Chapter 459: Bond

The semifinal match came to a close.

As the spectators left the arena, they were horrified to see the devastated promenade.

And when they heard that a battle with the Witch of Exhaustion had taken place there, they were once again shocked.

The promenade wasn’t even that far from the arena, and yet they hadn’t noticed a single trace of the intense fight. Not even the fact that a battle had happened at all.

Of course, this also meant the area was that well-protected, which the parents seemed to find rather reassuring.

What shocked everyone even more, however, was the news that the Witch of Exhaustion had been annihilated.

An S-rank witch who had spread her infamous name for hundreds of years.

Against such a powerful figure, merely holding her off and surviving would’ve been considered a success.

But now, words like “eliminated” and “obliterated” were being thrown around. Terms so unfamiliar that many didn’t believe them at first.

As the full story gradually came to light, excitement spread like wildfire, and soon, the entire Dungeon Island was swept up in a festival-like atmosphere.

Pop! Pop-pop!

Fireworks erupted repeatedly, lighting up the evening sky.

They were slight modifications of explosion spells, like the kind Hong Yeom-baek used.

Just when it seemed to quiet down, someone would set off more fireworks and when those ended, another round would go off somewhere else. It was an endless relay.

Pop-pop-pop! Boom!

In stark contrast to the festive mood, Dang Gyu-young looked visibly displeased.

She squinted and shot a sideways glare at me.

“You acted like it was nothing and walked off, but turns out it wasn’t nothing at all.”

“I couldn’t let it show at the time.”

The Sword Queen had used telepathy to order silence, and even if I had said anything, it would’ve only caused unnecessary concern.

Dang Gyu-young grumbled.

“You could’ve taken me with you.”

“There wouldn’t have been anything for you to do. The level was just too high.”

It had been a battlefield between high-level undead, faculty members, and parents. It wasn’t a place for even a third-year club president to intervene.

Of course, Dang Gyu-young knew all this already, but even so, she kept pouting, clearly feeling left out.

“I wanted to be part of the action too. I want to hear people say, ‘We won thanks to the super-strong Qyu-Qyu!’”

“There’ll be plenty of chances for you to shine in the future. Just hang in there a bit longer.”

“…Next time, you have to take me.”

“I got it.”

“Promise.”

Only after we hooked pinkies and stamped it with our thumbs did Dang Gyu-young’s expression finally soften.

Then she asked me,

“So, why’d you call me out separately?”

“Is that a problem?”

“Of course not. Is it about the encouragement prize?”

“That’s already settled.”

As she leaned in for a kiss, I coldly pushed her away.

Before she could max out her sulk gauge, I quickly added,

“I learned a new skill.”

“Let me guess….another cheating skill, huh? Where do you keep getting these?”

“I got it from my past self.”

“Uh-huh, sure you did. Spoken like a true senior who’s graduated a hundred times. You really have everything, huh?”

“I’m serious.”

Technically, it was from my past self since I got it back as a reward from the main quest. So it’s not wrong.

Still, she clearly thought I was just brushing it off.

“So, what skill is it?”

“The one you had kept waiting for. Number one.”

Dang Gyu-young’s eyebrows lifted in surprise.

“…Seriously? Bond?”

“Yeah. It’s Bond.”

“Finally…!”

Clenching her fist, she muttered to herself,

“Okay… I guess I can give up a one-day Kim Ho pass. I’ll just take the number one spot instead.”

“Aren’t you putting a bit too much meaning into this?”

“It’s important. Number one means everything.”

She emphasized it with the utmost seriousness.

I let it go and began explaining.

“Like I said before, once you activate [Bond], you can’t undo it. So it’s best to hear the full effect before deciding.”

“I don’t need to hear it.”

“Just listen.”

“Fine, fine. What’s the effect? I’m sooo curious~”

She asked with a cheerful smile.

I briefly considered just activating it on the spot but decided it was better to go through the proper steps.

Pulling up the skill window, I continued the explanation.

▷ Bond [0/1]

1. (None)

“When you form a bond, the person gets registered in this slot you’re seeing here.”

“You’ve only got one slot for now?”

“Since I just unlocked it, of course more will be added later.”

Additional slots, just like with [Copy], could be obtained as quest rewards or expanded through items or hidden pieces.

Dang Gyu-young asked,

“But what’s the benefit of bonding?”

“I was just about to show you.”

I pulled up the rest of the skill window.

▷ Shared Trait [0/1]

1. (None)

“In this slot, you can register a trait possessed by a bonded member. Naturally, everyone shares it.”

“What the…. this is totally broken.”

“Well, it is a unique Monarch skill.”

On top of this, I planned to learn additional skills specifically for bonded members.

The reason Monarchs were held in such reverence wasn’t just the power of their traits but also the impact of these unique skills.

Dang Gyu-young asked again,

“Then what’s the downside?”

“As I said before, you can’t undo it. Even if you suddenly start hating me, you’re stuck with it until the end.”

Dang Gyu-young grinned.

“Then there’s no real downside. Use it when you’re ready.”

“Alright.”

[Activated ‘Bond’.]

Fwaaash—

The moment the notification appeared, a bright halo of light formed between Dang Gyu-young and me.

At its center floated a glowing crest, no larger than a fingernail, shaped like an elegant crown.

Dang Gyu-young peered at it curiously and asked,

“Pretty. What is it?”

“Think of it like a ritual. The crest marks each member to connect them together.”

Her eyes narrowed with a hint of reproach.

“Hey, and you’re only telling me this now?”

“That was careless of me. Should I cancel it for now?”

From my perspective, the crest was nothing but functionality, but I couldn’t assume the other person would see it the same way.

Giving her more time to decide wouldn’t hurt.

But Dang Gyu-young didn’t hesitate long before shaking her head.

“No, I think it’s fine. It won’t show up on my face, right?”

“It’s random, but it usually reflects the person’s intent to some degree.”

“Good enough, then.”

I resumed the ritual where I had paused, and the crown flared even brighter.

Fwaaash—!

And then, a blue thread of light stretched out, linking the two of us together.

▷ Bond [1/1]

1. Dang Gyu-young

Sharing the updated skill window, I said,

“Wish granted. Number one.”

“……”

“Where did the crest appear on you? Mine’s about here.”

I pointed to my shoulder, and Dang Gyu-young just glanced at me in silence.

Normally, she’d be pestering me “Show me”, or “Take it off for a second”… but this time her reaction was oddly lukewarm.

The excitement she’d been bursting with moments ago seemed to have suddenly fizzled out.

So I pressed her a little.

“What? Where is it?”

“…It’s a secret.”

“You could at least say where.”

“…I’m not telling.”

Another strange thing: she wouldn’t meet my eyes at all.

I could swear there was even a faint blush on her cheeks.

Then, fumbling and stammering unlike her usual self, Dang Gyu-young muttered,

“I-I’m just gonna… go somewhere for a bit.”

“Out of nowhere?”

“Yeah, uh—something urgent came up! That’s right! Club stuff!”

With that, she stiffly turned and bolted.

I ran after her, calling out,

“At this hour, club activities?”

“Don’t follow me, young monarch!”

She even used Shadow Leap to widen the gap.

Figuring she probably needed some time alone, I let her go.

And for the record, it wasn’t because I couldn’t catch up without Blink. Absolutely not.

After waiting a while, I sent her a few messages.

[Kim Ho: (Fox with megaphone emoji)]

[Kim Ho: Looking for runaway Qyu Qyu!]

[Kim Ho: Come back, I’ll be good to you!]

[Dang Gyu-young: (Peeking fox emoji)]

[Dang Gyu-young: (Wary fox emoji)]

[Kim Ho: I won’t ask about it, just come back.]

[Dang Gyu-young: Where are you?]

[Kim Ho: Same place as before.]

At last, Dang Gyu-young showed up again.

By then, an unspoken agreement had formed between us—

The crest would not be mentioned.

“Still, we should keep talking about Bond. There’s an empty slot, remember.”

▷ Shared Trait [0/1]

1. (None)

Dang Gyu-young nodded and asked,

“Mhmm, want me to register mine?”

“For now, I’ll stick with mine first.”

Elemental Resistance, Poison Immunity, and Time Resistance were all S-rank with excellent versatility, so it makes sense to register them before the traits Dang Gyu-young has.

For a while, it’ll look like I’m the only one giving, but once the Bond members’ specs pass a certain threshold, I’ll be able to benefit too.

Dang Gyu-young asked,

“Which one should we start with?”

“How about Elemental Resistance? With that, I think you could beat Senior Song Cheon-gi easily.”

At present, Dang Gyu-young’s skill level was already on par with a third-year disciplinary committee member.

If she added Elemental Resistance to that, she’d be practically unbeatable against anyone from the Magic Tower Association.

But Dang Gyu-young shook her head.

“I’ll save that one for later.”

“Why?”

“Because if I won with that, it wouldn’t feel satisfying.”

The sense of accomplishment would probably be weaker too.

It would feel like I’d won in her place, rather than her winning with her own strength.

“I’ve almost caught up anyway. I want to push a bit further on my own.”

“Alright. As the second option, I’m thinking about Distortion.”

Poison Immunity or Time Resistance were also good, but only effective against very specific enemies.

Retrocovery’s effect was similar to Distortion’s, but the cooldown difference of three days versus one was significant.

“Alright, let’s go with that.”

This time, Dang Gyu-young didn’t refuse.

It was true she was benefiting from me, but it wouldn’t have too much impact when it came to competing against people like Song Cheon-gi or Oh Se-hoon.

[‘Distortion’ has been registered in the slot.]

▷ Shared Trait [1/1]

1. Distortion

“Something just came to mind….can’t you change what’s registered as a Shared Trait?”

“You can, but the cooldown is pretty long. It’s better not to, unless you have to.”

“I see.”

With that, matters concerning the Bond were settled for the time being.

Before long, Dang Gyu-young slowly edged closer and placed a hand on my shoulder.

“……”

“What’s with the hand?”

“I’m curious about the crest. Let me see your shoulder.”

“Only if you show me yours first.”

“I can’t.”

“Then I can’t either.”

“Ah! Just a little!”

I immediately turned my back and ran away.