Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Level 2 Player

Ant Nest

Jin-su also climbed the Tower at 22 hours 22 minutes 22 seconds on the day he met the Eight Mad Dogs. The 10-hour blank was filled by reducing rest time and sleep time. At least the Dragon Tooth Soldiers made from Lizardman teeth broke some achievements during the 10 hours they educated the Eight Mad Dogs, so time could be saved.

Well, still, it couldn’t prevent dark circles from forming again in Shin Su-a’s eyes. Fortunately, a few days later when they returned to the original schedule, Shin Su-a’s dark circles quickly disappeared without a trace.

As a result of climbing the Tower without rest, Jin-su and Shin Su-a were able to arrive at the end of Floor 99 45 days after challenging Floor 51.

[Do you wish to challenge clearing Floor 99?]

[Yes.] [No.]

“If we just clear this, it’s Floor 100.”

“Yeah.”

What remained for Jin-su and Shin Su-a who cleared the hidden dungeons of Floor 99 and acquired all achievements was only the mission to cross over to Floor 100.

“How’s your condition?”

“Too good.”

They slept sufficiently, filled their stomachs solidly, and stamina and mana were also full.

“Then let’s challenge right away.”

“Yeah.”

At Jin-su’s words, Shin Su-a agreed, and the two immediately challenged clearing Floor 99.

Hwaaaaaak!

Jin-su and Shin Su-a’s bodies were enveloped in a cluster of bright light.

[The clear condition for Floor 99 is survival for 3 days.]

[We pray for the challenger’s survival.]

The place Jin-su and Shin Su-a arrived at was an underground cave where not a single point of light entered.

“I can’t see anything. I’ll use a skill to brighten it.”

“Yeah.”

Shin Su-a who received Jin-su’s permission cast a skill.

“Light Sphere.”

A sphere from which bright light poured out brightly illuminated the dark underground cave.

‘The survival mission place of Floor 99 was an ant nest.’

Ant monsters have the habit of charging madly upon seeing light. Before the regression, he didn’t know that and suffered enormously. The reason he didn’t stop Shin Su-a’s action even though he knew that fact was simple.

‘Come quickly.’

From Jin-su’s perspective, it was the same as experience point lumps charging on their own without needing to go look for them.

Jeobeokjeobeok.

Jin-su and Shin Su-a moved their footsteps while brightening the surroundings using the Light Sphere skill.

Sasasasak!

At that time, a sound as if something was crawling reached Jin-su and Shin Su-a’s ears.

‘As expected, fast.’

Jin-su smiled.

“J, Jin-su, it seems monsters are coming.”

On the other hand, Shin Su-a was in a greatly tense state. It was largely because she had received a 24-hour survival mission on Floor 49 and crossed the line of death several times.

Floor 99 was also a survival mission like Floor 49. Even the time to endure had increased threefold, and it was an underground cave with no place to flee or hide, so from Shin Su-a’s perspective, she had no choice but to be tense.

“Then we have to fight.”

Jin-su divided the Dragon Tooth Soldiers in half and placed them front and back.

“It’s fortunate the cave is wide.”

Shin Su-a said with a forced bright voice. The underground cave was large enough for the Stone Golem to move freely.

“Yeah, fortunate.”

Jin-su answered Shin Su-a’s words and prepared for battle.

‘Can she say such words even after seeing the ant swarm?’

Why would the ant nest be large?

‘Because the ant monsters are large.’

The ant monsters living in the ant nest have an average size of 1 meter. Small for monsters, but enormously large for ants. Such ant monsters swarm not only on the ground but also climbing the walls and ceiling of the underground cave.

‘Upon seeing that scene, one has no choice but to be seized by fear.’

From the players’ perspective, it was an environment the same as having fallen into hell.

The reason Jin-su chose the holy-type mage class Ice Dragon Mage rather than the dark-type warrior class Blood Demon Swordsman while challenging the Floor 99 mission was also because of the combat environment of the ant nest.

‘When the opponent’s numbers are many, ice-attribute magic skills are perfect.’

He can bind feet and also change disadvantageous space into advantageous space.

Sasasasak!

The moment the sound of something crawling gradually approached and the appearance of monsters approaching the light the Light Sphere emitted entered.

“Hiiik!”

Shin Su-a’s face turned pale. It was natural. The appearance of the ant swarm charging while covering the floor, walls, and ceiling from both ends of the cave was the same as a scene from a horror movie.

“Freezing Declaration, Ice Barrier.”

Jin-su used Freezing Declaration to slow the movement speed of the ant swarm and at the same time used Ice Barrier to block the ceiling and walls of the underground cave.

“Kiiik!”

The ant swarm screamed and bit the Ice Barrier. But the Freezing Barrier wasn’t easily pierced. Rather, it froze the attached ant swarm as is.

‘Ant monsters aren’t that strong.’

Although the level is high, the size is large for ants, and attack power and defense are excellent due to sharp mandibles and sturdy exoskeleton, no matter what, ants are ants. Naturally, compared to same-level monsters of other races, they are on the enormously weak side.

‘Instead, the numbers are enormously many.’

Goblin hordes or orc hordes are basically dozens at most. Hundreds gather only when there is a large-scale raid. Unless there is a special event, at most a thousand level.

‘But ant monsters have a basic value of at least hundreds of thousands.’

If many, there are also cases of forming hordes exceeding a million or ten million to the hundred million unit.

‘How many are here?’

He doesn’t know exactly. But one thing was certain.

‘Even if hunting day and night for 3 days, he absolutely can’t catch them all.’

For Jin-su, it was the same as a proper experience point party being held.

Kwajik! Seogeok!

The Dragon Tooth Soldiers divided in two massacred the ant monsters crawling in below the Ice Barrier.

“Ice Storm.”

Jin-su attacked the ant monsters using magic attack skills. But he didn’t recklessly spray magic attack skills.

‘In the ant nest, a protracted war is important.’

He had to manage mana and stamina at an appropriate level. Jin-su who appropriately used magic attack skills to reduce the number of ant monsters approached beside the Dragon Tooth Soldiers holding the Ice Dragon Staff.

‘Since I consumed mana appropriately.’

Now it was time to consume stamina and recover mana.

Hwiik!

Kwajik!

Jin-su swung the Ice Dragon Staff and beat the ants. Each time, the consumed mana recovered weakly. Jin-su appropriately adjusted the size of the Ice Barrier and regulated the number of the charging ant swarm.

If the hunting speed seemed fast, he reduced the size of the Ice Barrier to accept more ant monsters, and if it seemed a bit burdensome, he increased the Ice Barrier to reduce the number of ant monsters entering inside.

“Wow!”

Shin Su-a who had been frightened upon seeing the ant monsters crawling from the floor, walls, and ceiling on both sides of the underground cave also found stability. As Jin-su appropriately regulated the number of monsters, the burden disappeared.

Shin Su-a put in the Stone Golem and diligently applied blessing skill, recovery skill, and protection skill while supporting the battle hard.

The problem was that Shin Su-a’s Mana stat and Mental Power stat are not infinite.

‘What should I do.’

As mana gradually bottomed out and Mental Power began to drop, Shin Su-a’s heart became anxious. Although the Stone Golem was diligently catching ant monsters, she herself wasn’t much help.

In such Shin Su-a’s eyes, the appearance of Jin-su swinging the Ice Dragon Staff and beating ant monsters entered.

‘Yeah, let’s try too.’

Shin Su-a gripped the staff with a resolute expression, advanced forward, then.

Hwiik!

Pueok!

Forcefully struck down the head of an ant monster.

“Kiiik!”

The ant monster that had its head hit by Shin Su-a’s staff screamed and charged while clacking the huge mandibles attached to its jaw.

‘Slow.’

The ant monsters were in a state where movement speed had slowed due to Jin-su’s Freezing Declaration. Shin Su-a swung the staff forcefully again.

Peok! Peok! Peok!

Shin Su-a diligently struck the heads of ant monsters with the staff.

Kwajik!

“Kiik!”

One ant monster couldn’t withstand Shin Su-a’s continuous staff strikes and died as is.

Before meeting Jin-su and changing class to healer, Shin Su-a’s class was warrior. Therefore, for a healer, Mana stat and Mental Power stat were on the low side. But conversely, it meant that for a healer, Strength stat and Agility stat were on the high side.

“Hihihi!”

Shin Su-a who hunted one ant monster with the staff laughed brightly and captured the next target.

Pueok! Pueok! Pueok!

And swung the staff again to strike the head of an ant monster.

“Huh?”

Jin-su who witnessed the appearance of Shin Su-a bursting into laughter and swinging the staff to strike the heads of ant monsters lost words for a moment.

‘Did I unnecessarily abandon one fine kid.’

A weak sense of guilt rose in Jin-su’s heart.

The person with a warm heart and benevolent nature befitting the name Holy Saintess was precisely Shin Su-a. Such Shin Su-a was smashing the heads of ant monsters with the staff while smiling with madness mixed in.

‘I never gave a hint to follow me. Why is she doing that.’

Jin-su, even though a mage class, has enormously high Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Durability stats, so he just found a reasonably efficient combat method.

Also, the dark-type status window class is warrior, and incidentally he can do the mana recovery upon physical attack which is an option of the Ice Dragon Staff, so there was no reason not to. But Shin Su-a’s case was different.

‘Huh? Is it not?’

Thinking about it, later when the level is higher the story is different, but right now when not long after changing class to healer, Shin Su-a’s Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Durability stats were reasonably usable.

‘Moreover, the original class is warrior.’

There is also the certain guard of the Stone Golem and Dragon Tooth Soldiers. Since there’s no danger, honestly, swinging the staff and catching even one more ant monster, even if slow, is an efficient action rather than resting.

‘She’s doing well.’

The sense of guilt that had risen in Jin-su’s heart disappeared cleanly.

‘Hunting efficiency also rises, and rather than being surprised and freezing when a monster approaches and getting injured or dying, striking with the staff is better. It also seems she only does that in safe situations.’

Jin-su who finished self-rationalization smiled toward Shin Su-a and then forcefully swung the Ice Dragon Staff to smash the head of an ant monster.

‘The level really rises well.’

Since continuously doing herding hunts, the level that was only 2 couldn’t help but rise even if he didn’t want it to.

[You have hunted 1,000 Worker Ant Devourers.]

[Title Worker Ant Devourer Hunter is granted.]

‘The ant monster’s name was Ant Devourer. Already caught a thousand?’

The hunting efficiency per hour was enormous to the degree that the word crazy naturally comes out.

‘Why can we only stay for 3 days. In my heart, I want to stay for about 3 months.’

With that much, it seemed it might be possible to hunt all the Ant Devourers in the ant nest.

When Jin-su was swallowing regret and swinging the Ice Dragon Staff to smash the heads of the Ant Devourers.

Kwajijijik!

Cracks began to form on the Ice Barrier Jin-su made.

‘It’s a Soldier Ant Devourer.’

It was an individual with a body three times larger than a Worker Ant Devourer and possessing huge mandibles.

“Ice Arrow.”

Jin-su used a magic attack skill toward the Soldier Ant Devourer.

Pueok!

The ice arrow lodged into the head of the Soldier Ant Devourer. The problem was that it didn’t lodge that deeply.

Ujik! Ujik!

The Soldier Ant Devourer bit the Ice Barrier without caring about the ice arrow lodged in its head. Jin-su repaired the Ice Barrier while firing more powerful attack magic skills.

“Ice Piercing Arrow.”

Kwajik!

Jin-su’s attack magic skill pierced the head of the Soldier Ant Devourer.

‘Now it’s dead.’

For the Soldier Ant Devourer with high defense, the Ice Piercing Arrow with higher attack power than a regular ice arrow was perfect.

‘Since one died, a bunch more will swarm.’

If a Worker Ant Devourer is killed, Worker Ant Devourers swarm in large numbers, and if a Soldier Ant Devourer is killed, Soldier Ant Devourers swarm in large numbers.

‘Was the stronger individual the Giant Soldier Ant?’

The Giant Soldier Ant Devourer was a boss monster-level monster with a size overwhelmingly larger than a regular Soldier Ant Devourer.

‘At that time, I couldn’t even see the Queen Ant.’

Before the regression, just enduring the wave attacks of Worker Ants, Soldier Ants, and Giant Soldier Ants was the limit.

‘At that time, even enduring was deadly.’

If he hadn’t bought time by deploying the Sanctuary skill as long as possible and endured, he might have really died as is. But now the situation had changed a lot.

‘What will they give if I catch the Queen Ant?’

A sense of expectation that along with achieving an impossible feat, an enormous reward would be given arose.

‘Then shall I try catching it once.’

Jin-su moved his body to catch the Queen Ant without being satisfied with the rewards given by the swarming Ant Devourers.