Chapter 67
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Francesco Dante (4)
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‘Please wait there just like that for a moment.’
In truth, I hadn’t aimed for it specifically, but I’d somewhat anticipated that there might be set effects between pieces of equipment.
To be precise, it was when I’d only been crafting weapons until defensive gear crafting unlocked for the first time.
And I became certain when accessory crafting unlocked.
‘Come to think of it, I’ve never actually worn the Rusty Iron set...’
The adjective “rusty iron” from the start had put me off, so I’d never equipped it myself, meaning I’d never worn a full set of equipment even once.
I hadn’t known the Viking Helm and War Maul were set gear, but...
It was true that I’d brought them to Grandpa Dante thinking they suited each other, so maybe it could be said I’d targeted it to some extent?
In any case, with the [Equipment Set Effect] function now unlocked, what had changed was the information displayed in the appraisal window for equipment.
Name:War Maul
Grade:S
Attribute:Destruction
Set Equipment
└
- - War Maul
- - Viking Helm
- - Belt of Might
- - Iron Gauntlets of Might
(2 / 4) - Gain access to [Might (A)].
(4 / 4) - ??? 「?」
“Ah... ah...”
Along with the good news came some sad news as well.
For starters, additional options were granted depending on how complete the set was.
Just being able to use an A-grade skill called Might was already tremendous boon.
But did this mean that even a non-awakener like Francesco Dante could use it?
‘Did you feel any changes, like suddenly feeling stronger the moment you received the equipment?’
‘I didn’t notice any changes at all.’
“Hmm...”
There were no immediate, intuitive stat changes to be seen.
However, the VIP customer function had been recognized, and set equipment was acknowledged too—so why no stat changes?
Was it because stats didn’t exist in the first place...?
Without knowing the exact criteria, the only option now was to test things one by one.
So...
The next thing to check after stats would be skills, naturally.
‘You should be able to use a skill called Might right now. By any chance...’
Whoosh!!— Whoosh!!—
‘It... it works...’
‘Indeed it does.’
I couldn’t even lift the War Maul at all.
Grandpa Dante had managed to lift it, but holding it up continuously was too much, so he’d rested it on his shoulder.
But now, he was swinging that War Maul around like a toy whack-a-mole hammer.
If not for the wind pressure tearing through the air with every swing, I might’ve suggested a game of whack-a-mole.
‘The skill seems usable... And the Might skill seems to be exactly what the straightforward name implies: immense strength...’
Summing it up, what we’d gained already was incredibly encouraging.
Thanks to Grandpa Dante’s naturally superhuman strength as a human, his base physical power had surpassed that of me, an awakener.
With an A-grade skill on top of that, he could probably perform at around C-grade level, all things considered.
But investing S-grade and A-grade equipment to create C-grade-equivalent power was a massive loss.
That was why the 2-set effect didn’t hold much immediate value.
However.
(4 / 4) - ??? 「?」
The moment I saw that thing plastered with question marks at full completion...
Only one thought came to mind.
‘That’s gotta be a hidden class or something!!!’
Front question marks for the class name, back ones for the grade.
I’d stolen status windows from five people including myself, so I was certain.
Blacksmith 「EX」
Flame Sorcerer 「S」
Wind Sorcerer 「S」
Priest 「S」
Bandit 「A」
??? 「?」
The format matched perfectly.
If my guess was right...
There was one more prediction, closer to a wild hope.
The awakening of a non-awakener.
A cheeky wish that it might be achievable through equipment set effects.
Ultimately, recruit both Veronica Estelle and Grandpa Dante into our guild.
Complete the set effect for Grandpa Dante to awaken him.
Succeed in enlisting a muscle-bound, loyal, white-haired old Viking badass grandpa member, washing away the sad past of being rejected by Kim Hyuncheol.
“Heh heh heh...”
The problem was that completing the 4-set required two more pieces of equipment.
Here’s where the good and bad news split.
The good news: those two pieces were specified, and I’d even obtained them before.
The bad news: both were A-grade, and ones with very low odds of being created with those adjectives attached...
Belt of Might and Iron Gauntlets of Might.
These two were needed to make the War Maul, and now they were needed again to complete the War Maul’s set effect—a truly vicious setup.
I’d originally planned to persuade Grandpa Dante first and get his help convincing the saintess, but I’d discovered something even more urgent, so I hadn’t secured time for persuasion.
More time had passed than expected, so I figured the saintess might have made her decision by now. I headed back to the living room with Grandpa Dante.
“Th-this is something I really treasure. It breaks more easily than you’d think, so please handle it with care...”
As expected, she’d finished deliberating and was now chatting with Hyeji and Yena, waiting for us.
Hyeji seemed to be proudly showing off her kukri, apparently convinced that its prior destruction wasn’t due to her carelessness but because kukris were just fragile equipment by nature.
Whether that was self-rationalization or her genuine belief, I didn’t know, but either way...
It reinforced my thought that A-grade gear should ideally go toward accessories whenever possible.
In any case, with the saintess’s deliberation seemingly over, I sat down and quietly waited for her to speak first.
...
Even after Grandpa Dante and I arrived, she continued chatting with Hyeji and Yena for another five minutes or so.
“...Shin Yujun.”
“Yes, please go ahead.”
“I think it’s impossible to return to the Holy Kingdom as you said. And... I don’t want to, either.”
“...”
From here on, I didn’t need to respond—just let her feel that I was listening attentively.
With everyone’s eyes focused on her, the saintess continued explaining her thoughts.
“But even so, there’s a reason I have to go back to the Holy Kingdom...”
The answer I’d expected.
And I knew what that reason was.
“I want to save Diana.”
“Yes, I understand.”
This was also why I’d tried to persuade Grandpa Dante.
Truth be told, the saintess currently had no direct reason to return to the Holy Kingdom.
It felt wrong to think of it as fortunate, but she’d operated there as the Saintess—not as Veronica Estelle.
Now stripped even of the Saintess title, Veronica Estelle had no reason to return.
Except for one: connected not to herself, but through Francesco Dante.
That being Diana Dante.
Ironically, Diana Dante—who’d essentially stripped the saintess of her title—was the reason both Veronica Estelle and Grandpa Dante had to return to the Holy Kingdom.
“So, I’d like to hear what Francesco Dante has to say... and follow his opinion.”
‘Saintess...’
Francesco Dante gazed at the saintess with a complex expression, emotions intertwined.
To him, Veronica Estelle offered a relieved smile.
“I’m no longer the Saintess... So please set aside that burden in your heart and tell me what you truly want.”
She’d known he would follow whatever choice she made.
That was probably why she’d hesitated to join our guild.
If she joined Vitic Guild, Francesco Dante would follow suit, regardless of his own will.
Leaving her in Korea to watch her granddaughter be exploited.
With that, all eyes that had been on Veronica Estelle shifted to Francesco Dante.
The fate of these two now hinged solely on Francesco Dante’s decision.
‘Please... We got along great, Grandpa Dante... You wore the Viking Helm! Swung the hammer! Everything...!’
Forgetting even that we were still linked via VIP customer status for the moment, I prayed desperately for a positive answer.
As everyone waited tensely for Francesco Dante’s decision...
‘I think it would be best to stay here.’
“You mean...”
‘I think it would be best to accept Shin Yujun’s offer. Right now, that’s the best choice not just for... Veronica Estelle, but for me as well.’
Veronica Estelle, disbelieving Francesco Dante’s choice, asked again for confirmation.
“Then Diana...”
Honestly, I was just as curious.
Was the saintess ultimately more important than his granddaughter?
‘As I said, staying here and joining Vitic Guild is good for Veronica Estelle and for me. That way, we might be able to save Diana someday. With just me, a non-awakener, and you, Saintess... we can’t oppose the Holy Kingdom.’
No, it wasn’t that—it was a long-term judgment to save his granddaughter.
Indeed, without our help, even returning to the Holy Kingdom wouldn’t make restoring Diana easy.
‘And Shin Yujun has already proven several times that he can provide the power to oppose the Holy Kingdom.’
...You trusted me that much, Grandpa Dante...
The taste of the Might skill must’ve played a big role.
In the end, everything had worked out perfectly.
“That makes sense...”
Veronica Estelle nodded along with Grandpa Dante’s explanation.
Things seemed set to proceed smoothly with both joining our guild.
Now was the timing to avoid seeming too eager and wait for them to bring up guild membership first.
“...But Saintess... doesn’t anyone know that Diana Dante’s gallery nickname? Can’t we just register her as a VIP and summon her...”
...
Everyone fell silent at Hyeji’s words.
“Hyeji, that requires her to accept it first, and if we do it carelessly, the Holy Kingdom might get suspicious, so we have to be careful. Still, good idea.”
“Ah, got it...”
Registering as VIP and summoning was an idea I’d considered from the start, so Yena kindly explained why it wouldn’t work.
Hyeji must’ve missed it since she’d been in the room with the sleeping Veronica Estelle when it came up.
It did seem easy if we could just make her a VIP...
“Huh...?”
Hearing Hyeji’s words made me think about VIP registration—and I suddenly remembered something I’d overlooked.
“It might actually be possible...”
Besides requesting VIP registration with a nickname, there was one other way to register someone as a VIP.
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