One-Sided Beauty, Versatile Beauty
Instead of explaining herself as a balanced specialist, Daliha went on to tell him more about the angel in charge of balance, Soriad.
“Soriad…”
For Ho-yeong, who knew the setup of Reign of Dice inside and out, it was a name he was hearing for the first time.
His epithet is Guardian of Adversity. He is not a high angel, but he possesses a powerful authority worthy of that name.
“You said he handles balance patches, right? Then wouldn’t people usually call him something like the Guardian of Balance?”
Guardian of Adversity. It sounded like a bizarre title.
“Is he protecting people from adversity, or protecting them from overcoming it?”
Both. Soriad governs adversity itself. When the game environment is too harsh, he helps the guardian overcome adversity; when it is too smooth, he brings adversity instead. Either way, the foundation is his wish for the guardian's growth.
“Hmm, the word sometimes still bothers me, but at least he’s on my side. I’m a simple guy anyway, so all that balance and neutrality stuff gives me a headache. Black is black, white is white. I hate gray with a passion.”
At any rate, Ho-yeong felt a good deal lighter now.
“I was getting frustrated, so I let off a little steam. Don’t take me too badly for it. The angels in charge of the system, especially that so-called Guardian of Adversity.”
He brushed the mud off his clothes, and a new message arrived.
A conversation request has arrived from Soriad. What will you do?
“Oh?! So I could actually talk to him? Why didn’t you tell me that before?”
Because the condition was accumulating 1,000 RP.
“If I hadn’t cleared that higher-tier achievement, I wouldn’t have met the condition either. Anyway, since a conversation request came in, of course I’ll accept!”
Two buttons appeared in the status window.
“...‘Only listen’ and ‘Talk’? The options are kind of weird.”
What made it even more irritating was that Talk consumed 100 RP, while Only listen cost nothing at all.
“So you invite me to talk first and then shake me down for a hundred RP? What is this, some international call charge? Whatever, at least you’re asking for my choice now. Fine, let’s talk.”
It was irritating, but Ho-yeong pressed Talk.
Honestly, he was half-afraid he’d get punished for the earlier disrespect toward that angel.
Guardian Bang Ho-yeong, who came to this world from another world. I have heard your words and, taking your feelings into account, I feel them in my heart.
Thankfully, that didn’t seem to be the case.
Soriad’s voice was deep and resonant, a male voice befitting the title Guardian of Adversity.
I shall give you a choice, as you said.
Ho-yeong had not expected much, thinking it would be another useless choice like before.
If you wish, you may avoid this adversity.
“Avoid it? You mean I can just skip the bonus stage? Then what happens to the penalty?!”
Ho-yeong’s eyes widened.
The punishment for giving up does not change. The people of Rainpa will harbor deep doubts about your abilities, and the thin trust they held will turn to stench. The more quickly something is built, the more quickly it collapses.
He almost let his suppressed anger explode again, but Daliha displayed the message, “Soriad is typing...,” and that kept him in check.
However, you may alter the monster that is summoned. As you said earlier, what if a goblin appeared instead of a Fog Hog?
The words of someone important should always be heard through to the end.
“Oh?! Now that’s a proper patch. Woo! Praise be to Soriad!”
Ho-yeong threw both arms up and cheered.
...The one who complained about variable difficulty has a variable attitude as well. How absurd.
Soriad’s voice sank lower and lower.
And I shall continue. If you face goblins, it is effectively impossible for you to lose. I presume you could slaughter them alone. Therefore, the punishment remaining unchanged would hardly matter.
“Yeah, that’s definitely true. The odds of actually taking the penalty are extremely low.”
Ho-yeong agreed quickly.
If you choose the goblin, the reward will not change either. But you are wiser than you look, so you should understand the practical difference.
“The reward stays the same, sure, but the clear condition gets way easier, so it’s basically free loot relative to the risk. I can’t argue with that. Hm. From what you’ve said so far, it’d be stupid not to pick goblins.”
If the reward was identical, there was no reason to take the harder road.
“There’s still more, isn’t there?”
Just as Ho-yeong had guessed, Soriad made him an offer.
That is correct. If you choose the true path of adversity, the Fog Hog, then you will receive additional rewards incomparable to the existing ones.
“What is that reward?”
After a brief pause, Soriad answered.
Dice of Adversity.
“Dice of Adversity? Never heard of it.”
Dice of Adversity.
It was a name that did not feel especially vivid, but Ho-yeong still gave the proper reaction out of courtesy.
That is right. It is a relic many heroes have coveted since ancient times. You would not know it as you are now.
Like Soriad said, it was an item Ho-yeong had never seen or heard of, not even in the game or in the setting compendium.
“Let me at least see the effect before I decide.”
Charging in without understanding the reward was just reckless.
Choose.
Two buttons appeared.
“...Detailed explanation costs 300 RP, brief explanation costs 30 RP? You’ve made point consumption mandatory now? What kind of extortionary adversity is this?”
Ho-yeong was dumbfounded.
In order to obtain such a precious relic, one must build renown.
“I’d understand if the points were for getting the precious item itself, but right now I just need information. And you want me to hand over points for that?”
Your renown is still pitifully lacking, but I have made a special allowance and reduced the amount.
“Yes, yes. Thank you so much.”
He decided it was pointless to argue further.
So that’s how it is, huh. This shakedown confirms it. To get the information needed to advance the game, I have to spend RP rather than EP. Just like when I played Reign of Dice.
Reign of Dice is primarily a defense game, but it also has RPG elements from an open world.
Whenever you complete quests or increase influence, you earn RP, and if you pay RP to NPCs, they’ll tell you valuable things: how to obtain rare items, how to enter secret dungeons, how to unlock hidden skills, and so on.
Some NPCs even refuse to talk, or don’t appear at all, unless you have a certain amount of RP.
“I’ve got 1,025 RP right now, and burning 300 just for an explanation is a little... I’ll go with the brief one.”
30 RP deducted.
“...You really do have a way of speaking that makes me want to punch a wall.”
And yet the voice remained absurdly solemn and handsome, which only made it more annoying.
Dice of Adversity (Legendary Item)
- Type: Active / Single-target designated buff (the holder themselves may also be designated as the target)
- Effect: When used, the dice value applied to a chosen stat on the target is always fixed at maximum for the duration. However, the dice values for all other stats are always fixed at minimum.
- Condition: Clear the bonus stage at rank A or higher
“Wait. Why doesn’t it list the duration or cooldown?”
Because you chose the brief explanation, regretting every scrap of your precious renown. No further questions will be taken.
He suddenly wanted to end the conversation and go find Daliha as fast as possible.
“Anyway, is this item good... or what?! It’s Legendary rank, at least.”
In the Reign of Dice system, dice were an extremely important element.
Whether hero or unit, every character rolled a hundred-sided die whenever they moved, attacked, or used an ability. The result was added to the minimum value of each stat and then applied. To prevent the game from relying too heavily on luck, however, each stat had an upper cap, meaning a maximum value.
For example, say a character named Kon had an attack speed stat ranging from 22 to 44, and you gave them two attack orders. The two dice rolls came up 2 and 100. In that case, the first attack speed would become 22 + 2, or 24, but the second would not become 22 + 100, or 122; it would be capped at the maximum of 44.
“Even a one-point difference in the die can matter a lot. That’s why the game’s called Reign of Dice.”
In battles between units with similar stats, the die roll could become the variable that decided life or death.
You seem unable to grasp the value of this die, pitiful guardian.
“No, I do think it’s a good buff item, but... isn’t the debuff way too severe?! Instead of keeping one stat at jackpot level, all the others get trashed. I don’t need a perfect all-rounder, but the higher the stats are across the board, the better.”
“An all-rounder? What is that?”
“Ah, it’s an idiom...”
Since Ho-yeong’s explanation seemed interesting, Soriad offered a pointed piece of advice.
Think carefully. Among your talents, how many true all-rounders are there? And consider this: if you had to choose only one between a one-sided beauty and an eight-sided ordinary man, whom would you take?
“Hmm, so you’re saying someone who’s plainly excellent at one thing is better than a half-baked jack-of-all-trades. Fair enough.”
Several faces among his territory residents came to mind.
Lilian as the example of an all-rounder, Meyril as the one-sided beauty, and Shrakhim as the eight-sided ordinary man.
Being able to maximize the exact stat you need at the exact moment you need it is definitely an attractive effect.
So you understand at last. Then what will you do? Will you accept adversity? If you dislike it, you may flee before adversity. It would be beyond you anyway. Very well, then. I shall specially lift the variable difficulty this once.
It was the strongest possible provocation a player could be given: Would you like to challenge the easier difficulty?
“Who’s running away? Fine, let’s do it.”
Are you serious?
Soriad sounded genuinely surprised.
“Aren’t angels supposed to be able to tell truth from lies? Of course I’m serious.”
Why?! You were the one complaining about variable difficulty just now.
“Yeah. I’ve gotten interested in seeing whether I can break through the adversity you’re giving me.”
Ho-yeong smiled.
And yet you do not receive any additional reward. Why, then! Why would you deliberately walk a harsher road?
“You’re not living up to your name, Guardian of Adversity. Reward? Sure, one reason I play Hell difficulty is for the reward. But do you know what’s even bigger than reward?”
He looked up at the sky.
“A sense of accomplishment. Without that, no matter how huge the reward is, it isn’t fun. No, maybe a sense of accomplishment is the reward itself.”
Even inside the gray clouds that drifted and never quite moved on, the sky still held on to a pale, faint light.
“Of course I’m not saying I won’t take the reward, so I’ll gladly accept it. A Legendary Item, huh. Now it finally feels like a bonus stage, and I’m getting fired up. And thanks for the conversation. Pricey as hell, but entertaining.”
He declared it toward the angel who might be somewhere in the slit of light up above.
“All right, I’ll take the challenge, so go ahead and unpause things already. Don’t worry, I’m not surrendering. Just watch and see whether the stage breaks me or I break the stage. I’m clearing this variable difficulty thing, no matter what.”
He turned his gaze and looked over the motionless characters around him.
“With those one-sided beauties you mentioned.”
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