Proof of Qualification (2)

Crackle-crackle, crackle!

Sparks leapt ceaselessly from the surface of the lake.

And that wasn't all.

- Behold the spectacle.

Countless monsters floated belly-up on the water, and among them were serpentine beasts that must have stretched well over a dozen meters long.

"Kyaaaaaaah!"

"Grrrrr—!"

But not every monster had been wiped out. What I'd felled was only a portion of them. The high-grade monsters lurking in the depths, thoroughly enraged, came surging up to the surface in droves.

The sight was nothing short of ferocious.

So, did that scare me?

'Scared? If anything, this works out nicely.'

Heh.

The corners of my mouth curled upward. Time was still on my side—over twenty minutes of it.

Now then, shall we fill this starlight gauge back up?

"Thunderbolt, Thunderbolt, Thunderbolt—!!"

Thunderbolt after Thunderbolt, without a moment's pause. And with each one, monsters dropped dead. The starlight climbed fast.

The trouble was, my mana drained just as quickly.

Call it premature mana leakage, honestly. Who would've thought that spamming a 1-star skill, Mythic grade or not, would leave my mana scraping bottom already?

- Still, it is a vast improvement over before.

Granted, compared to the beginning, it was remarkable progress.

And it was all thanks to the elixirs I'd brewed with Sage's Alchemy, the Sage's Tome included. If I kept improving bit by bit like this, I'd be back to normal someday.

- Once you complete the Philosopher's Stone, an entirely new ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠horizon will open before you. Do not be so impatient.

Right. A hopeful tomorrow awaits me!

So leisurely was I dealing with the monsters that I even found time to banter with Ellaon, topping off my flagging mana with potions along the way. Before I knew it, the hologram's star shape had brimmed full with starlight.

Time elapsed: just over twenty minutes.

I hadn't even needed the full thirty.

With those words, fireworks burst to life above my head.

Boom, boom—! Pa-pa-pa-RAAAA!

The starlight that had filled the hologram to bursting began pouring down over my head like falling snow.

Vuuuuuum!

Countless motes of starlight wound themselves around my body. And in that instant, intuition struck me like a bolt.

- Use Sage's Sight, now!

Now—this was the moment for Sage's Sight.

[Choose the starlight that pleases you most.]

As the message floated up before my eyes, a cool, refreshing sensation flooded through them, and Sage's Sight activated.

FLASH!

The starlight transformed into every color of the spectrum.

White. Sky blue. Green. Purple. Gold.

Perhaps because I'd filled the gauge so completely, there were far more sky-blue and green lights than white—the lowest rank. And beyond that, purple ones were surprisingly plentiful.

Purple meant Hero grade.

'So this is why they call it the Proof of Qualification.'

If I hadn't filled the starlight properly, most of these would have come out white, wouldn't they?

'Either way, purple's a pass.'

Legendary, at minimum. Anything less and the numbers wouldn't add up.

Among the cascade of falling light, something finally began to catch my eye.

'Gold.'

Gold meant Legendary grade.

But something felt lacking. No emerald this time? I'd filled the gauge perfectly—it should have appeared.

I kept delaying my choice, staring up at the sky even as four, five golden clusters of light piled up around me.

'So this time, Legendary is the ceiling, huh.'

A little disappointing, honestly.

Legendary was undeniably a tremendous rank—there were people in the real world who'd pour fortunes into a single Legendary pull. But having already tasted Mythic grade, I couldn't help feeling it fell short.

'Well, Legendary is still...'

The moment I turned my gaze, half-resigned, toward the golden clusters of light—

FLOOOSH!!

A starlight more dazzling than any of them appeared, scattering brilliance in every direction.

'There it is!!'

Emerald.

Mythic.

What was there to hesitate for?

Terrified that the emerald cluster might brush past me and never return, I shot my hand out and seized it on the spot.

[Your selection of starlight is complete.]

[Congratulations. The skill contained within this starlight will now be granted.]

Goooooo!!

With those words, the emerald light in my grasp thrummed and swirled, drawing itself into a single shape—the same phenomenon as when I'd obtained Thunderbolt.

'This one is... fire!'

A fire-attribute spell, it seemed.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

- Excellent! As it happens, when judging by raw destructive potential alone, lightning and fire are the two most promising elements of all.

With Ellaon practically buzzing with excitement, I learned what skill I'd acquired this time.

Ha.

Fireball.

You're the one for me!

One of the skills that defined the 2-star tier—and I'd gotten it as a Mythic.

'...Whoa.'

The instant I checked Fireball's stats, I couldn't close my gaping mouth.

Mythic grade, as expected! Options that lost nothing to Thunderbolt, that Mythic masterpiece—and on top of that, double the damage. The highest damage attainable at the 2-star tier!

'Floor 2 is going to be a cakewalk.'

The first stroke of a brush matters more than anything else, as they say—and I had just nailed Floor 2's opening stroke to perfection.

The moment I clenched both fists and curled my lips into a grin—

FLASH!

My vision went dark, and I was whisked out of the Proof of Qualification space.

Floor 2. The site of the Proof of Qualification.

Zhao Yun, a cadre of the Burning Tower—the very man who'd turned Hajun away mere minutes ago—was glowering at him with narrowed eyes.

'Tch. Who does that punk think he is? Can't even afford decent clothes, that guy. It's a given he'll pull Normal grade.'

One look at his clothes told the whole story. Ordinary streetwear from outside the Tower, not Sky Tower equipment. He'd apparently scrounged up a few rings to wear as accessories, but just as his plain clothes suggested, they were surely worthless Normal-grade trinkets.

'Disrespectful little punk.'

Zhao Yun ground his teeth, remembering the look Hajun had given him.

"Alright, everyone! Eyes over here. See that guy from before? He ignored my instruction to take the crash course and just waltzed right in. Well, there's only about ten minutes left in his thirty. So watch closely, folks—let's see what grade he pulls."

He was about to add that it'd be Normal grade, no question, when—

FLAAARE!

Emerald radiance began surging up from the milky-white membrane that had enveloped Hajun's body.

"Wh-what is that?"

"Huh?"

In an instant, a volume of light so immense it seemed to swallow the surrounding darkness!

Goooooo!!

The sea of light that had spread across the basin converged once more onto Hajun, then shot straight up toward the sky in a single column.

WHOOOOM!

And then, like fireworks detonating overhead, it scattered its brilliant motes of light and fizzled away.

"Ah......"

Everyone who witnessed it understood at once. That was the phenomenon said to occur only when someone drew the highest grade—the stuff of legend they'd only ever heard about.

"It—it's Mythic grade!"

"Good lord!!"

"Whoa, a Mythic grade pulled on Floor 2?"

"Unbelievable!! Exclusive scoop!"

"Who is that guy?"

An explosive reaction erupted from the crowd that had gone silent just moments before. And while everyone was drunk on the excitement, one man was decidedly not smiling.

"Instructor, that man just pulled a Mythic grade."

"Uh......"

It was Zhao Yun—the man who'd pitched the crash course to Hajun, and who'd just been telling everyone to watch what grade he'd get.

"Turns out you can pull a Mythic grade just fine without your crash course!"

"Isn't this a scam?"

"No wonder it felt like a coin flip."

"Refund, please."

"Me too!"

Hajun pulling a Mythic grade had turned, for Zhao Yun, into nothing short of a catastrophe.

"Whew."

I let out a long breath after barely squeezing my way out of the crowd that had come surging toward me.

If it weren't for the Hahoe Mask's Stealth skill, I'd have been swept away for certain.

'I'd better be careful about this.'

From now on, I resolved, I'd go to extreme lengths to avoid standing out in public. I was already being hunted by Tiamut, after all.

'It'd be nice if the Hahoe Mask could change its appearance too.'

It was such a common-looking mask that pinpointing me would be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠difficult, but between the auction house incident and everything else, I couldn't help feeling uneasy.

- While it cannot alter the mask's appearance, there is a way to render the Hahoe Mask semi-transparent.

"You can do that?"

- Indeed. When needed, the mask can be made visible; when not, it can be made transparent, granting the same effect as removing and donning it.

"And the Hahoe Mask's options stay active the whole time?"

- Correct.

"Oh. And that's done with alchemy too?"

- It is.

Heh. Sage's Alchemy truly is something else. At this point, it might as well be an all-purpose cheat-code authority.

'Good. Then once I get the Sage's Robe, I'll use alchemy on the Hahoe Mask while I'm at it.'

It wouldn't take long—I could simply gather the materials in advance during the process of obtaining the robe.

'Anyway, so I just need to head to the Forest of the Labyrinth now?'

- Yes. The Sage's Robe slumbers there.

The Forest of the Labyrinth—the signature trial of Floor 2. A place where vicious magical beasts swarmed, but in equal proportion, a place overflowing with mysteries and treasures of every kind.

With a Mythic-grade skill now in hand, I was just thinking it was time to head there when the uninvited guests appeared.

"Found you."

A group of men was advancing toward me down the forest path. Five in total, and among them I recognized a familiar face.

'That's the swindler from earlier, isn't it?'

The con artist who'd been extorting one gold coin apiece under the pretense of "training." Why was he here?

"You little punk. You've got some nerve screwing around with our business."

"......?"

What kind of nonsense was that supposed to be?

When I stared back at him, dumbfounded, Zhao Yun snarled through clenched teeth.

"You cost us a total of 108 gold coins in losses. You'll compensate us. Right now."

Judging by the scene, it looked like every one of his earlier scams had collapsed the moment I pulled my Mythic grade. And now he wanted to pin all of that on me?

It was an outrageous stretch. I was so dumbfounded that not even a bitter laugh would come out.

"And why exactly would I compensate you for that?"

"Heh heh. Yeah. I figured words alone wouldn't get through to you. Boys! Go give this gentleman a light refresher!"

"Yes, boss!"

Four of them advanced on me with ugly expressions. One look told me they were all at least mid-level 10.

Under normal circumstances, someone like me—fresh onto Floor 2 at level 11—should never have been able to beat them.

But was I your average level 10?

'Might as well test out that new Mythic-grade skill, lightly.'

I had no intention of killing them, so I dialed my mana output down as far as it would go—left Sage's Aura switched off, and of course, made sure not to target their weak points either.

"Gentlemen, this might sting a little."

"Fireball."

Emerald flames crackled to life above my outstretched palm.

"What the hell is this punk saying?"

"So he got one high-grade skill and thinks a level 11 kid can take us on?"

They didn't bother hiding their sneers as they watched the Fireball take shape.

However.

It took only a heartbeat for their expressions to twist into open horror.

KA-BOOOOM!!

The moment the emerald-blazing Fireball streaked forward and made contact with the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠man at the very front, a colossal explosion erupted, and a storm of flame swept all four of them away in an instant.

"GRAAAAAH!"

"Gaaah..."

"GUAAAAAH!"

"Kuh!"

All four lay writhing on the ground, on the brink of death in a single stroke. And that was with me using the weakest output I could manage.

It was a moment that let me feel, down to my skin, the true power of the Mythic-grade Fireball.

'If I'd used full power, they'd just be a pile of ash, wouldn't they?'

I whistled inwardly as I looked down at the men, now utterly combat-incapacitated.

Trickle, trickle.

Then came the sound of water dripping.

"Uh, uh... ugh, aaah..."

There stood Zhao Yun, his legs trembling like a leaf.

"Oh my."

Is that ajusshi... wetting himself right now?

Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable.

I wondered what to do with him, then quickly made up my mind.

"Hey, old man. Where's your home base?"

What decided me on the answer: I needed to cut this weed off at the root. Watching these crooks run their scams so brazenly had dredged up a childhood trauma that made my skin break out in hives.

'Besides, if I leave them alone, they'll only come crawling back to cause more trouble.'

I would go and dismantle their operation for good. I made that decision brimming with confidence in my own strength, freshly proven by how easily I'd subdued them.

And that decision, as it turned out, would bring me a stroke of luck far greater than anything I could have imagined.