[Lee Taeyeon [Solo]: This is kind of easy.] [Moon Jaesung [Solo]: ...I feel like I'm going to die doing this.] [Lee Taeyeon [Solo]: Relatively speaking, it's easy. If you time it just like a machine, there should be no problems.] [Kang Junhyuk [Solo]: As soon as you enter the room, you shoot three paralyzing arrows at the goblins, beat them up for 30 seconds, then shoot three more paralyzing arrows. You have to do this almost ten times without making a mistake, but yes. Compared to earning Endurance, it's easier.] [Forced Duel? How do you get that? I've never seen this skill before?]
“Work hard and well.”
[Did a guy on the second floor get it by working hard and well? That's funny.]
The ghost clicked his tongue as if he’d been tricked.
[Even the guy who has such a skill wouldn't give it away. Where did you get the information?]
The ghost seemed to think that Taesan had heard about the Forced Duel from someone else.
Taesan left him to his thoughts.
If the ghost dug too deep, it would be hard for Taesan to come up with a plausible response. He was grateful that the ghost was making assumptions on his own.
[But skills aren't everything. I understand that you just received a good skill, but don't be overconfident.]
“You just answer the questions you’re asked.”
[...Damn it.]
The ghost quaked with anger.
The ghost continued to grumble, seemingly dissatisfied with Taesan’s victory. Taesan listened with one ear while exploring the labyrinth.
[Forced Duel seems like a good skill, but there are a ton of skills in the maze, you know? You know Leap, right?]
“I know.”
[...You know?]
“But why Leap? Couldn’t you learn Big Leap?”
[What? What is Big Leap?]
“Seems like you didn’t learn it.”
Taesan replied dryly. The ghost grumbled at his words.
[I admit, you know your skills. But that's not everything in the maze. How you survive and what you discover are also important here. But what are you doing now?]
“What does it look like?”
Taesan was examining the bricks in an empty room. The ghost realized it belatedly.
[A secret room? That's going to be a pain.]
Exploring this type of secret room was pure grunt work. There was no other way but to check every single brick in the room.
The only ways to shorten the process were either to increase the number of heads or to have a special skill. It was one or the other.
[You have a strong premonition.]
One of the numerous bricks caught Taesan’s eye. Taesan stared at it for a moment before walking over and pulling at it.
Creak.
The brick receded, revealing the secret room.
[Huh?]
“Just as I thought.”
It was an ability that manifested once his proficiency in Perception exceeded 20%. It occasionally provided him with important information.
It came to Taesan in the form of a premonition and resolved all of the issues that were clouding his mind at that moment.
It had the effect of allowing him to bypass the trial-and-error phase that was absolutely necessary for navigating the labyrinth.
The ghost must have realized that Perception had been activated because he mumbled in a flustered voice.
[...You have Perception? And it's over 20% proficiency?]
Taesan entered the secret room. Inside, he could see a corridor filled with numerous traps.
“Goblin traps, huh.”
[These are traps they use to protect what they consider valuable. Given the haphazard setup, getting through will be tricky. It might be a better choice to give up and turn back.]
Taesan stared quietly at the traps.
The first trap was an arrow trap.
The second trap appeared to be a collapsing floor trap.
And the third and fourth were warning traps with moving walls.
It was the same as Easy Mode. Taesan walked towards the traps.
[Huh?]
Whoosh!
He fended off an incoming arrow.
He stomped on the ground to dodge the collapsing floor.
With a grinding noise, the wall moved to crush Taesan.
Rather than rushing to escape the moving wall, Taesan sprinted nimbly and clenched his fist. He swung it towards the approaching wall.
Crash!
The wall turned into sand and crumbled, and Taesan dusted off his hand with a grim face.
“Same as always.”
His mind wavered. Something external was trying to invade his neural pathways. All sorts of images appeared and disappeared in a cycle.
[...]
The judgment for confusion magic was extremely strict. Even the slightest mistake or mental disturbance would lead to immediate failure. One would lose themselves and go berserk.
“Get lost.”
Taesan shook his head. The creeping chaos was repelled.
[Judgment successful!] [You have resisted with indomitable mental strength!] [All stats have increased.]
“Keeek!”
The goblin was using magic again. Taesan just waited quietly.
[The Goblin with a Staff has cast Madness.] [Starting the judgment.] [Judging Madness......]
“I told you to get lost.”
[Judgment successful!] [You have resisted with indomitable mental strength!] [Your action speed has increased.] [Well, well.]
By this point, the ghost realized it too.
[You're just resisting, aren't you?] [The Goblin with a Staff has cast Curse.] [Judgment unnecessary! You have shaken it off with your indomitable mental strength.]
Taesan looked at the grumbling goblin. He had never failed a judgment on his mind since he was in his previous world. The ghost muttered, seemingly astounded.
[It's my first time seeing someone resisting mental magic just with their mental strength, without any skills or items. Even I couldn't do it like this.] [Judgment unnecessary! You have resisted with indomitable mental strength!] [You have experienced mental magic multiple times. You have acquired the Special Constant Activation Skill [Mental Resistance].]
A skill that aided in resisting all sorts of mental attacks. And to Taesan, it was a rather useless skill.
Taesan confirmed his skill while shaking off the confusion.
[Special Constant Activation Skill: Mental Resistance] [Proficiency: 100%] [You will succeed with a very high probability in all judgments related to the mind.]
“So this is something that carries over.”
[Huh.]
The ghost chuckled dryly.
[This is truly ridiculous.]
Even after gaining Mental Resistance, Taesan didn’t rush to defeat the goblin but remained still. The ghost also didn’t urge him on, instead lying down on the ground as if the whole thing was troublesome.
[Darn it. I thought I could teach this ignorant guy this and that, make him move according to my will, but he's crazier than I imagined. I never thought it would be this boring.]
“Cough, cough”
The goblin hiccuped and cast magic. The ghost, who had been watching idly, opened his mouth.
[They can even use magic. These goblins are really interesting.]
“Didn’t they use it in your world?”
[Magic users were rare. Can you imagine? I don't know how the creator of the labyrinth did it, but overall, everything has become stronger. Even goblins have an average strength comparable to orcs. And orcs are stronger than lizardmen.]
As expected, the labyrinth’s monsters were stronger than those from other places.
[What were the goblins in your world like?]
The ghost asked, seemingly curious. It seemed like he was trying to guess what kind of person Taesan was, or perhaps he was simply satiating his own curiosity.
“There weren’t any?”
[...No goblins? Then what about orcs or ogres?]
Taesan laughed at the mention of these popular monster names.
“Why would they exist?”
[Then what did exist?]
“Nothing, really. At best, we were burdened with luggage.”
[That sounds like a very comfortable world.]
The ghost muttered as if it was strange.
[Why is someone from such a world doing so well here?]
Once again, a judgment for confusion appeared. Upon succeeding this time, Taesan was able to acquire the skill he wanted.
[You've been exposed to magic multiple times. You have acquired the Special Constant Activation Skill [Magic Resistance].]
Magic Resistance. A skill that provided damage reduction and resistance to all magic.
It was also a skill that must be acquired to break through the labyrinth.
Taesan endured a few more spells and increased his Magic Resistance.
Only after reaching the limit did he swing his sword.
The goblin, who was conjuring magic while whimpering, died on the spot.
[You have defeated the goblin with a staff.] [You have gained a large amount of experience.] [Your health has been restored by 10.] [You have acquired 453 gold.] [You have acquired a Random Staff of Spirit.]
“Oh. A staff?”
Getting it immediately despite the low probability was extremely fortunate.
[You have won against a formidable enemy single-handedly. Your intelligence permanently increases by 2. Your mana permanently increases by 2.]
He also received rewards for overcoming a formidable enemy. Magic wasn’t supposed to appear in the lower levels, and Taesan won because he was essentially immune to mental judgments. Otherwise, he would have struggled through all sorts of curses and confusion.
In fact, Lee Taeyeon almost died here.
[Your Soul Ascension has been activated. Your agility permanently increases by 1. Your intelligence permanently increases by 2.] [You have defeated the boss of the 2nd floor. You've obtained the basic reward [Beginner's Mana Increase Potion].] [You have figured out the hidden element of the 2nd floor. You've obtained the reward [??].]