I Raided the Demon’s Treasury

Chapter 106

– Welcome to the 5th floor trial.

– Theme: The Master of the Mountain

– Time Limit: 10 hours

– Defeat the Master of the Mountain and reach the highest point.

As the 5th floor trial began, Se-woon and Go Chang-seok emerged from the cave to find themselves facing the blue sky.

This was the peak of the mountain, accessible only through the cave. It was the last trial of the first mountain-themed challenge.

“Ah, the air is so nice. I used to climb mountains often just to breathe this air.”

The cool, high-altitude air filled his chest.

It felt even more refreshing since they had been in the cave, where the air didn’t circulate well.

Se-woon calmly surveyed the surroundings and began walking along the path ahead.

It wasn’t a constructed path, but rather one that seemed to have naturally formed from something large moving through the area.

Before long, they came upon the subject of the trial—the ‘Master of the Mountain.’

“Is that it?”

“Looks like it.”

A monster sprawled across the path, blocking the way to the peak.

While it was a new monster to Go Chang-seok, Se-woon recognized it immediately—it was a creature he had encountered before, both before his regression and during the tutorial.

“Grarr…”

– The Constellation, “Hungry Prince,” salivates while imagining the texture of the monster’s tough tendons.

An ogre.

The first monster that comes to mind when thinking of ‘strength.’

From its size, it didn’t seem to be a fully mature ogre, but it was still an ogre. Its strength was so powerful that even its fists could crush rocks.

‘Before the regression, I would have been terrified the moment I realized it was this guy.’

Even though he had cleared the Tutorial, it was absurd to be given the trial of fighting an ogre with only two players. The difficulty was ridiculous.

Se-woon had faced a starving ogre during the tutorial, but originally, it wasn’t a monster meant to be caught.

However, the tower didn’t give players impossible trials.

There were rocks that looked perfect for knocking it off the peak, poisonous plants growing in places, and cliffs hidden by thick foliage.

Players had to explore the surroundings and find a strategy while the ogre slept.

If one remained calm and executed a plan without panic, it was a trial with plenty of potential.

Before the regression, Se-woon had also tackled the 5th floor in that manner.

“What are you going to do? Will you attack right away?”

But now, Se-woon didn’t need to do that.

Having faced not only the hungry ogre but also its leader, ‘Krak Katlak,’ even a sub-adult ogre posed no threat.

Go Chang-seok knew this too, so he didn’t propose any other plans.

“Hmm…”

However, Se-woon’s mind was filled with something other than the ogre.

The quest item he had acquired from the previous floor, the Stone Flute.

It was only noted that it could be used on the 5th floor, but there was no clear detail on whether it should be used before or after fighting the ogre.

This uncertainty had been troubling him.

But his contemplation soon concluded.

“Well, I can try it out and see.”

If blowing it didn’t cause anything special to happen and the ogre woke up? He would just knock the ogre out as it was.

He could also try using it during the fight or after the battle, just in case.

His confidence in his strength made this approach possible.

Having made up his mind, Se-woon took the Stone Flute from his space pouch.

He had briefly considered pulling out a music score from Mammon’s treasury, but Se-woon already had knowledge of a treasure, ‘Score of the Rough Sea,’which he had used to play a ‘Instrument Resembling a Fairy’ before.

Although the music score didn’t seem to fit with the Stone Flute, it didn’t matter. There was no instruction to play a particular song.

Buu—

As Se-woon blew into the Stone Flute, a deep, resonant sound echoed out.

The sound was completely different from the usual flute tone, and Go Chang-seok was visibly surprised.

The rough, low tone of the Stone Flute matched surprisingly well with ‘Score of the Rough Sea,’ and the music spread throughout the entire mountain.

And not long after…

“Ugh…?”

The ogre, which had been sprawled out in a wide stance, opened its eyes and rose from its resting place.

Since Se-woon didn’t stop playing, the ogre soon noticed both him and Go Chang-seok.

It seemed to take the ogre a moment to fully wake up as it stared blankly at Se-woon, before snapping back to attention. It salivated and grabbed a weapon from the side.

“It’s meal time. The food has arrived!”

“I’m not sure what’s going on, but you keep playing! I’ll try to hold it off!”

This revealed the second issue with the Stone Flute.

Not only was Se-woon unsure of the timing, but he also had no idea how long he needed to blow the flute.

Still, he decided to continue playing the music, nodding along as he kept the notes flowing.

Boom!

“The food is tough! But I am strong!”

“I don’t think I can last much longer!”

Go Chang-seok was strong, even by the standards of most warrior-type players.

As evidence, he was able to perfectly block the ogre’s attacks with only his Tower Shield.

One fortunate thing was the ogre’s intelligence—or rather, the lack of it.

Instead of using varied tactics like taking the shield away or pressing with its massive body, the ogre continued to mindlessly swing a crude wooden club at Go Chang-seok’s shield.

The ogre’s strength pushed Go Chang-seok back bit by bit, but thanks to the superior defense of his gear, he wasn’t suffering any significant damage.

‘Is this not working?’

However, Se-woon could clearly see Go Chang-seok struggling, leaning against his shield.

He started to question whether he should stop playing the flute and help him out.

At that moment…

Drdrdrdr-

The faint vibrations from the ground grew stronger.

At first, Se-woon thought the vibrations were from the ogre’s attacks, but it was something entirely different.

It felt like something was wriggling beneath the earth.

The vibrations intensified as Se-woon neared the end of his performance, and even the ogre, feeling the stronger tremors, stopped its attacks and stared blankly.

Se-woon, now sure this was the right move, blew the Stone Flute with renewed vigor, reaching the climax.

– The Stone Larva has awoken due to the Stone Flute’s performance.

– The trial location has shifted to its true origin, ‘Sleepy Insect Mountain’.

– The trial’s theme has changed from ‘Master of the Mountain’ to ‘Ruler of the Mountain.’

– Defeat the Ruler of the Mountain, the Stone Larva, and reach the highest point.

“Ugh?”

Boom!

A cloud of dust erupted from beneath the ogre’s feet.

Go Chang-seok quickly retreated, and Se-woon, having removed the flute from his lips, turned to face the front.

Through the dust, a long shadow could be seen.

Not planning to wait, Se-woon cast Breeze Magic to blow the dust away.

“What in the world did you summon?”

As the dust cleared, a massive rock formation was revealed.

Large and small rocks were piled together, forming a long, wriggling shape that moved as if it were alive.

It shook its head violently and sent the ogre flying.

– The Constellation, “Hungry Prince,” shrieked at watching his snack being blown away.

The ogre didn’t even get a scream out before crashing into the wall and exploding.

Even though it was a sub-adult, an ogre is still an ogre. Killing such an ogre in one blow proved how strong the monster was.

“Perhaps I should ask… Is it an ally…?”

“Kaaah-!!”

“… Doesn’t seem like it.”

The monster opened its mouth, made of stone, and let out a rough roar.

The stone dust mixed in with the roar hit Go Chang-seok’s shield, and the impact was so strong that the sound of it bouncing off was anything but ordinary.

“Stone Larva…”

Although it was the first time he saw it, Se-woon was able to identify the monster, having read various monster compendiums to survive.

Stone Larva.

As seen, it was a larval-shaped monster made entirely of stone.

The size varied depending on age, and seeing that it was well over 10 meters long, it appeared to be a fully grown larva.

‘A monster like that was on the 5th floor?’

The entire body was made of rock, making it hard to damage, and while its strength was formidable, the real danger lay in its growth stage.

Currently, it was in the larval stage, but after going through the pupa stage and evolving into its final form, its power was said to rival that of a dragon.

That such a monster appeared on the 5th floor made Se-woon’s shock understandable.

“… Can we handle it?”

“We have to, even if we can’t.”

– The Gaze of Envy began to fixate on the ‘Stone Larva.’

The only good news, if any, is that it’s still in its larval form, even though it’s a fully grown creature.

If it had completed its transformation into its final form, Se-woon would have had no way of dealing with it.

Even in its larval form, the monster was undeniably strong, but there was still a chance of victory.

“Then I’ll…”

“No, you should stay behind, elder.”

“…I’m sorry. I can’t be of help.”

“Most of my gear is your work. I’ve already received plenty of help.”

“Good luck. If it’s about gear, I’ll repair it anytime.”

“Thanks.”

No matter how strong Go Chang-seok was among the players, blocking the Stone Larva’s attacks was impossible.

Se-woon also knew it was beyond him to defend Go Chang-seok while fighting the Stone Larva.

As Go Chang-seok stepped back, Se-woon reached out towards the charging Stone Larva.

– Opened the Treasury of Greed.

[ Stone Wall ]

– A defensive magic from the Yellow Tower that creates a wall made of rock to block enemy attacks.

Rrrumble!

Rocks rose from the ground, blocking the monster’s charge.

However, it was only for one time. After just one collision, a clear crack appeared on the wall.

Stone Wall, being a magic of the Yellow Tower, boasted the highest defense among all magical spells, yet this spell had already been damaged by a mere headbutt.

If Se-woon had collided directly, his armor and defenses would have been shattered in an instant.

Knowing that, Se-woon refrained from direct combat with weapons. Instead, he continually created distance while raising stone walls.

– According to the mysteries of the Yellow Tower, the ‘Stone Wall’ is further reinforced.

Boom!

No matter what, it was impossible to deal any serious damage by colliding now.

Weapon attacks using Mammon’s treasure?

Se-woon knew how strong legendary weapons were, but even those seemed unlikely to pierce the monster’s overwhelming defense with just one strike.

Having used the power of various weapons, Se-woon could tell this.

But would he simply keep avoiding the monster like this?

No. If it were someone else, maybe. But Se-woon had a strength other players didn’t possess.

That strength was the ‘the Power of ‘Envy.’

– The Gaze of Envy covet the toughness of the ‘Stone Larva.’

– Steals defense.

– Steals agility.

…

Due to the Power of Envy, the monster will continuously lose its strength, while Se-woon’s power will increase.

For now, he would stall, draining the monster’s strength as much as possible, and when a weakness appears…

‘One strike.’

Without allowing the monster to notice or react to Se-woon’s strength, he must strike and end its life in one blow.