Woong!
A sharp wind howled through the labyrinth's halls.
Puak!
"Ku…ack!"
A massive axe buried itself into Cheon Min-guk's skull.A two-meter slab of metal—his head didn't even remain intact.
Instant death.
'It finally came out.'
Jin-hyuk turned toward the passage.
"M-monster! That thing is bigger than a mid-tier!"
"Damn it! At a time like this?!"
The others scrambled, drawing the crude, cheap weapons they had bought with the initial 100 coins.
Obviously…
Those weapons couldn't scratch this thing.
Even high-grade relics—true Noble Phantasms—barely penetrated Minotaur hide.
Ba-dump! Ba-dump!
Even Jin-hyuk felt his heartbeat quicken. His nerves sharpened.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound came from the end of the passage, heavy and fast.
"Goooooo!"
A moment later, a 2-meter tall monster emerged.
A mythical beast—A bull's head atop a human body.
The Minotaur.
The one and only monster roaming this labyrinth.
"W-woaaah!"
"What is that thing?!"
"How is this even the 1st floor?!"
Chaos spread instantly.
Woong!
The Minotaur swung its enormous axe.
Kwag!
A single blow gouged a trench into the stone wall, sending dust billowing.
If it grazed any of them, they'd be torn apart like paper.
Then—
Jin-hyuk stepped forward.
Straight toward the Minotaur.
"Gooo!"
Perhaps offended by the tiny creature charging it with bare hands, the Minotaur swung with both arms.
Directly at Jin-hyuk's head.
Jin-hyuk tilted slightly.
Kwaang!
The axe smashed the ground, shattering the floor.
At that moment—
[The attack was evaded.][The stat 'Rift' has increased by 0.05.]
Two messages appeared.
'Nice.'
Jin-hyuk grinned inside.
Dodging a Minotaur's attack on the first floor unlocked the hidden stat Rift.
Only accessible when choosing the labyrinth as your very first hunting ground.
RiftA stat that closed the power gap between the weak and the strong.
Tring!
**[Detail]When fighting an enemy stronger than you:• Every 3 points in Rift reduces the level gap by 1.
When fighting an enemy weaker than you:• Every 2 points in Rift reduces the level gap by 1.**
The only way to grow while staying level 1.
The +0.05 he earned was tiny, but…
'No need to rush.'
This was only the beginning.
Jin-hyuk continued dodging.
Woong!Kwang!
The Minotaur's axe ripped apart walls and floor, debris flying everywhere.
A single mistake meant instant death.
But Jin-hyuk didn't even blink.
No mistakes.
'Because I'm skilled.'
'Because I've survived worse.'
And—
Because he enjoyed this.
Bang! Kwang! Bang!
He dodged each attack with hair-thin margins.
"S-such a monster…"
"Oh my god…"
"W-we were trying to kill someone like that?"
The newbies stared, horrified.
Jin-hyuk's movements were absurd—almost impossible.
Years of grinding, dying, retrying.What looked like instinct was closer to foresight.
'We're screwed.'
Park Hana swallowed.
How did she ever think she could kill him and steal his loot?That was like pouring oil on herself and diving into fire.
"Goooo!"
The enraged Minotaur charged even harder.
Kwang!Kwang!
Its axe narrowly missed Jin-hyuk again and again.
[Fatal attack narrowly evaded!][Rift +1]
The more dangerous the dodge, the higher the reward.
Jin-hyuk wiped a thin line of blood from his neck.
'As expected—I need to go this close for maximum stats.'
He intentionally let the axe skim him.
A scratch in exchange for +1 Rift?Good deal.
Minutes passed as he danced through death.
"Phew… huk…"
His breath turned rough.His stamina dipped.His muscles trembled.
'I need to end the first round soon.'
He still had a whole month planned—A month of farming 100 stat points before escaping.
Jin-hyuk looked over his shoulder.
The others were slowly trying to sneak away.
'Look at that. Supporting actors trying to decide their own fate?'
Impossible.
He decided how they lived.
How they died.
'Besides… they don't even know the exit.'
He widened the distance from the Minotaur and approached them.
"If you want stat points, join me."
"…U-uh?"
Park Hana's eyes widened.
"If you dodge an attack, you get a hidden stat. It's easier than it looks. Try it."
Normally, he would never share such a jackpot.
But this time… exceptions existed.
Because he felt like it.
"…"
Park Hana's face twisted.
Her expression said: "Which part of that looks easy?"
"Ah, don't be shy. Try it once. If you don't like it, I won't force you."
Jin-hyuk smiled cheerfully.
Then shoved Do Kwang-woo forward.
"Uh… uhh?!"
Just a few steps.
But for him, it was like walking into the afterlife.
"Ahhhhh!"
Slash!
Do Kwang-woo was bisected instantly.
The Minotaur didn't even pause.
"Ouch!"
Jin-hyuk covered his mouth.
"No, why did he stand still? He should've dodged quickly."
A lovely sight indeed.
Why stand there frozen?
Do something.
Well—
There was no next time.
Kukukuku!
The labyrinth shifted again.
Walls moved. Floor rose. Passages collapsed.
Everyone scrambled to avoid being crushed.
They managed to escape the Minotaur—for now.
"Haa… haa…"
"T-thank god…"
"I thought I'd die…"
No one mourned the dead.They were just relieved to still breathe.
"Is it gone? It won't chase us anymore, right?"
Park Hana trembled, staring at the walls.
It looked like the Minotaur could burst through at any moment.
"It will keep chasing us."
Jin-hyuk flipped a dagger in his hand.
Do Kwang-woo's old weapon.Now, a keepsake.
"W-why?! The path changed!"
"Because of this."
Jin-hyuk opened his hand—dyed blue with luminous moth dust.
As long as they carried this scent, the Minotaur would hunt them relentlessly.
"No way… why would you do that?! Why?!"
Why?
"Because I need to raise my stats. When the labyrinth shifts, I recover stamina. Every other moment? I play with the bull."
"How long…?"
"Until we escape."
"So. How long!?"
"Hmm. About a month?"
A month if he moved fast.Two months if he took his time.
If she annoyed him, he might take the slow route.
"…"
Park Hana collapsed.
A month?She wasn't sure she'd survive a single day.
"We… we'll go separately. If we don't follow you, the Minotaur won't come after us!"
This time, Lee Haemin spoke cautiously.
"Sure."
Jin-hyuk nodded.
'Indeed. I'm the main target with all this dust.'
But—
"Which way will you go?"
The exit?
They had no clue.
Would they wander aimlessly? Pray for a miracle?
That was suicide.
"You're saying you know the exit?"
"As I said, I know this labyrinth better than anyone."
"You know… then we'll… sigh… come with you. There's no choice."
"Well, it doesn't matter if you do or not."
Jin-hyuk muttered.
Lee Haemin panicked.
"But…?"
Why did players always forget?
"But it won't be free."
"Uh?"
"There's no free ride in this world. Hand over your coins, and maybe I'll take responsibility."
Simple.
Pay or die.
[Coins: 500]
The coins from the start plus the four survivors totaled 500.
Not enough for weapons or armor.
But enough for what he needed.
"Don't just stand there. Do your tasks. Pull out the moss for bedding. Gather firewood. There's a lot to prepare."
"We know…"
"Can't we leave…?"
Sigh…
They thought they hit the jackpot.
Instead, they lost everything.
Little did they know—
This was only the beginning of their suffering.
When they finally dispersed, Jin-hyuk opened the exchange.
[Welcome to the Coin Exchange]
A massive menu unfolded.
Treasures, relics, trash—everything imaginable.
He scanned lazily.
SS-grade relics:• Ancient Degosian's Tooth (SS) – 395,250,700 coins• Suzaku's Feather (S) – 188,187,000 coins• Sword of King Dangun (S) – 159,155,300 coins
And total garbage for 1 coin.
'Even a hundred days browsing wouldn't matter.'
He scrolled instead to what he actually needed.
Lower.Lower…
There.
'This… this… and this.'
He bought them instantly.
• Enchanted Tarot Cards (F) – 70 coins• Worn Bronze Key (F) – 80 coins• Wooden Wagon Wheel Fragment (E) – 300 coins• Lottery Enhancement Scroll (F) x10 – 1 coin each
Four items.
All trash.
But Jin-hyuk smiled.
Trash didn't matter.
How they were used mattered.
"I'll combine all three."
[Incorrect combination will destroy all items.]
"Yes. Go ahead."
He confirmed.
[Combining 3 items…][Synthesis successful!]
Brilliant light blossomed.
Ba-dump. Ba-dump.
His heart sped up.
'I did it.'
The item floating before him proved it—
Every hour he spent grinding the Tower wasn't for nothing.