Chapter 196 |
Fwoooosh…
[Ur, the Sealed, deciphers the unidentified mana.]
[Mana deciphering in progress.]
……
[The mana has been successfully deciphered.]
[Ur, the Sealed, is consuming the mana.]
Ur’s body began to flash as the torrent of blue mana surged toward him. As Ur continued to absorb the blue threads, his presence grew stronger and stronger.
"Its design was much worse than I thought, the mana efficiency is horrid. I can’t believe this is all of the mana that’s left… Well, I somewhat expected this."
And then…
Ur stretched his arms after devouring all of the mana.
“Still, it was edible.”
Ur had not physically changed much from before. He was roughly the same size, his body and color were still the same too.
But… one thing had changed.
He was wearing a strange pair of glasses. Small, circular glasses rested on Ur’s face.
“...What’s with those glasses?” asked Seol.
“I think haphazardly absorbing the mana brought back some of my old appearance, but... I could remove them if I wanted to, but using my mana for that when I have so little would be a waste, so I’ll keep it for now.”
Seol hoped that Ur had changed at least a little since his appearance had changed too.
And almost as if to answer his worries, Seol saw multiple messages in front of him.
[Awakening! Ur, the Sealed, awakens a new skill.]
[Ur, the Sealed, awakens Passive: Cast Wizardry.]
[Awakening! Ur, the Sealed, awakens a new skill.]
[Ur, the Sealed, awakens Passive: High-Speed Processing.]
[Awakening! Ur, the Sealed, awakens a new skill.]
[Ur, the Sealed, awakens Passive: Parallel Thinking 1.]
Ur had received 3 new passive skills.
Seol quickly looked through them one by one.
[[Passive: Cast Wizardry]
You are now able to cast wizardry without being summoned. However, you are unable to perform attacks.]
The first skill’s description was short and to the point.
‘This clearly means Ur can cast spells while in my Shadow Space, right?’
Ur’s wizardry had been extremely convenient.
Seol repeatedly felt that while traveling with him, especially after seeing how he not only deciphered and dismantled a spell but also absorbed it.
Though he wasn’t sure where the mana was being stored, just dealing with troublesome spells like that made Ur more than essential to Seol now.
However, wizardry also came with its own restrictions.
Not only was Ur difficult to summon, but Seol had to summon Ur alone if he wanted to use his wizardry during a fight.
However, Cast Wizardry dealt with that inconvenience.
Though he was still restricted from directly attacking enemies, being able to use wizardry without summoning Ur was extremely useful.
[[Passive: High-Speed Processing]
The rate of deciphering, dismantling, and compressing mana is massively increased.]
‘How much is ‘massive’?’
As Ur stated before, that compressing mana was for an attack, Seol strictly assessed it based on the speed of Ur’s deciphering and dismantling.
However, the most crucial factor was Ur’s ability to dismantle spells.
‘Is it fast enough for fights now?’
Judging by Ur’s current speed, it would need to be significantly faster to be useful in battles.
After all, Seol had only witnessed it being used to nullify spells in place or spells that took a long time to cast.
Seol mentally made a note, reminding himself to confirm it later.
[[Passive: Parallel Thinking]
You can now handle up to 4 simultaneous actions.]
This passive seemed to be useful for deciphering and dismantling as well.
Ur’s skills were all slightly connected to each other like this.
“Now that I’m done with my business…” said Ur, staring at Seol. “I’m going to go back.”
Fwirl!
Ur quickly returned to Seol’s Shadow Space.
Seol then took a second to look at the golem’s remains before approaching the massive door it had been defending.
“Fuuu…”
Rumble…
As the door opened, welcoming Seol, darkness poured out.
* * *
Thanks to SturdyPaulowniaTree’s help, the golem worked extremely well. Seol experienced what it felt like to no longer fear something.
Furthermore, through his conversations with him, Seol learned that SturdyPaulowniaTree was actually a nice person.
He was just a bit… special, that’s all.
“Snowman.”
“Yes?”
“This golem will protect Gollun for a long, long while.”
“It will! I’m sure that it will—”
“Even so, I’m worried.”
As SturdyPaulowniaTree transferred ownership of the golem to Gollun, he also handed over another item.
“What… is this?”
“This is Lamu, the Thunder Ghost's Pot.”
Seol was confused.
“And… what is that?”
“It is a precious treasure that my piece gained on an Adventure. Inside, a terrifying thunder ghost is sealed.”
“Why are you… giving this to me?”
“In case something unexpected happens… unseal him.”
“What? What would happen then?”
“Your piece, Gollun, would die.”
“......”
“However, those who are threatening you will also die. Well, as long as they aren’t stronger than Lamu. In other words, I want you to use this for revenge.”
“Is this jar… really that dangerous?”
SturdyPaulowniaTree shook his head.
“Items are just items. The real danger is the situation that you will be forced to use this item in.”
“But why are you giving me such a powerful item…”
“I don’t know? It might just be a whim.”
“......”
“Snowman, do you know why I don’t go on Adventures with others?”
“Isn’t it because the others annoy you?”
“You’re only half right. They do annoy me, but I do get lonely from time to time as well. Even so, I don’t want to go on Adventures with other people.”
“Why not?”
“Because I was betrayed once.”
“Betrayed…?”
Seol could sense his rage and sadness behind the mask.
“My piece was killed by a detestable piece hunter. He betrayed my trust to kill my piece.”
“Ah…”
“He giggled after killing my piece. I understand that there are people who only find fulfillment in this game through that. In fact, he even reprimanded me for getting upset after killing my piece. Since the aspect we found the game enjoyable was different, I learned that discussing it through words was impossible, and… I came to hate the others.”
“......”
After a few seconds, SturdyPaulowniaTree laughed. It was the same mischievous smile as before.
“Ohoho… I believe everyone here is a liar. In fact, I can guarantee that it’s true! So on that note… I pray that you don’t give them an opening either, Snowman.”
“Yeah…”
Not too long after Seol received SturdyPaulowniaTree’s advice, Gollun died.
* * *
As humans gained the ability to reason, trust rose to prominence as the highest virtue.
But why?
Why was trust considered the highest virtue when it seemed to be the polar opposite of reasoning?
The naive readily invest their trust in others, often unable to see beyond the facade of smiling masks.
“Fuu… It no longer smells like blood.”
Step… step…
Fwoosh…
As Seol lifted his torch, he surveyed the interior of the room.
A single jar was placed on the central altar, surrounded by corpses.
‘Damn murderers…’
Seol's Gollun had been killed by murderers, who cackled with laughter as they ended Gollun's life.
Despite their own pieces dying as well, they were more than satisfied knowing they had ruined things for Seol.
Seol couldn’t understand them then, but now that he had learned the people he was playing with were gods, he believed that they were likely evil gods.
‘Well… I guess they’re all evil gods now.’
To Seol, they were all evil gods after he learned they were sacrificing countless lives to earn Madness.
He felt his chest tighten a little.
The pain he felt from being betrayed by them still hadn’t healed yet.
- It looks like… something happened here?
- It’s just a bunch of skeletons…
- Did they not keep any treasures here?
- I think the grave rats from earlier ate all of the treasures? I think that jar is the only thing that’s left.
- Aw, man…
Seol then inspected the pot on top of the altar.
[Intermediate Insight activates.]
[The pot has been unsealed.]
“......”
Seol looked around at his surroundings before opening his mouth.
“Why don’t you get up now?”
Between the skeletons, there was a single bloodied corpse.
“I know you’re there,” Seol repeated, looking directly at it. “Right?”
Craaackle…
The corpse released a quick bolt of electricity before getting up.
It was a man with red eyes.
“How did you know?”
“Are you serious? It’s obvious when there’s a single corpse that hasn’t decayed.”
“Ah…”
Jamad then said something to Seol from the Shadow Space.
- It’s a ghost. An evil spirit from the east.
“Oho… I didn’t expect anyone to recognize me right away like this. My name is Lamu. I was sealed but freed, as you can see, and I killed the people who freed me. Why don’t I…”
Seol stared directly at Lamu, his eyes honed in on him.
His gaze was way too harsh for Lamu to simply think of it as interest.
‘Not to mention…’ thought Lamu. ‘He’s not even looking at me.’
Lamu’s assumptions were correct.
Seol wasn’t looking at Lamu, he was looking at the flesh that Lamu had possessed.
“So that’s what he looked like,” said Seol. “Even just looking at you is pissing me off.”
“...What?”
“I was worried how I’d react if rats or insects ate his meat, but… your possession seems to have preserved it."
Lamu was confused by Seol’s calm demeanor.
‘How is he… so calm? Is he not afraid of me?’
Ghosts were meant to be objects of fear, and humans were weak.
Even when he was last unsealed, every human around him trembled in fear.
In an attempt to take the initiative, Lamu growled while lowering his voice.
“I am the one who walks on the other side…”
“A ghost, right?”
“You’re not wrong.”
“And you’re possessing that fucking bum’s body, right?”
“You’re not wrong about that either,” added Lamu.
“Good. I can take care of it all in one go then.”
Lamu scoffed.
“And that’s where you’re wrong.”
Ffft…
Lamu's body appeared to be dispersing into thin air, spreading out.
[Lamu’s Host used Deadly Combo.]
[The damage of your opponent's counterattack after dodging or defending is reduced by 50%.]
Fwirl!
It had been a long time since Seol had entered the Night Crow Form. However, he did not want to leave his revenge to someone else. He knew he would only be satisfied after getting revenge with his own two hands.
[You enter the Night Crow form with Shaman ‘Jamad, the Rain of Fire’.]
[You absorb Jamad, the Rain of Fire’s stats.]
[Your class is changed to Fighter.]
Baaam!
The host did not hold any weapons either, the two men clashed with their fists.
Bam!
Bam bam bam!
Seol effortlessly blocked Lamu’s attack.
“Why didn’t you leave after finding a host?” asked Seol.
“Haha!” laughed Lamu. “Because he’s a corpse. I need a new body if I want to leave.”
“Couldn’t you just descend into the world?”
Raise…
Baaam!
Seol grabbed the host’s fist, blocking him.
"Because forcibly descending would only weaken me. You seem to know more about ghosts than I initially presumed you would.”
“I’ve just picked up on a couple things here and there.”
“Is that so?” laughed Lamu. “Well, are you done asking questions now?”
Seol, his face turning blacker every second, nodded.
“Yeah. Let’s get it over with.”
“...What?”
In an instant, Seol released an explosive amount of energy from his body.
Crush…
Seol crushed the host’s fist, causing bones and blood to pierce through his skin.
“What the… Hrgh—”
Fwooooosh…
BAAAAAAAAAAM!
Seol threw the host by his arm, into the wall.
Crumble…
The host quickly returned to his feet.
“...Hah!”
The host’s body was mangled.
Not only was his arm a distressing sight to behold, but blood was also streaming from his head.
“Human bodies are so weak.”
“I’m a human too,” answered Seol. “You should just take care of that body better.”
“...I’ve changed my mind.”
CRAAAAAAACKLE!
The host's body flashed for a moment, revealing a charred form when the light dissipated.
Fwoooosh…
A gust of wind rushed in, snuffing out the torch and plunging everything around them into darkness.
Flash!
[Lamu, the Thunder Ghost, descends.]
[It was done without a proper ritual.]
[Lamu, the Thunder Ghost, maintains only 50% of their original strength.]
Flash!
The room flickered with Lamu's lightning, exposing his true form with each flash.
He resembled a demonic spirit.
With each flicker, his horrifying appearance, one that would even make a troll flee in fear, became more and more distinct.
Fwip!
Fwoosh!
Fwip!
Fwoosh!
Lamu’s quick attack cut Seol’s cheek, causing it to bleed.
“Hahahaha! Where did your confidence from earlier go?”
“......”
“You’re just a toy to me, human!”
Lamu's insults, accompanied by intentionally shallow physical cuts, stirred up an unpleasant memory for Seol.
“You’re just like him.”
Clench…
Rumble rumble…
Crackle crackle…
[You have changed to the Rain of Fire Stance.]
[All attacks will spread flames.]
[An explosion will occur at the impact point of each attack.]
[Thunderbolts will spread at the impact point of each attack.]
[Passive: Moving Flames is applied.]
[Passive: Heat and Warmth is applied.]
[Passive: Static is applied.]
As Seol’s aura grew larger, Lamu instinctively took a step back.
“Let me show you the same hell that I experienced.”
Craaaaaaaaackle…
Lamu gathered both hands to summon lightning.
[Lamu, the Thunder Ghost, used Qilin's Lightning.]
[Your next attack is imbued with lightning, dealing an additional 150% elemental damage.]
[Inflict Abnormal Status: Shock.]
Craaaaaackle!
As Lamu's lightning grew more intense, so did his confidence.
“Now! Why don’t we…”
Fwip!
Lamu, transforming into a single bolt of lightning, charged toward Seol.
But then…
[Ur, the Sealed’s Wizardry activates.]
[Ur, the Sealed, deciphers the unidentified spell.]
[Spell deciphering in progress.]
[The spell has been successfully deciphered.]
[Devour Magic activates.]
[Ur, the Sealed, is consuming Qilin's Lightning.]
Multiple messages flooded Seol’s vision.
Weaken…
The lightning that surrounded Lamu’s body disappeared completely as he charged toward Seol.
Ur then made a remark from the Shadow Space.
- Thanks for the meal.
Lamu did not understand what had happened, but he continued forward.
And that was his mistake.
Kick!
“Krgh…”
Seol’s kick dug into Lamu’s stomach.
Strangely, he found himself unable to gather any strength after Seol's counterattack.
Grab…
Seol gripped Lamu's neck, choking him, while maintaining an expressionless stare directly at him.
Tighten…
“Krgh…”
Seol began to choke Lamu tighter and tighter.
Clench…
The armor surrounding Lamu’s neck began to crumble away.
“D-Don’t…”
“What was that about hell…?”
Seol popped Lamu's head as if it were a pouch filled with sand.
Splaaaaatter!