"Is it...the boss room?"

The layout of the dungeon was quite simple. There were occasional intersections where the paths split off, but other than the small waterways no organisms could fit through, there were only a few passageways. He could thus mindlessly kill his way along the path without worrying about directions.

The path came to an end here. He had suspected that all the passageways were merging into one, and it turned out to be the case because of the boss room.

There's probably no reason to hesitate at this point.

It did seem like he had killed all the slimes, and it wouldn’t make sense for him to turn back without killing the boss. However, he hadn’t felt threatened by an enemy even once in this dungeon, which had left his mind a little muddled. If he were to fight the boss in this state, there was a chance that he would lose one of his precious lives, so Lee Shin-Woo yelled out loud to regain focus before entering the boss room.

I need to put on my equipment too.

He had been unequipped for the past five days, so it felt a bit awkward. Lee Shin-Woo put on the Dire Wolf Bone Armor and confirmed that his endurance had indeed increased before raising the Bone of Thunder Lasting in his hand. With the added bonus granted by his equipment, he checked his status.

[Lee Shin-Woo]

[Skeleton Avenger Blessed by God][Treasure Hunter]

[Lv - 2 (Stats Effectiveness 110%)][Strength - 98 + 16 Agility - 95 + 10 Endurance - 95 + 30 Magic - 102 + 15 (While dungeon bonuses are being applied)]

[Passive skills - Invisible Heart Lv3, Acting Lv4, Beginner Avenger Lv1, Low Rank Bursting Thunder Lv4, Low Rank Magic Affinity Lv2, Low Rank Stealth Lv3, Beginner Command Lv3]

[Active skills - Bone Reinforcement Lv3, Low Rank Sprint Lv2, Beginner Shriek of the Dead Lv9, Beginner Regeneration Lv9, Beginner Catapult Lv8, Beginner Flames of Revenge Lv7, Beginner Power Slash Lv5]

[Resistance - Acid - Beginner Lv9]

His strength, agility, and endurance had remained mostly the same. Some of his skills had leveled up, and a couple of his stats had increased slightly after acquiring a part of the Barbarian’s karma. His most significant growth lay in his magic. Through training Low Rank Magic Affinity and reinforcing himself with the Slime's Bone Cores he acquired every now and then, his magic, which funnily enough had been his lowest stat, was the first to exceed 100! As a result, his stats had reached a total of 390. He would soon reach level 3 after earning 10 more stat points.

I'm effectively level 3 if the bonus granted by the dungeon is taken into consideration.

He had told himself to focus, but seeing the effects of his equipment and the buff granted by the dungeon, he couldn’t stop himself from feeling that he didn’t need to be afraid of anything.

No, I can't think like that.

Lee Shin-Woo slapped his cheeks. It was annoying that it ended up more of a solid hit rather than a slap, but he was able to get a hold of himself.

"Hoo... Alright."

He was perfectly prepared. His health and mana were full, and unlike before, his combat senses were well polished. His Acid Resistance had also increased sharply after resisting so much acid. Lee Shin-Woo approached the arched iron gate after exhaling a deep breath. Fearlessly, he opened the door.

[Guooooh...]

There was a vast clearing within, and a gigantic slime took up about a third of the clearing. 

...An outrageously gigantic slime.

[Lv3 Great Slime]

[Guooh?]

"..."

He had been concerned about the wrong thing. The moment he saw the monster, his confidence evaporated instantly. Even though he had prepared for the boss fight well, the reality was far beyond what he had expected. Why the hell would there be a level 3 boss in a level 1 dungeon?

[Guooh...!]

However, he didn't have time to agonize over the mystery. The Great Slime had noticed him and propelled its chubby body into the air with surprising agility. At an astonishing speed, it rushed toward Lee Shin-Woo!

[Guoooh!]

"You asshole, that's cheating!"

He had thought it was stupid of him to worry about the Great Slime rushing over to him, but it ended up saving him. Instinctively, he activated Sprint and managed to avoid its attack. The Great Slime collided with the iron gate instead, slamming it shut as a result. This was now an enclosed chamber with no exit.

Huh?

Something was strange, but Lee Shin-Woo didn’t have the time to think about it further. The fight demanded his full attention.

[Guoooh!]

"Ugh!"

The collision seemed to have done little damage to the Great Slime. It bounced and rushed towards him again. Its absurd speed far exceeded what Lee Shin-Woo had experienced before. It was indeed a level 3 boss!

"Uaah!"

A skeleton dodging a bouncing slime; an outsider would have found it extremely comical. As the one facing the slime, however, Lee Shin-Woo felt like a soldier facing a giant rock launched from a catapult.

"Tch!"

[Guooh!]

The trajectory of its charge was really simple, which made it easy to dodge its attack as long as he knew where it was coming from. However, he couldn't keep dodging forever. Lee Shin-Woo really didn't like this situation. It made him think of when he was in high school, competing in dodgeball, and he was the only one remaining in the ring.

[Guoooooooh!]

He had wanted to be taken out of the game by getting hit, but that felt kind of awkward. Therefore, he always ended up running around hectically, and it felt miserable!

Remembering the experience filled his nonexistent eyes with spite. Time for revenge. He would vent all the grudge he had accumulated back then on the Great Slime! Was he taking it out on the wrong target? Was he unfairly putting the blame on someone else? Yes, and yes, but he didn’t care.

Flames of Revenge.

As he dodged its fourth charge, he manifested a mass of black flames atop one of his hands. He would’ve liked to imbue his weapon with the fire and attack the Great Slime, but it would be unwise to face the giant monster mid-charge. Either his weapon or his body would end up crushed.

[Guooh!]

Lee Shin-Woo rolled and leapt up from the dirty underground water to dodge another of the Great Slime's charge. It once again hit the wall, creating a tremendous rumble. And for a brief instant, it didn't move.

Now!

Lee Shin-Woo had been waiting for that opportunity. He swiftly shot the black flames forwards and hit the mark squarely. The flames automatically zeroed in on a target it had marked, so the rest of the scattering flames ended up hitting the Giant Slime with great precision. The flames drained his mana from a distance and surged in intensity.

[Guoooooooh!]

Its response was truly fierce. Fire was the common weakness of all Slimes; the way the Great Slime went completely in flames was proof of that! It rubbed itself in the dirty water in an attempt to extinguish the fire, but it wouldn't be called the Flames of Revenge if it were that easy to extinguish.

[Gugeugeugeugeugeugeuk!]

"Wow, you sure burn well."

This was the most fulfilling moment in his life. How wonderful it would be if he could also burn those bastards who ganged up on him in dodgeball!

[Gooooguaaah!]

But the moment of leisurely reminiscence didn’t last. As the flames engulfing it grew more and more intense, the Great Slime started shaking until suddenly, it erupted into a grand explosion!

"What!?"

It had abandoned the part of its body enveloped by the flame, and it broke into pieces before exploding everywhere! It was like a missile ricocheting when it hit the ground. Since there was nowhere for Lee Shin-Woo to dodge, he hurriedly curled into a ball and kept his head protected.

"Ugh, urgh...!"

The Great Slime shot fragments of its own body like bullets, hitting Lee Shin-Woo in a serious barrage of blows. It hurt immensely. Each of those fragments contained a devastating acid within, which perforated his arms, legs, as well as various other parts of his body in real time.

[Gooooooh!]

At that moment, the Great Slime shrieked once more. Lee Shin-Woo was sure that it was a sign that the Great Slime was going to charge, and he grit his teeth and rolled even though his body was full of holes. As expected, he heard the terrifying sound of air splitting immediately after, and the Great Slime grazed past him before hitting the ground with a thud. The collision was as thunderous as the explosion!

Regeneration!

Lee Shin-Woo could no longer afford to conserve his mana. He hurriedly picked himself up and got a clear look at the Great Slime while restoring his body with Regeneration. The Slime had definitely gotten smaller after sacrificing a part of its body for a suicide attack.

[Lv3 Great Slime]

Its level remains the same even though it's a lot smaller now... The magic within its body seems unchanged, too.

By detonating a portion of its body, the Great Slime had managed to extinguish the fire that would never go out unless its target was dead. It had become smaller as a result, but no less powerful since its magic remained entirely intact, only more focused and condensed. In fact, the Great Slime seemed to have become even faster due to its smaller size even despite its stats being unchanged!

[Guoooh!]

"Eeeek...!"

Even though the situation had seemingly turned for the worse, Lee Shin-Woo was certain that his method of attack was the right one. Considering its natural abilities, the Great Slime far surpassed the level 3 Treasure Eater he had encountered. He couldn’t even imagine fighting the Great Slime head-on; he had to reduce its size further.

I'll burn its body with Flames of Revenge, causing it to shake the flames off through its suicide attack. Then I'll recover the damage I take from its explosion. In the process, however, the slime will gradually become faster. I'll have to dodge its charge and then hit it once again with Flames of Revenge. ...Yeah, it's perfect. It's a perfect nightmare.

He had certainly grown in stats, skills, and experience during his relentless training in the dungeon; it frustrated him that he was still struggling to take care of the boss. However, that wasn’t true at all. He was able to fight the Great Slime one-on-one because he had done his best to train himself and polish his skills. If he hadn't improved his Flames of Revenge, no, if he hadn't improved Regeneration, he wouldn't have even stood a chance in this battle.

"Hm, it can’t be helped..."

Lee Shin-Woo threw himself back into the battle like a newtype plunging through the atmosphere with a mecha[1] and activated Flames of Revenge. He didn't know if his health and magic would last until the end of the battle, but he had to give it a try.

[Guuuuu...oooh!]

"Ha!"

It was getting ready to charge again, but no matter how fast it was, its movement remained simple. Now that Lee Shin-Woo had gotten used to its attack pattern, he was able to avoid the charging Slime with Sprint and hit it with Flames of Revenge at the same time.

[Gureureureu!]

"It's coming...!"

It bounced so quickly that it failed to perceive the incoming fire. The attack hit it squarely. The Great Slime hit the wall, rolled, and... when it realized that its body was on fire, it rampaged about like last time before exploding!

Lee Shin-Woo was ready for it, however. While keeping his head protected, he took out the bones he had stockpiled from his inventory and healed himself with Bone Reinforcement the instant he took damage.

I have to use Flames of Revenge again, so I have to endure by healing with the bones in my inventory for now.

Though his Magic Affinity had grown, it was still low rank, and despite his improvement in magic, he was ultimately still at level 2. He couldn't keep using Flames of Revenge and Regeneration at the same time. It was a great shame that Lee Shin-Woo couldn’t keep using the skill that would allow him to fight his opponent without rest. Nevertheless, he would survive this battle no matter what, and he would be stronger next time.

[Guoooooooh!]

"Yes, yes, you damn Pudding. Let's play some more...!"

Lee Shin-Woo muttered through gritted teeth and used Sprint. Immediately after, the Great Slime, which had lessened in size again, slammed into the spot he had just been. As expected, it was gradually becoming faster and faster. ...It seemed that Sprint, the skill he had been neglecting in this dungeon, would get some good training in the end.