Chapter 32
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: An S-Grade Breathing Method
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Abel spoke to Daniel and Hena, who had agreed to head back together.
“See you at the training ground in a bit.”
“Yeah.”
“Heading out first.”
Daniel and Hena nodded right away and left. Only then did Abel walk over to Scarlett.
Scarlett, who had been waiting, pointed off to one side.
“Shall we sit over there and talk?”
“Understood.”
She had pointed to a bench not far away.
Abel walked alongside her. When they reached the bench, Scarlett said,
“Sit.”
“Yes.”
Scarlett and Abel sat with a little space between them.
Once again, Scarlett was the first to speak.
“You were far more impressive than I expected. Considering you haven’t received proper training yet, you seem to have real talent for command, too.”
“It’s thanks to all of us pooling our strengths to devise the plan.”
“The plan, sure. What I mean is, you gave orders at just the right moments without hesitation, even in live combat.”
“……Thank you.”
At a loss for a good response, Abel offered a simple expression of gratitude.
Scarlett smirked at his reaction.
“Knowing your own strengths so clearly is definitely one of your advantages. But you don’t need to focus on just one thing.”
“Is that so?”
“Exactly. Grasping the flow of battle and showing leadership is far more valuable than just fighting well.”
Abel knew that already. He’d been putting in some effort on that front himself.
‘A pure combat powerhouse has clear limits as a playable character.’
Gigants were powerful.
But he couldn’t forget that their enemies were just as formidable.
A Gigant rider’s foes were other Gigant riders—or Gigadeus.
That made the leader’s role as commander all the more crucial.
Unlike raw power, though, strategy and command couldn’t be rushed with shortcuts.
Which was why he was approaching it with maximum caution.
‘My level’s still just a notch above average, after all.’
Abel gathered his thoughts and summed up his response neatly.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Good.”
Scarlett nodded, clearly satisfied, sensing his words weren’t empty.
Then she changed the subject.
“The other professors observing seemed pretty impressed, too. Their opinion of you has shifted quite a bit—especially in your favor.”
“My evaluation?”
“Yeah. Sure, plenty thought highly of you, but even more were annoyed.”
“Hard to avoid when someone of low, unclear status draws eyes from the start.”
“You get it. If you were from a prestigious house, you’d have way more goodwill. Plenty of professors are sensitive to that sort of thing.”
Scarlett finished and turned to look at Abel.
“Truth is, you could probably get adopted into a noble family right now. Anyone with vision would recognize your worth.”
Abel fell silent for a moment.
She had a point—the situation was different from when they’d first met.
He’d already passed the academy entrance exam, proving the bare minimum.
Top of the class on enrollment, the Glory Wall battle, his grades and combat record so far.
He had everything a top noble house could want.
“I’m satisfied as I am.”
But Abel shook his head.
“Why?”
“It’d come with too many restrictions.”
“Restrictions?”
“Exactly. Adoption means tons of support, sure. And less outright disdain.”
Even as an adopted heir, gaining a title would end the bold insults.
But if that was his goal, he’d have planned accordingly from the start.
“And?”
“The catch is, nothing in this world is free.”
“Free…… Yeah, fair enough.”
“So there’d be a pile of duties for the family’s name. And honestly, even setting that aside, adoption would be a loss for me.”
“A loss?”
Abel stated it plainly, as if it were obvious.
“Yes. My value’s only going up with time.”
Scarlett stared blankly for a second, then burst out laughing.
“So you’re saying your value’s undervalued now—adopting you would be a bad deal?”
“Yes.”
“Then isn’t keeping me as your sponsor a loss, too?”
“No chance.”
Abel shook his head firmly.
“I don’t make bad deals. I trust Countess Klein will treat me according to my worth.”
“Hmm. We’ll see.”
Still smiling faintly, Scarlett eyed him before shaking her head and pulling something from her bosom.
“That makes even this feel a bit lacking somehow. Still, I brought it—take it?”
She handed him a book.
Abel’s gaze flicked instinctively to the title.
[Optimum Breathing Method]
He glanced at it curiously.
“This is……?”
“It’s not our family’s secret art, so you might be disappointed. But it’s no less impressive.”
Scarlett smiled.
“It’s from the Optimum Marquis family of the fallen Iterum Kingdom—renowned for producing exceptional knights generation after generation.”
She placed the book in Abel’s hands and continued.
“It found its way to our house by chance during the Great War.”
“Is it really okay to give something so precious to me?”
“Our family knights learn other methods from childhood anyway. I’d been saving it for someone who caught my eye…… Took longer than I thought.”
Abel toyed with the worn cover.
The Optimum Breathing Method was something he’d never encountered, even after thousands—tens of thousands—of hours in the game.
But Scarlett’s description alone told him it was no ordinary technique.
Maybe even a hidden piece.
He sorted his thoughts quickly and spoke from the heart.
“Thank you so much. I’ll master it to the best of my ability.”
“Then it was worth the gift. If you hit a snag learning it, come to me. I’ve read through it a few times for my own studies.”
“Yes.”
Scarlett nodded, pleased, then rose.
“I’ve kept you long enough. You must be exhausted—go get some real rest.”
“Understood.”
“See you around.”
With a brief farewell, Scarlett walked off. Abel watched her go, then started back slowly.
* * *
Back at the dormitory, Abel headed straight to the training ground for a sword bout with Daniel, then met Iolin to share Sync Rate tips.
After a late dinner, he returned to his room, fatigue weighing down his entire body.
“Huu.”
Abel let out a long breath and flopped onto the bed.
His steady stamina training had built solid endurance, but a day like this was bound to wear him out.
Near-real combat, followed by hours of training.
‘I could just crash like this.’
Abel stared blankly at the ceiling before slowly sitting up.
No one would blame him for sleeping right then.
But he wouldn’t let himself off that easy.
“Let’s see…….”
Fully upright, he settled at the desk and pulled out paper and pen.
What he began jotting down was today’s gains.
[Enhancement Material, Influence, Physical Ability, Heavy Strike.]
He underlined the gains and noted details below.
Enhancement Material and Influence: quest rewards. Physical Ability and Heavy Strike: from the crest and Blade Tail.
“Hmm.”
Enhancement Material and Influence didn’t need much pondering.
Influence was just that—the sway Abel himself exerted.
Like the ‘Fame’ stat in games; higher meant greater impact on those around him.
Low Influence, though, meant even high rank later could lead to dismissal.
‘Kinda like a Charisma stat in some ways.’
‘Enhancement Material’ hadn’t arrived yet, but it had to relate to Gigants or armaments.
Gigant materials were rare, so probably armament-related.
‘No clue on delivery yet.’
Skills and such came instantly, but physical rewards arrived via other channels.
Like Demitri’s Flame before.
‘Probably sponsorship or grade rewards.’
Nothing to dwell on deeply, so he moved to the last point.
“The crest…….”
Abel glanced down at his chest.
There was the mysterious marking etched when he first faced the Blade Tail.
The system had labeled it a ‘crest.’
Meaning it recognized exactly what it was.
‘Issue is, it never showed up in the game.’
He’d run into game-exclusive stuff plenty, but this being carved into his own body hit different.
Abel frowned and glanced aside.
‘Blade Tail and Heavy Strike.’
Heavy Strike was the Blade Tail’s innate ability. Defeating it let him claim it as a skill.
‘And the physical ability boost.’
Sparring with Daniel confirmed it—his body felt lighter than before.
Status window stats hadn’t budged, though.
“Hmm.”
Maybe the physical boost operated outside stats altogether.
Pure speculation for now.
What nagged him more was something else.
‘Why only react during the Blade Tail fight?’
Gigadeus Fragments weren’t new to him.
He’d smashed tons at the Glory Wall—killed some personally.
No messages then.
‘Why?’
Power gap?
But some fragments there, like the one he felled with the lightning spear, had seemed pretty potent.
“Headache.”
Too big to brush off, but clues were scarce.
Couldn’t just rush out hunting fragments willy-nilly.
Abel eyed the desk calendar and muttered.
“Fastest option’s the first practical, at least.”
First practical training.
The semester’s sole outdoor exercise.
Just two weeks away now.
Still felt distant to Abel.
‘No helping it.’
He shook his head, tamping down impatience.
Frustrating for now, but any clue was progress worth celebrating.
Heavy Strike would help plenty in fights, too.
Abel jotted a few more notes, then tucked the paper in the drawer.
Next, he drew out the book from the desk.
The Optimum Breathing Method.
“Alright.”
His earlier frown vanished, replaced by a grin.
A true breathing method was exactly what he’d craved.
He’d passed up prior chances—once learned, swapping was brutally hard.
He’d held out for at least A-grade.
‘Please A-grade. Please.’
Muttering to himself, Abel opened the book. The moment he saw the first page,
a message floated up.
[Recognized conditional S-grade Breathing Method.]
[Acquire the Optimum Breathing Method?]
Abel’s eyes went wide in an instant.