My Skill Book, My Way
Chapter 48
Inside the train heading down to the provinces, I was lost in thought.
Right now my Magic stat was 10, and my MP had reached 100.
'Maybe it's time to try making a 9-Word Skill.'
The MP consumption for a 3-Word Skill was around 1 to 10. For a 6-Word Skill the range was wider, around 15 to 50.
'A 9-Word Skill will probably exceed 50.'
As long as the consumption didn't exceed 100, I could use it.
'I wish I had one stronger finishing blow.'
The skills I used most frequently at present were [Flame Spear], [Lightning Spear], [Charge], [One Flash], and so on.
Among them, [One Flash] possessed the greatest destructive power of all the skills I had. Thanks to [Spearmanship], spear-related skills had grown even stronger.
However, against the monsters of 7-Star Dungeons, especially the even stronger field bosses, [One Flash] could no longer serve its role as a finisher.
Even now, the image of O Seyeon slicing the Flame Dragon to pieces all by herself was vivid in my mind.
That sight was a shock in itself.
Right now, all my stats were over 10, and Strength in particular had hit 20. But even so, taking down a Flame Dragon alone would have been impossible for me.
Moreover, there was no doubt that during the next Overflow, I would have to face even stronger monsters.
'Since I've accumulated more than enough Exp clearing the 7-Star Dungeon's Overflow. All right. Let's research a 9-Word Skill.'
Until the train arrived at its destination, I wrestled with the summoned book in my hands.
***
"Hah, hah."
Inside a room filled with dust and cobwebs, a woman was breathing heavily.
Sweat trickled down the woman's face without cease.
"Damn it...... Gkh!"
The woman grit her teeth and glared at something.
At the end of her gaze was the sword held in her hand.
Red blood was smeared on the blade, which bore an ink-black hue.
[We found traces!]
[It definitely hid in this house!]
The woman whipped her head toward the door.
"Don't come......"
From beyond the door came the sound of several people climbing the stairs.
Bang!
The closed door was smashed apart.
"Huh?"
"What the?"
"It's not a monster, it's a woman?"
Hunters each holding weapons looked at the woman inside the room with surprised faces.
"Hey! Are you a hunter chasing that monster too?"
One of the hunters standing at the doorway asked as he came inside.
At that moment, the woman's pupils began to turn red.
"Get out right now! Don't come near me!"
The woman screamed.
"Why so jumpy? We're not here to do anything to you, we just...... the mon— Hup!"
"Wh-what is that......"
"Impossible......"
The hunters' faces were dyed with terror.
[Aaaaaaaah!]
A scream—or a shriek.
The moment an ear-splitting cry echoed, the ink-black sword moved.
Crunch!
"Aargh!"
"Boss! Kuhk!"
"D-don't come! S-save me...... Aaaargh!"
In mere seconds, the hunters' screams could no longer be heard.
Inside the now-silent abandoned house.
Blood dripped from the ink-black blade onto the floor, drip, drip.
***
"Hah."
I looked away from the book and sighed.
The result of creating about ten 9-Word Skills on the train was a heartbreaking one.
'The mana consumption is too high.'
The skill with the lowest MP consumption cost a whopping 300 per use.
Meaning I couldn't use it unless I raised my Magic stat to 30. Even using the staff that reduced MP consumption, it was impossible.
'No, the words only increased by three, but consumption jumped dozens of times. Does that even make sense?'
It was absurd.
Well, the unique skill that let me create skills in the first place was already ridiculous... but still, this was too much.
The only 9-Word Skill I could actually use was one made by adding attack or defense-related words to [Spearmanship].
--------------------
Created Skill: [Spear Master] (Very Rare)
Tool: Spear
MP Consumption: -
Required Stats: Strength 20, Sense 10
Description: Gain the abilities of one who has walked the path of the spear for a lifetime. All attacks and defenses performed with a spear are greatly strengthened, and when a spear is equipped, HP, Strength, and Sense stats increase by 20%.
--------------------
While it still had no MP consumption, the original requirement of Strength 8 and Sense 4 had jumped drastically.
When I took out the axe-spear from my inventory and held it, the spear felt even more attached to my hand than before.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the spear felt like my own arm or leg.
'It can't be helped. I'll raise my Magic stat later, but for now, let's finish the quest first.'
Recalling the faces of Jinhui and Seono waiting at home, I headed toward the village that had been attacked by the monster.
3 hours later.
I had ordered a meal at a nearby restaurant and was organizing information.
Perhaps because it had caused quite a commotion, eyewitness information about the monster was overflowing.
The monster that appeared at midnight was said to wield a long sword, move at terrifying speed, and attack anything in sight, whether person or object.
I could also see the scars left on buildings, streetlights, and cars.
'Among monsters, plenty wield weapons, so it's not strange that it used a sword. But those scars were too clean.'
The cross-sections of the objects were extremely clean, as if sliced by a master of the blade.
I could also hear about the monster's appearance.
First, it wielded a long sword.
Second, it had several horns growing from its head.
Third, it was a humanoid monster walking on two legs.
Fourth, its eyes emitted a red light.
Just as I was reading the main characteristics I had organized in my notebook, the sundae-guk I had been waiting for arrived.
'Shall I eat first?'
I had seasoned it with salted shrimp and was about to take a spoonful when—
Buzz.
My phone on the table vibrated powerfully. It was a call from the Guild Master.
'What terrible timing.'
I put down my spoon and answered the phone.
"Hello?"
["Mr. Hwajin, is the investigation going well?"]
"Yes. There's a lot of eyewitness information, so gathering intel is easy. However, where the monster went after raiding the village......"
["I just received information that more hunters fell victim to the monster."]
The Guild Master said he had felt uneasy sending me while I was on vacation, so he was investigating as well.
I hurriedly finished my meal and left the restaurant.
The place where the hunters had been attacked was an apartment complex now reduced to ruins, several kilometers from here.
When I arrived there by taxi, there were several other hunters. They seemed to be chasing the monster, like me.
I found the abandoned house where the hunters had been killed.
The numerous sword marks left on the cement walls were very similar to those in the village, leading me to conclude that the monster had definitely been here.
'Good. Let's try using that.'
I took out my staff from the inventory.
"Monster Detection."
6-Word Skill, [Monster Detection].
It was a skill I had prepared in advance while riding the train, capable of detecting monsters within a 500-meter radius.
I activated the skill and wandered around the apartment complex.
Even after walking through all the nearby apartment buildings, there was no monster reaction.
'Did it go to a completely different place?'
The Guild Master said the slain hunters had been discovered around noon, about two hours ago.
He also told me that those hunters had headed here this morning.
When I asked how he knew so much in detail, the Guild Master said the guild those hunters belonged to was affiliated with the Anti-Tyrant Alliance, and he had heard directly from them.
Just as I was wondering whether it might have hidden in the nearby mountains or the sewers—
'There!'
I sensed the monster's presence.
It was an apartment where I hadn't felt anything just moments ago.
'What happened? When I passed by just now, there definitely wasn't a monster.'
Thinking I'd know for sure if I went there, I ran.
Since the elevator wasn't working, I ran up the stairs. The monster's presence grew stronger the higher I went.
Just when I felt glad that I had finally found the monster—
"Huh......?"
The monster's presence vanished.
"What is this? Can skills glitch too?"
I canceled [Monster Detection] and activated it again, but still felt nothing.
I went up and began searching each house one by one.
I repeated that up to the 5th floor, then went up one more and entered the house on the left.
'Is it another miss this time?'
I entered every room and even searched the veranda, but there was nothing.
[Urg......]
'!'
I heard a groan from somewhere.
'Next door!'
I dashed out of the house I had been in and went into the one right in front.
And I nearly fainted.
My mind went blank.
"O-O Seyeon!?"
In the inner corner of the living room, O Seyeon was sitting slumped on the dust-covered floor.
Perhaps from injuries, her clothes were covered in red blood.
'That O Seyeon was beaten by someone?'
Astonishing facts kept hitting me one after another, leaving me rattled.
"Hah, hah......"
O Seyeon breathed heavily and raised her head.
'!'
Her eyes were red.
In her arms was a longsword with a pitch-black blade.
"G-get away."
O Seyeon spoke with a strained voice.
"What on earth happened......"
Then, [Monster Detection] sensed the strongest monster presence I had ever felt.
The monster's energy was coming from O Seyeon right in front of me.
"H-hurry. If you don't want to die, get out of here quickly."
I saw horns sprouting from O Seyeon's head.
At that moment, the monster features I had heard from the villagers came to mind.
A long sword.
Horns on its head.
A humanoid monster.
And red eyes.
'The monster's true identity was O Seyeon?'
"Aaaaaaaagh!"
O Seyeon let out a scream-like cry and sprang to her feet.
'Damn!'
I took out the axe-spear from my inventory.
Clang!
A pain as if my hand would burst shot through me.
Clang! Clang!
The sound of clashing metal rang out continuously.
'Damn! As expected, she's crazy strong!'
O Seyeon's sword was so fierce and fast that barely blocking it was all I could do.
If not for my Strength 20 stat and the [Spear Master] skill, I would have been cut down by the first attack.
Thanks to the [Spear Master] skill, I was able to react to O Seyeon's attacks.
It felt as if the spear was moving on its own.
O Seyeon, seeing her sword continuously blocked, jumped back and glared at me.
I could finally catch my breath.
'But this shouldn't be O Seyeon's full strength.'
She was the woman who had diced the Flame Dragon into dozens of pieces in an instant. If she wanted to, she could have turned me into minced meat.
"At...... tack......"
Then O Seyeon muttered something.
"At... attack me. While... I can still... hold myself... back."
At O Seyeon's words, my mind snapped to attention.
I didn't know the cause, but O Seyeon was clearly on the verge of losing her reason.
'Flame Spear! Lightning Spear!'
I overlaid skills onto my axe-spear. Sparks and flames stronger than before enveloped the spear.
"You told me to attack, so I'm not responsible."
I gripped the spear with both hands.
O Seyeon grit her teeth and raised both arms with extreme effort. I could see her attacking self and her restraining self at war.
But thanks to that, her stomach was exposed.
'[One Flash]!'
I used the skill without hesitation.
A little faster than O Seyeon could bring her sword down, my body shot forward.
The dim living room filled with pure white light.