A Veteran of Infinite Buffs - Chapter 85

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 85

Even facing a beast-type monster, I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.
I dodged the beam of light, and Sumoq struck true into the goat’s ribs, securing a one-sided exchange of damage.
Crash!
“Ugh!”
Despite clearly landing the counterattack without taking a hit, a terrible pain surged through me.

[Strength: 205 Agility: 219 Stamina: 109 (226) Wisdom: 128 Luck: 149]

Half my stamina had vanished in an instant.
I’d been told this wasn’t a difficult dungeon, yet I never imagined taking such absurd damage from the very first monsters I encountered.
“Kael! Get back!”
At Bella’s urgent cry, I pulled myself away.
The goat’s legs froze solid in the next moment.
“…Magic?”
Bella had used some kind of technique.
Fortunately, the goat’s speed noticeably slowed.
“Magic scrolls. I have about fifty of them.”
Even without explanation, I could tell these were expensive and precious scrolls.
But I decided not to dwell on it too long.
After all, Bella’s true form was Baek Seo-hyun, who commanded formidable financial resources.
“Kael, would you try attacking once more? This time, really gently.”
“Understood.”
Following her instruction, I delivered only a weak blow that made the goat’s legs wobble.
Thud.

[Stamina: 109 (226)]

Only then could I discern this monster’s characteristic.
“It seems to be a monster that reflects damage. Is your stamina being depleted too?”
“Of all things? This is problematic. But my stamina is perfectly fine! It looks like a physical damage reflection dungeon!”
“A blessing in disguise, then.”
The wooden sword I’d entrusted to Chae-rim shimmered in my mind.
With that resentment-laden blade, I could inflict attribute damage capable of striking even spectral entities.

[Sumoq Approaching Truth (Mythic)]
[Attack Power: 137~201]
[Durability: Indestructible]
[Approaching Truth: Can open an Ancient Dimensional Gate.]
[Call of the Ancient One: Can summon an Ancient One.]

Unfortunately, Sumoq didn’t have such an effect applied to it.
But there was no reason to be discouraged.
After all, I was hunting in a party with none other than Bella right now.
“Bella. Do you have any buffs you can cast on my weapon? Any attribute works.”
“One moment!”
Though it didn’t appear in the buff window, Sumoq began glowing red.
The goat’s legs were now completely frozen, its movements entirely sealed.
This time, I could attack far more comfortably.
I increased my strength slightly.
Crack!
“Screeeech!”
For the first time, the goat let out a proper response.
But that was all.

[Health: 82 (226)]

“Ugh! Attribute damage gets through, but direct physical damage seems to be a mechanic that bounces back to me.”
“Hmm. Is that so?”
What strategy did Bella have prepared?
Her expression as she closed her eyes in deep thought seemed oddly familiar for some reason.
I had seen Bella like that before.
“Ah!”
It was Shotz.
She had shared her condition with the guild members and overcome the natural disaster.
“Bella! Could you cast that buff you used during the World Quest?”
“Oh. Vital Link? Hmm? That’s actually a decent idea?”
“Right?”
A positive response.
If I shared the damage I received with the monster, I could achieve quite favorable results.
My health wasn’t particularly low either, and if necessary, I could increase my maximum health itself through status redistribution.
There was the issue of having to cast the buff directly on each monster, but from the perspective of making do with what we have, it was an effective countermeasure.
“Can you hold on for a moment? I need to modify the incantation.”
“Yes.”
Zzzziiing—
Once again, a beam shot out suddenly from the goat’s horns.
But my speed was faster.
Before the beam fired, I twisted the goat’s head to warp the trajectory of the beam’s discharge.
Boom!
The beam struck a pile of rocks in the Canyon at a considerable distance away.
The destructive power was quite substantial.
Moreover, the fact that the goat was attacking so brazenly with beams meant that since they weren’t physical damage, I could deal full damage.
The downside would be close-range discharge due to insufficient accuracy.
“Kuoooh!”
Bella was still focused on modifying the incantation.
It seemed to be taking longer than expected.
I needed to switch to a more direct approach.

[Health: 151 (226)]

My stamina recovery was at least beyond human levels anyway.
‘At the original intensity.’
Gripping Sumoq, I aimed for the ribs just as before.
There was a chance I could have died instantly if I’d mistakenly struck its head.
In a way, it was providence that the angle didn’t work out and I ended up hitting the ribs.
Indeed, fortune is high and there’s nothing to lose.
Crash!
“K-Kael?”
“Cough! I’m fine. I’m not dead.”

[Stamina: 34 (226)]

I survived.
The goat fell into a critical state.
“Kraaagh…!”
This time, with its ribs properly shattered, it couldn’t even breathe properly, gasping and wheezing.
Though the physical damage rebounded to me, the attribute damage went through entirely.
“I’ll finish this one off. Please take your time and revise the incantation carefully. We should also consider casting buffs on multiple monsters at once.”
“Sigh…. Understood. I came to heal, but of all things it’s a physical reflection dungeon….”
“It can’t be helped. It’s possible only this goat reflects physical damage.”
After speaking, I climbed onto the goat.
It was to set the point where the beam would strike.
“Alright. Look over there.”
“Kraaagh!”
“Kimchi.”
“Kraaah!”
Ziiiiing!
Boom!
The innocent cliff continued to crumble away.
The beam’s damage itself was absolutely not negligible.
I could infer the monster’s inherent level was quite substantial.
“Old timer, kimchi.”
“Kr, kraaagh.”
Zing.
Even the struggle for survival must have its limits.
The beam began to weaken at some point.
My gaze remained fixed on the stamina.

[Stamina: 94 (226)]

“This should be enough.”
I pressed down on the goat’s broken ribs with Sumoq.
“Damn. This hurts like hell.”
“Cough! Cough hack!”
Not only was there pain, but I could visibly see its health draining away.
In any case, the elemental damage was working.

[Health: 21 (226)]

It was a fleeting moment, yet the battle had felt long.
The goat coughed up blood once, then breathed its last.
And then a message appeared.

[Level up!]
[Level up!]

“…Huh?”
A level-up message I hadn’t seen in a long time.
It even repeated twice, announcing a 2-level increase.
It was just a single hunt, but with a mechanic that could easily mean death, thinking of it as a mini-raid dimension made this dungeon a genuine goldmine.
“Bella, this dungeon is incredible.”
“Huh? You defeated it? How, how did you manage?”
“I brute-forced it with raw health, but I gained two levels.”
“Really? Thank goodness. This dungeon is actually quite helpful!”
“Of course. With your eye for these things, it’s guaranteed to be worthwhile.”
I flattered Bella while admiring the goat’s corpse as it faded away.
Rather than simply vanishing, it felt like time was rewinding, the creature dissolving into its primordial form.
A fitting end that matched the concept of the Twisted Timeline.
“Hmm?”
A horn remained where the goat had died.
That very horn which had unleashed such crude beams of light.
Since this wasn’t a solo run, I had to share this discovery immediately.
“Bella, the goat dropped a horn.”
Regardless of who defeated the monster, the ownership of items that appeared in the dungeon belonged to Bella.
Since this dungeon was designated as a sub-dungeon, it could very well be an item needed for clearing the main dungeon.
“Huh? An item dropped right away?”
Her reaction seemed puzzled.
There must be a reason for that.
So I decided to quietly observe the item appraisal.
“Well.”
“Why?”
“The monster we just caught. It seemed like a boss.”
“Huh? Oh.”
I understood to some extent.
In a typical Dungeon, the monster you face at the end is the boss.
In the Twisted Timeline, it was possible that the first monster encountered in reverse order could be the boss monster.
“So, is hunting finished?”
“No. We need to farm until the end. But Kael, you’re incredibly strong, aren’t you?”
“I did play the game diligently.”
“Right? The monsters here would be over level 100. Since the appraisal is done, would you like to see the horn’s options?”
“Yes.”
I picked up the horn and checked its options.

[Horn of Malefika Capra (Legendary)]
[A rare mystical beast’s horn found only in the Twisted Timeline. Because it contains the light of five suns, using it as a crafting material allows you to create rare equipment.]

A legendary-grade crafting material had dropped right from the start.
Seeing it appear immediately, Bella’s prediction seemed to be correct.
“It’s a crafting material?”
“Yes. And this place was one of the suns.”
The sun appeared to be related to another secret that Lumiere Guild was newly clearing.
“I see. Congratulations. Let’s gather the item and move on.”
Bella didn’t respond.
Her eyes held a question.
“Huh? You’re not taking the horn?”
“You opened the Dungeon, Bella. It’s yours.”
“But you caught it, Kael?”
“I couldn’t have caught it without your support.”
To begin with, I had no justification.
My contribution didn’t exceed half to claim ownership of the monster’s byproducts.
It would have been different if I had the Mauro wooden sword, but I didn’t even have that.
“It would be too shameless for me to take it.”
“Still, just in case, why don’t you hold onto it, Kael? If something comes up, couldn’t we attach it to your weapon and use it?”
“Hmm. It seems possible.”
“What about detachability?”
“Like a primitive stone axe?”
“Yes.”
“It seems possible.”
To be honest, my expectations were positive.
Just by attaching it to Sumoq, there was a possibility of firing lasers like the boss monster from before.
But I was cautious because my partner was Bella.
If the horn became bound to me or absorbed into Sumoq, it would be outright theft.
Monetary compensation alone might not suffice.
Especially since this horn could even become a clue for the Lumiere Guild’s exploration.
“Honestly, I’m uneasy about it becoming bound to me.”
“What’s there to be uneasy about? If it becomes bound, you’ll explore the main Dungeon with us, right?”
“Wait, that’s how it works?”
“Yes! I’m really looking forward to exploring the Dungeon with you, Kael!”
A secret main Dungeon brimming with rewards.
Hearing that, even I couldn’t help but perk up my ears.
“Then, shall we give it a try?”

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