Chapter 34

Chapter 34

‘Where the h.e.l.l did these b.a.s.t.a.r.ds crawl out from!’

Sungyoon ground his teeth . He had been targeting the Slash Cat in the beginning . It had its hackles up as it hissed at Sungyoon . It was a monster, yet it couldn’t let go of its feline instincts . Sungyoon had crept up on the monster as it lazed on the ground . However, the monster sensed Sungyoon’s presence when he got close, and its tail went straight up into the air as it growled .

However, Sungyoon wasn’t discouraged . He had merely failed at taking the monster unawares . He was experienced at fighting this monster, so he would have a somewhat easy time killing it . The only concern was his s.h.i.+eld . The outer surface was ragged from taking all the blows from the Slash Cats, so he had to be mindful of the s.h.i.+eld’s durability .

However, Sungyoon had been mistaken .

Sungyoon first realized something was wrong when he easily blocked the Slash Cat’s first attack .

Shweek!

A terrifying sound rang out . It was a familiar sound . Of course, he knew this sound as he was sick and tired of hearing it . It was the sound of a needle from a Needle Hedgehog in flight . He felt a chill all over his body, and an alarm bell rang inside his head .

‘Where is it?’

His mind desperately churned to come up with an answer, but he was in the midst of fighting the Slash Cat . He couldn’t locate the Needle Hedgehog . There was only one thing that was certain .

‘It isn’t in front of me!’

He didn’t have any time to think . Sungyoon lunged forward as he lowered himself .

Shook!

A destructive sound went past above his head . The sound had approached from his left and it had traveled past towards his right . If he had to make a guess, the needle had been shot from his side . However, he didn’t even have the chance to direct his anger towards the Needle Hedgehog, who had ambushed him . He had to immediately block the Slash Cat’s next attack . He had lost his balance, so he was lying flat on the floor . The Slash Cat must have thought Sungyoon would be an easy prey now .

“s.h.i.+t!”

He yelled out in anger as he raised his s.h.i.+eld . When he felt a weight land on his s.h.i.+eld, he used the Slash Cat’s momentum to throw it in the opposite direction .

-Kyahk!

It let out a screech of anger when it realized that it had failed its attack . Sungyoon didn’t care if it was angry . He quickly stood up .

Gulp!

In his very short career in the labyrinth, this was the most dangerous situation he had found himself in, and he had to somehow overcome it . He unconsciously swallowed his saliva . As he tried to predict the Slash Cat’s movement, he kept looking out of the corner of his eyes . He saw the Needle Hedgehog shuffling around .

‘s.h.i.+t . They are working together . ’

It was good that he had located the Needle Hedgehog’s location, but his situation didn’t improve with this information . This was the first time he fought enemies that were working together . Moreover, one monster was capable of long range attacks, and the other one was adept at close ranged attacks . It was a good composition, and they were putting a lot of pressure on Sungyoon .

However, that wasn’t the end of it .

—Grrrrrrrr!

He heard a growl filled with anger . However, it hadn’t emanated from the Slash Cat or the Needle Hedgehog .

“f.u.c.k . There’s a Mad Dog too!”

Sungyoon couldn’t help but swear when he caught sight of the dog-like monster edging towards him .

This was when Sungyoon’s desperate battle started .

‘These b.a.s.t.a.r.ds work so well together!’

The Mad Dog was tough, and it had high health . The Slash Cat was powerful enough to kill its prey with one blow . Then there was the Needle Hedgehog attacking behind the two frontline monsters . It was a truly well-balanced team .

‘What should I do?’

He was somehow able to hold out up until now . However, it couldn’t last . If his concentration lapsed for even a moment, his neck would be ripped out by the Mad Dog’s sharp teeth . He would be cut down by the Slash Cat’s sharp claws, or he would be pierced by the sharp needles of the Needle Hedgehog . In some form or fas.h.i.+on, he would greet his death .

‘There is no way someone would show up . ’

There was the probability of another Connector coming across him and saving him . However, the labyrinth was large . He hadn’t seen many Connectors after he reached the 3rd floor . Above all else . . .

‘I’m just a stranger . ’

He thought about the betrayals perpetrated by those that he trusted the most . The two people, who were closest to him, had conspired to push him into the depths of h.e.l.l . People that used to be close to him treated him differently after he fell . Everyone had cut off their relations.h.i.+p with him as if Sungyoon had treated them poorly in the past .

Even if another Connector came to this place, there was no guarantee that this person would save him .

Sungyoon tried to look at it from a different point of view . What would he do if he came across someone in the same predicament as himself?

‘I would just walk past him . ’

He didn’t have the luxury to pay attention to a complete stranger .

Of course, not everyone thought like him . On the other hand, a lot of people would choose to do the same as him .

‘I have to overcome this by myself!’

If he didn’t have the strength and will, he would once again fall into the depth of h.e.l.l . This thought made him raise his head .

A strong resolve entered Sungyoon’s eyes .

-Kuhng!

The Mad Dog once again tried to bite Sungyoon’s lower leg . He kicked it, and sent it flying across the floor . Then, Sungyoon took off his s.h.i.+eld, which had been affixed to his forearm .

Shook!

He could hear the needle flying towards him . He took a big swing towards the direction of the sound .

Kwah-jeek . !

The needle broke as it was. .h.i.t by the s.h.i.+eld, and the broken needle fell to the floor . Sungyoon didn’t even spare a look at the needle . He threw his s.h.i.+eld .

The s.h.i.+eld flew in a straight line and struck the Mad Dog .

Kwah-jeek!

-Kooh-ehhhhk!

The Mad Dog, who had been ready to charge in, let out a scream . The s.h.i.+eld had squarely struck the Mad Dog on its face, and it caused several broken teeth to fly into the air . Again, Sungyoon didn’t take the time to check the aftermath of his attack . He grasped his spear with both hands, and he ran in towards the Slash Cat .

The Slash Cat was already charging towards Sungyoon . It extended its paw to slash Sungyoon .

However, the spear had a longer reach .

Kwah-jeek!

Sungyoon’s spear hit its target . The blade of the spear brushed past its extended claws . It pierced through the open mouth of the Slash Cat and exited through the back of its head .

-Kehk!

Even a monster couldn’t survive such a wound . The Slash Cat fell to the floor . However, Sungyoon didn’t stop moving . The battle hadn’t ended yet .

Hweek!

He quickly swung his spear to dislodge the Slash Cat’s corpse . However, it had caused him to come to a stop for a brief moment, and it became the root of his troubles .

Poohk!

“Koohk!”

A groan escaped his lips . The Needle Hedgehog’s needle had embedded itself above his right elbow .

‘It’s fine . I was prepared to take a couple shots . ’

Sungyoon kept repeating those words in his mind . It was inevitable that he would be taking damage in this fight . If that was a certainty, he would rather be attacked by the Needle Hedgehog than be attacked by the Slash Cat or the Mad Dog .

‘Fortunately, it all turned out like I expected . ’

The Needle Hedgehog’s attack was weaker than the other two monsters, but it would be a killing blow if the needle hit his head . However, the Needle Hedgehog always focused its shots at his body . His body was protected by his armor, and he would be able to fight even if his arm was wounded . If the needle hit his armpit, it would be very dangerous, but it was an acceptable risk .

He had been prepared to be hurt, but pain was pain . His anger towards the Needle Hedgehog reached a boiling point . However, he had to put off his confrontation with the Needle Hedgehog . After being hit by the thrown s.h.i.+eld, it had added fuel to the Mad Dog’s anger . Blood dripped down its mouth as it charged towards Sungyoon . It looked to have lost its mind, and Sungyoon had to take care of it first .

-Koo-ahhhng!

It pounced towards Sungyoon . Up until this point, he had always had his s.h.i.+eld to defend against its charge . He no longer had his s.h.i.+eld, but his eyes could keep up with its attack .

‘I’ve killed many of your brethren!’

Sungyoon brought down his spear in a large arc .

Puh-uhk!

A resounding thud rang out as the Mad Dog was flung to the floor .

Poohk!

Another needle impacted Sungyoon"s body . Fortunately, the needle had hit his armor . The needle was sharp, but it didn’t have much durability . The Needle Hedgehog’s attack couldn’t do much damage to his armor or s.h.i.+eld .

This didn’t mean he wasn’t afraid . He felt a chill run down his back . He tried his best to ignore this sensation as he struck out with his spear .

-Kang!

It jumped into the air . Normally, he would take a step back . He would be careful in his next attack . However, time was basically of the essence . He stomped on the head of the Mad Dog to extract his spear then he once again pierced it with his spear .

-Goo-rook!

It stopped moving after letting out its last breath .

Poo-oohk!

At that moment, the third needle flew towards Sungyoon’s body . Sungyoon was unlucky this time . It hit his wrist .

He felt a burning pain emanate upwards .

“Son of a b.i.t.c.h!”

There was no way anything good would pop out from his mouth at this time . However, his situation had changed compared to before . No one would interfere with Sungyoon now, so he immediately approached the Needle Hedgehog .

However, he didn"t rush in with excitement . He had barely been able to kill two monsters . If he underestimated the Needle Hedgehog, he might become more injured . He might even lose his life . He would feel aggrieved if such a thing happened .

Sungyoon adroitly dodged the needle flying towards him as he closed the distance to the Needle Hedgehog .

Then…

-Kek!

The death scream of the monster sounded like water breaking through a dam . It fell to the ground .

Tul-shuhk!

He confirmed the death of the Needle Hedgehog when light surrounded its corpse . Afterwards, he collapsed to the floor .

‘I guess I’m still alive?’

He felt around his body . The sensation was quite vivid . It seemed his soul hadn’t left his body . His feet were still attached to his body .

“Koohk!”

The pain, which he had ignored, came back with a force when he relaxed . Sungyoon grabbed the needle that was making his right arm hang uselessly in the air .

“Hoohp”

The needle came out without any complication . If the end of the needle was hooked, it would have worsened his wound when he extracted it . It would have driven him nuts, but this wasn’t the case . The Needle Hedgehog"s needle was straight, thick and long .

Sungyoon was irritated as he threw the needle away .

His emotions had run amok for a brief moment, but he felt calm return to him . The reality finally sunk into him .

He had almost lost his life right now .

Sungyoon desperately reached into his pocket as he brought out something . It was the picture of s.h.i.+nhae . His trembling hand brushed s.h.i.+nhae’s picture .

“I’m fine . I’m fine . Your dad is ok . ”

He was like a madman as he repeated those words . He spoke as if s.h.i.+nhae was in front of him . It also became a mantra that he repeated to himself . In front of his child, he had to be superman . He spoke as if he was talking in front of s.h.i.+nhae and told himself that this was nothing .

His actions were that of a madman, but it was effective . Sungyoon was slowly able to regain his calm . He was barely able to calm his hands, and he returned the picture into his pocket .

‘Let’s head back . ’

There was no way he would continue his hunt today . Moreover, he had been injured . Fortunately, he had the body of a Connector that recovered quickly . His body would recover from these wounds in short order .

Sungyoon stood up .

He picked up his s.h.i.+eld, which was thrown far away from . He also picked up the moonstones left behind by those d.a.m.ned monsters . He had gone through a lot of hards.h.i.+p for these moonstones . There was no way he would leave them behind .

Sungyoon picked up the Needle Hedgehog’s moonstone first . Then he gathered his s.h.i.+eld and the Mad Dog’s moonstone . Then he moved towards the Slash Cat’s moonstone . The Slash Cat was basically the culprit of his unfortunate situation .

“Huh?”

Sungyoon’s eyes widened . There was something else left behind with the Slash Cat’s moonstone .