Chapter 21
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: First Awakening
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"You're asking because I don't know? Isn't there another way?"
―There must be things you can gain by killing me.
"Really? But if they're things I can only get by killing you, then I don't need them. I told you, things are precious precisely because they're finite."
―Haha, there's something about you that stirs the heart. Fine, it's not like there's absolutely no way.
"What is it?"
Basilahan's green eyes faded momentarily before sharpening into focus, and an alarm rang out as the status window opened.
You have acquired The Gift of the Sorrowful Basilahan. Would you like to confirm? Y/N
Lee Ru-ri confirmed the gift without a word.
The Gift of the Sorrowful Basilahan
You have acquired the new skill <Spear of Lament>.
―I've bestowed my will upon you, so now you can leave this place.
"Thank you. We'll meet again, right?"
―I'll be waiting.
Basilahan's green eyes blazed fervently.
When she came to, the torches that had brightly illuminated the gate were all extinguished.
All the illusions he had shown her, along with the jade constellation, had vanished in an instant.
The surroundings had reverted to the barren, dark plaza.
"To get out..."
Turning around, she saw the entrance she had come through shining dazzlingly bright.
Lee Ru-ri strode back to the glowing entrance.
Pushing open the massive doors—which she had already thought were huge on the way in—with all her might, she was immediately transported to the Hidden Gate waiting room.
The Hidden Gate status window opened automatically.
"Straight to the waiting room. But how did I end up in the boss gate?"
She opened the shop, fiddled around with a few things, and unconsciously opened her inventory.
Inventory List
(1) Drayger's Scales
(2) Kalikan's Bone
(3) Anacon's Fang
(4) Basilahan's Cloak
(5) Random Box (D)
(6) Random Box (A)
"When did all this get stored? I only defeated Kalikan and Anacon... This place is just so unpredictable."
Grumbling idly, she tapped the sell button to check the prices.
Drayger's Scales, Kalikan's Bone, and Basilahan's Cloak each fetched 10 million sion.
Anacon's Fang went for 5 million sion.
Hitting sell instantly bulked up her balance.
"Wonder what's in the random boxes."
She tapped the D-rank random box first.
Random Box (D): Would you like to confirm? Y/N
"Hope it's something good."
Clutching her rising anticipation, she hit confirm.
You have acquired Highest HP Boost Potion. Quantity (2)
You have acquired Highest Mana Boost Potion. Quantity (2)
You have acquired (Selectable) Low-Grade Stat Boost Potion. Quantity (5)
"Hmm, how much do the highest-grade ones boost? The high-grade ones were 1,000 HP and 100 mana. What's a stat boost potion? Anyway, HP and mana potions first."
HP increased by 10,000.
HP increased by 10,000.
Mana increased by 1,000.
Mana increased by 1,000.
Lee Ru-ri blinked at the skyrocketing numbers, utterly speechless.
Finally regaining her composure, she murmured softly.
"Whoa, that's insane."
Even checking again, her amazement kept her mouth agape.
"Let's check the stat boost potions too."
Tapping the stat boost potion activated her info in the status window.
"Wait, why are the stats so high all of a sudden?"
Deciding to take it slow and check carefully, she absentmindedly tapped the most changed part: the title.
The title description popped up immediately.
Title granted upon reaching the state where exclusive skills can be used: All stats +5
"Tapping shows the details. So 'Conqueror' meant summoner—that's a rare position like a summoner, right? But how does that connect to using magical beast skills? Hmm, anyway, smashing more Hidden Gates should give me more info on my position."
Lee Ru-ri tapped her long-standing curiosity: Sense.
Sense: Use your five senses to check target information.
"Ah! So that's why I could see the magical beasts' info."
She pondered how to allocate the stat boost potions from the random box.
"Well, better to spread them out one by one."
Attack Power increased by 10.
Strength increased by 10.
Intelligence increased by 10.
Agility increased by 10.
Dexterity increased by 10.
The status window flickered once and updated with the new values.
"The numbers in parentheses going up means the title and potion boosts only apply inside Hidden Gates. So to raise my real stats... I guess I have to train my body the old-fashioned way."
Suddenly, she noticed something odd about her rank.
"H?"
Unlike the title or Sense, it didn't respond to taps.
"Wait, all the guys I meet in Hidden Gates have H ranks. So maybe mine shows as H here too. Like a gate-specific rank or something."
No matter how much she puzzled over it, nothing clicked right away.
"Let's check the last random box."
Random Box (A): Would you like to confirm? Y/N
She hit confirm right away.
You have acquired Hidden Skill Level-Up Ticket. Quantity (1)
"Not something I need right now. I haven't unlocked any hidden skills yet."
Her expectations deflated, and she plopped down in exhaustion.
Feeling a twinge of regret, she tapped the ticket for details.
Can reduce the number of acquisition conditions required when no hidden skills acquired.
"Whoa!"
Jumping up in delight, she used the ticket.
(S) Hidden Skill Activation (Success): Fulfilled 1 condition. (Remaining conditions ― Total 5)
(SS) Hidden Skill Activation (Failure): Conditions not met.
"Not a waste of an A-rank after all."
This time, she'd stumbled into the hidden boss gate completely by accident.
But lightning wouldn't strike twice.
From now on, she'd have to advance steadily with her own power.
Looking back, everything had played out in her favor.
The opaque anxiety that shadowed repeated fortune.
To quell her flickering unease, she reviewed her info once more.
Her gaze lingered on one overlooked detail.
"First Awakening? What does that mean?"
She hurriedly checked the details.
State converted to exclusive skills for Beginner Summoner.
Skill command not set (Usable after setting).
"If that's true, the skills I got from the beasts are fully mine now. Ah! That's why Extinction changed form too. Come to think of it, I got one from Anacon."
She closely examined the new skill glowing at the top of her skill window.
[Split]
⚡ Attack Power:0(0)
💙 Required Mana:300
Summons a clone of the user to attack the target upon use. (Summon duration: 20 seconds)
"My clone?"
Without hesitation, she activated the new skill.
"Split."
Shring.
A faint electronic tone sounded, and a perfect clone of her split off from her body.
With no beasts around to attack, it just stood there until the duration ended and was reabsorbed.
"Cool skill. After finishing affinity work, I can use it for beast clears to speed things up. Feels like a lot of time's passed, so maybe call it a day."
Exiting the Hidden Gate waiting room triggered the gate cleared emergency alert.
She quickly headed to the entrance, signed the clear, and a message from Choi Si-jin arrived.
[New Message]
Choi Si-jin (C): Emergency. Director's in a foul mood! No bus—take a taxi. Execute!
"Han Seung-woo's here. Whoa, how much time passed?"
She hurriedly opened her status window to check the time.
"A full day gone."
Suppressing the urge to collapse, she rushed to headquarters.
"Ru-ri! Hurry!"
"Si-jin! Where's Seung-woo?"
"Got called to another urgent meeting. Head to Jeong-hyun noona's lab first!"
"I'm so tired..."
"Now that you mention it, what's with your condition?"
"What's wrong with it?"
"Your hair looks like it went through a blender..."
Oh no, she thought.
Hair sliced by blades and singed by fireballs.
"Hair salon first!"
"I'll go with you. Im Ju-yang's still at large."
"Know any nearby salons?"
As Choi Si-jin huddled with her to search for local salons, Yang Jeong-hyun approached, calling out.
"Ru-ri?"
"Professor!"
"What happened to you?"
"A boss-grade beast popped out and..."
"Those aren't supposed to spawn that often, but you keep running into them. You need a wash too. You look a mess."
"Y-yeah? I'll go wash up quick!"
"I'll come along. I'm still uneasy letting you move alone. Si-jin and Seung-woo would agree."
"Am I being a bother?"
"I like you, Ru-ri. Not a bother at all. Let's go."
"See you later. I'll escort the director the second his meeting ends."
Choi Si-jin bowed to them first, then headed back to Han Seung-woo in the meeting.
Watching him go, Yang Jeong-hyun turned to Lee Ru-ri.
"But Ru-ri, you seem a bit different."
"Huh? How so?"
"Your eyes, maybe."
"Probably just tired?"
"No? They're super bright right now. How about we head to the lab and do a proper check?"
"Yes! Professor, um."
"Yeah?"
"Is there no way for me to check my own hunter info?"
"The chairman blocked access—only some association execs can view it."
"Oh..."
"Of course, that includes me and Seung-woo."
"Ah!"
"We scrapped the temporary re-exam record, but rechecking's no big deal. I'll look at your stats while checking your physical."
"Thank you!"
After a quick shower, Lee Ru-ri headed to the salon with Yang Jeong-hyun.
Trimming to even out the sliced parts lightened her waist-length hair considerably.
Suddenly craving a change, she added bangs.
"Feels lighter—mood's better already!"
"Bangs make you even cuter."
Caught off guard by the praise, Lee Ru-ri blushed briefly.
Yang Jeong-hyun draped an arm around her shoulders.
"Wanna grab that coffee from last time on the way?"
"Sure."
They picked up coffee at a cafe and headed to Yang Jeong-hyun's lab.
"Seung-woo's meeting must be over. He and Si-jin are heading here. Start the check when Seung-woo arrives?"
"Yeah. Any new info on the super-large gates?"
"We decided to call them Inex Gates to distinguish from regular ones."