SWNOVELXO Chapter 33
Chapter 33
—–CROW—–
*Rumble*
“[Whew… This is beyond imagination.],” El thought.
“Grrrr.”
The fight with Cheong was nearing its end. And his assessment of her? Honestly, he hadn’t expected her to hold out this long. He had always thought her willpower was impressive, but today she had surpassed even his highest expectations.
She had taken lightning bolts and pillars of fire head-on. Not only that, but also stone pillars erupting from the earth and razor-sharp wind blades. She had endured all of his attacks head-on and yet still maintained consciousness.
“[You can fall now.]”
But despite his words, Cheong stubbornly remained on all fours, refusing to collapse. Thanks to her Metal energy and the tree’s buff, she looked fine on the outside, but internally, she must have been severely shaken by the accumulated damage. He wanted her to just collapse and get treatment, but…
*Thud*
“Grrrr.”
“[…Stubborn creature.]”
She seemed determined to continue fighting until she completely lost consciousness.
-No! You don’t have to go this far!
Silphy, maintaining the wind barrier, cried out. She was right. This fight was much more intense and spectacular than usual due to the different level of power involved.
-Cheong, you’re hurt too, so let’s stop and rest!
“[Foolish creature.]” El muttered.
As if Cheong would want that.
“Grrrr!”
-No, Cheong!
Silphy, after all this time spent with them, still didn’t understand Cheong. Cheong was enjoying this more than ever.
‘I know that feeling well.’
Even though Cheong wasn’t as intellectually developed as they were, she was much smarter than ordinary beasts. Instead, her instincts were sharper. Would she be unable to objectively assess her own strength? No, on the contrary, with her keen instincts, she would have realized it even more quickly and acutely.
The fact that she was the weakest of the three.
“Grrr!”
Until recently, she had been second in rank, or at least on par with him. But his transformation into an Imugi had shattered the balance of power. Now, Cheong was third, completely at the bottom in terms of strength, facing an insurmountable cliff.
But what about now?
*Hmm*
She had faced his full power head-on and even managed to injure him. Just like when they first met. And like those fierce battles they repeatedly fought, exchanging victories and defeats, they were now equals.
*Tremble*
But even that was reaching its limit. No matter how much life force the tree provided, it was nearly impossible to perfectly control it instantly.
“[Cheong.]”
“…Grrr.”
Her body was at its limit. But she still had strength left. What did Cheong want in this situation? For him to acknowledge her efforts, to allow her to accept the outcome with satisfaction.
“[It’s over.]”
“…”
He didn’t know what problems might arise if they continued fighting any further. So…
“[This strike will decide the final outcome.]”
“Grrr?!”
They would conclude this with the strongest blows they could muster.
With those words, he began to draw out all his remaining energy. The total amount of power had decreased due to the fight with Cheong, but it was replenishing rapidly even as they spoke, enough for one final blow.
*Whine*
A distinctly different, strange sound. A completely jet-black power, unlike the colors of the various attributes he had shown so far. Even Silphy, as well as Cheong, who was preparing her final strike, was startled by the dark luster, like his scales.
-El! Are you crazy?!
What? What was the problem? He had clearly stated that they would settle this with a final blow.
“[Silphy.]”
-What?!
“[Look at Cheong.]”
-Huh?
Was Cheong scared? Or was she despairing in the face of his attack?
“Grrr!”
No. Cheong was looking at him more seriously than ever, preparing her attack. Should he ignore her resolve and stop his attack?
-Ugh! I really don’t understand why you’re fighting so hard.
“[You’ll understand someday.]”
Silphy felt that way because she was strong. If the day came when they became stronger than her, when she acknowledged her weakness and sought strength, she might be even more intense than they were.
“[Cheong. Are you ready?]”
*Nod*
White energy bloomed from Cheong’s right front paw. The pure white energy enveloped her paw. It might have seemed like there was no significant change, but he cautiously watched her.
“[Then this is the end.]”
As Cheong lunged towards him, he unleashed all the power he had gathered in his mouth. An overwhelming sensation, clearly different from anything before. With this feeling of power, this technique deserved to be called a “Skill.” He didn’t have a status window, but if he did, this attack would definitely be registered as a skill. He was that confident in this attack. It was among the best skills he had used in “Save Earth Hero.”
‘If I were to give it a name… Yes.’
His first original skill.
「Eclipse Nova」
***
*Ding*
7:30 PM. Subway.
The subway was packed with people during rush hour. A woman, lucky enough to have snagged a seat, tilted her head at the sudden vibration of her phone.
‘What is it?’
A short vibration meant it wasn’t a call. A text or a notification? She carefully took her phone out of her pocket and turned on the screen. A single notification appeared.
“Huh? What’s this? A new update?”
The notification was about a new update for her game. [Save Earth Hero], almost the only game she played, despite not being a big gamer. It might sound childish, but the game was surprisingly popular. She often heard people talking about it at work, and it was frequently featured on broadcasts. Anyway, she checked the update details for “Save Earth Hero,” or SEH for short.
‘Hmm. New equipment and achievements.’
First were the new weapons and achievements. She wasn’t interested in the weapons as they weren’t for her main class, but the achievements were a different story. The new achievement was [Irregular]. The description said it allowed players to experience a new story completely different from the existing one. A garbage achievement with no penalties or buffs. However, the mention of unlocking a new hidden route caught her attention.
“There was a hidden route?”
It was probably a new story added with this update. It seemed like a route inaccessible without this achievement. The words “hidden route” ignited the gamer’s spirit within her. But her excitement was quickly extinguished by another piece of information.
“What? A hidden achievement?”
For the first time in SEH, a hidden achievement had been introduced, requiring specific conditions to be met. Moreover, the conditions would be officially revealed in the next update.
“Ah, that’s a bit cheap.”
Why reveal it now if they weren’t going to announce the conditions until the next update? She decided to move on from the achievements.
“Let’s see, what else…”
The following updates described minor option changes and fixes to existing content, and reworks for some items.
“A large-scale update announcement.”
And the words that truly excited her: SEH was officially announcing a large-scale update. There were rumors about the introduction of a PvP system, but she wasn’t sure if they were true.
‘Hmm? New skills?’
She had thought the update details would end with the large-scale update announcement, but there was a surprise gift. Scrolling down a bit further, she saw the words “new skills added” on her phone screen.
“New skills… Eclipse Nova?”
She first checked the classes that could learn the new skill. If it wasn’t for her current character, she wouldn’t be very interested, but if the effect was good, she could learn it when creating a new character later.
“Available classes… What is this?”
She blinked in disbelief. The skill was available to [All Classes]. She wondered if it was a beginner skill, but the word “conditions” following the class description made her nod. So, all classes could learn it, but only if they met the conditions.
‘What if it’s something like Strength stat over 100?’
She wasn’t a Strength Mage. A mage couldn’t invest in Strength, could they? So, she thought the conditions wouldn’t be too difficult, but…
‘W-What is this?’
Fire, Water, Wood, Metal, Earth, Wind, Lightning.
Possessing all 7 attributes. She almost cursed out loud at the absurd condition. She barely managed to hold back, considering she was on a crowded subway.
‘Sigh. Calm down.’
If they set such a strange condition, the effect must be equally amazing. Whether a swordsman or a martial artist, handling magical power and mastering corresponding attributes was common to all, so it was extremely difficult, but not impossible.
‘I wonder what the effect is.’
Still reeling from the conditions, she slowly read the skill’s description and then, forgetting she was on the subway, shouted, “What kind of childish skill is this?!”
—–CROW—–