The Completion of Another Myth

Three conditions to lift the Curse of Ruin.

One had to possess four Stars, hold stats that likewise reached four Stars, and know how to use a beyond-standard status recovery ability.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Beyond-standard, huh.

The only beyond-standard power I possessed was the Mystery Eternal Randolph — my entire being, my very existence, projected into a Mystery. Naturally, something of that grade would never carry a recovery ability.

But there is exactly one way.

Raising my level.

The Perfect Recovery that appeared every time I leveled up could easily be argued as beyond-standard. The problem was that the level-up effect applied only to me. It never transferred to anyone else.

However—

All I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠need is to possess a beyond-standard status recovery ability.

Nowhere did it say I had to use it on someone else. Simply having it was enough. And conveniently, Hell had brought me Union's Stored EXP Potions.

Eight potions Hell pulled from Union's inventory.

Each bottle raised experience by a full ten percent. Eight of them was more than enough to push a level. An ordinary Level 8 might have aimed past Level 10 with that much, but in my current state I was grateful for every drop. Between my talents and traits, the experience I needed was dozens of times what anyone else required — at minimum.

What's more surprising is that Union never noticed until Hell cleaned him out.

Hell had been looting Union's inventory one item a day. How he'd managed it, I had no idea — but the fact that Union never caught on was even stranger. The working theory: Union himself couldn't fully check everything inside his inventory. At the very least, he clearly couldn't track quantities. Otherwise none of this would make sense.

…Enough experience to level up. That's all that matters.

Combined, the potions would raise my experience by eighty percent.

I tipped them into my mouth without hesitation. One after another, without pause, until every last bottle was gone.

A short, clean line — and then a torrent of searing light poured down. Far more intense than any previous blessing.

The blessing really does grow stronger with every level.

Light that embraced the entire nest. By now I was certain: each level-up amplified the blessing. It had gone beyond mere recovery — every cell in my body felt as if it were awakening. Maybe it was because I needed so much more experience than anyone else.

……Finally. Level 9.

But there was no room left for thought. The surge of emotion was as overwhelming as the effect itself. Level 9. Only one step remained until Level 10.

Past Level 10, Transcendence became possible — and I already held four Stars. Climbing the Rift Tower had even expanded my max level to 12.

The foundation to surpass Wilhelm is already in place.

I still fell short of Wilhelm at his peak, but the groundwork to overtake him was essentially complete. A 1.2× stat multiplier from level, a max level stretched to 12, and four Stars already in hand. Gear could be fitted piece by piece as I went.

Then it came.

Alongside the declaration that the ordeal toward Level 10 had begun, other lines surfaced. This had always been a game infamous for its "cursed Level 10," so the experience spike wasn't surprising.

What exactly is supposed to awaken?

The third line made me tilt my head. I had never heard of something waking simply because someone hit Level 10.

……No idea. Nothing connected to my level came to mind. One of the Hidden Traits, maybe?

That wasn't the only strange part.

And what does it mean that the Bone Fragment of Despair has been purified?

The bone fragment of the Four Calamities' Despair that Death King had delivered to me after heading south — purified the instant I leveled up. What that actually meant, I still couldn't tell. Of course I couldn't. This was Pangenia, after all: the final boss of unhelpfulness.

I set the stray thoughts aside, lifted my head, and spoke to Ainharthar.

"I accept the trial, Ainharthar."

…I will break your curse.

Every condition the Star's Blessing required was complete.

Ainharthar's eyelids fluttered. Then, slowly, he lowered his face all the way to the floor — as if to say, Do it, if you can.

Star's Blessing.

Without hesitation I activated one of the Star Successor's primary skills.

A mouth tore open between Ainharthar's eyes. The world slowed as if time itself had stopped. A familiar phenomenon. I couldn't help the jolt of alarm.

A bug……!

It was the same kind of "bug" that had appeared when I'd driven a Demon King to the brink of death — and again when I'd pushed the Four Calamities' Baal toward its end. Wait. Was that the Curse of Ruin?

Both times, an irresistible bug had killed me. I'd revived through Eternal Randolph before, but luck like that only came once.

……Damn it!

A curse nearly tore free of my throat, but there was no time to open my mouth. The "bug" that had bloomed on Ainharthar's brow yawned wide and lunged to swallow me whole.

But against every expectation, the mouth never reached me.

The Fragment of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ruin nested in my heart. It kept the curse from touching me — and weakened it in the process.

……The "bug" evaporated as if it had never existed. At the same time, a radiant golden light returned the light of reason to Ainharthar's eyes.

—Ah.

His whole body shuddered, and he unfurled his wings wide.

—Aaaah! The Guardian's karma has returned!

Ainharthar — Dragon God and Guardian of the Rift — had reclaimed his original karma and stature.

In that instant—

Two achievements. Four thousand honor points between them.

Great Phase. That thing is completely broken.

The Phase of the Radiant Pureblood — that absolute ring — carried Great Phase, which doubled all honor gained. Every time I felt it, I had to admit it was an absurd ability.

Ten thousand isn't far off.

At this rate, I might hit ten thousand honor before long. Ten thousand was the threshold where nearly every honor-related function unlocked. Reach it, and a player could declare a Kingdom and become a King — the only path a player had to expand a faction and claim a throne.

—……Thank you.

Still trembling, Ainharthar spoke on.

—The Curse of Ruin corrupted my soul and made me neglect my calling. Even as the world's balance crumbled, I turned away. That should never have been.

A blinding golden radiance coiled around Ainharthar's entire body — so beautiful it nearly stole the breath from my lungs.

—Truly, I thank you, Guide of Stars. You have completed every trial. As promised, I shall give you that which you need most.

The golden light wrapped around me. The reward for the final trial. I learned what it was almost at once.

A Dragon God's Wish Bead — and one that bore a Dragon God's name.

What was a Wish Bead? The single most precious treasure a dragon possessed. Perhaps even more precious than its heart. Its value scaled with the dragon's rank. Ainharthar had essentially handed me his own.

Hah.

Awe rose unbidden. A treasure beyond any price — a Wish Bead no one had ever held, and no one else ever could.

—Guide of Stars. If there is anything you wish to know, ask. Of all that I know, I shall grant you two answers.

Because of the additional trials and achievements I'd completed, perhaps? Ainharthar — who had originally offered only a single conditional answer — now spoke of two questions.

I can get a Unique-grade blueprint out of this.

One of Ainharthar's epithets was the Dragon of Knowledge. He knew a great many things. Having offered everything within his knowledge, he would surely answer about Unique-grade blueprints as well. This was an opportunity.

"How do I meet the Dragon God of Earth?"

But the first question was already decided. I had to find Earth's Dragon God before Isera did.

—Fortunately, that is a question I can answer.

Ainharthar's golden light circled me once more.

He had engraved the coordinates outright. Not merely an answer about the method — the answer itself.

—Now. What is your second question?

Ainharthar asked at his leisure. I couldn't help but deliberate.

If he gives the answer itself…… a Unique-grade blueprint isn't even the ceiling.

This was far greater than locating a Unique blueprint. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Depending on the question, something of even higher value could come back.

I should ask that.

A thought had just brushed past. If anyone would know, it was Ainharthar, the Dragon of Knowledge.

"My second question is……"

I opened my mouth slowly.

I left Ainharthar's nest at an unhurried pace. Not on foot, of course. Just as I had arrived, I rode on Ainharthar's back. As the being who maintained the world's balance, Ainharthar could leap across space without any warp.

At the same time, a cascade of messages flooded my vision.