Chapter 7

Using Special Feature 00007.

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How much time had passed?

“…….”

I finally opened my eyes to see the gray brick walls of the summoning room. Fortunately, it didn’t seem like it was time for the initiation ceremony yet. I felt like I could fall back asleep if I closed my eyes again, so I groaned and lifted my head to look around.

As expected, floating messages were drifting in the air. Even though I was lying down, I could see them without much trouble. I leaned my head back against the floor and began to read the messages.

『Your body has received an overwhelming internal shock. Your Vitality has permanently decreased by 10 points.』

『Congratulations. All waste and impurities inside your body have been burned away. Your vitality has been restored, and the flow of mana has become even stronger. Your Vitality has permanently increased by 2 points, and your Mana has permanently increased by 6 points.』

『The Eternal Burning Flame. A fire spirit has taken residence in your heart. The assimilation rate with the fire spirit is currently 100%.』

I was reading through them in a daze. The moment I saw the message about my Vitality decreasing, I felt a jolt of shock, as if cold water had been poured over me. As I bit my lip tightly while reading the subsequent messages, Seraph’s voice reached my ears.

“User Kim Su-hyun. Are you feeling better? Is your body okay? User Kim Su-hyun!”

At least my hearing had recovered. Just as I was about to snap at her, wondering why she was interrupting my thoughts when she could clearly see my condition, I tried to speak.

“───. ───. ───.”

‘What, what is this? Why is it just a hissing sound….’

My voice wouldn’t come out. Or rather, it did, but only as a hoarse whisper. My throat was completely shot. Feeling defeated, I tried to speak again, but only more hissing sounds came out.

‘I guess I’ll have to wait until my body fully recovers.’

I took a deep breath and called up the user information window. I planned to review the information until I recovered enough.

< User Information (Player Status) >

1. Name: Kim Su-hyun (0-year user)

2. Class: Sword Specialist (Secret, Master)

3. Nation: -

4. Clan: -

5. True Name · Nationality: A person who needs to prove their qualifications, Pre-user · Republic of Korea

6. Gender: Male (23)

7. Height · Weight: 181.5cm · 75.5kg

8. Alignment: Lawful · Neutral

(Pre-Change) [Strength 94] [Endurance 92] [Agility 98] [Vitality 78] [Mana 90] [Luck 88]

(Post-Change) [Strength 94] [Endurance 92] [Agility 98] [Vitality 70] [Mana 96] [Luck 88]

(You have 0 remaining ability points.)

< Achievements (0) >

< Unique Abilities (1/1) >

1. Third Eye (Rank: S Zero)

(Description: The Third Eye (The Third Eye) is an extraordinary ability that transcends the conventional concept of sight. It can be described as an ‘invisible eye’ linked to one’s intuition. It goes beyond simply ‘seeing’ and provides a higher-dimensional insight into all phenomena occurring in the present. While it is capable of contemplating phenomena in dimensions beyond the present, it received a 2-rank reduction due to being forcibly manifested by an unknown power rather than through personal cultivation or enlightenment. However, it received a 1-rank increase due to the influence of the fire spirit, which contains pure fire energy. In essence, nothing can deceive User Kim Su-hyun’s eyes.)

< Special Abilities (1/1) >

1. Sword and Spirit as One (Rank: Extra)

The highest realm of swordsmanship, where the user becomes the sword and the sword becomes the user. When wielding a sword, the user receives positive additional bonuses for all sword-related actions. Although the user has not yet reached the highest realm of swordsmanship, they have awakened the ultimate potential of the sword. Due to years of experience, numerous achievements, and class bonuses, the ability received a 2-rank increase.

< Potential Abilities (4/4) >

1. Close Combat (Rank: A Plus)

(Description: An ability that has surpassed the limits of handling close-combat weapons. At this level, it can be considered the pinnacle of human achievement in close combat. In close combat, the user will never be outmatched. Due to years of experience and class bonuses, the ability received a 1-rank increase.)

2. Unyielding (Rank: A Plus)

(Description: The user never gives up in battle and does not accept defeat. This resolve allows the user to continue fighting even with fatal injuries. While the user can still fight with critical injuries, their combat effectiveness is significantly reduced.)

3. True Insight (Rank: A Plus)

(Description: The ability to see through the surface and perceive the inner essence of a target. It refers to the ability to observe and sense the world or oneself. A mind that has been refined to the extreme can maintain composure even under S-rank or lower mental pollution magic.)

4. Blessing of the Battlefield (Rank: Extra)

(Description: The blessing of Athena, the goddess of peace and war. It activates only on the battlefield and is a divine blessing that a single soldier can receive on the battlefield. The user gains a broad perspective of the entire battlefield and can immediately locate allies in danger. Due to the divine nature of the blessing, it also reduces magical damage even when activated outside the battlefield. (The reduction is based on the ability’s rank and the user’s Luck stat.)

User Kim Su-hyun’s Luck stat is decent, but the numerical value applied due to the high-level blessing is higher. Therefore, the user can receive partial defense against 1-rank higher magical attacks and reduced defense against 2-rank higher magical attacks.

(You have 0 remaining ability points.)

After reading through all the user information, I felt a mix of amazement and disappointment. The randomly obtained Close Combat and Unyielding abilities were not something I could change, but they weren’t bad, and their ranks were decent. Most importantly, they were familiar abilities I had used before, which was a plus.

The only thing that truly caught me off guard was the decrease in my Vitality stat. Vitality is a crucial stat that supports all other abilities.

Vitality 70 points. I can still achieve the intended output, but the fact that my Vitality is only 70 points is definitely a concern. To use a car analogy, the design is excellent, but the engine’s durability is very unstable. If the engine overheats, there’s a risk of a tire blowout or even an explosion. In the end, the predictions Seraph and I made were half right.

I continued to ponder the issue of my Vitality, but there was no immediate solution. I couldn’t predict how many points I could accumulate in the future, but I needed to gather as many as possible to have a buffer.

‘Even though I’m a 0-year user, I brought back a 10-year-old body… It’s probably too difficult to improve through training.’

It was a problem I couldn’t solve right away. I pushed the complicated thoughts to the side and decided to focus on recovering my body. Seraph’s glare was becoming more intense, and it was probably greedy to hope for more when my current abilities were already luxurious.

……. ……. ……. ……. ……. …….

How much time had passed? It felt like about 20 minutes, but I wanted to know the exact time. Of course, Seraph would keep track, but after receiving all the special features, we had been silent. The conversation had been cut off. I closed my eyes, resigned to whatever would happen.

As time passed, my body gradually cooled down. I wasn’t dying, but it felt like the heat that had risen due to the fire spirit was dissipating. As the internal heat decreased, my bodily sensations seemed to return to normal.

I had already reviewed the user information window. For the remaining time, I calmly observed the inside of my body.

There were certainly drawbacks, but I was still alive, so I had achieved my goal. Overcoming such a difficult challenge meant that the rewards were immense. The waste and impurities that had been scattered throughout my body were completely removed, and the blocked meridians were all cleared.

That wasn’t all. The fine acupuncture points in my fingertips and toes, which had been unreachable by mana, were now fully open, an unexpected bonus. My vitality was circulating faster than before, and the speed and efficiency of my mana flow had increased dramatically. Considering that in combat, even the slightest difference can determine the outcome, I was like someone equipped with several secret weapons.

“Phew.”

Feeling that my bodily sensations had mostly returned, I sent mana to every part of my body. It flowed smoothly to the tips of my fingers and toes. Gaining confidence, I gently moved my right arm and realized my body felt much lighter than before. Of course, my joints still ached, but compared to the complete loss of sensation earlier, it was much better.

Eventually, I groaned and sat up. I lifted my head and looked directly at Seraph. She maintained a calm gaze, seemingly unimpressed, as she stared at me. My clothes were in tatters, but I didn’t feel embarrassed. After all, the woman in front of me was an angel, not a human.

I shrugged and tapped my left wrist with my right hand, asking for the time.

“It’s time to enter the initiation ceremony. Prepare yourself.”

Seraph’s voice was cold and dry. She was clearly angry. The image of her stomping her feet in frustration while looking at me just now flashed through my mind.

‘…….’

I decided to stop there. I didn’t want to engage in a pointless argument. After all, I had already achieved everything I needed.

“Prepared. Send me.”

“User Kim Su-hyun. Is your body condition okay?”

“Yeah, it’s not bad.”

“…Then I will send you now. Time is tight, so I recommend acting as quickly as possible once you enter the preparation room.”

“Yeah, yeah.” My indifferent response made Seraph frown. But she soon raised her delicate fingers and flicked them.

Click!

With the sound of her fingers touching, my body began to fade. It was as if I was being erased by an eraser.

“One last piece of advice: never let your guard down, no matter where you are. I hope you pass the initiation ceremony safely and we meet again. I wish you good luck, User Kim Su-hyun.”

“Seraph. No more nagging. When we meet next, I hope you keep your mouth shut.”

Creak, creak.

As I slightly teased her, a familiar mechanical sound rang out. Without panicking, I looked down and saw that my body was already more than two-thirds faded from the legs up. I slowly closed my eyes.

A new beginning after 10 years. A new future is about to unfold. The future that lies ahead, the future to be pioneered. A future where no one is lost and no one is in despair, a future that Kim Su-hyun will change. Thinking about it, a sense of overwhelming emotion welled up in my chest.

============================ Author's Note ============================

1. Deleted the mention of Kim Su-hyun's Vitality.

2. Corrected typos and refined the context.