The Return of the Genius Ranker of All Times

For a moment, he couldn’t grasp the situation.

‘Slayer? Location?’

After a brief pause, he quickly pieced things together.

It was the second ability of the Slayer trait.

He recalled the effect that allowed him to pinpoint the location of monsters classified under the Slayer title type.

It had been so long since it had last activated that he had forgotten about it.

It wasn’t the method he had hoped for, like the Eye of Truth, but it still worked to reveal a location.

‘But why?’

The message’s sudden appearance was puzzling.

The Slayer title only applied to certain types of monsters, and he didn’t possess a Slayer title related to spiders.

There was only one possible explanation that came to mind.

‘Could it be…?’

The only Slayer-related title Do-hyeon owned was the legendary title, “The First Slayer.”

‘Does this apply to all bosses, not just the ones devoured by me?’

When he discovered hidden information during the Jihad, he had assumed the effect only applied because he had consumed the goblin.

That interpretation seemed more balanced, after all.

…Yes, that made sense.

‘What kind of unbalanced game is this? Even for a legendary title, this is ridiculous.’

If he had acquired more legendary titles, he might have understood sooner.

In DemRock, legendary titles were incredibly rare, so he hadn’t expected such overwhelming performance.

‘Or is it? Considering you need the Slayer trait for it to work properly…’

It was like a synergy effect.

When viewed individually, the Slayer trait and the First Slayer title were understandable.

But when combined, they became an absurdly overpowered ability.

It could be justified as conditionally overpowered in terms of balance…

‘Hmm, maybe. But it’s still broken.’

Even with the reasoning, a cheat was still a cheat.

No matter how much one tried to sugarcoat it, it was a cheat—a cheat that was remarkably beneficial in this situation.

[Do you wish to confirm the location of the field boss, “Spider Queen Elisa”?]

‘Yes.’

As soon as he agreed, the minimap at the bottom of the screen changed.

Previously, the small square map only displayed Do-hyeon’s position as a blue dot.

Now, a large crimson dot was added.

‘Huh?’

However, its location was strange.

‘Why is it overlapping with mine?’

The blue dot representing Do-hyeon’s position.

The crimson dot was overlapping with it.

And then he saw it.

[The Eye of Truth activates.]

A twitch.

Beneath the ground, where there had been nothing moments ago, a massive red silhouette began to stir.

It was unmistakably in the shape of a spider.

The massive red form slowly moved to the left.

‘No way.’

Driven by instinct, Do-hyeon activated a skill.

‘Backstab.’

[You have used Backstab.]

The moment the skill activated, Do-hyeon’s figure disappeared.

“Huh? What the?”

“What’s wrong?”

A Warrior player standing nearby flinched, prompting a Mage player next to him to tilt his head in confusion.

The Warrior glanced around cautiously before speaking.

“Well… There was a guy standing next to me just now, but he suddenly disappeared.”

“Probably gave up and logged out. If he was standing alone here during a field boss hunt, he must’ve failed to find a party.”

“Maybe… Oh, now that I think about it, there was a kid next to him earlier.”

“A kid? This game is rated 18+. It was probably just a short woman. Anyway, focus. There are only 30 seconds left.”

“Y-yeah, got it.”

In the highly competitive Raven field boss hunt, dropouts weren’t uncommon.

Shrugging off their curiosity, the players refocused on the spiderweb.

Only 10 seconds remained.

Uncertain where the boss would spawn, they prepared to react.

[Time remaining for the field boss to respawn: 00:00:00.]

As the final seconds ticked away, the moment of respawn arrived!

The players, including the pair, scanned their surroundings.

“Where is it?”

“It’s not in the east! What about your side?”

“No, nothing here either…”

“Not in the west.”

“What? It’s not in the north either?”

Chaos ensued.

The field boss didn’t appear even after the respawn time passed.

Confused and dumbfounded, they stared blankly at the spiderweb.

For the first time in Raven’s history, the field boss had been stolen.

* * *

At the same time.

[You have used Backstab.]

[A mark has been placed.]

-…What?

The Spider Queen Elisa froze at the sudden presence behind her.

In her vision stood a single human.

A man dressed in mostly red with hints of blue paint and holding a moderately thick iron sword.

“Wow… This actually worked?”

It was Do-hyeon.

He had used the skill on a whim after spotting the silhouette, thinking it might be possible, and it actually succeeded.

Even as he saw it happen, he could hardly believe it.

It wasn’t even the same space, yet he had used a movement skill across a surface.

‘Theoretically, it makes sense.’

The range of Backstab was based on visible targets.

And Do-hyeon had seen the enemy as a red silhouette.

Purely based on the conditions, it was a perfect fit—although, under normal circumstances, the idea was absurd.

‘Hah… I’m probably the only person who’s used Backstab like this.’

Even Do-hyeon, who had just pulled it off, felt somewhat dumbfounded.

Still, he could vaguely grasp the principle behind it.

It seemed that as the Slayer trait revealed the boss’s position, the game considered the hidden enemy as being in stealth, triggering the Eye of Truth.

And once the enemy was revealed, Backstab could be used.

– Master, how did you do that?

“It’s complicated to explain, but just know it’s insanely good.”

– Okay.

Do-hyeon brushed off the question, and Jihad nodded in understanding.

While the explanation was brief, there wasn’t a better way to describe it from Do-hyeon’s perspective.

[You have encountered the field boss, “Spider Queen Elisa,” in the western forest.]

[Defeating her upon first encounter will activate the “Devour” effect.]

[You are the first to enter Spider Queen Elisa’s movement tunnel.]

[Special benefits are applied to the first discoverer.]

[The density of the essence orb from the field boss “Spider Queen Elisa” increases.]

[Drop rates are increased by 30%.]

[Experience points are increased by 30%.]

[The sudden relocation of the area has summoned the Guardian to this position.]

‘If this isn’t insanely good, what is?’

As a reward for being the first discoverer, all his stats had increased, along with improved drop rates and enhanced essence orb rewards.

While it wasn’t guaranteed equipment like before, the increased density meant better rewards upon harvesting, which was satisfying.

‘Even just the stat boost from the first-discovery reward is substantial.’

Could anyone have gained as much as Do-hyeon in this area?

– Elisa!

The Spider Queen Elisa let out a piercing scream, pulling Do-hyeon’s attention away from his thoughts and back to her.

His first impression upon seeing her?

‘She’s absurdly huge.’

It was almost hard to believe she was a spider, given her overwhelming size.

She was comparable to a playground slide—or perhaps the massive tarantula he once saw in a foreign movie.

The next thing he noticed was that she wasn’t as grotesque as he expected.

Was it the combination of her pure white fur and her imposing size?

The fur, surprisingly long and silk-like, softened the usual repulsive feeling associated with insects.

– Elisa, Elisa!

However, despite her elegant appearance, her two crimson eyes shone fiercely, exuding a dangerous aura.

Perhaps it was the sight of her shouting “Elisa” over and over like someone under the influence that heightened the eerie feeling.

[HP: 40,000 / 40,000]

‘Forty thousand, huh… Enough to test things out.’

Her HP was a good enough amount to gauge the performance of his new skills and items.

Grinning, Do-hyeon swung the Bastard’s Training Sword in the air.

The sharp slicing sound as it cut through the air was satisfying.

‘This feels more familiar.’

Although Do-hyeon could wield any weapon, he had always been most comfortable with quick swords of this size.

– Elisa!!

The Spider Queen Elisa made the first move.

Simultaneously, she slammed down her two front legs from her eight pairs, their speed and power immense.

Crash!

Do-hyeon sidestepped, and the legs pierced the ground like drills.

Using the embedded legs as support, Elisa lunged her massive body forward.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Sharp, spear-like legs continuously stabbed at Do-hyeon, but he remained unperturbed.

He was calm enough to analyze her status window.

[Spider Queen Elisa]

– Title: Elite Field Boss

– Type: Spider

– Traits: Steel Web, Deadly Venom, Spider Sense

– Description: Ruler of the western forest, Spider Queen Elisa.

A cunning predator, she drives her prey to her desired location and eliminates them instantly.

Her potent venom, webs stronger than steel, and sharp spider senses make her difficult to capture alone.

‘So, this is her sharp spider sense.’

Indeed, her reflexes were exceptional.

Unlike other bosses, Elisa was dodging the strikes Do-hyeon occasionally aimed at her front legs.

Her agility seemed high, but it wasn’t just about speed.

She was predicting the attack paths and evading them.

With reflexes like this, most melee damage dealers would struggle to land proper hits in a one-on-one fight.

Still, at best, it meant she was slightly better at dodging than other bosses.

Whoosh—Crunch!

– Elisa, Elisa, Elisa!

However, she hadn’t landed a single hit on Do-hyeon.

If he advanced, she bared her venomous fangs, and if he retreated, she stomped with her spear-like legs.

Yet, he didn’t allow a single clean hit.

As the two exchanged attacks without landing any, Do-hyeon made up his mind.

‘This should do.’

Glancing around briefly, he nodded.

Then, he activated a skill.

[The mark disappears.]

– …Elisa?

The sudden disappearance of Do-hyeon from her view made Elisa freeze.

Her senses reacted quickly, detecting an attack coming from behind and attempting to evade.

Thud.

But she was blocked by the low ceiling before she could fall.

Leaping into the air, Elisa bounced off the ceiling and tumbled to the ground, looking utterly disoriented.

Seeing her state, Do-hyeon smirked.

‘Just as expected.’

Why hadn’t he engaged her in full combat earlier?

To exploit the terrain.

Unlike the high ceilings of her lair, this tunnel was narrow and low.

Moreover, the size of the passage varied.

The spot where they first encountered each other had seemed high enough, so he had deliberately lured her here to limit her movements.

In other words, Elisa was now a rat in a trap.

– Elisa, Elisa, Elisa!

Realizing her predicament, Elisa roared in frustration but soon fell silent.

Behind Do-hyeon, a golden dragon shape materialized.

[You have used Rising Dragon Kick (Seung-Ryong-Gak).]

[The set option applies an additional 6% damage.]

The dragon coiled around his leg, and in a flash, his spinning back kick sent Elisa’s massive body flying.

It was the devastating power of the Rising Dragon Kick, supported by tremendous strength.

Smack—Boom!

Elisa’s body flipped midair and crashed into the wall, stirring up a cloud of dust.