< Chapter 69: The True Way to Use It (1)>
In the end, we couldn’t find the ‘The Report of Nature Ascending.’
Both I and the other two were disappointed until the very end. But what could we do? The sun had set, and we still couldn’t find a clue.
All we could do was hope for the best.
“Goldie, don’t you think you’re too tame, no matter how much you think about it?”
“Nyaa?”
I was currently washing the dirt-covered Goldie and blow-drying him. I remembered reading somewhere that feline creatures dislike getting wet. But this one really enjoys showers.
Whenever I immersed myself in the bath, he would quietly join, rest his face on my shoulder, and with all his strength drained, let out a “Nyaaaa…” It’s hard to believe he’s a tiger by looking at him.
“Do you like the water? Or do you just like being with me?”
Under the gentle breeze, Goldie’s golden fur rippled.
Goldie slightly lifted his head and let out a small meow.
It was as if he was saying, ‘I like both!’
“Aww, you’re cute.”
I couldn’t help but smile at his actions.
It now seems like he truly understands everything I say, 100%.
It feels like Goldie’s intelligence is growing by the day.
No, in fact, his overall abilities, including intelligence, are indeed increasing.
Thanks to the [Guardian].
“Alright. You’re all dry.”
I put down the hairdryer, picked up Goldie, and headed to the bed. With a sleepy-faced Goldie on my lap, I unfolded the gift from my brother, the [Racial Traits Encyclopedia].
Swish-
I quickly flipped through the pages, re-checking the traits of the dragon race. I skimmed over the traits with incredibly amazing effects and finally found the trait I was looking for.
[Guardian’s Contract]
This was the real name of the skill that bound Goldie and me, which I had been referring to as [Guardian].
[With mutual consent, a guardian contract can be established.]
[The contracted guardian absorbs the residual magic lingering near its master, aiding its growth. During this period, the guardian tends to sleep a lot.]
[Each entity has a different growth direction, and their special abilities vary greatly.]
[Caution: Until the guardian is fully grown, a subsequent contract cannot be formed.]
The effects matched what I had anticipated.
The size adjustment must be one of Goldie’s special abilities.
And my previous suspicions of ‘Why does Goldie sleep so much?’ were clarified.
I had experimented several times with the fact that overlapping contracts weren’t allowed.
What I needed to pay careful attention to was the last cautionary sentence.
“So, once you’re fully grown, we can form another contract.”
Only now did I understand why the dragons in the original story had multiple guardians with them.
Well, considering I don’t know when Goldie’s growth will end, this warning isn’t particularly significant at the moment.
“Hmm?”
I heard a purring sound from beneath the book and saw that Goldie had fallen completely asleep. This must be due to his growth.
I gently turned the page, making sure not to wake Goldie.
Swish-
My goal was to review the skill effects of the racial traits I’m familiarizing myself with.
First, the Elf race section:
[Guardian of the Bow]
[Path of the Wind]
[Wind’s Arrow(?)]
Out of these, the effects of ‘Guardian of the Bow’ and ‘Path of the Wind’ matched more than 90% with what I knew.
[Guardian of the Bow]
[Increased proficiency with the bow]
[Faint Footsteps]
[Enhanced Vision]
[Path of the Wind]
[Suggests ways to dodge and counter depending on the opponent’s actions]
[Shows a slight effect on the flow of magic]
The problem lies with [Wind’s Arrow].
“…It was truly a pearl necklace on a pig’s neck.”
I had been using the ‘Wind’s Arrow’ incorrectly.
Harnessing the wind on the arrow to increase its speed, unaffected by the wind’s influence… These were mere side effects.
[Wind’s Arrow (?)]
[Can condense wind to use as an ‘arrow’.]
[The intensity of the arrow varies according to the owner’s magical power.]
This was the true effect of the ‘Wind’s Arrow’.
Now, after fire and lightning, I can also manipulate the wind element.
“Triple attributes.”
Moreover, the synergy between the fire and wind attributes is staggering. The video of the S-rank superhuman top rankers, ‘Witch of Fire’ and ‘Emperor of Wind’, teaming up to defeat a disaster-class monster with a single strike is still legendary.
There’s a penalty of only being able to create synergy with a bow, but it’s still a huge advantage. It can be a secret weapon when out of arrows.
The issue is, of course, magical power.
At the moment, I can’t properly control even one attribute, let alone two.
In the end, magical power is the problem.
I sighed softly and turned the page.
The traits of beastmen, angels, and elemental clans weren’t much different from what I knew.
The only peculiar thing was that the actual name of the ‘Predator’s Killing Intent’ trait, which I had arbitrarily named, was truly ‘Predator’s Killing Intent’.
I was shocked.
Should I admire my naming sense, or criticize the God who named the skill so casually?
…Wait, does it mean my thoughts overlap with that God’s? Is that a bad thing?
I shook off such silly thoughts and turned the page again.
[List of Giant Clan Traits]
Finally, the most recently acquired Giant Clan trait was recorded.
“…So that’s why.”
It seemed to be a strength enhancement trait. I had cheered when I got it, but it hadn’t worked as expected. Now, I knew its exact effect.
[Overwhelming Strength]
[A racial trait all giants acquire during their coming-of-age ceremony.]
[Physical strength increases by 1 rank.]
1 rank increase, a very cheat-like effect.
It’s like a bonus point, but without any limits. Truly overpowered.
If I can raise my strength to its maximum potential at A-rank, I can easily reach S-rank.
The issue is the caution note at the bottom.
[Note: The effect is very minimal on strength below C-rank.]
[Those with strength below B-rank are not considered ‘giants’.]
It was a trait that made the strong even stronger.
My strength is, at best, E-rank.
No wonder I didn’t feel its effect.
“…When will I reach B-rank?”
While a single rank up is certainly good news, it feels a bit unsettling since it’s not immediate.
“No.”
I should think positively.
Once I achieve B-rank, I’ll have the strength of A-rank. That’s a huge advantage later on.
Isn’t that a big win for the end game?
“…Ah. But there’s a well-known theory that if you focus too much on the end game, you might mess up the early stages.”
I felt a surge of anxiety.
“Come on. There’s still plenty of time.”
I forcefully brushed off such negative thoughts.
I just have to raise it close to B-rank. That’s all.
* * *
The Monday lesson was a mock battle in preparation for the tournament.
“Next. Kang Seo-yul. Kim Min-su.”
“Yes.”
My opponent is the 178th-ranked swordsman.
He’s someone who balances offense and defense in his combat technique.
His abilities are balanced, and he has a straightforward character.
He’s a decent swordsman who would be average in any party.
“Seo-yul, could you let me hit you just once?”
“No, I can’t.”
In other words, his combat style is easy to understand because it lacks distinctiveness.
He’s perfect prey for my ‘Path of the Wind’.
“Ah! Seriously! Come on!”
I’ve been focused on dodging his attacks for 10 minutes already.
“How long are you going to dodge?”
“Until one of us gets tired and falls?”
If I had counterattacked, the battle would have ended long ago.
But I’m solely focused on evasion. The reason is simple.
I can see the ‘Path of the Wind’ more clearly.
The color has become more intense, and the headache specific to the ‘Path of the Wind’ has completely disappeared.
Before, my head would hurt after just 5 minutes, but now I feel fine even after 10 minutes. There’s hardly any pain in my tattoo.
In other words, I’m starting to fully incorporate the ‘Path of the Wind’.
That’s why I’m dragging out the battle as long as possible.
Opportunities like this don’t come often.
“Do you dislike me? Did I make a mistake with you?”
After swinging his sword for over 10 minutes and getting exhausted, he asked while panting.
“No mistake. I just need some dodge training. It’s not common for you to focus solely on attacking, right? Let’s enjoy this.”
Even though my stamina might be 2 ranks lower than his, I’m still fine.
The reason is simple.
My evasion movements aren’t big. The smaller the movement, the less stamina is consumed.
“Okay, but I will land at least one hit!”
I felt his approaching sword and its red trail and dodged it precisely, just by a paper-thin margin.
Big movements weren’t necessary for such dodges. Half a glance was enough.
“Whew.”
“Yikes!”
Perhaps he’s getting irritated, as his sword swings started to become more erratic.
One strike.
Another.
They’ve become unpredictable.
Part of it might be due to fatigue and weakening strength.
Still, I continued dodging his sword.
“Wow, look at those cool moves.”
“The epitome of simplicity.”
“Oh, what a good way to put it!”
The epitome of simplicity.
I overheard such a phrase from the observing students.
It was quite a pleasing phrase.
“Oh!”
I exclaimed, seeing the sword graze my hair.
That was a close one.
Is it because he’s exhausted?
My ‘Path of the Wind’ foresight slightly misaligned.
That’s understandable.
Even if it’s the ‘Path of the Wind’, how could it anticipate the sword’s trajectory changing due to a loosened grip at the last moment?
…Interesting.
I smiled.
Whoosh!
Indeed.
The ‘Path of the Wind’ isn’t perfect foresight.
It only provides a path close to perfection.
It’s my role to act on that foresight.
How exhausted the opponent is.
What mistakes will occur.
What variables arise from those mistakes.
Information the ‘Path of the Wind’ doesn’t show.
I reminded myself of all this information again.
“Haah!”
The next moment.
A very bold trace was drawn.
A red wind filled with desperation was felt, but strangely, it was loose.
Whoosh-
According to the path indicated by Path of the Wind, one could perfectly evade the sword strike by moving half a step to the left.
However, I moved my body the opposite way.
For some reason, I felt I had to.
Perhaps it was an intuition, similar to the sensation I get from the trait, [Master of the Weapon].
Just like that, with one precise step, I completed my evasion.
“Ugh!”
A drained noise came from the male student’s mouth.
Swish-
The grip on his sword loosened, making the entire sword waver.
Wobble.
At the same time, the lower half of his body supporting his weight swayed, and his body was pulled to one side.
As a result, the sword just barely grazed the path that Path of the Wind had indicated.
Bang!
It hit the ground.
If I had blindly trusted Path of the Wind, I would have certainly been struck this time.
“…”
It was a moment of realization.
Path of the Wind is not perfect.
Path of the Wind is a remarkable trait that suggests a path based on the opponent’s best effort, almost like a prediction. However, if the opponent is not at their best, there are flaws.
For instance, an opponent swinging a sword with a weakened grip can bring about unforeseen variables, which even Path of the Wind can’t read.
Path of the Wind is, after all, just one of the options. The one to choose is none other than myself.
Realizing such an obvious thing only now…
I bitterly smiled.
“Ah. I really can’t go on anymore. I surrender!”
The male student simply plopped down. I sheathed my dagger and extended my hand towards him.
“You worked hard. Thanks to you, it was a great training session.”
“Are you giving me the disease and then the cure?”
Using my hand as support, he got up from the ground.
“By taking out the power and swinging, the technique seemed more powerful.”
“Thanks, even if it’s just empty words.”
I wouldn’t have had this realization if this friend hadn’t given his best in the attack.
* * *
After the morning training session.
“Whoa~”
I was exclaiming in admiration in the private shower room. I couldn’t help but admire my reflection in the mirror.
“Nice, nice.”
It wasn’t for narcissistic reasons, like feeling like my muscles seemed bigger or that I looked particularly good today.
“Finally, Path of the Wind has been fully assimilated.”
The World Tree tattoo on my right shoulder blade had changed from red to green.
How could I not admire such a change?
“It seems like my face hasn’t changed.”
Even though my charm should have increased, there were no noticeable changes in my face. Perhaps this means my face is perfect and shouldn’t be altered any further. If so, it implies that all the increased charm points have been invested into transforming my physical structure.
Could it be that the limit of my physical ability growth has now reached S rank?
Judging by the fact that the pain from the Predator’s Blade tattoo is gradually diminishing, it seems that full assimilation isn’t too far off.
“Hehe.”
I held back occasional bursts of laughter as I finished my shower.
