Si-woo screamed so hard it felt like his ribs might snap.
Or worse—he'd get kicked out of the café.
— STOOOOOOP!!!
The massive creature's beady eyes widened in shock. The goblin king's raised arm froze mid-air as he turned to see Il-seong land right on his head.
Completely paralyzed by the command, the boss couldn't react as the player pulled out a staff and rammed it into his eye.
The monster let out a blood-curdling shriek.
Its scream echoed through the chamber like nails scraping metal.
And yet, the goblin king didn't move. He stayed perfectly still—giving Il-seong the perfect opening to gouge out the second eye.
Now blind, the behemoth wept tears of thick, black blood.
Il-seong went berserk.
He struck.
Then struck again.
And again.
And again.
Something shifted inside him—something dark… and thrilling. The same twisted satisfaction he felt when fighting Jeunk returned, but amplified.
Crushing the strong… subjugating them through raw force… THIS is the best feeling ever! he thought with unhinged glee.
Unable to take any more punishment, the goblin king finally collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
Il-seong kept hammering down with his staff—until the boss's body dissolved into a swirl of dark mist.
[Player has defeated a D-Rank Boss.]
Mana Points Gained: +500
Si-woo choked on the juice he'd just taken a celebratory sip.
— Five hundred? For a D-Rank?!
He didn't even want to think about how much a B-Rank… or an A… or even an S-Rank might give.
Meanwhile, Il-seong looked... disappointed. There was no loot—just a teleportation stone. It had automatically appeared in the boss's corpse, as always. Si-woo hadn't had time to prep the goblin king with any drops—it had all happened too fast.
Still, Il-seong's frustration quickly vanished when he saw the reward notifications.
[Congratulations! You have cleared an E-Rank Dungeon.]
Your rewards: • Permanent 10% boost to one skill of your choice • Special Cure – Perception (removes one perception-related debuff) • Special Cure – Endurance (removes one endurance-related debuff)
Curious, Il-seong immediately activated the two cures.
A new window popped up:
[Congratulations! Debuffs "Poor Vision" and "Asthma" have been removed.]
In truth, his vision had grown hazy behind the cracked lenses of his battered glasses.
He removed them—
—and broke into tears.
He could see.
Everything.
Perfectly.
Every grotesque detail of the dungeon cave unfolded before his crystal-clear eyes, blurred only by the tears streaming down his face.
He felt free.
No more ugly plastic frames clinging to his face. No more thick lenses distorting the world.
And the breathing…
The crushing tightness that had haunted him since childhood—gone.
Like he'd finally broken out of a cage that was far too small for him.
No more doctors.
No more absurd medical costs.
Nothing would hold him back now.
He could feel it in his bones.
He was climbing toward the top.
Overflowing with emotion, he nearly forgot to check the rest of his rewards.
[Hidden Reward – "Brothers-in-Arms"]
Hidden Condition: Use the same weapon throughout the dungeonReward: You may keep the weapon in your inventory + all skills granted by the weapon become permanent, even when unequipped.
[Hidden Reward – "Wise Choice"]
Hidden Condition: Default Weapon Chosen – StaffReward: +10% Boost to all weapon-related skills
Il-seong could feel it—his power rising with every new message.
The system was rewarding him.
Soon… no one would be able to stop him.
Not even Jeunk.
He activated the teleportation stone and appeared back at the front of the rundown house. The sun was already high—it was mid-afternoon.
Too late to meet up with Si-woo before his parents return, Il-seong thought.I'll text him an apology later.
Meanwhile, Si-woo stretched, finally free from the tension that had been gripping his shoulders all morning.
— Time to clean up!
He wasn't just talking about the dungeon—but also the small booth he was in, which looked like a battleground of soda bottles and leftover lunch containers.
Fortunately, there was no need for Si-woo to physically enter the dungeon to retrieve his gear. With a single click, the contents of the chests spilled into his inventory. He only had to pass his hand through the interface window to collect them.
But just as he was about to dismantle the dungeon, a strange alert popped up:
[Warning! A monster still remains inside.]
Do you want to destroy it along with the dungeon? Yes / No
Si-woo leaned toward the monitor—and saw it.
Yoh was still there.
Frozen like a statue.
Weeping silently over the death of his king.
Both Il-seong and Si-woo had completely forgotten about the shaman during the chaos of the boss fight.
Despite everything the creature had done… Si-woo had to admit—the outcome hadn't been so bad.
Il-seong had gotten stronger.
And Si-woo had earned 500 mana points.
Not bad at all.
He clicked on [Info].
[Destroying a remaining monster will grant you its loot and corresponding mana points.]
Goblin Shaman (Boss Minion): +50 Mana
He typed in the chat.
So there were other worlds…
Si-woo stared at the devastated face of the shaman.Yoh trembled—barely—under the effects of the command, terrified of the decision that would seal his fate.
And once again… the Master saw himself in that pitiful expression.
Stripped of power. At the mercy of someone else's whim.No control over his own life.
He couldn't do it.
—I won't, he said aloud.
[Interface has awarded 1 point of "Big Heart" to Master Rain.]
— No 'Sentimentality' warning this time? Si-woo quipped as the dungeon dissolved into light.
No response came. he was used to.
He stood up, ready to gather his things—
—when a new notification popped up.
Even more surprising than the last.
[The Interface wants to increase its Affinity Level with you.]
Do you accept? Yes / No