Chapter 76 : Chapter 76

Chapter 76 - Usurper of Death

On the deck of the Mariella, which was covered by a transparent ceiling.

Along with the Forest Witch, Kio and Halsin had gathered in one place to look outside.

It was a scene two of the three had seen before, but not the Forest Witch.

Not standing on the forest ground.

But looking down at the earth from a much higher sky.

The feeling was bound to be new, and it was even more so because of the people beside her.

“We’ve even died and come back to life. Let's try to stick together from now on.”

Halsin said curtly.

“Even you?”

The Forest Witch retorted just as curtly.

Compared to how she had only snapped at him before, it was a conversation worthy of being called one.

Between a mother who wasn’t like a mother and a father who wasn’t like a father.

The son spoke softly.

“Let’s all be together. That’s why we left the forest. All of us.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Revenge. Love-hate. Solitude.

The three had come out of their respective forests and soared into the sky.

And there was one person watching this sight with utmost pride.

“Good, good.”

The Youngest Son, who had been watching from a corner with a smile, finally left the deck.

Besides the family that now only had to become harmonious, there was something else for him to look at with pride.

──「Magic Assimilator Father and Son」──

[Description]

: A father who was unfaithful, lost in revenge. A son who was abandoned and wants revenge on his father.

Their relationship is cursed. You are the only one who can resolve this relationship. Restore the relationship between the father and son, and obtain their power.

[Reward]

: Affinity with Halsin Morpheor +50%

: Affinity with Kio +50%

: Affinity with other Magic Assimilators +30%

─────────────

[You have completed the quest.]

[You have reversed the fate of the family, including the Forest Witch, which was destined to end in tragedy.]

[You have completed the quest to an utterly perfect degree.]

[Acquiring additional rewards.]

[You have allowed the Forest Witch to escape the forest.]

[The method of escape was groundbreaking, ingenious, and had an extremely low probability of success.]

[Acquiring additional rewards.]

[No sorcerer has ever perfectly revived someone who was completely dead.]

[This is a legendary achievement that will go down in the history of not just the sorcery world, but the entire world.]

[Acquiring a reward.]

The reward messages I had put off rose like a wave.

Precious rewards earned for successfully handling someone else's affairs.

Now, it was time to open those gift boxes.

“Let’s see what we’ve got.”

Muttering to myself, I returned to the private room I was assigned within the ship.

Right after returning from the forest.

I would rest while we traveled, and once we returned to the Eclipse base camp, there was a mountain of work to do.

Among that mountain of work, there were a few things I anticipated.

“Since they heard I succeeded in borrowing money from the General Manager, others will be indiscriminately offering bundles of money.”

By now, the base camp desk must be paralyzed with those proposals.

Of course, that was for later.

For now, it was time to taste the honey I’d earned after much hardship.

The sweetness of this honey might just neutralize or eliminate the bitterness brought by the proposals.

“The Forest Witch will certainly do that for me.”

With a triumphant smile, I moved my finger.

It was the first gift.

An additional reward earned on top of what was listed in the Magic Assimilator Father and Son quest.

[Additional Reward: The mana consumed when using Magic Assimilation: Blood is reduced by 10%.]

“Not bad.”

There was a clear limit to what the undead could do alone.

The sorcerer himself had to mingle with them and move like flowing water, so a reduction in mana consumption was a great help.

“The mana consumption for using the water attribute magic Josephine taught me along with the undead is also a burden. This will be useful for a long time.”

Next was the second gift.

The reward received for helping the Forest Witch escape the forest.

[Acquiring an additional trait.]

──「Dismantling Specialist」──

[Description]

: You have dismantled the high-grade curse of a great witch. Despite crossing the line of death dozens of times, you did not give up and finally succeeded.

An expert in dismantling. Dismantling curses is your specialty, and in front of you, no curse will dare raise its head.

[Effect]

: The consumption of mental power when dismantling a curse or sorcery is reduced by 40%.

: Recovers mental power when dismantling a curse or sorcery.

──────────

“First Curse Immunity, and now a Dismantling Specialist. It’s a good direction, aside from the fact that I’m far more likely to die from sorcery than from a curse.”

Moreover, this part about mental power.

It was an area I had become most aware of recently, having dealt with the Six Paths a lot and been afflicted by curses.

As it was something not easily felt outside the monitor, the consumption of ‘mental power’ was keenly felt.

“It’s best to avoid that feeling of my brain melting as much as possible.”

[…I thought my head would shatter blocking that.]

“What's this? I thought you were sleeping.”

[I woke up because you were chattering so loudly. What are you doing.]

Like the family on the deck over there.

The conversations between the Youngest Son and the Magic Sword parasitizing his body had also become more frequent.

In the critical situation of saving and dying for each other, words naturally increased.

“I was just thinking a bit.”

[Right. Keep scheming on how not to die. You need to do it a lot.]

After that, there were no more words.

It seemed it had gone back to sleep.

Come to think of it, the Magic Sword was a spiritual body without a physical form.

The pain of mental power consumption must have been greater for it.

On top of that, it had been continuously casting the Path of the Beast without rest.

“Rest well.”

I stroked the forearm where Enad resided a few times, and my eyes moved back to the system.

The third and final reward.

The one that had been hyped up as a legend, an achievement, and so on even before it was given.

Anticipation naturally swelled, and my blood-red eyes glittered.

[Acquiring an Epic Title.]

──「Usurper of Death」──

[Acquisition Condition]

: Perfectly revive another person or oneself after complete death.

[Description]

: Death has tasted its first defeat today.

[Effect]

: You can perceive death in anything.

──────────

“An Epic Title. I expected it, but.”

I couldn’t stop the corners of my mouth from rising.

There was no need to hold it back in the first place.

But something was bothering me.

“‘You can perceive death.’”

Just from the words, it was hard to know what it meant.

Still, it was possible to make a guess.

In this world filled with riddles, this wasn't even that twisted.

“It seems like it lets me perceive the possibility of death, or a person… or a phenomenon that could or would kill me.”

This was good news.

“How did it know I don’t want to die again.”

I closed the system with a smirk.

An Epic Title, given only when specific conditions are met, just like an Epic additional trait.

Obtaining two Epics in Act 1 was an unparalleled achievement, and both were revolutionary in helping to extend my life.

Furthermore, I had just figured out the usefulness of the Epic Title.

“If its ability is what I think it is….”

The time it took to read investment proposals.

The time it took to identify my enemies would be drastically reduced.

***

As soon as I arrived at the Eclipse base camp.

Kuuung─

Josephine, whom I hadn't seen in a long time, put down a box large enough to fit a person without even a greeting.

Inside the thing she had lugged over with a groan, it was full of letters.

They were lengthy courtship letters that came with investment proposals.

“You have to read them all.”

“Hmph.”

A monosyllabic grunt from someone who clearly didn't want to read them.

“Master Jubel said that among these, there are definitely people trying to lure Dante into a trap, and the end could be death.”

Even though she was speaking to the Youngest Son, her expression was blunt.

He was firm about this matter.

I knew the reason why.

“Because he knows that the sharpest blade is not one of military might, but one of financial power.”

The one who has brandished the blade the most knows it best.

In that sense, the money-grubbing Jubel could be called an expert.

But he didn't weed them out himself.

He might have done so in his heart, but he didn't let it be known.

‘He’s probably trying to test my insight with this opportunity.’

The insight to pick business items and the insight to read people were completely different domains.

“I have no intention of letting unpleasant things into my land and my home either.”

“Then should we burn this proposal right away?”

A letter that had been kept separately in her arms, not in the box, was thrust forward.

The green sealing wax used to seal the envelope.

I could tell its origin from the insignia stamped on it.

“It’s from my second-oldest brother. And the Mystics, too.”

“You’re going to refuse, obviously, right? Tactfully?”

“That would be the normal thing to do.”

Ssk─

I broke the seal.

Inside was a single proposal.

“H-how much are they offering…?”

Josephine, too, seemed curious as she discreetly asked.

To answer her.

“It’s not written.”

“H-huh? It’s not written?”

“This means it’s on a different level from the others.”

Seuk─

I handed it back to the person who had extended it.

“A-a blank check….”

The eyes that confirmed the contents, and the mouth below them, gulped down saliva.

“Do they really give you whatever you write? Even if you write something like fifty million gold?”

“…They don’t give blank checks to people who think like you.”

“N-no, one could think that way! It’s a blank check!”

“A blank check doesn't mean they'll give you whatever you ask for. It means, ‘This is how much we’re paying attention to you.’”

“Isn't that the same thing…?”

“……”

Perhaps her brain had become pure from extracting pure iron in the workshop.

In any case.

“I don't know about the Mystics, but my second-oldest brother has no other intentions.”

“How do you know that? The Fourth Son is your enemy.”

“That's from my perspective. To my second-oldest brother, I am someone he can crush and kill at any time.”

“I-is it that bad…? The current Dante?”

“He is a direct blood relative who has established himself on the eastern lands where Millesdusk stands firm. He's not someone I can compare to. For now.”

As I spoke, my eyes returned to the proposal.

The two insignias stamped on the proposal.

One was the Fourth Son's. The other was the Mystics'.

And.

[Usurper of Death activates.]

A pitch-black shadow was cast on one of the two insignias.

It was a place filled with the intent to kill me.

But the shadow of death was not on the Fourth Son's.

This gentleman here offered a blank check for pure amusement.

And.

“I’m also not one to pass up on something fun.”

I used Magic Assimilation to create blood.

I then pressed my thumb on it and onto the insignia.

“A-are you crazy!?”

“I’m perfectly sane.”

It wasn't a formal seal, but something more certain was engraved.

“Were you that greedy for a blank check?”

Her lips were pouting, but her eyes looking at the Youngest Son were full of worry.

He smiled.

“Keep your friends close. And your enemies even closer.”

“…What does that mean?”

“It’s what I must practice right now.”

I sealed the letter again.

“And if I only keep my enemies close, I'll surely die.”

It was an obvious statement.

Enemies were necessary for growth, but allies were even more necessary.

This box was not a pile of trash.

“If you just open your eyes wide, you can find pearls even in a sandy beach.”

“Can you see those pearls in your eyes, Dante?”

“I can see the blades I shouldn't grab.”

The Usurper of Death had told me that.

In addition, there were a few names left in my head.

I rummaged through the box and found those names.

Even if the title didn't activate on a letter, if it had no proven ability or anything memorable, it was out.

In my hands, from the pile of letters, were only five.

On these five, I left a Blood Seal, just as I had done for the Fourth Son.

“Send these five back with a Messenger Ghoul.”

“O-okay.”

The Youngest Son also stood up with Josephine.

He put on his sunglasses and finished preparing to move somewhere again.

“Where are you going?”

“Should I call it fight-seeing?”

“Fight-seeing? Where?”

“I’ll tell you when it’s over.”

I smiled and came out of the barracks.

I took off on a Griffin.

In truth, I didn’t drop the Forest Witch at the base camp, but a little earlier.

I dropped her off at another place first.

The so-called Fantasy Gorge.

It was a place with another forest, different from where she used to live.

Tip: Tap/click the left or right side of the screen to go to previous/next chapter.