Chapter 26: The Fortress of Living Armor (2)

The Awakened could be categorized into two groups.

The first group awakened abilities with latent powers suited to their nature, which come with sealed effects that would unlock over time.

The second group had abilities directly linked to their innate talent, which they activate upon fulfilling certain conditions.

Yoo Seh-Eun swung a longsword floating in the air while listening to Kim Ki-Rok's explanation.

—The abilities of A or S-Class Hunters are more potent than awakened abilities. People say that reaching those classes is a matter of luck, but that's simply not true.

"Are you saying that they've unlocked their sealed effect?" Yoo Seh-Eun asked.

—That's right. The method to unlock one's seal ability is quite simple. Hunt thousands or tens of thousands of monsters. Make thousands, tens of thousands of weapons, and so on. It's generally a matter of time and effort.

Bang!

Kang Seh-Hyuk blocked the Living Shield flying at him by raising his own shield.

—The same can be said for those who need to meet their conditions. Miss Ji-Yeon?

"Yes?" Lee Ji-Yeon quickly answered. She was currently focused on protecting her allies while fighting only with her sword. Otherwise, her flames would melt the armor and make it more difficult for everyone.

—Miss Ji-Yeon, your condition was that you needed to encounter an Elemental. But like many Awakened who need to unlock their sealed effects, you had naturally encountered an Elemental and awakened your talent as an Elementalist.

"Is that... so?"

—Did you think it was a coincidence that you discovered the Garden of Flames?

"Pardon?"

—Earth created a system to protect itself, and it awakened those with talent.

"So you are saying that the Garden of Flames was summoned at Jirisan National Park because I happened to be there?" Lee Ji-Yeon was a bit skeptical.

—The system that was created by Earth summoned the Gate.

"B-but I might not have gone inside the Gate."

—You would have. Fire elemental power was seeping out from the Garden of Flames. You possessed the qualities of a fire Elementalist and would have felt a sense of... How should I put it? Familiarity? Something like that.

Lee Ji-Yeon had an idea of what Kim Ki-Rok was alluding to.

—Well, everything is a theory derived from determinism and consequentialism. But I guess you're right. You might not have gone inside the Gate. I'm not sure what would have happened in that case.

"What?"

—

Haha!

Didn't I tell you? It's just a guess of mine.

"Ah."

Kim Ki-Rok said that his theories were nothing but guesses, but they seemed quite plausible.

***

"Teacher!" Kang Seh-Hyuk spoke up as they were having lunch.

Kim Ki-Rok tilted his head at the unexpected title as he looked at Kang Seh-Hyuk who was already eating ice cream after finishing his meal.

Teacher?

"Yes, student Seh-Hyuk?"

Kang Seh-Hyuk smiled softly, a bit shocked as if he hadn't considered that Kim Ki-Rok would play along with his joke. "You said that sealed effects would be unlocked with time."

"That's right."

"But there are some among B-Class and A-Class Hunters who have not unlocked their abilities yet. What would be the reason for that?"

"It's simple. But keep in mind that this is just another guess of mine."

"Right!"

"It's because they are settled."

Kang Seh-Hyuk didn't quite understand what he meant.

"It's a bit vague to call it a hidden condition," Kim Ki-Rok explained, briefly tapping the table with his fingers to organize his thoughts. "You must hunt monsters five levels above or below your current level."

"So, you're saying that slaying monsters six levels lower would not meet the condition to unlock the sealed effect?"

"That's right. Those who have not yet unlocked their abilities are Hunters who have 'settled' and have lost their potential to grow."

"Then, would things have changed if they had known their abilities could be unlocked?" Yoo Seh-Eun inquired.

Kim Ki-Rok cautiously shook his head in response. "We're talking about Hunters who have stayed complacent despite living with the reality of monsters invading Earth through Gates. These sorts of people would have only used their newly-unlocked abilities to satisfy their desires."

"No way..."

Kim Ki-Rok went on to elaborate, "There are guilds that monopolize Gates by collaborating with those in power, even though they are not qualified to receive Sovereignty. You've heard of such guilds, correct?"

It was a topic that had come up quite often among Hunters. Many guilds claimed a monopoly over Gates even though they did not meet the qualifications to back up their claim.

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

The Five Siblings of Mapogu nodded in agreement. This was also partly why the siblings were so cautious about joining a guild.

While watching his companions lost in thought, Kim Ki-Rok enjoyed his dessert.

In a few of his previous Attempts, Kim Ki-Rok had revealed this information to the general public, but the results had not been great.

Although the number of Awakened who had unlocked their sealed effects had increased overall, those who had unlocked their abilities this way only used them to fulfill their desires.

These Hunters monopolized Gates to prevent new Awakened from unlocking their abilities and engaged in wars with other guilds to increase their influence. This resulted in a weakened line of defense against upcoming monster waves. This trend did not change over multiple Attempts; it was a fact proven through numerous endeavors.

As such, another hypothesis could be made.

"Perhaps this is a selection done by the system."

"Selection?"

"To distinguish those who have given up on growth from those who still make an effort."

"Why? Wouldn't those who have clear goals make more effort?"

"Perhaps the system only awakens those with talent and does not consider the inclinations of whoever possessed those talents."

It was a somewhat convincing theory.

In the world of sports, some athletes were often described as having "devilish talent." This term was used for individuals whose natural abilities and talents far outweigh their mental resilience or work ethic.

However, Awakened individuals were not the same as ordinary athletes. They were able to exert physical force on others and even commit murder. To prevent such individuals from growing like weed, Kim Ki-Rok had kept his knowledge on sealed effects a secret.

If that was the case, just how much was he actually aware of?

In the heavy silence, Kim Ki-Rok spoke again, "Of course, it's just a theory."

***

There were three ways to acquire skills.

The first was through Awakening.

The second was through Gate rewards.

And the third was through effort.

Effort, In this context, meant exactly what the word implied: the relentless practice of a skill.

For example, if someone chose a sword as their primary weapon and practiced their swordsmanship through real-life combat...

[

Swordsmanship (E)

]

Description: Increases one's understanding of swordsmanship and swords.

The skill, Swordsmanship, would be created. Since this skill increased one's understanding of the way of the sword, it was difficult to expect a dramatic increase in one's strength from simply acquiring the skill. Nonetheless, there was a difference in skill between Awakened who possessed Swordsmanship and those who did not.

"And Discernment falls under the second category."

"The second?" When Kim Ji-Hee looked up, Kim Ki-Rok gently patted her head.

"No, it's nothing. Oh look, something interesting is coming up."

Kim Ji-Hee's focus returned to the smartphone. Kim Ki-Rok patted her head again.

Discernment was a superior version of Appraisal. However, ordinary Awakened individuals did not feel the need to acquire this skill because they could already appraise objects through the system the moment they had awakened. It didn't help that the only way to acquire Discernment was through Gate rewards.

The problem was that the Gate had not yet appeared, and even if the Gate had appeared, one had to meet difficult conditions before destroying the Gate to receive its hidden special rewards.

"Well,

I

know how to get it," Kim Ki-Rok said to himself.

He hadn't been able to get the skill on his very first Attempt. After growing as a Hunter to a certain extent and accumulating Attempts, Kim Ki-Rok had discovered this Gate. It was only after he had cleared the Gate on his 10th Attempt that he fortunately stumbled across the hidden conditions.

"

Hehe.

" Kim Ji Hee's laughter echoed in the air.

She was perched on top of Kim Ki-Rok's lap, completely engrossed in her smartphone, her legs dangling and swinging.

Kang Woo-Hyuk, on the other hand, was hammering away at a monster's corpse, wearing an artifact enchanted with silence magic to prevent monsters from being drawn to the sound.

The makeshift forge he had set up was fully equipped with everything needed for crafting—a portable furnace, anvil, hammer, quenching tank, and more—leaving no issues for the task at hand.

Kim Ki-Rok hesitated for a moment before sneaking a glance. "Hmm, it's getting close to dinner time... Will they be okay?"

Kim Ji-Hee, who was watching a variety show and laughing brightly, no longer showed any of the tension she had when they first met.

Looks like they will be fine.

***

After having breakfast, the Hunters headed deeper into the Gate, returning before lunch. After they ate for the second time, they would head in again and return before dinner. Once their third meal was over at 7 p.m., they ended their Gate activities for the day.

From then on, they would rest at the base camp near the entrance, guarding Kang Woo-Hyuk as he crafted equipment using materials from the monster corpses.

"I'll leave guard duty to you, then," Kim Ki-Rok said.

"Oh, yes. Understood."

Meanwhile, Kim Ki-Rok, Kim Ji-Hee, and Lee Ji-Yeon prepared to set off.

"We've got some guild-related business," Kim Ki-Rok explained.

Having already been briefed about this earlier, The Five Siblings of Mapogu immediately switched to rest mode.

"Alright then, Miss Ji-Yeon. Let's go."

"Yes." Lee Ji-Yeon nodded.

"Ji-Hee, are you ready?"

"Yes!" she cheerfully replied, holding Lee Ji-Yeon's hand with her left hand and Kim Ki-Rok's with her right.

Once they passed through the corridors of the castle and The Five Siblings of Mapogu were out of sight, Lee Ji-Yeon asked worriedly, "Is it really alright for just the three of us to go?"

The stats of spectral monsters increased by 30% when the moon rose in the evening.

"There shouldn't be a problem." Kim Ki-Rok sounded confident. "We have no worries, thanks to Ji-Hee's abilities."

"What?"

Lee Ji-Yeon had heard that Kim Ji-Hee had awakened her abilities, but when she probed for more information, Kim Ki-Rok simply said that she was in for a treat.

"Is it related to monsters?"

"No. It's more like..." Kim Ki-Rok's voice trailed off and stopped walking, prompting Lee Ji-Yeon to quickly scan their surroundings.

Sure enough, the Living Sword—a longsword imbued with a soul—was flying toward them from the front.

"Ine!"

Lee Ji-Yeon hastily prepared her elemental spell. However, there was no need to fire her flaming arrows.

The Living Sword, which had been speeding toward them, suddenly stopped in front of Kim Ji-Hee. As she stared at it, the Living Sword began spinning in place like an excited puppy.

"

Hehehe.

"

Kim Ji-Hee patted the handle of the Living Sword as if it were a pet.

"Ji-Hee's awakened skill is Spiritualism. It's a skill that allows users to communicate with souls and borrow their powers."