Chapter 14
Chapter 14
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: The Ruins Where the Most Radiant Sun Slumbers
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Back home, I pushed everything else aside and immediately opened my inventory. I carefully placed two items on the floor and gazed at them with eyes brimming with anticipation and awe.
A Mythic-grade Sacred Relic and a Legend-SS grade skillbook.
Even one of these was something most S-rank or higher hunters might never see in their entire lives—true legendary, mythical treasures.
And now, two of them were in my hands.
"Fortune's still got my back, even in its deep slumber!"
Which one should I check first?
My heart raced with excitement, and I agonized over the choice like I had decision paralysis. In the end, though, my hand reached for the Sacred Relic.
I shoved aside the large tome that looked like an ancient book and pulled out the cross necklace from my inventory.
The room instantly warmed and grew cozy, divine power radiating brightly.
A Unique-grade item was top-quality, perfect even for active high-rank hunters, but I didn't have time to marvel at its power. I pressed the cross straight against the wing.
Shoooo!
The moment the two items touched, the wing devoured the divine power greedily, like a fish plunged into water.
Kwachik!
In the end, having all its divine power drained, cracks spread across the cross until it shattered into pieces.
An item worth billions was destroyed, but it didn't even catch my eye with regret.
Before my eyes was something far too beautiful and mysterious to waste attention on such a trivial loss.
Paaaat!
Like a dam bursting to unleash a torrent, the wing that had consumed the Unique-grade item unleashed the divine power it had kept dormant.
The brilliantly shining wing floated into the air, darting this way and that as if searching for its master, before approaching me.
"Ack!"
One feather sliced my arm, absorbing the blood that welled up. The sudden attack startled me, but soon enough, the imprinting finished through my blood. The wing turned into a stream of light and absorbed into my body.
Messages appeared, and at the same time, I intuitively understood how to use the wing. When I willed it, a single massive white wing unfurled from behind my left shoulder.
Just unfolding the wing granted me access to divine power, and all my stats rose by 10. For a Mythic item, it felt underwhelming, but I was thrilled anyway.
With Infinite rising, power surged through my body; with Unyielding rising, an inexplicable sense of fulfillment settled in.
Fortune reacted positively to the stat increase.
But.
Misfortune rose alongside Fortune's gain from the stat boost. Grimacing, I hurriedly deactivated the skill.
"I was feeling great, but that last message ruined it."
Damn Misfortune. Looks like I'd shake off this foul mood with the Legend-grade skillbook!
I quickly grabbed the tome as big as my torso and opened it with pounding excitement!
Hwaak!
A bright light burst forth, and the knowledge dormant within the skillbook awakened as text, flooding into my mind.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
"Kuhhh!"
The moment I learned the skill, I clutched my wildly pounding heart and groaned…!
"What?"
Surprisingly, nothing happened. I'd learned a Legend-grade skill, and yet.
My heart was just racing from sheer joy.
Infinite rose by about 5, and aside from the immense power surging through my body, there was astonishingly no other sensation or effect.
"Is this cheating? A real Legend-grade skill?"
I even thought that. Doubting if I'd overhyped it myself, I hurriedly checked the skill's details.
I let out a sigh that was equal parts hollow and joyful, rereading the description several times.
"Why didn't I learn this sooner?"
If Seo Ye-rin (Word Spirit Sorceress) had learned it, she could've made a name as a great warrior, not just a Word Spirit Sorceress.
"Well, even she probably couldn't appraise a Legend-grade skillbook fully."
She likely saw the name "Heart of the Giant God" and dismissed it as a combat skill, skipping it.
And honestly, it suited me perfectly.
For her, it would've equalized just one of her four physical stats—strength, agility, stamina, endurance—with her magic power. But I only had Infinite, so minimal investment yielded maximum efficiency.
Raise Infinite, and my energy stat rises; raise energy, and Infinite rises.
A living myth of creative economics.
Of course, to use it properly, I'd need to hit E-rank first and unlock advanced stats like magic power, internal energy, or ether.
"Anyway, thanks to this, I've snagged a growth-type skill?"
Some rare skills exceed their level cap at LV10, upgrading rank and grade.
"Lucifer's Wing, which I just got, could be seen as growth-type in another sense."
The more wings I collect, the stronger it gets. Right now, its effects are pretty lacking for a Mythic skill.
Savoring my even more empowered body, I flopped onto the bed with a grin, spending the rest of my busy day admiring the two new skills etched into my status window.
Ding-a-ling! Ding-a-ling! Ding-a-ling!
Before the sun even peeked over the horizon, the blaring alarm jolted me awake. I rushed through a shower and prep, then headed out.
I'd stocked my inventory with everything needed for the raid: simple meal replacements, lights, a shovel, and more.
"Let's go!"
I took a taxi to the Abyss portal, and when I arrived…
"You're here?"
Seo Mi-na (Thunder Emperor) waited with a haughty expression.
'What?'
Wondering if my eyes were playing tricks, I pulled out my phone to check the time: 4:30 a.m. I rubbed my eyes again.
What was this? Had I messaged her last night to meet at this hour?
No, my plan was to enter the hidden stage early, secure the rewards concession from her, then call her in.
I stared at her with a mix of disbelief, confusion, surprise, and shock—each a perfect quarter.
"Figured you'd pull something like this, so I waited."
She replied as if I hadn't messed up. And she wasn't wrong for waiting out the dawn here.
Who was I to stop her if she insisted?
Still, it annoyed me a bit. Frowning to show my displeasure, I brushed past her a little aggressively.
"This is a bother."
I muttered lowly, acting the part, and her mouth opened.
"Let me come too. All rewards go to you."
Seeing her wait like this, I had to assume she'd vaguely guessed I knew something.
Otherwise, why spend the night here just to clear the Tutorial with me?
She'd suspected since I picked Zone 7.
'Did the Lucifer Wing yesterday confirm it?'
Spot on. That incident led her to predict I had foresight or some hidden sight ability.
Not quite—it was just regression knowledge from the future.
Pretending to mull it over behind her, I soon nodded.
'That was the plan anyway.'
Hidden stages could kill even top rankers if they slipped. Even if I could solo it, two were safer than one against unknowns.
I knew a promising hunter had soloed it pre-regression, but info was scarce—a safety net.
Plus, I'd help awaken her talent inside the hidden stage.
'That puts her two debts deep.'
Experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime spot and unlocking her potential? Massive debts.
Calculations done, I spoke to her.
"All rewards are mine. For real."
"I swear. Don't trust me? Sign here." She shoved a tablet PC with a prepped contract at me.
'Four-dimensional nutcase.'
Do all S-ranks and above have a screw loose somewhere?
Chuckling inwardly at the silly thought, I recalled my own inventory contract and signed.
"Alright, let's go. We're heading to a hidden stage."
I stated our destination flatly, and for the first time, shock cracked her composed face wide open.
"If you're late, I'm leaving without you~!"
I ignored her and stepped into the portal first.
"Wait for me!"
She scrambled after, shoving into the portal to the Tutorial.
The portal they vanished into stood quiet. At this awkward early hour of 4:30 a.m., with few people around, one hidden figure emerged silently.
And leaped into the portal after them.
Seeing the scorching wasteland again after just a day, irrepressible joy slipped from my lips.
"Not many people around."
Practically none. Maybe one or two at most. Only the truly mad pick Zone 7 otherwise.
Those few were probably grinding here for cash, where competition was lighter than other zones.
Maybe they had some skill too.
Perfect for me. I couldn't afford eyes on us for the next few hours.
"Come on, somewhere out of sight."
We trekked deep, ignoring every monster we met, until we reached the Tutorial's remotest depths.
No human presence, not even signs of prior visits.
I pulled a shovel from my inventory.
"What's that for?"
"What do you think? Digging, obviously."
I started excavating the cracked, crumbling desert sands.
'Definitely 300m deep.'
Deeper and tougher than it looked. Even for hunters, a shovel alone was exhausting.
But the reward at the end kept me going.
"We'll alternate. You two hours, me one. Deal?"
Luckily, with a solid helper, we dug the 300m without too much strain.
Right around 300m…!
Guoooo!
A black portal appeared, as if waiting.
"Now—jump…!!"
Before I finished, my body got sucked into the portal.
"Hah!"
I vanished into the black vortex in an instant. Seo Mi-na hurriedly dove into the pit after me, disappearing into the swirl.
The vortex began shrinking.
"No!"
That one invisible person leaping into the swirl? That was our secret.