Learning a Skill

Episode 87

The original Park Si-hyun was naturally a "Six-Attribute" wielder.

Among the eight supreme attributes of natural power, he lacked only ice and darkness.

But even six attributes were more than enough to draw considerable attention in the Tower.

Most people could only wield one or two attributes.

Three was rare, and four was even rarer.

Five? Almost unheard of.

So, a six-attribute wielder naturally stood out.

'Though overshadowed by Kang So-eun and Park Ha-rin's impact, I must have still seemed like a promising Climber in any profession.'

But now, of all things...

"Omni-Attribute Affinity..."

Just as Tirpe had murmured.

Life, by nature, cannot simultaneously harbor both light and darkness.

That's why omni-attribute affinity is so difficult.

'But occasionally, there are those who defy common sense and are born with both. Tirpe herself can use all attributes through acquired means, but she focused solely on light and darkness to walk the path of a Fallen Angel. As for Kang So-eun and Park Ha-rin—well, their omni-affinity goes without saying.'

They were one thing, but I had no idea why I had omni-affinity too.

Was it because of the Circuit of Reckless Uncertainty? An innate talent? Or some other factor?

Whatever the case, it was an unexpected windfall.

But just because I now possessed all eight attributes didn't mean my journey in the Tower was over.

Sure, I had the versatility to handle a wider range of situations than others, but I wasn't specialized to the highest degree in every single attribute.

Even "Divine Sword Hayase", hailed as the greatest martial artist in the story, only had water and wind attributes.

But as a pure martial combatant, she didn't need much in the way of magic or Spirit Arts.

At most, she occasionally used simple Yin-Yang Arts or a few related techniques.

To be precise, she relied on martial "Five Elements" internal techniques, which had little to do with magical attributes.

If she needed to move, she Cleaved through space. If a wide-range attack came her way, she Cleaved space to redirect it elsewhere. Ambushes? She could silently kill by Cleaving space with her fingers. Even when concealing her presence, she would "Twist" or "Cleave" herself—making her practically omnipotent in her own way.

Anyway, setting aside such broken characters, there were those who specialized to the extreme in a single attribute, like fire or ice.

If I were to face them in their specialized element, chances are, I'd be at a severe disadvantage.

In a way, my nature—having only dipped a toe into every attribute—meant that even if I combined strengths and weaknesses, my output would remain ambiguous, likely ending up as neither here nor there.

But that was something I could solve over time by absorbing more opportunities and raising my affinity with each attribute.

The gates to all attributes were open. That alone was encouraging.

'At least I won't have to struggle later to obtain missing attributes. So... who should I get ice and darkness from?'

Just as I was pondering, recalling unrelated opportunities, Tirpe jolted in excitement, her ample chest heaving.

"...I-I'm shocked. To naturally possess both light and darkness attributes... I knew your bone structure and muscle quality were extraordinary, but your spiritual domain too... I-I had no idea you were this... incredible. W-what on earth could have caused this manifestation...?"

She seemed fascinated by the causal relationship between my physique and omni-affinity.

Suddenly pressing her chest against me, she groped my arm like a pervert, her eyes darting around as she muttered to herself, observing me at her own whims.

"It's not just a matter of soul wavelength... Something in the deeper consciousness... an anomalous constitution...... Hehehe."

It was her habit—no, her compulsion as a regressor—to gather information for future loops.

Her already eerie yet seductive face twisted into something even more dangerous.

"......No."

I was so dumbfounded I dispelled the light and darkness from my hands.

Tirpe was lost in her own world, but this much, at least, I had to clarify.

"Hey. Hold on—I dual-cast earlier."

"......?"

Tirpe, who had been deep in her own thoughts, blinked rapidly before tilting her head in confusion.

"......Huh?"

"I dual-cast."

"............Y-yes? B-but that's not difficult, is it?"

The hell do you mean it's not difficult?!

...Do you have any idea how much other novice mages struggle just to form one magic circle, let alone two?!

She really had no clue.

"...?"

But it didn't seem like Tirpe had the capacity to empathize with my feelings. I gave up.

With a shrug, I put some distance between us.

"Alright, let's move on to body techniques now."

"Huh? Y-yes..."

Tirpe nodded blankly and neatly folded her pale hands in front of her thighs.

"Wh-what would you like to see?"

I stared at her intently.

She hadn't manifested her fallen wings yet, but ever since becoming a Fallen Angel, her allure had intensified to an extreme degree.

Her beauty carried a contradictory impression—decadent yet refined.

Her shadowed gaze held a dangerous sensuality that seemed capable of corrupting anyone, while her pallid complexion exuded a sinister, deathly aura, as though she were a woman teetering on the brink of demise.

'One round of sex—no, no.'

I severed the stray thought and focused on Tirpe.

In this regression, Tirpe had chosen Black Magic as her path.

But she wasn't just talented in magic alone.

She had once been a Warrior, a Spear Master, and a Swordsman.

So, she should know at least a few high-level body techniques befitting the 66th floor.

Considering my Semi-Spirit Form, Uncertainty's Phantasmal Circuit, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and other aspects of my concept, I voiced the most suitable skill.

"Noona. Show me the Sword Formation of Heaven Without Excessive Rain for a sec."

From its swordplay style to mobility, it was the most fitting skill for me right now.

A skill coveted by any profession that wields multiple weapons.

If she had cleared up to the 66th floor, she must have acquired it.

But—

"...Huh? Was there ever such a thing?"

"......??"

Why don't you know?

"Eh......?!"

Tirpe's expression mirrored mine perfectly.

#

The Tower is the center of the world and the terminus of all records.

Within it, records derived from every civilization converge.

From these gathered records, the Tower refines them, leaving behind even more polished legacies for future generations.

Among them, a few swordsmanship styles have been hailed as the strongest, even after ages have passed.

Swordsmanship styles so evenly matched that debates over their superiority never ceased.

Yet, all those once-contending swordsmanship styles suddenly yielded their place to a new technique that appeared like a comet.

Everyone knelt in dumbfounded awe before a single swordsmanship.

Countless centuries of refined sword techniques crumbled beneath just one.

In the Tower's history, there was one swordsman who stood peerless with a blade—none could follow.

The swordsmanship Hayase created—Divine Sword.

That sword crushed every swordsmanship the Tower had developed over its long history and ascended to the undisputed throne of supremacy.

Yeah. That absurdly brilliant swordsmanship our Hayase pioneered.

'As expected of Hayase. Truly worthy of being my bride.'

Later, I'd grow frustrated that Hayase couldn't teach me the Divine Sword, but with my early-game skills, creating such an overwhelming swordsmanship was unthinkable.

That's why I wanted to learn the Sword Formation of Heaven Without ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Excessive Rain, the best alternative available to me now, through a regressor.

But that attempt was thwarted from the very beginning.

"...Sword Formation of Heaven Without Excessive Rain? I've never even heard of it..."

"Uhh... wasn't there an old man tending graves on the 14th floor, where the Depraved Demon Sickle Blade was embedded?"

"I've scoured every corner of the floors, but I've never seen such a person..."

Tirpe seemed to realize the severity of our information gap and grew sullen.

Feeling oddly guilty, I shifted the topic.

"Then what about the Unfeigned Sword?"

Since the old man on the 14th floor didn't seem to exist in Tirpe's worldview, I assumed this might not either.

"The Unfeigned Sword..."

Tirpe's dark pupils flickered.

"That swordsmanship circulating in the markets... Oh, is that not it?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

...So the Unfeigned Sword exists?

Then the old man on the 14th floor likely existed in Tirpe's worldview too, but...

Rather than feeling happy about that fact—

'That old man must not have been saved, then.'

All I felt was a bitter taste in my mouth.

"A basic swordsmanship you can buy for just a few Bronze Coins... Isn't that right...?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

As Tirpe said, the Unfeigned Sword was a publicly distributed swordsmanship in the Tower. A common, dime-a-dozen skill anyone could buy from shops for a trivial sum.

Because of that, no one would have dared to guess—

No... perhaps a true swordsman might have noticed.

That the Unfeigned Sword was created to help even the dullest of people cultivate the strength to protect ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠themselves.

A rare act of goodwill in a Tower where the weak weren't even treated as human.

...They might have even realized that the creator of the Unfeigned Sword was the Sword Demon, a figure who carved a monumental mark in swordsmanship history.

Because the Unfeigned Sword was the very technique that perfectly defended against and countered the Shadowless Sword, the aggressive swordsmanship the Sword Demon wielded.

However, the Formless Sword was created to suit everyone's constitution.

That's precisely why its ceiling was never high.

That's why it was shunned by the ignorant masses.

Yet, even such a swordsmanship was like rain in a drought to me, who had come from Earth. Because on Earth, not even a swordsmanship like the Formless Sword existed.

"The creator of the Formless Sword was undoubtedly an exceptional swordsman, but they were too ambitious. In trying to make a swordsmanship that suited everyone, its power wasn't enough to conquer the Tower. It might be fine for laying the foundations of swordsmanship, but... wouldn't it be better to learn a stronger swordsmanship instead...?"

Tirpe muttered uneasily, as if worried for me.

"The Formless Sword suits my taste."

The sword intent of the Formless Sword.

It was an unshakable foundation, unwavering against anything. Later, I realized it was the swordsmanship the Sword Demon had grasped in their twilight years.

It led to the Heavenly Raincloud Sword Array.

"..."

The look in Tirpe's eyes as she watched me had already turned composed.

"So the Formless Sword... connects to the Heavenly Raincloud Sword you mentioned."

It was the natural conclusion of logic.

I nodded and reached for the golden rosary hanging around my neck.

Whoosh—!

A brilliant surge of Sacred Power burst before my eyes.

I gripped the Holy Sword of Sacrifice. The blade, lowered and swaying, pulsed steadily with Sacred Power.

"Show me the Formless Sword. I need to see it."

Tirpe, her dark-circled eyes calm, nodded.

The space beside her rippled as a pocket dimension manifested. A hand reached inside, and when it withdrew, it held an Earth-made sword.

Her gaze sharpened as she examined the blade, then turned to me.

The aura around Tirpe shifted abruptly.

"Let's begin."

She raised the sword in a middle stance. Then, slowly, she began moving, demonstrating the sword forms.

Muscles refined further to suit the people of the Tower.

This was a swordsmanship created for the weakest among them.

Even in its lightest movements, the depth was incomparable to Earth's swordsmanship.

It was as if the physical act of wielding a sword had transcended, breaking past walls and touching the realm of the mystical.

Through the slow yet razor-sharp sword techniques, I could roughly gauge Tirpe's skill.

Unlike Park Ha-rin and Hayase, whose movements were merely the extreme efficiency dictated by their skills, this was swordplay of a different caliber.

My eyes were opening anew.

This was the swordsmanship of a Climber who had reached the 66th Floor.

Even her excessively long hair seemed to become part of the motion as she slashed diagonally. Every single flow connected to the sword.

Whoooosh—

A fierce current split through the wind carved by her blade. Staring blankly, I watched Tirpe's sword dance before, as if entranced, I began moving my own sword. Keeping my distance, I swung my blade as if drawn in.

Muscles I had never used before were being stimulated. Slowly, I lost myself in the sensation.

The tip of my sword was precise, the will imbued within it unshakable—as if to declare to the world that I existed here, for that sole purpose, I swung my sword.

There were no grand motions, as if I were planting roots where I stood.

Yet, strangely, it felt as though I was moving my body more than ever before. A dissonance settled in, the gap between reality and the mind widening. And at the moment when the two diverging realms finally touched—

[Skill 「Formless Sword (Common) <2.3%>」 has been acquired.]

My sword broke free from the constraints of reality and stepped into a new horizon.

And so, each day passed like this.

The storm raged, then calmed, and in the trembling cave, I trained in the Formless Sword alongside Tirpe.

Along with many other skills...

[Skill 「Introductory Black Magic (Common)」 has ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠been acquired.]

[Skill 「Introductory Holy Magic Arts (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Shadow Stepping (Rare)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Nimble Movement (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Thunderflash Storm Dragon Spear Art (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Wild Martial Brawling (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Twin Sword Art (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Hidden Weapon Mastery (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Faint Whisper of Illusion (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Minor Presence Concealment (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Preemptive Strike Shield Art (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Archery (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[Skill 「Tortoise Shell Binding Art (Common)」 has been acquired.]

[4 Earth days remain in the Outer Dimension's average time.]

On the day the storm finally ceased, the grueling 92-day journey had come to an end.