Chapter 43

Chapter 18. Two Hearts (1)

Yeonwoo tried to get up to express his gratitude.

"You just woke up, so lie down. It will take some time for your senses to stabilize."

'Senses?'

Yeonwoo realized that the heightened sensitivity was due to Galiard.

"I did some work on your body."

Galiard said this while placing a bowl on the table.

Yeonwoo slightly furrowed his brows.

"What do you mean by that?"

"You were trying to strengthen your body, right? But during your unconscious state, I had to protect your body, so I asked for your help."

"That's true."

Galiard folded his arms and snorted.

"But your method was wrong."

Yeonwoo's eyes sparkled.

"Please explain in detail."

"You enlarged the inner core of the Akasha snake through abnormal means, and before that, you ate something of similar potency."

He was talking about the Puppet Setsum.

Yeonwoo nodded.

"Even one of those potent elixirs would be hard to digest, let alone eating them consecutively. How could your body possibly endure it?"

Galiard clicked his tongue and continued.

"You might have thought you had a method prepared and that your body could handle it. But you were on the verge of either going berserk or exploding."

Only then did Yeonwoo understand why Galiard had worked on his body.

Since he was about to die, Galiard must have used some method to stabilize his energy.

Galiard was a well-known hunter even among the Dark Elves.

It wouldn't be surprising if he knew a few secret techniques.

"So, I did what I could, but it was only possible because you had almost no mana. If you had more, it would have been much more difficult. Next time, don't eat things recklessly, unless you're a real dragon."

For a moment, Yeonwoo almost said, "My body is contracted with a dragon."

'What a waste of effort.'

Yeonwoo barely managed to suppress a laugh.

His body was fundamentally different from that of ordinary players.

He had achieved Reinforced Bone and was in the process of inheritance, so he could handle it.

But Galiard knew nothing about this.

Moreover, Yeonwoo was a benefactor who had found the item Galiard was looking for.

He couldn't just leave him.

'Maybe the mana circuit inside me was created for this reason.'

Yeonwoo asked Galiard.

"So, did you alter the mana circulation to calm the mana surge?"

Galiard grumbled, displeased.

"I used the same method as when making the Chalice of Undine. I also used what you originally had to suppress the surge. Do you know how much work that took?"

"Thank you."

"Huh? You're trying to pay me with just a thank you?"

"I'll repay you when I get the chance."

"Don't say things you don't mean. At least your mouth is working well, so you seem to be recovering."

Galiard waved his hand, signaling for Yeonwoo to rest, and left the cave. Just before closing the door, he added softly.

"And, thank you."

* * *

Galiard said the secret technique he used was called the 'Divine Water of Undine.'

It involved applying the method used to create the Chalice of Undine to the human body.

'Can the human body be used like the Chalice of Undine? I never knew that.'

However, just as the Chalice of Undine is a vessel that can contain the Akasha, which cannot exist in the physical world, it seemed possible to use the human body as a vessel to contain a large amount of mana.

It would be a much more complex process, though.

Moreover, Galiard said the amount of surging mana was too much, so he used the Chalice of Undine that Yeonwoo originally had to create the vessel.

As a result, Yeonwoo, without intending to, absorbed mana much more easily while he was asleep, and his body and senses had advanced to a higher level.

It was like he had gained a fortuitous opportunity.

Once Yeonwoo adapted to his new senses, he went outside the cave to stretch his body.

Galiard grumbled, annoyed.

"You should rest for at least four more days to fully recover!"

Ssssh!

"…If your healing speed is fast enough, you can move around."

Galiard watched Yeonwoo freely jumping around the rocky mountain and trailed off.

He then looked at Yeonwoo with a stunned expression.

How could someone who was just severely injured and had just left the sickbed move like that?

Moreover, his movement with the Swift Step was now perfectly suited to him, as if it had always been his specialty.

But Yeonwoo was also surprised.

'Is this what it feels like to use mana?'

Until now, Yeonwoo had never properly used mana. If he did, it was just the minimum required to activate a skill.

But now that he could control mana as he wished, it was different.

Just by infusing his legs with mana, his movement with the Swift Step was incomparably better than before.

He could jump higher and move faster.

Especially when he first climbed the rocky mountain where Galiard's cave was, it was like rock climbing. Now, he could ascend with just a few steps and land lightly.

It felt as if the weight of his body had disappeared.

It wasn't that his proficiency had drastically increased.

It had only risen by about 1%, but the difference was significant.

'Maybe everything I knew about skills and movements was inefficient.'

It was said that most players in the tutorial could handle mana.

One had to be able to do that to be qualified to challenge the tutorial. Mastery of mana was also the standard for becoming a powerful player.

Yet, Yeonwoo had never known how to handle mana.

He didn't even understand the concept, let alone the method.

He had only rolled and collided, steadily stacking his stat multipliers.

But with that alone, he had passed through Sector E, defeated Harugan, and even faced off against Kan, a top-tier player.

All through physical ability.

Now that he had the missing fuel, mana, the difference from before was incomparable.

Thud!

Yeonwoo lightly spun in mid-air and landed on the ground.

Despite the intense movement, his breathing was easy. There was only a slight sweat on his forehead.

In fact, his body felt refreshed, as if he had just woken up from a good sleep.

The fatigue he had accumulated while lying in bed had melted away like snow.

'If this is how it feels with the inheritance at 92%, how much more will my body change when the remaining 8% is completed?'

Yeonwoo wiped the sweat from his forehead and checked his mana circuit again.

A smile formed on his lips.

* * *

Once he finished checking his body, Yeonwoo immediately confirmed the quest rewards.

The more items he had, the better.

'Before I fainted, I completed two quests, right?'

One was the hidden quest, the Resurrection Ritual, and the other was the sudden quest, the Monster Rush.

Since both were resolved by Yeonwoo, he received the rewards for both quests.

Fortunately, the rewards didn't materialize until he confirmed them, so nothing was lost.

'Let's start with the hidden quest.'

The reward for the Resurrection Ritual was marked with a question mark, so he didn't know what it was.

But when he pressed 'Receive,' a dark bracelet fell onto his palm.

[Reward: '???’s Black Bracelet]

'What is this? The name can't be confirmed?'

Yeonwoo furrowed his brows.

The artifact given as a reward looked plain and even crude, like an old bracelet.

Usually, good artifacts have a grand or beautiful appearance.

This one had none of that.

Moreover, the feeling that accompanied the artifact was too ordinary.

Still, it was a reward for defeating the Akasha snake.

Out of curiosity, he appraised it.

[???’s Black Bracelet]

Category: Wrist Guard

Grade: ???

Description: A bracelet cherished by the owner of the Akasha snake, ??? The Akasha snake longed for its great owner and hoped for his return, so it always kept the owner's memento in its belly.

* Spirit Attribution

The owner can collect the soul of a defeated target with a certain probability. The soul becomes a wraith, losing all memories and power, retaining only deep resentment.

* Black Blade

The owner can convert mana into dark attributes by consuming attributed wraiths. When applied to a weapon, it can curse the injured enemy.

* ???

Inactive (Sealed)

* ???

Inactive (Sealed)

* ???

Inactive (Sealed)

**This artifact is 'Unique.' Only one exists in the Tower, and it fully belongs to the owner. It cannot be traded or transferred to others.

**Some functions are sealed and can only be unlocked with certain qualifications or conditions.

**Some information cannot be viewed and can only be accessed with certain qualifications or conditions.

'If it's unique, it must have good potential, but I can't know more.'

The black bracelet had quite unique inherent options among uniques.

Spirit Attribution and Black Blade.

'To collect the souls of defeated targets? What a sinister hobby.'

Binding the souls so they can't rest and using them as tools to be destroyed at will.

This was rare.

'Maybe the original owner was a demon?'

To understand the detailed usage of the unique, information about the original owner was essential.

But the information was thoroughly blocked.

It seemed he couldn't fully harness the power of the artifact.

But.

'What does it matter?'

He could gradually uncover the identity of the original owner.

For now, if it was useful to him, that was enough.

And this artifact seemed to be a great help to him.

Of course, compared to Batouri's vampiric sword, which could steal skills and abilities, the black bracelet was lacking in many aspects as a unique.

But Yeonwoo noticed the three sealed options.

'Perhaps the true power of the black bracelet is sealed here, like the original owner's authority.'

The inability to measure the grade also meant it wasn't fully open to Yeonwoo yet.

Such an artifact couldn't be easily obtained.

Click!

Yeonwoo opened the bracelet and put it on his right wrist.

It fit perfectly with a satisfying click.

Then.

Sssss—

Black energy rose like mist from the bracelet and seeped into his arm.

Yeonwoo was startled but realized it was the artifact recognizing its owner, so he watched quietly.

If anything went wrong, he could block it with mana.

The black energy traveled through his veins and seeped into his mana circuit, slowly rising.

At the same time, black lumps formed along the whites of his eyes and began to spread.

Then, things he couldn't see before started to appear.

[Due to the influence of '???’s Black Bracelet,' you have gained the ability to see dead souls.]

[This ability has been attributed to 'Dragon Eye.' The skill proficiency of 'Dragon Eye' has increased to 13.5%.]

Woo— Woo—

Faint, grayish things were floating in the air.

They looked like rag dolls with only their eyes and mouths cut out.

Thousands of them were swirling around Yeonwoo.

They seemed to notice that Yeonwoo was 'seeing' them and suddenly stopped moving, turning their heads toward him.

They raised their eyebrows and growled.

Clear hostility.

Their aura was filled with deep resentment.

They weren't a threat, though.

Yeonwoo thought he knew what these were.

'They are monsters that died because of me or were eaten by the Akasha snake.'

Considering they all fell victim to Yeonwoo's schemes, it wasn't strange that they harbored resentment and followed him even after death.

But he didn't expect so many to follow him.

'Have I been dragging these around all this time? It's surprising I haven't been cursed.'

He wasn't afraid, though.

In fact, he thought it was good.

Thanks to this, a new function was added to the Dragon Eye, and the ghosts were everywhere, making it a good opportunity to test the artifact's performance.

Yeonwoo gripped Karsuna's dagger in reverse and swung it fiercely at the ghosts.

They tried to escape, sensing danger, but they weren't fast enough, and one of them was cut diagonally.

Sssss.

The white ghost was torn by black mist and seeped into the black bracelet.

[Number of attributed wraiths: 1]

A small message appeared in the corner of his vision.

'So, that's how it works.'

Yeonwoo infused mana into the black bracelet and this time held Karsuna's dagger normally.

He was going to use the Black Blade.

[Number of attributed wraiths: 0]

The count decreased by one.

Whoosh!

This time, a slight black aura swirled around the blade.

'Dark attribute mana.'

Yeonwoo's eyes sparkled.

The dark attribute was one of the rarest among various attributes, along with the light attribute.

Moreover, it was a sought-after buff by many players.

It increased attack power for allies and cursed enemies.

It was the most specialized attribute for attacks.

Yeonwoo increased the dark mana and turned the dagger to the right to test its power.

The dagger scraped the rock forcefully.

Boom!

It not only cut the rock diagonally but also sent a withered tree on the other side flying.

'It's even better than I imagined.'

Yeonwoo cheered at the superior effect.

Given that it was a relic of the owner who controlled the Akasha snake, it seemed to be more powerful than he thought.

Moreover, the cut areas of the rock and tree were starting to corrode.

It was accompanied by a curse attribute.

Yeonwoo stroked the black bracelet and his eyes sparkled.

'Maybe...'

A good idea came to him.

If the black bracelet had this much functionality.

What would happen if he combined it with other skills?

Yeonwoo caught five more fleeing ghosts and this time gathered them not on a weapon but on his palm.

The black mist gathered and formed a sphere.

Yeonwoo added another skill.

[Flame]

The moment the skill to produce flames was integrated.

Boom!

A violent explosion occurred right in front of him.

An explosion powerful enough to easily shatter the head of an orc or lizardman.

Yeonwoo quickly used the Swift Step to move away from the explosion range.

The spot where he had been a moment ago was filled with a thick burn mark and the smell of burning.

A section of the ground about three meters wide had been blown away.

Seeing this, Yeonwoo smiled.

Using only five wraiths produced this much effect.

'What if I unleashed all the ones around me at once?'

Yeonwoo looked at the thousands of ghosts surrounding him and swallowed hard.