Unique - (1)

[Chapter 22]

Halfway through the gate, right where the mid-boss monster, Cerberus of Hell, appeared.

The team of four, including Sanghyun, swept through the monsters with unstoppable force.

The Demon Ogres kept appearing, but they weren't particularly difficult to handle.

Above all, Sanghyun holding the center so steadily played a huge role.

Kim Miso recalled the time she had coordinated with Sanghyun before and analyzed his skills one by one.

"There's no point talking about Stiffness anymore; it's obvious. The most surprising part is your ultimate skill. What was it called again?"

"It's the Full Charge skill."

"Ah, Full Charge! That skill is really unique. You can move and attack simultaneously, and its power is incredible, isn't it?"

"Since I can trust the team, I'm able to use Full Charge a lot more aggressively."

"Exactly! I was thinking the same thing. Since you draw all the monsters' attention so effectively, it's super easy to aim for their blind spots!"

Clap, clap, clap!

Kim Miso clapped cheerfully, praising the satisfying teamwork with Sanghyun.

Not a single monster managed to slip past Sanghyun. No matter what happened, he always drew the monsters' attention toward himself.

Thanks to that, Kim Miso could focus on her arrow attacks, Kang Juhee could create spatial portals, and Park Taeseok could concentrate on igniting flames.

It was the first time they could engage in battle without any worries about the monsters.

"What was that skill earlier? You called it Psychedelic, right? When you used that, you really looked like a sword god straight out of a martial arts movie."

Park Taeseok gave Sanghyun a thumbs-up.

'Ah, come to think of it, Sword God So Hyeongjun hasn't finished his closed training yet. He'll probably appear within the year, and the entire landscape of Korean players will be reshaped.'

Sanghyun twitched his eyebrows at the mention of "Sword God" from Park Taeseok.

Sword God So Hyeongjun.

Sword Demon Do Kyungsoo.

Sword Saint Jeong Heeseon.

Sword Devil Dokgo Yoon.

Conductor of Blades Kang Boah.

These were players who would be fighting for the Top 5 swordsman spots in Korea within the next three years.

They were destined to become Sanghyun's rivals and obstacles to surpass.

Before his regression, those five were mountains Sanghyun couldn't even dare to look up at.

They lived in a different world, possessed different wealth and Artifacts, and were viewed differently by society.

But now, he felt like he had a real shot. His growth was accelerating rapidly.

He had to dominate the domestic scene first—only then could he aim for Asia, and eventually become a globally recognized name.

The growth and rewards he was achieving now were just baby steps when thinking about the future.

The road ahead was still long.

"I'm glad you made full use of my portals!"

Kang Juhee was also highly satisfied with Sanghyun's attention to detail and their fantastic team fights.

After all, he had used every portal she created—whether spontaneous or with hidden intentions.

They lured monsters with them, launched surprise attacks from behind, or even triggered infighting among the Ogres.

Throughout the battle, Sanghyun kept track of not only the monsters' movements but also every action and role of his teammates.

In his past life, this was something Sanghyun had always considered fundamental—he trained for it alone, even if no one else mentioned it.

A true team only mattered if every member could be utilized to their fullest. That had always been his belief.

"I'm just grateful you all kept up with my pace. And thank you for trusting me."

Sanghyun responded sincerely.

Without any prejudice about his level, the three of them had fully trusted him.

Even if they might have doubted him internally before entering the dungeon, there was no hint of it during battle.

They said meeting good teammates was both luck and a blessing—and in this case, it felt like fortune had smiled on him twice.

"Looks like we're here."

By then, Sanghyun's group had arrived at the mid-boss zone.

It was also the final point they had scouted in their pre-gate research.

Beyond the mid-boss monster, Cerberus of Hell, no one except Sanghyun had any information.

'If they just trust me... even the boss monster, Grizzly Big Bear, will be manageable.'

Sanghyun was confident.

But since he couldn't take down the boss alone, the synergy of all four members was crucial.

"Where should we start attacking Cerberus from?"

"It's going to be tough to pin him down—it goes wild like crazy. Should I set up some spatial portals in advance?"

"How about starting with a burst of fire to get his attention? If we ignite it first, that's a 100% success rate."

Each person posed questions or suggestions, shaping their strategy. They had discussed this during the briefing as well.

But Sanghyun already had the answer. More than just the answer—it was the simplest solution.

"Could you all wait for a moment? I think it'd be best if the three of you watched from that hill."

The spot Sanghyun pointed to was a hill beside a steep slope—a perfect vantage point to observe Cerberus.

It was too far for direct attacks but just the right distance to keep an eye on Cerberus' movements.

"Cerberus uses a pretty wide field. Isn't this spot too awkward for positioning?"

Kim Miso raised an objection to Sanghyun's suggestion. It was a valid point—if the fight was the focus, that is.

"Just watch."

"Just watch?"

"Trust me this once!"

Sanghyun pointed back and forth between himself and Cerberus, strongly asserting his intention for a one-on-one fight.

The three others, who hadn't heard anything about this during the briefing, were utterly bewildered.

For a brief moment, they even wondered—had Sanghyun lost his mind? That's how absurd it seemed.

But in Sanghyun's eyes, as he looked up at the sky, there was nothing but certainty.

■ Special Effect - Hour of the Dog and Wolf

■ Effect Description - When the moon is up, canine or wolf-type monsters will never attack a player who possesses the Blue Moonstone.

This was because of the special effect of the Hour of the Dog and Wolf, which had naturally been absorbed into his body after consuming the Blue Moonstone.

Nicknamed DogWolfTime.

True to this effect, the dungeon's time was currently evening. A brilliant full moon hung high in the sky, yet the evening sun still lingered in the west.

It was a sight that should have been impossible, but the dungeon's unique nature defied the laws of reality and created this breathtaking spectacle.

"Everyone, hold your position."

Sanghyun immediately charged down the slope toward Cerberus.

He rushed in, kicking up clouds of dust and making noise as he approached, but strangely enough, Cerberus showed no reaction.

Apparently, the position of Kim Miso, Kang Juhee, and Park Taeseok was outside of Cerberus' detection range—it didn't notice them either.

"What kind of sorcery is this?"

"Why isn't Cerberus recognizing Sanghyun?"

"Is it stealth? No, that can't be—it even has stealth detection."

They all wore expressions of utter confusion.

Sanghyun enjoyed watching his companions puzzle over the mystery as he got closer to Cerberus.

Still no reaction.

To Cerberus, Sanghyun wasn't perceived as an enemy due to the effect of the Blue Moonstone.

It didn't just view him as an ally—it recognized him as a superior being.

When Sanghyun arrived, all three of Cerberus' heads bowed low, submitting to him. It was obedience.

"Whew."

『Full Charge』

Sanghyun immediately activated Full Charge. Since it consumed only 1 mana per second while charging, it wasn't a burden.

Cerberus remained silent.

Even though Sanghyun stood right in front of it, switching his main weapon to a greatsword and charging up, Cerberus stayed still.

'How can a mid-boss monster become that docile?'

Kim Miso, watching the surreal scene, couldn't hide her shock.

This couldn't be real. Monsters were supposed to be extremely hostile toward players.

They even attacked their own kind without hesitation—so how could they possibly ignore the scent of a human?

Yet, to Cerberus, Sanghyun seemed like he didn't even exist.

It had to be the effect of some title—but what kind of title could possibly have that power?

Of course, that was a misunderstanding. The ability Sanghyun was using wasn't from a title but from an Artifact absorption effect.

At that moment—

Swish!

Even from afar, they could clearly see three streams of blood shooting up into the sky as all of

Cerberus' heads were severed simultaneously.

The cuts were so clean that the remaining neck bones and flesh looked like neatly trimmed meat.

"This is a legendary clear."

"I never even imagined this."

"It's not a matter of imagining or not—does that even make sense?"

The three teammates stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

The death of Cerberus, without even a single howl of pain, was utterly shocking.

While the team was still stunned—

Sanghyun cheerfully checked the title that had activated the moment he killed Cerberus.

He had anticipated it due to the monster's instant death, but it was even better than expected since it turned out to be a useful title.

[C-Rank Title, [Halving] has been granted.]

[Halving]

■ Title Rank: C-Rank

■ Title Description: Allows you to designate one skill and cut its cooldown time in half.

'This will go to Recovery.'

Sanghyun immediately linked the effect of the Halving title to Recovery.

For swordsmen exposed to multiple enemies or opponents, status conditions were always a headache.

That's why reducing the cooldown of the universal problem-solver, Recovery, was essential.

『Recovery』

■ Skill Level: Stage 1 (69.1%)

■ Skill Description: Instantly removes all status conditions affecting yourself.

Requires a 30-second cooldown for reuse.

'Perfect.'

The cooldown was now reduced to 30 seconds.

This made it possible to respond more proactively to dangerous situations, even preventing unpredictable variables.

'Sweet!'

Some might call him greedy, but he couldn't hide how good it felt.

Overjoyed was the perfect word for it.

Meanwhile, on Cerberus' corpse, something appeared—it looked like a chunk of ice about the size of a fist.

According to his contract with the Constellation Goddess of Luck, the drop rate for Artifacts from mid-boss monsters was 100%.

So whatever was in sight was undoubtedly an Artifact.

"Wait a minute!"

Kim Miso hurried over and called out to Sanghyun. Was she trying to claim ownership?

He wondered if she was going to demand a share after just watching—but from her first words, it was clear that wasn't the case.

"Since you took down Cerberus alone, we'll give you everything it dropped."

"Thank you. Is that something everyone agrees on?"

Sanghyun glanced at Kang Juhee and Park Taeseok, who both nodded enthusiastically.

"You cleared a huge obstacle by yourself. That alone is enough to be grateful for."

"I feel the same as Juhee. I'm not interested in the Artifact—I'm just curious how you managed to pull this off."

Everyone made it clear they had no intention of claiming the loot. Meanwhile, Kim Miso recorded the entire conversation.

It was with a Magic Stone recorder developed for use even inside dungeons.

"We always leave clear evidence for these matters. It's not just empty words—you can trust us."

"Thank you."

"We'll place a sign on Cerberus' corpse with your name on it. When the porters come to collect it, they'll separate your share accordingly."

Sanghyun was satisfied with how efficiently Kim Miso handled things.

"Why don't we scout ahead for a bit? That way, you can check the Artifact without distractions!"

As Kim Miso and the others moved forward, Sanghyun immediately picked up the Artifact.

Since they had been considerate enough to give him space, he intended to make the most of it.

This Artifact, called Frozen Heart, was similar to the Crimson Stone he had seen before.

Bio-based Artifacts like this weren't new to him—but what caught Sanghyun's attention was something else.

「Frozen Heart」

■ Artifact Grade: Gold

■ Artifact Description: An extreme chill originating from the frozen hell resides in the heart, ready to freeze the world.

■ Evasion +10

■ Defense +10

■ Special Effect - Freezing

It was the special effect that stood out.

Freezing!

Another status condition capable of affecting enemies and monsters.