Survive the labyrinth with EX-grade traits

“My apologies. I didn’t realize you were a mid-level wizard from the School of Fire… I thought you were just a nobody.”

I pretended to be embarrassed, placing my left hand on my waist and tapping my forehead with my right hand.

Of course, I knew that they were all human hunters and deserved to die, so my gesture was a fake.

“Hmm! You call me a nobody? If we had met in the city or the Magic Tower, you wouldn’t have been able to look me in the eye. You know what it means to be a mid-level wizard, don’t you?”

“Of course. As a great wizard from the Magic Tower, you would know. As an apology, I’ll escort you with even more sincerity on the way.”

“I’ll keep an eye on you, so behave yourself.”

I couldn’t take it anymore.

In any case, I judged that this was the right time to strike, as he was completely off guard.

I discreetly moved my left hand, which was on my waist, behind my back.

Although we hadn’t agreed on a specific signal, I knew that a common attack signal among adventurers would be enough.

Slick.

Bardin, who was unaware that I was sending a secret signal, tried to mediate between me and Embryo.

“Haha! Alons, I understand you’re upset, but please don’t be so harsh. It’ll take a day or two to reach the center, right?”

“Well, if our great party leader says so… I’ll let it go.”

As their banter escalated, I turned my attention to the beastkin, a skilled long-range attacker.

‘Dimensional Leap!’

For most beings, this moment is beyond comprehension.

Once again, I felt the familiar sensation of my body being shattered and wandering through the second dimension.

My target was his neck.

Creak!

The trajectory was so clean that it was hard not to admire it.

“You, bastard! Vermut!”

As soon as he saw the gushing blood, Bardin, who had been pretending to be calm and collected, lost his composure and charged at me like a madman.

“Slow.”

His body, clad in medium armor and with a D- agility rating, was easy to deal with, even for me.

The female swordswoman seemed to be in a state of panic, so I could exclude her from my calculations for now.

The problem was Embryo.

“Burn the enemy in front of me! Fireball!”

Boom!

A fiery ball, the size of a human head, was launched from his wand.

Although I had already dodged the trajectory before he finished his incantation, the sight of the fireball still startled me.

I almost doubted my Chaos’ Eye when I saw him using magic, but then I realized the truth.

───

[Fire-imbued Wood] (D)

A wand hidden in the third chamber of the ancient ruin Dimphia.

An ancient elemental mage created this wand with the intention of presenting it to a powerful ruler, imbuing it with fire that would never burn out.

• Allows the use of second-tier fire-based magic through specific incantations.
•
• Wearing it grants minor fire resistance.
•
• Wearing it causes the lingering resentment of a dead ruler to decrease luck by one level.
•
───

‘So, he’s been pretending to be a wizard with this special wand, deceiving others all this time.’

Until now, I had thought it was just a regular set, but it turned out to be a unique item.

“You avoided that? Then how about this!”

Embryo, realizing his disguise had been exposed, threw a sharp dagger from his pocket.

[Embryo casts Blink throw’]

…Not towards me, but towards the other side of the crossroad, where his companions were.

In other words, behind me.

“You fool! I’ll take care of your lovers first!”

“What the hell?”

I was momentarily startled, but then I quickly changed my mind.

I trusted them. They wouldn’t fall for such a trick.

[Divine Shield]

[Veronica casts ‘Wing of Light’]

“Damn!”

As I glanced over, Embryo’s dagger didn’t reach his companions.

Instead, it was blocked by Veronica’s blue wings and a shield of divine power, and his curses were the only thing that echoed through the chamber.

“What are you looking at?”

[Bardin casts ‘Protection of Olivine’]

[Reduces physical damage and increases resistance to being pushed back.]

[Restores a small amount of health when blocking an attack with a shield.]

Bardin’s clenched teeth and his shield glowed with the light of olivine.

“I don’t know how you found out, but now that it’s come to this, I’ll make sure you die peacefully.”

That’s my line.

Prepare yourself.

I swung my sword, infused with mana.

.

.

.

I love it.

He tried to hide it, but his flushed face, which he had rubbed under the pretext of pain, was so adorable.

At first, I just wanted to keep living, no matter what.

The repeated failures and the suffering caused by the curse were slowly consuming me, and I was in so much pain that I wanted to burn my life to the fullest.

On that day, I met him by chance.

Fate… Yes, fate.

For some, it’s just a meaningless word, while for others, it’s a delusional superstition.

But when I saw his flustered face and his mysterious eyes, shining like a golden star, I felt a surge of joy.

I still feel sorry about it.

I acted impulsively, clinging to him like a beast in front of everyone, insisting on not letting him go.

I wonder how embarrassed he must have been…

Thanks to that reckless action, I am who I am today, but now I feel like I made a mistake from the start.

Not only did I make a bad first impression as a crazy woman, but even after realizing that I brought misfortune and was avoided by others, I still pursued him relentlessly.

I fell in love with him, not caring about the scars I carried or the fact that I was avoided by others.

I wanted to stay by his side and whisper my love, and I craved his affection even more passionately.

So, when I had the opportunity to provoke and attract his attention, I tried my best.

“Oh, I’m sorry for interrupting your rest! We were about to leave the crossroad, and we saw your fire. You have sharp ears!”

Suddenly, these clueless bastards appeared and took away my precious opportunity.

‘Damn it. Go away. I’m annoyed.’

Contrary to my annoyed thoughts, the transaction on the other side of the crossroad was taking longer than expected.

Without realizing it, I was frowning, and Yeriel approached me cautiously and whispered.

“What?”

“Something’s not right. What’s going on?”

“Just listen and don’t react.”

Her voice was serious.

“I just heard through the sound transmission that the man in the robe is actually a human hunter disguised as a wizard.”

What?

I maintained my expressionless face, not wanting to show any signs of surprise.

Yeriel continued, “Ahren will give you a signal soon. Get ready.”

It’s unlikely that a mid-layer party, capable of reaching the 8th floor on their own, would infiltrate their group while hiding their identity.

In other words, they were all in cahoots.

Unknowingly, Ahren had entered the enemy’s camp alone.

‘Ahren can escape safely even if he’s surrounded. I just need to believe in him and prepare to attack.’

So, my role was not to worry, but to trust him and prepare for the attack.

“I am Alons, a mid-level wizard from the School of Fire! Are you satisfied now? Do you want to see some real magic?”

The human hunter rogue, pretending to be a wizard, was shouting at Ahren.

He had the audacity to impersonate a wizard from the Magic Tower without even knowing the basics of magic.

Good. I’ve made my decision.

Although I’m not a regular wizard, I’ll show them what real magic is.

I waited for the signal to start the battle.

Soon, Ahren’s body moved, and he sent a signal with his left hand, pretending to touch his waist.

“Krrraaaack!!!”

As soon as Ahren’s body moved, the head of the beastkin archer on the enemy side flew up with a fountain of blood.

‘Now!’

I took out Obscuritas and the ancient magic book, and I gathered as much mana as possible.

“Wavering darkness.”

Whoosh…

The faint darkness, like black smoke, enveloped my entire body from my feet to my head, driven by the intense flow of mana.

I had already walked this path when I created the black arrow, and thanks to Hungry Shadow, my mana had increased, and my control had improved while feeding my inner darkness.

I was able to concentrate much more easily than before.

Concentrate, concentrate.

‘The magic that I can use at my current level, no, something even more advanced.’

As I pushed my magic and shadow to the limit, my body began to tremble with pain, and my hands turned black.

Flap!

The robe I had casually thrown over my shoulders fluttered and flew behind me due to the wind created by the swirling darkness.

‘Don’t worry. Just focus on what’s in front of you.’

Veronica blocked an attack with her shield, and the dull sound of her blocking echoed through the chamber.

Yeriel’s sweet voice, chanting buffs and protection spells, also sounded muffled, as if it was coming from underwater.

I stared straight ahead, repeating to myself the words that would complete the new magic.

‘Shadow, join me.’

Black magic. Darkness. Shadow.

The anger and frustration of having our precious time together interrupted.

The rage and hatred towards the trash that stood in Ahren’s way, blocking his path.

All my power and emotions converged into one place.

“Shoot.”

It has no name.

It simply breaks and advances.

Krrraaaack!!!

A black line, like a wave, swept across the front.

.

.

.

[Blade Storm]

A series of unconventional attacks.

I continued to change the trajectory of my swings, adding acceleration upon acceleration.

Thud! Clang! Crack!

Olivine Shield Technique? Damage reduction and health recovery?

Such things were useless against the overwhelming force of a single enemy, even if they were useful in a group battle or a large-scale fight.

At first, Bardin seemed to react, but as my attacks became more complex and dizzying, his chest was left wide open.

Zap!

I didn’t miss the opportunity created by his misstep.

‘Thunder Slash!’

The finishing blow.

The purple lightning bolt covered the blade of my sword.

Roar!

The thunderous roar echoed, merging with Bardin’s scream.

“Krrraaaack!!!”

Despite being clad in iron armor, Bardin’s chest was almost sliced in half.

The wound on his chest was still sizzling with the remnants of lightning.

He was as good as dead.

There was no priest in the party, and none of their traits or equipment had healing abilities.

Even a mid-level potion couldn’t heal such a deep wound, so there was no one left but the rogue and the swordswoman.

‘But I should still confirm the kill.’

“You dare to ambush us? You bastard!”

The swordswoman, realizing that her leader was dying, decided to help him and charged towards us.

[Hippolyne casts ‘Sprint’]

Jacob’s trait, Sprint, was being used again.

Thank you. You saved me the trouble of chasing them.

As I was about to calmly respond to the swordswoman’s charge, something unexpected happened behind me.

“What the…”

I turned around, expecting to see something wrong with my companions or a hidden item of Embryo’s, but what I saw was shocking.

Krrraaaack!!!

A black beam? A wave?

The massive gathering of energy, which was clearly overloading Lumia, started from her and instantly erased Embryo and the terrain around him.

Embryo, who had thrown a dagger and teleported to attack Yeriel, the priest, was blocked by Veronica’s Wing of Light.

Not only Embryo’s body but also the trees and bushes behind him were all turned to dust.

Was all this caused by Lumia’s magic?

“Ah, ah, ah… Huh?”

The swordswoman stopped in shock at the destruction.

“Fucking… How are these bastards still on the 8th floor…?”

Thud.

Bardin, who was on the verge of death, also expressed his shock and indignation.

The swordswoman’s face was blank with surprise.

However, she quickly knelt and begged for mercy, realizing that she was the only one left alive.

Clang!

“I, I surrender! I’ll give you all my money and equipment, just please spare my life!”

I was just as surprised by Lumia’s magic as they were, but I tried not to show it as I approached the kneeling swordswoman.

Was she sensing her impending death?

She was now crying and begging me.

“Please, please, I’ll do anything! I’ll give you all my money, even the money in my bank account under my name!”

Ignoring her, I looked down at her with a blank expression, and she smiled seductively, sweating.

“And I’m confident both in front and behind! Look! Both are big and bouncy, and the inside is tight! I’m really good with my tongue, so please spare me, and I’ll do anything you want! Okay?”

The stench of a dirty rag was overwhelming.

“You can use my mouth as you please, and I’m really good with my tongue. Can you show me if your dick is as big as your face? Please?”

[Chaos wants to tear her mouth apart and is angry.]

My original plan was to cut off Embryo’s limbs and interrogate him, but he disappeared without a trace, so I had no choice but to change my target.

‘I have no intention of sparing them.’

In fact, I could have just killed them all without any fuss, but not all adventurers are meant to be killed.

So, I gave them a chance, hoping that they wouldn’t cause any trouble.

You rejected the last chance I gave you. Don’t blame me for your death.

It was time to become a ruthless and cold-hearted adventurer.

[Chaos wants to show them the bitter taste of death.]

“No, no, no… You bastard!”

The interrogation began.

I silently raised my sword.