Chapter 200 - Trial Cave
If you have a tank, the first trial can be efficiently overcome.
"If you have a provocation skill to attract the monsters' attention or a protective skill like An Sang-cheol's, you can easily block their attacks," he said.
However, it doesn't necessarily mean you must have a tank to pass the trial.
"The key is to not be hit by the monsters for the first 10 minutes."
Before the monsters appeared, Ryu Min raised his scythe and looked up.
Huge stalactites hanging from the cave's ceiling could be seen.
Snap:
The scythe extended like a whip, cleanly cutting through several stalactites.
"What are you doing...?"
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
The enormous stalactites slammed into the ground, blocking the cave path like iron bars.
It was then that John Delgado, who finally understood Black Scythe's actions, closed his mouth.
"Is he trying to block the monsters' invasion with stalactites?"
Trapped like a prisoner in the stalactite bars, though it was an unfortunate situation, the effect was clear.
"Grrr, crunch!"
"Shiiing!"
The werewolves and lizardmen attempting to enter the cave were blocked by the stalactites and couldn't approach.
A situation where they could see their prey but couldn't reach it.
Although the monsters tried to break the stalactites with all their might, it wasn't enough.
Firstly, the otherworldly stalactites had a weight that could be driven into the cave floor.
They wouldn't break so easily.
"Cutting those stalactites so easily... this is amazing."
Seeing Black Scythe's scythe smoothly cutting as if slicing tofu, it was impossible to estimate how much damage it inflicted.
"It seems like the first trial has ended. Let's all rest for 10 minutes."
Black Scythe said calmly as he sat on the ground, followed by the people who took their seats one by one.
"It's incredible. I didn't expect it to be so easy."
John also sat down with his tongue out.
Although the monsters, just 10 meters away, were spitting saliva and shining, he didn't feel danger.
After all, the stalactites were densely placed, not giving the monsters a chance to come out.
After a noisy 10 minutes, a message appeared.
[You have succeeded in the first trial.]
[Team's accumulated damage is 0.]
[As a reward for success, the door to the next trial will open.]
Crunch:
The cave walls shifted, and the blocked path opened.
Looking back, the monsters, shining as they tried to pierce the stalactites, had disappeared without a trace.
"Let's go."
Following Ryu Min, the team members moved.
John Delgado was curious about what the second trial would be, but the others already knew thanks to the prophecy.
After walking about 100 steps, a wide space appeared before them.
"Is this it? The place for the second trial."
John, who had imagined this, approached with the other team members, and as expected, a message appeared.
[Second trial]
Eliminate 100 golems from the second trial within 1 hour.
Success ▶ Opens the next trial.
Failure ▶ One team member will be eliminated through voting.
[The golems of the second trial are special monsters unaffected by long-range weapons and magic.]
[If you defeat 100 golems within the 1-hour timeframe, the trial will be concluded.]
"Until the assigned time ends, if we fail to defeat 100 monsters, it will be considered a failure."
"If we don't pass the trial, through an internal vote, one of the group members will be eliminated."
'Long-range weapons and magic are ineffective... Special monsters?'
Although the mission itself was simple, the level of the monsters wasn't so much.
"Archers and mages can't do anything?"
Reading the explanation, John remembered Dark Soul, a member of Messiah.
"If the sniper were here, he should be licking his chops."
"In 10 seconds, the monsters will appear. Please prepare together for the monsters' appearance!"
As he read the message, Black Scythe stepped forward once again.
"Everyone step back behind me. I'll handle the monsters."
At his words, the group members stepped back without a word.
In this situation, only Black Scythe was willing to confront the monsters.
Practically only melee fighters could fight in this situation.
"[Zephyr] and [Dumb Idiots], those two don't have weapons, so I can't tell what class they are..."
Apparently, they weren't melee fighters since they didn't carry weapons.
There was no need to mention [Min Juri], who had simply cast a buff.
"Although my summons can fight melee..."
Black Scythe didn't seem willing to let his summons help him.
"Yes. It's better to let Black Scythe handle it instead of unnecessarily meddling."
At level 90, he should be able to handle it easily.
It was at that moment.
Kugugugu-
Rocks everywhere gathered to form five golem statues.
Although they were larger than he thought, it didn't matter much.
After all, in front of Black Scythe, they were just stones.
Puk! Puk!
Urrrr-
Had it been about two seconds?
The golem statues collapsed from the moment they were created.
"I expected it, but I never thought he'd knock them down so quickly..."
Black Scythe's scythe was so fast it couldn't even be seen.
"Yes, he attacked the golems from long range as if they were nothing. And with a single blow."
Due to the scythe's nature, it was classified as a melee weapon, not a long-range attack.
John admired the suddenly appearing experience message.
"You have defeated the second golem of the trial!"
"Experience +1.53%"
"Gold +600"
"Experience +1.53%"
"Gold +600"
"Experience +1.53%"
"Gold +600"
...
...
"Even as a group, we're getting so much experience and gold!"
The golems were obviously stronger than they imagined.
Despite that, Black Scythe effortlessly took them down.
Puk! Puk! Puk!
Urrrr-
It didn't take an hour to defeat 100 monsters. It barely took about two minutes.
"You have succeeded in the second trial."
"The total time for the group to overcome it is 00:01:59."
"As a reward for the success, the door to the next trial will be opened."
Kugugugug-
A secret door on one side opened, revealing the path.
"Let's go."
Following Black Scythe, another hallway appeared.
<Third trial>
Within an hour, annihilate 100 golems from the third trial.
Success: ▶ Opening of the next trial.
Failure: ▶ A member of the group will be eliminated through voting.
[The golem of the third trial is a special monster immune to melee weapons.]
[If 100 golems are eliminated within 1 hour, the trial will be concluded.]
[On the other hand, if 100 golems are not defeated before time runs out, it will be considered a failure.]
[In case of failing the trial, a group member will be eliminated through an internal vote.]
[Shortly, the golems will be summoned in the common area.]
The third trial also consisted of defeating 100 monsters.
The only difference was that these golems were immune to melee weapons.
"So this time, do we have to kill them only with magic or ranged weapons?"
Since neither of them knew how to use both, there was no place for John to excel.
His gaze naturally turned towards Black Scythe, the strongest mage he had encountered so far.
"I'll do it."
When Black Scythe offered again, John felt relieved.
He thought they could tackle the third trial smoothly.
But the buffer didn't seem to agree.
"Eh? Mr. Black Scythe, do you also know how to use magic?"
He asked, surprised to see a fellow using magic.
"I can. I learned it recently."
"Ah."
Min Juri withdrew without further words.
Seeing her trusting enough not to inquire, John found her quite reliable.
[In 10 seconds, the monsters will appear. Please prepare for the appearance of the monsters together.]
The message disappeared, and exactly after 10 seconds.
Just like before, five golems appeared around them.
And suddenly.
Pazajijijijic!
Black Scythe's lightning bolt spread in all directions, hitting the golems.
Naturally, it was a single blow.
"Even seeing it again, they're incredibly strong..."
Seeing the skill that wiped out his 30 summonings in one blow, John swallowed saliva unconsciously.
Finally, they also passed the third trial in just over two minutes.
[You have succeeded in the third trial.]
[The total time for the team to overcome the trial is 00:02:02.]
[As a reward for the success, the door to the next trial will be opened.]
"What a relief. At least Black Scythe knows how to use magic."
What would have happened if he didn't have ranged weapons or didn't know magic?
They would have struggled during the third trial.
"They probably would have been dealing with golems to avoid dying."
After enduring for an hour, they would have to eliminate one of their comrades through voting.
Only then could they advance to the next trial.
"Perhaps there are teams that have been eliminated by voting at this stage."
Thinking of that, John followed Black Scythe through the secret door, as before.
Instead of a large common space, they encountered a narrow hallway.
At that moment, a message appeared, and upon reading its content, John opened his eyes in surprise.
<Fourth trial>
└ Help the angels win the battle.
└ Success: ▶ Opening of the last trial.
└ Failure: ▶ A member of the group will be randomly eliminated.
This time, he also wondered if they would have to defeat monsters.
"Help the angels in the battle?"
He was puzzled, but just then an explanation appeared.
[Shortly after, angels and demons appeared, pointing swords at each other.]
[Basically, since demons are stronger, this is an unfavorable fight for the angels.]
[If you help the angels win, the trial will be concluded.]
[However, this time, attacks and abilities are prohibited, and no interference in the battle is allowed, except for support skills.]
[Therefore, the only way to help the angels is through support skills.]
[Use your skills to change the unfavorable situation!]
[If the angel is killed by the demon, it will be considered a failure.]
[If you cannot pass the trial, one of your group mates will be extinguished at random.]
John, who had played a lot, could understand the intention immediately.
"Ah, I see. This time it's a trial to evaluate support skills."
This time, his gaze wasn't on Black Scythe, but on Min Juri.
Fortunately, the team had a buffer.
"If that girl casts a set of three buffs, even an unfavorable situation can be immediately reversed."
Though he thought this would be easy to overcome, Black Scythe said without hesitation.
"I'll take care of this, so just watch us."
"What? This time too?"
Shouldn't Black Scythe lack the ability for this support trial?
Before he could resolve his confusion, the trial began.
"Die, you crazy angel!"
"You dirty demon scum!"
Angels and demons who suddenly appeared, pointing swords at each other.
The problem is that, whether in strength or skill, the angels seem to be at a disadvantage.
"How can you help in this situation? There are no support skills."
John's question was answered as soon as he saw Black Scythe's action.
Wooong-
A warm light enveloped the angel.
"Oh, there were healing skills."
Emergency healing skill was also clearly one of the support skills.
The problem was that the healing skill had a noticeably inferior effect compared to a heal.
"This healing skill is so insignificant... but, huh?"
As he spoke, John had to question his own eyes.
The healing skill, considered an ordinary and mundane skill, instantly restored the angel's grievous wounds.
"What? Was the healing skill this good?"
No, it definitely wasn't.
He knew how ineffective the healing skill was when using it.
It didn't have the healing capability comparable to a heal.
"So, what happened?"
The angel, who was in danger after being attacked by the demon, quickly recovered thanks to Black Scythe's timely treatment and began to fight.
"H-how..."
"Die! Die! You damn demon!"
Finally, the disadvantaged angel reversed the situation and won.
[You have succeeded in the fourth trial.]
[As a reward for the success, the door to the last trial will be opened.]
This time, too, they passed the trial with Black Scythe's help.
"This is strange. I don't have to intervene."
John, who smiled ironically, followed Black Scythe as usual.
No, he tried to follow him.
"Eh? What are you doing?"
Though he thought Black Scythe would move immediately, surprisingly, he stood still.
Since his gaze was fixed on the void, it seemed he was reading a message.
John's guess was correct.
It wasn't that he wasn't doing it, but Ryu Min had received a message in front of his eyes.
[You have completed the side quest.]
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