Chapter 9 - Original Aspiration (3)

"Ability deleted: Bloodlust Frenzy (D). Ability added: Quick Step (E)."

With only room for thirty abilities right now, adding a new one meant deleting an existing one. Just as I'd planned ahead, I removed the one with the least synergy—the one just taking up space—and selected Quick Step to add in its place.

It worked.

The newly added ability resonated with an existing one right away, kicking off a synergy effect. This meticulous stacking and combining, piece by piece—that was the path to the "other realm" the constellations in the community were always talking about.

I picked up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my sword for a test and took a light step. Even I was startled by the movement, my eyes widening. With just the slightest flex of muscle, I'd already advanced several steps in utter silence.

The ability Dance of the Wind, which smoothed my motions like a fresh breeze, had combined with the new Quick Step to evolve into something stronger. And this was far from the end. Once I acquired a few more abilities down the line, the synergy would keep evolving.

Even I, as the possessor, didn't know all the details, but the constellations in the gallery had it all figured out.

"This is getting exciting."

I smirked faintly and exited the dungeon. What reactions would they have this time? Serpina must have already let them know I'd changed a bit. And if I kept moving just like they'd debated so fiercely...

I'd never experienced it myself, but putting myself in their shoes, it had to feel pretty thrilling.

··· But that night, back at the hotel and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠checking their reactions ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠before sleep, they were even hotter than I'd expected. New posts were piling up in real-time, to the point where the last one I'd seen the night before was buried under dozens more, pushed back to the previous page.

The current hot topics—or "bait"—being chewed over by the gallery crowd numbered three. All three were drawing massive reactions, and the explosive community vibe was largely thanks to them overlapping.

The first bait was the incident at the shrine today, uploaded by Serpina. I'd anticipated her actions and played along, but the reaction was bigger than I'd thought.

'I wasn't always like this...'

Reading their posts and comments about that video made my face heat up. They—and even Serpina—were slightly misreading my personality, probably because of what I'd gone through right after possession.

Back then, I was like a razor-edged fighting dog. Dropped into an unfamiliar world with no clue, scraping by in a brutal place where my life was constantly on the line. On top of that, the regressor protagonist Jeong Chan-su, whose social skills were in the gutter, became my role model. And possessing a woman's body for the first time in my life? Brushing off low-quality guys who came sniffing around was extra stress.

So I minimized contact, cut unnecessary talk, and treated everything with cynicism. Layer on the harsh reality, and the mask I wore started becoming my real personality.

Things were much better now, but remnants of that time lingered. Of course, the constellations gathered there loved that side of me.

The second bait was, naturally, me starting to follow their strategy tips. They'd been skeptical, but once I did, they cheered, praised Serpina for talking sense into me.

I even saw Serpina strutting in the comments, promoting her donation account: "Thanks? Then sponsor me lol."

"...Did it really land that well?"

I muttered with a wry smile, recalling Serpina's frantic words to me. She couldn't be direct, so she'd phrased it vaguely, but parts were muted, words swapped around, static crackling through like noise interference.

Truth be told, I'd been able to act properly not because I understood her unusually well, but because I was the possessor—and because I could spy on the fan gallery.

The final bait was the pickpocket dark elf, Shadis, that I'd nabbed. Gallery users didn't just talk about me. They often focused more on people around me.

Kim Ji-eun, my longest connection and a ranker herself, got tons of play. My guildmates, other rankers like Jeong Chan-su—they all came up often. Even though I'd barely fought most of them personally, VS debates had been a gallery staple since the early days. And wildly guessing my love life, shipping me with this or that? Everyday chaos.

'Fun toys... about that level.'

Thankfully—or not—the users showed strong curiosity about Shadis, the rare new face by my side, but didn't obsess too hard. To these ranker-worshipping constellations, even I was just a cute junior. A 30th-layer challenger who couldn't match me? Not worth worrying over.

"At least the vibe isn't bad."

After scanning the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠latest posts in real-time, I sighed in relief.

Honestly, from the moment I'd first stumbled into this fan gallery, my mind had been racing. Realizing most of the help from constellations came from their sponsorships and advice? Massive pressure.

They weren't just cheerleaders—they were practically useful. Satisfy them, and bigger rewards rolled in. Disappoint them, and it'd hurt me bad. If I hadn't known they existed, I wouldn't have cared. But now that I did, I couldn't stop monitoring my spying on the fan gallery.

Of course, work still needed doing. I took a deep breath and posted my second question on the board.

Getting an ability wasn't everything. This wasn't a game where you mashed a button and skills flew out. You had to grind bone-deep training to truly wield your stats and abilities.

I knew a few methods, but hearing straight from those constellations? Way better. Suspicious as they seemed, they were still climbers pushing for higher realms right now.

'These people...'

Once the replies started flooding, most ignored my question entirely, geeking out over the photo instead. An angle only I could capture, being myself—that hit them hard.

Amid the chaos, a proper answerer emerged. The nickname Arati rang a bell.

He laid out an insane training regimen in dead-serious text. Something I'd never heard of in my life.

But I had a gut feeling it'd work. Proof? The ones living it were right there in the gallery.

Normally, I'd be frustrated at roadblocks requiring my own time and effort—but here they were, handing answers on a platter. Gratitude was natural.

A bit giddy, I slipped up and asked if he wanted a specific photo.

The others went feral because of it. Rashguard was a miracle for me—I extremely avoid any exposure.

"Haa..."

Even the answerer wasn't right in the head.