Back to the Sky (1), Back to the Sky (2)
Right after receiving the same quest.
Hyun and Ain shouted at each other.
“Hyun, I just… !”
“It’s the main quest! I got it too!」
The main quest, which had been dormant for a while, reappeared.
That is also the content of restoring Louise’s power!
‘As expected, Caidrial believed in it!’
Hyeon shouted joy in his heart.
It’s not a waste of the drinks and cakes I bought you today.
He made Ain an apostle, told him where Louise’s subordinates were, and even brought him an unconventional quest today.
‘What will happen if I use the Spirit now?’
Awakening is the only way to raise Louise’s level.
After the main quest, Louise’s level will rise to 400.
A level 400 story name will appear in the Shade Guild… It meant that he no longer had to fear the threat of the Holy Kingdom!
Maybe you can ask Louise to help you hunt.
It was at a time when Hyun was immersed in pleasant imagination that he heard Lutia’s voice again.
“It won’t be easy.”
“Yes… ?”
“Even if there are fewer thousand people, it doesn’t mean that the Temple of Light is completely empty.”
Lutia calmed Hyun’s heart, which had been excited beforehand.
“At your current level, even surviving there would be impossible.”
“Even if I combine Ain’s strength with me?”
“no.”
Lutia shook her head.
“You, Louise, all the subordinates who serve that child, plus the strength of the guild members and the guild, all together.”
“… !”
Hyun was surprised.
So, did Lutia give me a quest that I couldn’t even clear?
There would be no reason to do such a thing if it was not to deceive the other person. For what purpose?
It took a while before Lutia’s mouth opened again.
“But it’s not like there’s no way.”
“how… ?”
“If you fully understand the prayers I have taught you, and if you know how to use your newly acquired powers of chaos properly… There will be no problems.”
Having said that, Lutia put her hand down from drinking coffee.
Before I knew it, the shop containing the cake was completely empty.
“Can I tell you one more good thing?”
“… .”
“Know how to handle ‘Empathy’ before you go to the Temple of Light. It will definitely help.”
Hyun didn’t even have time to reply.
Lutia smiled mysteriously and disappeared on the spot.
Did I go back to the demon realm? Have I passed into a symmetrical world? Perhaps he teleported to another location.
Even though Lutia disappeared, the people around her did not show any reaction, as if they thought that one user had logged out.
After a while, Ain asked.
“Hyung, do you understand what I just said? I don’t know.”
“well… .”
While the customers at the cafe were buzzing among themselves, Hyun fell into deep thought.
It seemed to me that I would have to ponder for a little longer to understand the meaning of her words.
***
Hyun took another look at the priestly clothes of the praying person.
<Prayer is a means for human beings to approach the transcendent. May the power of the transcendent always stay by your side.>
(Level 10 effect): Can handle the power of empathy.
In order to find the second world of chaos, he had to raise his prayer level to 10, and in the meantime, a new effect was created in the ‘praying priest’s clothes’.
I’ve tried everything I could to activate the effect, but to no avail.
So, he forgot about it for a while, but after meeting Lutia, Hyun remembered this option again.
The next question is how to activate this empathy?
Deception gave enough hints.
Hyun immediately went to the Temple of Harmony in Loopra and summoned Louise.
“Louis!”
“hyeon? What have you come for?”
“Let’s look at your skills for a second.”
After a while, Hyun assimilated into Louise and checked the skill window, nodding his head broadly.
‘As expected, it was as expected!’
It was at a time when I had reached the 10th level of prayer that I hadn’t obtained a chaos contract yet, so I couldn’t come up with the idea of exchanging skills.
So, I didn’t even think about looking at Louise’s skills, and I even forgot that Louise had acquired these skills in the land of darkness.
[Empathy Lv.1 (+1)]
<The Transcendental One exercises power from the origins of countless beings. The size of your power should grow stronger the more your heart trembles, so you must be prepared to accept all the muddy streams of emotions in this world.>
-Feel the emotions of those who serve you.
– Also, you can imbue them with your emotions.
“Um… indeed… .”
Hyun nodded his head in assimilation and asked Louise one thing.
“Louise. Have you ever felt that breathing was uncomfortable?”
“… ? I do not get what it means.”
“Okay, if you’re that curious, I’ll tell you directly. Please release empathy for a moment, then seal it again.”
“Agree… ?」
“why? Are you having a hard time here?”
“No, it’s not that difficult if it’s only for a short while.”
pod. Louise’s entire body wriggled, then stopped for a moment.
For a moment, no one in the temple noticed the effect created by releasing empathy.
Kyaaah, only the closest little ghost was circling around Louise as if excited.
“Okay, the conditions are satisfied… .”
T-ring!
[Hyeon proposed a chaos contract! “Empathy Lv. 1” and “Breathing Lv. 0” skills are exchanged!」
[Do you want to accept the contract? Y/N]
‘… ?’
system box.
At the same time that the message that NPCs could hardly see came to mind, Louise was seized with alarm.
I saw something similar once.
Yes, 10 years ago! It’s time to give up my body for the first time!
“that… Isn’t it strange again?”
Louise asked in a trembling voice.
“Is that strange?”
“Like how I controlled my body in the past, controlling my mind through hypnosis this time… .”
「What is it, you suddenly sound like an Ajin. It’s not weird, so don’t worry.”
“Um… .”
Louise nodded suspiciously.
Of course, it’s not that I don’t believe in Hyun. Rather, it trusts more than anyone, including both users and NPCs.
But seeing a similar message again, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy.
At the same time as accepting the contract, Louise’s body shone slightly.
Chaos Contract. The skill of the two souls is to change for a moment.
the very next moment.
[warning! You have skills that are not allowed to users!]
[The ability of that skill is severely limited!]
“Oh, okay… !”
Hyun let out an exclamation.
Looking at the status window, a new skill had been created.
[Empathy Lv.1]
<This is originally a technology that humans cannot use.>
– You can gain sympathy from your servants and subordinates who serve you
– The greater the emotion of the soul and the closer the distance to the soul, the greater the empathy.
(※Caution: The size of the ego is too small to accumulate empathy! The gathering power is automatically used to boost stats!)
<Stat boost rate: 0%>
‘Hmm… .’
Hyeon’s gaze narrowed as he gazed through the skill window.
It was because there was a difference from the common empathy of transcendentalists.
First of all, the first problem is the effect of the skill.
While the transcendentalists did everything with the power of empathy, it seemed that he could only use that power for the purpose of inflating his stats.
‘It’s a little more ordinary than I expected.’
However, Hyun was not disappointed, and paid attention to the number written at the bottom of the skill called ‘stat amplification rate’.
The key is how high the number 0 can go.
If the word amplification rate literally means a ratio, even if it’s only 20 to 30 percent, you’ll be able to see the same effect as raising hundreds of stats.
But the first problem was nothing compared to the second.
Hyun paid attention to the phrase, ‘You can gain sympathy from the servants and subordinates who serve you’.
‘valet… ? Load… ?’
The prefecture also understands the concept of attendants and subordinates.
Beings connected by a special soul string.
In the case of Louise, for example, Shatin Shatina, and the monsters she saved from the ruins of Carinta Island.
‘So you mean I can’t get sympathy with the prayers of ordinary people?’
Yes, it was clearly stated in the skill that empathy could only be obtained from attendants and subordinates.
Shiina to herself, and Nevia.
However, those who stayed in the Nether and the Eternal World would not be able to be brought to reality in the first place.
‘Oh, this is the starting point after all… .’
Is the only possibility to find a third attendant waiting for him somewhere?
The first servant was in the nether world, and the second servant was in the immortal realm, so the remaining third servant may be staying somewhere in the present world.
That’s just speculation, after all.
‘The third attendant… I’ll have to think about this more later.’
Hyun stared at the skill description several times.
I was not comfortable with the feeling of having the legendary item I received for free taken away from me.
***
‘What do we do… ?’
Hyun, caught in a dilemma, broke into a cold sweat.
-It is said that there are many empty seats in the Temple of Light right now! But with time, the void will soon be filled.
Quest messages don’t lie.
If you don’t hurry, the chance to clear the main quest is certain to disappear.
Even so, the reason why I couldn’t hurry was because there was a message from Lutia as follows.
‘You’d better know how to deal with ‘Empathy’ before you go to the Temple of Light.’
Rutia’s advice is needed to hurry up, and the quest message is taken to prepare more.
In this situation, nothing can be decided.
In the end, Hyun decided to lean on the advice of the guild members.
The topic is, can I start the quest right away or not?
“Oh, is it a trip? But without me, the operation of the temple stops… ! I don’t know if it’s okay to leave!”
“I’m going to find your strength, so why don’t you go?”
“No, of course I have to go!”
First of all, Louise seemed to have no idea, so she was excluded from the question candidates, and Hyun asked the opinions of the other four one by one.
“Do I really need to listen to him? There must be no quest that Hyun can’t break anyway!”
Ain said so with a determined expression.
It was not a logical explanation, but Hyun accepted her opinion and added 1 vote in favor.
“Keuheum, that great devil, it seems you haven’t grasped all of my abilities. Hyeon, if you and I work together, there are almost no quests that cannot be completed.”
Salon also showed a reaction with his hands itching.
He seemed to be secretly looking forward to the fact that he might be able to do a quest together after a long time.
“I heard that it would be difficult to clear, but there was no saying that it was impossible. Then, isn’t your brother able to do something?”
Tartar is similar to Ain, but presented a slightly more logical opinion.
He also recognized Hyeon as a monster that can do anything, so he was not in a position to oppose the idea to move immediately.
“Find out a way… .”
Lastly, Ginny thought the most seriously and answered Hyeon’s question.
“Maybe I’m just kidding.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“Yes, I heard that there is no way to use empathy right now.”
“Yes.”
“I couldn’t use it, but… Hyun has already figured out how to do that. It means that the conditions set by the other party have been satisfied.”
“Is this how… ?”
“My opinion is just one possibility, so don’t take it too seriously.”
The results are so unanimous.
As opinions gathered that it was better to start the quest right away, Hyun’s thoughts gradually hardened in the same direction.
‘They said it was the most difficult quest ever.’
Hyun recalled Lutia’s warning.
The Temple of Light is a dangerous place where you cannot survive unless you are fully prepared.
Hearing that, it was uneasy to move with only Ain and Louise.
In order to increase the probability of clearing the quest even a little, it would be better to bring as many companions as possible.
‘I have to take the two of them unconditionally.’
Hyun seriously considered who else to include in the party besides Ain and Louise.
‘It would be fine if I put Salon in it.’
Salon didn’t even need to be persuaded.
Salon felt great pride in the fact that the Iluna episode, ‘Running on the Snowy Plains’, existed in the History Quest.
If he said that this quest would almost certainly appear in history, he would definitely join the party.
“Tartar, do you want to go too?”
“Me? Is there anything I need… ?”
Tartar, on the other hand, reacted with dismay.
Because he was a tartar who was sensitive to Internet reactions, he knew well what his evaluation was like.
Shortest Retirement!
Although he stood out on the other side and became a name in the field, Tartar as an Assrian ranker had long been forgotten in people’s heads.
It was because he was in charge of attending school, creating guild content, and managing the guild image through social media, so there was absolutely no time to level up.
“What, is this guild leader refusing to do something for the first time in a while?”
However, in the current situation, Tartar was also a valuable force.
Although his specs are insignificant, his job skills are not.
It is the skill of the death knight that the efficiency rises like crazy as the amount of magic consumed increases.
Wasn’t he safe even from long-distance lightning magic attacks thanks to the shield of the ‘Shield of Predation’ in the Holy Kingdom not too long ago?
It means that Tartar is a useful enough hand just by bringing the appropriate skills whenever needed through chaos contracts.
“But isn’t that a quest that takes just a few days? For the time being, I have to become a game junkie like my older brother.”
‘pain… ?’
Hyungwon tilted his head for a moment.
It was because I was curious about what the original word was and why it was translated this way.
However, it was not very important, so I paraphrased moderately and nodded my head.
“Perhaps it is highly likely?”
“That’s the problem! I have to keep going to school, so it will only get in the way.”
“Um… .”
At Tartar’s words, Hyun made a serious expression as if thinking about something, and then muttered in a low voice.
“Tartar, because you don’t know yet. There are times in life when you have no choice but to stand at a crossroads. Which of the two forks you choose will determine your future life.”
“… ?”
“The main quest of the Shade Guild and the school you can always go to… . Which of the two is more important?”
At Hyeon’s question, Tartar pondered for a long time before answering cautiously.
“The Shade Guild’s Quest… shall?”
“Well, if you think so, then so be it. Then you’ll know I’m going with you.”
Hyeon put on a happy expression and patted Tartar on the shoulder.
After completing the recruitment to Tartar like that.
‘Next is Genie.’
I thought about the composition of the party again.
Ain has regular absorption, so it wouldn’t matter, but the rest needed the priest’s care because they didn’t have the means to self-recover.
And the only trustworthy priest-type job in the guild is Genie.
After thinking about it, Hyun headed to a building in the central administrative district of the city of border.
‘Is this here? long time no see.’
The number of employees of SHA Company has long since increased to several hundred.
In addition, there were more monsters who took on chores with NPCs from the Nation of Darkness that Genie had hired after completing his ideology verification.
A space resembling a modern office. Among the busily moving people, Hyun soon found Genie reviewing the documents.
“Ginny, isn’t it a little boring to work every day?”
“no. I have the most fun these days.”
Ginny replied without changing her expression.
Is this a workaholic? Hyun became a little worried about her lifestyle. Of course, she’s lucky if she’s happy.
Genie’s level is a little over 200. It is a specification that is far short of the ranker cutoff.
If he hadn’t been kind to me from time to time, wouldn’t he still have been unable to change his 2nd job?
It seems that everything was left to her alone, so Hyun was always grateful to Ginny, but also felt sorry for her.
“But wasn’t it quite fun in the Ice Thorn Dungeon before?”
“ah. at that time… .”
Genie suddenly stares into space.
In an instant, Hyun witnessed a vague smile appear on her lips.
Without missing the moment, he quickly opened his mouth.
“Quest together after a long time. how is it?”
“Yes, of course, whatever the prefecture asks… .”
“no! This is not a request!”
take a break
“It’s just a suggestion, so there’s no need to do it out of a sense of duty.”
“… okay.”
Ginny asked a question.
“Who else will participate in the Shade Guild?”
“hmm… Me and Ain, and even Salon and Tartar… .”
“Huh, then I can’t help but go. I see. It would be fun to do a quest after a long time.”
After answering like that, Ginny smiled the brightest smile she had shown lately.
In fact, the recent SHA Company was running smoothly without Genie.
Even though there were three surrogates to fill her absence, Ginny steadily maintained her place as the top decider.
However, even if you are away for a few days, no major problems will arise.
Hyun even included Genie in the party.
‘Not enough yet.’
Even after persuading all the members of the Shade Guild, Hyun felt that one thing was lacking.
Poppy, along with Genie, helped run the city!
It was clear that if he, as a heavenly man, would be with him, it would be of great help to him.
Hyun was able to find Papi in contemplation at the edge of the city, where the black mist and the white band interlocked.
“You mean the Temple of Light… ?”
After being imprisoned, Papi secretly feared going to the sky.
So, even when asked to join the party, he showed skepticism.
“I won’t be very helpful.”
“Are you a celestial?”
“Not all celestials are great. To be honest, she doesn’t have the confidence to win even if she fights with the former priestess.”
It wasn’t a lie, but it was only half true.
Because Poppy’s true value lies in being able to handle special abilities rather than combat prowess.
Proficient in magic such as creating magic circles, stealth, and detecting presence, he is, in a word, a ‘celestial supporter’. It is an indispensable support for a party.
Hyeon, knowing that fact, persuaded Papi some more.
“Are you really going to stay in the city alone?”
“… .”
“Anyway, you’re free these days.”
“… .”
“Well, I can’t help it if I really don’t like it, but this might put Louise in a bit of danger.”
“I didn’t say no… You saved my life, so you have no reason to refuse me.”
Hyun clenched his fists invisibly.
From the beginning, he did not consider the possibility of Papi’s persuasion failing.
It was because I knew his character from the days of Asura that he would grant anything if asked persistently.
‘Okay, everyone is here!’
All guild members of the Shade Guild gathered.
Wouldn’t it be possible to start a war with a member like this?
However, Hyun decided to be careful not to be overconfident.
According to what Lutia had warned, this quest would be so severe that even if the Shade Guild did their best, clearing it would not be guaranteed.
***
The relationship between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom, as well as between the Nation of Darkness and the Holy Kingdom, deteriorated day by day.
Soldiers near the border could not relax even while eating and had to keep an eye on the enemy’s movements.
In the midst of the atmosphere of the moment, numerous quests related to the war were also poured out to the users.
Its contents include transporting goods, collecting information, and even assassinating key figures!
While Asrian’s world is in chaos, Hyun’s party has been crossing the sky for nine hours on a transport ship.
‘It’s arriving soon.’
Immediately after everyone gathered, the atmosphere was quite excited thanks to Louise and Salon, but now the transport ship was very quiet.
Louise and Poppy were sleeping in the cabin, and the rest of the guild members decided to connect on time.
And even at this moment, Ginny seemed to be working in the border city with a sub-account.
Thanks to that, there are only two of them on the deck right now.
Hyeon asked Ain, who was smiling brightly at the flowing clouds.
“What are you doing?”
“huh… ? why?”
What were you thinking? Ain’s shoulders fluttered on her shoulders.
“Just, for some reason, you seem to be in a good mood these days.”
Hyun thought of the usual Ain.
Not the A-in in Assrian, but the ‘Jung A-in’ in reality.
Even though she slept for about 10 hours, she was always sleepy in the morning.
I walked around the living room with dirty eyes, opened the refrigerator once, and took a shower in the morning.
Even after entering the capsule, I couldn’t connect to Assrian and would sleep as it was.
In the meantime, Ain’s lax appearance is revealed at any time.
At first, I was shy, so I didn’t want to run into Ain in the morning, but lately I’ve gotten used to it, so I tend to enjoy watching it.
“I wake up early these days. You don’t even wake up in the morning.”
“I? Was it… ?”
“huh. The atmosphere itself seems to have changed.”
“Hmm, what is it, it seems like you’ve been staring at me the whole time?”
“Just because something happened.”
At Hyun’s question, Ain muttered with a strange smile.
“just… I am waiting for the right time.”
“When… ?”
“Because there really isn’t much left now!”
As I was talking about this and that with Ain, the guild members appeared one by one.
Poppy opened the cabin door first, followed by Tartar, Salon, and Genie.
After a while, Louise, who woke up, also came out to the deck and stretched.
‘It’s finally starting.’
Hyun swallowed a gulp at the sight of the island getting closer and closer.
Radix Island.
It is called an island, but in fact its topography is more like a mountain.
If the upper part of the huge mountain peak were removed as it is, this form would be created.
It is about 10 kilometers high!
The Temple of Light was located at the top of an island entwined with tree roots.
“I need to lower my altitude.”
Unlike Carinta Island, Radix Island was no different from the enemy camp of the Shade Guild.
Sailing near the top of the island, it was certain that the transport would be wrecked without even setting foot on land.
top of the mountain. In other words, the closer to the temple, the higher the possibility of being caught by the celestial being in the role of ‘watchman’.
After settling down halfway up, killing the presence and climbing the island would be the only option for the group.
“Poppy, please.”
“All right.”
At the same time, a blue magic circle began to sway in Poppy’s hand.
self. The transport ship slowly disappeared while sailing through the sky.
Poppy’s skill ‘Stealth’.
Unlike invisibility, it has a fairly long duration, but there was a difference in that stealth is canceled as soon as an external stimulus is applied.
“Awesome… .”
“Is this the power of the Celestials?”
It was like magic to see a 50-meter transport ship disappear with a single spell.
Poppy muttered embarrassedly at the reaction of the guild members who admired the celestial ability.
“It is possible because it is heaven. If it was on the ground, it would have been all about hiding that one body.”
That’s how the transport ship started approaching Radix Island without any signs.
The destination is halfway up the mountain.
The group held their breath and began preparing for the future.
