Opportunity (4)
Rank A — See death, wield death.
Rank B — Ledger registration radius increases to 500m, targeting all within range.
Rank C — Teleport behind any registered target regardless of distance, granting the first strike "Unavoidable" property.
Rank D — Inflicts semi-permanent Weakness debuff on registered targets, plus a one-rank drop in all stats.
Rank E — Designate the cause of death for registered targets. If they die by the specified method, unlocks additional Asura abilities.
Rank F — Forms a lord-vassal contract with Asura. Designates one target within 10m radius to the ledger.
Having roughly gauged its effects, Yun-seok turned away.
A new figure had appeared in the empty waiting room.
“……”
A three-faced, six-armed monster.
No need to look closer. This was the Asura he'd gained from Death God.
Yun-seok let out a deep sigh without realizing it.
…Is this all my karma?
Fierce faces like malignant spirits adorned one head, split left and right for a total of three.
And those six arms—each as thick as a bull's waist.
Honestly, it looked pretty sturdy.
But…
This thing was his summon from now on.
In other words, his pet.
“……”
Yun-seok glanced at Asura once more, then hung his head in dismay, unable to hide his disappointment.
He hadn't expected a baby unicorn or some cute feline divine beast.
Practicality over flashy looks—that was Yun-seok's style.
But even so.
Wasn't this a bit much?
“You're intimidating, so go back for now.”
“……?”
At Yun-seok's command, Asura tilted all three heads at once.
It didn't seem like it didn't understand.
Was it impossible to unsummon even though it was a summon?
“…Can't you go back?”
“……”
As if to confirm, Asura cautiously nodded.
It was even worse.
This meant he'd have to stick with this thing all day, every day—not just in battle.
Aftermath from the last fight? His head suddenly started throbbing.
The ledger and other effects—I can figure them out by testing. Let's just get this over with.
As if he wanted nothing more to do with it, Yun-seok shifted his attention elsewhere.
He currently had 6,226,000 AP.
Plus, smelting the gear from this match with Smelting would add a hefty sum.
Despite treating them as fakes, his opponent's swords had been a whopping A+ rank.
But just as he was about to smelt them.
“……?”
He felt a desperate gaze from behind.
Turning, he saw Asura staring—not at him, but at the sword in his hand.
“You want it?”
Nod, nod.
Asura bobbed its head eagerly with a bright(?) expression.
It seemed to want this sword…
Looking at those massive six arms, Yun-seok wondered if it even needed such a weapon.
No, honestly, he wasn't sure it could even wield it properly.
“Come at me.”
“……?”
“Attack me. If I think you're worth it, I'll give you this.”
Since it had come to this, he figured he'd test his new summon's abilities before the next real fight.
But then.
“……?”
The moment he said "attack," Asura's mouth corners twitched upward in disbelief.
No words, but Yun-seok wasn't oblivious enough to miss the sneer.
Look at this guy?
He didn't know if it was always like this, but…
His very first summon was awfully cocky.
Far from the confidence it had shown mocking Yun-seok.
It didn't take long to teach Asura some humility.
Exactly three minutes after Yun-seok picked up his sword.
Asura's eyes now held deep respect and fear.
It has growth potential, but it's way too weak.
As Yun-seok eyed it disapprovingly, Asura hung its head dejectedly.
Not just from failing to earn its master's approval, but realizing it wouldn't get the promised sword.
Yun-seok sighed deeply.
“Take it.”
“……?”
“If you don't earn your keep, I'll take it back and smelt it.”
“……!”
At Yun-seok's grumbling words, Asura snorted in boundless joy.
It carefully took the proffered sword and cradled it lovingly in all six arms.
It looked hideous, but seeing it so thrilled over something so simple made it a little cute…
Whoosh.
Yun-seok quickly looked away from Asura.
Even for a moment, thinking that was cute? Must be all the weird skills messing with his head.
Purchase complete. Item has arrived.
Please check your inventory.
Yun-seok opened the shop window and spent another 3.75 million AP on a B-rank Unique Skill Elixir.
Shadowless Chant, Demon Transformation, Immortality, Execution, Smelting.
Five Unique Skills still at B-rank, but he'd already decided which to prioritize.
Demon Transformation
Rank A — Duration increases to 3 minutes upon use.
The new A-rank effect wasn't bad.
No, it was perfect.
He'd seen firsthand in the last mission what he could do in one minute.
Three times that? Worth every bit of 3.75 million AP.
Time to head back up.
He'd planned to smelt his gear for extra AP and upgrade another Unique Skill to A-rank, but gifting the sword to Asura killed that.
Too late to take it back now. Shaking off the regret, Yun-seok challenged the next trial.
19th floor already, huh.
Geom-ma Jeong Dae-un had stopped climbing at 19.
He'd heard it was after barely surviving a tough foe on 18—he needed time to train.
Anyway, Yun-seok didn't know his 19th-floor opponent.
Cheonma wouldn't tell him, saying it spoiled the fun.
Probably a re-enacted foe like before, but maybe not.
Yun-seok didn't dwell on it.
Please prepare. Duel will begin shortly.
Whoever it was.
He'd find out soon enough.
Countdown beginning.
His vision flashed, surroundings shifting.
Not the usual round arena.
A frozen white wasteland. A fierce blizzard raged.
3.
Like the giant hydra from the 5th-floor swamp?
If so, probably not a challenger—but something else.
A trial gauging his absolute level.
2.
Where's the enemy?
Yun-seok scanned through the wind-whipped snowflakes for his opponent.
Nothing yet.
Just Asura, fumbling with its sword in six hands.
1.
Seemed panicked, body frozen. It'll get used to it after a few times.
START!
The final second passed. Duel began.
And that instant.
Kuuuung.
A heavy rumble shook the ground. The mountain beyond the blizzard haze moved.
Only then did Yun-seok realize.
That distant "mountain" was his opponent.
Death God.
Yun-seok tested his new skill first.
A sinister-aura-shrouded ledger appeared before him.
Registering target to the ledger.
Shrrk.
The first page opened on its own, words etching in.
Deus Coadunus
Name first, followed by brief info: an ancient being from mythologies.
Not very useful.
Yun-seok focused on the next prompt.
Specify cause of death?
Right, this feature.
Set the cause of death, kill accordingly, and Asura grows stronger?
He wasn't thrilled about Asura's combat power, but better to grab everything possible.
Problem was…
Cause of death? What do I even say?
Heart attack? Shock from blood loss?
Common modern ones, but they didn't fit here.
Yun-seok visualized specifically.
Demon Transformation, Dark Knight, Judgment of the Destruction Lord.
High-power stuff was fine, but he wanted to test natural world energy from the last duel.
Was vague intent enough?
Deus Coadunus's cause of death designated: explosive death.
Cause set: explosive death. Death by blast rupture.
Please specify time of death.
Time of death…
Three seconds should do.
Wuuung—!
Heaven Breaking Qi mixed with natural world energy gathered in his sword.
Not just raw power, but infused with principles:
Overwhelm, strength, softness, illusion, slowness, heaviness, lightness, swiftness.
Ledger target killed.
Cause and time of death match exactly.
Asura's Strength stat +1.
Kwa-kwa-kwang.
The wasteland shook like an avalanche.
The massive silhouette beyond the blizzard vanished without a trace.
As if a nuke had detonated.
Victory.
He hadn't even properly engaged, but the duel ended.
Easier than 18.
Yun-seok smacked his lips, disappointed.
Truth was, the previous guy was an extreme outlier.
This was his normal difficulty.
10,000,000 AP awarded as reward.
Unique Skill Gluttony activated.
After selecting loot via Gluttony, his vision blacked out again.
Moving to 20th-floor administrator zone.
Unlike the wasteland, warm air filled a cozy cabin.
Elle greeted him with a gentle smile.
“You're here?”
Not long in real time, but ages for Yun-seok.
Maybe why her casual welcome felt especially nice today.
But then.
Kwak.
Something shattered behind him.
Checking, Asura had smashed its head into the ceiling, standing frozen.
Yun-seok rubbed his neck awkwardly.
Should he apologize for his summon's mess? How to even explain it?
Unnecessary worry.
Elle, ever the stalker watching his every move, already knew what Asura was.
“Whoa, so cute!”
Elle approached and poked its arm.
Did it like the touch? Asura glanced at Yun-seok, then stayed still.
Even growling strangely: “Grrrrng!”
Yun-seok couldn't hide his bafflement.
“Cute…?”
“Yeah. What's its name?”
“Asura.”
“Nah, something better. You haven't named it yet, have you?”
“……”
As Yun-seok clamped his mouth shut, Elle smiled knowingly.
“Can I name it then?”
“…Go ahead.”
With permission, Elle stroked her chin thoughtfully.
“Hmm… How about Ara? From Asura—Ara! Pretty name, right?”
Ara.
Definitely pretty. Would suit perfectly.
If Asura weren't a three-faced muscle monster.
Yun-seok instinctively glanced at it.
“……”
Desperate eyes shook "Ara" off wildly.
“…I'll name it something fitting later.”
“Huh? Why? Isn't Ara cute?”
Elle's innocent confusion aside…
For Asura's dignity, Yun-seok averted his gaze.
And noticed something off about the cabin.
“……?”
Unlike before, the table was empty.
No sweet tea or snacks he loved.
Had he unknowingly offended her?
Racking his brain, nothing came up.
Then, as if struck by sudden realization watching him scan the table.
“Oh, not the time for this!”
“Something urgent?”
“Yes. Sending you back to the waiting room now.”
Elle always wanted to linger here.
Now rushing him out? Why?
“That precious opportunity?”
“Yes, exactly.”
“Still can't tell me?”
“No, it's just… better to see for yourself. Sending you now?”
Not really a question—independent of his will.
Words barely out, vision blacked.
Moving to 20th-floor waiting room.
Back in the waiting room, messages flooded simultaneously.
Number of challengers reaching 20th floor: 2,000 achieved.
Duel Tower No.4 ranking system unlocked.
All Duel Towers meet criteria. Beginning dimensional fusion.
Fusion complete.
True trials begin.
Matches form every 30 days. No more voluntary challenges.
Now Yun-seok understood.
Elle's "precious opportunity."
Whatever was starting…
He'd barely caught the last train.