100 Floors All Master - Chapter 49

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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All Master of 100 Floors Episode 049

8th Floor. Labyrinth and Key (2)

[Title: What is this 8th Floor…]

[Is this a horror game? It’s scary as hell…]

* * *

[8th Floor Quest.]

[Collect as many keys as possible.]

The 8th Floor Quest had begun.

The 8th Floor was a strange, labyrinth-like floor. Various branching paths and all sorts of traps were visible.

And between the paths, as if telling people to hide there, were spaces barely large enough for one person to squeeze into.

The 8th Floor Quest was extremely simple.

Wander around the labyrinth and find keys.

That was all.

As long as one was careful of the traps, clearing it seemed to pose no problem.

But naturally, it couldn’t be that easy.

Kang Jun-hyeok stepped into the labyrinth. Quiet footsteps echoed in the space filled with an eerily complete silence.

A trap appeared before him. A single thread stretched between the walls. He could avoid it with a light jump.

But Kang Jun-hyeok deliberately touched the thread.

Clang!

The trap activated, but there was no explosion or arrows flying.

Just a terrifyingly loud sound echoed throughout. The sound lasted for 5 seconds before suddenly becoming quiet. It seemed as if making noise itself was the purpose of the trap.

And the reason for this became clear immediately.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Heavy footsteps came running. Soon the owner of the sound appeared from the other end of the path.

[Uooooooooo!]

It was a monster.

A monster with strangely large ears and a giant-like body.

It was charging toward Kang Jun-hyeok like a tank. Kang Jun-hyeok drew his great sword.

Claaang!

The great sword and monster collided. Kang Jun-hyeok’s body was pushed backward.

The current Kang Jun-hyeok had stats that could overwhelm even 30th Floor Range Players. For him to be pushed back meant this monster was one that 8th Floor Players couldn’t handle.

[Uoh! Uooh!]

The monster attacked Kang Jun-hyeok again. Kang Jun-hyeok gripped his great sword and swung it in a bouncing motion. His D-rank Sword Technique that had reached the realm of mastery was sufficient to counter the mindless charge.

But that was the limit. He couldn’t overwhelm or push back the monster that was charging at him like mad.

‘So this is the extent of it.’

Kang Jun-hyeok calmly assessed the monster’s strength and threw his body backward. The monster let out a shriek and chased after him.

Before the monster could reach him, Kang Jun-hyeok hid his body in a crevice that existed between the labyrinth paths.

Kuuuuung!

The monster slammed its body against the crevice. The labyrinth shook for a moment. It was an absurd amount of brute force.

But it couldn’t reach Kang Jun-hyeok.

[Uooh! Uooooh!]

The crevice was narrow, and the monster was massive. No matter how much the monster struggled, it couldn’t do anything to Kang Jun-hyeok who was hidden in the crevice. After glaring at Kang Jun-hyeok for a moment, the monster soon moved away with heavy thudding sounds.

[As expected, you understand quickly. You’ve grasped the concept perfectly.]

“There are similar things on Earth too. Though it’s a game, not reality.”

Avoid the monster and collect the keys.

It was the same as the escape conditions of commonly existing horror games.

The monster’s hearing was extremely sharp. All the traps that had been placed were traps that made intense sounds. Avoiding the traps and collecting the hidden keys was the real clear condition for the 8th Floor.

The more keys collected, the more sensitive the monster became. From the point of collecting three keys, it would come running from far away even at the sound of footsteps.

Because of this, ordinary Players could usually collect only one key at most. At best, two or three.

The average clear rate for the 8th Floor was 20%.

It was a moderate floor.

[Simple. If we just take down that guy, we can walk around like taking a stroll.]

Manbyeonggi muttered. The monster was too strong for 8th Floor Players to handle, but not for Kang Jun-hyeok.

He could deal with it without using a single skill.

Taking it down wouldn’t be that easy, but it wouldn’t be that difficult either.

If he defeated that monster and wandered around the labyrinth collecting keys, that would be the end of it.

Looking at the clear rate, there didn’t seem to be anything particularly hidden either.

However.

“This should be enough.”

Kang Jun-hyeok stood in front of the labyrinth.

Before him were countless traps.

The standard approach was to avoid the traps or dismantle them while advancing.

But Kang Jun-hyeok didn’t do that. He simply put strength into his feet and sprinted. The traps should have activated and made loud noises.

[Stealth.]

At that moment, Stealth activated.

Various traps triggered as they caught Kang Jun-hyeok’s body.

But no sound came out at all.

All of it was erased by the skill’s effect. Kang Jun-hyeok instantly arrived at a crossroads.

[Stealth proficiency has increased.]

And Kang Jun-hyeok did nothing at that spot.

He waited quietly for the 10 minutes it took for Stealth’s cooldown to return. And the moment he could activate Stealth again.

[Stealth.]

He activated Stealth again and sprinted through the labyrinth. He instantly traveled through the paths, traversing the labyrinth.

[Your Stealth proficiency has increased.]

[You.]

Around that time, Manbyeonggi also realized Kang Jun-hyeok’s intention.

[You’re planning to raise your Stealth proficiency.]

“There are no better conditions than this.”

Kang Jun-hyeok smiled slightly.

Simply activating a skill didn’t increase proficiency.

To raise proficiency, two conditions had to be met: purpose and necessity.

And this place satisfied both conditions.

The purpose of avoiding monsters and collecting keys.

The necessity of not making noise because the monsters had extremely sharp hearing.

There was also the fact that the monsters were so strong that even Kang Jun-hyeok couldn’t easily handle them.

In other words, there was no better floor for raising Stealth Skill proficiency.

A path appeared before Kang Jun-hyeok. He activated his Stealth Skill and rushed forward. At the end of that path was a key floating in mid-air.

Before the Stealth Skill effect ended, he sprinted. Traps activated but all remained silent. Kang Jun-hyeok grabbed the key.

[Your Stealth proficiency has increased from E to D.]

[You have obtained one key. You can now clear the floor. Would you like to clear it?]

“No way.”

Kang Jun-hyeok shook his head cheerfully.

* * *

[Active Skill: Stealth]

[Grade: Lowest Grade]

[Proficiency: D]

[Cooltime: 5 minutes]

[Eliminates all sounds you make for 10 seconds.]

With Stealth proficiency reaching D, the cooltime was cut in half. It was a good development. He could now raise proficiency even faster.

[This method is possible too.]

Manbyeonggi muttered as if finding it interesting.

Having a skill that eliminates sound on a floor where you mustn’t make noise.

Clearing was far too easy.

That’s why Kang Jun-hyeok’s current purpose wasn’t to clear the floor.

His purpose was to raise his Stealth Skill proficiency.

The order of priorities had reversed. He asked in a tone of wonder.

[To think you can intensively raise proficiency this way. But I’m curious. Wouldn’t this have been impossible if you didn’t have the Stealth Skill?]

“That’s exactly the problem.”

Floors like the 8th Floor that could extremely raise the proficiency of specific skills did exist.

But since skill acquisition was random, it inevitably depended on luck.

Even the 8th Floor itself couldn’t be attempted by ordinary players. The minimum condition for purchasing skills was clearing Floor 25.

But Kang Jun-hyeok had shattered that condition with his achievement stats.

On top of that, he was lucky enough to acquire the Stealth Skill before entering the 8th Floor. The conditions were perfectly met.

Then it was time to claim that reward.

[Stealth.]

Stealth activated. The monster had become more sensitive since he’d obtained one key, but it didn’t matter. No sound was made.

Activate stealth, wait for the cooldown. When the cooldown returned, activate stealth again and sprint.

That process took quite a bit of time. After all, stealth had a cooldown and could only be used for 10 seconds, so it was natural. He might have been impatient and moved anyway, but Kang Jun-hyeok waited leisurely. Manbyeonggi asked as if bored.

[Do you absolutely have to not move during cooldown?]

“I could move, but then I wouldn’t be able to raise proficiency, right?”

Kang Jun-hyeok answered lightly. This was exactly why he hadn’t challenged the 8th Floor before the test. Manbyeonggi let out a chuckle.

After six hours had passed like that.

Kang Jun-hyeok was able to obtain one more key.

[Stealth proficiency has greatly increased.]

Getting the next key happened twelve hours after obtaining the second key.

[Stealth Skill proficiency has risen from D to C.]

[Active Skill: Stealth]

[Grade: Lowest Grade]

[Proficiency: C]

[Cooldown: 5 minutes]

[For 10 seconds, erases all sounds, presence, and aura you emit.]

Upon reaching C rank, it became possible to erase not just sounds but also presence and aura.

Now it became impossible to detect and respond using presence like the Goblin King on the 2nd Floor. The skill’s caliber itself had risen by one level.

Naturally, Kang Jun-hyeok had no intention of stopping here.

Activate stealth, wait for cooldown. Continue repeating that action.

The key was hidden even deeper, so even after a full day had passed, he couldn’t find it.

Even so, Kang Jun-hyeok repeated the series of actions without any change in expression. Manbyeonggi muttered.

[You really are a madman.]

“I think it’s natural for raising proficiency.”

[Everything has its limits. You’ve definitely crossed the line.]

The Stealth Skill’s cooldown was 5 minutes.

The activation time was 10 seconds.

Move for 10 seconds, then do nothing for 5 minutes. Repeat that process for days.

It was insane. No matter how much it was for raising proficiency, normally one wouldn’t be able to endure and would move before that.

But Kang Jun-hyeok literally didn’t move a muscle during the cooldown. He stood still without moving a single step, waiting for the cooldown.

It was certainly the appearance of a madman.

[But because you’re a madman, you were able to obtain this lord and earn recognition. Someone like you might be the type who can see the end of the Tower.]

Kang Jun-hyeok chuckled.

And after another day had passed, he finally found the Fourth Key.

[Observation proficiency has increased.]

The Fourth Key was hidden in a Small Room, and the defenses were tremendous. Dozens of traps overlapped each other, making it seem impossible to break through by conventional methods.

Of course, it didn’t matter to Kang Jun-hyeok.

[Stealth.]

He simply moved forward calmly.

The traps activated in a chain reaction. Alarms should have blared loud enough to pierce the ears, but no sound could be heard. Only quiet silence dominated the space.

Kang Jun-hyeok picked up the key.

[Stealth Skill proficiency has increased from C to B.]

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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