Chapter 120
Chapter 120
Translation: godtl
Si-mun returned home.
What greeted him was:
[You have taken 1st place in the Platinum-rank Debut Match.]
[Due to your overwhelming performance and unprecedented achievements, your clear rewards have been increased.]
[The trait 'Philosopher's Stone' you possess has distributed a portion of experience.]
[Your level has increased by 10.]
[The Philosopher's Stone's level has increased by 8.]
[You have obtained a 'Special Random Box' as a clear reward.]
These were the rewards from the Platinum Debut Match.
Before checking his rewards, Si-mun—
"Whee!"
—watched Si-yeon, who had already slipped out of his arms and was now running around the room.
"Si-yeon, Daddy has some things to wrap up, so play carefully, okay?"
"Okey! I go play with golems in lab!"
"Alright. Just don't run around in there."
"Okey!"
Si-yeon nodded vigorously.
After seeing Si-yeon off, Si-mun turned his attention back to the flood of messages still rising before him.
'Well, the experience points are certainly generous.'
Even after splitting with the Philosopher's Stone, 18 level-ups.
Considering how level-up requirements grow exponentially with rank and level—
This was truly a substantial amount of experience.
Next, Si-mun opened his inventory.
"Now, what will the rewards be this time?"
The familiar box materialized in his hand.
It was the [Special Random Box], the same reward he'd received from the Gold-rank Debut Match.
"Usually, it gives me things I need..."
Si-mun fell into brief thought.
What did he need right now?
'Another original copy of the Lemegeton? Or maybe Achievement Points?'
Unfortunately—
Both were somewhat unrealistic expectations from a random box.
Sure, it was called a "Special" Random Box, but—
Wasn't it essentially the Galaxy Arena's way of assessing what a player needed and providing accordingly?
An original copy of the Lemegeton, a Mythic-grade artifact, was far too valuable for a Debut Match reward.
Conversely, Achievement Points were far too cheap for a Special Random Box to distribute.
Well, if they dumped tens of thousands at once, that might be different—but that wasn't happening.
'What would the Galaxy Arena consider necessary for me at this point?'
With a glimmer of anticipation in his eyes, Si-mun opened the Special Random Box.
[You have opened the Special Random Box.]
[Searching for appropriate items to distribute......]
Along with the familiar system window—
Ding-ding-ding-ding!
—came the equally familiar sound effect.
Si-mun stared into the box's dark interior, which seemed as bottomless as a pocket dimension.
'Please tell me I don't have to make another special request this time...'
As the silence stretched on, Si-mun instinctively felt a sense of foreboding.
[No appropriate items could be found for player Kim Si-mun at this time.]
[Expanding search parameters...]
Somehow, his ominous premonitions never missed.
"Ha... Again?"
A dry laugh escaped Si-mun.
Yet he couldn't entirely blame the Galaxy Arena.
'Honestly, even I can't think of anything I truly need right now.'
And why just now?
Truth was, he'd already synthesized most of what he needed.
And for the rest, he'd even spent Achievement Points to create them himself.
Naturally, the Galaxy Arena would be at a loss for what to give him.
'Not that they'd hand over an original Lemegeton. At this rate, they might just give me Achievement Points after all.'
It felt like they were saying,"Here's some money, go buy whatever you want."
Not that it was a bad deal.
Since it was a random box, it wouldn't stop at a measly 10,000 or 20,000 points.
Between Black Goat's quest, the Four Stars of Heavenly Demon Arts, and the World Tree Seed Fragment's growth buff—
He could put them to plenty of good use.
Still.
"Just feels like a waste."
Special Random Boxes usually gave items that were otherwise unobtainable.
Not that a man who could synthesize Mythic-grade equipment would find anything lacking.
But even with his past-life memories, Si-mun didn't know every item in existence.
Take Cronus's Hourglass or Paracelsus's Flask, for example.
Just then—
Yaaawn! Slept well~
A familiar voice rang out.
"Philosopher's Stone!"
It was the Philosopher's Stone.
Clearly delighted by Si-mun's obvious joy, the stone responded with equal enthusiasm.
Woo-hooo! I'm heeere!
Its voice practically bubbled with excitement.
Normally, Si-mun would've brushed it off, but—
"Yeah, perfect timing. How're you feeling? All rested up?"
—this time, he welcomed it warmly.
Of couuurse!
Even though it probably knew exactly why Si-mun was being uncharacteristically receptive.
The little rascal pretended not to notice my reaction and just kept listing off its accomplishments.
Si-mun, who had been mechanically nodding along half-heartedly, suddenly widened his eyes.
Of course he would.
"What? The achievement point return rate increased? Additional options?"
The Philosopher's Stone's words were not something Si-mun could simply brush off.
-Of course. Don't you remember? I told you before—to intervene with Rebound, I needed to reach at least C-Grade.
"Now that you mention it...."
Si-mun's voice trailed off.
Back when he had used Astrapē and it vanished,
the Philosopher's Stone had minimized the Rebound and returned 50 points, equivalent to 10% of the total.
-You remember now, huh? That's right. It used to be 10%, but now it's 20%. So if you spend 500 points on Astrapē, you'll get 100 points back instead of 50.
"That's insane!"
A cry of astonishment burst from Si-mun's lips.
Naturally.
As his rank continued to rise, he was frequently transmuting Mythic-grade Equipment these days.
And now, from 50 points to 100?
The payback had doubled—how could he not be thrilled?
"I should check the options right away."
Si-mun immediately opened the Philosopher's Stone's status window.
[Philosopher's Stone]
Owner: Kim Si-mun
Level: 76
Grade: C
Traits: Obsidian Tablet, Dragon Body Transformation, World Tree
A mythical product of alchemy.
Capable of transmuting anything as long as Equivalent Exchange is satisfied.
Receives absolute Correction in all aspects related to alchemy.
Regenerates itself according to Equivalent Exchange.
Duration of transmuted objects is increased.
The status window of the Philosopher's Stone had changed drastically compared to its initial state.
Si-mun's gaze landed on the very last line—
'Duration of transmuted objects is increased.'
Then he asked,
"Philosopher's Stone, does this mean the duration of Astrapē and Laevateinn will also increase?"
-Yep, that's right.
The Philosopher's Stone answered cheerfully.
-You know how single-use Mythic-grade Equipment loses durability in real time, even if you don't actively use it?
"Yeah."
Astrapē and Laevateinn were prime examples.
Even if he didn't expend their power,
they would eventually vanish due to Rebound after a set period.
-This corrects that, making them last longer. And it applies to other transmuted objects too.
"Like golems?"
-Exactly. And for regular transmuted objects, they'll last even longer with less Transmutation Power.
In other words, the duration of ordinary transmuted objects would increase.
"Haah...."
A short sigh escaped him.
After pressing his fingers to his forehead for a moment,
"You little gem! You're the best! There's no one like you!"
Si-mun tightly hugged the Philosopher's Stone and ruffled it affectionately.
Of course, to an outside observer, it just looked like he was clutching his own chest
and rubbing the hollow between his collarbones... but still.
-Heehee! Waking up straight into Oppa's embrace~!
The Philosopher's Stone's blissful squeal had no effect on Si-mun whatsoever.
After doting on it for a while,
"Ah! Now's not the time for this."
Remembering the earlier situation, Si-mun quickly straightened up.
"Philosopher's Stone, while you were asleep, I fought in the Platinum Debut Match."
-I know. I saw everything.
"Huh? You saw it?"
-Mhm. I'm bound to you, Oppa. Even if I was in a dormant state, I could still sense everything you were doing.
"I see."
Si-mun nodded at the Philosopher's Stone's words.
Before he could say anything else,
-So I also know what you're about to ask. It's about the Special Random Box, right?
"Yeah."
The Philosopher's Stone had nailed it.
-Hmm... gimme a sec.
As if it had something to think about,
the Philosopher's Stone fell silent for a moment,
leaving only the sound of the Special Random Box's roulette spinning in the room.
Then—
-Oppa, you don't need anything urgently right now, do you?
The Philosopher's Stone emerged from its silence.
"Need anything?"
-Yeah. Since you're a regressor, you already know a lot of good items even if they aren't Mythic-grade, right?
"That's true."
Si-mun had survived until only two nations remained.
Of course, as someone who had holed up in a lab watching all sorts of broadcasts while working,
he knew plenty of valuable items.
"But right now, there's nothing I particularly need."
-Heheh! I was just asking to be polite. Then let's go for this again.
"This?"
-Yep. You know...
The Philosopher's Stone whispered something into Si-mun's ear.
"Oho. That exists too?"
Si-mun's eyes sparkled.
-Think of it as part of a series. The grade is kinda ambiguous, so it's perfect for the Special Random Box. They can't even use it themselves, so it's just collecting dust for them.
"I see. Got it."
There was already precedent for this once before.
Without hesitation, Kim Si-mun raised his head and declared:
"Galaxy Arena, let's not make this difficult. I'll simply request the reward from the Special Random Box here."
At his words—
[Pausing extended search momentarily.]
—the system halted its search as if it had been waiting.
With a faint smile playing on his lips, Si-mun continued:
"This time, I request an artifact from the vanished Constellation—Paracelsus."
He repeated the exact same demand he'd made during the Gold-rank random box reward.
And just like last time—
[Deliberating...]
—the Galaxy Arena immediately entered deliberations.
Perhaps because there was already precedent?
[Deliberation concluded.]
[Player Kim Si-mun's request has been accepted.]
The Galaxy Arena's deliberation didn't take nearly as long as before.
"I want Paracelsus' Cylinder among his artifacts."
Si-mun immediately specified his desired reward.
[As requested, the Special Random Box reward will be granted as Paracelsus' Cylinder.]
He checked the Galaxy Arena's message with evident satisfaction.
Rrrrrrrumble.
The vibrating box grew slightly heavier.
When he checked inside, the endless void-like darkness had disappeared, replaced by—
A forearm-sized cylinder.
An object that could almost be mistaken for a giant syringe.
"So this is it."
Si-mun examined its information window.
[Paracelsus' Cylinder]
Grade: (Old) Mythic
A creation of Paracelsus, the lost god of alchemy.
Can be used, but with its creator gone, the method remains unknown.
The exact same description as the [Paracelsus's Flask] he'd received before.
As he read the description, a small smile formed on Si-mun's lips.
'Even if it says the usage is unknown, that means nothing to me.'
An (Old) Mythic-grade item with unknown usage methods.
This wasn't merely an unidentified item—it meant even the Galaxy Arena truly didn't know how to use it.
That's why it could be given as a Special Random Box reward.
But.
"Philosopher's Stone, you know how to use this, right?"
~Of course I do, silly~!
Just like with the flask last time,
The Philosopher's Stone knew how to use Paracelsus' creations.
"Then let's examine this properly back in the lab."
~Good idea. The usage method is more complicated than you'd think—I'll need to perform separate appraisal work.~
Nodding at the Stone's response, Si-mun retrieved another item from his inventory.
Sssssss—
A concentration of Demonic Energy so pure it would make even demons revere it.
An object that appeared in the form of a book and key.
~Hehe, seeing it like this feels fresh again. Who would've thought that Baal would actually release the Lemegeton once more?~
The Philosopher's Stone murmured while examining it.
There seemed to be some history behind those words, sparking curiosity, but Si-mun didn't press further.
'No point asking—he'll just say it's "causality" or something and clam up again.'
Having experienced this several times before, he could already tell.
This was clearly one of those things the Stone couldn't talk about due to causality.
So instead—
"Let's see... If I do it like this..."
He should probably get to using the precious original copy of the Lemegeton.
Si-mun brought the [Ars Goetia] to his left eye and activated Odin's Eye.
Kkkkkkiiiiing!
"Ugh."
The uniquely intense tinnitus from Odin's Eye grew even stronger.
The Ars Goetia held near his left eye was sucked in like smoke into a ventilation duct—
—disappearing into Si-mun's eye.
[Ars Goetia reacts with the demon eye version of Lemegeton, initiating fusion.]
[Lemegeton's Imitation (40%) grade changes to Mythic.]
[Lemegeton's options have been altered.]
Si-mun immediately opened Lemegeton's information window.
[Lemegeton]
Grade - Mythic
Current Possession (1/5)
-Ars Goetia
A creation of the vanished Constellation Solomon.
Contains knowledge and Authority regarding demonology.
Divided into five parts; abilities increase based on completion rate.
Si-mun's gaze immediately went to the top section.
"Mythic-grade..."
Mythic-grade.
Not another imitation he'd painstakingly synthesized, but a genuine Mythic-grade item.
Sure, the Constellation Hermes had temporarily permitted the use of his winged hat Petasos once, but that was it.
Si-mun had never actually obtained a complete Mythic-grade Equipment before.
His eyes moved downward.
"As expected, I need to collect all five parts."
The "1/5" designation and the note about abilities increasing with completion.
Even though the specific abilities weren't clearly listed,
Si-mun's smile didn't fade.
The reason was simple.
[Lemegeton's growth has enhanced your demon eye.]
Along with this pleasant message appearing before his eyes—
Ssssssssssss.
Like some innate characteristic,
Primordial Demonic Energy swirled violently from his pitch-black left eye.
"Ahh...!"
Because the ability of the Lemegeton, which wasn't specified in the information window, was now vividly imprinted in Si-mun's mind.