Chapter 126. You in the World of Sunset (4)
[You equipped the Wendigo Set. Your magic and dexterity increase by 25. When the Wendigo Set is equipped, you can use "Ice Touch" once per day.]
[With Ice Touch, you can gather extreme freezing energy on your hands. When you attack your enemies, it ignores the enemies" resistance and freezes them, but they can break out after 5 seconds depending on their resistance.]
"Mm, I see."
I nodded my head imposingly as a response to message noona, then took off the fur coat as it was irritatingly hot. Then, as I stored Ice touch on the 10 o"clock position, I pondered, "How was I supposed to use this skill? … Wait."
"If I use Divine Speed and beat up the enemy for 3 seconds, then use Ice Touch before Divine Speed ends, I can beat up the enemy for 5 more seconds!"
Together, I would have 8 seconds to beat the enemy up freely! Plus, I didn"t need to use this freezing energy in close-range only. There must be a way to use it somehow with Ruyue. After all, all Floor Masters" skills were useful.
"Alright… It"s time to contact her."
I took out the letter I always carried with me. Ciara Kenex. I didn"t know what she wanted from me, even after reading the letter thrice. It would be faster to ask her in person. After making my decision, I put it to action. Once I set my mind to do something, I wouldn"t hesitate. That was my personal philosophy.
The next day, I gathered my family, including Yua who still wouldn"t talk to me, and told them I had to go to America. Yua"s expression was quite a sight.
"Again!?"
"You"re really busy lately, son. You"re going to lose weight."
"I"m fine. I did get slimmer, but I got a lot stronger as well."
"Hm, America… Are you going to that canyon where wyverns appear?"
"Father, do you want to come with me?"
Father surprisingly thought about it seriously, then shook his head.
"No. I would have gone if it was any other time, but I"m almost about to make a breakthrough in my spearmanship… I heard that wyverns are strong. Be careful and don"t get hurt."
"Ludia has a healing ability. Since we"ll be together, there"s no need to worry."
"Palludia-ssi is going too!?"
Yua"s anger seemed to have soared to the heavens. She then shouted, "I"m going to start going to church!"
"Yua!?"
"I want to be a priestess too!"
"Yua, even if you become a nun, I don"t think you can become a priestess that uses holy magic." Thinking that in my head, I placed my hand on Yua"s head. She tried to take my hand off in anger, but before she could do so, I said, "Thanks for worrying about me, Yua."
"Uk!"
"If Yua becomes an Awakened, then oppa won"t leave Yua alone at home."
"What about being a dungeon explorer?"
"You can"t climb the dungeon without a combat ability. If Yua becomes an Awakened, we can talk then."
"Uuu…"
Yua seemed to have acquiesced, as she nodded with a frown. Thank G.o.d!
"Good. Oppa will bring back presents from America for Yua, okay?"
"I"m not a child, don"t try to appease me with presents. I hate oppa."
"Kuk."
It seemed I needed more time before Yua"s anger could be appeased.
[I"m going too.]
"… Hwaya?"
[You came to help me before, so I"ll go with you to Arizona.]
When I told Hwaya I"d be in America for a while, she said she would come with me, making me fl.u.s.tered. As her reason made sense, I was even more fl.u.s.tered.
"No, that"s different than this. I know I"m going to an S rank Field Dungeon, but it"s not like I"ll be in a dangerous situation. You don"t need to trouble yourself."
[But wouldn"t it be easier if I was there?]
"That"s true, but… You"re Britain"s ability user. If you come, they might take it as Britain"s a.s.sistance."
[No, I"ll make it clear that I"m partic.i.p.ating as Thunder Knight"s friend.]
"You mean you"re not going to make it a trade between America and Britain?"
[Yeah. Britain won"t understand my worth unless I show them.]
Coming from someone as patriotic as Hwaya, it was a surprise. Brightman really must have made her angry. I continued, still half-surprised from what she said.
"To be honest, you"ll be in my way."
[That"s too honest! I"ve gotten stronger too! Plus, I got a Legend-grade defensive equipment, so I"ve perfectly covered my weakness. Don"t be surprised when you see me! I"ll prepare a plane for us in two days, so be ready!]
With that, Hwaya hung up. "At least she was eager to go…" With that, I sighed. I had no choice but to acknowledge that she was coming.
Thankfully, Ye-Eun safely defeated the Grim Reaper with Ludia and Ellos" party. Since Ludia has broke through to the 41st floor and even awakened an ability, I decided to take her with me to America like I promised.
The day of promise then came.
"Shin, hi!"
"… Eh?"
There was one uninvited guest waiting for me in front of my house.
I turned around to Ludia and demanded an explanation. Ludia buried her face in my back and dodged my eyes as she replied.
"S-She said she would come. I couldn"t do anything about it. I didn"t want to tell her either."
"Shin, you"re so mean. You should have called me if you were going somewhere so dangerous!"
"But you"re weaker than me."
"I got stronger by climbing the dungeon, so I wanted to try hunting wyverns too! By the way Palludia, can you get off of Shin now? I heard that the two of you are just friends!"
"Hmph."
Ludia returned Ye-Eun"s burning gaze with her special cold gaze. At the same time, I sent Ye-Eun a message only she could hear.
[I told you, Ludia has a special circ.u.mstance.]
[But it"s annoying watching her like that in front of me!]
[Do you want to go home?]
"… Tsk."
Ye-Eun finally seemed to have understood. I felt sorry in a way, so I decided to get her a gift to make up for it. With that, I headed to the airport with both Ludia and Ye-Eun. I had already turned down Ciara Kenex"s offer to prepare a method of transportation. Hwaya and I promised to meet here, and her private plane would be waiting here. As expected, when I arrived at the airport, Hwaya was already waiting at the airport. It was obvious she had used some kind of magic to prevent herself from being noticed by people other than me.
"It"s been a while, Shin… Oh?"
"Yeah, it really has, Hwaya. Sorry, I forgot to tell you about my friends. They"re both ability users and dungeon explorers."
The moment Hwaya saw Ludia and Ye-Eun, she opened her eyes widely in surprise. However, it was Ludia and Ye-Eun who were more surprised, as they noticed Hwaya only after I spoke with her. The two of them rudely pointed their fingers at Hwaya and shouted.
"T-That"s Ye Hwaya, right? Ye Hwaya!"
"I saw her on TV!"
"That"s my Korean name. Even though I"m staying in Korea for now, I"m British. Hwaya Mastiford. I"m a Second Dungeon explorer and a friend of Shin."
Hwaya seemed to be accustomed to such reactions, as she introduced herself with a sigh. Ludia and Ye-Eun"s response differed.
"Shin, you, when did you become friends with someone like her…? Uk, no, I"m lacking in all aspects…!"
"Palludia. I have a family name, but I"m not using it right now. Shin is… my friend. For now."
At Hwaya"s introduction, Ye-Eun wrapped her head with her hands and crouched down in agony, while Ludia made a light smile and puffed out her nonexistent chest to introduce herself. Eh? Ludia, she… Eh? When did she… Eh!?
"I see. Friend "for now"… Hm, okay. Nice to meet you."
Hwaya smiled lightly at Ludia and knocked on the airstairs next to her plane.
"Shin, no one else is coming, right?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Then, let"s go. The skunk plane is going to depart soon. We can continue talking once we take off. We"ll have to fly for at least 7 hours anyways."
While I was bewildered from Ludia"s inexplicable change, Hwaya urged us to get on board. Ye-Eun also looked slightly out of touch with reality as she staggered up the stairs.
"I, I"m on Ye Hwaya"s personal plane…"
"Shin, let"s go."
Ludia linked her arms with mine and pulled me along. Now that I realized the change in Ludia, I shivered at the sensation I could feel with my arm. Dear G.o.d, there was no way this was artificial… It had to be natural! When I walked up the stairs as shocked as Ye-Eun and entered the plane, Hwaya, who walked by me, asked me in a whisper.
"So, there should only be six explorers on Earth. How do you explain bringing two explorers?"
"I can explain later."
"Yeah, I"ll be sure to hear it when we"re alone, so prepare yourself."
"Shin!"
When I was standing still listening to Hwaya, Ludia called my name and pulled on my arm. I made a bitter smile, and Hwaya laughed with her eyes narrowed.
"Shin won"t run away. You don"t have to shout his name. Don"t be so nervous."
Hwaya and Ludia exchanged glances for a short moment. Was it a power struggle? Could this be the women"s fight, which I only ever heard about? One that determines who"s superior in their first meeting? Now that I thought about it, neither Ludia or Hwaya should have lost to anyone in appearance. Hwaya was famous on Earth for her beauty, and Ludia was regarded as one of the top beauties in the dungeon.
It was almost impossible to objectively judge a person"s appearance, but it would be hard for me to find anyone more beautiful than Hwaya and Ludia purely in appearance. Since the two of them met, it was probably normal for them to have their own thoughts about the matter.
I flinched seeing them exchange glances, but I soon urged Ludia to keep going.
"Ludia, let"s sit."
"Un, wait… Mastiford. I don"t like you."
"I feel the same way, Palludia."
They both smiled. It was the kind of smile that emanated chills. Because their smiles were almost exactly the same, I almost got gooseb.u.mps. However, this atmosphere, which was as if Wendigo had used Ice Touch, was soon melted by a voice.
"Shin, there"s a drinking bar here! Do you think there are fries too!?"
"Ye-Eun, I really like your never changing self…" With a sigh, I replied.
"You know, you didn"t even introduce yourself to Hwaya yet."
"Ah, right. I"m Su Ye-Eun. Nice to meet you."
"Huhu, nice to meet you too. I think I can get along with you."
"I-It"s an honor! Uu, but I feel conflicted…"
Just like that, the four of us set off to Arizona. Ciara Kenex would be waiting for me at Antelope Canyon. Would she know that I"d bring them along? Perhaps, she might with her special ability. With a grin, I leaned my head against the seat.
Would I be at Arizona once I woke up? How did Ciara Kenex know I was the Hero? Does she know more about Heroes than me?
Perhaps, she knew why and how I became the Hero.
Thinking about questions that I had no way of answering for now, I slowly closed my eyes.
I heard the rumble of the skunk plane taking off.
Author"s note:
Awakening is amazing!
Translator"s note:
It is indeed…
Chapter 127. Team Revival (1)
My first impression of Antelope Canyon was as such.
"Isn"t this the Grand Canyon?"
"Shin, think about Windermere Lake. They say higher ranked dungeons go through greater terraforming."
"It"s majestic…"
"Hm? Aren"t all canyons this big?"
The Antelope Canyon was known for its narrow pa.s.sageways, formed by the erosion of sandstone, and the beam of light that shined down from above.
However, the current Antelope Canyon was wide enough to play a game of soccer, and its beautiful pa.s.sageway had taken a strange formation. It wouldn"t be weird if a golem popped out of it. Furthermore, it was incredibly large. I couldn"t tell where the canyon ended. Though, perhaps the fact that it was currnetly night had something to do with it.
"Oh, who are they?"
"Not even America can ignore them. I didn"t think they"d come here though."
A few ability users were grouped in front of a car at the entrance of the canyon. I could clearly hear their whispers. It was the power of 300,000 gold.
"There are two more girls though. They"re both wearing masks."
"He"s not alone? I"m getting more curious as to who he is."
"They could be Flame Witch"s subordinate. There is a rumor that Thunder Knight only appeared at Windermere because he was the Flame Witch"s subordinate."
"Shin, I"ll go burn those idiots."
"Just let them talk. We don"t need to care about weaklings like them."
Unhappy with the ability users whispering to themselves, Hwaya created flames on her palm, but I calmed her down. I was looking for something else. A few months had pa.s.sed since the Field Dungeon had been created. Just like at Graveyard Over the Lake, there were several buildings above the canyon, ruining its natural scenery. I suspected that the person waiting for me was in one of those buildings.
As expected, not long after we arrived, a voice rang out in my head.
[You came. I"m happy. If it"s okay, can we meet right away?]
It was the voice of a young and frail girl. I remembered from her letter that she could use telepathy. However, I didn"t know how to respond to her.
[If it"s okay, nod your head once.]
I nodded my head. She answered immediately.
[Come inside your lodging. Room 1301, I"ll be waiting there.]
With that, the telepathy cut off. I led my companions looking at me curiously to the lodging, while I gave them an explanation.
"I"ve been contacted by a telepathy. You guys didn"t hear anything?"
"No, not at all."
"Is it like the messaging system between dungeon explorers?"
"It"s a bit different. The messages ring in my ear, but this one rings in my head."
"Uk, that doesn"t sound comfortable."
There was no elevator in the building. In other words, we had to climb the stairs to the 13th floor. Since Ludia refused to unlink our arms, it was a bit uncomfortable, but Hwaya, who was wearing a long dress unsuitable for climbing stairs, seemed more irritated.
"Kuk, I don"t like this girl…! Telling my friend to come and go as she wants, and even making me climb these stairs…!"
"Ludia, can you let go? It"s hard to walk up the stairs like this."
"No."
"Four blind spots, seventeen points… If I install traps here…"
When I realized, Ye-Eun was a.n.a.lyzing the building and murmuring like some bomb expert. "d.a.m.n, I want to pretend not to know these people!" Feeling the people"s gazes piercing me every floor we went to, I blamed the heavens.
When we arrived on the 13th floor, it was extremely quiet, unlike the floors we pa.s.sed through. There was no one walking around, and the hallway even looked different. Hwaya tilted her head and looked back at the stairs to the 12th floor. Then, she clapped once with a bright expression.
"This is a barrier. Anti-recognition barrier. A kind of conditional barrier."
"Sorry, but can you explain it in a language I can understand?"
"It"s a barrier that prevents people that don"t know about the 13th floor from reaching the 13th floor."
It was truly a simple, yet extraordinary, barrier. Ye-Eun and I were only slightly surprised, but Ludia looked shocked as she asked Hwaya.
"Such a high-rank magic is being used like this?"
"High-rank? It"s not that hard in the modern magic system."
"Uuk….!"
Without my knowledge, Ludia"s losses were increasing. With a bitter smile, I knocked on room 1301 with them.
[It"s open, Hero-nim. Come in.]
Why was she using telepathy when we were within audible range? I opened the door. A large living room and, beyond the window, the Antelope Canyon transformed into a large canyon caught our eyes. We also saw several wyverns flying through the night sky and the ability users fighting against them.
At the same time, we saw a little girl sitting on a chair.
[Nice to meet you, Hero-nim and Hero-nim"s companions.]
The girl got up and bowed respectfully.
[I am Ciara Kenex. You can call me Ciara.]
With her introduction, I could immediately tell why she couldn"t move her body easily. I shouted.
"You"re a kid"
[I"m 12 years old this year. I"m just a bit of a late bloomer.]
"A 12 year old is still a kid, you know…"
Ye-Eun murmured in shock. Ludia and Hwaya also had surprised expressions. As for me, I noticed something else the moment I saw her.
"… Can you not see?"
[I was born blind. At first, I couldn"t hear or talk, but thankfully, my ears opened up as I grew.]
Even as she greeted us, she had her eyes closed. I asked because of it, but I didn"t think I would actually be correct. Was that why she was talking to us in telepathy? Thankfully, we could all hear her through telepathy. She could likely see us through an ability similar to her telepathy.
As for her appearance, she was quite cute. It was a bit different than Koreans" black hair, but her charming black hair reached her waist in curls. With her small frame and white skin, she really looked like a doll.
Hwaya made a look of pity at Ciara"s words, but soon erased it. She likely thought it was rude. As if to erase the thought from her mind, Hwaya asked quickly.
"Alright, since you called Shin here, can you tell us why Shin is the Hero? I"m quite curious too."
I already explained to Hwaya and Ye-Eun in the plane. Although they made fun of me at first, Ludia got mad and told them about her continent. After that, Hwaya and Ye-Eun were more worried than me. I knew how annoying and dangerous being a Hero was, but it seemed like someone else"s problem until they began to make a big deal about it. As a result, even I felt a bit odd.
[Hero-nim, are they…?]
"Yeah, you can trust them. Also, don"t call me Hero-nim. Call me Shin."
[… Understood, Shin-nim. Then, I"ll start from the beginning. From the moment I first awakened. It was 3 years ago…]
"Wait."
Hwaya immediately interrupted her.
"Two Moon only happened a year and two months ago. 3 years? That"s impossible!"
[But I awakened 3 years ago.]
"What…?"
Ye-Eun and I, who understood what she meant a bit late, were also shocked. What was she saying? She awakened before Two Moon? 2 years at that! Although Hwaya wanted to say something, I reached out and stopped her. I believed Ciara would explain.
She also said she awakened from a premonition-like dream. She had come of age, and was standing next to me. There were also countless other people and giant enemies. In her dream, she taught people when and in what size monsters would appear, and how strong they would be. Resistance against the monsters were centered around her.
[Perhaps because my ability is still lacking, but its range is only wide enough to cover a city.]
"That"s an amazing ability, especially in this day and age, where even satellites are being shot down by monsters" attacks. If your ability can really grow to how it was in your dream…"
[Hero-nim was the strongest and most radiant among them.]
"You don"t need to flatter me."
[After that dream, I became more sensitive to human presence. I could feel their hostility towards me, how strong they were, how much potential they had… Of course, before Two Moon, there were no monsters in this world and no ability users, so it wasn"t that useful.]
That wasn"t it. The day after she awakened her ability, she once again dreamt several hundred dreams.
"… Wait. Several hundred?"
[Yes. In my dreams, I saw countless particles of light. There were countless number of oddities.]
"Countless oddities…?"
[The dream continued. For 2 years, I saw and experienced hundreds of thousands of abilities. Worlds and environments other than Earth. They fought each other, demons, invaders, alien insects, bugs that lived in the mind, monsters that lived in electromagnetic waves, orcs with countless mutations, fallen group of dragons that lost their intelligence and others.]
"I don"t understand…"
No, I think I understood. The problem was that I understood. If she was telling the truth, it would be truly absurd.
[One day, around early evening, I fell asleep. I had a dream, and I met someone who gave me a portion of power.]
"The world"s power?"
I said blankly. d.a.m.n, I felt like I understood. Although it sucked, I think I knew.
[Our world"s power is especially large. He kept saying inexplicable things like the World of Origin or the World of End.]
"Who is he?"
[I don"t know. He could be the embodiment of the worlds, or perhaps just Earth. All I know is that he was worried about the monsters stealing this world"s power and worried that people of Earth wouldn"t have the power to resist them.]
[So he separated the world"s power into two. The smaller power, which was still necessary to maintain this world, was given to Hero-nim. The bigger power, which was more pure, was given to me. Of course, it was too big for me to bear it alone.]
After hearing until there, I asked.
"You… created the ability users?"
She answered.
[Yes, Hero-nim.]
Author"s note:
Huu, one secret has been revealed.
I"m kidding, of course. I"m sure everyone understands that the secret I mentioned wasn"t about that. In any case, with this, I hope no one asks if Ciara is a heroine…
It"s the start of a new chapter. Once the talk with Ciara is over, you"ll see Shin and his companions shining within wyverns and new ability users.
I got a lot of criticisms about the girls" relationships last chapter and also a lot of encouragements. I think everyone said it because they"re fond of the story and its characters.
As I said before, not everyone can be happy. There were good advices here and there, of course! Regardless… the story will take the direction I think is best.
If there"s anything you don"t like, that"s unfortunate, but I hope you can continue to enjoy this novel. If there"s one thing I can promise you, it"s that I will be happy if you can continue with this lacking author.
Then, see you tomorrow!