Chapter 154: Forty-Fourth Floor, The Abandoned City (2)

I sprinted after Seo Ho-Su, trying to keep up with him.

Our frantic footsteps echoed sharply through the eerie stillness, and we were the first to reach the scene.

Still on the first floor, Seo Ha-Rin stood near the central escalator’s base while clutching a partially broken wooden plank. Two spiders, each larger than a grown man, blocked her path.

Seo Ho-Su rushed forward and pulled Seo Ha-Rin into his arms before dragging her back.

“Ha-Rin! Are you hurt?”

“No! I just got startled, that’s all!”

The tension in the air was palpable.

Each of the spiders’ six bulbous, jewel-like eyes gleamed with a translucent turquoise glow, reflecting distorted mirror-like images of us.

I had never paid much attention to spider eyes before, but seeing them this large and up close sent shivers down my spine. No wonder even the normally fearless Seo Ha-Rin had screamed.

[Spider (Lvl. 3)]

Their sudden appearance wasn’t entirely unwelcome. After all, we needed to level up, and this was a good opportunity.

One spider raised its front legs, its slow, deliberate movements appearing particularly menacing as it prepared to strike. My gaze swept the surroundings, quickly taking stock of the situation.

While Seo Ho-Su and I were already here, Ha Hee-Jeong, Cole, and Hakin were still racing toward us. For now, we would have to handle the threat.

I stepped forward, positioning myself in front of Seo Ha-Rin and Seo Ho-Su, ready to engage.

“I’ll take the one on the right. Ho-Su, hold off the left one for now!”

“Got it!”

Seo Ho-Su only wielded a flimsy wooden stick. It wasn’t ideal, but it would have to suffice. As the only one with a somewhat-real weapon, I needed to dispatch the right one quickly.

Although the spider was two levels higher than me, I wasn’t intimidated. Even if my stats and skills had been reset, my experience remained intact.

Knowing when to strike and when to evade wasn’t something defined by stats or skills; it was an instinct honed through countless battles.

Take Axemanship, for example.

Even if the skill no longer appeared in my status window, I had still earned it through my own experiences and understanding—my knowledge defined the skill, not the other way around. If I had the opportunity to grab an axe, I could regain level 9 Axemanship in no time.

The same applies to daggers.

I had used Lung Shark's Dagger as a secondary weapon for a long time. Although I had never formally acquired a dagger-related skill, I felt confident I could wield it better than most.

Besides, compared to the enemies I faced on the first floor, these spiders were nothing.

A goblin paladin would destroy a giant spider any day of the week. I would definitely rather deal with the latter.

As I weighed my options, the spider lunged and slammed its front legs down. I rolled sideways across the floor, narrowly avoiding the attack.

Fighting like I used to won’t work with these stats.

I couldn’t afford to take unnecessary risks—playing it safe would have to be my priority.

Rising to my feet, I aimed for the spider’s opposite foreleg, slashing at it with my dagger.

Shkrrrt—

The blade didn’t sever the leg entirely, but it left it dangling awkwardly, barely attached. The spider staggered, losing its balance for a moment.

This is my chance.

I dove under it, sliding on my back while driving the dagger upward into its underside. Using the momentum of my slide, I tore a deep gash across the creature’s abdomen.

Crunch!

The spider’s tough exoskeleton split, and its vibrant green innards spilled out in a grotesque torrent.

Instinctively, I knew I couldn’t let the juices hit me. I twisted away, but some of the fluid still splashed onto my right shoulder.

“Damn it...”

The instant it touched me, a searing heat spread across my shoulder—acid and poison. Thankfully, the poison wasn’t fatal due to the spider’s low level.

Rolling away from the collapsing spider, I scrambled to my feet.

Only one spider remained. Seo Ho-Su was fending it off with his wooden plank, but a sticky web had ensnared his left leg.

So they can shoot webs, too?

He was struggling to maintain his footing.

Just as I prepared to assist him, a blazing fireball streaked across the room and struck the spider directly on its head. Flames engulfed the creature as it thrashed wildly, its movements growing weaker until it collapsed in a heap.

Ha Hee-Jeong had arrived to save the day.

Of course. Unlocking magic isn’t an issue for her.

For mages and priests, there were two ways to use skills. First, they could simply activate a skill already in their possession. The other way involved mastering the flow of mana within the skill, transforming it into something uniquely their own. Ha Hee-Jeong’s usage of fire magic fell into the latter category.

“Heal Wounds!”

A soft glow descended on my shoulder. Seo Ha-Rin, like Ha Hee-Jeong, also belonged to this group of mages.

“Are you okay, oppa?”

“

Huh?

Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks.”

For them, as long as they had sufficient mana, they could use their skills even on the forty-fourth floor.

Ha Hee-Jeong had posted about this multiple times in the Community, so most climbers were likely aware of it by now.

Of course, there are probably still a few who rely entirely on the tower’s skills.

Truthfully, if those who failed to adapt died on this floor, they had no one to blame but themselves. The tower had repeatedly emphasized the importance of such adaptability since the lower floors.

When the spider finally stopped moving, a familiar ding echoed in my ears, accompanied by a notification window.

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has leveled up.]

My fatigue immediately vanished, along with the burning sensation in my shoulder. Leveling up not only restored health but also healed any injuries or ailments.

Though my uniform had partially melted and exposed some skin, replacing clothes was the least of my worries. Curious about my level-up, I opened my status window.

[Kwon Su-Hyeok (Lvl. 2)]

Strength: 12

Agility: 13

Stamina: 11

Mana: 11

Skills: Dagger Techniques lvl 1, Combat Focus lvl 1, Poison Resistance lvl 1, Pain Resistance lvl 1.

Compared to my previous status, this one appeared much simpler.

Wait...

Something felt off. I didn’t have any stat points to distribute. Frowning, I turned to Ha Hee-Jeong for clarification.

A message hovered above Ha Hee-Jeong’s head. Once someone reached level 2, their name and level would appear above their head. For the others who hadn’t participated in the battle, I could tell they hadn’t leveled up since nothing appeared over their head.

Ha Hee-Jeong had explained this to me before, but seeing it in person felt strange.

It feels like we are in a game, but I know we aren’t.

This wasn’t the time to dwell on that, however.

“Hey, Hee-Jeong.”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t see any unallocated stat points in my status window. Is that normal?”

“

Huh?

Oh... does your status window still work the same as before? Just double-checking, your stats increased, right?”

“Yeah. Strength increased by two, agility by three, and both stamina and mana by one.”

“You earned seven points leveling up? That’s actually better than most people. They usually only get three points to assign.”

I nodded, finally understanding the situation. Just like during the other floors, my actions granted me points.

I let out a sigh of relief, as I wouldn’t have to agonize over how to allocate stat points. Now that we had settled that matter, I turned to Seo Ha-Rin.

“Ha-Rin, did you see where the spiders came from? The second floor or the basement?”

“They came up from the basement.”

I directed my gaze toward the bottom of the downward-facing escalator. Beyond the final step, faintly visible through the dim light, thick spiderwebs clung like a hazy curtain. A group of spiders had clearly formed a nest.

“You’ve all finished combing through the first floor, right?”

The party members nodded at my question.

“Then, before we move to the second floor, let’s clear out the basement first.”

“That seems sound. Leaving enemies behind us isn’t worth the risk,” Cole remarked as he nodded thoughtfully.

“Agreed. The upper floors may have enemies too, so we should get the confirmed easy experience points first.”

I wasn’t sure if the others remembered, but during Ha Hee-Jeong’s briefing session earlier, she had explained that defeating monsters occasionally yielded valuable items. Similar to video games, bosses usually dropped better loot.

The spider nest presented an opportunity. We were far more likely to find something worthwhile there, rather than searching through random piles of debris.

I quickly organized the group into our old formation.

Seo Ho-Su and I took the lead, Seo Ha-Rin positioned herself at the center, while Ha Hee-Jeong, Cole, and Hakin guarded the rear.

Nobody was adequately armed, but the determination on their faces reassured me, even while clutching makeshift weapons like wooden planks.

It had been some time since our last formation, and the sense of nostalgia brought a faint smile to my lips.

“All right, let’s head down. Prepare for combat!”

***

[Survive. Time remaining: 167 hours and 24 minutes.]

Clearing out the spider nest proved more time-consuming than anticipated. Though the number of spiders wasn’t overwhelming, our weakened state and lack of proper weapons slowed us down.

That said, the battles never felt truly life-threatening.

Using the dagger brought a sense of comfort, bringing back vivid memories of the earlier floors. One notable moment was when I had plunged a dagger into the goblin paladin’s neck.

As we dispatched the final spider, a notification appeared before me.

[Kwon Su-Hyeok’s Party has destroyed a small spider nest.]

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has leveled up.]

With the level-up, my health fully recovered, and all my wounds vanished. Without even realizing it, I had reached level 5.

While my teammates had contributed significantly as well, they remained at level 3. It became clear that, regardless of participation, my growth rate was noticeably faster than theirs.

Seo Ho-Su clicked his tongue dissapointedly. “Man, we cleared this creepy spider nest, but we barely got anything for it.”

“Well, we did find a sword, and everyone gained a level or two.”

Defeating the queen spider had earned me a Venom-Coated Spider Queen’s Long Sword. It wasn’t particularly remarkable, just a blade coated with a mild paralyzing poison.

“Should we search the area more thoroughly? Clearing away the webs could reveal something else.”

“That’s a good idea. There’s no way the nest only had one noteworthy item.”

We scoured the basement meticulously, despite the unpleasant sensation of sticky webs clinging to our clothes and skin. Occasionally, we stumbled upon cocooned corpses, but for the most part, our efforts only yielded a few cans of food and a single skillbook.

It was a Body Reinforcement skillbook, which, after some deliberation, we agreed I should use.

With the basement cleared, we could finally ascend the department store.

Less than two hours later, we finished searching the entire building. Although we had encountered a few monsters and found multiple items, we only conducted a cursory sweep after gathering the essentials.

The haul included two backpacks, seven cans of food, several skillbooks, a few weapons, and assorted trinkets.

Among the more notable finds was a hand axe, which I decided to keep after passing the long sword to Seo Ho-Su.

By the end, I was equipped with a dagger and an axe. Cole carried a dagger, Seo Ho-Su wielded the longsword, and the others had makeshift weapons like wooden poles.

It would have been nice to find a crossbow. Unfortunately, one hadn’t turned up. For now, Cole would have to make do with the dagger.

With the loot divided and distributed, it was time to leave the building. I led the party toward the department store’s main entrance.

Crash!

Startled by the sound of shattering glass, I turned to see two climbers bursting into the building. Their faces were pale, breathing ragged, and expressions frozen in terror as they nervously glanced over their shoulders.

What is going on here?

I instinctively drew my weapon as I approached them cautiously. Noticing me, they visibly relaxed.

Izelka and Poroy, levels two and three, respectively.

“What happened? Is something chasing you?”

“The..

haa...

the party leader!”

The party leader?

With only those few words, I knew what had happened. Their leader had turned against them for the tripled experience points.

Keeping an eye on the entrance, I firmly addressed the climbers, “Explain. Take your time and tell me everything.”

“The party leader...

haa...

is trying to kill us! Four of our party members are already dead! Another one split from us, but she’s probably gone too!”

From the twenty-first floor onward, the maximum party size had increased to eight members. If these two were still alive, the lone member who got separated was likely already dead.

A leader willing to kill five of their companions...

I didn’t know who he was, but the thought of someone slaughtering their teammates for personal gain filled me with disgust and anger. Suppressing a sigh, barely contained rage simmered within me.

Ha Hee-Jeong stepped forward, gazing steadily at the frightened climbers.

“Tell us more. What caused the conflict?”

“A monster dropped a skillbook, and an argument broke out over it.”

“What skillbook was it?”

“Shadow Swordsmanship...”

At that moment, a figure stepped through the shattered entrance. Blood stained his outfit from head to toe, and it was obvious this was their party leader.

I rose to my feet and gripped my axe tightly. Perhaps he had assumed only his party members were inside, but upon spotting me, he froze momentarily.

However, his hesitation didn’t last long. His gaze flicked to the description above my head, and a smug grin spread across his face.

Mirroring his movement, I was stunned by what I saw.

[Trozen (Lvl. 17)]

Seventeen? How the hell did he level up that quickly?

His level had caught me off guard for a brief moment, but annoyance quickly replaced the surprise. He thought his high level made him unbeatable.

I let out a dry laugh as I sneered disdainfully at him. “What’s so funny?”