I Gave Up Being Stronger

Before Cha Jin-Hyeok emerged to the surface, the Avengers Army was fighting with all their might. Egan Paul bit his lip.

‘That monster is completely different from the one before! It’s much stronger!’

That was his logical judgment, but it was a misconception. While the female Sand Worm was indeed stronger than the male one, it was not overwhelmingly powerful. The male Sand Worm had just appeared weak because Kim Chul-Soo had defeated it too easily.

Fighting monsters that used terrain to their advantage was always tricky. Still, the experienced Avengers Army managed to fend off the Sand Worm’s attacks relatively well.

“Iron Shield!” A Player with a shield tried to deflect the Sand Worm’s charge.

‘Just blocking it won’t do.’

A misstep could result in one being sucked inside the monster.

‘Deflecting it sideways while turning it... huh?’

The charge turned out to be a feint by the Sand Worm. The monster, which had been attacking in only a straight line until now, changed its attack pattern. It bent itself and bit the Healer next to the Player holding a shield.

Hickson, the Ruler of the Avengers Army, clenched his fist.

‘Did the aggro shift? When?’

Hickson hastily shouted, “Grab its tail! Stop it from going into the sand at all costs!”

Following Hickson’s command, the two Martial Artists manifested large hands to hold on to the Sand Worm’s tail. With its tail caught, the Sand Worm’s mobility was significantly reduced.

However, Hickson felt something was off.

‘Wait, was the tail the weak point, not the head?’

Though nobody had deceived him, he could not shake off the feeling of having been fooled. He realized that Chul-Soo had targeted the Sand Worm’s head not because that was the monster’s weak point; targeting the head was merely a matter of preference.

Hickson made a quick decision. “The weak point is not the head, but the tail!”

Hickson had to rescue Jason at all costs. Jason was the Healer of the Avengers Army who insisted on healing right beside his comrades. Jason’s healing power was stronger at close ranges, so he reasoned that he could save more Players by being closer to them. Jason always said not to worry about him as long as the other members of the Avengers Army could attract the aggro of the monster.

‘I will save you no matter what.’

The Players of the Avengers Army focused their attacks on the Sand Worm’s tail. Some even used explosive abilities, which slightly injured the Tanks, but that was unavoidable.

“Descend, Goddess of the North Wind.” Karin used her highest-level freezing magic spell, Goddess of the North Wind. A chilly wind began to blow. It took the form of a giant goddess and spread wings of ice over the Sand Worm. The Sand Worm was completely frozen.

“Did we get it?’

They were wrong. Something was off. The first to sense that was Karin, who had manifested the spell. She said with an angry voice, “This thing has resistance to ice magic!”

There was no other way to put it than to say it was bad luck. One would not know this until one had faced the monster directly. Unfortunately, the Sand Worm seemed to have a strong resistance to ice magic.

Crack! Crack!

The ice began to break, and the injured Tanks’ stamina rapidly decreased. Just as the frozen Sand Worm wriggled and moved again, it suddenly slammed its head into the ground, seemingly trying to escape back into the sand.

At that critical moment, Egan desperately shouted, “No!!! Jason!”

However, something weird happened. The Sand Worm, with its head buried in the ground, was not moving anymore.

***

Jin-Hyeok had arrived on the surface when the Ice Wizard Karin had frozen the Sand Worm. The Sand Worm had successfully resisted the magic and tried to escape into the sand, taking the Healer with its sucker-like mouth. It was then that Jin-Hyeok realized.

‘This is a setup for me! Egan, just how far are you thinking in terms of livestreaming?’

Egan’s ability to envision the bigger picture for the livestream was commendable.

‘Since I attacked flamboyantly and powerfully for the previous Sand Worm...’

This time, Jin-Hyeok decided to go for a different approach. Reading his mind better than anyone, Miri whispered,

-I will do it discreetly. I will enjoy your head deliciously...!

The golden beam from earlier had been just for show. It felt a bit forced. However, this time was different. Jin-Hyeok created the invisible and powerful Hammer Force and shot it out. This was closer to his original style of attack.

Without the cumbersome flamboyance, his energy operated much more naturally. It was swift and agile like Sword Aura, but not as agile as his Ferocity Skill. It was a much more blunt and heavy force of destruction. None of the Avengers Army could properly see Jin-Hyeok’s attack.

-I enjoyed it. It was blissfully delicious.

Jin-Hyeok was also content with this attack. ‘There was absolutely no error!’

Earlier, there had been a deviation of 0.2 centimeters.

‘This was a perfect attack.’

He felt a sense of accomplishment and enjoyed the feeling of growth.

After a bit of time, the Players of the Avengers Army realized that the Sand Worm was dead. Egan rewound the recorded footage to understand what had happened.

‘Ah...!’

Only then did he see it. Far away, Chul-Soo had swung his hammer.

‘An invisible, powerful attack flew in,’ Egan thought.

It was not visible to the naked eye, but the footage somewhat revealed it. When the Players dug into the ground, they found the Sand Worm’s head cleanly evaporated. After Jin-Hyeok had defeated the previous Sand Worm, a huge sand pit had formed around it, but this time, there was no such phenomenon. Only the Sand Worm’s head was cleanly gone. And Jason was found unconscious.

“Jason!”

He was unconscious but seemed to have suffered no major injuries.

In the meantime, Chul-Soo approached Egan and said, “Thank you! You’re really sincere about your livestream.”

‘To set up the stage so dramatically at such a dramatic timing to save the Healer! It was worth collaborating!’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

“I had no idea you were this serious about livestreaming. Honestly, I’m moved,” Jin-Hyeok added.

‘...I moved him?’ Egan thought. He was at a loss for words.

***

Navigators were usually a step away from direct combat. Because of this, Black Panther had noticed Chul-Soo’s party returning much quicker than other Players. He also clearly saw Chul-Soo swinging his hammer. Initially, it seemed like Chul-Soo was just swinging at the air, but upon seeing the result, Black Panther could not help but gulp. He could accept that Chul-Soo’s attacks could be flamboyant and destructive, something akin to the common Trait of powerful damage-dealing Players.

‘But... that attack was almost invisible...’ Black Panther thought.

It was barely visible even to a Navigator’s eyes. Strong destructive power usually meant a flashy and noticeable presence. The concentration of power should have made it easier to dodge, a simple logic.

‘Chul-Soo has the destructive power of wide-area damage-dealing Players, the precision of Sniper Players, and even the stealth of an Assassin?!’

He came to a fitting conclusion.

‘He must possess a Divine Weapon.’

A Divine Weapon was something that Players called the weapon of Gods. It was publicly known that Chul-Soo had upgraded his Rule Breaker, but Black Panther believed that was not all. No doubt about it, Chul-Soo was a possessor of a Divine Weapon.

‘But this is unexpected.’

Black Panther did not particularly like Chul-Soo. He thought of Chul-Soo as someone who used even a comrade’s death as livestream content, a form of entertainment. Even when Chul-Soo laid the chrysanthemum flowers at the graves of the deceased Avengers Army members, it felt too repugnant to bear.

At least Egan showed the grief of a human being, but Chul-Soo did not seem to mourn at all in Black Panther’s eyes.

‘But he recovered the bodies...’

The bodies had been carried out inside coffins crafted by Mok Jae-Hyeon. Having faced the Sand Worm himself, Black Panther knew well how much effort and dedication it would have taken to accomplish that within the Sand Worm’s habitat.

Egan and the Avengers Army gathered around the coffins.

Egan, representing the group, opened the coffin lid and confirmed the deceased. “Michael... Paul...”

The Players of the Avengers Army teared up. These were indeed their fallen comrades.

“Thank you, Chul-Soo...”

Jin-Hyeok casually shrugged and waited for the Avengers Army to observe a moment of silence. The Play with these individuals felt extraordinarily strange. Commemorating someone’s death inside a Dungeon was usually considered a luxury. In Dungeons, Players had to advance even if their family had died. Hesitation for even a second could mean life or death for someone else.

‘A moment of silence... Hm...’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

Han Sae-Rin seemed a bit displeased. She whispered to Jin-Hyeok, “Hey, we have already spent thirty seconds. Anything could happen in thirty seconds, and we’re mourning? What the hell is going on? Shouldn’t we close the coffin lids and continue Playing?”

“...”

“Shouldn’t you say something?”

Jin-Hyeok largely agreed with her words, in his head at least. However, he spoke differently. “Let’s wait a moment.”

“...Why?”

‘Why are you acting unlike your ordinary self?’ Sae-Rin’s eyes were filled with questions.

“Uh... Um...” Jin-Hyeok himself did not quite understand why he did not mind this moment of silence, but he didn’t know how to explain. So, he resorted to a universal excuse. “Honestly, I’m not sure, but people seem to like this kind of scene.”

“Ah, so this is for your livestream?”

“Yes.”

“Well, if that’s the case, guys!” Sae-Rin relayed this information to Jin-Sol, Jae-Hyeon, and Kim Jeong-Hyeon, and as if they had been waiting for this explanation, they all nodded. Now, they all seemed to accept the situation.

Jin-Hyeok swallowed a thought.

‘Honestly, this place does not seem too difficult.’

Having traversed numerous Dungeons, he had developed a sense of these things. He could tell whether a Dungeon was difficult or not. He genuinely felt confident that even with minimal effort, they could clear this one easily.

‘But I shouldn’t say that out loud.’

Accidents often happened when least expected. Carelessness could lead to irreversible consequences.

‘And I’m not a Navigator!’

With this resolve to not rely on such premonitions, Jin-Hyeok refocused on his initial goal.

***

Regaining his composure, Black Panther resumed his role as the Navigator. “Once we pass this sandy beach, a jungle-like Field will appear. If we travel through it for a few days, we will reach an ancient temple. You might already know this if you have watched Egan’s previous livestream. However, just as the Sand Worms were an unexpected factor, there could be other variables in the jungle Field.”

Jin-Hyeok raised his hand. “If the main Field is inside the ancient temple, how about entrusting the guidance through the jungle to a former Navigator?”

“...”

‘Uh, he seems slightly displeased. In such cases, a good thwack in the head usually does the trick.’ Though that thought crossed his mind, Jin-Hyeok thought about what was better for his livestream and decided not to act upon it.

It was the duty of the Streamer to think about how to make the livestream more interesting and how to make the viewers more convinced. Jin-Hyeok added a comment. “No, I’m not disregarding your ability as a Navigator. A Navigator needs physical strength and concentration. It’s better if you conserve your energy.”

Black Panther slightly frowned but then nodded. He agreed because what Chul-Soo said made sense.

“Alright then. There are several animal-type monsters in this area. The most dangerous among them is the Red-Clawed Black Bear, with a Level in the early 200s. It is a brute-force monster, so engaging it directly will be quite draining. I recommend avoiding the Red-Clawed Black Bear’s territory,” Black Panther explained.

“What are you talking about?” Sae-Rin heavily sighed. “What’s this about conserving energy in a Dungeon?”

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