After watching a bit longer, the completed pot finally revealed itself.
Its overall shape remained nearly the same as before, but the previously pitch-black handle now had decorations like stars scattered across the night sky.
[Immortal Kim Ho Kim Ho Pot (S+)]
▷ Indestructible
▷ Energy Blocking (S)
▷ Impact Nullification (A+)
▷ Severed Space (S)
▷ Upgradable
The original Severed Space skill had been A+ rank, but thanks to the modification I requested, it had risen to S-rank.
The successful upgrade also added a bonus to the item’s overall rank.
“……”
Seo Ye-in silently gazed down at the Kim Ho Pot for quite some time.
Judging by the way she gently stroked the handle, it was clear she was very pleased with it.
Soon, she approached with sparkling eyes.
“Kim Ho Imprisonment Pot.”
“That name sounds kinda wrong.”
“Test.”
“No.”
“Just once.”
Honestly, I wouldn’t have minded testing the pot’s performance at least once.
It would’ve been a good chance to try out my new weapon too.
“But we’re still in the middle of a raid. Let’s do it after we’re done.”
It was about time for the next boss to show up.
And since we’d spent more time than expected fusing the Immortal Pot, we needed to get back to the temple as quickly as possible.
So I said my goodbyes to the tailor.
“Let’s wrap it up here for today. That was a good deal.”
“Caw, likewise! See you again, young Monarch!”
He neatly adjusted his outfit, slung his bag over one wing, flapped once, and took off into the air.
Then, he opened a small dimensional rift and slipped into another dungeon.
As we watched him disappear, we began retracing our steps.
Pushing through the forest at a brisk pace.
While we walked, Shin Byeong-cheol cautiously asked a question.
“…Hey, can I ask now?”
“Go ahead.”
“Oof, my beak was itching like crazy. I kinda wanted to ask a few things too.”
Shin Byeong-cheol whose audio never emptied had stayed quiet throughout the whole deal with the dimensional crow.
Probably because the crow was such a high-ranking being. He figured it’d be better not to accidentally offend it, and even if he did ask something, he’d likely just get ignored.
Plus, he had tagged along as a spectator. If he interfered with the deal, he knew we might not bring him along next time.
Shin Byeong-cheol grinned.
“Well, it’s a bit of a shame, but I got to watch something amazing. That was some serious stuff…S-rank, A+ rank…”
I held out my hand to him.
“Glad you enjoyed the show. That’ll be your viewing fee.”
“Oh come on, my ord, how would a humble man like me have any money?”
“You’re loaded. You were buying up items at the auction like crazy.”
“They’re not selling. I mean, they are, but I’m constantly running at a loss.”
“You about to end up on the streets again?”
“Not quite.”
With a mysterious smile, Shin Byeong-cheol continued.
“There’s still a chance for a comeback.”
“You really do have a plan.”
“Of course. I’ll give you a hint. The tournament is the turning point… wait, what’s that sound?”
Ssssk…
Just like he said, there was a constant dragging sound echoing around us.
It grew louder as we approached the temple, and by the time we arrived, its source became clear.
Sssssk…
A monster with the lower body of a huge snake and the upper body of a woman.
The next boss had appeared.
And it was just about to step into the temple.
“We almost got here too late.”
I said that and strode forward with confidence.
Then I thrust out my inferno fist.
Boooooooooom—!
***
After that, I continued taking down each boss with inferno fists, cleared the dungeon, and leisurely made my way back to the surface.
Since it was late at night, everyone returned to their dorms to rest.
The next day.
Seo Ye-in and I stood face to face in the center of the training room.
We were there to test our upgraded gear.
“……”
Seo Ye-in gently stroked the pot, then looked at me, asking for permission with her eyes.
I gave a small nod, and at once, Severed Space activated.
Fwooooooooosh!
The starry pattern on the pot’s handle exploded outward, instantly engulfing our entire field of view.
The next thing I knew, I was standing in what felt like the middle of a starry night sky.
I tried walking around experimentally, but there didn’t seem to be any walls. It was like walking in place.
The skill’s performance is excellent.
I was trapped inside the isolated space alone.
Seo Ye-in hadn’t entered with me, which meant the skill’s effect had been properly modified.
It now trapped only the opponent.
That was enough for me to see what I needed.
Guess I’ll head out now.
Since [Severed Space] creates an isolated dimension, it consumes a huge amount of mana to both cast and maintain.
With Seo Ye-in’s level of [Core], her mana would likely run out in a few minutes, and the skill would cancel on its own.
But I had no intention of waiting that long.
Gotta save my mana.
Given her sloth personality, there was a high chance she’d just collapse on the spot once she ran out of mana.
Then she wouldn’t be able to train me. So if I didn’t want to give her that excuse, it was best to leave early.
The only problem was how to get out.
I’ve got a space-type skill too, you know.
Seo Ye-in wasn’t the only one who had upgraded her gear.
With the Crow Tree in hand, I cleared my throat.
Then I spoke the activation phrase.
“Caaaw—!”
Why is the skill named after a crow’s cry?
And why does it have to be spoken aloud?
Both questions have the same answer.
Because they’re crow skills.
Dimensional crows were masters of spatial magic.
Even in the entire world of “Dragon Slayer Academy”, they stand in a league of their own when it comes to this field.
Especially [Caaaw—!] and [Caw?….these are skills unique to crows, true hidden pieces among hidden pieces.
As for me, I started out with a Monarch thanks to the reincarnation quest bonus, and I already knew the sources of most other hidden pieces, so it was relatively easy to obtain.
The skills weren’t even made for humans in the first place. That’s why their names are just crow sounds.
And to imitate a crow’s technique, I too had to become like a crow.
The effect of [Caaaw—!] appeared instantly.
The starry night sky surrounding me vanished without a trace, and I returned to the training room.
The first thing I saw was Seo Ye-in crouched down where I’d just been.
As if sensing my presence, she slowly lifted her head and looked at me.
“……?”
“What were you doing?”
“Why’d you come out already?”
She looked away awkwardly, as if feeling a little guilty, and asked in return.
I held up the Crow Tree.
“Didn’t want to waste mana just sitting there. I used this to open a way out.”
“…A shame.”
“Because your imprisonment failed?”
– Nod.
Disappointment was written all over Seo Ye-in’s face.
She’d thought she could kidnap Kim Ho just by using the pot. But that hope was crushed on the very first try.
And the gear performance test still wasn’t over.
“Try it one more time.”
“……?”
Though tilting her head in confusion, Seo Ye-in pointed the Immortal Pot toward me again.
But before [Severed Space] could activate, I raised the Crow Tree and spoke the activation phrase.
“Caw?”
“……?”
Seo Ye-in stared at me blankly, then realized something was off and looked down at the pot.
She had clearly activated the skill, yet nothing had happened.
I held up the Crow Tree again and explained.
“I blocked it with this.”
“……!”
The effect of [Caw?] was to block spatial magic for a set duration.
Naturally, that included Severed Space.
Seo Ye-in’s expression turned even more disappointed, as if it had just hit her that I could completely prevent her from imprisoning me whenever I wanted.
Then, as if something occurred to her, she stepped closer and reached out toward the Crow Tree.
“Let me borrow it.”
“Why?”
“Just let me borrow it.”
“You’re planning to trap me after you borrow it, aren’t you?”
“…No, I’m not.”
She averted her gaze again, suspiciously.
I asked the question I had brought up earlier.
“What were you doing when I came out? You were crouching down.”
– Head shake, head shake.
“That’s really suspicious. Tell me the truth.”
– Head shake, head shake.
Seo Ye-in just kept shaking her head in denial.
***
After we finished testing the gear’s performance, we had a little random box opening ceremony.
The items that came out were just as lucky as expected. It was an elixir and a rank boost.
We split the elixir evenly and agreed to use the boost together during training.
Just like that, we spent the next few days going back and forth between the school and the training center. And as the second week of strategy battle began—
The long-awaited message finally came.
[Dang Gyu-young: It’s done]
[Dang Gyu-young: Stage 9]
[Dang Gyu-young: (Super! Fox emoji!)]
[Dang Gyu-young: Human victory]
Dang Gyu-young had finally completed the first half of the Hraship quest.
Thanks to focusing solely on training and skipping big events like the auction, she finished about two days earlier than expected.
[Kim Ho: You really worked hard]
[Dang Gyu-young: Honestly, it was tough]
[Dang Gyu-young: (Fainting fox emoji)]
[Kim Ho: (Pat-pat fox emoji)]
[Kim Ho: Let’s meet for a bit]
[Dang Gyu-young: Ok]
At the same time, I reached out to Seo Cheong-yong to coordinate schedules as quickly as possible.
Fortunately, the timing worked out, and he replied asking me to come to the faculty office. I also arranged to meet Dang Gyu-young near the school.
I arrived first and was waiting when I spotted Dang Gyu-young from a distance.
She looked visibly worn out, as if she’d truly been through a lot.
I sent another word of encouragement.
“You did great.”
“You’re not just saying that, right?”
“Of course not. After you’ve cleared stage 10, there are tons of places we need to go together.”
“……”
Without a word, Dang Gyu-young held out her pinky finger.
I gladly hooked my pinky with hers and sealed it with a thumb stamp. Thunk.
Only then did a smile finally appear on Dang Gyu-young’s lips.
“Is the cooldown over? For the Harship.”
“Of course. I’ve had it ready. I’ll use it right now.”
“Go ahead, go ahead.”
[The target has been granted ‘Stage 10 Harship’.]
“……”
Dang Gyu-young stared into empty space for a while as she read through the quest details.
Then she furrowed her brows slightly and muttered,
“…This really is a class change quest. And the difficulty’s high too.”
“Let’s check it together later. For now, let’s go.”
“Sure. You said the faculty office?”
“Yes.”
“Who else is with Mr. Seo Cheong-yong?”
“I haven’t heard either.”
“We’ll find out when we get there.”
Dang Gyu-young brushed it off casually and took the lead.
In truth, I was also quite interested in the lineup.
The dungeon we planned to enter was A-rank, so even the base difficulty was extremely high.
What’s more, our goal wasn’t to follow the standard strategy but to extract only the hidden piece and get out.
We needed a small, elite team, and ideally, each member had to be highly skilled.
If only the principal helped out, that’d solve everything in one go.
But I couldn’t exactly just order around a former hero.
I left that lingering regret behind and kept walking.
As expected, Seo Cheong-yong was waiting in the faculty office.
And as much as I had partly anticipated it, one person still caught me off guard.
“You’re here.”
Lee Soo-dok shot us a sharp look.
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