To be frank, I think I underestimated dodging arrows. I admit it.
Firstly, I don't have much combat experience. So, dodging arrows wasn't something I was used to.
What does that mean? Looking back, all my fights ended in a single blow. Given my situation where a mere graze would cause me to regress, I avoided prolonged battles and chose only those where I could swiftly defeat the enemy.
My only real melee combats were against weak goblins. Whether it was mutant goblins, thugs with telekinesis, the tutorial's Minotaur, or even the lord of the 2nd floor city, all were defeated in one shot. It might sound funny, but I haven't fully utilized my body's capabilities.
But being overly confident, I started all this thinking, "How hard could it be?". And as a result, I realized how inadequate I was.
The initial part of the corridor was manageable thanks to my physical prowess. But from the middle onwards, problems arose.
Arrows came from all directions: front, back, left, right, even from above and below. With almost no warning, arrows would shoot from everywhere. Magic or whatever caused flames to emerge from the walls, blinding me.
"Ugh!"
My physically superior body could detect where the arrows were coming from in a split second, but my feet got tangled.
The gravity on my body pressed down on my ankles, and the ligaments in my ankles twisted in an unnatural direction...
[You have taken damage.]
[You will regress to the moment you first entered floors 3-5.]
I regressed.
[You have taken damage.]
[You will regress to the moment you first entered floors 3-5.]
I regressed again.
[You have taken damage.]
[You will regress to the moment you first entered floors 3-5.]
And again, I regressed.
"Damn, damn, damn..."
The problem isn't just my body.
Actually, navigating the corridor was a success. As I kept regressing, I was steadily making progress.
Even if arrows came in extremely difficult patterns, I could withstand them since I knew they were coming. I could throw a shield on the ground in advance, or wear a double layer of leather armor to crudely block them.
"... Are you okay?"
"No."
The problem is the time spent walking in the cave right now.
If I had only been navigating the corridor, I would have been relatively fine. The issue was the time it took to get to the 'arrow trap'.
Emerging from the cave, greeting people, picking up weapons, walking the corridor, finishing preparations, successfully strategizing against the wolves, persuading people for the mirror maze, passing through the mirror maze, and finally reaching the arrow trap.
Though I didn't have a clock, it must've been at least 3 hours. I had to repeat the same actions for 3 hours every time I regressed.
It felt like I had regressed at least 10 times, which means I had been repeating the same actions for 30 hours. My mental strength was draining in real-time.
But I was still doing alright because I felt my movements improving and I was making progress step by step. This little sense of accomplishment helped me endure the next 3 hours.
You're doing fine. You're making progress.
I regressed 20 times.
Now, I felt like I somewhat understood the rules of this trapped corridor.
Firstly, the trap is triggered when stepping on the floor. And once stepped on, that spot is safe.
And as you progress, the traps get more cunning.
Initially, only arrows would shoot, but at some point, flames started bursting out, and just now, thin needles were released. It's so unfair in this dark corridor.
Still, I kept moving forward. I can do this.
About 40 regresses later.
I found myself longing for the flash spear I used on the 2nd floor.
I vividly remember how Lord Rehit controlled my mana, but I couldn't do it myself. It felt tingly and ineffective. If I had known, I would have thoroughly learned how to manipulate mana.
If I had the flash spear, I could've just zoomed through. Then I wouldn't have to deal with all this.
Now, it feels like I'm nearing the end of the corridor's midsection. Just now, the floor suddenly flipped, revealing sharp spikes. It was so damn unfair, but with no one to complain to, after regressing, I just screamed like a madman. Kangchan looked at me with a disdainful gaze.
70? 80? I can't quite remember. Anyway, I've regressed many times.
This round, I tried to lie down and rest, but had to move because of Ankyungjoon's persistence.
"...Hey."
"...Yes?"
"Try this."
Maybe it was because Ankyungjoon looked a bit naive.
In my somewhat muddled state, I decided to push Ankyungjoon into the trap.
The moment Ankyungjoon, who had been invigorated by Kangchan's force, stepped into the corridor, arrows flew from all directions.
"...!"
He managed to dodge the early corridor traps with his instinctual reflexes, but as the number of arrows increased and their timing became more unpredictable, even the strong Ankyungjoon had his limits.
"...Hmm."
In the midst of the rain of arrows, Ankyungjoon managed to block what he could and dodge the rest. However, faint wounds appeared here and there on his body.
"...It's poison."
The guy wielding the wooden spear confidently stated it was poison, and I trusted his judgment.
"It's not lethal. It's a paralyzing poison. But it accumulates over time."
Indeed, I then understood the intention behind this trapped corridor.
The arrow tips felt blunt. Even if hit directly, it would injure but not kill.
Perhaps the designer of this trap hoped that people would work together to navigate it. Before too much poison accumulated, they would take turns to tackle the corridor.
"Ah, it hurts..."
As soon as the effect wore off, Ankyungjoon was rubbing his arm and making a fuss.
"...Kyungjoon."
"...Yes?"
"Thank you."
I felt Ankyungjoon could help in navigating the latter half of the corridor. It's a significant gain.
I've regressed over a hundred times. After that, I stopped counting.
"Heh, hehe..."
I sprinted through the corridor with my eyes closed.
By now, I could dodge the early and mid-trap sections with my eyes closed. The entirety of the 3-hour cave walk was dedicated to mental training, so even with my eyes shut, I could visualize the trajectory of the arrows.
Arrows, flames, poisonous needles, spikes, spears, and sudden floor gaps — these traps were no longer my adversaries. The latter section, which spat out countless needles, was challenging, but... I left that to Ankyungjoon. Watching him use his spear as a rotating shield was awe-inspiring.
Step by step, with confidence, I moved forward.
Surrounded by a barrage of arrows and smoothly dodging them, not a single arrow touched me.
It was a result of the perfect posture, apt body movements, and balanced strength.
Finally, no more arrows came.
I took a step forward with a smile.
There was no familiar mechanical click.
"...Ah."
The floor's texture had changed. It wasn't the smooth stone of the trapped corridor but the damp, slippery ground of a cave.
The trapped corridor had ended.
"...Did I pull it off?"
Looking at my left hand, I shook my head.
After countless attempts, I fully understood my body. I had gained invaluable real-world experience in evasion.
With the insurance of regression and the added spice of my astonishing agility, if I can get a striking power like Kangchan's... I would be invincible.
"Heh, hehehe..."
I laughed in a manly manner and turned to look at the other party members.
"What the..."
"...That's impossible."
Kangchan, trying to hide his astonishment but failing, Dok Soohee with wide, shocked eyes, and Ankyungjoon, covering his mouth in disbelief.
From their perspective, I must've looked like an overpowered character. Dodging countless traps with ease and confidently moving forward.
Of course, behind the scenes, it was thanks to my hundreds of hours of effort and my outstanding physical abilities due to my achievement levels... but there's no need to mention that.
"Now, just step where I stepped and cross."
I encouraged the other party members with a smile. "...”
However, the others just stood still, staring intently at my face.
"...Why are you all looking like that?"
"Junho... how do you remember where you stepped?"
"...Ah."
[Damage received.]
[Returning to the initial entry point of the 3-5th floor.]
End.
After a rather comical process of marking where I stepped using wolf's blood smeared on the bottom of my leather boots, our party of four successfully navigated through the arrow trap.
Ankyungjoon suffered minor injuries while blocking the darts, but they weren't severe.
We cleared the arrow corridor without Kangchan's fist.
My efforts finally bore fruit.
"Wow, that's truly impressive... Look at this dart... it's dripping with some kind of liquid..."
"I felt like I was watching a movie..."
Dok Soohee and Ankyungjoon showered me with compliments. These weren't just empty words; they were genuine expressions of admiration.
However, for some reason, I didn't feel particularly happy.
Strangely subdued.