Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Intersection (4)
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"...Hey, Liru."
"Why."
"Do we really have to go like this?"
"Yeah. You can't walk."
"..."
No.
I'd rather just die than be carried like this.
Dawood Campbell. This fully grown adult male, legally recognized as an adult for quite some time now.
Was currently being carried on the back of a woman at least 10 cm shorter than him, in a piggyback position.
'...I don't know.'
It might sound luxurious, but if anyone saw him like this, he'd die of embarrassment.
To distract himself, he quickly checked something else.
[Gift-Related Character Alert]
▼ Liru Garda
[ Curiosity Stage 1 ] >>> [ Interest Stage 1 ]
[ Rewards available for collection! ]
[ Affection has risen dramatically in a short period! ]
[ Special rewards available for collection! ]
"..."
It rose a lot.
He had seen the message before saying a skill was conditionally implanted, but even accounting for that, the increase was absurdly large.
In truth, the vessels' affection levels had always shot up quickly whenever he did the slightest thing, but Liru was unparalleled among them.
Excluding Elnor, who started at Trust Stage 1 right from the beginning, wasn't she the fastest to rise?
'...It's a good thing, all things considered.'
Liru, who harbored the Blue Devil, was a powder keg that needed to be handled with extreme care. Getting close to her quickly made her easier to "manage," which was a boon.
As mentioned before, once she got twisted up, she was the most troublesome devil alongside the White Devil.
Blue Devil. The Devil of Wrath.
Half-jokingly, users often said this one was scarier than the final boss, the Gray Devil.
"..."
In other words, half of that was serious.
The Blue Devil itself wasn't as threatening as one might think.
It wasn't like the Gray Devil, descending in its "true form" as the most insanely unmatched being among all devils, nor did it lie in wait like the White Devil, constantly seeking a chance to devour him.
Its inherent nature was relatively the most bland among all devils.
But the problem was.
Its threshold for rampaging was incredibly low.
That was the context for why it was scarier than the final boss. Unlike other devils that were hard to even glimpse without special circumstances, this one would descend into the material world if you slipped up even slightly.
Not to mention if its vessel was Liru.
"..."
There were various conditions for the devil inside a vessel to rampage, but most of them were hard to trigger on their own.
Elnor's rampage condition was her mind becoming sufficiently disturbed.
Yuria's was being separated from her object of obsession for too long.
Things that effectively damaged Elnor's near-diamond-hard mentality were all related to him, and Yuria's object of obsession was him too.
As long as he wasn't involved, there wasn't much real danger.
But for the Blue Devil.
Its rampage condition was simply "getting angry."
As seen just moments ago, if she crossed the threshold into "rage" on her own, signs would start showing. If she got even angrier, she'd rampage and descend outright.
If Elnor got even half as angry as needed to use her "Possession - Wrath" skill, the Blue Devil would have already laid waste to the surroundings.
"..."
And yet.
The human harboring such a devil was a tempestuous woman who seemed perpetually furious. To the point of earning the nickname "mad dog."
That was why he was being dragged along without complaint right now. Honestly, with this level of injury, he could handle it alone now that he'd learned various blessings, but he couldn't risk rejecting her goodwill and pissing her off.
You never knew when or how this person might snap...!
"..."
Well, that wasn't the only reason.
If his memory was correct, being "invited" to Liru's home meant he'd meet someone he absolutely had to see there.
Someone who would provide tremendous help to his future endeavors.
"What're you looking at."
"...It's nothing."
Did she have eyes in the back of her head?
As soon as he silently stared at Liru, a curt sentence flew back at him.
'...Let's collect the rewards.'
He deliberately ignored her and tapped the spear icon repeatedly to claim the rewards.
[ Collecting Gift reward from 'Liru'! ]
[ Acquired Trait: Iron Man! ]
[Mastery Info]
[ Trait: Iron Man ] [ Grade: Basic ]
[ Current Proficiency: 0% ]
[ Warriors of the Tribal Federation repeatedly train by pushing themselves into extreme situations to hone their coping abilities. It's extremely dangerous, but the effects are certain. ]
[ ■ Increases resistance to various injuries and pain. Reduces pain intensity and allows easier movement even with severe injuries. ]
[ ■ Effects scale with Endurance stat. ]
"..."
Somehow, a trait popped up that he felt he could level up proficiency on incredibly quickly.
For someone like him who constantly wrecked his body, it felt like a drought-ending rain.
The only downside was that all effects scaled with his Endurance stat?
'I really need to raise my Endurance stat fast...'
Thinking that, he moved to the next window.
For a reward from a massive affection surge in a short time, it had to be...
[ Acquired 1x 'Skill Copy Ticket'. ]
[ Copy 1 desired skill from the target! ]
This one.
He'd gotten the exact same from Yuria and Elnor, so he'd expected it here too.
Unlike Elnor, who hadn't used hers until much later, or Yuria, who was still saving it, he had a skill from Liru to copy right away.
[ Trait: Martial Arts - Stand-up ]
[ Efficient movements honed over a lifetime by a genius boxer with innate senses. Even unfinished, it wields tremendous power! ]
[ ■ Receive Strength correction in unarmed combat. ]
[ ■ Receive Agility correction for evasion actions in unarmed state. ]
[ ■ Unlock various techniques included in this martial art through practice. ]
Notably, unlike other traits, it had no "proficiency."
This meant it had to be learned purely through "practice" without system assistance. The reason to acquire it quickly was that it took time to reach full performance anyway.
'...This is huge.'
It was worth investing time in; the trait's ceiling was already proven to overflow.
The reason Liru was key to conquering Chapter 3 was exactly this.
There would definitely come a moment when its bizarre feature of massively boosting combat power in an "unarmed" state shone.
And that moment would be in Chapter 3's most critical situation.
"..."
Of course, to properly train this trait.
He absolutely needed someone's help.
With that thought, he looked down at the back of Liru's head.
'...Well.'
The problem was that, given the backstory tied to this technique, Liru would absolutely refuse to teach it.
But he had a way to resolve that.
One he planned to use right away.
"...We're here."
His consciousness, lost in thought, was pulled back to reality by Liru's voice.
Having left Elpante's academy district and walked far into the outskirts of the city, to the most remote spot.
There stood a crumbling building.
It was shabby enough to make even the "storage room" where Yuria had lived seem decent.
To the point where one wondered if anyone could live there.
"..."
He felt Liru glance at him from the side.
She probably thought she wasn't showing it, but it was obvious. She'd brought him here to treat him, only to reveal this rundown building. Was he mocking her, perhaps?
But he had no such intention.
"Nice place."
"...What?"
First of all, as he'd said repeatedly, there was no need to provoke her. The best policy was to always be exceedingly polite, no matter what.
And second.
Even setting that aside, there was zero reason to mock that space.
It was probably a building Liru had constructed entirely on her own, without help from anyone. That was the "tradition" in this neighborhood.
"It's not a grand structure, but I can feel the effort poured into it up to this point. Someone must have worked very hard."
"...Shut up."
Liru scratched her head vigorously and grumbled curtly as she dragged him straight into the building.
Of course.
Her expression didn't look all that displeased, despite her tone.
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As soon as they entered the building, Liru carefully set him down. Rejoicing at the long-lost freedom, he stood firmly on both feet.
"Hey! It's big sis! Big sis! Kids, big sis is here!"
"Sis! Come in!"
"Hey! Big sis's boyfriend is here too!"
And as soon as Liru arrived, several children burst out noisily from inside the hut.
Probably Liru's clan kin.
"Not my boyfriend. Don't bother the guest. Go inside."
Liru shooed them away irritably. But the expression on her face was a "human warmth" she'd never shown at the academy.
There, she only ever showed blank stares or angry glares.
"Rest up. I'll get the medicine."
With that, Liru whisked the children away toward the inner room partitioned by a curtain.
"..."
He let out a chuckle and looked around.
Left alone in the middle of the living room, he finally had the leisure to do so.
The building rigidly adhered to Tribal Federation traditions, steeped in their unique culture.
It was exactly like the inside of an American indigenous hut.
But among it all, one thing stood out unmistakably.
He looked at the "necklaces" hanging on the wall and the "incense sticks" burning before them.
"It's to honor those who ascended to the heavens."
It was the voice of an elderly woman.
Turning his head, he saw a small figure lying in the shadows. A pipe was in her mouth.
"..."
No, calling her "small" was a bit imprecise.
She clearly once had a robust, imposing build.
But she was missing both legs and one arm. As if they'd been severed by someone.
"Lots of troubles lately. Sorry for bringing you into this messy house, child."
"...Not at all."
He responded calmly.
"I can't even remember the last time I entered a space this warm."
In the otherwise crumbling, shabby home, only the incense burner sending up fragrant smoke and those necklaces were impeccably preserved.
The meticulous care was plain to see.
One could instantly tell the bond she'd shared with the necklaces' previous owners in life.
The old woman cackled.
"You're a grateful one."
The old woman smoothly rose and approached him. It was astonishing that she could move like that in her condition. She supported her entire body effortlessly with one arm.
Scars covering her body came into view.
A body that had overcome countless hardships. He prided himself on having been through the wringer lately, but he couldn't hold a candle to her.
"Your eyes burn with spirit. A child of great talent."
The old woman, who had been scrutinizing his face for a while, said that.
"That makes me even more curious. What brings you here?"
"..."
"You must know what this place is, and what it means to tangle with this old wreck. So why?"
"..."
Could she read all that just from his eyes?
All the "top-tiers" in this world were freakish people.
He gave a wry smile and continued.
"I'm Dawood Campbell. Just a guy with no fancy credentials to boast about."
He pulled out the lion's necklace. A token given only to "promising talents" in the Tribal Federation, bestowed upon him by Hatan.
This granted him the "minimum right" to speak to her from here on.
"Pleased to meet you, Kasa Garda."
Kasa Garda. Liru Garda's grandmother.
The world's greatest boxer, whose martial prowess rivaled the modern Sword Saint.
And the former Grand Chieftain of the Tribal Federation, ousted in a "coup."
"...I've come to talk about your granddaughter."
He continued to the old woman, who smiled faintly.
"A talk about my granddaughter, eh? Go on. What do you want to say?"
He organized his words.
He'd been chewed out countless times for sucking at this.
So.
This time, he chose his words meticulously, pondering to ensure zero misinterpretation.
Perfection was key.
"Please help Liru and me develop a deep relationship."
"..."
"I'd like to take it all the way within 10 days."
"..."
No.
Judging by her reaction, this wasn't right.
"...May I explain a bit more? I think I misspoke."
Luckily, he managed to add clarification before Kasa split his skull open.
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