As Jin-hyuk said those refreshing words—
['Corrupting Heart' is furious!]
[You have received the 'Curse of Demon King'!]
[The curse lasts until death!]
Kukukung!
His body felt like it had been struck by something.
'Shit! It hurts.'
Jin-hyuk had to gulp back a scream. Naturally, there was no such thing as getting used to the process of having a curse engraved onto one's body.
This meant that each time would feel like a brand-new sensation.
Some perverts might enjoy the pain, but that was a story for those who had betrayed their dignity as humans. Wasn't it human nature to want to avoid any form of physical pain?
But he couldn't help it this time, since receiving the curse was part of the process of clearing this floor.
[All stats drop by 90% for 3 minutes.]
[If you try to fight, you will be exhausted, and in the worst case, you might die.]
[Time Left: 0h: 2m: 59s]
[Due to the strong intervention of a higher deity, a hidden quest has occurred.]
[Hidden Quest
Difficulty: A
Description: Corrupted fanatics who take the lives of others are 'wicked beings'. Each time you kill one of them, your adaptive stat increases by +0.1. However, if you kill the leader, the stat will increase by +30.]
Right, this was the one.
An error of probability caused by the active intervention of a god.
Naturally, to resolve such contradictions, the system was supposed to reward a cursed player.
And this was exactly what he had expected.
Everything was going exactly how he wanted.
Except for one thing.
The stats given as rewards were different from before.
'I had hoped I could get the adaptive stat.'
Jin-hyuk's eyes shook in surprise.
In the past, the quest had granted additional bonus stats, but now the reward had changed to the adaptive stat.
A stat that could not be obtained through standard methods and was only granted to those who had seen the Tower's top floor.
Jin-hyuk's heart began to beat uncontrollably at the realization that he could repeatedly accumulate this stat.
Ba-dump!
'No matter what happens, I need to get my hands on it.'
Among the rewards, the most delicious one had appeared. He could not afford to fail.
He had to make sure this was a success.
Jin-hyuk burned with passion. At that moment—
Throb!
Excruciating pain surged through his body.
'This is the effect of the curse.'
It felt as if the left side of his chest was about to explode, threatening to knock him unconscious.
He had to get out of here.
For the next three minutes, he wouldn't be able to fight properly. The skill he had received earlier could not be used here.
"I'm sorry. Can we end this in a draw?"
Jin-hyuk took a deep breath and smiled.
"Gooo!"
Thud! Thud!
Breaker charged at him, hammer in hand. As expected, it wasn't cute at all.
There was no helping it.
Jin-hyuk quickly turned around and began to run.
It was dark and maze-like, and it wouldn't have been strange for a dead end to suddenly appear, but Jin-hyuk never hesitated.
'Left from here.'
'Then right.'
He knew the place like the back of his hand.
He had memorized it down to the exact location of every wall. Passing through the narrow, winding passages, he arrived at the drug storage area.
'He can't be far.'
Only a few seconds remained before Breaker arrived.
Jin-hyuk rushed into the warehouse and moved to the innermost cabinet.
Clack!
He slipped into a narrow gap between the cabinets.
[You have entered the special field 'Cabinet'!]
[Stealth effect is activated.]
Within the psychiatric ward, there were places where one could hide from hunters.
This was one of them.
He couldn't hide completely, but with a bit of luck, he could escape their gaze.
"Um."
Jin-hyuk stopped breathing.
… One with the cabinet.
One with the cabinet!
'I am the cabinet, and the cabinet is me!'
He brainwashed himself, blending perfectly into the surroundings. Even if ghosts came searching, they wouldn't find him.
And at that moment—
Thud! Thud!
Breaker stopped in front of the cabinet and began searching.
'I am the cabinet, so do not worry.'
There was no reason to panic.
But…
"…"
Through the narrow crack, Jin-hyuk could see Breaker's red eyes.
Their gazes met.
Jin-hyuk quickly averted his eyes.
'… I must be imagining it.'
But the red eyes kept getting closer, and now he could even smell a rotten stench seeping through the gap.
'Shit. It's not working.'
His face flushed with embarrassment in this grim situation.
Woong!
Breaker raised its hammer.
At that moment—
Jin-hyuk burst out of the cabinet.
Breaker froze.
This was a delay of less than 0.2 seconds that occurred whenever a player entered or exited a cabinet.
Using that tiny gap, Jin-hyuk slipped out.
Had he mistimed it even slightly, he would have been crushed to his core.
For Jin-hyuk, who had survived far worse situations, this was easier than breathing.
"Kwaak!"
Breaker roared in fury.
[Breaker activates Lv11 'Breakthrough'!]
Kwakwakwang!
This time, the hammer obliterated the entire cabinet.
However, Jin-hyuk was faster.
By the time the cabinet was completely destroyed, he had already fled.
Throb! Throb!
The more he moved, the sharper the pain in his chest became.
He had deliberately chosen a warehouse filled with obstacles to limit Breaker's attacks.
In a riot like this, speed was everything.
Just a little faster.
Or he would die.
Jin-hyuk grunted as he widened the distance. Then—
Sshh.
As if by magic, Breaker suddenly stopped.
It knelt, holding its hammer in a posture of worship.
At the same time, a chilling presence swept over Jin-hyuk, raising goosebumps across his skin.
'Is it finally time?'
Jin-hyuk turned around.
Right.
"Indeed, you are a human well-suited for sacrifice."
Before him stood the leader of hundreds of fanatics.
Being a prisoner was unpleasant—especially when execution awaited.
"Ah, we're all going to die."
"We shouldn't have come to this cursed place!"
"Blinded by rewards… I don't want to die like this."
The captured players muttered curses or retreated into denial.
With their abilities sealed, escape seemed impossible.
But—
'There's a lot of fungus here. Not a bad place to stay. It'd be perfect if I could get some ramen.'
Jin-hyuk lay down.
Thanks to being taken prisoner, his stamina and magic—suppressed by the curse—began recovering.
It felt like his condition had fully stabilized.
Moreover, being dragged in meant he didn't have to bypass any gates or traps.
The quest to eliminate the wicked and gain adaptive stat points had become far easier.
Why search for enemies—
When they had all gathered here?
Just add seasoning and prepare the main course.
The leader of the heretics.
'Breaking the pride of those who think themselves superior is always exhilarating.'
Even this narrow, foul-smelling prison felt lovely.
At that moment—
"Silence! Make another sound and you'll be restrained, killed, and thrown to the monsters as food!"
The guard slammed the cage with a threat.
The blood-stained torture device in his hand silenced everyone instantly.
Naturally.
No one wanted to spend their final moments being tortured.
"Keep quiet and speak slowly."
The guard bowed as the tension subsided.
Two figures approached Jin-hyuk's cell.
One was the cold-faced leader.
The other wore a black hood.
"This is our first face-to-face meeting, isn't it, Kang Jin-hyuk?"
Jin-hyuk frowned.
That mana—
This was the first time he had sensed such a distinct and unsettling magical presence.
'I thought things had been quiet lately… so he's from the Demonic Human Association.'
He remembered Melena from the 3rd floor mentioning their goal: gathering relics to resurrect the Demon King.
On the 5th floor, the Demonic Human Association had joined forces with the leader.
Sharing the same objective made cooperation inevitable.
'If he can interact directly with the Tower's boss, then he must hold a high rank…'
Jin-hyuk studied him.
A white male with sharp features, black beard, and blue eyes.
'I wonder if his skills match his looks.'
The Eye of Gluttony activated—
Tring!
[Failed to read status window]
[Lv14 'Mental Barrier' is activated on the target.]
A barrier capable of blocking even ocular observation.
'That's why he revealed himself.'
He was confident—because he was prepared.
But it didn't matter.
Jin-hyuk crushed the white medicine hidden in his pocket.
[White medicine is used.]
[Due to the potion's effect, one stat can be doubled.]
[Duration: 10 minutes.]
Naturally, he chose adaptive.
The white medicine had been prepared for this exact moment.
Meeting a high-ranking executive of the Demonic Human Association was not an opportunity that came often.
[Adaptive stat has increased from 10 to 20.]
[Lv4 'Eye of Gluttony' sees through the target.]
And—
Jin-hyuk smiled.
Whether it was due to Elise or Pendariel's overwhelming level difference, it no longer mattered.
No player could stop him now.
—
Name: Hosenveld
Gender: Male
Age: 41
Level: 38
Strength 19 | Agility 25 | Stamina 18 | Magic 29 | Embrace Thoughts 80
Stat Points: 0
Coins: 30,855
Occupation: Knight of the Round Table
Unique Ability: Guardian's Realm
Skills: Lv14 'Mental Barrier', Lv10 'Sword of Condemnation', Lv10 'Britain's Protection', Lv9 'Oath of Knight'
—
The status window appeared.
Jin-hyuk swallowed.
'Ah.'
This was worse than expected.
The position of Knight of the Round Table could only be held by top executives of the Demonic Human Association.
In other words—
The man standing before him was a Knight.
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