Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: The Third Upgrade (1)
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Humans are learning animals.
Not the second, but the third upgrade.
Predicting who would show up next wasn't all that hard.
The first was Sword Demon Ma Ilcheon.
The second was Shadow Lord Stein.
If the pattern held that the investor matching the selected perk would appear in the next upgrade trial, then the person for this trial was already set.
'Probably Holy Knight Abel.'
With that thought, a cheerful ding rang out, and a window about the trial appeared.
"......"
Of course, he'd predicted who it would be, but not the trial's content.
It was completely unexpected.
A lack of fighting spirit?
And staying within a certain distance meant sticking right by Abel's side?
'...No idea what this means.'
He'd figure it out once the trial started, but for now, it didn't click.
Maybe it was because he didn't know much about Abel yet.
Unlike the other investors, there hadn't been much interaction with him.
He rarely voiced strong opinions, too.
Abel had spoken up exactly twice so far.
— [The War Maniac envies the Shadow Lord.]
Once, regarding the opportunity Stein had gained in the expedition force.
— [The War Maniac looks pitifully upon the man struggling with the basic supply-model White Dragon Spear.]
The other time was something related to Abel himself.
Maybe that was because, as the trial description said, he didn't think much of Kim Gunja.
Or perhaps there simply hadn't been anything else to pique his interest.
'Well, titles like Holy Knight and epithets like War Maniac don't exactly go hand in hand.'
He was an investor whose thoughts were hard to read.
As soon as Kim Gunja checked the trial details, the Customizing Room began to blur.
The space was shifting to the trial venue.
Maybe because he was used to it now.
Kim Gunja, with a bit of leisure, turned his gaze to one side.
Austin.
She was bowing politely to see off her Master.
He hadn't noticed during the first or second trials.
His nerves had been too frayed, focused solely on the trial—no time to look around.
'I missed it then, but...'
Austin surely would have been doing the same back then.
What was it?
The thought just hit him.
If he'd been alone.
Without friends, without Brother Chunduk or Yeji, without Austin in the Customizing Room.
Could he have kept pushing past his limits like this?
Probably not.
Kim Gunja waved to Austin with a smile.
A gesture promising he'd return safely and full of gratitude.
With one last glimpse of Austin's eyes flickering faintly, the surroundings changed.
His first impression of the altered environment was singular.
Red.
Everything was red.
The sky, the ground.
And the people and monsters too.
"Charge!"
Boom!
A shout rang out, followed by an impact so fierce it rang in his ears.
The Holy Knight's shield, gleaming like sunlight amid the monster's splattered blood, was dyed red.
"In the name of the gods!"
"Ooooooh!"
Thump-thump-thump!
Cheers and war drums echoed.
Holy Knights in sturdy armor clashed with the monster horde.
A battlefield strewn with blood and flesh.
He quickly realized where this was.
Recalling that Abel's world was a continent locked in endless strife between the divine and demonic races made it easy.
The Holy-Demon Great War.
He was right in the heart of that battlefield.
And that meant this trial's stage was the warzone itself.
Fitting for a War Maniac, without a doubt.
'Where's Abel?'
Remembering the trial's condition about not straying too far, Kim Gunja scanned the surroundings.
Finding Abel wasn't hard.
He was overlooking the battlefield from a spot anyone could see.
Roooaaar!
A valiant roar blanketed the crimson sky.
Looking up, there he was amid the gray volcanic ash drifting from the heavens.
Mounted on a flying dragon.
Abel leaped down, golden lightning crackling from his entire body.
Thunder Dragon Holy Spear – Anti-Army Variant.
Thousand Thunders.
Rumble—
If the thunder god descended, would it look like this?
Beneath the ashen sky.
A massive golden bolt split into thousands, crashing down.
Kaboom!
Like a barrage from a bomber.
Hell descended on the enemy lines.
Countless craters formed, filling the air with the acrid stench of burning flesh and smoke.
Abel, the war hero.
The Holy Knights roared in awe at his divine might.
Waaaaah!
"Follow the Supreme Commander!"
"Ooooooh!"
The Holy Knights knew no fear.
They charged the enemy lines, holy power blazing.
Without strategy or plan.
'Well, when the commander himself is rampaging like a wild colt off the leash, what formation could they keep?'
A man who dominated the battlefield on personal martial prowess alone.
That was Abel.
After one barrage, Abel leaped high.
His eyes met Kim Gunja's as he mounted the diving flying dragon.
Abel's eyes, intoxicated by the heat of battle, said it all.
— Can you even keep up?
As Abel soared off on his flying dragon, Kim Gunja finally understood the failure condition.
— Failure Condition: Moving beyond a certain distance from Abel
Ah, so that was it. Keep up at full speed with Abel's tempo as he zipped across the battlefield on his flying dragon.
"......"
...You're kidding.
How the hell was he supposed to catch a guy who was already a dot vanishing into another part of the field?
Absurd.
He wanted to complain.
But there was no time.
A diligent-to-the-point-of-annoying alert window urged him on.
...Damn it!
He couldn't help but curse.
This was a new level of brute-force trial.
'There were signs, though...'
He recalled how, when he'd met Dragon Spear Cho Changhwi, Abel had sent a one-sided quest without regard for his situation.
He should have realized then.
In his urgency, Kim Gunja launched himself at a Holy Knight mounted on a horse, commanding his unit.
"Borrowing this for a sec!"
"What the...!"
The Holy Knight raising his shield against Kim Gunja's kick started to snap something.
But blocking a kick from Kim Gunja—now atop the horse, with his body at level 7—was no easy feat.
Especially loaded with mana.
Bam!
"Urk...!"
The knight flew off into the air, and Kim Gunja took his place.
First time riding a warhorse.
He felt a bit awkward at first, but in an instant, he grasped how to handle it.
Abel's granted ability, Riding, was at work.
Neigh!
Without hesitation, Kim Gunja spurred the warhorse toward where Abel had flown.
Straight into the heart of the enemy lines, swarming with monsters and demons.
"Yah...! That crazy bastard...!"
The ambushed commander trailed off in shock mid-curse.
Even without detailed tactics, wars maintained basic formations.
Charging enemy lines on a single horse?
Something only a suicidal maniac would do.
Unless you were Supreme Commander Abel.
That thought widened the Holy Knight's eyes.
"What...?"
He'd spotted golden lightning coiling around the spear of the man riding toward the enemy.
"Could that be... Thunder Dragon Holy Spear?"
Not White Dragon Spear, but unmistakably Abel's signature ultimate technique.
How?
That was the first question.
Only the Supreme Commander wielded holy power mixed with lightning.
Then it hit him—a scenario that could explain this.
"...When did he get a squire? The hot-blooded type fits the Supreme Commander's squire perfectly, though..."
Watching the man's back as he charged, the Holy Knight shook his head.
'Guts to charge solo into the enemy—that's minimum qual for the Supreme Commander's squire, sure...'
But whether he'd return alive was doubtful.
Monsters were one thing.
Demons were no pushovers.
Hero Guild's top floor.
A man stood at the rooftop railing.
White Flame Baek Jincheon.
Gazing down at Seoul's nightscape.
The fierce night wind at that dizzying height whipped his clothes dramatically.
His deputy approached from behind.
"Here, sir?"
Baek Jincheon didn't turn, offering no reply.
He just extended his hand into the void and slowly clenched it.
As if grasping the world above the city lights.
A faint smile played on Baek Jincheon's lips.
The deputy waited patiently, without urging.
A moment later.
Baek Jincheon spoke.
"What is it?"
"Hong Gyuhyeon of Infinite Guild contacted us. Wants to meet you. Says to discuss the future of the Hunter world."
Baek Jincheon smirked.
"Finally reached his limit, huh."
"Given his temperament, it's surprising he's held out this long."
Baek Jincheon's smile deepened.
Anyone with a conscience would have.
And he'd held back too.
"About time to tidy up domestically."
He'd meet him.
"I'll schedule it."
"The event?"
The duel between Kim Gunja and Kang Inhyeok.
"Progressing smoothly. Kang Inhyeok returns next week."
Next week drew a peculiar smile from Baek Jincheon.
"Who'll win?"
The deputy paused before answering.
"Still... probably too tough for him."
Rankings alone showed a 900+ gap between Kim Gunja and Kang Inhyeok.
Kang Inhyeok led in body and mana levels too.
Combat experience and unique traits as well.
An objective chasm, hard to bridge.
'But why...'
Even now, answering it'd be tough, he felt this expectation that Kim Gunja might pull something off.
The deputy didn't hide it.
"That said, considering what Kim Gunja's done... hard to call it definitively."
"Exactly. That's what makes it fun."
Baek Jincheon chuckled.
He saw Kim Gunja winning as ideal, but couldn't rule out the opposite.
"Whoever wins. Make sure we're set."
Ensure Hero Guild profited, win or lose.
"Yes, sir. No issues."
The deputy replied.
They'd geared toward Kim Gunja, but Hero Guild wasn't all-in on one side.
The world wasn't that simple.
No matter the heartfelt backstory, no mercy for losers.
The stage existed for winners alone.
Baek Jincheon's gaze returned to the nightscape.
"Looking forward to it."
Kim Gunja or Kang Inhyeok.
Who would stand beside him, leading Hero Guild?
He couldn't help but wonder.
Baek Jincheon's eyes gleamed with intrigue at the bustling lights below.