Chapter 6

"Ugh!"

It hurt so much that a groan escaped his lips. His concentration was disrupted, and what he was doing came to a halt.

‘Ugh, if only my head didn’t hurt, I could treat it more.’

Still, the hope that it could be treated gave him some comfort.

He had read 3,000 books, but there were still more left.

Especially the magic books.

He tried to finish reading them, but he couldn't even get through one page before giving up.

That was because while he could skim through books in Korean without much thought, the magic books written in runes kept making his brain analyze the rune system, even when he tried not to think about it.

This immediately triggered a headache.

‘Sigh, I’ll try the runes after treating the meridian blockage more.’

Even for a short moment, by using precise analysis, he could see the mana pathways in his body and understand that they were the cause of chronic headaches, chronic fatigue, and cold extremities.

The mere fact that there was a way to treat it was hopeful.

He closed his eyes for a few minutes until the headache subsided, and when it improved, he opened his eyes.

‘Let’s find the second Easter Egg.’

He had already found the book related to the second Easter Egg.

After opening the book, he boldly tore it.

Rustle~ Crunch.

Crazy.

Are you eating the book right now?

Yes, he was eating it.

It was a special book made of papyrus.

123 pages.

He didn’t know why it had this number, but there was a picture of a hero eating paper inside.

Did someone get a hint from this and find the hidden Easter Egg?

Not him, but a hardcore fan on the internet.

After swallowing a page, the effect appeared.

Looking at his status window, his Physical attribute rose from FF to F.

To be precise, it changed from FF(FF) to F(F).

Ancient magic was powerful. It not only overcame chronic headaches and meridian blockage but also raised his Physical attribute by one level.

It felt like one of the many tight bands around his head, like Sun Wukong’s golden circlet, had been removed.

Now, he felt that he could think without the sensation of being pricked by thousands of needles.

He tested his memory of the upcoming Easter Eggs, and the usual headache didn’t come.

After about 30 seconds, the signal started to come, but it was a significant improvement.

Before, the signal would come after just a few seconds of thinking.

Not only that, but the coldness in his fingers and toes, which felt like they were freezing, had slightly subsided.

Next, his eyes felt stronger, and he could read the text on distant books a bit better.

It felt like his vision had improved from 0.1 to 0.4.

People with good eyesight might say, "What’s the difference? It’s about the same, right?"

But compare the sizes of the letters on the eye chart.

0.1 and 0.4!

They are clearly different.

About 2-3 times wider and 2-3 times taller?

Does that make it more tangible now?

‘It’s really nice that my hands and feet are a bit less cold.’

Anyone who has suffered from cold extremities would understand his feelings.

The unfortunate part was that this Easter Egg unconditionally raised his Physical attribute by one level, but he used it to raise the lowest F to E.

The higher you go, the harder it is to raise by one level.

If he had used it when his Physical was B, it would have become A, and if it was A, it would have become S.

He had a reason for using it despite knowing this.

First, there’s a saying, "If you’re too frugal, you’ll end up wasting it."

He knew it would be better to use it later, but would he even be alive until then?

Second, his body was too weak right now.

He wanted to get out of his abnormal condition as soon as possible.

Now, with two Easter Eggs found, was it the end?

No.

There was one more.

He took out a book filled with runes.

Opening it to the middle, a picture of an altar appeared.

He placed the book in the center and took out six more books filled with runes.

Although he didn’t know much about runes, he could quickly pick out the right books because he had seen them many times.

He arranged the six books to form a virtual hexagram, placing one at each point.

Next, he took candles from the drawer of the study desk, placed one on each of the six books, and lit them.

‘Sigh, let’s chant the spell.’

The spell was...

"Avada Kedavra~ Avada Kedavra~"

Thanks to a certain girl group, it was easy to remember.

Interestingly, all the spells used to find Easter Eggs, hidden dungeons, and other secrets in the game were the same: Avada Kedavra.

Flames appeared on the book with the altar.

However, the book on the floor didn’t burn, which was a strange phenomenon.

Now came the important part.

He threw the books he had memorized into the flames one by one.

One, two, three...

Although he had already read them, they were valuable and it was painful to throw them away.

But he endured for the Easter Egg.

Each time he threw a book, the flames consumed it without even producing smoke.

Strangely, the ashes were also invisible.

After burning 100 books...

“Cough, cough. No.”

It was still not enough.

He wanted a greater blessing.

Although his Physical had improved, he was still coughing.

He threw books into the flames without much thought...

When he reached 500 books, a question appeared.

“Cough, cough. No!”

Again, it was rejected.

Holding a book in each hand, he alternately pushed them into the flames.

When he reached 1,000 books, a question appeared, but he ignored it.

At 2,000 books, instead of a question, the Archmage Vizhon appeared.

His appearance was not that of a living human but more like a hologram.

A hologram made of fire.

Lava-like substance kept flowing from his body, but the interesting part was that nothing burned from the flowing lava or the flames.

He should have stopped here. That’s what happened in the game.

‘Should I offer more sacrifices?’

He had this thought because the Easter Egg had changed earlier.

“Cough, cough. I want to offer more sacrifices.”

“I have more books here.”

With the determination to burn everything for the blessing, he said.

Why wouldn’t I find it wasteful to burn books that could be sold for money!

But if it could make my body stronger and increase my chances of survival, wouldn’t this be more important than money!

He was ready to stop if told to, but Vizhon laughed and told him to offer more.

‘Alright. I’ll use all 3,000 books I memorized without hesitation.’

He kept throwing books into the flames with his arms moving non-stop.

Keep going! Keep going! Keep going!

Finally, when he reached 3,000 books, Vizhon spoke before he could stop.

“Of course, it’s a pity. But I want a greater blessing.”

Flames suddenly engulfed his body, and a message appeared as Vizhon disappeared.

From F(F) to D(D).

“Wow! Two levels in Physical!”

He couldn’t help but shout.

If he had stopped earlier, he would have only gained one level in Physical.

He never imagined he would gain so much in the study.

‘It’s true that I invested a lot.’

3,000 books were worth thousands of gold, maybe even tens of thousands.

The most expensive were magic books, but fortunately, he didn’t use any.

Still, it was a significant amount, especially in the early stages.

‘But it’s nothing compared to the blessing I received.’

The investment paid off in a big way.

His Physical attribute rose from FF to D, a total of three levels.

It felt like a big shackle around his body had been removed.

However, his abnormal conditions didn’t disappear.

But the increase in Physical made him more resilient to them.

He could now concentrate and think for about 5 minutes.

‘Sigh, it feels like I’ve taken a step away from death.’

Is it now more livable?

Every moment, the shadow of death followed him, but now he felt a bit more free from it.

It seemed he had a bit more leeway.

***

Except for the three meals a day, he was in training from morning until he lay down in bed at night.

It was an intensive short-term course, and he was harshly criticized every time he made a mistake.

At least, the nosebleeds disappeared when his Physical rose to D, making the lessons more bearable.

Still, his body was very weak due to the remaining abnormal conditions, and he often had to stop the lessons due to severe coughing, but he never took a break.

Dudden, as his instructor, had received instructions from Bandic, so he continued the lessons no matter what.

None of the three women were exceptions.

When Dudden showed a ruthless side, he even wondered if he was a eunuch.

How could they get close in such an atmosphere?

He had played the game for a long time, and most of the characters he played were nobles, so he thought he knew noble etiquette to some extent, but it was a misconception.

Dudden was meticulous, pointing out even the smallest details.

From the placement of forks and knives during meals, the differences in forks used for different foods, the posture of holding a teacup, to the conversation styles of nobles, how to treat same-sex and opposite-sex nobles, chivalry, etiquette for higher ranks, and various dances necessary in social circles.

During the lessons, there was no...

Romance.

None at all!

Having three beautiful women by his side, he felt energized just by looking at them when he was tired.

But for the three women, it seemed difficult to show even fake interest in him, no matter how they tried to package it.

With his gaunt cheeks and protruding cheekbones, and constant coughing, how could he be attractive to them?

Of course, they didn’t show any obvious dislike.

In fact, they tried to smile even when their eyes met.

‘They’re putting in quite an effort.’

But Isabel’s expression was cold even when their eyes met.

She was only thinking about killing Bandic, his three sons, and him as soon as Bandic returned.

For now, she was just watching him.

A stalking leopard.

Exactly that.

But with her sharp jawline and curvaceous figure.

It was hard to look away.

‘Sigh, how can I win Isabel’s heart?’

He couldn’t kill her at will due to the life-or-death situation.

The news of Bandic and his three sons’ deaths would surely come soon, making him anxious and making it hard to concentrate on the lessons.