Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Another me, identical in height and appearance.

The thing reacted to Dojae’s movements and attacked.

“Gah!”

The weight behind its fists, the speed in its legs—everything is identical to Dojae.

But the thing seemed to see Dojae clearly, and Dojae had to fight solely by the faint presence he sensed in the moment of movement.

‘Is this right?’

If their skills were equal, it was obvious that the blind side was at a significant disadvantage.

Dojae couldn’t even bring himself to attack the guy.

‘And there’s nothing inside it?’

What made Dojae suffer even more was the creature’s movements.

He executed movements so fluidly that they were utterly incomprehensible as human motions.

Like this, for example.

Whoosh, whoosh.

It attacked by twisting its torso not just 180 degrees, but 270 degrees, even 360 degrees, using that elasticity.

And that wasn’t all.

As if it had no joints, it whipped its arms like a whip and bent its waist in half.

And backward, no less!

This alone created a difference in the destructive power of its attacks, and as proof, blood was flowing from Dojae’s arm, seeping through the golem armor.

‘If only I could see it!’

What if I could see the creature?

Or at least know where it was moving?

Then, he thought, there might be a chance.

While the creature moved freely, its attacks were relatively simple.

Pushing and hitting were all it did.

If I could just see its path, I could predict it.

‘Yes, if only I could know its position!’

A thought flashed through Dojae’s mind.

He couldn’t summon a golem, but surely he could create one?

‘Summon Golem!’

Pop-.

[This target cannot be summoned as a golem.]

A message window appeared before his eyes.

Even in utter darkness, the message window appeared crystal clear.

‘Good.’

Dojae cheered inwardly.

Why was he happy despite failing to summon the golem?

It was for this reason.

Thud!

The creature fell.

Dojae predicted the creature’s path and tripped it.

‘Golem Summon!’

[This target cannot be summoned as a golem.]

‘Summon Golem!’

[This target cannot be summoned as a golem.]

‘Summon Golem!’

‘Summon Golem!’

‘Summon Golem!’

…….

The message window floating in front of him follows wherever he moves.

This method was devised by recalling how the message window appeared on the magic stone during the previous golem summoning.

‘Left!’

As the creature charged from the left, Dojae countered by striking toward that direction instead.

Knowing only the position, without seeing the exact attack, launching a preemptive strike was far more effective.

Thud-thud-thud-

Using his elbow to ram into it, the creature’s chest shattered, sending stones scattering everywhere.

The golem’s core was exposed in that instant.

Dojae didn’t miss the light emanating from the golem’s core.

‘So that’s why.’

Ever since entering here, he’d sensed a faint presence.

A faint presence, difficult to grasp even when focusing all his senses, like trying to hear a cat’s footsteps.

But when the golem’s core was exposed, he understood.

That it was mana.

Clatter-clatter-.

The creature repairing its chest again.

The sound of stones fitting together could be heard.

‘Now I understand.’

After sensing the flow of mana once, I could grasp it more clearly afterward.

I still needed the help of the skill message window, but the accuracy had improved significantly.

‘It’s coming.’

Swish-.

Once again, Dojae read the direction and dodged the attack.

He didn’t create distance.

He moved just enough to close the gap to within arm’s reach of the enemy’s chest.

Thud!

He thrusts his fingers into the guy’s chest.

‘Feels weird, but gotta finish this quick, right?’

Pop-.

Dojae pulled his clenched hand away.

The guy fell thudding to the floor and turned into a pile of rocks.

Gugugung-.

The entrance, which had been closed, opened the moment the battle ended.

Only then did light pour in, allowing Dojae to examine the fragment in his hand and the drawing on the floor.

***

‘The stone tablet shows a picture of someone going into battle, and the first room depicts fighting a monster. And the second room showed someone kneeling before someone else.’

After clearing the second room, Dojae inserted the fragment into the stone tablet and pondered what the pictures meant.

The painting on the floor of the second room was enormous, unlike the previous ones.

It was large enough that one could move about freely and fight within it.

‘The third one was the only one without her. Instead, it had an incredibly gloomy atmosphere.’

The third painting lacked the woman in the falcon mask.

What was drawn was a city.

It felt less like a modern city and more like one steeped in ancient atmosphere.

It was a painting conveying a very heavy feeling of that city being destroyed and collapsing.

The third trial ended fairly quickly, allowing me to see the painting sooner. To put it simply, the trial was like a spot-the-difference game.

A trial of finding the real piece among countless fragments.

Here too, I used the Golem Summoning skill to clear it with ease.

‘The fourth one seemed to be giving some kind of command.’

The final trial’s painting depicted someone giving instructions.

Figures resembling priests wrapped in long cloaks were gathered in a circle, and a woman wearing a falcon mask was gesturing to them from a high place.

And the fourth trial was particularly filled with malice in its content.

Various types of enemies, each with a fragment embedded in one eye, attacked in a chaotic mix.

Of course, they weren’t real entities; they were illusions visible only to the eye, so the attacks didn’t land. But what was unpleasant was that humans were among them.

People like Shim Young-jin, Jeong Eun-hee, Song Deok-hoon.

Mr. Choi and the examiner who killed Ougge also appeared.

What angered him even more was that his parents, now faded in memory, appeared vividly and attacked him. When his younger brother even stabbed at him with a knife, it made his blood run cold.

‘So what was it trying to show me… Was I overinterpreting it?’

Even after examining the five paintings, including the stone tablet, I couldn’t grasp their meaning.

The only thing I could tell was that the painting styles were the same.

In the end, were the paintings merely works of art?

Dojae inserted the final snowflake fragment into the stone tablet.

Thud-

Finally, as every hole in the stone slab was filled, it emitted a powerful vibration unlike before.

– So you’ve gathered them all after all. But your thoughts and actions are utterly crude. One might even question whether you possess a heart at all.

The voice couldn’t hide its profound disappointment.

Though Dojae thought it was a terribly fussy god, he still tried to appease it.

“I apologize for not satisfying you. But you said that if I cleared all the trials, you would make me your god.”

One who calls himself a god would not lie.

Dojae found himself curious about how the Great One would react.

– Indeed. I have no intention of taking back my words. I shall become your god and acknowledge your worth.

Urrrrrr-.

As the words ended, the stone tablet crumbled.

And within it lay a blue gem.

It shone several times more brilliantly than all the fragments gathered thus far.

– Take it. This is proof of my recognition. My power shall illuminate the path you walk!

Crack-

Crack-

The blue gem floating in the void split apart, and a massive whirlwind of mana surged forth from the crack.

The powerful mana storm stung the skin.

Pssshhh-!

The swirling vortex of mana condensed into a single point and shot toward Dojae.

And then.

[Level Up.]

[Level Up.]

[Level Up.]

…….

My level shot up by 10 in an instant.

This isn’t the end.

[Quest cleared.]

[You have obtained the reward.]

[‘Golem’s Eye’]

[Acquired a new title.]

[‘Gain Through Your Own Efforts’ is added.]

[If you do not summon a golem, you gain Attack Power (15%), Defense (15%), and Movement Speed (15%).]

Quest rewards arrive.

Dojae’s eyes turned blue.

And he also acquired a new title.

It’s a versatile title.

Finally.

[Acquired a new skill.]

[Passive Skill ‘Golem’s Eye’ added.]

***

“Wow…”

Dojae gazed at his blue sword in awe.

Then, glancing at the sword in his other hand, he uttered another exclamation.

“Wow….”

What he was currently looking at wasn’t the swords themselves, but the information window hovering above them.

It detailed the information about both swords.

[Equipment Information]

Name: Harpy’s Plume

Classification: Sword

Description: A treasure symbolizing the Harpy Queen. Forged over fifteen days by a master blacksmith using the Harpy Queen’s wing feathers, imbued with powerful mana. However, it is impractical for the harpy, lacking hands, to wield, so it serves only as a decoration in the Queen’s nest.

Effect: Attack Power +30 / Durability +10 / Movement Speed +5

Skill: Queen’s Wingbeat Lv. Max

[Equipment Info]

Name: Iron Sword

Classification: Sword

Description: Mass-produced sword. Forged in a blacksmith’s shop churning out dozens daily. Sturdy.

Effect: Attack Power +5

Skill: None

Two swords showing a clear difference.

One was a weapon with its own name, while the other had no name at all.

Moreover, the difference in their descriptions and effects was stark.

While ‘Harpy Queen’s Plume’ had a clear background story, ‘Iron Sword’ was so lacking in description it felt embarrassing to even read its explanation.

‘So it was the Harpy Queen, not Mother Harpy.’

Dojae slipped both swords back into his sub-space pocket and stepped out of the subway restroom.

Displaying weapons openly on the street was problematic.

Even though the Hunter Bureau and Hunter Association crafted laws favoring themselves, he judged that allowing people to freely carry weapons could lead to even bigger problems.

‘Golem’s Eye. I’ve gained a very good skill.’

[Skill]

Skill Name: Golem’s Eye

Level: Max

Type: Passive

Description: Through the Golem’s Eye, you can perceive new realms. Your spirit is elevated. The higher your spirit, the more detailed information you can discern.

Effect: None

Mana Cost: 1 + a

The Golem’s Eye brought many changes to Dojae.

It allowed him to identify not only weapons but also unknown ores and materials stored in his sub-space.

The most prominent aspect of the Golem’s Eye’s effect is…

[Character Information]

Name: Go Deok-hyun

Classification: Human

Details: 38 years old, Male, 164cm, 47kg, D-Class Hunter (license revoked), Pickpocket (3 prior convictions)

Status: Tense / Excited / Anxious / Perceptive / Confident

The fact that he could see the status information of others, not just his own.

It was a completely different atmosphere from checking his own information, but this was still tremendous information.

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles.

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be in danger in a hundred battles.

Using this skill, I could at least tell if my opponent was above or below me. I wouldn’t have to fight a losing battle.

‘Should I start by following that man?’

After reading the information on the man named ‘Go Deok-hyun’, Do-jae immediately began tailing him.