Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Sword King
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After buying diamonds, I used them to purchase a hundred Class Summon Cards. That alone cost a million won, leaving me with just 1,284,500 won in my account.
'No need to buy any more diamonds.'
Flipping to the next page revealed package deals bought with real cash, not in-game diamonds.
'No limited-time ones today.'
Revenge sold limited packages for every occasion—Lunar New Year packages for Lunar New Year, Chuseok packages for Chuseok, Christmas packages for Christmas, Black Friday packages for Black Friday.
Unfortunately, today was just another ordinary day, so only the standard sixteen packages were available.
I checked the details and bought them one by one.
You have purchased the ★☆Ardenia Settlement Package☆★!
You have purchased the ★☆Battle Pass☆★!
You have purchased the ★☆Grand Master Package☆★!
You have purchased 2x ★☆Companion Package☆★!
You have purchased 2x ★☆Guardian Spirit Package☆★!
You have purchased 2x ★☆Master Skill Package☆★!
You have purchased the ★☆Bracelet of Valor Package☆★!
You have purchased the ★☆Belt of Struggle Package☆★!
I'd spent a little over a million won from my balance exceeding 1.28 million. Now I was down to 184,500 won.
'Spending money goes way too fast.'
The most efficient was definitely the Settlement Package. For 55,000 won, it came with 700 diamonds, a pair of Rare-grade earrings, a ring, and a necklace.
It even included a guaranteed high-grade pet summon ticket and ten Chalices of Benediction.
'The Grand Master Package has ten Class Cards too, so now I have a hundred and ten total. Plus a guaranteed Rare card.'
No matter how you sliced it, buying packages was leagues better than grinding for Legendaries. I stretched my fingers casually and scanned the convenience store area. The sun was rising over the dark early-morning streets.
People were starting to appear on the roads, but no one was heading to the store. Covering my mouth with my hand to avoid the CCTV, I whispered,
"……Login."
Back in Ardenia, I unpacked the Revenge packages. Ten boxes exploded into dozens of items, filling my inventory.
I tore open the Class Card packs.
Shing!
A playful goddess statue appeared for a moment, and ten cards shot into the air before transforming into weapons and dropping before me.
I'd confirmed this whole process was visible to third parties, so I was doing it inside my private carriage. Luckily, the noise wasn't loud, and in the tight space, the weapons shrank in size (they were all just images anyway), making it hard to notice from outside.
Shing!
Hunter (Common), Archer (Common), Archer (Common), Wizard (Common)… Wizard (Common).
I ripped open pack after pack. These were just for giving to soldiers anyway, so I didn't care about grades.
'No way I'm pulling a Legendary from just a hundred packs.'
Shing!
Wizard (Common), Shieldbearer (Common), Archer (Common), Wizard (Common)… Wizard (Common).
Wizard (Common), Assassin (Common), Wizard (Common), Cleric (Common)… Flash! High Wizard (Rare)!
"Ah."
Grimacing mid-pack-opening.
"Why are there so many damn Wizards?"
What I wanted were Warrior jobs (Swordsman, Warrior, Shieldbearer), or at least Rogue types (Assassin, Archer, Hunter).
Wizards with mana as their main stat were useless on regular soldiers.
What good was mana for clueless grunts? Even strong mana didn't matter without the setup to teach them spells.
Sure, a cheat item like a Skill Book that let them activate abilities just by chanting skill names would fix that, but…
'No way I can afford that.'
I could barely afford Skill Books for myself. I was compromising on gear enhancement stones—only buying 4-5 a day because gold was tight.
Even buying one basic skill per soldier was a pipe dream.
'Still, no point wasting them… better hold onto the Wizard cards.'
I could cherry-pick the smart ones later for a mage unit or assign them to swordsmen short on mana. For now, I'd aim big.
Flash!
Suddenly, the goddess statue's playful smile froze in surprise.
Rumble…!
The sword stuck in the floor glowed golden.
"Huh?"
I reached out instinctively and grabbed it.
*-When I thought I was just starting to grasp the sword's essence, people were already calling me the Sword King.-*
[Sword King (Hero)]
"……Logout."
Back on Earth, I checked my surroundings. The pre-dawn streets were empty, the sun not yet up. No one in the convenience store, as expected.
I couldn't hold back a groan.
"Sword… Oooooaaah!?"
★☆Class Change Complete☆★
[Sword King (Hero)]
Strength +80, Agility +160, Vitality +80, HP +40, Mana +40
[Attack Speed +50%]
[Expertise in Maai]
My fist clenched on its own.
"Sword! King! No way! You get this just like that?"
Duelist wasn't bad, but with my 100% crit bug, its combat power was on another level compared to Sword King.
Duelist's skills were all crit boosters, but Sword King—the Swordsman, Sword Ghost, Sword King, Sword Saint tree—had zero crit skills.
Swordsmen normally got crits from gear, accessories, and collections.
"I'm set."
I patted the belly of Ttangnyang Cheese on the counter, shaking down four Killians for their gold.
Then I bought every Common and Rare Swordsman skill.
Three Calamities Qi Gong (Passive) (Common), Hard Qi Gong (Active) (Common), Rushing Step (Active) (Common), Swift Wheel Gong (Active) (Rare), Activated Physique (Passive) (Rare), Longsword Proficiency (Passive) (Rare).
"And… damn, no quick way to get this one. Fine, I'll buy it."
I hit the auction house and snagged an Internal Energy Infusion (Active) (Rare) Skill Book. The diamonds from the packages covered it no problem.
Luck was on my side—got it for the lowest price, 480 diamonds.
"About 50,000 won, huh."
In a normal game, I'd curse. 50k for one Rare skill? That's package-game territory.
But my feelings now? The exact opposite.
Internal Energy Infusion.
Just thinking it sent true energy surging through my body automatically. I grabbed a utility knife from the counter.
Hum!
A faint aura enveloped the blade. It was for peeling fruit, but now I knew I could chop logs with it.
"Haha."
Embarrassingly, my eyes heated up. The thing I'd chased my whole life but never reached was now in my grasp.
I knew it.
"Now… I can take the cops."
Even if they were just grunts, beating state power meant no fear in back alleys or the underworld.
Sure, SWAT would crush me,
but this was just a Rare skill?
"Revenge is the answer."
My supernatural aptitude was still trash-tier, so I couldn't control the true energy swirling inside properly. But skills automated it.
"Alright. Login."
I set down the knife and returned to the Ardenia carriage. Then I used up the rest of the Class Summon Tickets.
Results:
97 Commons, 12 Rares, 1 Hero.
No Rares from the main pulls bugged me, but the Hero made up for it. The Grand Master had a guaranteed Rare anyway.
'And the jobs…'
38 Warrior cards, 31 Archer, 41 Wizard. Good thing Wizards tapered off later, and Warriors had plenty of Shieldbearers.
'Perfect. Reinforcing tanks was priority to cut casualties.'
The issue? Stats.
In Revenge, Warriors needed Strength for damage, Archers Agility.
But reality wasn't a game.
Agility was for swordsmen. Even the toughest human dies to a blade. To exploit gaps and spill blood, you needed superior speed and reflexes.
Strength was for archers.
Bow power and range came from draw strength, requiring raw muscle.
Why do elite archers and knight bowmen all have massive builds and backs? Exactly.
'Compromises needed.'
I'd tested it already. If I had attack power—like from an [Attack Power] item—swinging a sword added [extra] damage beyond the physical force.
It dispersed across the body unlike pure sword force, so efficiency sucked.
'Still, free damage is free damage.'
I split Warriors into Agility Swordsmen and Strength Warriors. Mostly the latter, since Swordsman, Warrior, Shieldbearer damage scaled with Strength.
'Slap heavy armor on them and park 'em on the front line. Strong guys can handle the weight.'
Agility Swordsmen get longswords and spears for lethal strikes.
'Rangers pump Agility. But pick big-boned recruits from the start and hit 'em with heavy weights.'
Human bodies have limits, no matter the training. Without aura, chakra, or such, you can't break species barriers.
But… my Vitality, stuck forever, had been climbing lately.
'Breaking human limits in one stat raises caps on related ones too.'
"Logout."
Back on Earth, I jotted notes.
[Training Plan]
1. Warriors: Pump Strength and HP, grind endurance drills.
2. Archers: Pump Agility and HP, weights for Strength.
3. Wizards: On hold.
This was just a framework. Optimal results needed ongoing research and tests.
"Hyung! I'm here!"
Daylight hit while organizing thoughts. Busy with schoolkids, cleaning their messes, then shift change. Sehan, my relief, waved entering the store.
The 21-year-old Level 3 Mage was working part-time for potion funds while training to apply to the Steel Giant Mage Tower's Enchantment school.
"You're here."
"Yeah, hyung. Anything special?"
"Nah. Some old guy threw a fit over no 'Jangsuha' makgeolli label."
"Damn, guy's got balls. Gave you attitude? Was he an [Elder]?"
About 70 years ago—2019.
Peaceful 34th Earth faced unprecedented crisis. Mythic beings dormant on the planet, awakened by the [Apocalypse Project] from deep space.
Billions died. 34th Earth's population over 6 billion plummeted below a tenth.
But humanity ultimately triumphed over the Apocalypse Project… and realized.
All survivors.
Had become monsters.
'Even random elementary kids and snack-bar ajummas hit Level 10+ in that insane era.'
By Greater Universe standards, Level 10 was a Completed Cultivator—Sword Master drawing sword aura. Post-Apocalypse, average human level exceeded that. Imagine the firepower.
'Hell, kids piloted Giggas back then.'
Not one per household—one per person.
Time passed; most from that era aged out or left Earth… but plenty stayed.
People called them [Elders] with respect and fear.
"[Elder]? Nah, middle-aged."
"Must've been hammered… Anyway, all good! Thanks for the shift!"
I nodded at bouncy Sehan waving goodbye and left the store. Grabbed some discarded kimbap for breakfast, headed out.
"Lemme check the address…"
It was 9 AM.
The side gig had just begun.