The First Challenger
The first challenger waited with bated breath, heart pounding with anticipation. But no follow-up message appeared even after ten minutes had passed. ...What’s going on? Don’t tell me there wasn’t a single option that fit me? A flicker of anxiety crept in. After all, I had chosen silence for the very first prompt. System, when’s the next message coming? Hello?
A path not recorded in the Book of Akasha.
The Skeleton Soldier walks an unprecedented road.
...It’s taking longer because it’s an unrecorded path. So you’re not omnipotent either, huh?
......
The reply was as curt as ever, yet I felt oddly pleased at having glimpsed a flaw in the System. After three more rounds of waiting, a weighty message finally appeared.
Does [Skeleton Magic Swordsman Ilwol] have a reason to reach the pinnacle of all existence?
The sheer scale of the question momentarily froze my thoughts, but I decided to answer with the single, unwavering purpose I had carried since my rebirth.
...I’ve never thought about reaching the pinnacle, but I do have a reason to grow stronger. I want to protect Yeonhee, the one who saved me. For that, I’ll walk any path, no matter what becomes of me.
Your answer aligns with the response to the question “The Final Enemy, the Sacrifice of Comrades.”
Consistency has been satisfied.
You meet the requirements for class advancement.
Huh... I hadn’t expected this question to connect to my earlier answer about sacrificing comrades. I had simply spoken from the heart. What if I had chosen the option to sacrifice everyone and given this answer? Would I have failed the advancement? The words “consistency” and “class advancement requirements” echoed in my mind. If the System had been particularly spiteful, I might have been locked out entirely.
A chill raced down my spine at the thought. So there was a trap laid out.This damn System... it’s more cunning than I thought. I stopped even thinking to myself, just in case, and stared at the message floating in the air.
[Skeleton Magic Swordsman Ilwol] has walked a path no one else has taken and will continue to walk it.
Having stepped away from the roads leading to Death Knight, Archmage, Shadow Lord, and Bomber, you now challenge the [King of the Undying] while carrying every possibility within you.
A being born as a skeleton soldier is the first to set foot on the path of the [King of the Undying].
You have acquired the achievement [First Challenger].
In the distant future, should another skeleton soldier walk this path, the weight of existence will grow heavier.
[First Challenger]... I thought it sounded impressive, but it’s useless right now, isn’t it? There was no guarantee another skeleton like me would ever appear. I clicked my tongue in disappointment. A stat boost would have been far more welcome.
The [King of the Undying] is not a fixed existence. It is the pinnacle sought by Seekers who bear the eternal cycle of life and death. Few have walked that path without losing themselves. We offer praise and respect to you who have made the heavy choice.
To you who have stepped onto an unprecedented path, we present the unique class [Infernal Boneblade Pyromancer].
...That class name is certainly grandiose. Names don’t matter anyway. Let’s just see what it can do. Since there was no rush, I began reading through the class description line by line.
The flame you carry can burn anything, and your unique blade can cut through anything. Its fearsome aura is enough to awaken even the slumbering Chaos Residue.
Wait, hold on. A single phrase in the very first line caught my eye like a hook. It says it can awaken something called Chaos Residue...? The name alone sounded dangerously ominous. Definitely something that shouldn’t be awakened. Still, refusing the class wasn’t an option, so I kept reading.
The bone weapons become highly proficient at channeling magical power. Blades imbued with magic will greatly enhance close-combat capabilities.
Blades imbued with the fire attribute can carve through enemies with searing heat and occasionally leave behind Flame Marks on the paths they cut.
Whoa! Now that’s what I’m talking about! Not only could I infuse the spikes growing from my body with flame, but they could also leave Flame Marks with a certain probability. This is huge. I can stack marks without even using Flame Slash? I can be much more aggressive in close combat.
Just this ability alone seemed worth advancing for, but there were still more perks lined up below.
A “Great Existence” has taken notice of you. The power of flame will always protect you.
Bone Armor (Grade 4) is upgraded to Flame Armor (Grade 3). Enemies that approach you while in [Combat Form] will continuously take flame damage.
Whoa—this is incredible too. Just by being close, they take continuous damage? So there’s a separate Combat Form, huh. I nodded in satisfaction, then recalled a rune that seemed like it would pair well. This should synergize nicely with the Thorn Rune, right? Since I could obtain a higher-grade Thorn Rune once we moved up to C-rank dungeons, an exciting development was already on the horizon. The only downside was the lack of a [Taunt] ability. I couldn’t keep Jeombaki or Ttaktaki around all the time... I really need [Taunt].
Understanding of all things related to the fire attribute increases dramatically.
You have acquired the skill [Wall of Fire].
You have acquired the skill [Flame Chains].
Flame Wall was expected, but Chains too? Among countless binding spells, [Flame Chains] not only restrained the target but also continuously inflicted burn damage. Unless the opponent possessed exceptional strength, resistance, or powerful magical abilities, it was a lethal spell that couldn’t be broken alone. Chains are unexpected, but it still feels like I’m following the standard path of magic. The phrase “carrying every possibility” suddenly made perfect sense.
Understanding of the lightning attribute has exceeded a certain threshold.
You have fully comprehended and accepted the skill [Lightning Step].
You have discovered the possibility of [Lightning Armor].
Lightning Step has been officially recognized as a skill. I’ll be able to cast it more stably now. But what’s Lightning Armor? Maybe it gives a [Shock] effect to nearby enemies? It was an ability I hadn’t obtained yet, but it sounded highly appealing in multiple ways. It would probably synergize well with Flame Armor.
The potential of [Bonecloak Nightblade] greatly enhances the [Stealth] ability.
Even beings of higher rank will have difficulty detecting your [Stealth].
The answer I gave regarding my enemy had created a butterfly effect, leading to this upgrade in Stealth. How high is “higher rank” supposed to be? A single upgrade wasn’t enough to fool a monster like Jo Giman. Still, if it could deceive even A-rank hunters, it would be a tremendous help for the time being.
[Forgotten Ancient Swordsmanship] grants potential. The trait [Penetration] is fixed at 15%.
The experience required for leveling up decreases by 20%.
The storage capacity for [Skeleton Bombs] is fixed at 100.
Whoa... this is the real jackpot. From experience, [Penetration] guaranteed at least some damage even against opponents with higher defense than my attack power. If I could just scratch through their outer shell or armor, I could stack marks. On top of that, leveling up became faster and my Skeleton Bomb storage increased dramatically. The painfully slow leveling process finally had some breathing room. One hundred Skeleton Bombs... Well, I guess this class advancement is satisfying enough.
Clack— Clack— Just reading the descriptions made me feel like I was floating.
You accept the power of the Void.
Entry into the lowest-grade “Other-Dimensional Channel” is permitted.
One “Other-Dimensional Channel” has been discovered so far.
...Other-Dimensional Channel? What does that even mean? It seemed like an ability gained from the potential of the Void, yet it claimed one channel had already been discovered. Was there something like that? Hmm... I don’t know. I decided to finish the class advancement first and think about it later.
The stat gains from this class advancement were more than double those of the previous one. Insane... Forget C-rank, these numbers could put most B-rank hunters to shame.
There was an even more mind-blowing gift waiting.
Whoaaaa! Now I can definitively steal traits too?! These perks were more than worthy of the name. From now on, the first time I defeated a monster, I was guaranteed to snatch at least one of its skills or traits. Of course, since the theft was random, luck still played a factor—but the advantage was enormous.