Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Awakening
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"Really, are you okay?"
At Emily's worried question, Kallias replied that he was fine.
Honestly, he was still dumbfounded, but he had no choice but to answer that way.
He couldn't explain the system details to Emily or the others anyway.
"What the hell did you do all of a sudden? You scared everyone. We were worried sick because you wouldn't wake up for ten whole days."
"I had a bit of... an enlightenment."
Enlightenment.
What a simple word.
At the mention of enlightenment, the furrow in Emily's brow eased slightly.
"Yeah, it feels like that's the case. Your divine power feels denser than before. I can sense it too."
Indeed. The rank of his divine power hadn't increased, but its purity was on another level.
If his previous divine power had been light and faint, now it was heavy and profound.
"Still, you scared me. You wouldn't wake up no matter what, and then you suddenly caused that huge commotion... Go wash up first. You stink."
"Yeah."
It was as if his body had expelled all its impurities; a foul odor permeated his entire form. But his skin was like a molted lizard's—shedding its old shell, revealing smooth, pale flesh beneath. It seemed he'd undergone that fabled "shedding of bones and exchanging of marrow."
'Amazing.'
After a quick wash, Kallias emerged and freshly sensed the vitality surging from his dantian.
Who would have thought that to form the Triple Peak, he had to shatter the original Single and Double Peaks and remake them.
"If not for the seed's opportunity, I never would have dreamed of it."
But what exactly was it?
A god defeated and stripped of its name.
It had burrowed into his body, elevating his Myriad Flower Bone Marrow to the Triple Peak.
'Again.'
Something uninvited was once more haunting his mind.
But aside from those later messages, there was nothing particularly noteworthy.
The traces of the seed that entered his dantian had long vanished.
Alone in the room, he set down the damp towel and reflected once more on what had happened.
"The Fallen God has taken root."
What meaningful effect would this have?
The Fallen God.
The seed of that god had taken root within him.
'It can probably be seen as the will of the god taking hold.'
The system message had said not the seed, but the god itself had dwelled within him.
The will of the Fallen God.
Or something had settled into his dantian, forging the Triple Peak of the Myriad Flower Bone Marrow and creating six sacred meridians.
Now, in his dantian, three flower buds each sent down pairs of roots.
The firmer, more abundant buds would provide him with purer divine power at any time.
'Is it different because it's the Fallen God?'
At first, he'd worried about a clash between divine powers.
But the divine power that entered as a seed was utterly pure, even blooming his Myriad Flower Bone Marrow.
His concerns proved unfounded; only good things had come of it.
"It's a bit burdensome."
The divine power swelling through his body amplified his presence.
He donned Vivi’s Bracelet from the table.
The overwhelming divine aura immediately calmed and subsided.
"I must have lost Dexter’s Half Gauntlet in the fight."
It wasn't visible, so it must have torn or been lost during battle.
Regrettable, but unavoidable.
He stored the Devouring Sword in his Subspace and gently lifted the Possession Sword.
Grasping the hilt, he slowly drew it, revealing the broken grayish-white blade with a gleam.
[Possession Sword - Gwuid]
Rank - Spirit
Indwelling Soul - Troll Gwuid
Unique Ability - Possession.
The sword was broken, but the soul remained intact.
If it had been an ordinary famed sword, he would have sent it skyward for compensation.
'But it's too good to just discard.'
He had seen the Possession Sword's power amply in this war. Without the troll's possession effect, he couldn't have turned the tide of battle.
The Possession Sword, borrowing the troll's strength and regenerative power, was hard to relinquish easily.
And demonic swords' compensation was uncertain anyway.
"I should call Dexter."
He didn't know if Dexter could repair it, but he had to show it to him.
He trusted the dwarf's skills, but this was no ordinary sword.
Normally, he should take it to the church for inspection...
'But it's infused with demonic power, so that's impossible.'
Bringing such a sword would only get it confiscated or brand him a heretic.
No reason to stir up trouble.
If Dexter couldn't fix it...
'I'll take the risk and repair it somehow.'
A true famed sword's soul would vanish upon breaking, but the troll's soul lingered stubbornly.
It could definitely be repaired.
Having sorted his thoughts, Kallias set down the Possession Sword.
"Time to check the other rewards."
He hadn't properly examined them because of the Fallen God's seed.
The seed's nature remained a mystery with no way to uncover it, so for now, he accepted it as a stroke of fortune.
'If the Myriad Flower Bone Marrow reacted to it...'
Unlikely, but uncertain.
He recalled the long-lost saintess of the church and shook his head.
[Unique Talent Selection Ticket]
[Rare Trait Draw Ticket]
Unique talent and rare trait!
"Talent and trait, huh."
Traits were one thing, but talents weren't easily acquired. He decided to check the talent selection first.
Since it was a selection ticket, he could choose from several options.
[Unique Talent Selection Ticket]
1. 『One Stroke Mastery』
-Allows writing any text fluidly in one go without hesitation. Or interpreting any text instantly without obstruction.
2. 『Instinctive Intuition』
-Intuitively senses things ordinarily imperceptible.
3. 『Mental Arithmetic』
-Increases speed of calculations performed mentally without tools.
'As expected of unique talents.'
None were bad.
One Stroke Mastery might seem useless at a glance, but this world had different languages per nation.
Moreover, ancient tongues, heterorace languages—countless idioms existed, and the ability to read them alone offered vast advantages.
'For example.'
He could read the Bira tribe's language he'd discovered recently.
He might uncover their ancient civilization and artifact creation methods.
Gods' remnant languages might appear later too, making One Stroke Mastery invaluable long-term.
'Intuition would be a shame to pass up too.'
In combat, intuition was everything, in a way.
Many fighters relied on it.
And it wasn't limited to battle; commerce would benefit greatly too.
'Mental Arithmetic would shine in number games.'
Combat was a numbers game.
If the enemy does this, counter with that; when they counter back, roll aside and strike again, and so on.
In inevitable numerical battles and on the battlefield, mental arithmetic would make it smoother.
After some deliberation, Kallias chose 『Instinctive Intuition』 anyway.
The first and third felt slightly underwhelming for unique rank.
There were probably better ones... Regrettable, but what could he do?
Those were the options.
'Superior intuition will hugely aid enlightenments or dangerous situations. Intuition's the best.'
One Stroke Mastery or Mental Arithmetic could be approximated with effort, but not intuition.
It was purely talent-based.
[Select Instinctive Intuition?]
Yes. A deflating whoosh accompanied a brief heat through his body, vanishing instantly.
'No immediate difference.'
Next, the trait draw.
A draw meant pure luck.
He emptied his mind and began.
[Rare Trait Draw commencing.]
.
.
.
He heard the roulette spin.
What would come out?
Rare, so something useful—physical enhancement or wealth-boosting would be nice.
Whatever it was, rare meant worthwhile; his heart already raced.
Ding.
『Pheromones』
Rank - Rare
-Emits a pleasant fragrance from the body.
Seeing his status window, a sigh escaped automatically.
"Ha! For real."
Pheromones? Absurd; he was speechless.
The description? Just a pleasant body scent. No real effects.
"This is rare?"
Passive effect, no on/off switch.
In ambushes or stealth, the scent could give him away—making it worse.
Whether he smelled it himself, he couldn't tell.
"I'll ask later."
Remaining rewards: three spirit stones and a saddle.
Even the famously masterful equestrian Humasis's saddle.
[Humasis's Saddle]
Rank - Rare
-Equestrian Skill +2
With such a saddle, even Kallias, unable to ride, could manage.
Spirit stones suited his Gluttony trait—replenish divine power in emergencies or for training. Usable as currency too, so no harm.
After sorting the items' uses and storing them in Subspace,
He took out the chalice and the troll blood container.
Curious, he dropped a drop of troll blood into the chalice.
Plop.
With the sound, faint divine power gathered in the chalice.
Legend said the chalice held god's blood, soon turning to wine—a property change.
Most religions shared this, so he suspected purification power here too.
If it could purify the demonic power inherent in troll blood...
Refined troll blood would be potion-like, a boon for Kallias with no holy water left.
A body-recovery potion equaled an extra life.
"No dice, huh."
Even infusing divine power changed little.
"Shouldn't it come with instructions?"
Unavoidable.
He transferred the precious troll blood and stored the chalice.
Refining later; he'd need related books or texts.
"So much to do."
Refine troll blood.
Stabilize the new Triple Peak Myriad Flower Bone Marrow.
Reexamine the formed sacred meridians. Northern matters, sword matters. And revise future plans.
"Before the Empire attacks again, solidify the North and excise Carpe Kingdom's rotten roots."
Tap, tap.
Kallias's fingers drumming the table betrayed his concerns.
But they soon stopped, a sly smile curving his lips.
"Shall I make use of them?"
* * *
In the castle office.
"Kallias has awakened."
"Yes, so it seems."
"Good. Haha."
The North's lord, who laughed more since the war's end.
Elbetton von Jerban.
His mortal wound had long healed. Healthier than before, he'd been buried in paperwork for postwar cleanup right after.
Yet Elbetton always wore a half-smile, thanks to his son—the war hero Kallias.
"What will you do?"
"About Kallias?"
"Yes. Killaban vanished, didn't he?"
Postwar, Killaban disappeared. Unseen even during, likely hidden early.
"Yes, with him gone, Kallias should naturally receive what's his."
"No one contributed more to this war than the young master. Fitting rewards are only right."
"Yes, yes. Time to open the treasury after ages. He'll love it, right?"
Jerban House's treasury.
Artifact and swords used by past house lords on display—Kallias would surely be pleased.
"Of course. A knight of his caliber will covet the treasures there."
"Yes. Indeed. Can't give him the house heirloom Kallis yet, but others are fine. His sword broke anyway. That much won't leave him slighted."
Tsk.
Elbetton grimaced even as he spoke. Should've never exiled him.
Regret gnawed for overlooking his son's talent, but too late now.
Even an outcast son who staked his life for the North deserved recompense for past neglect.
"Succession matters..."
"That too will follow natural order."
Kallias's war feats made him fit to entrust the North.
No other choices left.
After adopting the bastard and this mess, no desire to anyway.
His perennial sore spot Kallias had risen gloriously; as father, how could he not yield all?
He'd hand it over, willing or not.
"What of the children then?"
"Hmm..."
Killaban's offspring.
His son Riban and daughter Rini, presumably.
With Killaban vanished, rumors branded them traitor's spawn spreading through the castle.
"They've no sin, but leaving them be is tricky."
"I've a plan for that. No worries."
Entrust to Kallias.
The future North and Jerban steward needed such decision-making authority.
Killaban's children weren't unrelated to Kallias anyway.
"Understood."
"More importantly."
"Yes."
"What to do with them."
"Them...?"
If Kallias was the war hero who beheaded the enemy commander,
They too were heroes, perfectly mopping up enemy remnants at the clutch moment.
Without their sudden reinforcements, many Northern lives would have fallen to the foes' last gasp.
"But we can't meet their demands."
"Indeed."
The Heretic Inquisition wanted one thing.
Kallias's person.
"My word."
What had he done to draw such ire.
Before, they'd dismiss wastrel antics, but now? No.
He was the North's savior hero.
Heroes deserved hero's treatment.
"I won't hand my son to those lunatics."
Elbetton had zero intention of surrendering Kallias to them.