Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Next Story
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⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [You did not yield to the enhanced yokai nature.] [Acknowledging that you surpassed the limit. You have won the wager against yourself!] [Reward will be distributed!] Notifications kept popping up one after another.
In the midst of them, Bihyeong sensed a change in his own Demon Core.
‘The yokai power born from devouring the Subway Monster... it's being sucked into the Demon Core.’
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [The special trait 'Impenetrable Seal' is imbued in the Demon Core!] A quick search revealed it was an idiom meaning not a single drop of water could leak through.
Was it thanks to this?
Not a trace of yokai power could be felt in his body.
‘Even I have to concentrate fully to sense the Demon Core's power.’
If even he had to do that with his own body, there was no way anyone else could detect it.
‘Good. I definitely got a solid reward.’
He had received it, but...
“Haa... It feels like I'm drifting further and further from being human...”
Three days... he could make it, right?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The sun had risen.
Bihyeong, who had pulled an all-nighter with eyes wide open, changed clothes and headed to school.
“Eek. The Chief doesn't look so good. Better not make eye contact.”
Cadets he passed on the street chattered something about his haggard complexion, but Bihyeong didn't hear them.
His mind was elsewhere.
‘It said I digested the yokai. Does that mean my yokai power will grow every time I exorcise one from now on?’
From his check last night, the yokai nature itself hadn't been strengthened separately.
But if it kept accumulating, who knew what might happen.
Still, he couldn't just stop doing exorcisms.
Not when he was at an academy that trained exorcists.
‘...Let's not worry. It's not something to stress over right now.’
Thanks to the Demon Core's Impenetrable Seal trait.
Its effectiveness was such that even the professors he passed on the way to school couldn't detect it.
‘Maybe I should think differently. With the Demon Core, I can actually get even stronger.’
From what he'd figured out, he could wield both yokai power and spiritual power.
‘The Demon Core formed at the bottom of my lower dantian, pooled there like a shadow.’
And above it.
There was definitely an empty space.
‘So I can store a human cultivation method there.’
What if he could use yokai power and spiritual power at the same time?
He wasn't sure if it was possible, but if it was, he'd wield power on a whole different level from ordinary exorcists.
Like in those wuxia novels, where combining orthodox and demonic arts made you the best in the world.
...Yeah, just think of it that way.
‘If I get a cultivation method from the library anyway, I can suppress the yokai nature and power completely.’
Lost in those thoughts, he arrived at Class A before he knew it.
The classroom was already packed with cadets.
Judging by the looks, he was the last one to arrive.
“You're late, Chief.”
He'd even arrived after the homeroom professor, who was expressing his annoyance with his whole body.
Bihyeong bowed his waist in apology.
“Sorry. I had a rough night and didn't sleep well.”
“......”
The professor looked at him, then nodded silently.
His expression suggested he had something to say.
“Take your seat. I have announcements.”
Bihyeong sat without a word.
Once all the cadets were seated, the professor continued.
“Cadet Golden Taeyang withdrew as of yesterday. Tsk. Giving up just because he can't use his Bloodline Ability anymore.”
Bihyeong nodded inwardly at those words.
He hadn't known about the withdrawal, but he'd already known the Bloodline Ability was unusable.
‘He's completely done for.’
Last night, unable to sleep, he'd examined the Captured Sun Bloodline Ability he'd acquired.
And one fact he'd learned from it.
This Bloodline Ability was even better than he'd expected.
‘Uncontrollable Yang Energy. Grand Web of Greed.’
Those two combined to form the Captured Sun Bloodline Ability.
‘Uncontrollable Yang Energy alone is a great power.’
But the real highlight of Captured Sun was the Grand Web of Greed.
‘Manipulates to covet a grand net.’
Basically an ability focused on binding arts, but the target wasn't clearly defined.
‘Not clearly defined means vast potential.’
In other words, the true value of this ability lay in how he defined it.
‘Growth-type. Depending on how I wield it and define it, the ability will evolve over time.’
With such a power, Golden Taeyang must have made it into Class A.
Not anymore, though.
‘Farewell.’
He didn't feel particularly sorry.
The guy had been trash from the start, after all.
As Bihyeong completely put Golden Taeyang out of his mind,
“Bloodline Abilities might seem like a blessing at first glance. But he was only half right and half wrong.”
The professor dismissed it while looking at everyone.
“A unique ability sets you apart and earns envy, but if you get complacent and neglect everything else, it's as good as nothing. What will make you exorcists is the sweat you'll shed from now on.”
A grin.
A spring-sunshine smile bloomed on the professor's lips.
“So don't belittle yourself for not having one, and don't get complacent if you do. Anyone can qualify to reach the top.”
With that, the professor scratched his head awkwardly.
“Ugh, this... Saying stuff that doesn't fit my personality is giving me hives. Anyway, let's go. Today's event will at least give you a leg up.”
The cadets rose and followed the professor.
After leaving the academy grounds and walking a short way, all the first-years gathered in a vast clearing that looked artificially carved into the terrain.
Surveying the assembled students, the professors pointed to one spot.
“There's an Ancient Relic yokai there that the academy has tamed. If you put weapons in there, time flows strangely fast for some reason.”
“...Isn't that bad?”
One cadet raised his hand at the professor's explanation.
The explaining professor smiled as if it was a good point.
“Normally, yeah. Unmaintained items rust and decay. But that yokai's domain has a secret.”
The professors drew their own weapons and showed them to the cadets.
“Maybe it's the grudges of discarded old tools dwelling there, but in that space, the older the tool, the more its original power gets ‘enhanced.’”
“And thanks to being in the domain, it sticks even after coming out. Keep using it, and the weapon's power will keep growing.”
“Alright, that's the gist. Go in and figure out the rest yourselves. Pro tip: find a weapon that suits your level. There are trials when claiming weapons.”
Snap.
One professor snapped his fingers, and a dark entrance opened in the clearing.
The yokai's domain.
It felt on a whole different scale from the Subway Monster.
As everyone instinctively hesitated, Bihyeong stepped toward the yokai's domain without a care.
“Bihyeong, wait up!”
Mina followed right behind into the domain.
Grrr......
A low rumble.
A chilling sensation like a beast's growl right next to their ears.
Mina shuddered,
‘It's been a while.’
while Bihyeong felt a cozy familiarity with the shifting scenery around them.
For some reason, it felt like coming home.
‘Yokai, Ancient Relic.’
In terms of experience entering this place, he'd done it hundreds of times.
Meaning he'd cleared the Ridge Crossing route as an exorcist countless times.
“Bihyeong, aren't you scared?”
“Nah, not really?”
“Wow... That's the Chief for you? So composed.”
Look at her, look!
Mina patted Bihyeong's shoulder with exaggerated gestures, as if shaking off her fear.
He wished she'd tone down those vigorous movements...
“More importantly, what weapon are you gonna pick, Mina?”
“Hmm. Not sure. Nothing's really jumping out at me.”
Everything seemed to suit her aptitude somehow.
Bihyeong let out a dry chuckle at Mina mumbling that.
“The genius's dilemma?”
Mina flustered at Bihyeong's teasing question.
“W-what! Don't call me a genius in front of you...”
She seemed to genuinely think that, but to Bihyeong, she was a genius.
‘Not just anyone can be Vice-Chief.’
Besides, he'd only taken Chief because he'd caught a yokai thanks to his half-demon race.
Otherwise, she would've been Chief.
Ridge Crossing Academy drew students from across the country, even abroad.
Mina was the top talent among them.
‘Rookie shredder doesn't go anywhere.’
If you didn't know, you'd die.
Her difficulty had proven that personally, nearly wiping Bihyeong in the early game.
‘She wasn't strong because she turned villain; she was strong thanks to her innate talent.’
Bihyeong glanced at Mina and pondered briefly.
‘Her favorability seems good... Helping her should be fine.’
Someone with that talent could join his party later.
Decision made, Bihyeong acted immediately.
“What's your main attribute?”
“Fire, Wood, Earth, Metal, for sure.”
Quad attributes, huh.
Startling talent.
Exorcists could basically handle all attributes,
but non-'talent' or non-'specialized' ones only output default power.
‘On the flip side, specialized main attributes can surpass Hierarchy Ranks.’
Like Golden Taeyang's Bloodline-boosted spells before.
‘If I get her Water later, she'll hit pentad attributes?’
Her late-game potential would be insane.
‘Decided. Mina's in the party no matter what.’
He liked her so much he'd write up a contract right then if possible.
‘Something that suits her, then.’
Bihyeong pointed Mina toward one spot.
“See that ridge over there? Cross it, and there's a river. Near it, dig under a rock, and you'll find a fan.”
It'll suit you perfectly.
At those words, Mina's cheeks flushed briefly.
For a moment.
Then Mina pointed out the inconsistency in Bihyeong's words.
“But how do you know that for sure?”
Bihyeong flinched.
‘Got too carried away thinking of recruiting her as a companion.’
What excuse to make?
As he racked his brain,
“W-wait, Bihyeong... are you a regressor or something?”
No one's around yet.
Mina whispered just in case.
‘No, what...’
No, no.
As if regressors existed...
‘If I regressed, I wouldn't play the game again.’
Bihyeong shook his head and spat out a hasty excuse.
“I have a Bloodline Ability that observes information. That's how.”
“Ah... R-really?”
Mina scratched the back of her head sheepishly.
She looked like an extroverted jock who loved outdoor stuff, but surprisingly into subculture.
Mina grinned awkwardly and clenched her fists.
“Got it! I'll go look hard!”
With that, she dashed off in the direction Bihyeong indicated.
Bihyeong glanced at her, then turned.
‘Alright, then.’
Time to farm the Hidden Piece!
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Yokai, Ancient Relic.
The Hidden Piece here was so well-known that most players knew about it.
“Pure Moonlit Water of Ridge Crossing.”
A treasure the academy had deliberately hidden.
Bihyeong smiled at the small vial in his hand.
“Easier to find than I thought.”
Since the game had become reality, he'd braced for some trial and error,
but he'd found it in just two hours of searching.
“Now just need to find a weapon to use it on.”
This place had all sorts of weapons.
From brushes and inkstones to aid spells, to guns that made you wonder if they were really exorcist weapons.
Even giant soldiers seemingly made for smashing yokai heads.
Tons of types and choices, but
Bihyeong had already decided his path.
‘Spells aren't for me.’
He'd realized it fighting Golden Taeyang.
He had no real talent for spells.
‘No main attribute at all.’
Any spell he cast was average.
Path to the Apex had opened possibilities, and he'd covered power with Harmony of Mutual Generation,
but it wasn't enough to delve deep into spells.
‘Physical stuff's good too. Specializing in hand-to-hand could yield solid results.’
Above all, he had his interface.
While others used talismans or chanted spells,
he could just think and click.
‘What if a spell bursts mid-swing?’
That alone was a trick, and stacking them would let him dictate the fight.
Gulp!
Mouthwatering just imagining it.
“So choices narrow to two.”
One was the Demon Blade sword.
The other, a spear with filthy durability and reach advantage.
“Which one...”
As Bihyeong pondered seriously,
Ding!
A familiar alert sound.
Interface filling his vision.
A single line written inside.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Main Story, First Steps grade settlement complete!] [Next Story begins.]