Probably around the 500th attempt.
"I can't take it anymore…"
Saying that, I was crying. I had become completely emotionally unstable, and my sanity was slipping.
In front of me was the first Armored Bear Bugbear. Despite my emotional instability, I managed to crouch and evade its attacks.
"Why do I have to go through this? It's not fair!"
Saying that, I scratched my head. While venting my frustrations, I continued to evade the attacks of the Armored Bear Bugbear one after another.
"Darn it, it's all Darga's fault. Because of that guy, I'm being subjected to this hell."
Tears blurred my vision, and my steps were unsteady. Nevertheless, I kept evading the attacks of the first Armored Bear Bugbear. After repeating it many times, it started to feel like I could dodge its attacks even with my eyes closed.
"Darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it, darn it…!!"
Muttering curses, my resentment unconsciously spilled out.
"When I meet Darga, I'll kill him. But it won't be just killing. I'll make him suffer the most horrific death. I'll try every form of torture. Oh, not just Darga. I'll kill all the villagers. They're all equally guilty. How dare they banish me to the depths of this dungeon. Damn it!!"
My shouting did little to stabilize my mind. My fingers had been trembling, and my pupils were shaking, making my vision unstable.
"Ah…"
Unknowingly, I had reached the front of the treasure chest. It felt like my body had brought me here on its own, as if it had been almost unconscious.
"Or maybe it's impossible."
After several attempts, I had successfully defeated the third Armored Bear Bugbear. However, the skill points I had gained didn't level up "Strength Enhancement" to Level 3. I had conserved my stamina, refined my movements by eliminating unnecessary actions, but it was still a struggle to defeat just three of them.
"Oh, but I can't stay here forever…"
My motivation had already disappeared. I knew this attempt would likely be futile as well.
"Ah!!!"
There was a reason I had said that.
"I made a mistake!"
▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽
"Acquired the skill 'Provocation.'"
△△△△△△△△△△△△△△△
I pressed it absentmindedly, and instead of "Strength Enhancement," I accidentally pressed " Provocation " located to its left.
" Provocation " is a skill used to attract the attention of monsters. It's a skill used to protect others by drawing monsters toward the role commonly known as the party tank.
"…I can't possibly use a skill like this."
I should just die and prepare for the next attempt. Well, I'll try it out just once.
So, I used " Provocation " on the Armored Bear Bugbear A, which would likely be the next to attack.
Could I actually use " Provocation "?
"Gugaa!"
Clearly, Armored Bear Bugbear A roared and charged more aggressively than usual. It seemed that the skill had activated.
"Alright."
I crouched down. It was just a reflexive crouch out of habit, but I didn't need to bother dodging because I was bound to die this time.
With a swoosh, fresh blood rained down. When I looked up, Armored Bear Bugbear A's claws were deeply embedded in the throat of Armored Bear Bugbear B.
"Ah…"
I unintentionally widened my eyes.
It wasn't because they had started fighting amongst themselves. Armored Bear Bugbear A, consumed by rage and unable to see things clearly, had struck recklessly, inadvertently hitting a fellow member in the process.
The hit had dealt a clearly fatal blow to Armored Bear Bugbear B. It had received much more damage than when I had struck it.
"You fool."
I used " Provocation " on Armored Bear Bugbear A once again. In response, Armored Bear Bugbear A charged fearlessly, which I narrowly dodged.
With a thud, Armored Bear Bugbear A's claw had pierced Armored Bear Bugbear B. Consequently, Armored Bear Bugbear B fell to the ground.
It was already lifeless.
"Kuh, haha."
A smile escaped from me naturally.
"Ahahahahahahaha!"
Before I realized it, I was laughing from the depths of my belly. Despite all the struggles I had gone through to defeat them, using " Provocation " allowed me to dispatch them so easily. How could I not laugh at this?
"Ah, could it be that all the efforts until now were in vain?"
After the laughter subsided, I began to question myself. If I had known that I could defeat them so easily by using " Provocation," I would have used it from the beginning. Perhaps all the efforts I made trying to defeat them by choosing "Strength Enhancement" were in vain…
I was starting to feel extremely frustrated. Well, I'll take out my frustration by killing all of them.
"Come at me, you weaklings."
I used " Provocation " on all the Armored Bear Bugbears.