Chapter 68: Classified Book #2

[You have bought the ■■■■ Skill Book.]

The moment 5,000 points were deducted, a ripple spread through the air.

Along with it, a familiar notification window appeared. The same one that showed up whenever a one-time purchase item triggered an update of the shop.

[Updating the shop list.]

[You can still buy existing items while the shop list is being updated.]

Huh? What about the estimated time?

Unlike last time, one of the notification windows was missing.

With that thought in mind, Rohan reached out. Right now, satisfying his curiosity took priority.

His hand slipped into the distorted space.

Immediately, he felt something was off.

“Huh?”

Unlike when he had learned Blazing Blade, no instant knowledge flooded his mind the moment he made contact.

This time, something was different.

Inside, there was something solid. Something with a tangible form. It felt just like when he purchased physical food or water.

Thump!

What Rohan pulled from the void was an old book.

True to its name, the Skill Book was indeed a book. That fact alone caught him off guard.

A real book…?

He flipped it over, checking both the front and back covers. There was no title and no markings.

He rifled through the pages. Every single one was blank, not even a single dot of ink.

What is this?

His hopes had been high, fueled by the promise of luck, but now he had no idea how to use it.

At this point, its only apparent use was as a ramen coaster.

“Hmmm.”

Rohan ran his fingers over the book’s texture and went into deep thought.

The power that drives an unknown object, the key that unveils its true form….it should be more precise and unique than a fingerprint or something like a code.

The answer was obvious.

Mana.

Rohan channeled his mana into the book.

The change was immediate.

Rustle!

The book flipped open on its own. Its pages rapidly turned before coming to an abrupt stop somewhere in the middle.

Rohan silently observed the the poltergeist-like phenomenon.

[Opening Classified Book #2 for Authorized Personnel Only.]

A book this time instead of a recording?

Rohan stiffened as he read the notification.

Now that the number had shifted from one to two, he couldn’t even begin to predict what would happen next.

How long had he waited for an event like this, something so unpredictable yet with no way to prepare for it?

Sssssssss—!

A flicker of fire moved across the book, burning the pages as it passed. Strangely, no smoke rose, nor did the scent of charred paper linger in the air.

The pitch-black marks gathered and twisted until they formed words.

Rohan’s eyes naturally began to read them.

[A sorrowful and tragic fate. How lamentable it is that the flame, which consumes both reason and nature, must ultimately fall into the hands of those who have endured the ashes.]

[Even if humanity loses everything, they will never relinquish the fire… This is both our blessing and our curse.]

[Lowell… Jenny… In order to fulfill your wishes, we…]

The words read like someone’s lament.

Even the way the letters were pressed firmly into the page conveyed the weight of the writer’s emotions.

It almost felt like he could hear their voice.

A flame that burns reason and nature?

Was it a metaphor?

If it wasn’t just a vague expression, then he wanted to scoff…. what kind of fire could possibly burn something as intangible as reason or nature?

Yet the moment he read that passage, a certain image immediately surfaced in his mind.

The vision I saw…

A childhood version of himself sitting in a chair. Calling that boy “himself” felt strange, but regardless, it was him.

It was just a hunch, but for some reason, he couldn’t shake the image from his head.

And who are these people?

The names Lowell and Jenny. It was the first time Rohan had heard them in Abyss City.

And yet, they didn’t feel unfamiliar.

He made up his mind to investigate these two names that had been so intensely etched into his memory.

“Hmm…”

As if responding to Rohan’s voice that was spoken in the midst of his tangled thoughts—

Thud!

The open book snapped shut.

This time, a soft flame flickered across the cover, gradually engraving bold letters into its surface.

[Holy Judgment of the Heavenly Sun]

The book’s title emerged, glowing with embers.

Rohan stared at the Chinese characters, feeling as though his consciousness was being drawn in. He muttered under his breath,

“…Holy Judgment of the Heavenly Sun.”

The moment he spoke, flames erupted from the book.

The brilliant fire rising from his hands wasn’t hot. And strangely, it didn’t surprise him.

For some reason, this entire process felt completely natural to him. Like a step that was always meant to happen.

Crackle. Crackle.

The burning book turned to ashes and its remnants dissolved into Rohan’s body.

Then a voice echoed in his mind.

– Shine within the abyss, for night always comes, but there is no night without a dawn.

– You who grasp the ember and cleave the veil of darkness, this is the path of salvation we have chosen.

– Follow the path engraved by the Heavenly Sun.

[Closing Classified Book #2 for Authorized Personnel Only.]

The fire attribute, which had merely been an ornamental detail in his status window,

Rohan instinctively knew……that fire attribute had undergone a profound transformation.

He opened his skill window.

And there, he saw the result.

[Sword of the Holy Judgement of the Heavenly Sun — Lv.1]

◇ First Sword — Blazing Slash

◇ Second Sword — Falling Sun at Dawn

A subtle glow shimmered around the skill’s name, and its level served as proof of its potential for growth. Unlike the Murder Manual or the Blazing Blade, it had no assigned rank.

It meant it was a unique skill that only the user could employ.

Once he realized this, a curse slipped out of Rohan’s mouth.

“…Fu*king crazy!”

Owning two unique skills was the hallmark of an S-rank in Abyss City.

Rohan already possessed two unique skills. Inflict Weakness and Shop.

There were no S-rank characters who only had one unique skill, nor were there any crazy playable characters who owned three.

But now, that rule was broken.

Because Rohan’s skill window ended up with three unique skills.

“Sword… so there was a martial arts-like skill name outside the Three Nations Alliance too, huh.”

He could roughly guess what the southern region that was never really highlighted in Abyss City felt like.

I wonder how it is.

Rohan wanted to test this sword skill right away. His hands itched with anticipation.

He needed to wash up and get ready to head out to fill his stomach, but his gaze refused to leave the skill window.

Even now, he could hardly believe his luck and the corner of his mouth twitched in excitement.

Should he just buy a proper sword on installment instead of using a dagger, or sprint to the Academy, swing it around, and then head to the instructor’s house?

Or maybe I should just borrow a sword from the instructor?

Rohan suddenly stood up. He decided to start getting ready first.

He wrote down the names Lowell and Jenny in his notebook and smartphone memo.

Below that, he jotted down the words that remained in his memory:

[Shine within the abyss, for night always comes, but there is no night without a dawn.]

[You who grasp the ember and cleave the veil of darkness, this is the path of salvation we have chosen.]

[Follow the path engraved by the Heavenly Sun.]

“There is no night without a dawn… not bad.”

Leaving that impression behind, Rohan moved to wash himself.

***

The water pressure was startlingly strong. It felt like hot water was pouring down from a waterfall.

On top of that, there were expensive shampoos, conditioners, body washes, and cleansing foams that Clara had only ever seen in bookstore magazines.

She finished her shower with her hands trembling from the luxury.

She dried her naked body with a plush towel that absorbed moisture cleanly with a single wipe.

Creak.

Clara peeked her head out through the crack in the door.

White steam trapped in the bathroom wafted out into the living room.

She moved her head here and there, searching for clothes.

When she saw nothing, she had no choice but to call out to Joo-yeon.

“Um…”

“Clara.”

“Y-Yes…?”

With a serious expression, Joo-yeon strode over.

Worried her scrawny body might be seen, Clara quickly pulled her head back into the door, leaving only her eyes blinking.

“I’ll go buy you some underwear, so wait just a moment. It’ll take a bit since I’ll run it through the dryer too.”

“Th-That is… my underwear…”

Joo-yeon must have seen her size.

Clara flushed red and felt as though she had exposed something embarrassing.

“If you’d rather not, I don’t have any clothes that would perfectly fit you, but I can give you something thick enough to cover up.”

“Just… clothes, please.”

That was better for her.

At Clara’s small-voiced request, Joo-yeon brought over some clothes from the sofa.

A thin sleeveless top to wear underneath and a thick hoodie.

For pants, a pair of black training bottoms.

Clara thanked Joo-yeon, took the clothes, and went back into the bathroom.

She came out wearing the oversized outfit.

Only her fingertips peeked out from the dragging pants and the ends of the hoodie.

Watching her, Joo-yeon had a thought:

Perhaps that was the image of a woman beloved by men.

What a cute and beautiful girl.

Even her still-damp hair seemed charming.

She wondered if this was how a younger sister might have looked if she had one.

“Come here. I’ll dry your hair.”

“!”

When Joo-yeon reached out, Clara froze like a statue.

Her hand passed by the nervous girl, neatly removing the drops of water at the tips of her hair.

Joo-yeon withdrew her hand along with her mana and spoke as she watched Clara fidget anxiously.

“Clara. There’s something I’m curious about.”

“Y-Yes…?”

Joo-yeon recalled the tiny scraps of cloth spinning around in the washing machine.

Just thinking about it made her swallow nervously.

But for the sake of breaking the ice and understanding this girl, Joo-yeon asked as casually as she could,

“Are you… dating Rohan by any chance?”