Inheritance, Phase One

My first unique attribute: Inheritance (Phase 1).

I could inherit one of the first unique attributes left behind by the sword spirits.

Sapier — see an enemy’s weakness.

Emperor Augustus — invincible charge?

Invisible Sword — Critical Strike.

Quick-Draw Master — obtain an unbreakable scabbard.

Lustful Demon — if I fucked, I’d be fully healed and get stronger.

Sword Master — distinguish enemies once they entered my attack range.

Lassu Feedwagon — my literacy would improve.

I spent quite a long time agonizing over the seven unique attributes.

The sword spirits bickered among themselves while I thought it over.

They ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠were all clamoring for me to choose their unique attribute.

After a moment of tension, I opened my mouth.

“For now, I’ll exclude the two of you.”

I decided to approach this by elimination.

Leaving some out, then asking more carefully about the rest.

“I’ll exclude Lustful Demon’s and Lassu’s as well.”

Lassu accepted it calmly, while Lustful Demon flew into a rage as if I’d lost my mind.

“I figured I should choose a unique attribute that helps with immediate combat power.”

Right now, Sapier was chasing me.

And even after I got to Babilgrid, I’d still have to go into the labyrinth.

There was no telling what other trouble might be waiting for me before I even reached Babilgrid.

I needed an ability that could protect my own body, and I needed it now.

The sword spirits who had made the cut cheered in triumph.

I wasn’t sure why they were so delighted, but still.

Now the real decision began.

I started asking questions in earnest so I could choose the attribute.

“Emperor Augustus, could you explain yours in a little more detail?”

Emperor Augustus let out a booming laugh that rattled my head.

The other spirits, who hadn’t been asked anything, swallowed their groans.

For now, I listened carefully to Augustus’s explanation.

His unique attribute was exactly what it sounded like: an invincible charge.

For five seconds, I could run in an invincible state.

While I was running, I would endure every attack.

I wouldn’t be pushed back even if I ran into a tank, and enemy arrows and swords would bounce off me.

But beyond that, it didn’t seem to offer any extra effect, like increasing my speed.

Also, if I stopped running before the five seconds were up, the invincible state would end immediately.

“That’s an incredible ability.”

Brutish, yes, but truly incredible.

It looked useful both for charging in and for running away.

But there also seemed to be a limit on how many times I could use it, and each activation only lasted five seconds.

Unless I could sprint hundreds of meters in five seconds, it felt a little awkward for my current body.

It might end up wasted as a skill that only lasted long enough for me to tough it out and then stop.

“Quick-Draw Master, could you explain yours too?”

Next I asked Quick-Draw Master.

“Why a scabbard, of all things?”

Quick-Draw Master’s attribute was one for quick-draw swordsmanship.

Apparently, the idea was to keep your sword sheathed while blocking the enemy’s attacks, then, at the crucial moment, go click—pull it free and strike.

And then, immediately afterward, you were supposed to put the sword back in the scabbard so it would look as though you’d never drawn it at all.

I had no idea what kind of sword style that was supposed to be, but it did sound cool.

Still, if I wasn’t going to use quick-draw techniques, did I really need it?

The other spirits cut off Quick-Draw Master before he could continue pushing quick-draw techniques on me.

They really did seem desperate to teach me quick-draw swordsmanship.

A little later, I opened my mouth again.

“I’ll exclude the two of yours as well.”

The two sword spirits shouted in disappointment.

The reason I’d asked them was simply because I was unsure.

But after hearing them out, neither attribute seemed suited to me.

That left the remaining three.

“Now, please each explain your attributes in detail.”

The three sword spirits gave me detailed explanations.

There were all sorts of fancy words mixed in, but if I boiled them down, this was what they meant.

Sapier — the weaknesses of an enemy in combat would appear as literal points. Depending on the opponent’s stance, I could see their openings. I could only see the weakness of one enemy I was focusing on at a time.

Sword Master — I would know when enemies entered the range I could attack. Enemies inside that range would appear red.

Invisible Sword — I could deliver a critical attack. It would deal about twice my normal damage.

“I’ve decided.”

After thinking it over, I spoke.

All three remaining attributes would directly help in combat.

And once I considered my current situation, the answer became clear.

The sword spirits each reacted in turn.

I felt a little sorry for the one I didn’t choose.

But my own situation was urgent.

I announced the attribute I thought suited me best.

“I’ll take Invisible Sword’s unique attribute.”

Joy and disappointment crossed paths.

But no matter how I thought about it, this was the best choice.

Sapier’s and Sword Master’s unique attributes were difficult to use right away.

I had only just swung a sword twice in my life.

I’d survived by luck, but I was still a complete amateur when it came to swordsmanship.

Even if I could see an enemy’s weakness or measure their range, could I really make use of that properly in my current state?

Seeing a weakness and striking that weakness were two different things.

If I lacked the skill to swing a sword accurately, I might not be able to use it at all.

Until I could properly handle a sword, I needed something intuitive and powerfully helpful.

“Yes. That’s why I chose the attribute that helps immediately.”

After I explained, the sword spirits all seemed to understand.

They even apologized for forcing their own preferences onto me without considering my situation.

Invisible Sword, fired up, kept explaining his unique attribute.

From the sound of it, it would be more than good enough in the long run.

Still, it was also useless if the enemy dodged or the strike went astray.

I’d have to learn to use it by reading the right opening.

And that meant I’d need to keep training my swordsmanship from here on out.

But as I listened, a question occurred to me.

Could unique attributes be used as much as I wanted, without any limit?

If every attack could become Critical Strike, that seemed way too broken.

“Soul Power?”

Seeing an opening, Lassu cut in before anyone else could.

He eagerly began explaining what Soul Power was.

Put simply, Soul Power was the cost required to use the sword’s unique attributes.

Just as mages consumed mana to cast spells, unique attributes consumed Soul Power.

Soul Power was stored within the Command Sword itself.

To build it up, all I had to do was kill a being with a soul.

Killing a monster or a human with the Command Sword would accumulate Soul Power in the blade.

I did as Lassu said and turned the sword over.

There, a thick red line ran up the blade from the hilt.

As Lassu had said, the red line had climbed to about sixty percent of the blade.

I had killed two goblins and eleven Specter Hounds with this sword.

Apparently, that was enough to fill it about sixty percent.

“What are you talking about?”

The maximum amount of Soul Power depended on the user’s strength.

It was the same principle as a mage’s mana pool.

The stronger the mage, the larger the mana reservoir.

Strong spells consumed a lot of mana.

If the mana pool was too small, you’d run dry after using magic only a few times.

Soul Power followed exactly the same logic.

“So, with my current Soul Power, can I use the unique attribute I just learned?”

Once again, Lassu stepped forward.

There was a rustling sound as he started rummaging through something, then Lassu spoke.

He said he had already quantified all those Soul Power-related figures.

I wasn’t sure how something like that was possible inside a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sword, but from my perspective, it was a welcome thing.

“So the maximum is 100, and sixty is currently filled.”

My Soul Power was at 60 out of 100.

I asked how big that was, and he said that compared with the Soul Power reserves of the other sword spirits, it was the size of an ant.

Thankfully, I could use Critical Strike.

It just meant I’d have to fully charge it to use it even once.

“Still, I’m glad I can use it.”

If getting stronger would increase my total Soul Power, then there was no reason to worry.

Whatever happened, I just had to keep growing stronger.

For now, I decided to be grateful that I could use my unique attribute at all.

Now it was time to truly inherit the unique attribute.

I brushed my hand over the blade and thought that I would inherit Invisible Sword’s unique attribute.

It seemed the signal had gone through to the sword spirit side.

And a moment later, the sword changed.

“The unique attribute inscription has changed.”

The unique attribute inscription, which had originally been an empty square, now had a new image filled inside it after the inheritance.

“There’s a thick dagger drawing inside the square.”

“The explanation of the unique attribute has changed too.”

I ran my fingers over the changed inscription.

Then the explanation for the inherited Critical Strike appeared.

But there was one more line tucked underneath it.