―You have entered the Boss Room. Defeat the Boss.

As Sungshik stepped into the Boss Room, he saw it.

A colossal beast towering over five meters.

The regular Giant Ground Bees were around two meters in size. This one was more than twice that.

‘Insight.’

[Boss] Giant Queen Bee

• Grade: 7-Star (★★★★★★★)
• Combat Power: S-
• Species: Giant Ground Bee
• Traits: The Queen of the Giant Ground Bee species. Commands an army of thousands.

‘…7-Star?!’

Sungshik bit his lip tightly. He had vaguely considered the possibility, but seeing it confirmed in front of him filled him with despair.

Typically, in lower-ranked gates, the Boss Room’s monster would be either of the dungeon’s +grade or one star higher. But from 5-Star dungeons onward, the boss was usually just the dungeon’s +grade.

Starting from 5-Star, even just a +grade difference was significant. The disparity between levels grew exponentially from there, making it almost unheard of for a boss in a 5-Star dungeon to exceed its expected tier.

The difference only became more extreme as the levels increased. The gap between 6-Star and 7-Star was so immense that they might as well have been different species altogether.

‘I did hear that rare cases like this exist…’

Looking at the thousands of beehives, he had suspected that this might be one of those rare exceptions. A dungeon that had grown this large in power might have caused the boss to evolve beyond its standard rank.

Even before his regression, there had been rare cases where colony-type monsters that exceeded 6-Star would see their bosses ascend to the next level. However, such cases were as rare as winning the lottery.

“And why did that lottery have to be today?”

Sungshik let out a hollow laugh.

“Chirrrk?”

The Queen Bee took notice of Sungshik.

Buzzing sounds filled the air as the swarm of Giant Ground Bees behind him poured into the room. He was completely trapped. The only relief was that due to their size, only about a dozen bees could enter at a time.

His original plan had been different. He intended to rush into the Boss Room, use Future Vision, and use the 20-minute window to annihilate the boss and the trailing swarm before shattering the dungeon core and escaping. From his past life, he knew that once the Queen Bee was eliminated, the hive’s network would collapse, causing the remaining bees to self-destruct.

‘Stay calm. There’s always a way out.’

As Sungshik steadied himself, his composure seemed to provoke the Queen Bee.

“Kieeeek!”

The Queen Bee let out a piercing shriek.

The ones who reacted weren’t just Sungshik—it was the swarm behind him. As if they had been scolded by their queen, the bees scrambled forward in a mad frenzy, lunging at him.

‘Huh?’

He had been focused on the Queen Bee, expecting her to move first. He hesitated in casting Wind Scar against the approaching swarm.

There were still plenty of bees waiting outside the room. If he wasted too much mana here, he risked getting overwhelmed by regular bees before even reaching the boss.

‘Then, with minimal force…’

‘Wind Scar.’

Fwoosh—

The three bees charging at him were sliced apart by the wind blades.

He had used the spell at the lowest possible output to conserve mana. For those further away, he used Wind Scar; for those at close range, he methodically cut them down with the Heavenly Destruction Divine Sword.

He repeated this process over and over.

“Hoo—”

―You have used a Mid-Tier Health Potion. Health recovery rate has significantly increased.

―You have used a Mid-Tier Mana Potion. Mana recovery rate has significantly increased.

Despite his efforts, Sungshik could feel his stamina and mana rapidly depleting. For now, he could hold out using his stock of potions, but it was only a matter of time before he hit his limit.

And then—

“Kieeek!”

—the Queen Bee, unable to watch any longer, finally moved.

Clang—!

“Kuh—”

The Queen Bee’s attack was ferocious. She had only made a light charge, yet it clearly demonstrated the vast difference between a 6-Star and a 7-Star. Her speed and attack power were on an entirely different level.

Even though Sungshik had barely managed to deflect the blow, he was still sent flying backward, unable to fully absorb the impact.

‘I only blocked that thanks to my Hyper-Sense skill and the Hero of Adversity title.’

He hadn’t even been able to properly register the Queen Bee’s attack. His survival was purely thanks to his instincts and his title’s passive abilities.

‘Wind Scar.’

Fwoosh—

More Giant Ground Bees were cut down by the blades of wind. Even as he defended against the Queen Bee, Sungshik focused on exterminating the remaining swarm.

“Kirik?”

The Queen Bee tilted her head as if confused by his actions.

‘Damn it, don’t “kirik” me.’

Whether she understood or not, Sungshik unleashed another Wind Scar at the bees still pouring in from the entrance.

Fwoosh—

Another wave of bees was torn apart.

“Kieeeek!”

The Queen Bee shrieked in rage and charged.

Bzzzz—

This time, her charge was even fiercer than before. The sheer force was beyond what a hundred-ton truck could produce.

Crash!

The impact of their collision sent a deafening boom through the room.

“Kirrr…”

The Queen Bee let out an odd cry of surprise.

She had expected Sungshik to cough up blood and be sent flying.

From what she had gauged earlier, there was no way his strength should have been enough to withstand her charge.

Yet somehow, he had stopped her dead in her tracks without budging an inch.

Stagger.

In the end, it was the Queen Bee who was forced back by the recoil of her own attack.

“Krrr?”

The Queen Bee’s confusion deepened.

Sungshik bared his teeth in a grin.

“Now it’s my showtime, you damn bug.”

As soon as Sungshik confirmed the boss was 7-Star, a wave of despair had hit him.

There seemed to be no way out.

He debated whether to use Future Vision immediately.

'After reaching 5-star+ and using Future Vision, I was able to draw out the power of 6-star+. With that power, I could somehow face a 7-star boss.'

‘But that’s as far as it goes.’

The power gained from Future Vision could only buy time in the end. Facing a 6-star enemy at 5-star+ was an entirely different matter from facing a 7-star enemy at 6-star+.

The gap between 5-star and 6-star. The gap between 6-star and 7-star. Though both were just one-tier differences, the actual disparity was immense.

That was why Heo Sungshik couldn’t recklessly use Future Vision. In the current situation, he had to be able to completely clear out the boss and the swarm of ground hornets within the 20 minutes that Future Vision granted him.

‘I was too hasty. I could have leveled up first before taking on this challenge.’

If he had taken the safer approach, carefully eliminating the hornets one by one while steadily increasing his rank, this situation wouldn’t have occurred.

‘No… That’s hindsight talking. Who could have predicted there would be a 7-star boss here?’

That was true. There had been only one chance to suspect something—the moment he discovered the ground hornet nest containing thousands.

‘I underestimated the likelihood of the master of a thousand-strong legion being a 7-star.’

A thought had crossed his mind—if a boss commanded a legion of this scale, perhaps it had achieved a rank increase.

‘No way such a rare case would happen here, right?’

That careless assumption had been his mistake.

Heo Sungshik bit his lip. If it came to it, he was considering using Future Vision and making a mutual destruction attack on the queen hornet.

“Kieeek.”

Suddenly, the queen hornet let out a shrill cry.

‘It’s coming… Wait, what?’

Heo Sungshik, who had been watching the queen hornet closely, found an unexpected opportunity. The creature merely stared at him arrogantly, not bothering to move. It was as if a king was granting its subordinates a chance.

A sin for failing to stop an intruder from entering the royal chamber. It seemed to be giving its subordinates an opportunity to atone for that failure.

That gave Heo Sungshik an opening.

‘They say heaven helps those who help themselves.’

Because he had not given up until the end, a reversal had come his way. Managing his stamina and mana as efficiently as possible, Heo Sungshik continued mowing down the swarm of hornets, focusing intently to take down even one more.

“Kieeek.”

Even when the queen hornet finally attacked, he ignored it and continued targeting the hornets. It wasn’t for any other reason—his entire being was telling him something.

It was happening soon.

‘Wind Scar.’

His rank-up was imminent.

“Kieeek.”

He could feel it in his entire body.

“Take this! Wind Scar!!”

Fwoooosh—

—Rank up! Congratulations. You have reached 6-star.

The moment the queen hornet took a step, his final Wind Scar struck, achieving a dramatic rank-up.

A surge of power filled his entire body! The flow of energy was incomparable to when he had been blocked at 5-star+.

And it didn’t stop there. Without hesitation, he activated Future Vision.

—‘Future Vision’ activated! Drawing power from the future.

—Rank elevation! You have temporarily reached 7-star.

His body overflowed—no, boiled over with power. It was the same perfected peak state he had reached during the test to obtain Heaven-Splitting Divine Art. While 6-star was just at the threshold of peak mastery, the power now raging within him was far beyond comparison.

At the same time, the queen hornet charged at him with all its might. Heo Sungshik casually extended his hand forward and formed a protective energy barrier.

The queen hornet immediately sensed that something had changed about him. But it dismissed the thought. It assumed this was nothing more than the final struggle of a mere insect.

Thus, even in the final moment before impact, the queen hornet was utterly convinced that Heo Sungshik would be crushed into mere pulp.

BOOM.

However, the moment they collided, the queen hornet felt something was terribly wrong.

“Krrrk?”

A groan of bewilderment escaped its mouth. At the same time, the creature saw the being before it flash a white grin.

THWACK—

“Kkeeeek.”

In that instant, it fully realized—this being before it was no longer just a mere insect.

The greatest strength of the giant ground hornets was their tough exoskeleton. Even superhumans of the same rank struggled to break through their shells. This was even more true for the queen hornet, who had reached 7-star.

That was why the queen hornet had been confident after reaching 7-star. It believed no simple physical attack could even scratch its exoskeleton.

But that belief was shattered today.

CRUNCH—

With just one punch, Heo Sungshik caved in and crushed the queen hornet’s skull.

“Kkeeeek.”

For the first time in its life, the queen hornet experienced searing pain and let out a shriek.

“Damn, you’re loud.”

Heo Sungshik stepped forward and kicked its abdomen.

“Kuh—eek.”

BANG.

The massive 5-meter-tall creature was sent flying and crashed into the wall.

Rumble.

The impact shook the entire chamber as if it would collapse.

Wiiiiiing—

The other giant hornets, who had been too slow to react to the battle, now rushed toward Heo Sungshik. It was a kamikaze-like attack, as if they were sacrificing themselves to protect their queen.

“Tsk.”

Heo Sungshik cast Wind Scar toward the charging hornets.

Fwoooosh—

The Wind Scar, wielded by a 7-star Heo Sungshik, was beyond devastating—it was downright monstrous. The blade of wind shot forward in a straight line, slicing through every hornet in the boss chamber. It didn’t stop there; it cut down the hornets stationed outside the entrance as well. It was like an unstoppable bulldozer, obliterating everything in its path.

The wind blade even continued past the swarm, embedding itself into the opposite wall.

BOOM.

The attack left countless vicious marks across the walls several kilometers away before finally dissipating. Even Heo Sungshik was secretly impressed by the spectacle.

‘This is better than I expected.’

Crackle—

As he admired his own handiwork, he sensed the queen hornet was about to do something.