Chapter 34: Episode 34

That night, I ascended from the second-floor library and stood at the threshold of the third floor. In place of a door, a shimmering, pitch-black portal pulsed with energy.

[The magic of the Trial is encroaching upon this space.]

[You must pass the Trial to ascend to the next floor.]

Taking a deep breath, I glanced behind me, where the others had gathered to see me off.

“Yusin! You have to come back safely!” Bora called out, waving frantically.

“Don’t worry about things out here. Just focus on the Trial,” Seojin said calmly.

“Y-Yusin, you can do it!”

Finally, there was Eunsol’s adorable cheer. I patted her head and turned back to the portal.

“I’ll be back.”

I walked slowly until I stood directly before the black void.

[Do you wish to challenge the Trial?]

“I accept.”

The portal pulled me in.

* * *

When the churning sensation subsided, I opened my eyes. I was standing in some kind of temple. The ceiling tapered to a point like the inside of a pyramid, illuminated by a strange, artificial light. Faded murals adorned the walls, and the floor was covered in sand and stone.

[You have arrived at the 3rd Floor Trial.]

[Verifying participant’s data.]

[The participant’s mana will be calibrated to suit this Trial.]

[The rules of this Trial will now be applied.]

[All currently possessed third-order or higher magic will be sealed.]

[Clearing the 3rd Floor Trial will unlock the new ’Golem Workshop’ facility.]

The moment I arrived, I closed my eyes and focused.

’Ea! Can you hear me?’

-Yes. I hear you clearly, Tower Master.

A wave of relief washed over me at the sound of her voice. I was glad she could fight alongside me in here.

-So this is what a Trial looks like.

’Yeah. I’m counting on you again.’

-I am at your service, Tower Master.

I scanned my surroundings and began to walk forward cautiously.

’See anything?’

-I can feel a faint magical reaction nearby, but I have not yet identified its source.

’Got it. I’m moving on.’

I walked and walked, but the space remained a chaotic jumble of dirt and rock. What was I even supposed to do here?

-Magical reaction from the rear!

At Ea’s shout, I whipped around. A pile of rocks shot up from the ground, coalescing into a massive fist that swung directly at me.

’CRASH!’

“…Whoa!”

Thanks to Ea’s warning, I dodged just in time. I pushed myself up and faced my attacker as a section of the ground rose entirely. Sand cascaded away to reveal a large golem made of solid rock.

’The reward for this Trial was the Golem Workshop, wasn’t it?’

Black, glowing lines like stripes were etched across the golem’s body, some kind of enchantment.

-No information found in monster search. It is believed to be a special golem monster that exists only within this Trial.

Right, of course it was a Trial-exclusive monster. What kind of gimmick was I dealing with this time?

’Rumble!’

The golem heaved its massive body upright and attacked. Using the Sage’s Eye to track its arm’s trajectory, I threw up a shield with a remote incantation.

’Shatter!’

But the golem’s stone arm smashed through it with contemptuous ease and kept coming. I scrambled out of the way with a desperate roll, a cold sweat breaking out on my forehead. It had been dangerously close.

This was on a whole other level from the lava golem.

No matter how powerful my previous opponents had been, a shield had always bought me at least a moment of time. This was the first enemy it was completely useless against. This was no time to conserve my strength.

“Ea, we’re going all out from the start.”

-Yes, Tower Master.

<Copy Magical Position>

An enemy I couldn’t block. My only option was to attack like a madman. I laid down a Copy Magical Position, summoned five Ice Javelins, and launched them at the golem’s torso.

’CRACKLE!’

The ice spears struck home, and parts of the golem’s body froze over. Using Copy Magical Position for a second-order spell was still a huge burden, but I’d figured it would at least be effective. I was wrong.

’It’s ridiculously tough.’

The golem was unharmed. The spears hadn’t even pierced its rocky hide; they were just frozen to the surface.

’In that case, this is a battle of pure firepower, Ea.’

-Understood.

This time, I laid down three Copy Magical Position circles. And then.

<Fire Cannon>

<Fire Cannon>

<Fire Cannon>

I summoned my ultimate firepower, the same attack that had brought down Arachnophobia.

’Go.’

’WHOOSH!’

Fifteen Fire Cannons streaked toward the golem, leaving gray trails in their wake. A deafening series of explosions followed. I covered my ears and turned my head away.

’Did I overdo it?’

The chamber was instantly engulfed in a sea of flames. Surely that was enough to destroy at least half of its body. But.

’Rumble!’

The golem was still moving, perfectly fine. Parts of its body were scorched and cracked, but that was the extent of the damage.

’How am I supposed to beat this thing? It’s not even the boss!’

The golem swung its massive fist. I threw myself to the side, deploying another shield magic circle.

’CLANG!’

Again, it shattered without buying me a single second. The golem’s arm grazed my hair as it passed.

“…Ugh!”

This was hard. A bone-deep, unfamiliar kind of difficulty. This was so different from any battle I had fought before. I couldn’t protect myself with a shield, and my specialty—a high-firepower assault—was useless. The golem’s very existence felt like my perfect counter. With both offense and defense neutralized, all I could do was scramble around in my fragile body.

“Ea! What’s its weakness?”

-I am still analyzing, but I require more combat data.

She needed more time. I stopped and glared at the golem.

“Is that so.”

I was getting pissed. I wanted to smash that body, which seemed to negate everything I had built up, even if I had to brute-force it. I closed my eyes. Anger and frustration, it turned out, were surprisingly useful ingredients for concentration. My distracting thoughts gradually faded, my mind cleared, and I could feel every single strand of mana in my body under my control.

“Ea, I’m leaving the formula completion to you.”

-Understood.

Given the circumstances, she didn’t waste time telling me not to overdo it.

<Copy Magical Position>

Time to cast again. This was my greatest attack, the one that had even defeated an Irregular: linking one Copy Magical Position to another and continuously unleashing over twenty Rapid Arrows. After a hellish war with the formulas, I opened my eyes to see a constellation of magic circles floating above the golem’s head.

’If you’re still standing after this, I’ll give you credit. You bastard.’

A golden downpour rained from the circles in the air.

’BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!’

The indiscriminate barrage sent the golem tilting heavily before it collapsed to the ground. Countless arrows slammed into its exposed back, instantly flaying the rock and revealing the raw stone beneath. I clenched my fist.

’It’s working! No matter how tough you are, you can’t beat sheer numbers!’

If I couldn’t break it, I’d just grind it to dust with overwhelming firepower. More. More. Faster. Simpler.

’BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!’

The ground around the golem caved in. I had now chipped away more than a third of its body. Unlike the fight with the Irregular, my mana here was infinite. As long as my concentration and stamina held, I could maintain this momentum. If I kept this rhythm, victory was mine.

’THUD!’

But the golem wasn’t just taking the abuse. Even under the fierce assault, it bent its legs and planted its arms on the ground. Then, from a crouched position, it suddenly shot forward.

Its leap was longer than I expected.

-The golem has left the attack range!

Rapid Arrow was still pouring firepower onto the same spot. As a spell focused purely on damage and reloading, it was difficult to make utility changes like retargeting. Using all four limbs, the golem charged at me like a beast.

-You must evade, Tower Master!

I canceled the Rapid Arrow and threw myself to the side. The backlash from the forced cancellation twisted the mana inside me, and blood gushed from my mouth. And then.

’CRAAAAACK!’

I collided with the golem’s swinging fist. My head spun as the taste of blood filled my mouth. A white-hot, bone-shattering pain erupted, and the world went black.

* * *

-Tower Master! Please wake up! Tower Master!

“…Nngh!”

I grabbed my head and pushed myself up. I had lost consciousness for a moment, but thankfully, I seemed to have woken up right away. My opponent wasn’t unscathed either; it was lying face down on the ground, motionless.

’Ack, that hurts like hell.’

I looked down and saw my clothes were soaked with blood. I felt my side; a few ribs were definitely broken. The adrenaline flooding my system was the only thing keeping the agony at bay.

-Proposal. I recommend returning to the Magic Tower to formulate a new strategy.

I took a deep breath. I agreed with Ea. But even if I tried to escape, the exit portal was on the other side of the golem. It would chase me immediately, and in this condition, shaking it would be impossible.

“Ea, you said you needed more combat data. What exactly do you need?”

Ea hesitated. When I pressed her, she answered reluctantly.

-Close-quarters combat. I need to examine the magic inscribed on the golem’s body from a closer distance.

“Fine. You got it.”

<Gauntlet>

I was going to try again anyway; it would be pathetic to run away with nothing to show for it. I equipped gauntlets on both hands and walked toward the golem. We were both beaten to a pulp. The golem, its torso half-shaved off, struggled to rise. Still, its will to fight was clear as it raised a massive fist upon seeing me.

’It’ll be hard to dodge this at one hundred percent in my condition.’ Even at my best, my agility was barely enough to evade. Shielding was impossible, which left one option.

As the golem’s fist swung, I thrust my gauntleted left arm behind me.

’Activate!’

’SHWAAA!’

The backlash from the gauntlet launched me forward like a booster rocket. Dodging the attack, I instantly closed the distance. I widened my right Sage’s Eye and focused on the golem’s markings, praying Ea could analyze them.

’CRUNCH!’

The golem’s other arm swung with terrifying speed. I leaped straight up, aimed my right hand at the ground, and activated the gauntlet again.

’THWOOM!’

The golem’s arm slammed into the ground a hair’s breadth below me as I shot into the sky. Its head was right in front of me. Perfect! This annoying son of a bitch.

<Gauntlet>

I activated the acceleration again, layering a gauntlet over my right fist, and swung it right at the thing’s face.

’CLAAAAANG!’

Blue sparks flew as the massive body staggered from the impact.

’…Huh?’

’CRASH!’

The golem’s body slammed into the ground. I had only hit it once, but its face was heavily cracked and shattered. It hadn’t broken from second-order elemental magic or a barrage of Rapid Arrows, so why did it break so easily now?

-Analysis complete.

Ea’s voice, the one I had been waiting for, echoed in my mind.

-The golem’s body is imbued with an anti-magic effect. The power of normal magical attacks is greatly nullified.

“Then how do I take it down?”

-Purely physical attacks, like those from Gauntlet, can penetrate its anti-magic properties.

A wide grin spread across my face.

’So that’s what it was!’

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