Chapter 30
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Master of the Weapon (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Leaving our questions behind, we made our way out of the Jadeflame Plains.
We were now resting on a park bench near Uijeongbu.
"Hmm. The Imprinted Flames, was it? Seoyul, you should take them."
Ha Siyeon's words came out of the blue as I was staring blankly at the moon.
"Huh? But this is really good stuff."
I had told Ha Siyeon everything about the ancient artifact, Hwaryeong's Whisper, and the Imprinted Flames.
"It's fine. My ice magic is incompatible with it, so I can't use it anyway. And it's not like I need the money."
"Wow."
I stared at Ha Siyeon, dumbfounded. Her smile, bathed in the soft moonlight, was like a scene from a painting.
"Oh, and take the ancient artifact, too. Same reason~"
With that, Ha Siyeon looked up at the moon and started humming.
My goodness.
Does she really not have a greedy bone in her body?
"Are you an angel?"
"Pfft. What are you saying? You're the angel!"
No, seriously.
To think someone with such an angelic heart still exists in this bleak world.
I already knew what Ha Siyeon was like, but this was still surprising.
"Oh, but the Imprinted Flames. Can you use them while you're sealed?"
"Probably."
The [Imprinted Flames] was a special, integrated piece of equipment with no designated rank.
It was also a bound item that, once equipped, could not be removed until the owner's death.
Its effect was very simple.
It changed the user's magic attribute to 'Fire ()'.
In a world where elemental magic itself was rare, it was one of the few special items that could retroactively change a person's magic attribute.
It didn't even have any equipping requirements.
Its performance was, needless to say, incredible.
It was the very item that had elevated Nesher, a D-Rank superhuman, to the position of a top-tier villain.
In the latter half of the story, after Nesher was killed, a fight had even broken out over who would get the Imprinted Flames.
"But Seoyul, you said you don't have any magic right now. Is there any point in equipping it?"
"I know. That's the problem."
Just as Ha Siyeon said, I had no magic at all.
And the Imprinted Flames was an item that changed the nature of magic.
Would the Imprinted Flames even work properly on me, someone with no magic?
"Hmm."
"Just try equipping it. Even if you can't use it right away, you'll be able to once you break the seal, right?"
Of course, I didn't actually have a seal.
But she wasn't wrong.
Even if I couldn't use it right now, I would be able to once I gained magic later on.
"Right. I guess I'll know once I try it on."
I opened the carrier case.
Inside lay Hwaryeong's Whisper and the Imprinted Flames, neatly arranged.
I reached my right hand toward the Imprinted Flames.
*Fwoosh-!*
The next moment, the Imprinted Flames traveled up my right arm and began moving toward my heart.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. It just feels warm."
I thought it might be a little hot, but it just felt cozy, like soaking in a hot spring.
The shrinking Imprinted Flames soon disappeared completely.
It had moved into my heart.
"How is it?"
"I don't know."
I couldn't tell the difference.
It felt exactly the same as usual.
With no magic, I had no way of knowing if anything had changed.
"Hmm. I guess it doesn't work properly without magic?"
"Seems like it."
It was a shame, but there was nothing to be done.
What I don't have, I don't have.
And if I don't have it, I just have to get it.
"You know, I was thinking. Can't you just loosen the seal a little?"
"I'd like to, but the seal isn't that flimsy."
"Oh, I see."
Anyway, how long would I have to keep up this lie about a seal? I was starting to feel less and less guilty about it.
How should I put it?
Lying was starting to feel as natural as breathing.
For example, lies like this came out effortlessly.
"But I'm already looking for a way to improve the seal. A way to keep my angelic powers hidden while recovering some of my stats."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah. I can't stay an F-Rank forever."
"Aha."
This way, it wouldn't be out of character if I suddenly became stronger.
It was a perfect lie.
"Anyway, thank you for letting me have it. This fire-attribute magic will be a great help later on."
"Hey, I should be thanking you. Thanks to you, I gained two levels. I even got a trait called Sanctuary of Ice."
Ha Siyeon gave an innocent smile.
It was a bright smile that seemed to wash away the darkness in one's heart.
It felt healing.
"Ah, there's the taxi."
Just then, a taxi appeared at the park entrance in the distance.
"Ugh. I wonder if I can last until we get back."
Ha Siyeon stood up, her face crestfallen.
"Why? Are you that hungry? Should we grab a bite?"
Ha Siyeon shook her head.
"No. I want to lift some barbells."
"Excuse me?"
"I have to do my upper body workout today, the one I missed yesterday."
""
I felt like the rose-colored glasses I'd been wearing just moments ago had been instantly shattered.
Workout addicts are scary.
"Actually, since you pushed yourself today, I was going to tell you to rest from working out."
Ha Siyeon, who had been walking toward the taxi, stopped in her tracks and turned her head with a creak, like some kind of ghost.
"Sorry, I must've misheard you?"
"I was just saying it might be better to rest toda"
*Tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-!*
Before I could finish, she rushed over, grabbed my shoulders, and whimpered.
"Please. I'll control myself. Just not a two-day ban on working out"
"Uh? Oh, well."
She looked so pathetic that I couldn't bring myself to say no.
*Sigh*. It's not like anything is happening tomorrow. It should be fine.
"Alright. We'll agree on taking it easy toda"
"God, all the spirits of heaven and earth, and Kang Seoyul! Thank you!"
Ha Siyeon threw her arms around me.
Was she really that happy?
She jumped up and down, shouting.
The problem was, she was doing it while hugging me tightly.
"Gahk, ugh! Hey! Can't... breathe! It hurts...!"
"Aaaah. Sorry, I didn't realize."
My shrill scream finally brought Ha Siyeon to her senses. She pulled away and said with a flustered look.
"I keep forgetting your strength is less than my nephew's. Hehe."
"*Cough*."
Critical hit!
A massive amount of damage was dealt to my heart.
Her words pierced my heart. Worse than her nephew!
"Whatever. Let's just get in the taxi."
"Ah, okay."
We headed for the taxi.
"*Hum-hm-hmm~*"
Walking ahead, Ha Siyeon was in such a good mood about being able to work out that she was even humming a song.
"Bench press~ The bench press I couldn't do yesterday~"
...Let's just pretend I didn't hear those lyrics.
I followed behind her, lost in thought.
This ruin exploration had a few variables, but I'd gained a lot.
I'd managed to get the Imprinted Flames, after all.
However, questions still remained.
Why were there two Lava Lizards?
And why were the Imprinted Flames in that ruin?
I'd been pondering these questions for a while, trying to solve the mystery.
And I'd finally come to a conclusion.
The contents of the novel [S-Class Status Window], which I'd read over and over because of Shin.
The answer to this puzzle lay in the scenes where Nesher appeared.
It was a scene where he was talking to another executive.
This? I beat the crap out of some lizard bastards to get it. It was dangerous. I managed to take care of one, but I couldn't handle the other.
Lizard bastards.
That's definitely what he said.
How did I survive? What a stupid question. Obviously, I sacrificed my asshole comrades and ran. Just grabbed the Imprinted Flames and got out! Kuhahaha!
The lines weren't exact, but that was the gist of it.
Those two lines of dialogue explained everything about this incident.
The reason there were two Lava Lizards.
And even the reason the Imprinted Flames were here.
Nesher must have come here with his comrades to conquer the 'Sanctuary of Flame'.
They barely managed to kill one,
but ultimately, their attempt must have failed.
They wouldn't have had a superhuman like Ha Siyeon, who was basically a cheat code.
And Nesher betrayed his comrades, used them as bait, stole the Imprinted Flames from this place, and fled.
Chronologically, this would have happened about a year from now.
This was the truth.
Fortunately, the novel's setting hadn't changed.
This was just another butterfly effect caused by my changes.
This incident brought about two major changes.
First.
The villain named Nesher had now completely vanished from the novel's plot.
His power couldn't exist without the Imprinted Flames.
And second.
I had obtained that powerful force for myself.
A power I couldn't use right now due to my lack of magic, but one I could wield anytime once I acquired it.
What kind of variable would this incident become in the future?
Honestly, I had no idea.
From the beginning, I had been continuously creating variables with my own hands.
It was all to gain the maximum advantage before the future I knew became meaningless due to the inevitable changes.
More importantly, it was the only means I had right now.
And as a result, the future was changing rapidly.
Probably much faster than I had anticipated.
It couldn't be helped.
It was a simple truth that choosing one thing meant giving up another.
Still, I believed that the things I'd done so far wouldn't have changed the future for the worse.
Take this incident, for example.
I, the protagonist, had become stronger, and a powerful villain had been eliminated.
Both were positive developments.
Therefore, the future must have changed in a positive direction as well.
I was sure of it.
"Seoyul. Give me the carrier. I'll put it in the trunk."
Ha Siyeon's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. It seemed we had arrived at the taxi.
"Ah, okay."
We took the taxi back to the dormitory.
* * *
The next morning.
As always, I woke up at 5:30 AM.
The beastkin blood flowing through my veins was screaming, 'Let's go train!'
It was a sensation I was now used to.
I immediately got out of bed, quickly washed up, and headed to the training hall.
Come to think of it, I'd gone to the ruin to get Hwaryeong's Whisper, but the artifact itself was still stashed away in the carrier case.
I'd been so preoccupied with the Imprinted Flames that I'd spent all night wondering how to obtain magic.
The immediate question should have been whether to use Hwaryeong's Whisper now or not.
I had completely forgotten about it.
"Hmm."
Well, I can think about it now.
What should I do?
The reason I obtained Hwaryeong's Whisper in the first place was to gain a racial trait to defeat Choi Jihoon in the upcoming ranking match.
I didn't know what kind of trait I would get, but if I didn't do something, I'd have no way of piercing Choi Jihoon's magic armor.
Considering my original goal, it would be better to use it right away.
But it felt like a waste to just use a one-time ancient artifact so recklessly.
After all, Hwaryeong's Whisper was a high-rank item, [Ancient Artifact / A-Rank].
For the one minute I held Hwaryeong's Whisper, I would probably gain power incomparable to anything I'd had before.
No matter how I thought about it, it was too valuable to just use up.
This was something I'd been contemplating ever since I teamed up with Ha Siyeon and decided to conquer the 'Sanctuary of Flame'.
I still hadn't been able to make up my mind.
That's how appealing both options were.
I'd probably continue to have these kinds of dilemmas.
Dilemmas like, *Should I use it now? Or save it for later?*
It's a dilemma.
How great would it be if I could just get my hands on another ancient artifact right about now.
Ah. Back at the department store, when I accidentally grabbed the Vampire Lord's Fang, I should have held on tight for a full minute.
No, that's not right. If I had, the CCTV footage would have attracted unnecessary attention.
The media might have run articles like, "The Second Coming of the Vampire After 10,000 Years!"
If I denied it, I would attract the attention of 'that group'.
That's why I couldn't acquire ancient artifacts conspicuously.
"*Sigh*."
Anyway, it was a dilemma in many ways.
Lost in thought as I walked, I arrived at the training hall before I knew it.
"I don't know."
I'll just train for now.
A new idea might come to me after I work up a good sweat.
I cleared my mind and entered the training hall.
"Still early as ever."
As soon as I entered, Instructor Pi Jinho greeted me.
"Good morning."
"Yes. Did you rest well over the weekend?"
"Yes, I rested well."
*No, I didn't rest at all.*
*I pushed myself to the limit in that ruin.*
"Hmm. Looks like you were hard at training over the weekend, too. Your muscles are quite fatigued."
But there was no fooling Pi Jinho, who possessed the 'Eye for the Arcane'.
"And your back muscles, more than anything what's this?"
Suddenly, Pi Jinho's eyes widened.
He looked as if he'd received a great shock.
"Magic?"
"What?"
Pi Jinho approached me with an excited expression. He gripped both my shoulders and stared at me intently.
"This movement, starting from the heart. Yes! It's magic! And it's different from ordinary magic This is fire-attribute magic!"
Pi Jinho's face was filled with ecstasy. I, on the other hand, couldn't hide my bewilderment.
I never imagined his eyes could even perceive the Imprinted Flames!
"Incredible. Truly incredible!"
*Yes, the Imprinted Flames are pretty incredible.*
"*Sigh*."
I sighed in resignation.
I had no choice but to tell the truth. Pi Jinho wasn't the type to be blinded by greed and try to steal my Imprinted Flames.
"Actually, over the weekend"
"To think the seed has already begun to bloom! At the age of twenty!"
"What?"
I tilted my head.
What was that about blooming?
"Amazing! Truly amazing! Ahahaha!"
Uh...
What is this situation now?