The air inside the Rank-E Dungeon smelled like wet dog and bad decisions. Specifically, my bad decisions.
"Han-Gul! If you drop that crate of mana-stones, I'm deducting the cost from your pay! And believe me, you're already making less than the guy who cleans the Guild's toilets!"
I winced as Team Leader Kim's voice echoed through the damp cavern. I shifted the heavy wooden crate on my back, my knees popping like bubble wrap. "Got it, Boss! Crystals are safe! My spine, however, is filing a formal protest!"
I gave a shaky thumbs-up, trying to keep the mood light. That was my role in the 'Iron Fist' raiding party. I wasn't the tank, the healer, or the DPS. I was the Porter. The guy who carried the snacks, the spare gear, and the heavy loot.
At twenty-one years old, my "Awakening" had been a bit of a letdown. While others got [Fireball] or [Super Strength], I got a passive skill called [Basic Catalog].
[Skill: Basic Catalog (Rank E)] Description: Allows the user to see the names and ranks of active skills used by others within a 10-meter radius.
It was basically a "Spectator Mode" for real life. I could see that Team Leader Kim was currently using [Hard Strike (Rank D)] to pummel a Giant Toad, but knowing the name of the move didn't stop the toad from being terrifying.
"Watch out, Gul!"
A blur of silver flashed past my ear. Thwip! A spear tip, moving so fast it hummed, pierced a smaller toad that had been sneaking up on my left. The monster was pinned to the cave wall instantly.
Standing there, holding the end of the spear with effortless grace, was Jin-Woo. My best friend since kindergarten and the only reason I hadn't been fired yet. He was a "Genius Spearman," a Rank-C Hunter who was already being scouted by the big guilds. He was tall, sharp-eyed, and currently looking at me with a mixture of pity and amusement.
"Stay behind me, you idiot," Jin-Woo said, though he was smiling. "If you die, who's going to help me with my math homework?"
"Hey! I helped you once in the third grade, and we both got Cs!" I shouted back, tripping over a loose rock.
The raid continued deeper into the "Toad's Grotto." Usually, E-Rank dungeons were a walk in the park for a guy like Jin-Woo, but something felt off. The walls were pulsing with a strange, violet light.
"Wait," Jin-Woo stopped, his spear leveling horizontally. His "Genius" intuition was screaming. "The mana density... it's spiking. Team Leader! We need to pull back!"
"Nonsense!" Kim laughed, his ego inflated by the easy kills. "It's just a mana vein. More loot for us!"
Then, the floor vanished.
A massive tongue, wider than a man, shot out from the darkness of a pit. It didn't aim for the combatants. It aimed for the heavy, clattering crate on my back.
"WAAAAAH!"
I didn't even have time to drop the crate. The tongue wrapped around me and the box like a gift-wrapped present and yanked us into the abyss.
"HAN-GUL!" Jin-Woo's scream was the last thing I heard before the darkness swallowed me.
I fell for what felt like years, though it was probably only three seconds. I landed on something soft, wet, and smelling of rot. My crate shattered, spilling mana-stones and "Skill Skill Books"—low-tier trash drops that the Guild usually sold for pennies—all over the floor.
I groaned, my vision swimming. A blue box flickered in front of my eyes.
[Warning: Health at 4%] [Condition: Internal Bleeding, Bone Fractures, Mild Concussion.] [User is... remarkably durable for someone so clumsy.]
"Shut up, System," I wheezed, coughing up a bit of blood. "Even my own status screen is roasting me."
I looked up. In front of me was the "Boss" of this hidden floor. It wasn't a toad. It was a [Corrupted Chimera (Rank B)]. A lion's head, a goat's body, and a snake for a tail. It looked at me like I was a snack that had delivered itself.
I reached out blindly, my hand landing on two things. One was a discarded Skill Book: [Sprint (Rank F)]. The other was a broken fragment of a defensive crystal: [Stone Skin (Rank F)].
Suddenly, my [Basic Catalog] skill started to glitch. The blue text turned a violent, glitchy gold.
[Hidden Condition Met: Experience the 'Abyss' while holding multiple skill essences.] [Basic Catalog is evolving...] [New Unique Class Detected: The Synthesis Architect (Rank ???)]
"Synthesis... what now?" I blinked.
[Skill Synthesis Initialized.] [Select components for Fusion:]
[Sprint (Rank F)]
[Stone Skin (Rank F)]
[Success Rate: 100% (First Time Bonus)] [Would you like to Fuse? Y/N]
The Chimera roared, its snake-tail snapping at my face.
"YES! DO IT! MIX THEM! BLEND THEM! JUST HELP!" I screamed.
[Synthesis Complete!] [New Skill Acquired: Kinetic Bulwark (Rank D - Growth Type)] Description: Converts forward momentum into physical hardness. The faster you move, the more indestructible you become.
The snake-tail struck my chest.
CLANG!
Instead of piercing my heart, the tail hit me like it had struck an anvil. The force of the blow sent me flying backward. Usually, hitting a wall at that speed would turn me into a Han-Gul pancake.
But as I flew, the skill activated. The momentum of being hit turned my back into solid diamond.
BOOM!
I smashed into the stone wall. The wall shattered. I bounced off the rubble, completely unhurt, and landed on my feet.
"Oh..." I looked at my glowing hands, then at the Chimera. My brain, slow as it was, finally put two and two together. "I don't have to run away anymore."
I looked at the pile of trash Skill Books that had spilled from my crate. [Basic Cooking], [Dull Blade], [Tailoring]...
A slow, slightly dim-witted grin spread across my face.
"I wonder what happens if I fuse 'Cooking' with the Chimera's 'Fire Breath'?"
Up above, I could hear Jin-Woo shouting, probably preparing to jump down and save me. He didn't know that his "dummy" best friend had just found the ultimate cheat code.