NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 6 - In the Slums (6)
Chapter 6 – In the Slums (6)
Compared to the playable kids, my current abilities were difficult to call good even as empty words.
I had only established a minimal foundation for growth through the fraudulent special privilege called ‘additional features,’
But considering their future growth, it would be difficult to catch up using ordinary methods.
‘Status Window’
▼
[Name: Yu Siwoo(Ryu Seha)]
Strength: 6 (9)
Agility: 6 (9)
Vitality: 9 (13)
Mental: 9 (10)
Psychic: 2 (12)
Potential: 0
◈Unique Ability(1/1)
Terrible Adaptability(D+)
◈Trait(0/1)
Descendant of the Stigma(C+)
◈Constitution and Qualities
Extremely Untalented(A+)
Face is Plausibility(C)
My Name is Siwoo(C)
*Buff is active.
*You are poisoned.
Shop Points: 0
▲
‘….’
I briefly noticed the not-even-funny quality called [My Name is Siwoo(C)] but moved on.
It was a quality that had firmly established itself without me noticing,
I’d only received news that ‘Message Lady’ had forcibly inserted it.
‘It’s absurd, but the effect is good’
The effect was to increase the growth rate of all abilities except Psychic and Potential,
With such an ability, they could call me whatever name they wanted.
The penalty was a condition not to let certain enemies know my real name.
‘It’s strange but…’
Well, this wasn’t the important thing. I didn’t think about it deeply.
What’s important is this.
The reason for the eccentric behavior of coating my body with poison and taking medicine.
──────────────────
【Extremely Untalented(A+)】
Your physical body shows no possibility for growth.
Initial potential stats fixed at 0
Potential growth rate fixed at the lowest (can be improved)
──────────────────
With this constitution, normal growth is difficult.
So I’ll maximize adaptability to force growth.
‘It’s a good plan.’
In reality, I easily defeated two ordinary people with my improved abilities.
‘But it’s not enough’
Like the protagonists,
Cutting through all the principles of the universe,
Handling various spirit servants and magical arts,
Exerting the power of dozens or hundreds of people with a single action.
Transforming with a belt.
Manipulating shadows and summoning different versions of myself.
I lacked what people call a distinctive trait.
‘That’s why I need the second hidden piece’
Something that will give me a finishing move.
I had no idea it would actually be here.
‘It was sold at an international auction around the middle of the story.’
While serving Han Aejeong diligently and observing the room, I spotted it by chance
When I first discovered it, I almost shouted in surprise.
I assume it was among the treasures she handed over to the guild when she fell to the dark side, and somehow ended up at the auction.
Its identity is a kind of artifact,
For the first two years after Ernel Saga opened, it was a mysterious object whose purpose nobody understood.
‘It was essentially a MacGuffin.’
An item sealed away with no hints about how to unlock it or what it could be used for.
Its true identity was revealed in a later patch.
‘A cash item’
The first paid item introduced, or more precisely, they sold the key to unlock it for real money.
‘They got cursed out so badly.’
When it appeared, it was heavily criticized as a pay-to-win scheme,
And I too joined in condemning the developers in the comments.
Not only was selling it for real money problematic, but its ability was also completely broken.
‘They did have some conscience, as you needed to find traits to support your mind and body to use it fully.’
Even considering that, it was so overpowered that the developers, after facing tremendous criticism, promised never to release paid items again.
‘Of course, they quietly started releasing them again later, so it was meaningless.’
Lost in these thoughts, I arrived at my destination.
‘Good, no one’s here.’
I checked the mini-map to see if anyone was around.
‘This really comes in handy.’
The range wasn’t very wide around me, and it had the disadvantage of not detecting stealth-type abilities, but it was good enough to easily overcome such limitations.
‘Is the door locked?’
It was as I predicted.
[Using One-time Universal Key (E).]
As I used the item I had obtained through a gacha ticket,
Click!
The door opened with the sound of metal turning against metal.
I entered and stole the items I had noted during my observation.
‘Money and a pouch of jewels…. Even a low-grade spirit medicine for growth.’
I stuffed in as much as I could fit
And finally, I grabbed a black box engraved with geometric patterns.
──────────────────
[Mysterious Box (SS-)]
An item sealed by someone with powerful force.
This item cannot be disassembled.
It can be unlocked when using a key containing special power.
──────────────────
‘The second hidden piece.’
I wanted to open and use it right away, but I needed to be more careful in my judgment.
Even if my face satisfied the minimum conditions through plausibility, it was questionable whether my body could handle it,
And I was afraid because I remembered that in the original work, the protagonists said it was painfully excruciating to the point of losing their minds when they used it.
‘I won’t need to use it here anyway.’
With a mid-tier hero here, what could possibly happen?
Right now, rather than this, checking how the fight was going was the priority.
`Aaaaargh!`
Hearing the scream,
I ran out toward the room where Han Aejeong and her subordinates would be.
*
*
*
Yu Mihee is a 35-year-old mid-tier hero from the Association.
She was a student who barely graduated from the Academy,
And unlike her talented peers who were scouted by the top 10 guilds and lived lavishly,
She was a woman who prided herself on living without shame.
‘Would things have been different if I had unlocked my unique ability earlier?’
During her school days, Yu Mihee worked tirelessly but barely avoided failing grades without being rewarded for her efforts.
This was because she didn’t know the conditions for unlocking her unique ability, so it took a long time to open it.
‘Would it have been different if I had come from a prestigious family or a wealthy household?’
The unlocking conditions for unique abilities were all different for each awakened person.
Some people unlocked theirs simply through training,
Some had to kill their own loved ones to unlock it.
Therefore, the privileged ones discovered clues through observation ability users employed by their families for generations,
but Yu Mihee, who came from an ordinary family, had neither the money nor the connections for such resources.
‘I’m overthinking things…’
With a slight smile,
Clang!
She lightly deflected the incoming sword and slashed at the attacker’s side.
With a scream, the body of the man who had ambushed her collapsed.
‘Damn it! Everyone attack at once!’
Looking at the approaching assailants, she gripped her sword firmly.
‘Thank goodness’
Yes, thank goodness.
No matter how untalented or slow she might be,
Slash!
She was grateful that she at least had the ability to deal with trash like these.
‘Die!’
After cutting down one attacker, another man charged at her from behind.
Turning her body,
Thwack!
She kicked him in the jaw. Crash! As he fell, she brought down her sword and severed his neck.
As if they had been waiting, two more rushed at her from both sides.
Without panicking, she kicked off the wall and jumped up.
She struck one’s head, then plunged her reverse-gripped blade into the crown of the other who had been riding on his shoulders.
After finishing off the fallen one upon landing, she slowly raised her head to look at the remaining two.
A fat man trembling uncontrollably and…
A woman who calmly watched her while twirling a dagger in her hand.
‘Is that Han Aejeong…’
The real power behind this place, as she had discovered from investigating after receiving an email at the association.
The fat man and the others were nothing special, but that woman was different.
‘I don’t think I’ll lose, but…’
Her instinct, honed from over five years of doing this work, was telling her.
This woman was dangerous, emanating the distinct aura of a villain who would stop at nothing.
‘Why isn’t she attacking with the others?’
She must know that one-on-one gives her less advantage. Even if she wanted to observe her capabilities.
Already four had fallen and only two remained.
But her deliberation didn’t last long.
She needed to finish this quickly and rescue the orphans here.
‘These beasts worse than animals…’
She had lost her husband to a villain in the past and had an only daughter who was eight years old this year.
Naturally, she saw her daughter in these orphans, which is why she had set out alone, leaving behind the association that was dragging its feet.
“What should we do, boss!”
The last surviving Gumrum shouted, trembling.
“Don’t worry, Gumrum. Didn’t I tell you? There’s a way out.”
Hearing the voice from behind, Gumrum felt relieved.
But that feeling didn’t last long.
Thwack!
“Ugh?!”
As Han Aejeong kicked him from behind, his body lurched forward.
Slash
Naturally, Yu Mihee sliced through his neck.
Thud, roll roll roll…
After briefly watching the rolling head, Yu Mihee couldn’t understand what Han Aejeong was doing.
That thought caught her off guard for just a moment,
And seeing this, the corners of Han Aejeong’s mouth slowly turned upward.
In that split second, the voice of a young boy echoed in Yu Mihee’s mind.
[Get away! All those fallen guys have explosion formulas written on them!]
‘!’
Regardless of whether the voice was real, she instinctively threw herself toward cover.
Soon after, as the corpses began to swell
Bang! A thunderous explosion rang out.