As I’d already been thinking it was about time to reorganize my skills, obtaining the Skull Demon Poison Claw had pushed that plan forward considerably.
I’d just need to make a few more preparations before scheduling a meeting with the Skillbook Fairy.
For now though, we decided to finish opening the remaining boxes.
“……”
“……”
The party members kept glancing back and forth between Chattering Sloth and the Black Snake’s Black Chest with obvious curiosity.
They were wondering whether the mirror version was a Lucky Charm too. And if so, just how lucky she really was.
With everyone’s attention fixed on her, Chattering Sloth spoke those familiar words before opening the chest.
– Luck is on my side.
A bold thing to say.
If things went badly, she’d end up thoroughly embarrassed.
Which only meant she was absolutely certain.
Even the motion of lifting the lid was filled with confidence.
Flaaaaaash!
The next instant, an auspicious aura flooded the entire area.
It felt as though something wonderful was about to happen at any moment.
Something wonderful did happen.
A great item.
With an effect like this, a jackpot was practically guaranteed.
Sure enough, the item that emerged didn’t disappoint.
At the same time, it was completely unexpected.
This drops here?
It was a curved jewel shaped like a comma.
A crimson color shimmered faintly throughout its surface.
[Heaven Gogok (A+)]
One of the Three Heaven-Earth-Human Set.
Go Hyeon-woo had already obtained the Earth Gogok during winter break.
The plan had been to clear a Deeper Floor dungeon later and complete the rest of the set.
Instead, we’d just pulled one of the missing pieces straight out of a random box.
I couldn’t help grumbling half-seriously to the two Seo Ye-ins.
“You two keep moving my plans ahead of schedule. That’s becoming a problem.”
– But I did well, didn’t I?
“You did an excellent job.”
We hadn’t broken through the S-rank barrier, but we’d still upgraded an A-rank item to A+.
On top of that, totem-type items were especially valuable even among items of the same rank, since their effects applied simply by keeping them in your inventory.
That made it especially important from my perspective.
In every sense, Lucky Charm had lived up to her name.
[Heaven Gogok (A+)]
▷ Grants a Minor Growth Bonus to the lowest-ranked skill.
▷ …….
▷ …….
The Earth Jewel was primarily tied to Traits, while the Heaven Jewel was closely connected to Skills.
The Human Jewel for reference was linked to Equipment.
Of course, those were only their base effects.
The real value begins once you complete the set.
I brought the two Gogoks together.
As if they had always been one, they merged seamlessly. Crimson and azure intertwined, forming the shape of a Heaven-Earth Set.
[Heaven-Earth Gogok (S)]
▷ Heaven-Earth Set [2/2]: Growth Bonus Enhanced
▷ Grants a Moderate Growth Bonus to the lowest-ranked Skill and Trait.
▷ Heaven-Earth Set [2/2]: Damage Reduction (F)
▷ Heaven-Earth-Human Set [2/3]: ???
▷ Heaven-Earth-Human Set [2/3]: ???
▷ Heaven-Earth-Human Set [2/3]: ???
The Growth Bonus had increased from Minor to Moderate.
On top of that, it had gained the remarkable effect of Damage Reduction.
Just as the name implied, it reduced incoming damage by a certain amount.
Whether my entire body was engulfed in flames, my head was smashed with a club or a frying pan, or I was stabbed or slashed by a blade, it applied regardless of the type of attack.
Elemental penalties count as “damage” too, when you think about it.
At the moment, it was only F-rank, so the amount of damage it reduced was minimal, and there was virtually no way to improve it other than completing the Heaven-Earth-Human Set.
Even so, once the set was complete, it should be more than capable of nullifying even S-rank elemental penalties.
I’ll probably get rid of Inferno Fist before then, though.
The last Gogok wasn’t going to conveniently pop out of another random box, and obtaining it the normal way would take quite some time.
Even setting that aside, the effect was so universally useful that it was regarded as the pinnacle of defensive options.
Satisfied, I stored the Gogok in my inventory.
All that remained was the grand finale.
[White Snake’s White Chest (A+)]
“……”
“……”
No one said a word, but everyone’s anticipation had clearly reached its peak.
If a B+ chest had produced an A-rank item,
And an A-rank chest had produced an A+ item,
Then wasn’t it only natural to hope for an S-rank item from an A+ chest?
Still, the greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment.
Just as even monkeys occasionally fall from trees, even Lucky Charm might sometimes pull an ordinary reward.
Besides, it wasn’t exactly fair to act as though she was guaranteed to hit the jackpot every time.
So I said to Seo Ye-in,
“Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. You don’t have to hit the jackpot every time.”
“I’m not hitting the jackpot.”
“Right. Let’s keep things nice and steady.”
Judging by her response, though, “I’m not hitting the jackpot” didn’t mean what I thought it did.
She slowly shook her head, then gripped the random box tightly as her gray eyes flashed.
“I’m breaking the ceiling.”
Booooooooom—!
A brilliant radiance erupted, flooding my entire field of vision.
At the same time, an overwhelming presence and pressure bore down on my whole body.
It felt as though the Sword Queen, the Principal or someone even stronger had released the full force of their aura.
I’ve never seen an effect like this before.
Item effects varied enormously depending on the item’s type and rank, but nothing like this existed anywhere in my mental database.
As I stood there in bewilderment, the radiance gradually began to fade.
Yet even after the light disappeared, the oppressive presence remained exactly as strong as before.
Which meant…
It wasn’t an effect in the first place.
The pressure was emanating from the item itself.
Either way, this was a first for all of us.
Without a word, everyone gathered around Seo Ye-in.
Floating above her pale palm was something like a mass of blue energy.
From another angle, it almost looked like a blue flame.
With a gentle push from Seo Ye-in, it drifted naturally into my hand.
[Martial Soul (EX)]
▷ ???
“So you really did break through the ceiling.”
You said you weren’t going to hit the jackpot, and then you went and pulled an unimaginably massive one.
Looking thoroughly pleased with herself, Seo Ye-in replied,
“The original’s class.”
“You’ve proven it once again today.”
“Every single day.”
She looked so proud that even her nose seemed to have punched through the ceiling.
Then again, she’d earned the right to be a little smug.
I owed her plenty of praise myself.
That could wait, though.
My curiosity came first.
I examined the Martial Soul more closely.
My first EX-rank item.
Back when Dragon Slayer Academy was just a game, S-rank had been the highest possible rarity.
EX only became available after I received the Reincarnation Quest and entered the world itself.
And now, more than a year later, I’d finally gotten my hands on an EX-rank item.
No effects are listed.
Just to be sure, I turned to Seo Ye-in as well.
“Can you see anything?”
“…No.”
– I can’t either.
Chattering Sloth chimed in.
If even those two couldn’t, then it was probably a matter of qualification rather than eyesight.
At the very least, you’d probably have to be S-rank before you could read anything.
Fortunately, the item’s name was fairly straightforward, so it seemed to offer at least a minimal hint.
Martial Soul.
If that was the case, then it naturally had to be closely related to martial artist-type classes.
So I turned to Go Hyeon-woo and Han So-mi.
“Do either of you see anything? Or feel anything?”
“……”
“……”
The two of them stared silently at the Martial Soul.
After a long pause, they finally spoke.
“…I can sense an aura far beyond anything I could ever hope to approach. It would seem I am unworthy of it.”
“…I don’t know. But it’s… really, really incredible!”
I asked Dang Gyu-ri and Hong Yeon-hwa as well, just to be sure, but they looked just as puzzled.
Then at that moment, Go Hyeon-woo suddenly froze, his expression stiffening.
When the others looked at him with a mixture of concern and confusion, he spoke in an uncertain tone.
“…It felt as though something called out to me.”
Then he opened his inventory and took out the sacred relic of the Heavenly Wind Sect.
Though at this point, it was more accurate to call it the Wind God.
I looked at Go Hyeon-woo.
“Why that?”
“I’m not entirely certain myself, so it’s difficult to explain. I simply had an overwhelming intuition that I needed to take it out.”
Whoooosh—
As if responding to his words, a gentle breeze stirred, brushing softly past us.
It lingered especially around the Martial Soul, almost as though it were saying, Give me that.
For a moment, I was tempted to hand it over.
Still, this isn’t something I should take lightly.
This was my first EX-rank item, and its effects were still completely unknown.
The true nature of the Wind God was just as much of a mystery, so there was no telling what would happen if the two came into contact.
In the worst-case scenario, one of them could be destroyed… or go berserk.
The Martial Soul might simply vanish, or the Wind God could transform into a demonic sword, rampaging wildly while unleashing sword energy in every direction.
Even so, there would be more opportunities in the future, and I was confident I could suppress the latter if it happened.
That was only the worst-case scenario, after all.
The odds are much higher that something good will happen.
The Wind God already possessed some of the qualities of an Ego Sword, and its rank was likely around EX as well.
That meant it knew what it wanted and was capable of anticipating the outcome.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t have resonated this eagerly.
The conclusion was simple.
It was worth taking the chance.
Of course, what matters most is what he wants.
So I turned to Go Hyeon-woo.
“What do you want to do? We can do it now, or we can wait until later.”
“Normally, caution would be the wiser course… However, if this is the Wind God’s will, then I would like to respect it.”
“That’s reason enough.”
Regardless of the outcome, granting its request would likely strengthen its affinity with him, if only a little.
Go Hyeon-woo carefully set the sheathed sword down, and I cautiously brought the Martial Soul toward it.
At first, nothing happened.
But the closer the two drew, the more violently the Martial Soul began to flare.
Fwoooosh!
It was like pouring oil onto blue flames.
A moment later, the Martial Soul flowed into the Wind God, then continued to blaze as it enveloped the sheath.
Fwoooosh!
The next instant, the sheath which had borne the subtle marks of age took on the glossy sheen of something freshly forged.
Its aura also seemed even sharper than before.
“I wonder if the blade changed too.”
“I imagine it did. It’s unfortunate that we can’t confirm it right away.”
Go Hyeon-woo replied with a wry smile.
If he recklessly drew it now, he’d almost certainly end up seriously injured, just like during the Black Death raid.
Once he challenged the sacred relic properly, he’d at least be able to draw it a little, so we’d just have to wait until then.
Still, it turned out just as I expected.
The effect seemed to be some combination of enhancement, restoration, or refinement.
Either way, its performance had clearly improved.
Fwoosh.
As though its task were complete, the Martial Soul slipped free from the Wind God and floated back into my hand.
Tilting her head, Han So-mi spoke up.
“Huh? It got smaller.”
“It did.”
It was definitely a little smaller than when it had first appeared.
So it was a consumable item.
Even so, I was more pleased than disappointed.
At least it isn’t single-use.
I’d been prepared for it to disappear the moment I used it on the Wind God.
Better yet, it hadn’t even shrunk by that much.
I should be able to use it a few more times.
An EX-rank item for martial artist classes, and it even had plenty of uses left?
Once again, I found myself feeling even more grateful to Seo Ye-in.
So I immediately bent into an exaggerated bow, as if I were about to perform a full prostration.
“It seems my faith wasn’t strong enough. How presumptuous of me to tell the Original Lucky Charm, whose luck punches through ceilings, not to feel pressured.”
“Original Lucky Charm.”
Seo Ye-in nodded, seemingly quite pleased with the title.
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