Chapter 104
Chapter 104
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Guild Master Isn't Enough With Just the Game
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[Ggilgamesh: If you're doing number 3, I recommend rolling up your sleeves, tying your hair back, and exposing your wrists and neck.]
[Ggilgamesh: Get your clothes a bit ragged and top it off with a crown of thorns, and you'll look just like Jesus lol. Super holy vibes lololol.]
[Ggilgamesh: Dart's taste ^_^]
[Dart: You're dead meat....]
[Ggilgamesh: lol]
[Ggilgamesh: The white, simple clothes give off a sacred vibe, so layering on holy-type effects should nail the image.]
He nailed it.
Gilgamesh definitely had fashion sense and picked up on things quick.
[Kaisha: Agreed.]
The number 3 outfit Dart picked was black pants with a crisp white shirt.
It was Midgard clothing, but commissioned from a famous noblewoman's shop with a modern design, so it didn't feel purely medieval.
Aside from the impeccable, luxurious finish, it had zero defense—but that could be handled with buffs.
It was the cleanest style among the outfits I'd prepared.
I had no idea what Dart was thinking when he chose it, but since his personality was the closest to Oppen's, I trusted his taste without question.
I wasn't targeting just Oppen, but he was the most important civilian for now.
"Kaisha-nim."
Hellcannon entered.
"Come on in, Hellcannon. Want to sit here for a bit?"
They'd said the Babel Tower's system patch would take some time, but finally, the market supporting incarnations had opened.
My heart raced.
Even in the middle of a quest, I couldn't resist upgrading my favorite.
I opened the management window.
『[Incarnation Management]
Name: Hellcannon
Age: 24
Rank: SSS+
[Strength] 187 / [Vitality] 154
[Agility] 131 / [Intellect] 101
[Defense] 138
Stigma: —
Skills: <[View Details]>』
For some reason, his stats were on par with max-level users in full gear.
Of course, it was pretty famous among players that while most named heroes in Midgard started at A-rank, Hellcannon had been an S-rank cheat character from the start.
A few more windows popped up.
『<Hellcannon>
▶Sponsor
▶Summon
▶Send Message
▶Window View
▶Set Nickname
…』
『Incarnation 'Hellcannon's growth has reached its peak. Ready to upgrade rank to EX.』
『You can bestow your <Stigma> upon Incarnation 'Hellcannon'.』
Upgrade first.
Clicking it brought up a confirmation to upgrade Hellcannon's rank to EX.
I hit yes without hesitation.
"!"
Hellcannon's eyes widened at the brilliant light bursting from his body.
『Unlocking 'Hellcannon's limits.』
『Incarnation 'Hellcannon' has reached EX rank.』
『Additional level-ups are now possible.』
『Surpassing human limits, [Neural Power] can now be used.』
『Incarnation 'Hellcannon's Neural Power level will partially sync with yours. However, the incarnation will need extensive training and assistance to fully utilize your Neural Power.』
The breakthrough was that heroes reaching EX rank could now use Neural Power.
Of course, having seen heroes use it during the city war, it wasn't that shocking that Hellcannon could now wield it.
"Kaisha-nim, this is……."
"EX rank— one step above SSS+. And from now on, you can use Neural Power like us."
"!"
Hellcannon's eyes went wide.
『You can bestow your <Stigma> upon Incarnation 'Hellcannon'.』
Clicking it showed this explanation.
『Select one of your skills for the incarnation to use. Proficiency will not transfer.』
I could give him one of my skills, but it would start at level 1.
"I'll give you a Stigma once I hit max level."
If I could only give Hellcannon one of my skills, it'd naturally be a top-tier one.
Leveling up was urgent.
I briefly opened my skill window and scanned the skill tree.
Currently at stage 6 out of 9.
Thanks to the level reset, my rebuilding skill tree—minus the original healer skills—was filled entirely with skills I'd never picked before.
Master the sensation, memorize it, and I could handle applications, fusions, everything—which made it the obvious choice for me.
Dart and I could perfectly cast skills by sensation from the start, but regular hunters found it surprisingly hard and inefficient without the skill window.
That was why rebuilding a skill tree from scratch like this was rare.
Especially for rankers, who already had established siege positions in their guilds—team play meant maximizing existing skills.
In other words, rebuilding the skill tree was a fresh playground only someone like me, an original jack-of-all-trades turned guild master, could pull off.
Ultimately, I wanted to master the sensations of every class's skills to the max, freeing me to use them without the skill window.
On top of that, deepen applications, links, and mixes.
As I pondered my skill tree, Hellcannon—stunned by the news he could now use Neural Power—spoke up.
"I never imagined this kind of contract…… I'm truly fortunate to have formed an incarnation contract with you, Kaisha-nim."
I paused opening the market window and glanced at him with a smile.
"What did you think the contract was?"
"Honestly…… I vaguely thought it was something like a slave contract."
"……."
I froze.
He'd thought it was some trash contract like that…… and still accepted?
Delusions, stop. Stop it. No. Hey, I said no. Hellcannon's not an NPC, he's a person. Tsk. Cut it out.
"A black-haired man once demanded an incarnation contract from me."
"W-What? Who?"
Who the hell. I'll kill him.
A surge of irrational killing intent hit me toward some unknown guy—but it turned out to be very rational and justified.
"A black-haired, black-eyed man—the one who attacked you and vanished, Kaisha-nim."
"……The incarnated Constellation bastard?"
"Yes. Constellation. That's exactly what it said when this appeared for me."
"!"
Hellcannon pointed at the market window I was viewing.
A message window had popped up for him.
That's when I fully understood why Hellcannon had seen the 'incarnation contract' as something akin to slavery.
Sorting my thoughts, I asked.
"So, that guy made incarnation contracts with the heroes?"
"He proposed one to me too, so I assume so. Space King's heroes urged me to contract and join their side."
And as a result of refusing, Hellcannon had watched his once-comrades get used by the black Constellation bastard.
Easily discarded and ultimately killed by Space King.
"……."
Suddenly, the weight of the 'incarnation contract'—which I'd taken lightly—hit me hard. It must've been anything but light for Hellcannon.
Yet he'd accepted mine so readily and wanted to stay by my side.
I asked Hellcannon.
"Why didn't you contract with the Constellations? Like Leonhardt—you must've been tempted seeing your fellow heroes grow stronger."
Looking back, it wasn't an exaggeration to say all affiliated heroes had fallen.
Hellcannon looked surprised at my question, then pondered as if recalling his thoughts from back then.
He soon spoke.
"From that moment on, I've only ever thought of you, Kaisha-nim."
"……."
What was this straight ball?
This was the kind where even I could indulge in delusions without getting stoned.
Unaware of my dumbfounded expression, Hellcannon bowed his head slightly, his face gravely serious as he carefully retraced his thoughts.
"After you said you'd protect my little sister, I thought about you a lot, Kaisha-nim. What if my affilier had been you?"
My mood felt weird.
It was straightforward yet teasing the edge of my delusions—an exquisitely subtle skill that stirred a person up.
For the first time, Hellcannon showed a hint of shyness.
"And along the way…… I recalled how you'd shown me special attention……."
"……You knew?"
I'd thought Hellcannon had zero reactions, so I figured he was an emotionless NPC and pulled every attention-seeking stunt imaginable.
Thinking back now, it was embarrassing.
"……Yes."
For some reason, Hellcannon seemed embarrassed too.
Yeah, fair enough.
A rapid montage flashed through my mind: the variety-show attention-seeking antics under the delusion he wasn't human, and the daily Olympics with Dart.
"……."
The longer the silence stretched, the heavier my shame grew—unbearable.
"Hellcannon."
"Yes."
"The past is the past."
"!"
He flinched in surprise at my words, then straightened up and composed himself.
"Yes, of course! I reflect on taking your kindness for granted. From now on, I'll strive to build new loyalty."
Hellcannon kept talking, but the endless black history memories were too mortifying; none of it registered.
I vaguely replied, "Yeah……," and opened the coin market in a gloomy mood.
[Nickname 'Sister's Sweet Discipline' sponsored 400 coins.]
[Nickname 'Not Black History, It Was Fiery Flirting' sponsored 200 coins.]
[Nickname 'Hellcamook' sponsored 300 coins.]
[Nickname 'Both Too Cute' sponsored 400 coins.]
[Nickname 'Be Nice to Hellcannon' sponsored 900 coins.]
[Nickname 'We Only Know You' sponsored 1600 coins.]
…
Suddenly, mysterious windows flooded in like they'd been waiting.
"?"
What was this.
Viewer sponsorships showing up in Babel Tower's message windows.
Were people outside Babel Tower watching us play in real-time?
I looked around, but no cameras in sight.
Come to think of it, after fighting Dart in Midgard, I'd seen some notification about sponsorships, but I couldn't recall the details.
A bit disorienting, but like Goldbunker's live streams in Midgard—probably fine.
Anyway, hoping they'd pour in the cash generously, I dismissed the windows.
* * *
Kaisha, having unintentionally crushed Hellcannon's morale hard, kicked off full-scale faith politics.
Fullminak group chat.
[Kaisha: Action guidelines.]
[Kaisha: Goal: Implant a good image as gods in civilians' minds]
[Kaisha: 1. Change into your cleanest, best-looking outfit. Of course, ensure enough defense to survive mob fights—stay alive on your own.]
[Kaisha: 2. Don't hand out water or snacks all at once; distribute in stages while being kind and holy-feeling.]
[Kaisha: Spam halo effects]
[Kaisha: 3. In battle, even if you're about to die, make it flashy, sexy, cool]
[Kaisha: Not cool? Death penalty]
[Kaisha: Die with style]
[Kaisha: Always style]
[Kaisha: Absolute style]
[Kaisha: Stake modern intellect and honor to make style explode in this land.]
[Kaisha: End]
The guild members burst out laughing at Kaisha's 'Operation Absolute Style' posted in text, then swiftly pulled out and equipped their prepared style gear.
Fullminak wasn't new to this sort of thing.
A guild skilled at faith politics even in Midgard, their inventories and skill windows brimmed with hoarded style items and flashy effect skills, alive and breathing.
Including the guild master, all 33 members began farming fandom—or faith—in the forest.