Chapter 282: Aspiration (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 282: Aspiration (5)
The moment those words—words that should never have come from him—reached my ears.
The series of events that had unfolded inside the dungeon flashed before my eyes.
“Ah, damn it.”
The words escaped my lips as I slapped my forehead without thinking.
Hidden within that single phrase was a mix of emotions and meanings.
And I directed my next words to the damn face that had made me feel this way.
“So you lured me here?”
K said nothing, a deep smile playing on his lips.
Seeing that, I was even more certain.
I had been naively dancing in the palm of their hands.
“Right. I thought something was lacking.”
Hundreds of zombies surrounding me from all sides, without a trace.
They weren't just a means to test my skills.
“You threw them at me already knowing, didn't you?”
They already knew.
What kind of dungeon this was, and who it was for.
They knew that the zombies roaming the Ruined Gray City dropped notes, and that only the 504 ‘Ones with Aptitude’ could read them.
So they let me find the information and guided me here.
The reason… was to confirm that I was one of the 504 people with the ‘One with Aptitude’ trait.
“I was too naive.”
Spending time among mediocre people must have made me mediocre too.
Or maybe I'd grown intoxicated by a talent that far surpassed my original body's without even realizing it.
Either way, the fact remains that I was careless and naive.
If I had just used my head a little more, I would have figured it out sooner.
“Yeah, well… you're right.”
It was far too late to deny it.
So I decided to just be shameless about it.
“So what if I'm a ‘One with Aptitude’? What are you going to do about it?”
My identity had been exposed, but it wasn't a complete loss.
The fact that he knew so much about this dungeon meant there was another ‘One with Aptitude’ in his circle.
I couldn't rule out the possibility that it was him… but I didn't think so.
“Bring it on.”
I said to him, tilting my chin up arrogantly.
“Your boss must have given you orders for what to do when you found a ‘One with Aptitude,’ right?”
Whether it was him or his boss.
They wouldn't have set a trap just to identify someone with the ‘One with Aptitude’ trait.
Eliminating a future competitor.
That had to be their ultimate goal. The problem was how they planned to achieve it.
K, who had been patiently waiting for me to finish with a look of complete ease, finally spoke.
There are two main ways to eliminate a competitor.
One is to simply kill them off. The other is to bring them to your side, eliminating them as a rival while simultaneously growing your own ranks.
“Our boss ordered that if Mr. Kim Do-jin was confirmed to possess the ‘One with Aptitude’ trait, the first course of action was to offer recruitment.”
His boss, huh.
So this mysterious boss of theirs decided to try the conciliatory approach first.
As I wondered how to steer the conversation to get more information out of him…
…he continued.
“However, he made it clear: only if you are deemed worthy of the offer.”
Look at this bastard.
His words were full of thorns.
“So, from what you've seen, how worthy do I look?”
I asked in a cynical tone, and he shrugged before speaking.
“Well. I can see that you're quite skilled, but… since you were fighting beings that have lost their reason, it's difficult to make a clear judgment.”
Just like his damn face, his way of speaking was just as infuriating.
Twisting the words ‘your opponent was too weak for me to see your true skill’ into something so irritating had to be a talent in itself.
“Okay, fine.”
Annoying or not, I understood his hidden meaning.
In short, he wanted to see my skills for himself.
“Then you can find out for yourself, can't you? Just how worthy I am.”
Besides, I was a little curious myself.
About the extent of your skills, you whose flow of mana I couldn't even clearly sense.
“Then shall we have a light look?”
“……”
And while we were at it, I wanted to wipe that damn smile off his face and that smug confidence from his body.
K slipped a hand into his inner jacket pocket.
When he pulled it out, he was holding two daggers, each about 30 centimeters long.
Just from the way he held one in each hand, I could tell.
His skill was no ordinary thing.
“Here I come.”
“Come on, then.”
I once again formed a blade on the hilt.
With light footwork, the man closed the distance in an instant. I blocked the path of his thrusting dagger with my transparent blade, which scattered a cool chill into the air.
Clang!
“…Oh.”
Crack!
With an unpleasant sound, a chip broke off near the edge of my blade and fell away.
The blade I'd formed from ice was harder than most swords crafted by a master smith, yet he'd damaged it in a single clash.
His skill was one thing, but those daggers must also be masterpieces that far surpassed the ordinary.
After the first exchange, he expressed his admiration.
“For a magician, you handle a sword far better than most swordsmen.”
“That's all I've got.”
“So you're saying you haven't shown your full hand yet…”
“The same goes for you.”
He had only swung his daggers; he hadn't used any abilities.
The expected invisibility, or some comparable ability.
The danger level would vary wildly depending on how he used it, so I had to be careful.
“Very well. Then let's take it a step further.”
He charged again.
Accelerating from a standing position without any preparatory stance.
His brilliant daggersmanship erupted, leaving afterimages in the air as he reached me.
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
Dozens of blows were exchanged in an instant.
A relentless barrage of attacks aimed only at vital spots, where a single hit could leave me in critical condition.
After parrying them, I understood.
The origin of his dagger technique wasn't in killing monsters, but in killing people.
To have achieved this level of mastery… meant he must have killed at least a few hundred people.
With a face like a pretty boy, he's lived a damn dirty life.
His sharp attacks intensified with even greater speed and more precise movements.
As I was frantically deflecting his assault…
“Be careful.”
His sudden words sparked a question in my mind.
What am I supposed to be careful of?
…As I thought that, the danger he'd warned me about flew at me without a sound.
Swish!
The sound of something slicing through the air was clear.
But there was nothing in his hands.
No, to be precise.
Claaaang!
“…Your senses are sharp.”
The dagger, still held in his hand, had vanished.
My cold blade looked as if it were locked in a struggle with empty air.
“Invisibility.”
“Correct. Though it's not ordinary invisibility.”
The attack, which had paused for a moment, resumed.
Humans are endlessly accustomed to seeing with their eyes.
Therefore, the simple fact that something is invisible increases the danger several times over—no, tens of times over.
How should one respond in a situation like this?
A master would read the dagger's trajectory from the arc of the arm, the shape of the hand gripping the dagger, and the angle of the wrist, and then counter it.
I was no different.
“You have a keen eye, as expected.”
When I smoothly blocked his attack in the standard way, he raised the difficulty.
“Then how about this?”
The invisible area began to expand.
Not just the dagger, but the hand wielding it, the wrist, and even the arm down to just below the shoulder.
With that, all the means I had to read the dagger's trajectory had vanished before my eyes.
So, how will you respond now?
K seemed to ask as he closed the distance in an instant.
What am I going to do with that damn face, smiling as if he's already won?
Claaaang!
I blocked his dagger without the slightest hint of panic.
“……!”
For the first time today, the smile vanished from his face.
“Seeing that dumbfounded look on your face is finally satisfying.”
It was as refreshing as having a nagging tooth pulled.
“This… is unexpected.”
His face, now wearing a strained smile, muttered.
An ordinary master reads movement through the arc of the arm, the hand, and the wrist.
So what about a master like me?
“Guys with invisibility always seem to think they're invincible.”
Being unseen is incredibly annoying, but it's not like there's no way to counter it.
The five senses given to humans.
And on top of that, the sixth sense, honed through countless experiences.
For an ordinary master to surpass the top 1% and reach the top 0.1%, they must learn to use all their senses like eyes.
Sound, smell, the minute sensations felt across the entire body.
You have to be able to read your opponent's attacks with all of it.
To masters capable of this, invisibility offers no particular advantage.
No, in fact, it makes them lose their greatest strength.
Because while they can't be seen, everything else about them still exists.
“…You blocked it once, and you're already getting overconfident.”
he chattered, his smile having somehow returned.
He acted as if nothing was wrong, but his composure had visibly shrunk, and the tension had risen.
It seemed he was starting to feel the pressure.
“If you block it this time… I'll acknowledge you!”
CRUNCH!
The ground he kicked off from buckled violently, and with a massive whoosh, his form vanished.
I felt an intense presence and aura right in front of me.
His whole body this time?
Clang! Clang-clang!
As I began to block all the attacks pouring down like a shower, his presence wavered greatly.
He seemed deeply shaken, realizing it wasn't a fluke.
This was the moment I'd been waiting for.
A dagger flew toward my heart.
I'll block this, then instantly speed up and counterattack.
The moment I made up my mind and thrust my blade forward…
…the presence before me vanished in an instant.
In its place, a sense of crisis filled the void.
I twisted my body instinctively.
Slice!
A sharp blade grazed past, leaving a deep wound on my left arm.
“……”
Amid a dizzying sense of failure, I heard his voice from a short distance away.
“Didn't I tell you? It's not ordinary invisibility.”
K taunted me, his voice gleeful.
It seemed he could erase even the presence that should have been there.