Yeon-hee had been staring blankly at the entrance of the building for an hour.
As time passed, she felt increasingly that what she was doing was meaningless, and she became a little gloomy.
‘What great abilities do I have, like Il-wol…’
Just as her confidence was dwindling, she contemplated going back to the cafe she had visited before when the trio re-emerged from inside the building.
But something seemed different.
‘Hmm… what is it?’
She couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was different, but it was clear that the immaterial aura surrounding them had subtly changed.
There was something she overheard Il-wol mention at the cafe about ‘stones,’ and she wondered if that was related.
‘Hmm… If they really used that, shouldn’t they have transformed like the red hood becoming a harpy? It feels really subtle.’
Since her sensory perception was unique, she managed to notice the change, but it was definitely puzzling.
Keeping a cautious distance from the trio, Yeon-hee followed them as they walked noticeably more quietly than before.
Stumble-stumble—
‘Suspicious indeed.’
The trio walked like zombies.
However, their magic energy was gradually increasing, which required her to widen the distance even further over time.
After watching them enter the hotel where they stayed yesterday, she decided to stop her tailing and headed to a nearby cafe.
‘It’s too risky now…’
She felt a bit scared about entering the hotel and had a strong gut feeling that something was off about it.
“Ran, what on earth are those people? It has to be that, right?”
(Ahem— From my judgment, surely what the Master is thinking is absolutely correct!)
As she gently stroked Ran, who was losing fur, Yeon-hee recorded the location of the building where the trio had entered on her phone to ensure she wouldn’t forget.
“Something’s going on. And it’s definitely not good.”
But as she continued to think, she suddenly froze.
If she told Il-wol about this, he’d definitely want to check out the building the trio entered.
‘That would put him in danger again, right? No way, that can’t happen.’
“Ugh…”
Leaning over the table, she let out a long sigh.
No matter what she did, she felt no excitement, and she drained of energy, constantly feeling sleepy.
She still had to wait a few more hours for Il-wol to return, but how did it end up like this?
‘I miss him…’
Gazing blankly at the coffee cup on the table, she pushed her hood down deep.
* * *
“Clap-clap-clap—”
The sound of her canine teeth clashing echoed into the endless dark space.
An immaterial sound wave that did not return.
Nodding to confirm it was indeed a dark space.
[Skeleton Mage Il-wol – Lv.60]
‘Hmm, finally hit it.’
In fact, it was a milestone reached in less than a month, so ‘already’ seemed appropriate.
The perception of the time that had passed varied according to the density and circumstances of that time.
I familiarized myself with the stats gained from leveling up, investing them into agility, wisdom, and sense.
Despite pouring all my investments into these three for a while, I still felt a sense of inadequacy.
Relatively speaking, I didn’t feel a significant lack in other abilities.
While I felt my strength was a bit on the edge, considering my finishing moves and [Penetration], I thought it wise to prioritize speed for now.
=====
[Skeleton Mage Il-wol – Lv.60]
Strength: 208 Agility: 240(+8)
Health: 296 Wisdom: 218(+8)
Magic Power: 435 Resistance: 69
Sense: 123(+8) Recovery: 79
=====
‘Hmm… Really raised my stats a lot.’
The ability stats, completely blessed after being drenched with Irmana’s water.
Thanks to the sensory increase from leveling up, the range of my waves exceeded 2 kilometers.
Even when calculating the overall numbers, I had crossed a monstrous figure of 1,600 attributes.
Of course, I had a sense stat that others didn’t, but considering that, there would be few hunters above C-rank who could match my stats. No, there might really be none after my job change.
– [Thief skill] is activated!
– Trait [Acid Resistance] acquired!
– Achievement [Pioneer] triggered!
– All Attributes +1
The message stated that I activated my thief skill after defeating twelve tarantulas.
[Acid Resistance]
– Acid Resistance +30%
– Resistance increases up to 50% in relation to the time spent receiving acid damage.
‘Wow, this is nice. A skill with such a simple composition is definitely reliable in terms of performance.’
Though I could only steal one, it was a satisfying trait. With this, I wouldn’t dissolve immediately even if I got hit by the tarantula’s acidic fluid.
“Clap-!”
Biting down on my teeth again, I remembered one more task alongside the job change message floating in my mind.
‘That grandfather… He did tell me to come find him.’
The mysterious grandfather linked to [Forgotten Ancient Swordsmanship].
Since then, even after practicing swords, my traits hadn’t activated, and there was a sense of fear due to the unknown nature of the being, but it seemed I had to look for him regardless.
However, I had no idea how to find him. This space was just far too vast for blindly searching with my senses…
Or maybe the concept of vastness didn’t even apply here.
‘It should be easier to find him after the job change.’
To be prepared for any potential dangers, growing stronger was essential.
I glanced back at the message suspended in the air.
– You have cleared all the job change quests.
– The restrictions on stealth are lifted.
– You receive one chance to reset your stats as a quest reward.
– All preparations for a new job are complete.
‘It really was tough… System, do you recognize that?’
……
The always-silent system.
Memories of the past few weeks during which I had slain 30,000 monsters drifted back.
‘Still, the stealth restriction being lifted is something to look forward to.’
I’d been feeling on edge lately.
There have been instances where the stealth was undone by the detection stone on Nargul’s staff.
And when I saw the guide from Cha Jin-hyuk’s party yesterday, I felt a sense of crisis.
I didn’t know what abilities that man had, but he seemed sharp enough that even the slightest mistake could expose my stealth.
Other things were fine, but I absolutely needed to maintain my stealth.
Once I reach C-rank, there would be many who possess detection abilities or items, so leveling up [Stealth] was undoubtedly necessary.
Additionally, gaining a chance to reset my stats was a bonus.
There wasn’t any immediate use for it, but just having it brought me comfort.
Even if the stats I picked from leveling up weren’t the most efficient, the thought of being able to revert them was soothing.
‘Hahaha— With this kind of reward, it’s worth the hardship.’
“Clap-clap-clap.”
Having made noise, it was finally time for me to change jobs.
– The options for job change will be prepared.
– Choose carefully.
‘Stop with the obvious and just show me the choices already.’
How many options would pop up? If too many appeared like before, I’d be in trouble.
During the brief moment when no messages appeared, all sorts of thoughts flitted through my mind, but once the message did appear, what came to me was confusion.
‘……Hmm?’
– Choose one of swordsmanship or magic.
– Time limit is 30 minutes.
‘…… What is this?’
A sudden choice presented to me, something I never expected.
‘Please, let’s just do it as before… Why has it changed again?’
Anyway, this was the reality staring me in the face.
‘Hmm…’
I pondered hard.
Only one of swordsmanship or magic, huh?
How can that be!
I had thought I’d been managing both well till now. Damn…
Both swordsmanship and magic were things I’d diligently worked on, so I didn’t want to let go of either.
‘Swordsmanship, magic, swordsmanship, magic…’
In the end, after much deliberation, the conclusion remained the same.
‘Can’t I just have both? I’m a sword mage, after all.’
I spent quite a long time in contemplation, but still unable to make a choice, I found myself staring at the options, the time passing away.
‘Is there such a thing as choosing not to choose?’
Even though there was a time limit, there was no message indicating any disadvantage would arise for not picking.
‘… Alright.’
So I decided to hold off on choosing for now.
Moments later, as the time ticked away, a sharp alert blared in my head.
──────
– You have chosen the option of not choosing anything.
‘…… This works?’
It seemed a hidden third option existed after all.
‘But why didn’t they tell me? Do they think it’s better to choose just one?’
Regardless, since the system used the term option for something I hadn’t chosen, it felt like I hadn’t done anything wrong, allowing me to finally breathe a sigh of relief.
– Balancing swordsmanship and magic will be a challenging journey.
– You’ll move forward with all your possibilities.
‘…… This type of message is new to me?’
I wasn’t sure if I was mistaken, but it felt as if the tone was somewhat concerned for me.
It was as if questioning whether I’d truly be okay, considering how tough it would be.
‘Is balancing both really going to be hard? Maybe if I had chosen one, there would’ve been a significant rise in efficiency?’
Swordsmanship and magic seemed at odds in some ways, so my choice could indeed be a struggle.
‘… But the Flame Cut and Flame Explosion combo is essentially a fusion of sword and magic…?’
Yet, when I thought back to my ultimate abilities, I couldn’t let go of either swordsmanship or magic.
Confident in that, I read the next option.
– Choose between a spear that pierces through everything or a shield that blocks all attacks.
‘Hmm… This job change really hit the mark. But this choice seems easy enough?’
Since the next question would likely aim to reflect my characteristics regarding the job change, it wouldn’t have a direct impact on my abilities.
If my focus were protecting Yeon-hee, I should definitely choose the shield. But if I had to pick one…
‘Blocking won’t solve much. I choose the spear that pierces through everything!’
Rather than breaking down while defending, it’s better to take the initiative and pierce through the enemy’s heart.
– You have chosen the spear that pierces through everything.
– Possibilities of [Soulbound Guardian] are now extinguished.
– Possibilities of [Dreadnought Vanguard] are now extinguished.
– Possibilities of [Revenant Champion] are now extinguished.
‘Aha, so that’s how it was.’
This round appeared to use the elimination method.
Though the job titles sounded impressive…
Curious, I decided to read the description of one such discarded job.
‘Oh…’
=====
Dreadnought Vanguard
– This job possesses the ability to withstand powerful attacks directly, enduring the damage while protecting allies. It can additionally implement extra bone armor for heavy armor and can permanently damage enemies’ defenses while drawing attention through powerful provocation.
– Evolves into a Colossal Bonecrusher.
=====
‘Hmm, that does sound great, albeit skewed to one side, right?’
I guessed it might be an evolved version of the skeletons from the initial job choices.
‘Interesting. It could’ve been quite a good option.’
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