#038.
Muscles bulging taut and swollen.
It was an extremely familiar sight.
『Titan』
A trait that achieves tremendous physical development; think of it as displaying Hulk-like monstrous strength.
*Why this person?*
It was a familiar trait, yet at the same time, I couldn’t help but be surprised.
Because I had come thinking of William, yet out of nowhere, Oliver—his father—had manifested this trait.
“Judging by your expression, it seems my words are correct.”
Oliver read my flustered expression and spoke with conviction.
“Ever since awakening to this mysterious power, I have always been anxious. There is no power without a price. I felt that, someday, someone like you—possessing the same mysterious power—would come.”
And then he began a story I had never expected at all.
“So what’s your purpose?”
“Uh….”
Flustered, I gazed at Jeong Dohwan beside me.
“….”
But he merely maintained an expression like a frozen block of ice, with no intention whatsoever of offering helpful advice.
“Yes, well. For now, I’ve come to find an Awakened.”
“As expected.”
Oliver nodded with conviction.
He was firmly under some misconception, but it was true that I had come to find an Awakened.
“So what do you intend to do?”
“…For now, I was going to propose an alliance—that we join forces.”
“Not to take my family hostage and threaten me.”
“Uh… haven’t you watched too many movies?”
“If not, that’s a relief. But there is one thing I believe we must clearly address.”
“Yes. Please speak.”
“What is your goal?”
“My goal….”
“To dominate the world. To kill people and build a gilded tower atop their sacrifices….”
“Well said.”
He seemed to have fallen into slight delusions (?), but this was an opportunity.
“There are certainly those who target Awakened for such purposes—a very shitty organization.”
“…And you are not one of them?”
“Of course not. Had that been my purpose from the start, I would have taken your family hostage or used force, as I mentioned earlier.”
“Hm. That’s true.”
“Can you not tell my intentions just from the fact that I visited like this, pretending not to know? We are people who strive to be of as much help to humanity as possible.”
“….”
Oliver, who had kept silent, turned a burning gaze toward me.
“….”
To show that it was the truth, I stared straight into those eyes.
“It certainly does not seem to be a lie.”
“If this is a lie, I would have nothing to say even if I were fried to death in a cesspool.”
“A cesspool? That is quite a terrible expression.”
“Yes. That is how certain I am.”
“Your sincerity is conveyed.”
“You may believe me.”
“But what was it you said earlier?”
“About the sinister, shitty organization?”
“Yes. You certainly said there is an organization that would bring harm….”
“That is why I came here.”
My original purpose had been to make William a comrade, but.
*If it’s the Titan trait, it’s not something to ignore.*
An unexpected harvest (?), perhaps?
His father, Oliver, had awakened to the trait first.
That was another truth I had never heard from William.
*The butterfly effect caused by me hastened the Awakening. And the resulting changes must have influenced things.*
All of that had happened because of the butterfly that is me.
Had the Awakening not occurred this quickly, Oliver would not have awakened first.
But the future had changed.
And my plans too would change accordingly.
Just as I was now recruiting Oliver.
“What do you say? Are you willing to join?”
“….”
He remained silent for a while at my question.
He had no choice but to agonize over it.
Because no matter how much of the truth he knew, the matter was no ordinary one.
Having lived in a modern age of utter peace until now, talk of Awakened and organizations threatening humanity—
Would it feel real?
Moreover, how much could he trust an Eastern youth who had suddenly appeared?
Even I wouldn’t feel a sense of reality.
“What is certain is that protecting your family will be difficult if you are alone.”
So I spoke the truth that could threaten him the most.
“…Is that a threat?”
“No. It is the truth.”
I had been faster for now, but sooner or later, Black Moon would target the Adams family—William.
If that came to pass, Oliver alone could not protect his family.
Uncomfortable as it was, that was the truth.
“The organization I mentioned earlier is called Black Moon. They are the greatest organization, possessing tens of thousands of Awakened spread across the world like dots. It is easy to say tens of thousands, but to put it simply for you, Mr. Oliver, it means there are tens of thousands of individuals with mysterious powers like yours. If they truly set their minds to attacking, would you be able to withstand them, Mr. Oliver?”
“T-tens of thousands?!”
His pupils dilated as though shaken.
“For your family’s safety, you must take my hand.”
I extended my hand for the choice.
Of course, there was no room for choice.
Whether he took this hand or not, I would bring Oliver and William to our side by any means necessary.
“It seems there is no reason to contemplate further.”
As though having made up his mind, he bit his lip tightly and took my hand.
“A wise decision.”
He had chosen the easy path, not the difficult one.
Ah, of course, that applied to me as well.
There was no need to make a bad impression; we had joined hands just like that.
“We will probably have to move quite busily from now on….”
Just as I was satisfied with having persuaded him more easily than expected and tried to continue speaking.
*Rumble.*
A single tremor felt from the ground.
“…Hm?”
At first, it was something one could barely feel only if concentrating.
However.
*Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble!*
Soon, it became a great tremor noticeable even while standing perfectly still.
*Crash!*
Glass shattered from the violent tremor, and objects fell to the floor with impact sounds.
“O-Oliver!”
“Emilia!”
A flustered Emilia entered the house with William and the children in tow.
“Get down!”
Exhibiting monstrous strength, Oliver embraced his entire family, went under the dining table, and crouched.
I gazed fixedly at that sight.
I could have stopped him if I wanted, but I didn’t.
*This is…?*
Honestly, I lacked the capacity to look after him.
Turmoil.
A whirlwind of emotions I had not felt in a long time.
It couldn’t be helped.
I remembered it clearly even now.
That day.
Unlike the Awakening, which had shown no particular precursors, what this precursor phenomenon indicated, which had once made Earth suffer a bout of illness.
*Click.*
I rolled Hilis and went straight outside the house.
And then I gazed at the sky.
“Ha!”
I could see it.
A black scar engraved upon the clear sky, as though it had been split open.
*BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!*
A deafening roar spread as though the sky were collapsing.
Intense tremors rising like a sickness, and the roar.
Until now it had been doubt, but now it became certainty.
*A Treasure has appeared!*
It was the signal announcing the appearance of a Treasure—a mysterious tool that had not existed on Earth until now.
Of course, I couldn’t be certain yet.
I had to doubt everything until I saw it with my own eyes.
*Ziiiip!*
So I opened the backpack zipper.
I took out what I always carried just in case.
Like a magic pouch, the three-meter-long Twin Dragon Sword revealed its form.
The reason that was possible:
『Transcendence Effect (★): The weight of objects in the backpack is ordinarily reduced.
Transcendence Effect (★★): Minor Spatial Expansion』
Thanks to the special effect called “Spatial Expansion,” it held a much wider space than expected.
Thanks to that, I had been able to store the Twin Dragon Sword restored through restoration.
I looked at the Twin Dragon Sword, which had succeeded in restoration by overcoming a 50% probability, through the Appraiser’s Eye.
『Twin Dragon Sword
Classification: Sword
Grade: Lowest-grade Treasure (Unsealed)
Durability: 300/300
Unique Effect: Raises the morale of nearby allies
Description: 鑄得雙龍劍 千秋氣尙雄 盟山誓海意 忠憤古今同 (Forged as Twin Dragon Swords, their spirit soars through the ages. With oaths sworn on mountain and sea, loyal fury burns the same in ancient times and today.)』
What had replaced the word “Sealed” (封) was “Unsealed” (開).
What did that mean?
It meant the beginning of the second precursor following the first precursor, the Awakening—the announcement of the Treasures’ appearance.
*
The collapsing sky.
Tremors like a sickness.
All those phenomena lasted for a while before quickly disappearing.
“What on earth is this….”
Mr. Oliver and his family, feeling the tremors fade, came outside.
“The change has begun.”
“Change? What change?”
“Just as you gained a mysterious power, Mr. Oliver, the world will undergo rapid change.”
“I suppose it is not for the better?”
“It is literally hell.”
“Hell….”
Mr. Oliver chewed over the word hell.
“Still, it is all right for now.”
It is merely the second precursor.
The real hell begins not with a precursor, but with the Great Cataclysm, together with the apocalypse.
Now is literally nothing more than that precursor stage.
It is an unexpected change.
So although it bewilders me,
*Wait!*
Something suddenly comes to mind.
*Could this be an opportunity?*
I couldn’t have even conceived of it in the past.
But now I am in England, and even together with a powerful comrade called Shizun.
“Let’s move.”
Then there is no reason to hesitate.
“Move? To where?”
“To obtain the greatest treasure England boasts.”
A treasure that would normally appear only in legends.
But with the second precursor, it has appeared.
*Excalibur.*
Recalling the brilliant golden sword, I gazed at William.
The ancient treasure, the sword of promised victory, would go to find its owner just as it had before the regression.
*
Cornwall, the southwest of England.
Situated at the very edge of the island called England, this place was one of the famous tourist destinations with endlessly unfolding, beautiful coastlines.
There were many famous sites, but among them, Tintagel Castle was undoubtedly one of the foremost.
Surrounded by the sea on all sides, with bridges connecting island to island, this famous site was always packed with tourists.
However, now, despite being at the height of peak season, there was no one around Tintagel Castle.
Because there were no tourists?
No.
Buzzing murmurs.
Many people were gathered at the entrance leading into Tintagel Castle.
Then why?
“What the hell is this?”
A couple standing closest to the entrance.
Among them, a young man with a face full of curiosity reached out his hand.
*Bwoong!*
A repelling force occurred as if there were a transparent wall, bouncing the man’s hand away.
“Whoa!”
The man exclaimed at the mysterious phenomenon.
“Don’t!”
His girlfriend scolded him to prevent any unforeseen incident.
The reason Tintagel Castle was empty despite the many tourists.
It was because a suddenly generated repulsive force had pushed them all outside the entrance.
Some had fled in fear of this mysterious phenomenon, but more had approached out of curiosity like those gathered at the entrance now.
And in that place crowded with people packed near the narrow entrance—
*Screech!*
A black limousine stopped.
Out of the car came two people: an Eastern youth and an old man.
“….”
The youth gazed at Tintagel Castle silently, his brows furrowing and shooting upward.
“Sigh!”
A sigh escaped.
“What’s wrong?”
At the sigh of the youth who rarely showed emotion, the old man in a black hanbok asked.
“We are one step too late.”
“Then….”
“Yes. They have already entered.”
The Eastern youth, Shin Yunchan.
Having experienced regression, he knew better than anyone.
That Tintagel Castle, surrounded by a transparent protective barrier, already had someone who had entered within.