The message hovered in the air like a warning siren.
[Boss Skill: Earthbreaker Preparing]
Min-Jae's stomach tightened.
He didn't need the system to explain what that meant. Monsters rarely used named skills unless the attack was powerful enough to wipe out everything nearby.
And judging from the way the Stone Brute's body was tensing…
This one was going to be devastating.
The creature crouched lower, its massive arms pressing against the ground as cracks began spreading across the asphalt beneath it.
Dust rose into the air.
Small pieces of debris trembled around its feet.
Min-Jae took a step back.
Then another.
Behind him, the survivors were still watching from inside the café. Their terrified faces pressed against the windows as they tried to understand what was happening.
One of them shouted.
"What's it doing?!"
Min-Jae didn't look back.
"Get away from the windows!" he shouted.
His voice cut through the street sharply.
"Now!"
The panic inside the café exploded instantly.
People scrambled away from the glass just as the monster slammed both fists into the ground.
BOOM.
The impact sounded like a bomb detonating.
For half a second, nothing happened.
Then the earth exploded.
A massive shockwave burst outward from the Stone Brute, ripping through the street like a violent ripple.
Concrete shattered.
Cars were lifted off the ground like toys.
Min-Jae jumped sideways, barely avoiding a chunk of asphalt that flew past his head.
The shockwave slammed into nearby buildings.
Windows shattered instantly.
Inside the café, people screamed as the entire building shook violently.
Min-Jae rolled across the ground, sliding through broken debris before finally stopping behind the remains of a flipped car.
His ears rang.
Dust filled the air, turning the street into a gray fog.
"Damn…"
He pushed himself up slowly, coughing once.
"That was worse than I thought."
The Stone Brute stood in the center of the destruction, slowly pulling its fists out of the crater it had created.
The entire road had been destroyed.
Deep fractures ran across the pavement like spiderwebs.
Cars were overturned.
Streetlights lay broken across the ground.
Min-Jae exhaled slowly.
"If that had hit me directly…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
He didn't need to.
The monster turned toward him again.
Its crimson eyes glowed through the dust.
And then it started walking.
Step.
The ground crunched beneath its feet.
Step.
Chunks of broken asphalt shifted as it moved closer.
Min-Jae tightened his grip on the metal rod.
His arms still tingled from the earlier impact.
This thing was stronger than anything he had fought at this stage in his previous life.
And it had already used one powerful skill.
But something about that bothered him.
Monsters usually had cooldowns too.
If Earthbreaker worked like most boss abilities…
It wouldn't be usable again immediately.
Which meant he had a small window.
Min-Jae's eyes sharpened.
"Good."
He stepped out from behind the broken car.
"Let's keep going."
The Stone Brute suddenly roared and charged again.
Its massive body tore across the ruined street like a runaway truck.
Min-Jae ran toward it.
The survivors watching from the café couldn't believe their eyes.
"Why is he running at it?!"
"He's insane!"
The monster swung its arm downward.
Min-Jae jumped sideways, landing on the hood of an overturned car.
The metal rod flashed as he swung it again, striking the monster's injured forehead.
CLANG.
The crack widened slightly.
The Stone Brute roared in anger and swiped at him again.
Min-Jae ducked under the attack and sprinted past its side.
His mind worked rapidly.
"The forehead crack is real damage."
Which meant that weak point was genuine.
But the problem was getting another clean hit.
He glanced at the skill timer again.
System Glitch – Cooldown: 28 seconds
Too long.
He needed another opening before that.
The Stone Brute spun around, its massive foot smashing into the ground.
The shockwave knocked Min-Jae slightly off balance.
The monster lunged again, this time grabbing a broken car from the street.
Min-Jae's eyes widened.
"Oh, come on."
The creature lifted the entire vehicle above its head.
Then it threw it.
The car flew through the air like a missile.
Min-Jae dove forward.
The vehicle crashed behind him, exploding into twisted metal as it slammed into a building.
The survivors screamed again.
Min-Jae rolled across the ground and jumped back to his feet.
His breathing had become heavier now.
Fighting a monster this strong with almost no equipment was exhausting.
Still…
He smirked slightly.
"Throwing cars now?"
The Stone Brute roared again and rushed toward him.
Min-Jae ran straight at it.
At the last second, he slid under the monster's swinging arm again.
This time he moved closer.
Much closer.
Right under its chest.
The rod swung upward with everything he had.
CRACK.
The blow landed against the monster's jaw.
The Stone Brute staggered slightly.
Min-Jae immediately kicked off the ground and jumped back before it could grab him.
He landed a few meters away.
"Not bad."
The monster turned toward him again.
Now it looked furious.
Its entire body trembled with rage.
Min-Jae rolled his shoulders slowly.
"Good. Stay angry."
Angry monsters made mistakes.
The Stone Brute roared again.
Then something strange happened.
It stopped moving.
Completely.
Min-Jae frowned.
"That's new."
The creature's crimson eyes suddenly brightened.
The ground beneath its feet began glowing faintly.
Min-Jae's instincts screamed again.
Another system message appeared.
[Boss Skill Cooldown Complete]
Min-Jae froze.
"No way…"
Another line appeared.
[Boss Skill: Earthbreaker Preparing]
Min-Jae stared at the message in disbelief.
"That fast?!"
The monster raised both fists again.
Energy began gathering beneath its body.
Min-Jae's mind raced.
If that skill hit again—
The café behind him would be completely destroyed.
And everyone inside it would die.
He clenched his jaw.
"Damn it."
He had only one option.
Min-Jae started running.
Straight toward the monster.
The Stone Brute lifted its fists higher.
The ground began trembling violently again.
But this time Min-Jae wasn't running away.
He was charging directly into the attack.
Because his skill cooldown had finally reached zero.
The system notification appeared in the corner of his vision.
System Glitch – Ready
Min-Jae smiled slightly.
"Perfect timing."
He raised his hand.
"System Glitch."
The world flickered again.
The monster's body distorted for a split second.
And the red weak points appeared again.
Three glowing marks.
Chest.
Neck.
Forehead.
Min-Jae ran faster.
Two seconds.
That was all he had.
The monster slammed its fists downward.
But Min-Jae had already jumped.
He kicked off the monster's arm, using it like a platform to launch himself upward.
The rod swung down with everything he had.
Straight toward the cracked weak point on the monster's forehead.
The moment before impact—
Min-Jae suddenly noticed something.
The weak point wasn't just glowing anymore.
It was spreading.
The crack was growing wider.
And something inside it…
Was moving.
Min-Jae's eyes widened.
"Wait—"
The rod struck the crack.
CRACK.
The sound that followed wasn't metal hitting stone.
It sounded like something breaking open.
The Stone Brute froze.
For a single second.
Then a horrifying scream burst from its mouth.
But it wasn't a roar.
It sounded almost…
Human.
Min-Jae landed on the ground and stepped back quickly.
His heart pounded in his chest.
Because the crack in the monster's forehead was opening wider now.
And something inside the monster…
Was trying to come out.