All Stat Slayer
Chapter 41: (1): Season 1: Preparation

The dungeons in Easy Mode were always apprentice dungeons or training dungeons. When entering Normal Mode, they were called Normal Dungeons. And those dungeons were discovered using Exploration Skills.

‘The value of Slayers with Exploration Skills will increase even more in the future.’

As he entered Normal Mode, the classes became more specialized. New skills were also emerging. So far, they didn’t deviate much from the three main categories: Battle, Recovery, and Support. But he thought that as they reached higher modes, they could become even more specialized.

[Entering the Normal Dungeon.]

[Penalties will be applied due to stats exceeding the specifications of Normal Mode.]

[The difficulty within the dungeon will increase.]

[Monsters will become more aggressive.]

[Recovery and safety zones will be revoked.]

An alert sound notifying the penalties echoed. Hyun-seok found no sound more pleasant than that. The difficulty increase seemed more like a feast for him. In reality, the difficulty only rose to a level that could be considered merely a challenge. Actually, for Hyun-seok, it couldn’t be called a penalty. It could be seen as a penalty for other Slayers who accompanied Hyun-seok. In any case, recovery and safety zones held little meaning for Hyun-seok, and even if the monsters in Normal Mode became more aggressive, they posed no real threat to him.

‘Well… Easy Mode and Normal Mode are somewhat similar…’ sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ɴ0velFɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

The dungeon he entered last time seemed to be an Easy Mode dungeon. While many Slayers were transitioning to Normal Mode, it didn’t mean there were no Easy Mode Slayers left. The number of Slayers continued to increase, both in general and within Easy Mode—actually, quite a lot.

‘Perhaps both dungeons corresponding to Normal Mode and Easy Mode coexist.’

How long this phenomenon would continue was unknown. Someday, dungeons corresponding to Easy Mode might disappear.

A winding cave shape. Torchlights illuminating the walls, emitting light without much heat, making it a bit difficult to define them as torches. And an eerie feeling. It was similar to the dungeons in Easy Mode.

‘Should I give it a try?’

As he walked slowly,

Swoosh!

A sharp, piercing sound resounded in his ears. Hyun-seok quickly bent his body. Not only that, but he even contorted his body into an absurd shape that didn’t befit a Platinum Slayer. There was a pool of muddy water on the ground, and he threw himself on top of it.

Hyun-seok stood up, shaking off his body. When engaged in a battle, physical effects other than HP reduction were ignored. He wasn’t even wet from the muddy water. It was obvious, but his HP reduction was zero.

‘What’s this? I got startled.’

Hyun-seok’s path was interrupted by three long spears piercing horizontally through the passage. The three spears were slowly retracting into the wall, just as they were supposed to. Hyun-seok let out a sigh of relief, realizing that he almost became a kebab.

Of course, there was no chance of actually becoming one, and it could be considered a different problem to be surprised by HP reduction. Even if a slightly larger moth charged at his face, people would be startled. It’s not like the moth had terrifying attacking power. But when three spears flew through the passage, piercing through, it was scary, regardless of HP reduction.

“A trap… They added traps.”

It wasn’t difficult to deduce. Unlike in Easy Mode, there were now traps. That meant traps were added. Hyun-seok didn’t know how much damage these traps could cause, but…

‘Well… it’s still scary.’

Even though he knew it was harmless, there was a difference between knowing it intellectually and experiencing it firsthand. Many people are scared of scary rides at amusement parks, even though they know they are harmless. This was a test with deadly weapons, and it was impossible not to be nervous.

‘But others might come in and get hurt for no reason… It’s better to understand the exact power.’

Unless it was Hyun-seok, who had stats exceeding the specifications of Normal Mode, it would be better not to attempt it. It could lead to unnecessary deaths. For now, Hyun-seok decided to lightly touch it with his fingertips.

The trap, consisting of three spears, seemed to appear at regular intervals. When he lightly touched it with his fingertips, the damage was -0. So he dared to swing his arm more boldly, and the damage was still -0. Encouraged by that, he boldly pressed his torso against it, and the damage was still -0. And then, he daringly stabbed near his heart, and a critical hit appeared.

[Received a hit to a vital spot.]

[Received critical damage. Damage: -0.]

A critical hit, but the damage was still 0.

‘That’s why I can’t gauge the power accurately. I should ask Jong-won to test it.’

If Jong-won heard about it, he would be surprised and dismiss it nonchalantly, while Hyun-seok walked forward, unfazed.

‘Looks like it’s in room format again.’

He spotted the first room. It was convenient to call it a room, but it felt more like a vast open space. In the dungeons in Easy Mode, the monsters were scattered individually, making it possible to carefully hunt them down one by one. It was a very annoying and cumbersome task for Hyun-seok.

‘The first room should have trolls… Huh!’

Hyun-seok had to rub his eyes.

He thought there would be trolls, but…

“Cy… Cyclops?”

That was definitely a Cyclops. However, it felt slightly different from the one he had seen before. It was slightly smaller in size and appearance, and inexplicably, it lacked the same intimidation.

Even if it was a Cyclops, it was an individual that Hyun-seok could easily handle alone.

‘This dungeon definitely penalized me. It’s not a dungeon that exceeds the specifications of Normal Mode. That means this individual is different from the Cyclops I saw before.’

He made his assessment. Still, he had memories of almost being in danger with the Cyclops he encountered before, so this time, Hyun-seok approached the Cyclops with a much more serious attitude, different from when he faced the Orc. The Cyclops spotted Hyun-seok and rushed towards him, stooping and bounding with its two legs.

‘It’s definitely slower!’

Hyun-seok raised his fist. He exerted all his strength, extending his fist toward the approaching Cyclops, almost losing his balance. The Cyclops turned into a lifeless body and disappeared. Since Hyun-seok’s punch power was still intact, he managed to maintain his balance. It was a much more unsatisfying death compared to its first appearance.

‘As expected. It’s a much weaker individual. Or maybe the Cyclops I saw back then was abnormal.’

The Cyclops, still referred to as a bug monster, but if it was at this level,

‘Even without me, if the team is well organized, slaying it would be possible.’

Perhaps slaying is possible. The reason the clue ‘perhaps’ is used is because with Hyun-seok’s current abilities, it is difficult to grasp the exact abilities of this Cyclops. It was hard to check things like HP, attack power, and defense power since they died in one hit.

Hyun-seok proceeded to the sixth room in the same manner. Normally, clearing the dungeon requires breaking six to seven rooms. He had conducted various experiments up to this point. He deliberately took hits until the Cyclops became exhausted. He even tried provoking critical shots by moving his body around, but it didn’t make any difference in damage.

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