Chapter 19: The Unending Misfortune
〚Congratulations! You have successfully completed the 100th wave.〛
〚You have cleared the 5th floor!〛
〚You have obtained 5 Unknown Fragments as a basic clear reward.〛
〚Acquire the unique ability: Ruler of Sand [Mythical] and exit OR accumulate rewards and enter the 6th floor〛
〚Please make your choice.〛
“Finally, it’s over.”
Breathing heavily and ignoring the numerous minor wounds all over my body, I threw my sword aside and collapsed onto the sandy ground. Luckily, the 100th wave was surprisingly more manageable than the previous ones.
That was because only one boss appeared. Of course, even with all sorts of buffs stacked, it was stronger than me, but Seo Mina and I were able to tackle it together.
“Let’s rest here for a while.”
It had already been over five days since we entered the Hidden Stage. So far, we had only taken short naps to restore our energy, but this time, we planned to rest properly for about half a day.
I pulled out a tent I had prepared from my inventory. Thus, we took turns resting for eight hours each before heading to the 6th floor.
***
〚Hidden Stage: Pyramid Where the Sun Sleeps, 6th Floor – The Floor of Riddles〛
〚Answer at least 8 out of 10 riddles posed by the Fallen Riddle Monster – Sphinx!〛
The trial of the 6th floor was both simple and strange.
Rumble!
〚Rare-Rank [F+] LV 30, Stage-5 Boss: Fallen Riddle Sphinx〛
As the floor of the large chamber opened, the head of a massive crowned human appeared first, followed by the body of a lion with a faded golden mane.
It was the Sphinx from mythology—a creature that posed questions and mercilessly killed those who couldn’t answer them. It was also known as a proxy of the sun and the pharaoh.
—Ah… It has been such a long solitude! Countless years have passed since I fell from grace after the sun lost its light and descended! After enduring this time, I can finally speak and pose my riddles again!
It roared loudly, looking down at us with a playful glint in its eyes.
—Foolish and ignorant humans, are you ready to solve my riddles?! Though I’ve nearly lost my mind in my long solitude, the authority bestowed upon me by the sun still shines! The moment I looked into your eyes, every riddle of your world was imprinted into my mind! Heh heh heh! So many amusing riddles. But I am a merciful Sphinx! I will ask you humans only 10 questions.
“If we fail to answer, what happens?”
—Heh heh heh! Good question! If you fail more than 3 out of the 10 questions!!! I will… use the power granted to me by the sun on one of you. You will face a punishment from the sun that you could never escape with your abilities! But since I’m in a good mood, I’ll limit it to just one person. Normally, I would have devoured all of you, but since I am finally free from my seal, I’ll be lenient! So, if you don’t want to solve the riddles…
The Sphinx’s massive head leaned closer to us, flashing a mischievous smile as it spoke.
—You could intentionally fail and offer one as a sacrifice, allowing the rest to reach the top of this pyramid. Heh heh, I’ve seen enough of the selfishness of you humans that it even bores me.
Such a disgustingly generous offer. I took a step back from the Sphinx’s head.
—Now, shall I pose the first question?
As the Sphinx adopted a serious expression and prepared its question, a message appeared.
〚The Curse of Misfortune, preparing the deadliest strike, desires your demise!〛
Only then did the Curse of Misfortune, which had been quiet since the 2nd floor, speak, and an entirely unexpected question came from the Sphinx’s mouth.
—What word describes the state of a hundred fruits on the brink of death?
“……”
“……”
To our surprise, this Sphinx bastard asked a nonsensical Earth riddle.
—Ha ha ha! Difficult, isn’t it?! You don’t know, do you?! It’s frustrating, isn’t it?! You think you’ll get it wrong, don’t you?! Ha ha ha! You have 10 seconds left!
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
—Ding! Ding! Ding! The answer is encyclopedia! You ignorant, foolish humans! Ha ha ha!
You madman. Should I just cut this bastard’s head off and move on to the next floor?
Annoyed that I had seriously tried to solve such a ridiculous riddle, I clicked my tongue in frustration.
In any case, we had already failed one question right from the start. Only one chance remained.
—Moving on to the next question!
Drum roll sound effects filled the air as the crazed Sphinx mimicked them with its own voice before presenting the next riddle.
—What’s a single word to describe a storeroom filled to the brim with candles? You have 10 seconds!
Time began ticking down, and just as I clutched my head and started thinking…
“Overflowing.”
—Ding ding ding! Correct!
To my surprise, Seo Mina answered correctly. She seemed pleased that she had gotten it right, nodding her head in satisfaction, as if she were eagerly awaiting the next question.
‘She’s quite the oddball.’
But that’s what makes her reliable. With her unconventional thinking, she might just nail these absurd questions.
—”This time, an easier question! Which sheep is the hottest among them all? Time remaining: 10 seconds!”
“The sun!”
—”Correct!”
Thus began the battle of riddles between the Sphinx and Seo Mina.
—”Why is the zombie, a creature often called a dumb low-level monster, considered dumb?”
“Because its head is empty!”
—”Correct!!”
—”What happens if you place a shoe between the display racks in a hat store?”
“Capsaicin?”
—”Uh… correct!”
The questions continued, and Seo Mina answered every riddle correctly after the first one.
Now came the 9th riddle!
The Sphinx looked down at us with a strangely displeased expression.
—”Impressive. But it’s a pity. This next question will be extremely difficult! And this is where you end!”
“What are you talking about? Even if we get this riddle wrong, we can just answer the next one correctly! Get on with it already!”
—”Heh heh! Are you sure? Then, here’s the question! What did the person who spent their entire life in real estate speculation say right before they died? Time remaining: 10 seconds!”
10
9
8
7
6
5
“Damn it! …What is it?”
4
3
“It’s okay even if we miss one more. We still have one last chance.”
2
1
—”Ding! The answer was ‘Grim Reaper’! What a shame. It’s been a long time since I’ve met humans who could answer so many questions… but this is as far as you go!”
“What are you talking about! We’ve only missed 2 out of 9 questions!”
—”Heh heh heh! Yes, you certainly did. But I never said I would only ask you questions! I said I’d ask ‘humans’!”
“What… kind of nonsense is that?”
〚The Curse of Misfortune strikes a heavy blow to the back of your head, declaring this to be the end and pouring all its remaining power into this moment!〛
—”Before you came up here, another human arrived. That person received my first question and got it wrong. Thus, you humans have missed 3 questions and must face my judgment!”
A black sun rose above the Sphinx’s crown.
—”Ha ha ha! The time of judgment is here! Oh sun, rise above the one to be judged!”
I instinctively knew. I knew that the sun would rise above my head! I realized why Misfortune had chosen to use all its power at this moment!
And as expected, the black sun that had risen above the Sphinx now floated above my head.
〚A Fragment of the Twilight Black Sun has risen above your head.〛
〚In exactly 10 minutes, you will inevitably die.〛
“Damn it!”
A deadly ability with an instant death judgment had targeted me, leaving me with precisely 10 minutes to live.
But what was even more shocking was that someone had already answered the first question incorrectly. It was an impossible story unless Lee Ji-hyung came back to life as a zombie.
“What the hell is this! Who else could possibly be here besides us…?!”
And then, a figure stepped forward, half-revealed from their stealth. A face that would never fade from my memory smirked with a sneer.
“After borrowing money and running away, this is how it ends, huh, Shin Juha. Consider your debt repaid with everything you gained in this Hidden Stage. Farewell.”
“Damn it, Kang Cheol-woo. What are you doing here?”
He was the right-hand man of the company president who treated me like a slave before my regression, the vice president who tormented me even more cruelly than the president himself. And here he was.
It was the reappearance of a persistent grudge, one I had desperately wanted to end.
“I never thought you would really run away. Your sick brother was your weakness and the trap that kept you stuck in that mire, wasn’t he? But how did you manage to afford to get your brother hospitalized in the Miracle Guild’s VIP ward in Seoul? Thanks to that, I couldn’t use your weakness against you.”
This bastard! I wanted to rush at him and tear that smug mouth of his apart right then and there. But it was impossible, thanks to the Sphinx, who watched us with an amused gaze, standing guard behind him.
“So I dug into your past. And guess what? The scouting team leader from the Seongwoon Guild approached me!! They said if I just killed you, they would accept me into their guild and pay me! How could I say no to that! Plus, you went and found this Hidden Stage, handing over its treasures to me! How should I thank you for this?”
The sneering man fully removed the cloak he wore, deactivating his stealth skill, and gave me his final farewell.
“Thanks to you, I’m rising up. You’re dying here, in disgrace.”
Crack!
I never expected there to be another person besides Lee Ji-hyung tracking me. It seems they didn’t trust Lee Ji-hyung, who was just a promising prospect, and assigned this guy too.
And to think that guy is from Tutorial Zone 7. How could things align like this?
‘The Seongwoon Guild, and that damn company!’
Fueled by burning rage, I ignored the relentless mockery-filled messages of misfortune that flew at me without respite and checked the time I had left.
“So, you think I’m going to die here?”
“That’s right. You can’t undo the Sphinx’s power! It’s a Rare F+ ranked boss, no less! And it was originally even stronger than it is now! It might be Rare ranked now, but it used to be a Legendary-tier monster! Oh, don’t you have any skills related to emotion?”
I clenched my fists tightly, took a deep breath, and glared at Seo Mina, who was trembling with guilt over the fact that her mistake had put us in this situation, and spoke softly.
“That guy is an F+ rank hunter. Think you can handle him?”
“…Yeah. Definitely!”
“You don’t need to kill him. Just hold him off; I’ll take care of that damn Sphinx and then take him down.”
“What!”
Ignoring Seo Mina’s surprise, I slowly walked toward him.
— “Heh heh heh! Do you plan to kill me, human? I am the apostle of the sun and the guardian of this pyramid! Your attempt is futile; accept your death gracefully instead of trying to break an egg against a rock. With that meager strength, you will never defeat me.”
“You idiot, still acting foolish to the very end! This boss isn’t meant to be defeated in the first place! That’s why you’re just a rookie!”
I gave a wry smile back at the two scumbags who were sneering at me.
“Are you sure about that?”
At the same time, I activated a hidden ability.
“Equivalent Exchange.”
〚Unique Ability: Equivalent Exchange LV1 balances the scales of equivalence!〛
〚Due to the low level, permanent exchange is not possible.〛
A translucent scale appeared behind me. The Sphinx was the first to sense that something was off upon seeing the scale.
— “What are you trying to do?”
Did it sense the almighty power embedded within my ability? But it was too late.
“Give me the power to defeat them and overcome death!”
〚The caster’s demand is placed on the left side of the scale!〛
〚Due to the low level of the ability, values cannot increase beyond their current tier.〛
〚Left: Temporarily increase Mugeuk Stat +65〛
〚To balance, the equivalent price will be determined on the right.〛
〚Right: 650,000 Purple Coins〛
“Exchange.”
A staggering 6.5 billion worth of coins vanished in an instant, and my Mugeuk Stat reached F- (100/100), filling my body with a power that made me feel like I could defeat anyone.
“Do you still think I’ll lose to you?”
“What… what kind of power is this?”
— “You fool, keep your promise and attack now! Even I cannot guarantee victory against that!”
“You’re too late.”
Crack!
Seo Mina’s lightning struck Kang Cheol-woo, who was about to charge at me, and I lunged toward the Sphinx.
—
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