Standing over five meters tall, its massive frame covered in gleaming golden armor, and holding two enormous shields securely fastened to its arms, the Golden Lake Dungeon’s boss monster towered above anything Hyunsoo had faced so far.
Its sharp, protruding snout and blood-red eyes radiated an aura of fury, exuding an oppressive presence. Even Swallow couldn’t help but comment.
“Oh... It looks absolutely furious for some reason.”
“There’s no official explanation, but I have a theory from my previous life. The Trust Bracelet was hidden inside the golden tree, and someone stole it. That’s probably why it’s so angry.”
“That makes sense. This place does seem to be the future version of the lake dungeon, considering the timeline. And the Seahorse King’s abilities are heavily defense-oriented, which fits the story.”
In his past life, Seo Jieun had once joked while raiding the Seahorse King that the monster was angry because she’d stolen a hidden piece from the golden tree. At the time, Hyunsoo had dismissed it as a joke, but looking back now, it seemed plausible.
Indeed, the Seahorse King appeared to be in a state of rage.
As soon as Hyunsoo and Swallow entered its line of sight—
“Puhpaah!!”
The Seahorse King let out a deafening roar, sending shockwaves through the once-calm waters of the lake.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Jets of water erupted in straight lines from the lakebed, creating whirlwinds of liquid destruction. The sheer power behind these water spouts made it clear that even a glancing hit could obliterate a body part.
However—
“Still flashy with the welcoming routine, huh?”
Hyunsoo and Swallow had already leapt to safety, landing in a clear zone away from the blasts.
While the Seahorse King’s eruptions were formidable enough to paralyze or fracture any who were struck, they followed a predictable pattern. With enough experience, one could avoid them by recognizing the rhythm.
It had been a long time since Hyunsoo last faced the monster’s explosive greeting.
“Well, let’s return the favor.”
He wasn’t about to let the monster dominate the encounter.
Raising his twin swords high above his head—
[Activated]
[Crimson Flame (B)]
[Sky Splitter (S)]
Hyunsoo swung both blades downward simultaneously.
Fwoosh—! Fwoom—!!
A massive wave of fiery aura engulfed the monster, vaporizing the spouting water and crashing directly onto the Seahorse King’s helmet.
Boom—! Ssssshhh—!!
The force wasn’t limited to the lake—it cut and burned through the distant forest, leaving destruction in its wake.
Yet—
Vwooom—!!
As the steam cleared, the Seahorse King emerged unscathed.
Despite taking the full brunt of Sky Splitter, it had crossed its two shields in front of itself, blocking the attack. Unlike its minions, whose shields had shattered under lesser strikes, the Seahorse King’s shields bore only minor scratches.
“Click! Those shields are no joke, Master,” Swallow said, clicking its tongue.
“Yeah, I thought that might be the case.”
Hyunsoo wasn’t surprised.
The Seahorse King’s defense was legendary.
Unlike its minions, the guardian boasted impenetrable resilience. Its dual shields, as expected, left almost no openings, making it an immovable fortress.
Of course, that didn’t mean it was entirely passive.
The Seahorse King could unleash devastating attacks, such as summoning massive water eruptions from the golden lake or firing water cannons from its snout.
However—
The moment it sensed a threat, it would immediately abandon its offensive stance and retreat into defense mode.
This made it incredibly challenging to take down.
The only way to defeat it was to exploit the brief windows when it attacked, closing the distance to land a hit or using long-range skills to gradually chip away at its health.
The gaps between its shields were minuscule, exposing only small parts of its shoulders, neck, and abdomen. Targeting these required ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) precision and patience, meaning a fight with the Seahorse King often took hours.
‘This is inefficient. I need to find a way to speed this up.’
Hyunsoo had no intention of spending hours battling the boss.
Since the upgraded version of the Golden Lake Dungeon would continue to be a valuable resource in the future, and considering his current strength far surpassed that of his previous life, he believed he could reduce the time needed.
“Swallow, cover me with a shield while I advance!”
“Yes, Master!”
Hyunsoo charged forward, closing the gap between himself and the Seahorse King.
Meanwhile—
“Puhwaah!!”
The Seahorse King lowered both shields and fired a torrent of water cannons at Hyunsoo.
But—
“Not this time!”
[The Charming Companion uses a magnificent shield.]
Clang!
The water cannon blasts failed to reach Hyunsoo, deflected by the glowing blue barrier Swallow had conjured with a flap of its wings.
Taking advantage of the opening, Hyunsoo dashed to the Seahorse King’s flank.
And then—
“Haaaaaaah!!”
[Activated]
[Black Sun Explosion (Incomplete)]
Crossing his twin swords, Hyunsoo created a miniature sun between the blades.
Boom—!!
A dark-orange explosion illuminated the golden lake, its intense heat evaporating the water and scorching the surrounding forest.
The destructive power was so immense that it reshaped the terrain, turning the lake into a cauldron of destruction.
However—
Fsssshhh—!!
As the smoke cleared, the Seahorse King remained standing.
Its silhouette emerged through the haze, shields raised in perfect defense, blocking the explosion entirely.
As soon as the flames subsided, the Seahorse King retaliated.
“Puhpaah!!”
Splashhhhh—!!
Lowering its shields, it unleashed another volley of water cannons.
“Damn it!”
Hyunsoo barely managed to dodge by rolling to the side, putting distance between himself and the monster.
“Tsk, looks like I’ll have to stick with the tried-and-true method.”
The incomplete state of Black Sun Explosion was likely the issue. Hyunsoo had hoped the attack would at least destroy one of the shields, but it wasn’t nearly enough.
His remaining option was to chip away at the boss’s health by dodging its attacks and exploiting openings, just like in his previous life.
However, Swallow, hovering in the air, suggested an alternative.
“Master, shall we try using Weakness Detection?”
“The new skill we just got?”
“Yes, Master. I haven’t tried it yet, but if it works, it should help significantly. However, the success rate is only about 10%.”
“It costs 10% of your Charm charge to use, and the success rate is under 10%? If it fails, won’t you get unsummoned?”
“I can use it about three more times before that happens, and it doesn’t matter if I’m unsummoned. With only the boss left, my feather attacks won’t make much of a difference anyway.”
Swallow had a point.
Its contributions so far—like feather volleys and shields—were helpful but wouldn’t be decisive in the fight against the Seahorse King.
At most, they could shave five minutes off the battle time.
“Fine, go for it!”
“Puhpaaa!!”
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Boom!!
While Hyunsoo dodged the geysers erupting around him, water now up to his thighs, he gave Swallow permission to activate the skill.
“Yes, Master!”
Adjusting its sunglasses mid-flight, Swallow locked its gaze on the Seahorse King.
[The Charming Companion uses Weakness Detection.]
[Consumes 10% of stored Charm.]
[Remaining Charm: 23%.]
[Attempting to identify the opponent’s weakness.]
[Scanning...]
The skill’s progress appeared in Hyunsoo’s message window as well, like a program loading.
The duration wasn’t displayed, but fortunately, it didn’t take long.
As Hyunsoo dodged another volley of water cannons, the result finally appeared.
[Weakness Detection failed.]
Not good news.
The skill, used with great hope, had failed.
And with Charm reserves running low, the situation wasn’t ideal.
However, Swallow didn’t give up.
“Let me try again, Master!”
“...Damn it, fine. Keep going until it works!”
Hyunsoo wasn’t backing down either.
It was all or nothing.
With the remaining Charm, there wasn’t much else they could do, so taking a chance—even a slim one—was better than nothing.
It felt like a gamble, but—
[The Charming Companion uses Weakness Detection.]
[Consumes 10% of stored Charm.]
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[Remaining Charm: 13%.]
[Attempting to identify the opponent’s weakness.]
[Scanning...]
This time—
[Weakness Detection succeeded.]
[Level 370. Golden Lake Guardian Seahorse King’s Weakness: Tail.]
[The weak point is highlighted in red within the user’s field of vision.]
Jackpot.
Despite the odds, Swallow succeeded on its second try, identifying the Seahorse King’s weakness.
The result seemed unbelievable, given the low probability stated in the skill description.
However, whether the detected weakness—the tail—was genuine remained uncertain.
For one, the tail was submerged in golden water, making it hard to verify. Moreover, if the tail were truly a weak point, the Seahorse King should have been more protective of it, but it hadn’t shown such behavior so far.
‘Well, there’s only one way to find out.’
It wasn’t a difficult task to confirm.
Dodging the Seahorse King’s attacks, Hyunsoo swung his twin swords.
[Activated]
[Crimson Flame (B)]
[Celestial Blade (B)]
Flames roared as the aura-infused blade streaked toward the tail, evaporating the golden water in its path.
At that moment—
“Puhiiiik!!”
As if startled, the Seahorse King leaped backward, clearly trying to avoid the strike.
“Master, the tail seems to be the real weak point!” Swallow exclaimed.
“So the obvious weakness was hidden beneath the water, huh?”
Watching the Seahorse King leap like a startled beast, Hyunsoo smirked.
Until now, he had focused exclusively on the armored parts of the monster visible above the water. The realization that its submerged tail was the weak spot was both surprising and amusing.
But results were results.
When Hyunsoo concentrated his attacks on the tail using Celestial Blade, the Seahorse King grew increasingly defensive, abandoning any attempts to counterattack.
Even its shields shifted downward, prioritizing protection of the tail.
There was no need to drag this out any further.
“Let’s finish this!” Hyunsoo shouted.
“Puhpaaa!!”
With water splashing up to his thighs, Hyunsoo sprinted toward the Seahorse King for the final blow.
Sensing imminent danger, the Seahorse King lowered its shields, pressing them against the lakebed to brace itself.
However—
[Activated]
[Acceleration (C)]
[Penetration (C)]
Thud!
The place where Hyunsoo’s swords struck wasn’t the tail.
They pierced the unguarded spot between the monster’s head and chest, at the seam between its helmet and armor.
“Checkmate, you bastard.”
Focusing entirely on defending its tail, the Seahorse King had left its neck exposed. This had been Hyunsoo’s plan all along.
Smirking, he channeled mana into his blades, still embedded in the monster.
[Activated]
[Black Sun Explosion (Incomplete)]
A miniature sun formed within the Seahorse King’s throat.
BOOOOM—!!
Golden light, brighter than any treasure, erupted, consuming the lake once more in its radiance.
When the light faded—
[Level 370. You have defeated the Golden Lake Guardian Seahorse King.]
[You have gained experience points.]
[Your level has increased!]
[Rewards: All stats +1.]
The Seahorse King had disintegrated.
On Hyunsoo’s left wrist, the Trust Bracelet absorbed the golden light surrounding it.
[You have automatically acquired the Golden Core.]
[Golden Lake Quest: Collect 200 Golden Fragments (200/200) completed.]
[Golden Lake Quest: Obtain 1 Golden Core (1/1) completed.]
[You have met all conditions for upgrading the item.]
[The item ‘Trust Bracelet’ has been upgraded to ‘Golden Trust Bracelet.’]
The Trust Bracelet had transformed into a new and more powerful item.