Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Mental Strength (2)
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"Hoo."
Back home, I started with the draws from the 3rd Circle Shop.
I'd swapped all my consumables for ones from the 3rd Circle Shop.
Even stocked up on Designated Return Scrolls, which work below the 4th underground floor of dungeons where regular return scrolls fail.
And then.
"This is all that came out, huh."
Maybe the odds dropped, but I only got two Awakening Runes this time.
Once I raise my mental strength with the curse, I'll do another draw.
Finally.
The newly unlocked Constellation Record wouldn't open yet either, thanks to my mental strength.
No more hesitation. Time to do it.
"I really hate this."
I closed the heavy wooden door of the house and latched it shut.
Just in case the scent leaked out and turned the neighborhood into a biochemical disaster zone.
For good measure, I sealed every window with thick curtains.
Then I went into the large inner room, meticulously blocking every gap with magic catalysts to prevent sound and smell from escaping.
After that, I laid out the materials I'd bought from Curse Master Blen on the table, one by one.
『Corpse Flower』
『Screamweed』
『Whispering Bellflower』
These three were among the locally available curse ingredients, the ones that hit the mind the hardest.
"Hoo."
After a short deep breath, I gathered all the materials and ground them into a fine powder.
Crunch. Crunch.
It was less like grinding herbs and more like some eerie sound echoing through the room.
A foul stench filled the air.
The smell of rotting flesh mixed with the tang of blood—an acrid reek.
Once all the materials blended into a fine powder, I dissolved equal parts magic and curse catalysts into it.
Then I stirred everything clockwise to mix thoroughly.
Once well blended, I added the curse-infused oil, fragrance, and binder.
"Done."
This created an incense that would slowly but surely drag anyone who smelled it into the deepest hell.
Now, I just needed to insert a stick for slow burning, light the end, and... instant hell realm complete.
I'd made it extra potent, factoring in the healing from the Pulsing Life Soulstone embedded in my soul.
"......"
My hand wouldn't move.
Like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
Truth be told, I had some confidence.
Back when I stepped on that trap and my foot got pierced, the pain was negligible compared to a foot completely run through.
Maybe my mind would hold up the same way...
Considering the agony of mental exhaustion so far, probably not, but...
"Hoo."
With a short sigh, I steeled myself.
Dragging it out would only make it worse.
Resolved, I lay comfortably on the bed and placed the incense neatly beside it.
This amount should burn steadily for up to a day without further tending.
To max out mental strength gains from mental pain, I'd need five days, but... these things have to be done in stages.
First, survive one day and reassess.
Sizzle—
I lit the incense.
Whoosh.
The rotten corpse stench slowly spread through the room.
My nose wrinkled, but I didn't turn away—I regulated my breathing.
Just as I started adapting to the rotting smell.
Scritch.
A sound like hard-shelled bugs rubbing against my body echoed from afar.
No, not far at all.
It was... only between my toes.
The ones tickling my instep didn't seem inclined to climb higher.
Staying just on the fingers was tolerable, I thought.
Though having them settle near my chest was a bit unwelcome, all things considered, I was lucky.
If there's one regret, it's the sheer number crawling back and forth across my shoulders—too many to bear.
They'd started on my neck from the get-go, making the whole area unbearably itchy.
Part of me wanted to crunch and swallow the ones on my lips.
Why not? I was hungry anyway.
So... these bugs crawling over my skin.
Toes. Instep. Fingers. Chest. Shoulders. Entire neck. Lips and jaw. Cheekbones and eyes. Emerging from nostrils. Crawling around my eye sockets. Stirring my brain.
A.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.
Thousands of bugs crawled beneath my skin.
Insane itching spread from inside my skin.
I couldn't take it anymore.
I raised both hands.
Where to scratch first?
I didn't know. Head first.
Scratch inside there.
I jammed my hands into the narrow openings.
Couldn't reach the end.
No choice—scratched whatever I could grab.
Scritch-scritch.
Scraped at some unknowable space.
The sound was grotesque, but it felt good.
Needed to scratch more, but couldn't reach.
I pulled my hands from the two holes.
Couldn't see anymore.
I moved to the next itchy spot.
Blind, I groped around.
The long, narrow itchy area was too vast.
Shoved my hand into the single hole.
Scrub-scrub.
Scratched furiously.
Itching from the bugs crawling.
The other hand scrubbed the outside.
Scrub-scrub.
Scratching away, I hit another itchy spot.
No voice left.
Still itching.
While searching for the next spot, I realized something.
This is an illusion.
"......"
I stopped my hands and looked around.
Pitch black before my eyes.
The bug sounds still vivid in my ears.
Itching persisted.
But I stopped scratching them.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
With my hands still, I heard my heartbeat.
The Pulsing Life Soulstone in my soul slowly healed wounds and expelled the curse.
Thanks to it, I regained my sanity, if only for a moment.
"......"
All this in just five minutes after lighting the incense.
I'd scratched my eyes and throat raw from the illusory bugs and whispers.
Save me.
---
"Ah."
I'd spent the night screaming under the covers until my throat gave out completely.
After twenty-four hours that felt like twenty-four years, two status windows appeared before me.
Total mental strength gained this time: 50.
Four more days of the same would net me 100 total.
So... do this crap four more days?
"Ha."
I got up first.
My bed was soaked in blood like when I read that magic tome last time.
Difference this time: my fingers were raw and red too.
Daunting to clean it all.
Later for that.
I pulled out the Void Magic Tome I'd been reading before.
Opening the tome, the first half was blank, mana drained.
I found the remaining pages and read on.
Sizzle—
A burning smell at my nose, but unlike last time, the pain wasn't bad.
By the end, all the Void magic knowledge was etched in my mind.
I drew my staff and cast Void magic on the blood-soaked bed.
Shwooo—
Bedding around the black dot in the air got sucked in.
Manipulating the Void that had devoured everything, I made it spit it all back out.
"Hoo."
Even magic learned from a tome works normally.
First spell from a tome, so I needed to test for quirks.
Next, I took out one of the 3rd Circle Magic Awakening Runes I'd drawn.
"...Just one for now."
Mental strength recovers slowly with time if spent.
With my current mental strength, using one legendary rune per day is ideal.
Can't afford nosebleeds from shortage—proper rest is key.
Hum—
Bringing the rune to my chest.
"Pf!"
Mana near my heart exploded like fireworks.
3rd Circle magic: Black Sphere Mega-Explosion.
One of the staple spells for mage classes, creating an exploding black sphere at range.
Mana-starved mages kept it in their spell slots even into 5th Circle.
The spheres are small, so it shines in tight spaces.
Pair it with Void, and it'll be a mainstay even in deep dungeons.
Drip—
I wiped the nosebleed trickling from my philtrum.
Head throbbed, but paled next to the curse I'd just endured.
That pain was already erased by my Pulsing Life Soulstone.
"Hoo."
I cleaned the blood-soaked bed and hung it in the sun.
Then laid fresh sheets and rested comfortably.
Absolute rest is essential for mental strength recovery.
"Can't go out for a while."
Gotta hole up four days to temper mental strength.
Unlock all the magic too—drawing takes time.
Unlock Constellations too. Roughly five days stuck inside.
"Whatever."
Rent's paid... and I don't have a party anyway.