Ascension Through Skills
chapter-35

[Ah?]

She was chased out due to the changes in the labyrinth. The ghost, who realized this belatedly, chuckled.

[So, you've been cohabitating uncomfortably?]

“Ugh… Why is the labyrinth changing all of a sudden…

The woman began sobbing, finding her situation truly unfair. Being driven out of her dwelling and suddenly ended up in a room with an Orc Warrior. It must have been quite startling.

[It's because of this guy.]

“Pardon?”

Confusion welled up in the woman’s eyes. She glanced at Taesan and trailed off as if it didn’t make sense.

“He seems like a new adventurer who just entered the labyrinth…

[Well, anyway. Let's talk about this later. Let's deal with this first.]

The Orc Warrior drew his sword, and Taesan met him head-on.

“Uh, um.”

The woman murmured, breaking the tense atmosphere.

“Wait a minute. An adventurer like you…”

[It's okay.]

The ghost spoke with a voice filled with trust and faith.

[Just watch for now.]

Although there was some noise from behind, Taesan barely heard it. His gaze was entirely focused on the Orc Warrior.

“Hehe.”

The warrior chuckled happily and swung his sword. The great sword, befitting his massive physique, was aimed at Taesan.

“Is your target me?”

If the woman had been here since the labyrinth changed, she could have been killed at any time.

However, the warrior dismissed her as if she were a mere bug.

He sprang into action Only after Taesan arrived, thrusting his sword at him.

They had consented to the trial of the gods. They were exclusively targeting Taesan.

In that case, he was ready to respond.

Taesan planted his feet.

[You activated Acceleration.]

The wind batted against his face.

Even without that sensation, his already-high agility became faster due to acceleration.

The warrior hurriedly raised his sword, but Taesan had already swept past him.

[31 damage to the Orc Warrior.]

“Hehe!”

The warrior roughly swung his greatsword, and Taesan faced him. The swords clashed with a loud noise that echoed throughout the labyrinth.

As expected, the Orc Warrior was a boss. The power he felt was only slightly weaker than his own. Despite the power boost from leveling up and his enhancement from Soul Ascension after entering the 4th floor, it was not a pushover.

And the warrior also possessed swordsmanship.

The greatsword moved smoothly, targeting Taesan’s weak points. Watching the trajectory aiming at his own arm, Taesan activated his skill.

[You activated Counter. Retaliate against the next attack from the opponent.]

His body moved naturally as he fended off the warrior’s sword and, in return, stabbed at his chest.

But the warrior didn’t just take the attack. He moved his arms and legs to minimize the damage.

However, his stance had to break, and Taesan didn’t miss that opportunity.

Kaang!

The sword struck down at the Orc, causing its knee to buckle. But he didn’t fall. No matter how much power Taesan exerted, it was just maintaining the status quo.

[You activated Mighty Strike. The next attack deals significant damage.]

Mighty Strike.

A powerful attack.

It was not just an increase in damage but literally added weight and power. It was a hidden feature that even the other users didn’t know of.

Squeak!

The additional strength pinned down the Orc as if it was being crushed.

He desperately resisted, trying to break free, but was blocked by Taesan’s movement.

Unable to withstand the weight, the Orc’s body slowly started to be sliced by his own sword.

The warrior’s face reddened.

“Hehe!”

[The Orc Warrior has entered a Berserk state.]

Berserk was a skill that was activated by enemies of the warrior class. Its effect was a reduction in cognitive ability and a twofold increase in strength.

The Orc roughly pushed out his sword. The sudden change in power usually caught most players off guard, costing them their lives.

However, Taesan was already aware of the conditions for activating Berserk.

As soon as Berserk was activated, he created distance, leaving the warrior’s sword to cut futilely through the air.

The warrior, unable to control his aimless power, stumbled.

[You activated Acceleration.]

Taesan’s accelerated body and sword pierced the warrior’s chest.

“Hehe…”

With an admiring expression, the warrior disappeared.

[You have defeated the Orc Warrior.] [You have defeated the boss of the 4th floor. You have received the basic reward [Ashen Wrist Guard].] [You have understood the hidden element of the 4th floor. You have received the reward [???].] [Your level has increased.] [You have acquired a Heavy Greatsword.]

Taesan collected the sword.

Although it was a boss, the victory wasn’t that difficult.

He had easily defeated the Goblin Chieftain on the 3rd floor as well.

Only the Goblin Lord was irregular. For a regular boss, even with a 30% enhancement, they wouldn’t stand a chance against Taesan. The difference was not in simple stats but in experience and information.

Regrettably, he did not receive the formidable enemy victory reward. This implied that the warrior was no longer considered a difficult enemy. In fact, the difficulty was about right for Taesan’s level.

That being said, the rewards were not meager.

Including the rewards for leveling up and the increase in his stats, his Health increased by 50. Agility increased by 4. Strength increased by 6. Intelligence increased by 1.

His Strength stat was already close to what it was previously.

Even Lee Taeyeon couldn’t reach these stats before reaching the 10th floor, and considering that the growth rate increases exponentially the further one descended in the labyrinth, this was an incredibly fast rate.

His Shield also increased by 10% of his Health, now reaching 17.

And thanks to the continuous battles, the descriptions of several skills had changed.

[Special Constant Activation Skill: Battle Continuation] [Proficiency: 20%] [Allows you to sustain combat for an extended period. You won't easily accumulate fatigue. The duration you can fight at peak condition extends.]

Battle Continuation was a skill that did not easily increase in proficiency. However, he could reach 20% proficiency on just the 4th floor thanks to fighting countless tough enemies.

Now he wouldn’t tire from just ordinary activities. Even if he continued to fight without rest, he could easily battle for over an hour. Reaching 20% proficiency implied this.

[Special Constant Activation Skill: Enhanced Perception] [Proficiency: 21%] [Perception is enhanced. You can sense things like killing intent. You can also perceive blind spots.]

The ability to detect blind spots had been added. Now, getting hit from behind was virtually out of the question.

There were still more rewards left, but he couldn’t check them right now. Thanks to his Enhanced Perception, he could continuously feel distrustful gazes aimed at him.

“H-how did an adventurer on the 4th floor defeat the warrior, and so easily at that…”

The woman muttered as if it were impossible.

“…Who are you?”

“A player.”

Taesan answered gruffly.

After a while, the woman, who had insisted that this was impossible, seemed to calm down after hearing an explanation from the ghost. With a composed expression, she approached Taesan.

“Uh, hmm. Thank you. I survived, thanks to you.”

Chewing on some goblin meat, Taesan nodded. The woman looked at him as if he were a curiosity.

“There really are people who eat that… Is it tasty?”

“No.”

The taste was awful but enough to roughly fill his stomach. There was a time when eating the human-like form of a goblin was disturbing, but now he didn’t even remember it.

“So, who are you?”

The ghost of the Hero knew her, so she must have survived here for quite some time.

The woman with blue hair dusted off the dirt on her robe.

“I’m Lillis. A devotee of magic. A woman who entered this place to learn profound mysteries.”

“Magic?”

“It seems you come from a world without magic like the Hero said… There really are all sorts of worlds.”

Lillis, who seemed to find it fascinating, answered.

“Magic can only be learned by those who can. It’s a born talent. I didn’t have the talent, but I wanted to learn magic more than anyone else. That’s why I came here.”

She murmured with a distant look on her face.

“This place is a labyrinth. A place where one can find their dreams. Thanks to it, I’ve achieved results.”

[Though they were very feeble, like that of a firefly.]

Lillis’s face crumpled at the laughter-filled remark.

She waved her hand, and light was woven. Then, it filled the room.

In the brightened room, Lillis grumbled.

“Yes, this is as far as I could go. This damn labyrinth also discriminates against people.”

[But didn't you acquire something you couldn't have otherwise? You should be satisfied.]

“But isn’t it still lacking? I didn’t give up everything to obtain just this.”

Taesan looked at her askance.

She said her achievement was weak.

However, the light magic she manifested was something everyone desired, but only a fortunate few could obtain.

Given that the effects attached to the staff were random, the chance of obtaining the desired magic was very slim.

It was no exception for Taesan either.

Unaware of Taesan’s gaze, Lillis continued grumbling.

“So I was stuck here, continuing my research, when suddenly my room was smashed, and I was chased out. Why did this happen?”

[I told you. It's because of this guy.]

“Don’t lie.”

Lillis scowled.

“Yes, I acknowledge that he is strong. But it doesn’t seem like he’s at the level to disturb the law, right? Even the Hero couldn’t do it, could he?”

[Well, this guy couldn't.]

The ghost spoke leisurely.

[But there is someone who could, isn't there?]

Lillis’s pupils, deep in thought, widened.

“Don’t tell me, a god?”

[You know it.]

“But to change the labyrinth, they also have to sacrifice their own domain.”

[They deem it worth it for this guy.]

“Ah……

Lillis sent a gaze filled with wonder toward Taesan.

“Some are stuck begging to learn magic……”

[Are you complaining about that now?]

“It’s just a gripe. What an unfair world.”

Lillis grumbled, bending her waist.

“Sigh. Now that the labyrinth is like this, I have to find a new base.”

[You're going down?]

“Do I have any other choice? I have to find the secret room and establish my base. The 5th floor is probably in the same condition, so I might have to go to the 6th floor.”

[Can you go down?]

The 5th floor had changed into a straight line. As more powerful monsters appear on the 6th floor, it would be difficult to break through without problems.

“That much isn’t a problem.”

Lillis snapped her fingers. An opaque curtain wrapped around her, hiding her from sight.

[Invisibility magic? You learned that too?]

“They can’t notice me until the 9th floor, so I can go down with this.”

Before she left, she looked at Taesan.

“Thanks for helping me for now. I’d like to repay you, but… I don’t have anything.”

“You do.”

Taesan spoke impassively, and Lillis looked puzzled.

“I really am penniless? All my catalysts and materials flew away.”

“Your power.”

Lillis’s face hardened.

“Magic. I want to learn that.”

“Uh..”

Her voice trailed off, and her face displayed a sense of repulsion.

“I’m sorry, but I spent my lifetime learning this. I’m grateful for your help, but it’s hard for me to give this away.”

She rejected Taesan’s proposal.

He somewhat expected this reaction. From her words, it seemed she came here to learn magic. She wouldn’t teach that to just anyone.

From here, it was negotiation time. As Taesan was about to speak, the ghost spoke first.

[Why not just teach him?]

“Excuse me?”

Lillis looked at him in surprise. Taesan also gave his attention to the ghost.

The ghost started speaking calmly.

[You've got nothing, do you? Anything to give back?]

“Well…”

[All you have is magic. I understand you put a lot of value into it, but from an absolute standard, it's nothing. Isn't it a fair price for a life?]

“Well… yes, but…”

Still, she looked reluctant. Value was relative, and to her, her magic was truly precious.

[And it's not a bad deal for you either.]

“Pardon?”

[How far did you go down?]

“…the 9th floor.”

She replied quietly, as if embarrassed. The ghost responded as if he expected as much.

[Right. With your abilities, you can't go any further. But he is an adventurer who explores the labyrinth. Moreover, he's been recognized by a god. Naturally, he'll go deeper. In other words, he'll be able to obtain things from those depths. Isn't it a chance for you to learn the magic you haven't learned yet?]

“Ah.”

Lillis’s pupils widened.

[I think it's a win-win deal. What do you think?]

“Come to think of it…”

Lillis’s face brightened.

“That sounds great! Yes! I’ll teach you!”

Taesan nodded with uncertainty. He threw a glance at the ghost, who remained silent.

With a joyful face, Lillis spread her arms.

“Wow! I just remembered you’re an adventurer! This will make life more exciting. I have nothing to teach you now, but once I settle on the 6th floor, let’s meet again!”

“Sure.”

She clapped her hands, but there were no visible chains. Her body slowly faded until she became completely invisible.

“See you on the 6th floor!”

She disappeared. He had no choice but to assume so, as he felt absolutely nothing. If she didn’t speak, he wouldn’t even detect her presence.

‘That’s magic.’

It seemed worth the investment of time.

Taesan looked at the ghost with a puzzled face.

“What’s up?”

[What?]

“Why are you suddenly being so helpful?”

[So what if I am? Do I need a reason to be?]

The ghost grumbled.