NOVEL NEXT Ch. 147
Chapter 147 - Aftermath (1)
[ You have cleared the ‘Third Ordeal’ Floor. ]
[ Hidden Ending: God of the Battlefield ]
[ You have achieved a remarkable result without a single loss of an ally. Truly amazing! ]
[ By unlocking the Hidden Ending, you are awarded 1 ‘Alteration Point.’ Additional rewards will be given. ]
[ A tremendous achievement in crafting! You have earned ‘Achievement:
I nodded and smiled at the windows popping up one after another before my eyes.
If the rewards for the Second Ordeal were focused on reeling in Evangeline, the Third Ordeal felt like a return to a more orthodox reward system.
Let’s see, first, the achievement.
[ Achievement:
[ A creation made from the design drawn in your head has shaken the world. We pay our respects to your creativity! ]
[ Guarantees a great success on one equipment crafting attempt. ]
Yep, a sweet deal.
In a situation where I had a line of equipment to craft after this, a one-time guaranteed great success ticket definitely had its value.
And the reward to be gained by opening the Alteration Point...
[ Please select an additional reward from the following list. ]
It seemed to be in the format of choosing an item from a list, similar to before.
Perhaps due to the influence of having given out Unique-grade items like candy, there were only Rare-grade items, but there were still things to gain here.
[ Bracelet of Demon Warding / Grade: Rare ]
[ Increases resistance to all types of mental interference. ]
[ Demon Warding +20 ]
It was simple, but it was an item that would surely display a good effect in the places I would be visiting from now on.
Whether it was demons or spirits that would start popping up in earnest, ‘corruption’ and ‘interference’ were things they spread around almost passively.
The Demon Warding stat was something I absolutely had to secure.
“...So, it’s good that you’re looking at something, Gyu-sik-ssi.”
A voice from nearby snapped me back to my senses.
“Do you perhaps have any plans to show some compassion?”
“What’s that?”
“...I mean, giving that poor person over there some rest time...”
“How do you do that?”
“...”
Seo Ah-in turned her head with a speechless expression.
Over there, someone was getting beaten up in real-time.
It was the Knight of the Southern Yellow, who was continuously fighting 1-on-1 battles against the Round Table.
“Hah, heok... heok...”
He was sweating profusely, out of breath, but seeing him, I nodded and said.
“How many are left?”
“...About 112 more.”
“Right. It should be over by evening, then.”
To be precise, what that guy was doing was being a ‘guinea pig for data.’
I was given full authority to command the Knights of the Round Table, but I had to have a rough idea of what they were capable of to be able to use them.
“...Didn’t you already know that? What is there that you don’t know, anyway?”
“I might be wrong, so I have to check.”
I said, looking down at the Knight of the Southern Yellow.
He was sending me a look that said, ‘Don’t tell me I have to fight another battle after this,’ but I answered with a bright smile.
“You’re doing something you’ve never done before, now...? You just want to bully that person, right?”
“There’s that too. But it’s not the main purpose.”
“Really?”
“If I really wanted to bully him, do you think it would have ended at this level?”
“...”
That’s true.
After giving a chuckle to the convinced Seo Ah-in, I looked at the Knight of the Southern Yellow, who was raising his sword with a fed-up expression towards the next opponent.
Well, to get what I wanted, a sparring session where they didn't genuinely fight each other would be meaningless.
At least within the Round Table, only the knights with a ‘color’ had the skills to go through such a genuine fight without any casualties.
Among them, the only one I could command to my liking was that guy, so I had to work him like this.
“Is there anything to gain from that?”
“Of course, there is.”
Yes, as I just told this one.
Making that guy go through this right now wasn't just out of personal feelings.
I had my Observation skill on and was continuously ‘observing’ how they fought.
It was mainly because of this.
[ Awakening Passive: Eye Opening ]
[ Analyzes and imitates the target's skills. Sufficiently analyzed skills can be used under certain restrictions. The learning effect improves the more you analyze the same type of skill in depth. ]
“...”
Yes.
As befitting a guy who could learn every skill in existence, he could now copy an opponent’s skill just by looking at it.
Compared to Share, which modified skills to a state far superior to the original, the limited performance was a bit disappointing, but that was somewhat offset by the much simpler prerequisites than Share.
Without the prerequisite of favorability, I could acquire anything just by continuing to watch.
Wow, my goodness. Skills can be copied.
In that sense, my watching the Round Table guys fight was also to snatch one skill. The knights all shared one common ‘passive.’
[ Current Skill Copy Rate: 48% ]
And perhaps due to the influence of the Observation skill, the speed at which the copy rate was filling up was also tremendous.
“Oh. He collapsed.”
“Already?”
“...Is that something to say to someone who has fought over 100 consecutive battles?”
I ignored Seo Ah-in’s chiding and sighed at the sight of the Knight of the Southern Yellow, who had collapsed in complete exhaustion during the sparring.
At this rate, the skill copying would be on hold until that guy got up again.
Well, it didn't matter if I took it a little slow. If I could copy that, it would be an immense gain in itself.
‘And on top of that...’
What was scarier was that it didn't end there.
[ Awakening Progress: Stage 1 ]
[ Copy a certain number of skills using Eye Opening to unlock the next stage. (0/10) ]
It meant there was plenty of room for more things to pop out.
Kim Gyu-sik's potential was truly endless, no matter how much you dug!
“Oh, by the way, my master was looking for you.”
As I was marveling at my infinite possibilities in my head, Seo Ah-in suddenly threw those words at me from the side.
Huh, Seo Jin-seong-ssi?
***
“She has regained consciousness.”
“Regained consciousness?”
“My wife. It’s all thanks to you, Gyu-sik-ssi.”
Seeing Seo Jin-seong-ssi speak to me first with a joyful expression made me feel good too.
Surely, if the background nearby were a little less grim, I could have been purely happy for him.
“...Is this guy even alive? You’ve got some nerve. The Lancester family must be searching for him with fire in their eyes since he’s currently missing.”
Such words naturally flowed out as I looked at Damian Lancester, who was tied up in chains and slumped in a dark basement.
No, I knew Seo Jin-seong-ssi had beaten this guy at the end of the Ordeal.
Looking at his state, it seemed the tendons in his limbs and his mana generation organs were all shot. At this rate, he wouldn't be able to move a muscle even if he was alive.
“Well, he’s an EX-rank Climber, after all. He’s somehow still alive even in this state. Perhaps with proper treatment, he might not make a full recovery, but he should be able to manage daily life, don't you think?”
I nodded reluctantly at Seo Jin-seong-ssi’s nonchalant reply.
I had a rough idea why he was kept alive like this in the first place.
“You’re going to have another round with the Lancester family soon, aren’t you? You seem to be planning something interesting.”
“Oh my. It’s only been a day since the Ordeal ended. You’ve already heard about it?”
“Ji-an was the one who planned it in the first place. She’s my younger sister, so wouldn’t it be stranger if I didn’t hear about it?”
Seo Jin-seong-ssi said, meticulously wiping the nearby ‘tools.’
At a glance, they looked like things one would use to repair a car or do some construction in the front yard.
“For that to happen, I need to get some information from this guy, don’t I?”
Hmm.
Let’s not ask what those tools will be used for.
“But that’s not why I called you, Gyu-sik-ssi. There’s an important matter.”
“Hmm?”
“My wife said she wants to see you. With our daughters.”
Oh. Han Si-yeon-ssi wants to see me?
No, I did have some business with her now that she had regained consciousness, so I needed to see her anyway.
“...Why do I have to go with those two?”
Seo Jin-seong-ssi smiled brightly and looked at me.
“Well, before, I thought I wouldn't forgive even you, Gyu-sik-ssi, if you made either of them cry. But now, I've almost given my permission. I’m sure you’ll be fine with both of them.”
“Fine with what?”
“However, Gyu-sik-ssi. My wife’s opinion might be different, so you’ll have to listen to her first. I’ll do my best to support you, of course.”
“No, I mean, fine with what?”
Seo Jin-seong-ssi just kept smiling brightly without answering.
Yes.
I didn't know what it was, but I was terribly anxious.
***
And that anxiety intensified horribly on the day of the appointment.
“...Hoo, haa, d-don’t be nervous, hoo-goo-oook...”
“...”
Seo Ah-in, who had ironed her usually neat white uniform to a near-obsessive degree, was constantly checking for dust.
Her bloodshot eyes and her breathing, as if she were hyperventilating, were incredibly bizarre.
“Climber Seo Ah-in-nim. Y-you don’t have to be, so, nervous... heok... keuh...”
“...”
Seo Hye-in-ssi was trying to appear calmer, but her fundamental state was the same.
Riding in an elevator with these two people felt very strange. The nearby glass walls were constantly fogging up from the breaths they were exhaling.
Perhaps even the final interview for a corporation would be less tense than this.
No, they were going to meet their mother for the first time after she had been unconscious for a long time, so what was with this atmosphere?
You could say it was like a cow being dragged to a slaughterhouse.
“...”
In times like these, it was better not to say anything and try to talk to someone else.
Just then, a call came from Team Leader Kim Jae-han.
[Climber Kim Gyu-sik-nim. Did you get in safely?]
“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”
Well. It was a bit much for me to say it myself, but I was a celebrity whose face was plastered everywhere.
If I had walked the streets without any countermeasures, the crowd gathering would have made it hard for me to even take a proper step.
Thanks to Kim Jae-han-ssi clearing all that up, I was able to move around well.
‘...I’ll have to live like this for a while.’
I would soon have an opportunity to say something big in a public setting using that recognition, but until then, I wanted to move around a little more quietly.
[By the way, it’s strangely noisy around you. Is something wrong?]
“...Both sisters are not in their right minds right now. I have no idea why they’re so nervous.”
[Well, that’s to be expected, isn’t it? It’s one thing to see their mother after a long time, but if they bring you along, Gyu-sik-ssi, that’s practically a formal meeting of the fami...]
““Team Leader Kim Jae-han-nim!””
[...Ah, oops. My apologies.]
Even while not in their right minds, Kim Jae-han-ssi swallowed his words at the stereo retort from the Seo sisters.
His voice was uncharacteristically full of amusement.
[Ah, those two are those two, but. Climber Kim Gyu-sik-nim?]
The voice that turned to me, however, was more serious.
What is it? What is he about to say?
[There’s a reason those two are so nervous. Climber Han Si-yeon-nim is... a bit, peculiar.]
And a sigh followed.
[...I hope you make it out alive.]
“...”
Mister.
Don't scare me.