Artifact Devouring Player-Chapter 4: Adaptation - ()

[Chapter 4]

With the end of the meal, the absorption of the Artifact was complete.

As expected, Strength and Stamina each increased by 2, and the special effect was also absorbed.

[You can combine the effect of 'Delay' acquired through absorption with a skill.]

'Combine it with Demon Bash.'

I planned to continue absorbing Artifacts and strategically linking the special effects to my skills. Nothing would go to waste.

That way, sacrificing some stats to devour them would hold real meaning.

[The Delay effect has been added to Demon Bash.]

[If Demon Bash is used before the first Stiffened state ends, it can be definitively extended to a second Stiffened state.]

[There is a 90% chance for a third extension, 60% for a fourth, and 30% for a fifth.]

An unconditional 4-second stun!

It was a change I had anticipated from the start, but experiencing it firsthand made my heart race.

In my previous life, I had only considered these combinations theoretically.

But after returning, and thanks to obtaining the Crimson Stone that I couldn't get before, I was able to create this change.

'A 4-second stun—this is nearly on par with a level 500+ player.'

I could make some rough estimations.

Creating a free-damage window of four whole seconds when hunting monsters was an incredible ability.

Whether I solo-cleared dungeons or played in a team, I was certain this power would be invaluable.

"An Orc Berserker!"

"Everyone, prepare for battle!"

At last, the final boss monster of this dungeon revealed itself.

The Orc Berserker.

It was a tough opponent—not only muscular but also capable of becoming overwhelmingly strong once it started rampaging.

"Sanghyun, you're going to help out too, right?"

"We'll need a stun to handle this guy easily."

My performance during the previous Demon Orc fight must've left a strong impression since everyone was staring at me with subtle anticipation in their eyes.

Of course, I didn't care about their gazes. After all, I wasn't going to see these people again after today.

'The Orc Berserker has much lower resistance to skills than the Demon Orc. Demon Bash should work even better on it.'

I calculated calmly.

Since I had steadily increased my Luck stat, a critical hit might even trigger if things went well.

Critical damage could deal anywhere from a minimum of 100% to a maximum of 500%—an effect that couldn't be ignored.

"Stick close behind me!"

I shouted with force and sprinted at full speed.

Wasn't this my new life as a player, starting fresh and cool after returning?

I wanted to show it. That such low-level monsters would never be an obstacle for me again.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

As I swung my greatsword, warming up my cooling body again, my determination and fighting spirit shone through my eyes.

Screeech!

The Orc Berserker let out a rage-filled roar upon facing a human charging at it without fear.

Boom!

With a deafening crash, the Berserker aimed the two weapons it held—spiked wooden clubs and a heavy iron mace—straight for my head.

Gripping my greatsword tightly, I stood firm without the slightest hesitation and faced it head-on.

And then—

Splatter!

Between the intersecting silhouettes of me and the Orc Berserker, a fountain of blood erupted.

It was impossible to tell whose blood it was, but the sheer volume of the spurt meant someone had suffered severe bleeding.

"No way..."

The team members quickly scanned both me and the Orc Berserker as we passed by each other.

Even with a stun skill, the Orc Berserker was still the boss monster of this dungeon.

'It's a boss fight—no way would it take a fatal hit in just one strike... What the hell?'

Yoon Daekyung, who had been trying to dismiss my efforts, was left speechless, his mouth agape in shock.

Grrrr...

It was none other than the Orc Berserker that let out a weak groan, clutching its left side.

My body was as clean as the autumn sky, without a single blemish.

Yoon Daekyung couldn't help but admire how I showed no fear even against a boss monster.

He was amazed by how I charged alone like a brave general—and then amazed again by the result.

Despair. That was the feeling left behind.

Before long, the entire team's attention had shifted from him to my every movement.

"Now's the time! The stun won't wear off early, so attack freely for four seconds!"

Without realizing it, I had become the team's main commander.

The most surprising part was that even Yoon Daekyung himself didn't feel any discomfort about it.

Honestly, it was a relief.

He had expected a grueling battle, one even tougher than against the Demon Orc, but this fight was far too easy.

Especially when I pulled off what could only be described as a miracle.

A full 4-second stun.

The Orc Berserker's body stiffened as if time had stopped, remaining motionless for the entire four seconds.

During that window, a barrage of colorful skills bombarded its body.

The deep wound I had inflicted on its side during my first strike turned out to be critical.

With everyone focusing their attacks on that spot, the Berserker's health rapidly drained, pushing it into shock.

The boss fight, which was expected to last at least an hour, ended in less than five minutes—a ridiculous short battle.

Guuuuhhh.

With a sorrowful groan, the Orc Berserker collapsed, never to rise again.

"Wow! That was way too easy!"

"This is insane!"

"Stun skills are broken! Seriously, how many seconds did you turn that monster into a punching bag for?"

"We should stick with Sanghyun from now on. Just being on his team would make leveling up a breeze!"

The team's cheers completely overshadowed Yoon Daekyung's presence as the original leader.

It was a simple, yet undeniable response. Players were naturally drawn to greater power.

'As if I'd ever think about helping them.'

I scoffed at the team members, who were now showing me friendly reactions.

They weren't the only ones drinking the kimchi soup early.

"Should we line up to be his personal porters?"

"Following Sanghyun around could mean extra pay for us too!"

Even the porters seemed to be under the delusion that I would join them. A truly perfect misunderstanding.

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[You have received a D-rank title, [With Overwhelming Strength!]]

'It's raining titles now.'

Thanks to his extraordinary performance, which didn't suit his level at all, another title had been activated.

For an ordinary player, title notifications typically remained grayed out and inactive for months.

But for Sanghyun, this was already the third one today.

[With Overwhelming Strength!]

■ Title Rank: D-grade

■ Title Effect: Increases the duration of status effects by 10%.

Now, against targets with low skill resistance, he could maintain a stun for up to 4.4 seconds.

The title earned from defeating the Orc Berserker turned out to be more effective than expected.

Of course, this was a relative concept.

For players who could only induce status effects for 0.1 or 0.2 seconds, this wouldn't feel particularly impressive.

But not for Sanghyun.

It extended the time by a whole 0.4 seconds!

And starting from the third extension, even if it was chance-based, if it chained together, the original 6 seconds could stretch to 6.6 seconds.

This was an overwhelming effect, clearly visible and tangible—enough to make the victim wish for death.

'Only someone like Sword Demon Do Kyungsoo could trigger something like this. No wonder they called him the Title Collector.'

Sanghyun thought of someone.

Do Kyungsoo, the Sword Demon.

Although only two years had passed since the age of players began, he had already reached level 500.

Compared to Sanghyun, who had just reached level 7, Do Kyungsoo was a top-tier player on a whole different level.

From this point onward, until just before Sanghyun's regression, Kyungsoo never once fell out of Korea's top 10 rankings.

Especially when it came to the sword—he was considered a complete master. Sanghyun wasn't even considered a rival.

'Screw it. I'll catch up to him! Now that I'm starting with full throttle from the beginning, there's no reason I can't keep up!'

Sanghyun burned with determination.

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He genuinely believed it was possible—it would be strange not to.

At that moment—

"Shin Sanghyun."

"Yes?"

Yoon Daekyung interrupted Sanghyun, who had been deep in thought.

Given his consistently negative attitude toward him, Sanghyun was curious about what he would say and turned around.

Rustle, rustle.

Daekyung showed him a small ring that had fallen from the Orc Berserker, and said something unexpected.

"Everyone agrees that, since they got an easy ride, you should have this. I also feel like I owe you."

The greedy Yoon Daekyung offering something? He must have been desperate to leave a good impression. Or maybe it was just a burdensome item he didn't want to deal with.

"I won't refuse."

"The stats are average. It's just a bronze-grade Artifact, so it's not like it'll fetch a high price anyway."

"Isn't that a little too honest?"

"As long as you get it, that's all that matters."

Yoon Daekyung chuckled faintly.

And inwardly, he thought—

'There's no way we'll cross paths again. He's living in a completely different world now.'

It was a cold, rational judgment.

Level didn't matter at all. Sanghyun had already proven that numbers were meaningless.

With two years of player experience under his belt, Yoon Daekyung could confidently say—

Soon, many players would seek out Sanghyun, and today's encounter would fade into a distant memory.

* * *

Sometime later.

"..."

After Sanghyun left first.

Once the rest of the team finished distributing the loot and went home, one man remained behind.

At the beginning of the dungeon run, he had looked at Sanghyun with envy, but as time passed, his expression darkened.

"This is bullshit. This is so damn unfair."

His clenched fists trembled.

It had been two years since his player awakening, yet his abilities were pitiful—he could barely cast a few weak spells.

The spells weren't even strong, meaning few teams sought him out, and, in reality, he had just been clinging onto Yoon Daekyung's team.

Then today, Sanghyun, who claimed to have awakened just three days ago, displayed the skills of a seasoned, high-level player.

At first, he was envious. But soon, jealousy boiled over, and in the end, it turned into deep-seated rage.

Seeing someone easily trample over his two years of hard work with sheer luck made his blood boil.

'You deserve to be taught a lesson. Arrogant bastards like you deserve to be stabbed in the back. If you don't know humility, you deserve death.'

Clinging to such ridiculous logic, the man began making a phone call.

It was to a shady acquaintance he had known for a while. Someone he believed he could trust for something like this.

* * *

Back at home.

"Not bad at all. This is why being a player for a single day beats hauling stuff around for a hundred."

Sanghyun genuinely smiled as he looked at the 6 million won deposited into his account.

A porter's daily wage was at most 200,000 won, and even then, half of it usually went toward miscellaneous expenses.

The work was so grueling that he had to take an entire day off afterward just to recover.

And even as a player, earning money at low levels wasn't easy.

During monster hunts, random, uncontrolled attacks often damaged the bodies too much.

Naturally, selling mutilated corpses didn't fetch a good price.

But during this raid, most of the monsters Sanghyun had touched were killed cleanly.

At worst, there were only minor wounds near the heart, or their necks had been cleanly severed.

Thanks to the high quality of the monster corpses, he had managed to sell them for a good price.

Typically, the loot share from a dungeon cleared by seven players at levels 20 to 30 would be around 1 million won each.

But this time, Sanghyun had earned more than five times that amount.

The players who had fought alongside him knew this well and showered him with praise until the very end.

"Let's team up again!"

"I'll miss you!"

"You're a talent on a whole different level from the start!"

The more Sanghyun listened, the more cringe-inducing and embarrassing it became.

"Guess it's time to check this out."

Sanghyun's gaze naturally fell on the ring he had received from Yoon Daekyung.

A bronze-grade Artifact.

It was the lowest tier in the nine-stage Artifact ranking system, but even so, it was still worth at least 10 million won by default!