RMS 04

Chapter 4

Clank-!

The Dark Knight reacted the moment it spotted Han Si-woo.

The Dark Knight pulled its sword from the ground. Its armor rattled, and it quickly took an attacking stance, its blue-green eyes fixed on Han Si-woo.

Meeting its gaze, Han Si-woo also pulled a sword from his inventory.

‘A Level 100 Dark Knight. A monster with higher defense than attack power.’

Dark Knights were monsters with an extremely defensive nature.

Of course, that didn’t mean they never attacked.

Especially with their current difference in stats, if he took even one of its casual swings head-on, he would obviously be on the verge of death in an instant.

And there was also a high chance that Han Si-woo’s attacks would be blocked by its defenses.

“Ptui. Fine. Let’s give this a try.”

Han Si-woo spat into his palm and muttered in a cold voice.

Then he gripped the sword’s hilt tightly and thought to himself.

‘If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve bought a sword.’

Why was he suddenly thinking about the standard longsword he had seen at the Center?

It was slightly better than the basic item with an attack power of 1–2, so it might have helped him pierce the Dark Knight’s armor, even if only a little.

Thump-!

Han Si-woo immediately kicked off the ground and charged toward the Dark Knight.

As if it had been waiting for that moment, the Dark Knight swung its sword horizontally at his upper body.

But as if he had predicted the attack, Han Si-woo immediately dropped close to the ground.

Whoosh-!

He nimbly dodged the attack, gritted his teeth, and kicked off the ground with all his strength.

Charging at the Dark Knight like he was going for a tackle, Han Si-woo wrapped his right arm around its waist.

Kuwaaang-!

The Dark Knight lost its balance from the powerful tackle, and its body tilted backward.

Not missing the momentum, Han Si-woo kicked off the ground again.

The Dark Knight toppled over with a loud crash, and Han Si-woo released his grip on its waist and rolled across the floor.

‘Got it!’

Han Si-woo rolled across the ground to put some distance between them, then gritted his teeth.

He had strained his muscles from desperately trying to knock it down despite the enormous difference in stats.

But he couldn’t afford to miss this chance.

The Dark Knight was struggling to get back up because of the weight of its heavy armor.

Tap-tap-!

Han Si-woo kicked off the ground lightly, sending his body flying into the air.

The place he was aiming for was the back of the Dark Knight’s neck.

It was a gap in the armor that had been fully exposed as it struggled.

Its defense was high, but that was largely thanks to its armor. If he attacked the gaps in the armor, his chances of taking it down would increase dramatically.

In an instant, Han Si-woo adjusted his grip on the sword with both hands and shot toward the Dark Knight.

Crack-!

“Kaah!”

The moment the sword pierced into the back of its neck, a sharp scream burst from the Dark Knight.

Han Si-woo’s eyes flashed when he heard that dry, harsh voice.

‘Attack-Defense Shift!’

That was one of the Dark Knight’s characteristics.

When it took a certain amount of damage, its attack and defense would switch.

Its nature would also completely change, turning it into a berserker that focused entirely on offense.

The risk had increased, but Han Si-woo focused on one fact.

‘I’ve dealt enough damage to trigger it.’

‘If I attack the gaps in its armor, I can bring it down. Without that armor, it’s nothing special.’

Bang-!

Han Si-woo kicked the Dark Knight in the back.

At the same time, the sword embedded in its neck was pulled free. Using the recoil to put distance between himself and the Dark Knight, Han Si-woo’s eyes suddenly widened.

Whoosh-!

The Dark Knight, still crouched on the ground, launched a frantic attack.

Its sword was being swung wildly, flying straight toward Han Si-woo.

He hurriedly raised his sword and clenched his molars.

Kreeeeng-!

“Ugh!?”

With a sound like tearing metal, Han Si-woo’s body was thrown backward.

A moment later, Han Si-woo slammed into the ground and quickly regained his stance.

If he had been even slightly slower in creating that distance, that attack would have ended things.

Since he had been hit while throwing himself backward to create distance, the damage wasn’t too severe.

‘But the sword is a problem. I don’t think it’ll survive another hit.’

A small crack had spread across the sword in his hand.

It was clearly starting to break just from being carried and moved around.

Han Si-woo clicked his tongue quietly and looked toward the Dark Knight.

Its blue-green eyes had turned red, and it was charging toward him while letting out an unpleasant shriek.

Han Si-woo grimaced.

‘Damn, even a graze is a critical injury.’

Before his regression, the Dark Knight would not even have qualified as a minor monster in Han Si-woo’s eyes.

But after returning to Level 1, he could now feel the overwhelming presence of a Dark Knight that ruled as the boss of a small dungeon.

Bang-!

The moment Han Si-woo kicked off the ground and threw himself forward—

The Dark Knight’s sword, driven straight into the ground, tore through the floor with a thunderous boom.

Han Si-woo was struck by the flying fragments and gritted his teeth.

‘Damn it…!’

Even being caught in the aftermath of its attack was enough to make him feel that his life was in danger.

That was how enormous the difference in stats between him and the Dark Knight was.

Roll-roll-

Han Si-woo rolled hard across the ground before getting back to his feet.

By then, he had already pulled out a potion and was gulping it down.

He emptied the bottle in an instant and casually threw it away.

‘Damn, I wanted to save these…’

He hadn’t wanted to use one here, but this wasn’t the time to be picky.

Besides, wasn’t it wiser to use one before he was pushed into an even tighter corner?

Crackle-!

The skill he had acquired after entering the Transcendence Hall.

Domain Declaration.

Fwoooosh-!

The moment Han Si-woo activated Domain Declaration, a pure-white circle spread out around him.

The circle expanded in an instant and engulfed the Dark Knight.

[The Dark Knight has entered the declared domain.]

[The stats of enemies within the domain are greatly reduced.]

[Domain Declaration has 59 seconds remaining.]

Message windows appeared one after another before Han Si-woo’s eyes.

The Dark Knight’s movements gradually slowed after being caught in Domain Declaration, and a red oval-shaped mark appeared above its head.

“Grr… Khaaak!”

The Dark Knight’s movements became sluggish.

Since both its Strength and Vitality had been reduced by 30 percent, the armor it wore must have felt that much heavier.

Clank-

Han Si-woo glanced at the sword in his hand.

The crack that had already appeared in the sword had grown slightly larger.

It was clearly breaking little by little just from being held and moved.

‘If I fail even one attack, I’ll have to fight that thing bare-handed. That’ll be a little difficult.’

With a hardened expression, Han Si-woo threw himself toward the Dark Knight.

The Dark Knight’s movements and reaction speed had dropped considerably after being caught in Domain Declaration.

Even so, Han Si-woo was still far behind it in terms of stats.

‘Even taking one attack will be too much for me. I have to finish this in one hit.’

Clenching his molars, Han Si-woo charged straight toward the Dark Knight.

Seeing this, the Dark Knight let out a roar and swung its sword.

Whoosh-!

A diagonal sword strike came at him.

Han Si-woo twisted his body to the side and avoided it by a hair’s breadth, then gritted his teeth.

Immediately afterward, his hand shot toward the Dark Knight’s face like lightning.

And what he was holding was…

Crack-!

A cheap potion worth 50,000 won.

Han Si-woo slammed it straight into the Dark Knight’s face and gritted his teeth.

He was literally throwing away 50,000 won, so he couldn’t help feeling bitter about it.

“Cough! Kieeek!”

The Dark Knight was caught off guard by the potion splashing across its face.

The sticky liquid rushed through the gaps in its helmet and drenched its face.

By then, Han Si-woo was already standing behind the Dark Knight.

‘There’s no way I can take it down in a direct fight.’

There were two ways to defeat the Dark Knight.

Take it down head-on, or, if that wasn’t possible, level up to an absurd degree and beat it into the ground.

The problem was that neither method was possible for Han Si-woo right now.

‘If I want to win, I have to use every trick I have.’

A Level 10 Awakened defeating a Level 100 Dark Knight was almost impossible.

But it was only ‘almost’ impossible.

That didn’t mean the possibility was zero.

What dramatically increased that possibility was Han Si-woo’s experience.

A tackle that took the weight of its heavy armor into account.

A precise attack driven into a gap in its armor.

And now, blocking the vision of a charging Dark Knight with a potion…?

‘That’s what I’ve learned all these years.’

Han Si-woo smiled cunningly as his body moved like flowing water.

The moment his foot touched the ground, the sword held in a reverse grip shot straight forward.

Naturally, the tip of the sword was aimed at the back of the Dark Knight’s neck.

It was already a seriously injured area.

Crack-!

“Khk!”

The Dark Knight screamed as an eerie sound rang out.

Han Si-woo pushed even more strength into the hand gripping the sword.

Crack-!

Soon, he felt the tip of the sword strike metal.

He could feel the sword piercing through the Dark Knight’s neck and stabbing into the inside of its metal breastplate.

“…Hoo!”

Han Si-woo finally released the breath he had been holding and let go of the sword.

The Dark Knight’s body slowly collapsed.

Pip-pip-ping!

[Congratulations. You have cleared the first layer of the Transcendence Hall.]

[You have acquired 30 Clear Points.]

[Clear Time: 1 minute 17 seconds.]

“…I won.”

Han Si-woo dropped heavily to the ground and let out a deep breath.

With the tension finally gone, he stared blankly up at the sky with a slack expression, then grinned.

Just like the pure-white Transcendence Hall, the sky was completely white.

“Man, this place really works you to the bone.”

Han Si-woo dusted off his pants and stood up.

At the same time, a message window appeared before his eyes.

[Reward List]

[Equipment – Fragment of the Black Lord’s Sword x1]

[Equipment – Fragment of the Dead King’s Armor x1]

[Stat Unlock – Once Only]

[Choose 1]

“…?”

Han Si-woo frowned.

If it was a sword, then it was a sword. Why was he getting a fragment?

“Appraisal.”

[Fragment of the Black Lord’s Sword]

[A Dark Knight wandering without a master.]

[The peerless sword once wielded by their lord.]

[Exchange 10 fragments for the ‘Black Lord’s Sword’]

[Fragment of the Dead King’s Armor]

[After the king who once contended for supremacy over the continent died,]

[numerous knights, unable to overcome their grief, took their own lives.]

[Their resentment turned the armor into puppets.]

[The puppets were eventually defeated, but the armor remained intact.]

[Exchange 25 fragments for the ‘Dead King’s Armor’]

[Stat Unlock – Additional sealed stats will be unlocked.]

“Hmm…”

Han Si-woo stroked his chin and sighed.

Did this mean he had to grind over and over again to get the equipment?

‘So I have to kill the Dark Knight ten times just to get the sword.’

For now, that was an incredibly difficult task.

Thinking that he should try again after growing a little stronger, Han Si-woo chose Stat Unlock.

Crackle-crackle-!

Red sparks burst out and covered Han Si-woo’s body.

A burning sensation and a refreshing feeling wrapped around his body at the same time.

The two sensations, which should not have been able to coexist, existed together before disappearing in an instant.

[Han Si-woo (Transcendent) – Lv 10]

[Class – None]

[Title – None]

[Strength – 17 (+18)]

[Vitality – 14 (+12)]

[Mana – 1 (+12)]

Part of the stats he had possessed before his regression had returned.

It wasn’t a bad reward.

Considering the Transcendent stat bonus, it was no different from receiving an additional 21 levels’ worth of stats.

‘I’ll be able to get the equipment soon enough.’

Once he raised his level a little more, roasting the Dark Knight would be easy.

Then, the next thing was…

[Clear Point Shop]

[Points Held – 43 Pt]

[List]

[Advanced Potion – 200 Pt]

[Premium Potion – 500 Pt]

[God’s Potion – 2,000 Pt]

The God’s Potion cost 2,000 points and could even regenerate severed limbs.

Potions that were almost impossible to obtain on the open market could be purchased here by grinding for points.

‘I’ll be able to get more points as I climb the layers.’

[Gold Fragment – 100 Pt]

[Small Gold Calf – 500 Pt]

[Golden Buddha Statue – 1,000 Pt]

Wouldn’t this turn him into the culprit behind driving down the price of gold?

Still, among precious metals, gold was the easiest to turn into cash.

It would have been a headache if something like diamonds had appeared.

[The reward list will increase as you clear more layers.]

After checking the message, Han Si-woo moved on without hesitation.

‘Then I should level up a little more and clear the first layer again. The Black Lord’s Sword… It’s got a pretty cool name, so it probably has decent performance too.’

As he muttered to himself, Han Si-woo narrowed his eyes.

A message window had appeared before him without him noticing.

[Would you like to create the Transcendent Legion?]

“…What the hell is this?”