Chapter 31: Dungeon (5)
An ice zombie lurched toward Blake, its arms flailing. Despite its name, the creature wasn't grim or hideous; it resembled a figure carved from pristine snow or marble. Yet it was undead, which meant it was ultimately an animated corpse, resurrected to sow chaos.
Corpses were seldom flawless. In this case, any missing sections of the zombie's body were patched with transparent ice that glimmered like crystal.
Gripping his katana in one hand, Blake stepped up and sliced through the crystal stitching on its arm with a swift, precise slash. The ice shattered instantly, severing the limb in one stroke. Its arm fell to the floor with a dull thud.
[-216 HP!]
Because Blake had used Crescent Pride and struck an exposed weak point, he landed a critical hit that boosted his damage by fifty percent. With his mana replenished, he activated his skill again, even faster than before, flicking his katana at another vulnerable spot and finishing off the monster.
Blake ended his fight before any of his teammates had even dealt with their own targets. He glanced over at them.
The tank stood firm against three zombies, keeping their focus on his shield. Meanwhile, the mage and healer channeled spells—either attacking or propping up the tank. A small circular zone from the healer continually replenished the tank's health, while the mage unleashed fire bolts that proved highly effective against Ice Zombies.
Silver Dash jabbed his sword at his opponent, then stepped back, repeating the pattern. It seemed he could enhance his sword's thrusts in a manner similar to how Blake did. The ax-wielding girl spun like a wild whirlwind, striking her foe but taking plenty of hits in return.
In Blake's brief analysis, all five of them were… "Trash."
Why draw enemy aggro if you couldn't inflict any real damage? The tank's broadsword looked more like a prop than a proper weapon. He also paid little attention to the monsters he was holding in place. If those zombies had been even slightly stronger, they'd have broken free and assaulted the party's more fragile members.
The healer, for her part, wasn't watching everyone's health bar closely. She barely seemed to notice the ax fighter taking the brunt of the damage. The mage failed to target obvious weak points—something even casual research on this dungeon would have revealed. It implied a lack of precision on his part.
Silver Dash kept thrusting and stepping back, repeating the same routine. But why? He wasn't using a rapier; he could've attempted standard combos most players learned in the tutorial. Instead, it looked like he was too wary of getting close. Meanwhile, the ax-wielding girl spun around at random, relying on luck even more than the mage.
Remembering his beta-tester days, Blake knew most players tried different weapons before fully engaging with the real game world. He'd done the same, eventually settling on melee combat—and specifically the katana—because he enjoyed it and had natural skill with it.
In this immersive game, player skill mirrored real-world aptitude far more than outsiders realized. Users employed authentic techniques, stances, and body coordination to maximize damage. As characters grew stronger, the game leaned into fantasy, enabling feats beyond normal physical limits—where true gaming talent shone.
If Blake had met these people during the beta, he wouldn't have spared them more than a passing glance. "Maybe I should teach them?" he mused.
Just then, Silver Dash approached. He'd taken down his own zombie, but he looked exhausted.
"I saw how fast you handled your zombie… is your weapon steel?" he asked.
Blake nodded. "Yeah… I think you should—"
"Oh, that explains it! We're all stuck with iron gear, so no wonder it took us forever!" Silver Dash let out a cheerful laugh.
Blake shook his head. "You'd finish them off faster if you mixed in more than just thrusts."
"Thrusting or slashing—what's the difference?" Silver Dash shrugged. "I'm comfortable with thrusting, so that's what I do. Besides, if I had your katana, I'd have killed that zombie just as quickly. Don't worry—we've got this!" With a bright smile, he turned and rejoined his friends.
The gap between Blake and them… felt like a canyon.