Chapter 8
Preparation (2)
It was simply the act of closing and opening my eyes. And just like that, the world had already changed. A cold cavern where the water barely wet the soles of my feet. In the center stood countless statues, towering in place.
At the heart of those statues, each resembling an animal, stood a massive tree that they seed to be guarding.
I looked around. This was the place one enters when undergoing the second class advancent for Paladin and Spirit Master. ‘Crevice of Faith’.
▶Sudden Quest: [Crevice of Faith]
A place where one’s belief in god is tested.
Reward: Faith 5
The trials for Paladin and Spirit Master differ. The Paladin’s trial tests one’s faith. In the ga, you simply had to fend off incoming monsters using only faith-related skills.
Moreover, the cost of faith-related skills would be nullified here. Normally, I used health to activate skills, which ca with an unavoidable cooldown. But in this place, I could unleash skills endlessly. It was known as a pri grinding spot.
A faint tremor was felt. Rising from the ground was the wooden monster I had encountered during the tutorial.
“I was just wondering about this.”
I summoned the Lightning Spike. Normally, its attack power scaled with lost health. But right now, I was at full health.
The Lightning Spike, with a base attack power of only 1. I stacked the ‘Thunder Horn Mark’ on it. A cost-free defense. The deaths suffered in that process would simply serve as proof of faith to the god.
I hurled the spike. It took the form of a spear and flew swiftly. Finally, the seven stacked marks exploded, sweeping the area.
‘Definitely an all-in on health build.’
The damage itself wasn’t all that high. It was about 1/50th of what Bereninche’s Water Spear could deal. But the lightning attribute was what mattered.
Lightning infused with holy power was fast and wide-reaching. On top of that, it inflicted the powerful status effect, Electrocution. In other words, if I could just raise the damage, it would beco a perfect skill.
The enemies caught in the lightning storm crumbled into blackened ash. Watching that, I summoned the next spike. When I did this with a character other than Davide, I had only reached the 10th wave after countless forced retries.
A mad trial that claid faith in god would be solidified through the agony of death.
“Been a while since I’ve done this kind of grind.”
I felt no pain, so dying didn’t matter. I knew I would resurrect anyway. Still, I had no intention of dying just for show.
I swung the spike shaped like a sword. The stacked ‘Thunder Horn Mark’ exploded, sweeping away the charging wooden monster.
I gleefully unleashed my skills.
“Two more to go.”
I wiped the sweat forming on my forehead. The eighth wave had just ended. A difficulty where there was no increase in quality, only quantity. At so point, it had beco so easy it started to feel annoying.
Skill [Trace of Anaye] [Lv. 6] [Religion] [Apostle]
A trace of the ancient god, Anaye, the Thunder Deer.
Born in a lake and raised drinking lightning, Anaye commands water and breathes thunder. She paid special attention to her first child.
– Blessing of Paillet Lake: Increases resistance to water elent. Recovery rate increased by 56%.
– Thunder Horn: Increases resistance to lightning elent. Consus 30% of current HP to leave a ‘Thunder Horn Mark’. The ‘Thunder Horn Mark’ deals additional damage equal to 6% of max HP.
– Lightning Spike of Anaye: Summons a spike that deals damage equal to lost HP x56.
The number of summoned Lightning Spikes had surpassed a hundred. The number of ‘Thunder Horn Marks’ was double that. Thanks to that, the skill level had increased by four. After reaching level 5, the ‘Thunder Horn Mark’ began to deal additional damage.
Considering that this was a religion-type skill, notoriously hard to level, it was enough to rot my teeth with how sweet this was. On top of that, I hadn’t even taken any damage.
“Winter must’ve gotten caught up in it too.”
While I was reaping the sweet rewards of skill grinding, I wasn’t so sure about Winter. A trial like this would probably be tough for him. Winter also possessed the ‘Trace of Anaye’. But without the Holy Scripture, he couldn’t even use the spikes.
“Ugh, whatever.”
He’d manage sohow. The water on the ground soaked my butt, but I didn’t care and sat down. A short break between waves. Rest was necessary. Battles required full concentration, and it was hard to let my mind wander midway.
‘I should be able to reach level 8.’
About a minute passed before a faint tremor was felt. I rose to my feet without hesitation. The number of enemies this ti wasn’t even comparable to the beginning.
A spark burst from the Stigma stirred with battle spirit.
“Like cockroaches.”
I’d learned a lot through repeatedly using the sa skills. Lightning Spike, which I normally couldn’t use recklessly due to its 1-hour cooldown in reality, had raised my proficiency the most.
‘The sword fits better than expected.’
Being of Duhein blood, I thought I’d be more familiar with spears, but the sword fit my hand best. A massive lightning sword, over 4 ters long, appeared. This ti, I would fight without using ‘Thunder Horn Mark’.
My health had dropped a fair bit after allowing a few attacks. It would take longer, but the skill proficiency gain would be greater. There was no danger. Cutting down monsters flailing from electrocution was easy.
‘Once.’
The path of the sword was simple. The experience etched into my body gradually ford a more efficient stance. But lacking fierce speed or the will to cleave, it was nothing more than a plain slash.
Even so, several monsters were knocked away. Even if the sword didn’t land a direct hit, the lightning unleashed by the swing surged outward.
‘Twice.’
It was absurd that wood could be electrocuted, yet the monster’s body spasd and froze in place. That was when the second sword path was drawn. The spike swung toward the necks of the immobilized monsters now dealt aningful damage.
‘Three tis. Four tis.’
But the damage was just barely insufficient—none of them went down. So I kept swinging. With a total of four slashes, nine monsters burned and vanished. I lost myself in a trance as I swung the sword.
“Can’t believe I’m already tired from just this.”
I drove a spike into the chest of the last one. My breath caught in my throat. My stats were too poor.
Far better than my body from my previous life, but by this world’s standards, still miserable. Even so, it was manageable. The spike had no weight, so there was no strain. It wasn’t fast or threatening, but the Lightning Spike itself made up for those flaws.
“Refreshing.”
More than anything, it just felt good. A refreshnt I had never experienced in my previous life. A vivid sensation utterly unknown to soone who had been too drunk to control his own body.
It was an almost addictive pleasure. I felt deep satisfaction from sweating and knowing my body was moving properly.
“Augh.”
I collapsed backward. The shock of the cold sensation passed quickly, and as my overheated body began to cool, it brought a strange feeling of liberation.
But before I could finish cooling down, the ground began to quake. I shot up to my feet. Wiping off the water that stread down my body, I summoned the Lightning Spike again.
“Final one.”
The final part of the Paladin trial was to fight a fragnt of the god you believed in. Of course, you couldn’t win.
One of the statues guarding the giant tree began to move. Cracks spread along its surface, and as the shell crumbled, sothing erged.
A woman appeared, wearing a stag skull helt. In one hand, she held the Obelisk Sword. In the other, the blackened skull of a deer.
A white cloth skirt and a small piece of fabric barely covering her chest. Tattoos covered her torso, and behind her head spun a wheel centered around her hair. It was grotesque.
“My lady goddess, it’s an honor to et you for the first ti.”
A goddess’s fragnt, devoid of ego. She nodded once, then pointed the obelisk at . About 80cm long—too short to be called a sword. It had no blade. It looked more like an ornant than a weapon.
Each of its four sides was the sa width, like a pillar. It might be usable for stabbing, but swinging it seed pointless.
“…Huh?”
The Obelisk Sword was a magic weapon used by mages. Its performance was middling, but it was notoriously difficult to obtain. Its beautiful appearance made it a favorite among players focused purely on aesthetics.
That sword suddenly began to spin.
“You’ve got to be kidding .”
Not the handle, but the column itself began rotating furiously. Small sparks flared around it, then a massive bolt of lightning surged out.
I hurled the Lightning Spike, stacked with as many marks as I could muster. It collided with the beam of light fired from the Obelisk. A deafening roar filled the cavern.
***
“Are you okay?”
“Huh, you…?”
“I’m fine.”
Winter looked completely unhard.
The trial was over. The beam of light had only been fired once. After that, the blackened stag skull—with only one horn—had co straight for my head. I hadn’t expected her to use the skull like a blunt weapon.
The more damage I took, the stronger the Lightning Spike beca. As I felt the sensation of my skull cracking, the spike I swung caught on sothing.
That was the end. I returned. Outside the ash tree fence, Winter had been waiting and asked how I was. There was no pain, but the feeling was disturbing.
‘This is what they call a second class advancent trial?’
If I hadn’t been in this body, I probably would’ve died from the shock of the pain. While checking my condition, I looked down at what I was holding. A red wooden fruit. I opened the quest window.
▶Faith Quest: [Legacy]
Anaye wishes for her first child to recover her legacy.
Requirent — Secure the Legacy.
Reward — The Legacy.
1. Circle of Reincarnation: Not secured.
2. Sword of the Guarding Obelisk: Not secured.
3. Eye of the Long Slumber: Not secured.
4. Carrion’s Zoetrope: Not secured.
5. Promise of the Great Ash Tree: Secured.
I dusted myself off and stood up. ntally exhausted, yes—but I’d gained a lot. Riding the montum, I opened my skill window.
Skill [Trace of Anaye] [Lv. 8] [Religion] [Apostle]
A trace of the ancient god, Anaye, the Thunder Deer.
Born in a lake and raised drinking lightning, Anaye commands water and breathes thunder. She paid special attention to her first child.
– Blessing of Paillet Lake: Increases resistance to water elent. Recovery rate increased by 58%.
– Thunder Horn: Increases resistance to lightning elent. Consus 30% of current HP to leave a ‘Thunder Horn Mark’. The ‘Thunder Horn Mark’ deals additional damage equal to 8% of max HP.
– Lightning Spike of Anaye: Summons a spike that deals damage equal to lost HP x58.
Satisfied, I turned my gaze toward Winter. She flinched slightly when she t my eyes.
“What were you doing in there?”
“Oh, I t Lady Anaye.”
“What?”
“Do you want to see? Lady Anaye gave this to herself!”
Winter bead as she waved her hand through the air. Divine power gathered, and a black piece of paper materialized. I stared at it in a daze.
“It’s a skill called ‘Anaye’s Silent Bell’! When I use it…”
Ding.
▶Cures status effects.
It was a resonance that healed the mind. The fatigue I thought I had felt vanished in an instant. I was back to the sa condition as when I first entered.
That rare ntal-type healing skill.
“The health of the Anaye Faith’s followers is restored... Why are you looking at like that?”
I had rolled through filth. Rolled this way and that, swung my arms, and fought like a madman. And all I got for it was a fruit and so skill proficiency. I didn’t even et the true form—just a fragnt.
“I got the fragnt.”
“Sorry?”
“Not even the true body—just a fragnt. A puppet without ego.”
“Oh.”
“And I rolled in the muck, too.”
“Th-there must be a reason for that, r-right?!”
I let out a quiet chuckle. Too petty to be jealous, and yet what she got was too valuable to dismiss. Winter followed behind with a relieved look.
This battle had made my direction clear: selection and focus. I planned to invest heavily in health and recovery. The more HP I had, the longer I could hold out, and the harder I’d be to kill. On top of that, it would boost the damage of my skills.
As it happened, there was an item in Episode 1 that would help with this plan.
“Co to think of it, what about your class?”
“Huh?”
It felt like quite a bit of ti had passed. I asked offhandedly, and Winter jumped in surprise. She quickly checked the clock tower, then bowed with tears in her eyes.
“I’ll be off now!”
“Y-yeah, go.”
A dry voice and tearful eyes. Yet there wasn’t the slightest trace of fear or sadness. Honestly, it seed more like a condition at this point.
As I watched Winter grow smaller in the distance, I fell into brief thought.
▶[Fruit of Yggdrasil]
A fruit from the sacred and mighty ash tree, Yggdrasil. It holds powerful magical energy.
– Magic Power 15.
An elixir that boosts magic power by a whopping 15 points with no penalties. The problem was—I had no intention of learning magic. And it was tied to Anaye’s legacy, so selling it off didn’t feel right.
But that didn’t an I had no options. I pulled out the request slip the Vice-Commander had given . A simple trial to verify my capabilities.
Client: Imperial 6th Knight Order
Request: Destroy the Mana Stone Spider Nest northwest of Museion Academy.
Reward: Practical Training Points 8 / 30 Nuckle
It was the kind of pay normally split among three or four people. Excessively generous. If I handed over the fruit, they’d probably make a decent elixir in return.
‘No.’
Let’s leave it at that. If I got more involved, it would beco a hassle. It seed better to keep things on the edge, just as they were now.
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