WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Mordor
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◈ Escaping the Tower at Hell Difficulty ◈
Chapter 53
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Unfortunately, the Goblin sniper was nearly broke.
We only took its ammunition, then set out to find another statue.
Of course, we sent all the zombies on their way.
"Team Leader, what did you do to those zombies just now?"
"I think it was this mask's ability."
The Death Priest’s Mask.
It did more than simply change my face.
Of course, it had only worked because those zombies were relatively stupid monsters. They'd been fooled even though I transformed right in front of them.
Kim Yuna, who was sick of the swarms of bugs, soon found a statue.
"Kang Hyun, look at this."
"..."
Yuki followed with a slight frown at the way Kim Yuna addressed me.
I examined the statue closely.
Something about it was different from the others.
"Uh... It's small?"
It was clearly small in stature.
It resembled the dwarf race we'd hunted in the cliffside area. Had there been dwarf hunters too?
Most of the statues we'd seen so far had met painful ends...
But this one looked peaceful somehow.
[Statue of the Man Who Rejected Erosion]
The reason behind Appraisal's judgment was clear.
There were countless broken crystal fragments at the statue's feet, as though he had suffered from Soul Erosion. He held a dagger in one hand.
He had cut his own arm.
He had refused to succumb to Soul Erosion after being isolated here, then calmly accepted his end.
"What is this..."
Kim Yuna trailed off.
My hand automatically pulled out a vial.
Potion of Spirit Life.
Pop!
The vial was a cheap, hastily made container, but its contents were not.
I poured the potion into the statue's mouth.
It deserved at least this much.
Flaaash!
[Statue of the Man Who Rejected Erosion dismantled. Until you escape the 9th floor, your anti-soul abilities slightly increase.]
The statue vanished in a flash of light.
Rumble!
A sound came from far away, like a temple opening.
"Ah, I think it worked. Should we head back?"
"Not yet. I want to find at least one more Summoning Horn."
"Oh, right. We're still missing one person."
Han Juwon would be disappointed if they heard that.
No, maybe they'd be disappointed instead?
They'd said they hoped they wouldn't get summoned until the end.
For reference, if all the summoned team members were wiped out while someone remained unsummoned, the team members waiting in the Interfloor Zone would automatically return.
It wasn't something we needed to worry about, though.
After searching the area a little longer, I found a Summoning Horn hidden atop an abandoned building in the swamp.
I almost would've missed it without Loot Expert.
"I found one! Let's go back."
"It still looks like we have some time before sunset... What do you want to do?"
"... I want to clear the temple right away."
It was only the fourth night.
Still, we'd already secured enough firepower. It would be better to challenge it while we were in the best condition possible.
There was probably a powerful boss monster inside.
Besides... the Soul Giant might return tonight.
I couldn't be sure, but it could be stronger than last time. It was a mechanic meant to discourage hunters from staying too long.
We crossed the swamp and reached the temple in the center.
It was a massive structure that reminded me of a pyramid. It had considerable height and steepness.
I changed the ammunition in my sawed-off shotgun.
Pshooong!
A flare shot high into the sky.
I could use it as a flare launcher too. Structurally, there was barely any difference.
The light was faint in broad daylight...
But Sang Hajun wouldn't miss it.
A little later, he arrived with the rabbit tucked against his chest and a BAR automatic rifle in hand.
Yuna stared at him in disbelief.
"You brought that thing too?"
"It's pretty well-behaved. I hope we can take it outside the Tower."
Bwoooooo!
We summoned the final member, Han Juwon, then loaded our magazines together.
The FN P90.
It was a PDW with a fifty-round magazine and fairly good penetration. Naturally, it had been modified with Ultra-Alloy.
Thanks to the Alchemist's Ammunition Box, everyone was using large quantities of ammunition that might as well have been custom-made for them.
"Didn't I tell you not to call me..."
"You'd be bored just watching, wouldn't you?"
The temple doors were already open.
Fully armed, we cautiously entered the temple.
Fwoosh.
Torches lit on their own the moment we entered.
Surprisingly, the air inside wasn't musty. It was cool instead.
The temperature was pleasantly chilly.
After suffering through the tropical climate, it felt like heaven.
"Wow, it'd be nice to live here. There barely seem to be any bugs too."
"Maybe it's an environment where even bugs can't survive."
The temple doors didn't close.
After passing through a long corridor, we entered a large room deeper inside.
It was like finding a smaller pyramid within the larger one.
Rumble.
When the stone door opened, several large and small pillars came into view.
The terrain didn't look very favorable.
Just as we were about to spread out and claim advantageous positions, an unfamiliar man's voice came from above the smaller pyramid.
"Who are you? State your name."
He was tall and well-built.
I could sense the sharp aura unique to a hunter.
His leather armor was an unusual outfit, but his ears were extremely pointed.
He looked like one of those beautiful humanoid races often seen in movies.
'What is that? An elf?'
He held twin swords in both hands.
No matter how I looked at them, they didn't seem like toys or decorations.
They were clearly weapons meant to kill.
Killing intent poured from the blades.
"... My name is Kang Hyun."
I answered, wondering if there was room to talk.
The elven swordsman let out a low groan.
"So another dimension has been dragged in as well."
Shhk.
Without another word, he took an attacking stance.
Just lowering his body slightly made the temperature seem to drop several degrees.
He was definitely a hunter from much higher up.
Still, there was something I had to say.
"You're only asking for my name?"
He looked like he'd been punched in the face, then spoke.
"I am Kaellis."
In the blink of an eye, he vanished.
His speed was practically teleportation.
Thanks to having Complete Senses active, I reacted in time.
[Complete Senses skill transcended, Four Seasons skill activated.]
[Physical Technique skill transcended...]
Pabababat!
Two transcended skills activated at once.
I leaped backward to avoid the incoming sword, then fired my sawed-off shotgun.
Bang!
He didn't seem to know what a gun was...
But he reflexively pulled both arms back to shield his head.
The pellets bounced off his leather armor.
'He blocked that just like that?'
Buckshot didn't have especially good armor penetration...
But I'd fired from close range, and they hadn't left even a scratch.
That wasn't ordinary armor either.
"You use a strange weapon."
Tutututut!
Supporting fire came from both sides.
Sang Hajun and Han Juwon.
The elven swordsman leaped behind a pillar to dodge.
There were too many obstacles. It would be dangerous if we got picked off one by one like this.
'Should I use Smoke Screen?'
I considered it for a moment, then decided against it.
We had the numbers and superior ranged firepower. There was no need.
Pabat!
I reloaded my shotgun and chased after him.
He was much faster than me, but I could at least keep him in my line of fire.
He was overly wary of our guns.
He clearly wasn't used to firearms.
He was the complete opposite of the monsters we'd faced so far.
Was it because he wasn't an ordinary monster?
An elf boss suddenly swinging twin swords around.
He was as random as the Mirror Knight.
He saw my speed and sounded impressed.
"You're fast, for a hunter from another dimension."
Fortunately, he didn't seem like the durable type.
He briefly shook me off and tried to target Han Juwon...
But Kim Yuna, who had been waiting nearby, reacted quickly.
Flash!
Kim Yuna used paired teleportation to pull Han Juwon away before the elf's blade could reach them.
The elf didn't seem surprised at all.
Was he fairly familiar with hunter skills?
He definitely was a hunter from another dimension.
Tututu!
Han Juwon drove him back with Ghost Bullets.
But if this continued, we'd be in trouble soon.
Sang Hajun's BAR automatic rifle only had one magazine.
Losing a shooter in a situation like this would be fatal.
After some thought, I pulled out one of the Pipe Bombs I'd been saving.
If not now, when would I use it?
Sizzle...!
I lit it with the Ever-Burning Heart, and the fuse began to burn.
The pace was fairly steady.
Kaellis was far too light on his feet.
He was probably a spirit-type boss.
I'd mixed Soul Powder into the Pipe Bomb, so it should be effective enough.
'... Now!'
I read his movement with Four Seasons and threw the bomb with about two seconds left.
Pabababat!
He pulled back almost instinctively.
He must've decided there was no way what I threw wasn't dangerous.
Boom!
Thanks to Alchemy, I'd improved it as much as possible. Its destructive power was no worse than a Tower grenade.
He escaped the blast radius, but fragments embedded themselves in his arms and legs.
Sang Hajun took aim at the groaning elf.
He'd dodged in a hurry and failed to secure cover.
'Got him!'
I sensed victory...
Tututututut!
The 7.62mm Springfield rounds failed to pierce their target.
"Hup!"
Ting, ting, ting!
He took one quick breath, then swung his twin swords like mad and knocked away the bullets!
"That's insane!"
It made no sense.
Sang Hajun was firing in low-speed mode to conserve ammunition...
But that was still over three hundred rounds per minute.
These weren't 5.56mm rounds. They were 7.62mm rounds.
Sang Hajun's face filled with disbelief as Kaellis knocked them away with two swords.
Click...
Before long, the magazine ran empty.
He looked a little tired too...
But if anyone entered the range of those swords, they'd be carved apart in an instant.
"Hoo, is that all? My turn..."
Tutututut!
Kim Yuna and Sang Hajun followed up with supporting fire.
As he nimbly dodged, Yuki's clone was waiting.
Bang!
The shotgun with a Paralysis Enchantment struck him directly.
He'd tried to endure it by trusting his armor again, but this time he looked slightly flustered.
"Urgh?"
Despite being startled by his earlier feat, I'd already lit another Pipe Bomb.
Sizzle...!
I threw it 1.5 seconds before it exploded.
The paralysis wore off early, and he swung his sword like lightning.
Shing!
His sword strike wasn't aimed at Yuki's clone, but the Pipe Bomb.
I laughed, wondering if that could possibly work...
But he precisely cut the fuse that had nearly burned to the end.
Naturally, the Pipe Bomb failed to explode.
'What...'
This lunatic.
He hadn't even known what guns or bombs were.
Yet after seeing it only once, he'd figured out how they worked and countered them?
He was a hunter who had clearly been through all kinds of battles.
He was far more troublesome than mindless monsters.
Bang!
I fired the shotgun, but he accelerated again.
He'd read the timing of my shot.
'Damn, he's going after Hajun again.'
A tactic of methodically targeting the weaker opponent first.
For a boss, he had no real weakness.
He was simply fast and strong.
The only thing was that he seemed less durable than his stats suggested.
'No, wait.'
A flash of inspiration struck me.
Maybe I could use that learning ability against him.
Click!
I reloaded the shotgun and moved to cover Sang Hajun.
At the same time, I pulled out another Pipe Bomb.
Sizzle...!
There weren't many left now.
It was wasteful to use them just for pressure...
But I couldn't let him reach Sang Hajun.
I threw the bomb into Kaellis's path.
"That won't work anymore."
Slice!
Without hesitation, he cut the fuse.
I aimed my shotgun at him as he smiled triumphantly.
He didn't look intimidated in the slightest.
"You're their leader, aren't you?"
I would soon be within his sword range.
Then it would be over.
There was no way I could block those twin swords with my skill.
Prepared to take some damage, he raised his guard and charged at me.
With a prayer in my heart, I aimed not at him, but at the Pipe Bomb with its severed fuse.
The ammunition loaded in the chamber wasn't normal twelve-gauge buckshot.
The product was called Dragon's Breath.
Incendiary shells that might as well have had a Burning Enchantment on them.
Their power in movies and games was exaggerated...
But they could easily burn through cloth.
Bang!
Burning zirconium pellets swallowed a wide area.
Maybe because I fired them from a sawed-off shotgun, the pellets spread even farther.
"What?!"
Sizzle!
The severed fuse lit again.
Boom!
Kaellis had already passed the Pipe Bomb when shrapnel tore into his back.
Because I was so close, fragments flew toward me too.
[Regeneration skill transcended, Undying Blood skill activated.]
"Aaargh!"
He rolled across the floor, reduced to a ragged mess.
The gamble worked.
He hadn't expected flames to suddenly burst from the shotgun.
"Urgh, impressive. Hunter from another dimension. How far will you climb... I will watch at your side."
Kaellis looked up at me as if he'd already given up.
It seemed he could no longer move.
I loaded a slug into my shotgun.
I'd have preferred to finish him painlessly with a dagger...
But if I got close, he'd probably cut me apart in an instant.
Click.
My hand trembled slightly from exhaustion and pain as I aimed at his forehead.
I didn't hesitate this time either.
Bang!
[Island Keeper Kaellis defeated.]
[You may now escape through the portal at the center of the temple at any time.]
Instead of a corpse, he dropped a Soul Crystal the size of a fist.
[Kaellis's Soul Crystal (Large): The materialized soul of Kaellis, a hero of the Elf Race and hunter who reached the seventeenth floor. It can grant a powerful trait to a skill at the temple altar.]
"... What?"
Soul Crystals... could enhance skills?
I stood still for a long time, holding it in my hand.
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