I Raided the Demon’s Treasury

Chapter 101

– According to the mysteries of the Black Tower, the Power of ‘Wind Cutter’ is enhanced.

Swaaash!

A sharply honed black wind flew out. As expected of a wind spell, its speed was incredibly fast, and the monster with the catfish-like appearance was unable to dodge, looking stunned as it was struck by the attack.

Just like when it was cut by Durandal, a long wound appeared on its body, and it hurriedly dove into the water, looking flustered.

‘As expected, a 5th Circle spell.’

The magic now felt completely different compared to when he used it at the 3rd Circle.

Even using a lower Circle magic, everything about it—speed, power, and range—had been vastly improved.

But one thing Se-woon realized.

‘Even though the power is enhanced, the mysteries of the Black Tower and the wind magic don’t have a good synergy.’

Due to its excellent trait of enhancing power, Se-woon usually applied the mysteries of the Black Tower to most of his magic. However, his thoughts changed when employing major wind attribute attack spells.

Wind magic had the tremendous advantage of being invisible, in addition to its speed and cutting power. But as the mysteries of the Black Tower were applied, the wind turned black, and that advantage disappeared.

He realized that the applied mysteries should change according to the magic.

Blurp!

Air bubbles floated up to the surface, followed by a torrent of water splashing out. The creature had shot out water from its mouth instead of the mud this time.

Not only that, it headbutted the stone bridge where Se-woon was standing, trying to topple it.

As a result, Se-woon had to move across the stone bridge multiple times without launching a proper attack.

‘It doesn’t seem like it wants to come out.’

Realizing the dangers of both close and long-range attacks, it seemed the creature intended to persist in attacking from below the surface. It was a considerably wise choice, contrary to its dumb-looking face.

Other players might have retreated, thinking it was too much, but Se-woon was different.

‘In that case, I might as well use magic to my heart’s content.’

After all, he hadn’t properly used magic since achieving 5th circle, and he’d been itching to do so. Given the nature of his magic, it was awkward to use it against the Tabula’s Wolf.

– Opened the Treasury of Greed

[ Aqua Pillar ]

– A water-based magic from the Blue Tower that summons a giant water column. Performs more powerfully when there is a medium.

Unlike the defensive magic Aqua Wall, Aqua Pillar is an attack spell that summons a water pillar beneath the enemy’s feet.

Blue mana gathered in Se-woon’s hand, signaling that the spell was ready to use.

All that was left was to pinpoint the creature’s location.

‘Its speed isn’t that fast.’

He focused.

Although he hadn’t felt it before, the creature’s presence was distinctly noticeable now that it was active.

The moment it paused to spew water again while leisurely moving along the river bottom, the blue mana awaiting in Se-woon’s hand shot into the river.

Whrooooooosh!

“Kyoooh?”

The creature that had been preparing to spew water towards Se-woon was pushed to the surface, showing off its bloated belly. Such was the strength of the Aqua Pillar that it lifted the creature from the riverbed straight to the surface.

Even though Se-woon reached 5th circle, the unexpected strength was due to the geographical advantage.

‘Fighting a water attribute mage near water is practically suicide.’

Although Se-woon utilized magic of various attributes thanks to the Powers of Greed, mages typically had one or two main attributes. And the more they fought in fields suited to their attributes, the stronger they became.

Water attribute mages were strong in rivers and oceans. Fire attribute mages were suited for deserts and volcanoes. Earth attribute mages had their element in wastelands or rocky mountains.

Thus, the power of the Aqua Pillar Se-woon used was greatly amplified by the medium of the river. As the creature struggled to escape from the Aqua Pillar, Se-woon maintained it and raised his other hand.

– According to the mysteries of the Green Tower, the speed of ‘Wind Cutter’ is increased.

Swoosh!

“Kuooo!”

Immediately recalling the revelation earlier, Se-woon applied the mysteries of the Green Tower to the wind magic.

As a result, the transparent wind flew out with a sharp cutting sound.

Applying the mysteries of the same attribute, the power was as potent as when he had used the mysteries of the Black Tower.

‘Still, the attack power itself isn’t that strong….’

The creature had such thick skin that even being slashed by Durandal wasn’t enough to inflict fatal injuries.

Although Wind Cutter was sharp, it couldn’t make deeper wounds than Durandal.

Thus, Se-woon changed his plan.

– According to the mysteries of the Blue Tower, the stability of ‘Aqua Pillar’ is enhanced.

Increased stability meant the magic’s effectiveness could be heightened. Se-woon pulled the hand stretched toward the Aqua Pillar back towards himself, as though tugging it.

With that, the vertically shooting water pillar elegantly bent, pushing the catfish that had been struggling in it toward Se-woon.

“Kyoooh, oooh!”

The airborne creature flapped its body with all its might. However, no matter how furiously a fish fluttered its fins, it couldn’t fly in the air.

Se-woon fixed his gaze on the incoming creature, poised low as if embracing its final act of desperation, and unleashed an attack towards its wide-open mouth.

– Through internal energy, the third form of the Blood Wolf Swordsmanship, ‘Wolf Ambush’, is enhanced.

– According to the mysteries of the Paragon Mental Cultivation Technique, the power of the martial arts technique is enhanced.

Swoosh-!

The Blood Wolf revealed its sharp fangs, and the battle was over.

* * *

– You have completed the Hidden Quest, ‘Riverbed Catfish.’

– You have received additional points for the trial ‘Crossing the River.’

– You have acquired ‘Sludgy Mud’ as a reward.

SJust like the tutorial, the trials in the tower also have rankings for each floor.

However, while the tutorial rankings were limited to the participants at the time, the tower rankings include all of history up until now.

So, how are the scores determined?

It’s simple.

It depends on how well and how quickly the basic trials are completed, as well as how many hidden elements of the trial are discovered.

So…

‘For now, I should cross quickly.’

Having completed the Hidden Quest, Se-woon needed to cross the river as quickly as possible.

Of course, he didn’t forget to use the Power of Gluttony on the catfish, wounded as if it had been mauled by a beast, and now lying sunken at the riverbed.

– The ‘Riverbed Catfish’ has been devoured.

– Absorbing its nutrients increases Stamina by 8.

– The Constellation, ‘Hungry Prince,’ opened his mouth wide, claiming there is no better tonic than this in the summer.

Seeing Beelzebub getting excited with every use of the power, Se-woon almost found it adorable.

Thinking this, Se-woon quickly ran across the stone bridge, even using martial arts.

Occasionally, piranhas swarmed and bared their teeth, but there were no piranhas that could withstand Lightning Wave in the 2nd floor’s trial.

He hadn’t sped up this much earlier because he was looking for a hidden piece.

Now that he had succeeded in hunting the catfish, there was no need to slow down.

The wind blew through Se-woon’s hair, and the current weakened.

The long distance quickly shrank, and in less than 5 minutes, he was able to step onto the opposite land.

– You have successfully completed the 2nd floor trial, ‘Crossing the River.’

– Calculating merit points…

– Time remaining: 4 hours 33 minutes

– Number of piranhas hunted: 211.

– Completed Hidden Quest ‘Riverbed Catfish.’

…

– Total accumulated merit points: 200,200 points.

– Congratulations! You have passed the 2nd floor trial in 1st place.

– You have received a reward of 100,000 points.

‘That’s a relief.’

As expected, he managed to take 1st place in the ranking.

It took 27 minutes, but the bonus from the hidden quest was probably bigger than expected.

Players who find hidden quests without proper hints in early trials are practically non-existent.

Taking a moment to catch his breath and check the rankings, the difference in merit points between him and 2nd place was only 200 points.

If he had missed a few piranhas, he would have ended up in 2nd place.

Scrolling down through the rankings, he saw a familiar name in 4th place.

‘Riel Refrain.’

She hadn’t been visible at the resting area, so she probably went straight into the next trial without a break.

Considering her abilities, she would have taken down the piranhas easily with her speed, but… the bonus from the hidden quest was just too significant.

Well, even if Se-woon hadn’t gotten 1st place, he would have been 3rd, so it’s not a bad ranking.

To place 3rd among the many monster-like players in the Tower was definitely an impressive achievement.

‘As for the others…’

Seeing the quiet clan chat, it seemed like no one had arrived yet.

Well, Se-woon only took 27 minutes after hunting the catfish, but for others, just facing the piranhas would be overwhelming.

Thinking so, Se-woon checked the item he received from the catfish.

[Sludgy Mud]

Type: Consumable

Rank: C-

Description: Mud held by the Riverbed Catfish over a long time.

Ability:

1. Prevents durability consumption of a weapon for one use.

“Oh?”

It was a more useful reward than he had expected, even though he hadn’t anticipated anything.

Of course, if it were any other player, they would probably shake their heads and wonder what use such an item could have, but Se-woon had already consumed nearly ten weapons while using the Power of Greed.

For Se-woon, the ability to prevent durability consumption seemed incredibly useful.

While he was admiring it, something caught his eye in the clan chat.

[Yoo Seo-ah: Has anyone arrived yet?]

As expected, Yoo Seo-ah.

Only 40 minutes had passed, but it seemed she had already passed the 2nd floor trial.

‘Well, if it’s Yoo Seo-ah, she must’ve easily evaded the piranhas.’

Aside from Se-woon, she was the fastest in the clan, boasting swift movement and dazzling footwork, so the ‘Crossing River’ trial probably wasn’t that difficult for her.

[Kang Han-cheol: I’ve arrived.]
[Park Jung-pil: No, those things with their blood-red eyes chased me all the way to the end! I almost died!]
[Han Ah-reum: Huh? That didn’t happen to me.]
[Kim So-hee: I was a bit late gathering ingredients! Next time we gather, I’ll grill fish for you. It’ll be delicious!]

‘Next time…’

The reason the 1st floor of the Tower served as a Sanctuary was apparent.

Once a trial begins, it’s not easy to stop.

Proper resting areas exist every 10 floors, and before that, you can only gather once a theme is completed.

Even then, it’s only possible to move to the corresponding area if you belong to a clan or guild.

Of course, as you ascend the Tower, you can buy consumable items to return to the previous resting area, but that was an impossible option for Se-woon and others who had just completed the 2nd floor trial.

‘Looks like there are no dropouts.’

Though he had been a little worried about the non-combatants like the twin sisters and Go Changseok, they were passing the trials more easily than expected.

The effort put into the tutorial was definitely paying off.

‘Then, shall I move on?’

After a brief rest, Se-woon chose to move on to the next floor.

– Welcome to the 3rd floor trial.

With a flash of light, the huge mountain range that had been faintly visible across the river became clearer.