Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Receiving Rewards with My Two Dearest Slaves
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Eun-ji buried half her face in my chest and cried for a long time, while Ha-rin repeatedly stroked her chest as if she'd just gone through a ten-year ordeal.
As for Kang Hwa-yeong... she was frowning and wiping her tongue. She had the expression of someone who'd been forced to eat something disgusting. Ha-rin said Hwa-yeong had extracted the venom from my body.
‘She doesn't have any skills... How did she even notice the venom, and how did she manage to extract it?’
The only thing I could think of was her class, Cannibal Vampire.
‘Do classes that transform into other races naturally awaken their racial traits? Hmph. Either way, she's proven herself to be unexpectedly useful. I can't bring myself to discard her.’
Not to mention she showed a slight resistance to my Slave Mark skill. I'm looking forward to her future development.
As I stared at Kang Hwa-yeong, Eun-ji, who had turned my chest into a mess of tears, looked up at me with resentment.
“Oppa... Please. Don't do things by yourself anymore. It's not just once or twice. What are you going to do if you keep trying to die on us all of a sudden? How are we supposed to live on our own? If you die, who am I supposed to trust now...”
“I'm sorry. I'm sorry.”
Eun-ji, whining while crying, was strangely cute.
She's so naturally cute and pretty that even her complaining is tolerable.
Plus, what she's saying isn't exactly wrong; it's completely right. So I had no answer other than an apology.
Frankly, this happened because of my own greed. I went crazy over 500 magic power.
If an ugly slave had said something like that, I would've given them three thousand head-butts right away.
“Yeah. I'm sorry.”
I just silently listened to Eun-ji's worried complaints and stroked her hair.
“Master. Haaah. It's okay.”
Ha-rin held back her words. She said she was satisfied just that I had returned alive, and she grabbed my hand, kneading it for a long time.
As if she would never let go again, the grip of her two hands holding me grew stronger. It kind of hurts...
“Uh, Ha-rin. Can you let go now? It's starting to hurt...”
“Endure it. My heart hurt even more than this. Besides, this has a shiatsu effect.”
“Uh... Alright. Thanks.”
I had nothing to say.
The truth is, the reason I collapsed so helplessly was because Indicron had schemed it, anticipating that I would end up eating the twisted core. But regardless, I'm the one who foolishly ate the core, so I'm the cause of all this.
“Haha... Don't worry too much, everyone...”
Ignoring my words, Eun-ji and Ha-rin clung to me for a long time.
Of course, their clinginess wasn't so bad, so I just lay down with them on either side of me.
Feeling their warm heat, I truly realized that I had returned from that insane abyss.
‘More importantly, what Indicron said is really bothering me...’
Indicron's revelation that the Side of Order had sent a Champion added a dizzying tension to my mind, which had been loosening with my 745 magic power stat.
‘A Champion is definitely a player like me. Of course, they'd have classes and levels, and he said he didn't know how many would come...’
Objectively speaking, a so-called Champion of the gods wouldn't be a normal class like a Warrior or Archer.
At the very least, they'd be a rare class like a Mage or higher, or a hidden class like me. Hidden class players coming to kill me.
That alone is irritating and infuriating.
Why do they have to mess with someone who's just minding their own business? Hatred for those bastards called the Side of Order started to build up inside me.
‘I wonder how many great opportunities those bastards who are coming to kill me have devoured...’
I went from eating the Black Death's Core and the Twisted Core in a single day, raising my magic power to 745.
It's not like only I'm allowed to have such explosive growth, so the enemies might have also gotten some great opportunity and become strong enough to kill me.
‘Indicron told me to be prepared for the enemies. That must mean that in my current state, I could be wiped out by them. It means I can't guarantee an unconditional victory.’
If the enemies weren't that dangerous, he wouldn't have used such a crude method to drag me down to the abyss and warn me personally. The enemies are so dangerous that he had to fake my death to call me out.
‘The Peddler they discovered might be selling incredible items, or they might have received a reward for achieving an unknown achievement that has tremendous power. There's nothing I can know, so it's frustrating.’
Just as the saying goes, I can't predict or expect how they'll come for me or how they'll try to mess with me.
I just have to grow my strength and create variables to turn the tables on them, just as Indicron told me to be prepared for any situation.
At least it's a small comfort that I still have nine achievement rewards to receive. Since they might also come with variables I don't know about, I'm in a situation where I need to create as many variables as possible to catch them off guard.
‘Still, it's a blessing in disguise that the Side of Order isn't descending personally to kill me.’
There was a term called 'Causality Ratio' in the story Indicron told me.
That must be a mechanism to prevent the gods from intervening directly, a rule of the game.
A minimum safety device to prevent the game board from being shattered by the gods' excessive intervention or chaos.
Through this, I learned that there is the Side of Order, the Side of Chaos, and one more neutral entity or group in between.
‘The game system window floating before my eyes. Thanks to this, I can tell there's a game operator or operators. And they must be neutral.’
I don't know if they're called game operators or a game master, but the ones who set and adjust skills, achievement rewards, and status windows won't be on the side of Order or Chaos. Maybe they're the ones who created the Causality Ratio mechanism?
‘They play not only with players but even with the gods. Those bastards are the most dangerous of all.’
It sends shivers down my spine to think that there are beings who can impose rules on the gods, squeezed between the Side of Chaos and the Side of Order. By that logic, I'm just one of the game pieces on the board they're playing with.
‘Hoo... That's dizzying. Let's clear my head for a bit. I'm not in a situation to worry about those bastards right now.’
My thoughts strayed a little. For now, I need to finish judging the bastards who are coming to mess with me and the Side of Order bastards who hate me for no reason.
‘The ones coming to kill me are the Champions of the Side of Order... Right. He definitely said 'the Side of Order'. That means the Side of Order is well-unified... Those damned Side of Chaos bastards, they're not just a bunch of individualists, are they?’
Indicron clearly said the Champion of 'the Side of Order' would attack me.
That means it's not just one but a coalition. This shows that the Side of Order actively cooperates with each other.
‘In contrast... Do the Side of Chaos not care much for each other? Well, there's one who doesn't even care about his followers.’
You can tell just by looking at Kashnax.
That damned Chaos God seemed to have little interest in me, except when it was time for a Human Sacrifice.
‘No, I shouldn't jump to conclusions. When I asked Kashnax if I could eat the core, he told me to do as I please, but he clearly also conveyed the will for me to eat it. Maybe he knew from the start that Indicron would invite me to the abyss. By that logic, the Chaos Gods aren't necessarily stubborn lone wolves who only act alone. And since he ultimately led me to a beneficial outcome, you can't say he's completely indifferent either.’
It's hard to conclude that the Chaos Gods only play solo.
‘Either way, those damned Side of Order bastards seem better unified and more skilled at multiplayer than the shitty Chaos Gods. This is troublesome.’
From this, I could learn one more fact.
‘And the Side of Order can observe me.’
Indicron felt the Causality Ratio being shaken and noticed the Side of Order's scheme. But he knew nothing about the bastards coming to kill me.
That means Indicron only caught a glimpse of the near future, but couldn't look into the enemies' detailed information.
‘In contrast, the Champions of the Side of Order are already moving to kill me. This means the Side of Order has already detected and figured out my existence as a Cultist.’
This is extremely dangerous. I don't know my enemy, but the enemy knows me, at least roughly, and is coming to kill me.
‘If the Causality Ratio is working properly, this kind of absurdity, openly observing the opponent's Champion, wouldn't be tolerated. If they intended to tolerate it, Indicron should have been able to observe the enemies' forces as well.’
Therefore, I deduced that the Side of Order couldn't see my every move.
Of course, this is just an assumption.
I suspect the Side of Order also had to endure a considerable Causality Ratio backlash to find me. That would make the balance right. If the game master is neutral, they'd care about balance, wouldn't they?
And if the fight was only advantageous to the Side of Order, Indicron wouldn't have bothered to call me and give me a hint about the future. He didn't give up on me because it's a fight worth having. This again confirms that the game master is a neutral being.
‘First, the Side of Order is all on the same side and in cahoots... They even have the power and resolve to pinpoint my existence with some method and send an assassin. Damn it. It's getting even more difficult to survive.’
The future looks bleak on many fronts.
It's already a struggle to deal with the ever-growing zombies, and now some damned defilers are targeting me too.
Is the whole world trying to bully me?
I get that feeling.
‘Well, maybe it was already destined the moment I sided with the Chaos God.’
A dark, bleak future where I can't see an inch ahead.
Well, I'm a Cultist, a worshipper of a Chaos God, so it should be at least this much.
‘Of course, I didn't choose to worship the Chaos God of my own free will. But I've gained a lot thanks to it, so I'll have to endure the backlash.’
I was just given the class Cultist. I didn't actively try to worship a Chaos God.
I can honestly say I'm a victim too.
Of course, it's hard to just call myself a victim when all the skills I got as a Cultist are ridiculously overpowered.
Right, I was just a bit unlucky... but this is weirdly good?
As expected, Luck 666.
It's shitty but also good. It's all over the place.
“Are you two a little calmed down now?”
“Yes, Oppa. I'm okay now.”
“Me too.”
Eun-ji and Ha-rin were both now playing with my chest. They've just barely calmed down, so if I tell them that the defilers who want to kill me will be here soon, the mood will get serious again, so I'll hold my tongue for now.
I can just receive the remaining achievement rewards and tell them later. There should be that much time left.
Indicron said he'd be here soon, but he didn't say he'd come right away.
The fact that he told me to be prepared means there's enough time to prepare. At least, they probably won't come and cause a ruckus today.
I'm not letting my guard down. It's not that I'm letting my guard down, but I'm just making a reasonable inference by analyzing Indicron's words.
“Shall we pick out the achievement rewards together? Let's choose the rewards and then you two can pick your skills.”
“Okay!” “Yes, Master.”
I turned my head, and Hwa-yeong had fallen asleep again, probably from exhaustion.
She's a bit crazy, so I'll just let her sleep.
“Alright, then...”
I have nine achievements left.
In order: 'A Gamble with My Life', 'Mana User', 'Encounter with the Unknown', 'The Unforgivable', 'Kashnax's Follower', 'Revenge Faith', 'Indicron's Follower', 'Overflowing Mana', and 'Life as Collateral'.
“Let's check the 'A Gamble with My Life' reward first.”
“Yes!” “Okay.”
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Select a reward.] [1. Gambler's Dice] [2. Gambler's Joker Card] [3. Gambler's Gold Coin] Just from the names, it's not easy to get a grasp on what these items do.
[Gambler's Dice: Once, you can roll the dice and replace a merchant NPC's sale items equal to the number rolled. If there are no or few items to replace, it refills the items after the replacement, equal to the number rolled.]
‘This is an item I can use on the Peddler. Since it says merchant NPC, it seems other merchants besides the Peddler will appear in future updates.’
According to the reward description, if a 6 comes up, it means I can change all the items on the stall. I can replace items I don't like.
‘If I buy 5 items from the stall and a 6 comes up, one remaining item is replaced, and 5 new items are refilled as a reward.’
The Peddler leaves without hesitation if the items on the stall sell out, so I have to leave at least one item on the stall.
With that state, if I roll the dice and get anything higher than 1, the one remaining item on the stall is replaced, and new items are refilled for the remaining number of times. This is a very good reward.
Of course, I don't like that it's a one-time use.
[Gambler's Joker Card: If you hand over the Joker Card to a merchant NPC, you can obtain a 'Gambler' class card. If an existing player uses the Gambler card, their level is reset and their job is changed to Gambler.]
‘My god.’
I don't know what a Gambler class does, but since it's obtainable this way, it seems like it's not an ordinary type of job.
‘If I get this and find the Peddler, I could change either Gu Jae-hwan or Kim Do-kyung to a Gambler.’
Changing an existing Awakened to a Gambler would reset their level, so that's a waste. If I'm going to have someone acquire it, I'll have to choose one of the two Non-Awakened.
[Gambler's Gold Coin: In exchange for the gold coin, you can purchase one of the items sold by a merchant NPC.]
‘Hmm... This is like an American Express Black Card reward.’
It's a reward that allows you to definitely buy an item that comes out with astronomical value someday.
‘Since I don't know how amazing the item will be, this is also a tempting reward.’
I can hold onto it and use it to buy an item that would be difficult to purchase with the coins I have.
‘Which one should I choose among the three?’
While I was reading the reward descriptions, Eun-ji and Ha-rin were playfully pinching my nipples. I explained the rewards to them and asked for their opinions on which to choose.
“Which of the three do you think is best to choose?”
“Hmm. I'd go with the Joker Card.”
“Yeah? Why?”
“Because the dice and the coin are one-time use, but a class is permanent as long as you don't die.”
“Eun-ji's words make sense. What about you, Ha-rin?”
“Hmm... I'd go with the coin.”
“Tell me the reason too.”
“It's just... I have a feeling that if I get the Gold Coin now, it'll definitely come in handy later. There's no other particular reason... It's my intuition.”
Ha-rin's intuition. It's convincing because it's Ha-rin, who has surprisingly good intuition.
“Hmph...”
“Oppa. Seeing Ha-rin say that makes me think the Gold Coin is a better choice.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes. Ha-rin has good intuition, you know.”
When I was choosing a skill and got sucked into the abyss and couldn't breathe, she noticed right away. She seems to feel a lot of things on her own. Is it a Barbarian's instinct? Maybe it's also a racial trait of the Barbarian, like Kang Hwa-yeong's Vampire class.
“A Gold Coin. Alright. Let's go with that.”
Soon, a single gold coin with the face of a smiling Shiba Inu engraved on it fell before my eyes.
What is this? A sign that Dogecoin is going to skyrocket?
“Wow. The dog is so cute.”
“Unnie, let me see too.”
“Yeah, Ha-rin, here.”
“Oh... It's really cute.”
Maybe because it's a gold coin with a cute dog engraved on it, both of them can't take their eyes off it. They like it so much, but there's only one coin, so it's awkward to give it to one of them.
As someone who loves both, if I only give it to one, I'll feel bad for the other.
“Anyway, one is chosen. Next is the 'Mana User' achievement reward...”
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Class detected...] [Confirmed as Cultist.] [Rewards for the Mage-type class will be designated.] [Select a reward.] [1. Mage's Oak Wood Staff] [2. Witch's Raven Feather Hat] [3. Shaman's Floating Stone Necklace] They treat Cultist as a Mage-type class too. Exclusive items for the Mage-type class have appeared.
That means if you're not a Mage-type but a Warrior-type class, you can choose a different reward once your mana exceeds 100.
‘Mana 100... If everyone grows well without dying, it's a number they can reach someday.’
Stats increase by a random 1 to 5 every time a level goes up, so if the level rises well, the magic power stat will eventually break through 100. As long as I can survive without dying until then.
[Mage's Oak Wood Staff: Magic used with an oak wood staff doubles in power.]
This is an item that turns a normal Fireball into an enhanced Fireball.
‘Can I use it? No, I don't have any magic skills that use a staff in the first place. Most of my skills involve hand gestures. It doesn't suit me. This is perfect for Hwang Su-min.’
[Witch's Raven Feather Hat: Shortens or eliminates the incantation of skills that require an incantation.]
This means it's possible to skip incantations or have no incantation at all.
‘I could use this too.’
If I wear this hat, I can spew out tentacles without even having to shout 'Ruyue'.
‘Hmm... But wearing a witch's hat around is a bit much.’
My incantations aren't that long to begin with, so I'll pass for now.
[Shaman's Floating Stone Necklace: Consumes magic power to float in midair.]
It literally means you can float in the air and perform aerial bombardment.
This seems like an item for Hwang Su-min, the quintessential Mage.
Imagining Hwang Su-min floating in the air with this, firing magic missiles in all directions, is a pretty thrilling reward.
‘Hmm. For now, these three are items that are better to give to Hwang Su-min, the Mage, rather than for me to use. It would be perfect to give her another reward later when she breaks through 100 magic power to use as a set.’
So, which one is most needed by Hwang Su-min right now among the three? I asked the two of them.
“Hmm... Su-min is short on magic power.”
“That's right.”
“As I thought. I need to do something about her magic power first.”
With that in mind, the Floating Stone Necklace is a shame, but it's out.
You can't tell a kid who doesn't even have enough mana to fire Fireballs to spend mana to float in the air.
“Then there are two left...”
“Oppa. I recommend the staff. Because even if she can't fire many shots, it's better to increase the power, right?”
“I agree.”
“Then let's go with the Oak Wood Staff.”
A typical wooden staff with a rounded end, like the ones Mages carry in games, soon fell on top of me.
“Guhk..!”
“O, Oppa!”
“Th, the position...”
I grabbed my lower body, which had been hit by the falling end of the staff. It hurts quite a bit.
“Hoo... I'll give this to Hwang Su-min when I see her later.”
“Yes... Our Oppa... keeps getting hurt somewhere...”
“Master. Be careful.”
“Yeah... Thanks for worrying...”
I tapped my waist and moved the staff to the side.
“N, next...!”
Next is the achievement reward for 'Encounter with the Unknown', which was achieved when I first encountered a Chaos God.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Select a reward.] [1. Roy's Statue] [2. Gillian's Lantern] [3. Steven's Pillar] The familiar-sounding names must be my imagination.
[Roy's Statue: A statue made by Roy, a worshipper of the Unknown. If destroyed, you can encounter a random Chaos God.]
‘This is... for now... I'll hold off on this.’
I've already realized this clearly through my encounters with Kashnax and Indicron.
It's a bit dangerous to face a Chaos God head-on.
At least Kashnax was indifferent to me, so there were no problems, and Indicron was relatively friendly because he wanted to make me his Champion. But there's no guarantee other Chaos Gods would react the same way. Of course, with the favor of the Ten Thousand Demons, most would probably like me, but if they like me too much and become obsessed, that would be a pain in its own way. An inhuman obsession from a Chaos God. Scary.
‘N, next...’
[Gillian's Lantern: A lantern made by Gillian, a search party for the Unknown. You can avoid losing your existence in a Chaos God's domain.]
‘Oh-ho...’
In the abyss, I felt the sensation of losing my existence. This must be an item that can prevent such an anomaly in advance.
‘For now, this is good. Next.’
[Steven's Pillar: A rod discovered by Steven, an explorer of the Unknown. You can offer it to a Chaos God to gain their favor.]
“This is it.”
A Chaos God's favor.
I'm scared to meet a new Chaos God right away, and I don't plan on going to a Chaos God's domain.
Let's get the pillar and win over Kashnax, who's indifferent to me. Wouldn't he be a little kinder then?
Indicron already seems to have some favor towards me!
“I'll choose the pillar!”
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