TOP 47

Chapter 47

Dungeon Collapse

That was the amount of mana consumed by this “One Punch.”

It wasn’t an overwhelming amount of mana that the body couldn’t handle.

But it was still significant—by far the largest amount of mana I had ever used since acquiring the “One Punch” skill.

That mana—

Through my fist, through the “One Punch” skill—

Tukwaaaahhhhhh──────!!!!!

It was completely converted into destructive power.

Paladin 88 took it head-on.

Thanks to stepping forward after pushing back the other fanatic hunters.

Ding!

[You have entered a state of mana exhaustion.]

[Mana will not recover.]

“Huh… huh…”

I had entered a state of mana exhaustion, but due to the penalty from “Mana Loan,” my mana did not recover.

The exhaustion felt far more severe than usual.

‘Damn it. Being completely out of mana is a problem.’

Normally, my mana would recover in about a minute, and I could continue fighting.

But not now.

The penalty from “Mana Loan” prevented mana recovery for an entire month.

It was why my exhaustion wouldn’t end.

Then—

Ding!

[A higher-tier unique trait is activating.]

[The penalty from ‘Mana Loan’ is ignored, and mana is restored.]

[The penalty is replaced with a cooldown.]

[The cooldown for ‘Mana Loan’ is one month.]

Mana suddenly began to fill.

‘What…?’

I was momentarily stunned.

I had been prepared to live with zero mana for a while—but now that was gone.

‘Of course, there’s a cooldown…’

Compared to the previous penalty, this was a huge gain.

‘…“Mana Overflow.”’

The unique trait that had tormented me before acquiring “One Punch.”

The term “higher-tier unique trait” seemed appropriate—it might not be just any ordinary trait.

But for now, I set that thought aside.

‘I need to check.’

I opened my eyes as wide as possible and stared ahead.

I had to confirm the paladin’s death.

The area where I had thrown my punch was utterly devastated.

The gouges in the floor stretched all the way to the opposite wall, and that wasn’t enough—the walls themselves were shredded.

Anyone seeing it might think it was soft styrofoam painted to look like solid stone.

‘The paladin…’

Paladin 88, who had been in that path, was nowhere to be seen.

[Eliminated─]

‘Frill, shut up!’

[Hng.]

Fortunately, the resurrection spell hadn’t completed.

Looking around carefully, I found traces of Paladin 88.

Some of his body parts and broken holy equipment remained.

With that… I could safely assume he was truly dead.

“Phew.”

Tension drained from my body.

“W-What the—!”

“Ah, Paladin!”

“How dare you kill a servant of the goddess!”

There were still fanatic hunters from the Newcherry Guild, now completely brainwashed.

But there were only three of them.

And they weren’t in good shape.

Most had died, unfortunately, because they were in the path of the “One Punch” skill.

‘This really is a crazy skill.’

A transcendent-grade skill, Authority: One Punch.

Even without a direct hit, the aftereffects alone could instantly kill six 5-star hunters.

Of course, synergy from my unique traits, Mana Overflow and Mana Loan, helped, but for me, this skill was a godsend.

‘Ah. Let’s just call it a devil instead of a god.’

I had some bad memories with gods.

If a demon offered to help me kill the Gaia goddess, I’d accept without hesitation.

“Die, heretics!”

“Hrryaaah!”

At that moment, the surviving fanatic hunters attacked me.

It started with arrows.

Swaaaaak─

“Hyung!”

Yoon Jiho leapt to block the arrow.

Kaang!

“Thanks, Jiho.”

“Kuh.”

He deflected the arrow and rolled on the ground.

It seemed he couldn’t fully disperse the arrow’s force.

Then the other melee attackers struck.

Thunk!

This time, the Mithril Golem stepped forward.

• Protect master.

• Eliminate enemies.

“What the hell is this!”

It was a 5-star combat-capable golem.

Breaking through with a body that wasn’t even fully functional wouldn’t be easy.

“Ugh. Go! Kill it!”

“Your sacrifice… won’t be forgotten!”

But there were only two of them.

One handled the golem while the other hunter charged at me.

[Ice Spear!]

Frill’s ice spear hit that guy.

“Yikes!”

[Ice Storm!]

An ice storm followed.

Frill’s power only slowed the charge, but it was enough.

Ding!

[Due to rapid mana recovery, mana exhaustion ends early.]

“Perfect timing.”

“Die, unbeliever!!!”

A fanatic hunter ran at me with a raised sword.

But it was just a sword infused with aura, not an Aura Thread.

‘Mana’s depleted too.’

Then it was easy.

I wrapped the Everfrost Sword with Aura Thread and cut the fanatic hunter down.

With the sword, as a whole.

Skkk─!

“…!”

The fanatic hunter died with a final scream.

‘Was it Saint Recovery? Seems it can’t restore mana.’

I took note of the useful new info.

The rest were handled without difficulty.

I subdued them without killing.

Objectively, our team now had the upper hand—it was easy.

• Insufficient power.

• Summon dismissed.

I drained all the golem’s power, but luckily, the fight was already over.

Yoon Jiho limped to my side, eyes sparkling.

“Hyung! What the heck is that?”

“What?”

“Earlier, you used Aura Thread, ice magic, and even a golem? You have summons like that?”

“……”

“Wait, are you some rich talent from a magical tower’s secret project or something?”

A huge misunderstanding.

What should I even answer?

“But why were you a pack mule? Like in old fantasy novels where dragons play games or something—”

The misunderstanding grew.

I chose to ignore it.

“Stop talking nonsense.”

“Ah, hyung!”

No need to explain. No obligation.

Right now, there was something more important.

“Hm.”

I looked down at Team Leader Shin Chaeri, still unconscious.

“Eh? She’s not dead?”

“No.”

At first, I assumed she was dead.

She had taken the longest under Judgment, and had shown no movement at all.

But after clearing the situation, I realized she was alive.

“She survived it?”

“You mean the skill the paladin used? Everyone else was in so much pain…”

“And became fanatics.”

“Ah!”

A skill that torments and breaks someone, eventually making them a Gaia fanatic.

That she endured it without giving in earned her respect.

I’d need to wake her, though.

“But how do we wake her?”

“Usually, a hit works.”

Extreme mental exhaustion-induced unconsciousness is unclear, but generally a strong shock wakes someone.

Whoosh—

I raised my hand to slap Shin Chaeri’s cheek—

Click.

“Eh? She woke up!”

Unfortunately, she awoke before the slap.

“What…?”

“I was trying to wake you from unconsciousness.”

“Ugh.”

“Do you understand the situation?”

“…So, the paladin!?”

Her thoughts immediately went to Paladin 88, and she tensed.

“Caught him.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Killed him.”

“H-How…!?”

Sadly, that’s a trade secret.

“Yujin hyung did it! One punch, Kwahhh!, gone without a trace!”

Hmm. That was fine.

It would give me the upper hand in the upcoming conversation.

“Weren’t you supposed to be a 4-star pack mule?”

“Yes.”

“…Ah! I see now.”

Shin Chaeri thought for a moment and accepted it herself.

Did she misunderstand my desire to hide my identity?

Whatever. It didn’t matter.

“I have a question.”

“Yes.”

“How does it feel to be hit by that skill?”

“……”

I asked what I’d been curious about.

What exactly Judgment does.

Shin Chaeri trembled as she recalled the horrific pain.

Slowly, she spoke.

“…At first, I thought I would die. No, words don’t even describe it. I just… couldn’t think of anything but ending the pain.”

Her face twisted beyond description.

“Then, suddenly, I realized something. If I trust Gaia, I could be freed from the pain. That’s when the dilemma began.”

“To submit or to endure.”

“Yes.”

A cruel binary choice.

To continue through unending torment, or to submit for peace.

Even strong-willed people wouldn’t survive indefinitely.

‘Gaia… damn these bastards.’

Teeth clenched instinctively.

I already knew they weren’t nice.

But I didn’t expect them to commit such outrageous acts.

‘How much longer have they been doing this?’

It probably wasn’t the first time.

So even a seemingly normal group might be infiltrated by Gaia.

We had to be careful.

Now, no one’s allegiance to Gaia could be trusted.

And then I thought further.

“…You’ve endured a lot. That’s impressive.”

Shin Chaeri had extraordinary mental fortitude.

Other hunters became fanatics.

She survived Judgment the longest and deserved respect.

“Personally, I don’t like the Gaia cult much.”

“That’s rare.”

“…Indeed.”

She took a deep breath and tried to appear calm.

It wasn’t just dislike—it seemed deep-seated.

If she could resist even that torment…

Maybe…

‘She might be like me.’

Perhaps harboring deep hatred for the Gaia cult.

The enemy of my enemy is my ally—maybe she could be a good friend.

“Ah! Our members!”

“I subdued them. Only two left, though.”

“…Thank you.”

Shin Chaeri looked for her team members.

Unfortunately, all others were dead.

Even the two remaining—

“Unbelievers!”

“Just kill them!”

Once freed, they reacted violently, confirming they couldn’t be saved.

“Yunho, Byungil…”

“Team Leader! Kill that guy already!”

“Yes! That mule is a heretic!”

Shin Chaeri muttered their names wistfully, but they only showed fanatic traits.

She finally turned away.

“Could it be… you refused Gaia!?”

“Team Leader Shin Chaeri! Why!?”

The two hunters had been spared to check first.

Now, fanatical, they had no value left.

‘Nothing worth investigating.’

Step by step, I approached with the Everfrost Sword.

“I’ll kill you.”

Leaving them alive would be dangerous.

They witnessed me kill the paladin and clearly harbored hostility.

So they had to die.

“W-Wait!”

Shin Chaeri reflexively stopped me.

But…

It was just instinct.

She glanced between me and her team, then lowered her head.

Clear signal of consent.

I raised the Everfrost Sword.

Skkk- Skek!

I cut both their throats.

It was instantaneous.

“……”

Shin Chaeri stayed silent.

It hurt, but there was no choice.

I gathered useful equipment from their bodies.

Couldn’t grab everything, but got what I could.

Souvenirs, in a way.

Then—

“Team Leader Shin Chaeri.”

“…Yes.”

“Are you okay?”

“I don’t know.”

“That’s enough.”

At least she understood it had to be done.

Enough.

“Now, let’s run.”

“Huh?”

“Jiho, you too.”

“Why…?”

“Why not.”

Everyone seemed shocked by the situation.

Rumble—

Creak. Crack. Crackle.

“This place is collapsing soon.”

“?!”

“…!”

Due to some insanely powerful skill, the cave was collapsing.