up with tears. She wiped away the tears streaming down her face and said,

“What… what should we do? Huh, huh, how much pain did you endure? Hiccups. I’m sorry I couldn’t help…

I wiped away the tears from her face with my arm.

“You’ve done enough. Don’t blame yourself. Can you heal my right hand?”

“Yes, yes! May they rise above their pain!”

Whoosh!

The skin on my right hand began to regenerate and heal. After a short wait, my right hand regained its strength.

‘Thank goodness. I’m truly grateful. I still feel a bit stiff, but I’m sure it’ll get better over time. Now, let’s go farming!’

I placed my hand on the gray glow in the center of Cicero’s body.

[Ability activated.]

[Acquired trait ‘Purple Lightning’.]

I can’t believe it! I got the exact trait I needed, and it was one of only two traits he had!

Wow… I can’t believe I can now use the same lightning ability that he did. It’s hard to believe.

Just then—

Cicero’s corpse began to glow purple, forming a mass the size of my torso.

“What’s this?”

I was startled, thinking it might be a self-destruct ability triggered by its death, and hurriedly got up. But then, I heard Hans’ shocked voice from behind.

“Unique item! A unique item on the third floor?! This is insane!”

…What?