It’s an Academic Fact That Rankers Are Model Students – Chapter 78

Chapter 78: About That Time When I Went to the Dungeon and There Was a Paladin (3)

[Rare Skill 『Multi-Casting (Lv.7)』 ]

[Rare Skill 『Fine Mana Manipulation (Lv.9)』 ]

[Advanced Skill 『Spell Modification (Lv.8)』 ]

[General Skill 『Energy Bolt (Lv.10)』 ]

[15 sharply honed Energy Bolts]

Azure spikes lined up in the air.

The same color as the Energy Bolt from before.

They surged towards the slimes.

Pwoop! Pwoop! Pwoop!!

Exactly one awl per slime.

Without a single inch of error, all of them pierced through the cores and slammed into the ground.

Heuneuleog~ Heuneuleog~ Heuneuleog~

All fifteen remaining slimes collapsed to the ground without even a scream.

“Gotcha.”

Kyung-joon picked up all the slime cores on the ground and put them in his inventory.

Then, with a satisfied look, he said,

“That taunt skill of yours is pretty good. It can buff and debuff. It made them really easy to hit.”

“……. “

DPSPaladin, unable to believe the sight before him, just gaped, unable to utter a single word.

Not that he could speak anyway due to being chat-banned.

The picket on his back that read 『Ah, so this is how you raid.』

It suddenly felt incredibly embarrassing.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

“Damn it! Damn it! Daaamn iiiiit!!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Limurimu pounded on his desk.

Static. Sizzle.

Once again, the crystal ball only emitted noise.

Kyung-joon had easily cleared the Bouncy Slime and found and destroyed the video memory stone again.

“Ugh! To think he cleared it that easily……! And that look he gave me! Was he laughing at me?! Damn that human!”

If Kyung-joon had waved at the video the first time.

This time, he gave a V sign.

With the corpse of the Bouncy Slime as a backdrop.

It was a tremendous insult to Limurimu, the dungeon master.

Bang!

Limurimu slammed his fist on the desk once more with all his might.

“Damn it…… My hand hurts.”

The tingling sensation in his hand brought Limurimu back to his senses somewhat.

Right, it wasn’t that unbelievable.

Bouncy Slimes weren’t that hard to catch if you had decent accuracy and enough piercing power.

Other adventurers had cleared it in a reasonable amount of time.

It’s just that the wizard in the beginner’s clothes cleared it way too easily and quickly……

“……It’s fine. The second gate is much harder. Hahaha.”

The Bouncy Slime was only the first gate of this dungeon.

The slime that appears at the second gate is the Acid Slime!

It’s a slime that has 『acidic properties』 that are on a whole other level compared to regular poison slimes.

The nature of acid is that it corrodes any armor or weapon, rapidly depleting its durability.

That paladin, covered head to toe in plate mail, would be in for a tough time.

Moreover.

“The 『explosive property』 that Acid Slimes possess! Even if that wizard somehow manages to deal with them all, there’s no way he’ll escape unscathed! Hahaha!”

It seems like his magic skills are quite something, but with those beginner’s clothes, he wouldn’t have any decent defense.

Even if he somehow survived the acidic explosion, it wouldn’t matter.

Thanks to all the Acid Slimes that have died over the years, the path from there on is all a path of potent acid.

Just walking, just breathing, would continuously drain his HP.

If there was a priest, they could endure it to some extent with continuous healing, but the party only consisted of a wizard and a paladin.

With the paladin’s meager healing, it would be impossible to maintain a proper state.

“With a body worn down and exhausted, no adventurer can withstand the King Slime! Haha! Hahahahahaha!”

Just imagining them getting annihilated by his slimes made him laugh uncontrollably.

“Hehehe…… They’ve reached the second gate. That confident look of his ends here.”

Limurimu looked at the crystal ball showing the second gate.

And he waited.

For the sight of them melting away in agony.

That’s when it happened.

“Huh?”

Fwoosh!

Rain suddenly began to fall inside the crystal ball.

“Sudden rain inside the labyrinth? Weather magic……? Is he trying to weaken the acid somehow with water? Hmph, as if that would work.”

Scoff.

Limurimu scoffed, thinking it was a futile struggle.

“Tsk, what a shame. I wanted to see them suffer a little more. They’ll melt away in an instant.”

On the contrary, that action would only melt the acid stuck to the ground, causing even more damage.

Furthermore, the dungeon’s interior was narrow, so they would be swept away by the acidic currents they created, only shortening their own lives.

It was a truly foolish act.

However, quite interestingly……

“……Kuheook! Cough! W, What’s going on?!”

Sizzle~!

What melted weren’t the paladin and the wizard…

“No! Why are my slimes melting instead of them?!”

It was his Acid Slimes.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

[Unique Skill 『Rain of Sodium Hydroxide (Lv.1)』 ]

Fwoosh!

Sizzle~!

━S, Sslaaaaaat?!

The Acid Slimes hit by the Rain of Sodium Hydroxide melted away like zombies exposed to sunlight.

Originally, their 『explosive property』 should have activated just before death, but it was impossible for the slimes that were instantly neutralized and no longer acidic.

All they could do was spit out salt water according to the rule of 『acid + base → water + salt』.

“That’s it.”

Billow, swoosh.

The moment the neutralization reaction stopped, Kyung-joon withdrew the Rain of Sodium Hydroxide.

If he poured any more, the neutralized acidic path would turn into an alkaline path.

Moderation was key in everything.

Kyung-joon spoke to DPSPaladin, who was still stunned and speechless.

“Come on, let’s keep going.”

『Understood.』

Splish, splash.

They walked forward, stepping on the puddle-filled ground.

Unlike before, there was no more sizzling sound of his plate greaves corroding.

Because it was just water now.

It was an unbelievable sight for DPSPaladin.

‘T, The acid is gone…?’

The second gate of the Slime Labyrinth, which had tormented countless players so far.

Even if they somehow managed to defeat all the Acid Slimes, the acidic path created by their corpses was a real pain.

Of course, if there was a priest, they could cope with it to some extent with continuous healing, but the mana consumption during that time was no joke.

It was a very painful consumption considering the King Slime boss raid that awaited them next.

That’s why usually, experienced parties brought two healers: a main healer priest and a supporter who could act as an auxiliary healer.

But with this boy, they didn’t need a priest or a supporter.

Because he completely neutralized the acid itself!

‘Besides, how much mana does he have? No matter how much magic he uses, it never seems to run out……?’

Fwoosh, sizzle~!

Every time the acidic path and Acid Slimes appeared, Kyung-joon would make it rain, neutralizing them.

He didn’t know much about magic, but he knew that wide-range magic like that usually consumed a lot of mana.

But no matter how much magic he used, there was no sign of mana exhaustion or him drinking a mana potion.

The only thing he had eaten was a plain-looking loaf of bread back at the dungeon entrance.

‘Could that bread be the one sold by the World’s Best Guild? But I heard they discontinued it…… What in the world……?’

From the moment he entered the dungeon, claiming there were surveillance cameras and immediately finding and destroying them, everything he had shown was beyond extraordinary.

Every single action defied common sense.

On the other hand, he was a ranker, ranked 6th, about to surpass level 250, yet he was only showing a pathetic side of himself.

‘Ugh…… This won’t do. I wanted to show the boy a cool side of me, but instead, I’m being overwhelmed.’

If he continued to show this incompetent side of himself, he could forget about becoming friends later.

Still, there was still a chance for redemption.

‘The boss monster that appears at the final third gate, the King Slime.’

The King Slime was a far more powerful being than any other slime they had encountered so far.

So much so that DPSPaladin couldn’t clear it alone.

But with Kyung-joon, it was different.

‘If my damage, healing, tanking, and the boy’s abilities are combined, it will be tough, but we can definitely defeat it.’

It was often said that true bonds were formed when they joined forces and overcame battles together.

As the saying goes, all’s well that ends well, this time, he would definitely show a good side of himself!

‘I will win the boy’s heart……!’

With a burning passion in his heart, DPSPaladin followed behind Kyung-joon.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

Static. Sizzle.

The crystal ball was again showing nothing but static.

Kyung-joon had easily cleared the second gate and destroyed the video memory stone.

“Damn it! Damn it! Daaamn iiiiit!!”

Limurimu was so furious that he threw the crystal ball away.

Crash!

The innocent crystal ball shattered into pieces.

Each and every shard felt like it was mocking him.

“What in the…… What was that strange rain……! Why did the Acid Slimes melt?!”

Limurimu couldn’t understand what had happened.

He didn’t know the exact definition of acid and base, nor did he know about neutralization reactions.

If he had at least thought of lye, he would have understood, but in his current state, he had no time for such thoughts.

Bang!

Limurimu slammed his fist on the desk.

His hand throbbed in pain, but he clenched his fist and muttered under his breath.

“King Slime…… Yes, the King Slime will be fine…… It’s not an Acid Slime, but it’s the one that embodies the essence of a slime.”

The essence of a slime.

There were several aspects to it.

The ability to regenerate endlessly as long as the core wasn’t destroyed!

The rubbery resilience that deflected physical and heat attacks!

The King Slime was the epitome of these two characteristics.

Its massive size, overwhelming at first glance, was also one of its defining traits.

As a result, even most piercing attacks couldn’t penetrate its entire body and ended up getting swallowed whole.

“Moreover, the core doesn’t just sit still, it moves around inside its body. And it can freely stretch its body, unleashing devastating attacks!”

Hitting a core that moved erratically within the body during an intense battle?

It was next to impossible.

There had been a few instances where adventurers managed to defeat it after hours of struggle, but it always took dozens of attempts.

It wasn’t that bad.

In fact, it was good.

He could seize a lot of items during those attempts, and it greatly contributed to his slime research.

It was profitable.

But not now.

They were already approaching the boss room, and he had gained nothing but lost a bunch of precious slimes.

The powerful acidic path he had painstakingly created had turned into a mere water path.

Running a dungeon was a business, and the losses incurred because of that one guy were no joke.

So he couldn’t help but be angry.

“I have no choice but to use this……!”

Limurimu exclaimed and took something out of his inventory.

It was a slime.

[Reinforced Food Slime]

▶A slime made by mixing the food that slimes love. Slimes that eat this will have all their abilities increased by 20% for a certain amount of time.

A hole in the wall that seemed impossible for a human to pass through.

Limurimu placed the Reinforced Food Slime there.

“Hehehe…… Go on. Go and become a fine nutrient for the King Slime.”

━Slaa~ Slaa~

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The Reinforced Food Slime bounced vigorously and disappeared beyond the hole.

This hole led to the King Slime.

The plan was to strengthen the King Slime more than usual and have it crush the wizard and the paladin.

“I’ll definitely get my revenge in the boss room! Haha! Hahahahahaha!”

An underground laboratory somewhere.

Limurimu’s sinister laughter echoed throughout the place.

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