Investigation Request
"Hyung! Hyung! Are you okay?"
Citing the need to bring back a Saintess candidate, I stepped out of the space of white light — and found Ha Yoo-jin at my side, shaking me for all he was worth.
"...What? Something happen?"
"No, hyung, your body..."
Ha Yoo-jin hurriedly looked me over, checking for anything out of place.
"What, how did I look?"
"Well, after you put your hand on that thing... light just started pouring out of your body... and then you stood there staring into space... I thought something had happened to you..."
He stammered and rambled, tripping over his own words.
I looked myself over. I felt a little more energized. My mana had ticked up, and my physical stats — Strength especially, with its growth correction — seemed to have risen. Sure enough, when I checked:
⚡ Strength:+1
This much from a brief contact. No — I'd been in there for quite a while. Just in case, I asked Ha Yoo-jin.
"How long was I standing there?"
"Thirty minutes. About thirty minutes..."
That roughly matched how long I'd been talking, so it didn't seem like a place where time flowed strangely. Still, we were lucky. There hadn't been a single attack in those thirty minutes — apparently no monsters in the area. Then again, the nearest tribe was the Golden Gnolls' central tribe. Of course there wouldn't be any.
I looked at the staff I'd touched. The light had dimmed, if only slightly.
Even a touch was enough to inherit a sliver of power. Those without talent or ability wouldn't last — but trainees with the System's support were a different story. Stats could be covered by potential, and if that wasn't enough, by levels. Techniques would occupy skill slots.
Two Paladin skills, two Saintess skills, plus potential and stat increases — Joo Ha-yeon and Nam Eun-ju would grow tremendously. Especially Nam Eun-ju, whose talent had always been lacking.
She won't be dropping out of the first string, that's for sure.
Personally, I was reluctant to give it to her, but there was no one else who could take it. Wait until I found someone more trustworthy? I couldn't even store it that long. If it were just the skills, the first cycle's precedent said it was possible — but inheriting the power that had maintained the seal itself was not. I considered that power an advantage on par with a Legendary skill. Discarding it wasn't an option.
Saintess or not, I wanted to tear that soul to shreds — and it galled me that I didn't have the power to do it.
I swallowed my rage and spoke to Ha Yoo-jin.
"Let's head back for now. This place is more of a treasure than I thought."
"...What?"
"I'll explain once we're back. We've been gone a while. Everyone'll be worried."
"...Okay, hyung."
It was already close to evening. The sun was slowly sinking. This was usually when we started heading back, so if we were late, the others would panic. We hadn't said a word — more accurately, we hadn't had time to — before coming this way. It couldn't be helped.
Just getting here had taken over four hours. That was only because we'd been matching the gnolls' pace; at top speed, it wouldn't even take half that. The gnolls had taken so long because they were transporting humans safely, after all.
I roughly erased our tracks, then moved slowly for a while, wiping away traces as we went. Once we'd put enough distance between us and the site, we picked up speed.
On the way back to base camp, I asked Ha Yoo-jin a question.
"How many healthy ones are left? The ones with some meat on their bones."
"About two healthy ones left — same as the number they took today."
Then they wouldn't be going again for a while. They seemed to wait until they'd gathered a decent number. They'd taken five today, but my estimate was that the minimum was four. Excluding the sword embedded in the Gnoll Hero inside the barrier, there were four weapons glowing on the outside. I could be wrong, so I planned to watch for a day or two — but given that there'd been no movement for the past ten days, I didn't think I was off the mark.
By the time we returned to base camp, the surroundings were fully dark. Sure enough, the party was looking thoroughly worried. Na Seoyun and Nam Eun-ju in particular looked half-terrified.
"Why were you so late?"
"Something unusual came up. I was investigating it. There was no time to send word."
"...I was really scared. You didn't come back even when it was time... and when Seoyun went looking, she couldn't find either of you..."
"I'm sorry. It was genuinely urgent."
I explained to the party why I'd had no choice but to move so urgently.
"...They're using people for... for that?"
Na-yeon looked thoroughly shocked.
"I see. So that was the purpose... There really was a reason they were taking them alive. And that explains the strange behavior... A Gnoll Hero, though..."
I omitted the information I needed to keep to myself, and dressed up the things I hadn't known as if I'd heard them from the Saintess. I regretted talking with her more than necessary — I'd originally planned to take the power myself — but since the relationship would end once they received it, it wouldn't be a big problem.
I turned to the party.
"This is a good opportunity. I confirmed that inheriting the power raises your stats. And though this is just an estimate, it looks like you'll be able to receive skills as well."
"...That's amazing. Every time you go somewhere, Shin-hoo, you always come back with something. You're incredibly capable."
"I just got lucky. You're giving me too much credit."
"...You don't even need to bring things back. I just wish you'd stop getting involved in dangerous situations."
"Ha, haha..."
Do you have any idea how incredible this is...? Internally I was envious and irritated, but I didn't let it show. Once the inheritance was over, her true feelings would probably shift a little. ...Or would Joo Ha-yeon, now that she had enough, just nag even more about staying out of danger?
I suppressed the jealousy. This was all part of the process. This incident had changed my mind. I couldn't do it alone, so I would grow my faction — and obtain power on the level of the strong myself.
I'd planned to distribute the resources I couldn't handle alone to my people. It had just happened in a different direction than expected. The power I'd intended to take for myself had gone to my allies — and in a far more inflated form, at that. It meant the minimum foundation was essentially on the verge of completion, using the power of just one location. That left quite a few opportunities remaining.
I planned to devour every last one of them myself.
I'd need a class change first, but I could just demand that from the Thirteenth Flower, who was no doubt peeping even now. I needed the swordsman correction.
Still, with this opportunity turning out this way, the timing was far earlier than expected. That much, at least, was deeply satisfying. An opportunity to run for myself, and myself alone, had been laid out far earlier than planned.
Rails. That's right. Right now, I'm laying down the rails.
The rails for the train called me to run on.
I finished recounting my conversation with the Saintess, then looked at Joo Ha-yeon and Nam Eun-ju.
"So this time, we've obtained an incredibly good opportunity. I did deceive her a little, but..."
I shifted my gaze, glancing over the entire party.
"All's well that ends well, isn't it?"
The party nodded at that. It was a chance to gain power. Every one of them wanted the strength to survive in a place this dangerous. Even Joo Ha-yeon, who tried to stop me, couldn't fight that instinct. Their motivations differed slightly. In the end, though, they all wanted the same thing.
I told the party what I'd decided.
"There are currently three powers we can obtain. One is the Saintess. One is the Paladin. One is the Hero."
"...I see. Three benefits..."
"The Saintess is essentially already decided. Ha-yeon, I intend to present you as a Saintess candidate."
There were two priests in the party: myself and Joo Ha-yeon. Since I'd been rejected, she had no choice but to receive it. Joo Ha-yeon understood that well enough, and she expressed her gratitude. She was used to me looking after the party to this extent, but that didn't mean I didn't want power myself. From the explanation, she could easily guess that I'd had a way to force the power onto myself if I'd wanted. That only made the grace she'd received feel all the greater.
"Shin-hoo, you really..."
I let her murmur slide and looked next at Na Seoyun.
"The Hero's power — Seoyun, you're going to receive it."
"...What? Me?"
She looked puzzled. I dressed up information from the first cycle as if it were something the Saintess had told me.
"The Hero was a Magic Swordsman, apparently. It'll help you."
Well, it was an estimate. Either way, it would help her — that much was true.
"Ah..."
And last, the Paladin's power. The party seemed to assume I'd naturally take that one for myself. I had no such intention. I'd been a tank in the past, but this cycle had far better paths lying everywhere. Back then I'd had no choice. Now was different.
I looked at Nam Eun-ju.
"...What?"
Nam Eun-ju looked like she couldn't believe what she'd heard.
"I judged you'd be the best fit. Your lacking—"
"Oppa!"
"Shin-hoo?"
"Hyung?"
"......"
The party's gazes all locked onto me. They clearly hadn't expected me to give up even the Paladin's power.
"...I think it'll more than cover your lacking stats and skills. I introduced you as my junior, so you'll be able to receive it without a problem."
I finished speaking, ignoring their stares. Silence settled over us for a while.
"Shin-hoo."
Joo Ha-yeon, her expression grave, stepped forward on behalf of the party. Her face was complicated. Nam Eun-ju's was even more so. Joo Ha-yeon looked like she didn't know how to put it, and continued with difficulty.
"...Why would you give that to Eun-ju..."
"It's the power Eun-ju needs most."
"...Then what about you, Shin-hoo?"
"I'm fine. I have enough for now."
"...You're not going to take anything this time either?"
"What are you talking about. When have I ever refused a reward..."
I don't think that's ever happened?
"...It's always been like this. Even in the tutorial, you took on the most dangerous work and we all received roughly the same rewards. You brought back an enormous amount of money from the dungeon, then invested every last bit of it in the party... It was the same in the Labyrinth. You always charged out in front and took every dangerous job yourself. You even put shackles on your own wrist — not anyone else's, yours — just to test a piece of equipment. Every single stat should have been precious to you, fighting in the most dangerous places the way you do. And even after putting those shackles on... you always led from the front. For people who were being oppressed, no less. It's the same since we came to the Lower Floors. Always first in line, always fighting the hardest... and then you take the same reward as the rest of the party..."
Her eyes trembled.
She wasn't wrong, that was for sure.
At least they hadn't forgotten the things I'd done for them. To Joo Ha-yeon — no, to the whole party — my behavior must have looked strange. Well, the behavior itself wasn't much different from the first cycle. Then again, in the first cycle I hadn't even claimed my own share. This time I'd taken a little, so it was an improvement.
Still, I was a sucker either way. I'd just gone from a massive sucker to a regular one.
It was the same on Earth. The one who did better, the one with more ability, the one who achieved more — they took more of the reward. That was only natural. But I hadn't done that. And in this Tower, where there was no law, no order. The party had never objected, though. Because it benefited them.
But the fact that they were saying this now meant I'd taken root that deep in their hearts. My choice hadn't been wrong. I was completely certain of that.
Of course, I hadn't had a choice. Given my goal, I couldn't do anything alone. So to me, these were natural, necessary actions. I'd calculated it thoroughly. But to the party, it seemed to feel completely different.
"As I said, this is the power Eun-ju needs most. That's the only reason. If a power I need appears, I'll take it even if you try to stop me, so you don't need to worry."
"But—!"
"...Let's discuss that separately. Eun-ju is listening."
Joo Ha-yeon's expression said she'd realized her mistake. She'd been so vehemently opposed to giving it to Nam Eun-ju — from the person in question's perspective, that could easily hurt. Unexpectedly, though, Nam Eun-ju didn't look offended. Then again, from her own perspective, my decision was just as hard to accept. She'd still want it, though.
"...Sorry, Eun-ju. I got too worked up... That wasn't something I should've said in front of you."
"It's okay, unni. Honestly... I don't understand either. Shin-hoo oppa. That..."
"You need to receive it. That's my judgment."
"...But Paladin suits you better, oppa... I'm just a warrior... and you're a priest, plus you even have that tank-type hidden class..."
"If I take that, my mana gets converted to holy power. That makes it awkward for me to stand on the front line, given my role. It's not that our party's attack power is lacking... but based on what I heard from the Saintess, the Paladin's role suits you better — the one who guards the rear."
I spoke even more firmly.
Do I really have to go this far just to give something away? Can't they just take it?
It already made my stomach twist, and now I had to persuade them to take it on top of that. A dry laugh slipped out. Still, at least they weren't tearing each other apart trying to claim it. That was something.
The whole party wore sullen expressions. But with Joo Ha-yeon having already spoken up, no one else said a word. It also wasn't something you said with Nam Eun-ju standing right there.
I told the party that, just in case, I'd watch the gnolls' movements for about two days. They nodded, and I ordered everyone to go rest.
As the party began to disperse, Joo Ha-yeon approached me.
"Can we talk?"
I nodded.