“You should try fighting it . ”


  “What?”


  Sungyoon’s mouth reacted before he could even think . It showed how surprised he was . However, Hyunwoo had already taken a seat nearby .

  “Hmm? What’s wrong? There is no way you want this old man to fight, right?”


  He spoke in a nonchalant manner .

  “.…… I’ve been wondering since our last meeting . How old are you?”


  “Me? I’m 59 years old . I’ll be celebrating my 60th birthday next year . ”


  If he considered that this man was a friend of Jimin’s father, Sungyoon should have expected this . Still, he felt baffled at the sight of a Connector with the face of a 20-year-old man stating that he would turn 60 soon .

  As if Hyunwoo was making a show of it, he started to tap at his back like an old man . Sungyoon’s sense of dismay deepened .

  “Aigo . The only thing left for an old man like me is to die . ”


  “.…… . ”


  “Don’t look back at me like that . Hurry up and fight it . If you get in trouble, I’ll save you . A high rank Connector is looking out for you in your battle . I know you can’t experience this in your company . ”


  “You have a point . ”


  He remembered the time he had seen a beginner Connector being trained by a high rank Connector within the Beginner’s Labyrinth . He remembered being envious of them .

  As the training montage from his memory played in his mind, he realized one of the strongest Connectors would do the same thing for him .

  “Moreover, I know about your previous experiences . I’ve also assessed your Devices and Gems . You can take down an Ogre . ”


  Did Hyunwoo’s words buoy his confidence? Sungyoon took a firmer grip on his ax and shield .

  He slowly approached the monster walking at a brisk pace toward them . Unlike his nonchalant manner from before, Hyunwoo became dead serious as he looked at Sungyoon’s back .

  ‘I wonder what his battle sense is like . ’


  Sungyoon had progressed so far that it was almost unbelievable that he was a 1st Gen . Of course, the standards varied . But, Sungyoon was around the level of a high rank 2nd or 3rd Gen Connector .

  Even if one’s quality of power was high, it didn’t mean all of that power could translate into the ability to fight .

  ‘If I’m basing it off his words, he shouldn’t be too bad . ’


  Not too bad was an understatement . He was probably very good . Therefore, Hyunwoo’s eyes turned sharp since he didn’t want to miss any of Sungyoon’s movements .

  Tuhk!

  Sungyoon came to a stop after closing the distance to the Ogre . As always, he pushed his shield forward and gripped his ax .

  Unlike the man who had come to a stop, the Ogre raised its speed . It turned its brisk walk into a full sprint .

  Boom! Boom!

  The enormous monster let out loud noises .

  Ooh-uhhhhhhhh!

  It once again let out a loud roar . However, this roar was a bit different than the earlier one, and this time it contained a massive amount of murderous intent . It was the roar the monster used when hunting its prey .

  In a flash, it reached Sungyoon and swung its fist . Sungyoon’s eyes remained wide open as he kept them trained on the incoming fist .

  ‘Let’s focus on redirecting the blow for now . ’


  He had to get an estimate on how strong the Ogre was . He even unsummoned his ax, so as to only focus on blocking with his shield .

  Boom!

  A heavy blow landed on the shield .

  However, the fist couldn’t damage the shield . And as he had intended, the man deflected the fist upwards .

  ‘Huh?’


  He became surprised . The force that had impacted his shield was powerful, but it was much lighter than he had expected .

  The Ogre’s second fist was already on the way .

  ‘Let’s try this . ’


  This time, he placed his shield squarely in front of him .

  Boooom!

  ‘Koohk!’


  Sungyoon didn’t redirect the fist like before, so the impact he absorbed was much larger . However, it wasn’t unbearable .

  Hyunwoo’s words replayed in his mind .

  [Moreover, I know about your previous experiences . I’ve also assessed your Devices and Gems . You can take down an Ogre . ]

  Sungyoon was starting to see the truth to his words .

  ‘At this level…… . ’


  Sungyoon resummoned his ax .

  Ooh-uhhhhhhh!

  The Ogre became really mad when two of its attacks failed . It clasped its hands as it swung downwards . It was using its height to its advantage .

  Sungyoon quickly dodged to the side .

  Hoo-oong!

  A violent sound rang out . The power in that attack was enough to cause chills to run down one’s spine . As expected, the power generated using two hands couldn’t be compared to a one-handed attack .

  Bul-duhk!

  Sungyoon immediately got up . A bead of cold sweat ran down his cheek, but it wasn’t an unpleasant feeling .

  ‘Should I open up some distance?’


  Sssssk!

  He unsummoned his ax and shield . Then, the halberd made its appearance .

  Hyunwoo had been watching the battle, and Sungyoon’s action caught his eyes .

  ‘Is that it?’


  He had heard it from Sungyoon, but seeing it with his own eyes was something else . His Gem activation speed was shockingly fast .

  ‘It is within 0 . 1 seconds . No . It is almost useless to talk about time . ’


  It really was instantaneous . This special attribute would become Sungyoon’s greatest advantage as a Connector .

  “Hoohp!”


  Using the long reach to his advantage, Sungyoon stabbed the Ogre with his spear blade .

  Puh-uhk!

  The monster’s arm struck the halberd from the side . Sungyoon couldn’t overcome its strength, so his halberd was flung away .

  A normal Connector would be in trouble at this point, but Sungyoon reacted to the crisis in a simple manner .

  Hoohk!

  He didn’t slow down as he unsummoned the halberd, and charged forward while raising his shield .

  Boom!

  The shock was transferred through the shield . The Ogre quickly tried to block Sungyoon from getting close, and it swung its arm .

  Sungyoon’s progress stalled, and he slid back a little bit . But his shield disappeared, and the halberd reappeared . Sungyoon swung the weapon .

  Because the ogre had swung its arm in desperation, it couldn’t react to this attack .

  Kwah-jeek!

  The ax blade of the halberd pierced the Ogre’s arm .

  Ggoo-uhhhhhhhhhhh!

  The monster screamed in pain .

  Sungyoon was taken aback by the result .

  ‘It is this easy?’


  Although he had met resistance, it didn’t feel like trying to cut through tough leather with a blunt blade .

  After being injured, the Ogre started moving in a more violent manner .

  Koo-uhhhhhhh!

  The monster indiscriminately attacked Sungyoon .

  It swung its fist and kicked out .

  Using its massive body, it also tried to slam him . But Sungyoon remained calm as he blocked all the attacks .

  In truth, he was feeling a bit overwhelmed . His nerves were frayed, and it felt as if his throat was burning .

  However, he was starting to corner the Ogre .

  Many wounds had appeared on the monster’s body .

  Most of them were small, but a couple of them were critical .

  Still, the Ogre was tough . It used the pain from its wound to boost its rage, but its body was starting to slow down .

  This deterioration gave Sungyoon some room to breathe . He was able to go more on the offensive .

  Kwah-jeek!

  The ax struck the Ogre’s thigh .

  The edge of the weapon got caught in something hard . It seemed Sungyoon had sliced through leather, skin, and muscle to reach the bone .

  Koo-ahhhhhh!

  The Ogre attacked once again .

  Sungyoon slid past its attack . He had unsummoned his ax and shield so that he could move in a more agile manner .

  As soon as he dodged the attack, he summoned his halberd . He placed the hook behind the monster’s leg as he pulled .

  Hwee-chung!

  He couldn’t make the Ogre fall, but he was able to make it lose its balance .

  Puh-uh-uhk!

  He once again summoned and brought down his ax, aiming for the forearm this time .

  Then he let go of the weapon and immediately retreated .

  Hoo-ook!

  The ax, which had been embedded in the wound, disappeared . It reappeared in Sungyoon’s hand .

  Sungyoon was clearly at an advantage, but this didn’t mean he could kill the Ogre in short order . Even as it bled all over the place, the monster was putting up a desperate fight .

  ‘Should I try it?’


  There was a move that he wanted to try out . It was something that had always been on his mind

  Sungyoon unsummoned his ax, and pushed his shield forward .

  Hoo-oong!

  A fist flew toward him once again, but Sungyoon deflected it again .

  He did his best not to be pushed backward . Then he summoned his halberd and raised his shield .

  The Ogre knew an attack would be coming, so it quickly extended its hand .

  However, this attack was different compared to his past attacks .

  The man brought down the ax blade of the halberd with all his might . And when the blade was about to land on the Ogre’s hand, something happened .

  Boom!

  Sungyoon let his magical energy flow into his Gravity-magic Gem .

  In a flash, the gravity increased eight-fold .

  Surprisingly, the spell wasn’t directed toward the Ogre . He had placed it on himself .

  ‘Koo-ooooooook!’


  As he felt the increase of gravity on his whole body, he continued to bring down the halberd with all his might . The increase in gravity meant an increase in acceleration . The speed at which the halberd was coming down had increased .

  Speed meant power, and weight also meant power .

  The halberd clashed against the Ogre’s fist .

  Until now, although he could inflict critical wounds, the wounds were only deep enough to cut a little bit into the Ogre’s bones . However, this strike was different .

  Kwah-doo-doohk!

  The sound generated was different . The halberd split apart the Ogre’s fist, and the ax blade kept traveling forward until it came to a stop at the middle of its forearm .

  Ggoo-uhhhhhhhh!

  The Ogre screamed . This pain was on a different level compared to the pain from before .

  It desperately swung its other arm .

  Boom!

  Sungyoon summoned his shield, and it clashed against the Ogre’s arm once again .

  However, Sungyoon wasn’t pushed backward this time . The increased gravity on his body hadn’t dissipated .

  He stood tall like a large boulder . After he released his spell, he once again summoned his ax .

  The man immediately brought it down .

  Kwah-jeek!

  The ax pierced the Ogre’s chest, and the monster let out another cry .

  It tried to attack Sungyoon, but the connector had already raised his shield .

  Puh-uhk!

  Since he had released his spell, he was pushed back a couple of steps this time . But that was all . He didn’t suffer any significant damage .

  In comparison, one of the Ogre’s arms was rendered useless, and there were wounds all over its body .

  The result of the fight was obvious .

  Boom!

  After a small amount of time, the Ogre finally fell . The lifeless monster bled out on the floor . After Sungyoon made sure it was dead, he stared at the corpse .

  ‘I did this . . . ’


  The Ogre had easily won against the Bigfoot . And his fight with the Ogre had been arduous, but he was able to solo it .

  “Didn’t I tell you it’d turn out like this?”


  Hyunwoo walked in a cocky manner .

  “I told you that you’d be able to kill it at your skill level . ”


  “Yes, you did . ”


  Still, it wasn’t an easy fight . Sungyoon unnecessarily wiped at his brow .

  “You have an interesting fighting style . ”


  “What do you mean?”


  “You fight as you switch between weapons . ”


  Hyunwoo had been deeply moved by the sight of Sungyoon fighting .

  “I’m assuming this fighting style is possible because your Gem activation speed is fast?”


  “Yes . I found that it is advantageous for me to switch to a weapon best suited for the moment . ”


  “You also instantaneously activated a spell too . ”


  The Gravity magic wasn’t visible, so he couldn’t pick up on everything . However, Hyunwoo guessed that Sungyoon had placed a spell on himself instead of the Ogre .

  “Yes . I increased the weight of my weapon to increase its destructive capability . ”


  “You are quite creative . Are you sure this is your first time fighting against an Ogre?”


  “Yes . ”


  Hyunwoo thought about Sungyoon’s battle .

  Since it was the man’s first time fighting the Ogre, he had taken it slow to get a gauge of the Ogre’s power . Then he started attacking the monster with very well-timed attacks .

  ‘Then there is the Gem activation speed . . . ’


  Sungyoon was able to take great advantage of his Gem activation speed . If a Connector failed to use one’s awesome ability to great effect in battle, it was like placing a pearl necklace on a pig .

  From what he had observed, Hyunwoo would give Sungyoon’s battle sense a passing grade . No, he would give a higher grade .

  It seemed Sungyoon wanted to observe the Ogre before it disappeared . He kept poking it with his halberd . Hyunwoo inwardly laughed when he saw this .

  Hwahk!

  Suddenly a light appeared with the labyrinth . Hyunwoo and Sungyoon naturally turned to look at the source .

  The ball of light in the air signaled the imminent appearance of a monster .

  “It seems another one is about to appear . ”


  Unlike the tense Sungyoon, Hyunwoo’s voice held no emotion as he scratched his chin . The light started getting larger and larger as it got ready to spit out a monster .

  Hoo-ook!

  Then, the light disappeared as fast as it had appeared .

  But a monster was left behind in its place .

  Sungyoon’s face stiffened . After defeating the Ogre, confidence was starting to sprout a little bit from between his beaten down self-esteem . However, his confidence went back into the cave when he saw the monster that had appeared from the light .

  The newly arrived monster was that intimidating . Hyunwoo revealed its identity .

  “It is a Cyclops . ”