Chapter 23: The Boss is Too Weak (3)

Chapter 23: The Boss is Too Weak (3)

“...Kerruk. Kehuek...”

Seeing that the goblin shaman was on the verge of death—

“Grr-oo-wook...”

—The minotaur snorted. Its crouched body was tightly bound with something resembling a purple rope, and the end of the rope was connected to the goblin shaman’s staff.

“...Ferocious.”

Of course, I’ve been killed by that monster before, but that was back in my feeble days, hence... I was easily trampled.

So, I couldn’t really comprehend how strong it was.

Now, facing it face to face, I could truly feel it.

I can’t beat that thing. Absolutely not.

To take on such a monster without letting it land even a single hit... how strong would one have to become to win head-on?

Just imagining it made my head spin.

“As you can see, this is the situation.”

Park Cheol-jin said calmly. Now I understood why he evacuated his people.

If such a monster were lurking near the base camp, even I would evacuate people.

“...Choi Ji-won. Seeing it for yourself, what do you think? Can you win?”

“...”

Choi Ji-won couldn’t answer immediately.

Her eyes were busy scanning the minotaur’s body.

“The odds are not favorable... Its physique makes it difficult to inflict fatal injuries.”

Choi Ji-won finally opened her mouth after a long struggle. Her words held nothing but negativity.

Even the strongest person on our side, Choi Ji-won, couldn’t guarantee victory.

I’ll say it again, but I still can’t react to Choi Ji-won’s ‘abnormality.’

After all, if I were to fight the minotaur, I’d probably last less than 5 seconds before swearing ‘f*ck!’ and retreating.

“What if you, me, and Kim Jun-ho combine our strength?”

“...I don’t know.”

‘I can’t fight, Cheol-jin Ahjussi...,’ I wanted to say, but I couldn’t even muster the words.

I couldn’t also mention the fact that I’d regress with just one hit...

But, can that monster not move at all?

“Can’t we just cut its throat while it’s sealed and immobilized?”

If both I and Park Cheol-jin, along Choi Ji-won, attack its neck simultaneously, we might be able to deliver a fatal blow.

It’s not like it’s moving around; it’s just crouched there...

If we strike the minotaur’s neck with full force, won’t it die?

“...Of course, we’ve considered that too.”

But Park Cheol-jin shook his head.

“It’s impossible. We’ve tried everything. Try touching it once.”

“What?”

“It’s alright, just touch it once.”

...What? Surely, it’s not the gigantic monster he’s talking about, right?

“It’s really okay.”

As if confirming my thoughts, Park Cheol-jin encouraged me to touch the massive muscular creature.

“...Really, touch it?”

“Quaagghhh...”

As I approached, the minotaur let out a low growl, staring at me with bloodshot eyes.

Calm down, Minotaur-kun. I’m not doing this because I want to...

“Quaag...”

Slowly, inch by inch, my outstretched hand finally touched the minotaur’s fur.

Tap.

“...Huh?”

Instead of the minotaur’s coarse fur, my hand touched something smooth.

It felt like touching the glass.

Something like a spherical glass sphere was around the minotaur’s body.

This tower is designed to cause division among people until the very end.

“...Damn it. Damn it all! Does God see us as mere toys to play with?”

Bang!

Park Cheol-jin couldn’t contain his anger and struck the nearby tree trunk.

He used to be a firefighter whose job was to save people.

Besides being kind-hearted... his desire to help others is probably much greater than others.

To someone like him, this space full of malice must feel unbearably unpleasant.

“...Sigh. I’ll cool my head for a bit and come back.”

He left, grinding his teeth.

“Kim Jun-ho, I’ll calm down for a moment too. When emotions run high... my body doesn’t listen.”

Choi Ji-won, who was emitting a strong murderous intent, also disappeared somewhere while caressing her sword.

“...Where is everyone going?”

Now, the only ones left in this space are...

“Grrrr...”

The Minotaur, whose eyes were bloodshot.

“Cough...cough...”

An elderly goblin, struggling to catch its breath...

And me.

Alternatively looking between the two a few times, I cautiously sat down next to the goblin shaman, whose arms constantly trembled as it held onto its staff tightly.

“...Sigh.”

To be honest, I’m not in a hurry to regress.

After all, my goal is not to kill the Minotaur but to claim all the rewards available on the 0th floor.

Although the thought of getting rewards by killing it may tempt me, I have no intention of banging my head against an impossible task.

Besides, there’s no urgent need to find a solution regarding Minotaur right now.

The next round, or even the round after that, might reveal an excellent solution.

So, if I judge that I can’t defeat the Minotaur even through repeated regression...?

Then I can just swallow a golden bead and move on.

“It’s too early to worry about that though.”

But it’s also too early to give up on defeating it now.

There’s still time, and there’s no guarantee that the next round will have the same circumstances as this one.

As seen with Mr. Kim, the future can change due to even the slightest incident.

Besides, it seems like Choi Ji-won is somewhat trusting me. Without getting what I wanted, I don’t want to waste the relationship I’ve painstakingly built.

If I really find myself stuck in a dead-end, I will regress. But until then, I must try anything I can.

Now, let’s think... Let’s recall the timeline.

“Hmm...”

The Minotaur attacked the vacant lot on the 7th day around noon. And now, it’s the 6th day in the afternoon.

Whether the goblin shaman died of natural causes or fell victim to someone trying to escape...

If the events unfold similarly to the previous rounds, it will die tomorrow.

If it’s a victim of someone, I can prevent it. But if it’s a natural cause, there’s no solution.

Assuming the goblin shaman’s death is natural, there are about 20 hours left.

Within those 20 hours, is there a good way to kill that massive monster?

“Cough...human... Cough... I smell... human...”

Hmm... should I bury it to buy more time by digging a hole? If Mr. Kim could do it, maybe I can too.

“Human...!”

“Huh?”

“I need...help... Kerruk...cough...”

“Wait! What!?”

6th day, afternoon.

The goblin shaman spoke to me.

--- END OF THE CHAPTER ---

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