The More the Healer Gets Hit the Stronger He Become

38 – Dislike.

Exiting the VIP shop, Kang Woo, equipped with ordinary shoes (60 points) and ordinary gloves (50 points) purchased from the 29th-floor safe zone, immediately headed towards the next trial.

Just a moment.

Before crossing the door of the trial, there was a moment of hesitation, wondering if it was not time to find a party now to avoid the same experience as on the 29th floor.

Based on Milena’s silence in response to her own question about whether she needed magical items for a while, Kang Woo chose not to form a party again.

What had made the 29th-floor slime cave so difficult was not the lack of attack means, but because he himself was not weak.

“If it was a trial I couldn’t overcome alone, she would have told me to find a party now.”

Milena, too, was one of those who hoped she would pass the trial.

[You are challenging the thirtieth trial.]

From Noble mtl dot com

Thus, the thirtieth trial challenged alone.

The monster encountered there was of a type completely unrelated to magic, as hinted by Milena.

Kyaaah!!

Lizardman.

A monster in the shape of a lizard but with bipedal walking like a human.

A race consisting of very powerful warriors, each and every one of them.

They were considered to have no shortage of displaying the dignity of a boss room.

However.

[Name: Choi Kang Woo

Strength: 44.1 → 49.8 +(4)

Endurance: 23 → 31 +(2)

Agility: 19 → 28 +(2)

Intellect: 11 → 23

Mana: 22 → 29 +(2)]

From the 24th floor to the 29th floor. For Kang Woo, who acquired abnormal stats by overcoming six trials, this was a story that didn’t apply.

Kki-ee-ek-!!

[Trial terminated.]

[Contribution measurement for rewards begins.]

It was a bit bitter to think that in the trial on the 29th floor, only stamina increased by 4, agility by 4, and intellect by 9, as evidence of his hard work, but anyway.

Due to this, Kang Woo, who achieved rapid growth, easily cleared the trial on the 30th floor.

[Trial completion reward: 1,800 points]

[Monsters defeated, Lizardman Warrior 156⨉50 points]

[Lizardman Lord 1⨉215 points]

[Cleared the trial in a short time.]

[Great achievement. All rewards are doubled.]

[Total reward is 19,630 points.]

After breaking the boss room and collecting points, Kang Woo…

Instead of useless shoes worth 60 points, he repurchased the ‘Artisan’s Orc Lord Leather Shoes, Stamina +1,’ which had dissolved into slime’s mucilage, confidently protecting his feet.

[Purchased a superior healing potion.]

[You have purchased a high-grade healing potion.]

[A high-grade healing potion…

He repeatedly pressed the purchase button for the high-grade healing potion.

[Current Points: 570]

Is it the aftermath of the trial on the 29th floor, or should it be called trauma?

If the spatial ring didn’t have an ample supply of potions, his mind felt uneasy.

Thus, after enjoying a honey-like rest for a day, Kang Woo, with the four high-grade healing potions he had just purchased and the two intermediate healing potions from the 29th-floor safe zone neatly stored in the spatial ring,

Following Milena’s advice, he stepped into the trial’s door wearing a backpack and gloves.

Paaah.

[You have challenged the thirty-first trial.]

The trials from the 21st to the 30th floor seemed meticulously designed, resembling modern gates in their form.

Would the 31st floor follow a similar format? Or would a new trial begin?

With curiosity in his heart, Kang Woo faced the thirty-first trial.

Before his vision fully returned, he felt the hot and humid air piercing his skin and scratched his face.

How could he forget?

This air, as if merely breathing would dry up the esophagus.

As his vision frighteningly returned, he surveyed his surroundings. Lo and behold,

An endless expanse of desert greeted Kang Woo.

“A desert….”

Merely standing still in this scorching heat causes sweat to drip continuously. The blowing sand makes it difficult to keep your eyes open, and with every step, your feet sink deeply into the sand, draining your stamina like a punctured vessel. To encounter that desert again, where even simple movement saps your energy like venom escaping a bitten wound.

During the trial on the 23rd floor, enduring hardships in this beggar-like environment was inevitable, thanks to the giant scorpions that executed surprise attacks!

Once again, a trial unfolds against the backdrop of the desert!

“Wha….”

“Oh, hello.”

“…?!?!!”

Kang Woo, who was about to unleash a string of curses, stiffened at the voice coming from right behind him.

“What the hell?”

Is this an auditory hallucination?

He was certain he faced the trial alone.

In other words, hearing someone else’s voice shouldn’t be happening.

“What’s going on??”

So shocked that not a word escaped his lips.

His heart thumped, and every hair on his body stood on end.

Even when he realized that physical attacks didn’t work on slimes during the 29th-floor trial, he wasn’t this astonished.

While Kang Woo struggled to calm his heart, a voice from ‘someone’ behind him spoke again.

“Finally, the last person has arrived.”

What on earth?

The trial hasn’t even started yet. In other words, the probability of the entity behind him being a monster is close to zero.

“Could it really be a person…?”

Kangwoo’s head turned stiffly.

‘What is this, really?’

In Kangwoo’s eyes, turned away like that, appeared something.

People, four of them, looking at him, and they were people he had never seen before.

***

Having heard the situation explanation, Kangwoo calmed his surprised mind.

“So, this is all a situation created by the Tower, is that what you’re saying?”

“Yes, that’s right. I was really surprised the first time I came here, wondering what kind of situation it was again.”

In summary, it was like this.

Everyone here challenged the trial with their teams, but when they opened their eyes after the trial, they found unfamiliar faces instead of their teammates.

Probably, Kangwoo, who arrived here as the fifth person, appeared, and the system’s announcement was heard.

– [The quota has been fulfilled.]

– [The trial will begin in 20 minutes.]

When he thought about it.

The situation seemed clear that strangers were supposed to team up and clear the trial together.

‘…This isn’t good.’

To go through the trial with a hastily formed team set up by the Tower.

For Kangwoo, who had the ability to pass the trial with ease, it was no different from carrying four burdens on his back.

‘…Is this why they said to carry a backpack?’

Kangwoo couldn’t hide his shock at the sudden thought.

Carry the backpack and put on the gloves. I had been wondering why Milena gave me this advice since I heard it, but now that the current situation unfolded, her intention became clear.

The price of the interdimensional ring was a whopping 15,000 points.

Milena was clearly concerned that by possessing such a high-priced item, she might attract attention or become a target for looters.

‘…I should thank her when we meet next time.’

Given that the interdimensional ring worth 15,000 points was an item of a considerable amount that even ordinary people would notice, being cautious was the right thing to do.

With the uncertainty of how many more of these random party trials lie ahead, and not knowing if the current group would stick together until the 40th floor, it was even more crucial in the current situation.

“Well, even though we are a forcibly assigned team….”

The man’s voice concluded Rain’s brief contemplation.

‘These people are at least the ones who will face this trial together….’

Having completed his understanding of the situation, Rain quickly scanned the people who would challenge the trial together.

The first person that caught Rain’s eye was the man who had kindly explained the current situation to him when they entered the trial and was currently leading the situation with a loud voice.

‘Judging by the longsword hanging from his waist, he’s definitely a swordsman….’

From head to toe, items adorned his body: a steel helmet, steel shoulder guards, steel breastplate, and steel thigh guards.

The ordinary steel armor without any special effects cost between 500 to 700 points each. The longsword at his waist, with only a strength +2 enhancement effect, was a basic longsword in the 4,000-point range.

Even when adding up all the items from head to toe, it didn’t come close to the value of the ‘Sacred Morning Star’ stored in his interdimensional ring.

Rain made his judgment.

‘As long as we don’t die, it’s fortunate.’

Next, Rain’s eyes fell on a slightly lean man holding a long spear, guarding the surroundings.

‘What’s this? Do they know each other?’

The man with the spear had a similar demeanor to the previous swordsman, enough to prompt jokes about whether they frequented the same shop.

“…Since we have to go through this trial together, let’s at least exchange greetings-“

From the steel helmet to the steel thigh guards.

‘Is it a steel armor set trending on the tower?’

A man with a checked basic spear in the 4,000-point range and a gambler, inspecting everything from the steel helmet to the steel thigh guards.

Dismayed by the fact that there are two people to deal with this trial alone, Kang Woo turned his eyes to the next man he noticed.

‘A healer…??’

From the staff he’s holding to the cross necklace around his neck. In every aspect, he exuded the appearance of a healer.

‘The staff seems to be from the Square of Beginnings…. and the necklace is a 6,500-point one.’

A sacred cross necklace.

It was an item Kang Woo once had his eye on, known to increase healing abilities by 5% when worn.

To meet a healer in such a hastily assembled party. Unexpected luck.

‘Next is….’

Kang Woo’s gaze finally turned to the only woman in the party.

“-Then, assuming everyone agrees, please state your name, position, and disclose your abilities for an accurate power assessment. Thank you.”

Examining appearances to gauge power, Kang Woo…

‘… What is this?’

No matter how much he looked, he couldn’t guess the position.

Even though there’s a short sword hanging from the waist, it’s an ordinary sword with no apparent effect anywhere.

‘Such a weapon can’t be the main one… huh?’

Kang Woo’s gaze was fixed on one particular place.

The right hand of the woman held a ring with the same design as the one worn on Gangwoo’s finger, concealed beneath the glove.

[Basic Magic Power Ring of the Alter Wizards]

Finding one led to quickly discovering the other.

‘That too…!’

An earring with a red gem embedded within a golden frame.

This, too, was an item she had encountered before.

“Well then, let me start the introductions. I am-“

[Basic Magic Power Earring of the Alter Wizards]

Considering that these were items made by those called Alter Wizards, their prices were probably…

‘7,900 points.’

Wearing items totaling 14,000 points, and being a person who seemed to be a ‘wizard.’

‘Is it just good luck?’

Although the dealer was disappointed, there were wizards and healers who could compensate for that firepower.

The 31st-floor trial would be easily overcome. It was when Gangwoo felt relieved.

“I don’t like it.”

With a chilly tone, the words of the longsword man, who had been dominating the situation so far, abruptly stopped.

“Why should I reveal my stats to you guys, whom I don’t even know?”

In the hushed silence.

The woman, with her fists clenched and her chin raised, threw a straight punch at the longsword man.

“Wearing crappy items like that… tsk.”

The moment the temperature in the scorching desert plummeted to below freezing was upon us.