Chapter 9: The One Who Has Lost His Form
[Flame Eruption]
Pahaaaaak!
- Guooooo!
Flames erupted in all directions. The "one who lost his form" creature, with its body made from grotesque tentacles and mucus, writhed and convulsed.
"It's definitely different!"
The spell I used was actually a second-order spell. It was a whole different level of power compared to the zero-order spells I had manipulated to somehow create firepower.
This was all thanks to the effect of the [Ring of Corrupted Flame]. The ring allowed me to activate spells stored within it while ignoring their hierarchical order.
[The spells stored in the Ring of Corrupted Flame are as follows:
Second Order: 'Flame Eruption'
Third Order: 'Fireball', 'Burning Spear']
Yes, exactly three.
When I infused my tremendous magical power, even zero-order spells could perform almost at the same level as third-order ones.
So if we were to do simple calculations, then that would mean a second-order spell should nearly have the same firepower as a fifth-order spell.
I was overwhelmed by the spell's might and momentarily lost my focus. The one who lost... Ah, such a cumbersome name. Henceforth, you shall be known simply as the tentacle monster!
The tentacle monster began to swell its body, and that was not the end of it.
It had the ability to create parts of other creatures from its own body.
Horns, claw-like talons, and bizarre beast hooves sprouted as legs.
They are all deadly parts that could be used as weapons. The monster then charged at me with ferocious hostility.
"Hey there! Where did you get those fancy tricks?"
I poured my magical power into the surrounding flames.
Puhaaaaak!
The intensified flames now exerted a physical force beyond mere heat.
- Guooooo!
Another scream echoed from the monster. The flames pushed back and burned the grotesque appendages of the tentacle monster.
The appendages that came into contact with the flames went far beyond just burning and they turned to ash almost instantly.
But that thing...
Unlike the exposed appendages, the mucus wrapped around its body didn't catch fire.
It has resistance to fire, no, resistance to magic in general.
Ugh.... how annoying... And isn't it getting bigger?
It was clearly about the size of a crouched human in the beginning.
But now, it had grown to the size of two vans put together.
It wasn't that cramped a space, but now it was uncomfortably large.
"Surely... it's not going to just keep swelling up and crush me, is it?"
Its resistance wasn't as big as [Fire Immunity]. The parts directly exposed to flames were boiling and shrinking after all.
Then I'll just push it with overflowing magical power!
A ball of flame with explosive properties was formed between my outstretched hands.
After concentrating it a bit more to gather firepower... Take this!
"Move it, you fu*ker!"
[Fireball]
In French, that's a boule de feu!
Whoosh! Boom!
The intensely concentrated fireball was more powerful than expected.
The creature caught in the explosion had its sprouting tentacles and appendages completely torn off and slammed into the wall.
- Guooooo!
Though it had such a bizarre shape, it seemed capable of feeling something akin to pain.
The creature began to thrash violently while emitting an emotional roar.
Tough one, isn't it? Can I increase the firepower? Or do I need to find a way to remove that mucus?
The mucus was the problem. The attack was powerful even by my standards, but the mucus covering its body halved the damage.
I could pour in more magical power, but... Wait, what is that thing doing?
The tentacle monster started to wrap its tentacles in the flame-resistant mucus, pulling most of its mass upwards.
Quite clever. But that shape... Looks almost like a hammer...
"Eek!"
The tentacle monster transformed its body into a hammer-like shape and began to recklessly slam its massive bulk down.
[Invisible Hand]
Boom!
The attack was made in a tremendous speed that not even a master could dodge. If the magical hand hadn't flung me aside, I would have been hit directly and killed.
Rolling on the ground, my view flipped this way and that.
"Wow! You really do pack a punch!"
Ugh... My whole body aches. I feel like throwing up. Ugh, I've wasted too much time. I need to prepare for the next attack...
However, its attack was aimed completely elsewhere.
Bang! Boom! Bang!
"Hey, stop, you beast!"
Something felt off, and then I realized that the hammer it made wasn't attacking me but the floor.
Is it trying to escape the flames by breaking into a larger space?
That's not the main issue. There's a subway line beneath us. Just the floor collapsing could cause a disaster.
Crack, crackle, snap-.
The floor was caving in, causing serious ruptures. Stop it already!
Right, if the problem was the mucus surrounding the body, then I should just burn its insides.
[Burning Spear]
A spear made of condensed flames rose up in the air. It wasn't just simple heat; this was a spell with sharp physical force capable of piercing through the enemy.
This alone won't be powerful enough, will it? If there's not enough power, just increase it.
I infused more magical power into the completed spell to strengthen it.
[Spell Enhancement: Multicasting]
Swoosh- Bam!
Three newly formed spears joined the fray, making a total of four burning spears that soared toward the monster.
The spears of flames easily pierced through the mucus's magical resistance.
- Grrraaaah!
How about that? Can't move, can you? What can you do with spears stuck in your body?
Unable to move its body, the tentacle monster began its last desperate struggle, rapidly growing various appendages from its body.
Grotesque appendages sprouted: human legs, frog feet, bird wings, pink tendrils, monkey arms, goat hooves, severely curved chicken toes, plant stems, deer antlers, sharp insect legs, an elephant's trunk, a rat's tail, lion legs, fish fins, and eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs.
Hundreds and thousands of eyeballs shimmered with madness as they stared at me. Crazy, what is this madness?
[System: The unique trait 'Madness of the Abyss' has been activated.]
Ah, so it was trying a kind of mental attack just now? Sorry, but my mind is specially made, so that won't work on me.
"Alright. Let's end this now."
I spread more magical power into the still-active burning spears.
The burning spear that adopted the new attribute vibrated unstably while emitting intense light.
"Explode!"
Boom!
As expected, this is the standard for dealing with an enemy that relies on its "shell". Its mucus might block magical attacks from the outside, but how can it stop an explosion from within?
The tentacle monster's body parts were utterly destroyed, scattering in all directions or completely evaporating under the intense heat of the explosion.
A black magic stone, which could be said to be its core, rolled out from among the completely destroyed pieces.
Oh, a black one.
It wasn't a commonly seen color for a magic stone. This was a high-quality stone with high purity.
The moment I picked up the magic stone, a new message appeared in the air.
[You have foiled the plan of the descendants of Formhalhaut, who sought to summon the god of fire at Unjeong Station! You have saved the lives of tens of thousands of people in peril and have momentarily delayed the arrival of the 'Singularity' that could doom humanity.]
[However, be warned. The great 'Living Flame' will keep an eye on you for interfering with its will.]
Although I didn't actively prevent anything, it was counted as such.
Of course, for the descendants of Formhalhaut, the owners of this temple, it was a major blow as their sacred site was suddenly destroyed in the dead of night.
It would take a long time to restore this place, so they would have no choice but to delay or cancel their plans for a while.
[You have destroyed the sanctuary of Formhalhaut. Experience points gained.]
[You have accumulated enough experience points to advance to the next level. Your level has increased by 1.]
[You have defeated the 'One who lost his form'. Your understanding of the deities has increased.]
[You have accumulated enough experience points to advance to the next level. Your level has increased by 2.]
[Discovery: You have acquired secret items (3) from the sanctuary. Experience points gained.]
[Discovery: You have discovered the secret location of the sanctuary. Experience points gained.]
[You have accumulated enough experience points to advance to the next level. Your level has increased by 1.]
[Great Achievement Unlocked! You have foiled the plans of the cultists faster than anyone else.
You have obtained the 'Advanced Achievement: Fast as Fire'.
As a reward for the achievement, you gain the 'Attribute Resistance — Flame' trait and additional experience points.]
[You have accumulated enough experience points to advance to the next level. Your level has increased by 1.]
[You have reached Level 10!
As a level achievement reward, you receive (1) bonus stat point to distribute freely.]
[For you who have gained enough experience, you are now able to use first-order magic. Please note that in order to use first-order magic in earnest, you need to obtain or learn a grimoire containing first-order spells.]
I have finally reached level 10. And I also unlocked first-order magic.
The message window suggested that learning was necessary to use magic, but I didn't need to do that.
It's all thanks to the [Spell Mastery] trait
With this trait, I could use basic spells immediately without any learning.
Of course, even for first-order spells, there's a need to learn or create advanced or applied spells, but isn't that part of the adventure?
Now, let's see how many spells I can use...
Oh, impressive.
The number had increased by exactly 37, bringing my total to over 50 usable spells.
Considering the range of applications, the things I could do had increased by hundreds.
But where should I allocate the newly acquired bonus stat point...
Taking into account the artifact's bonus effect, my strength was now 8. And with the [Slurping Gloves] that also have a bonus that adds 2 points...
Yes, it's best to allocate it to health.
****
Kim Shin-hwa
Class: Mage Gazing into the Abyss
Level: 10
Magic Order: First-Order
Madness: [Mask Obsession], [Triskaidekaphobia]
Strength: 5(+3) (Ring of Corrupted Flame)
Health: 6
Agility: 8
Intelligence: 30
Mental Strength: 14
Charm: 16
****
Good, Kim Shin-hwa is growing well.
A strength of 8...It was similar to the strength I had when I was just working from home and playing games in my previous body.
Anyway, once I match health to 8, I'll have the minimum stats needed for comfortable activity.
I planned to compensate for the lack of health with an artifact, so from now on, I should focus on increasing either charm or intelligence.
If I invest everything in intelligence from now on, theoretically, I could reach up to 48.
That level of intelligence would be comparable to mythical creatures or aliens. And If I take into account the item bonuses, I could even surpass 60.
Time to head out. Oh, but wait...
Huh? What's that?
I noticed something unusual on the ground. A tiny amount of slime, barely a handful, was still wriggling with life.
Such incredible vitality. It wasn't completely dead after all?
I hadn't seen anything like this in the game... Oh, wait, no. The [Wriggling Slime], perhaps?
It's a material item that sometimes drops when you defeat a god's servant. In the game, the material doesn't actually wriggle; that's why I didn't immediately recognize it.
I couldn't just leave behind an SS-rank high-quality material.
But unlike in the game, this thing... it's moving quite violently, isn't it?
As I increased my magical power to expand my vision, I began to see the magical particles and their flows scattered around me in more detail. When I shifted my gaze toward the slime fragment, its internal structure and components became clearly visible.
This one.... It's more than just an item; it's a living creature. Unlike in the game, carrying it around could result in it eating my flesh.
However, I couldn't just leave behind such a high-quality SS-rank material.
I returned to the box behind the altar and took out a glass bottle. I spent some time pouring magical power into it.
With a bit of focus, soon a dazzling magic circle, glowing with fluorescent light, was engraved on the surface of the bottle. The magic circle wasn't made of hexagrams and circles but was composed of geometrically drawn patterns and a few characters. It looked somewhat... like graffiti?
Anyway, once the tuning of the bottle was complete, I placed the slime inside. I wondered if I was carrying a bomb for a moment, but what harm could a creature stripped of its magic stone do?
The slime, now trapped in the glass bottle, displayed an interesting trick of creating a few eyes and teeth. However, as the magic circle installed in the bottle began to operate, it lost its activity and turned into a small marimo-like lump.
Neat! Sleep well now!
Alright. Time to meet Tudor.
I jumped down through the hole that led to the train rails.
It was the same hole I had made quite a fuss climbing up before, but now there was no need for that.
[Feather Fall]
The spell countered gravity's pull and it slowed my fall.
There are many useful spells in the first order that can be applied in various situations.
I soon landed softly on an empty railroad track.
It wasn't even evening yet, but I was starting to feel tired.
I had overexerted myself back at the Unjeong Station.
Ugh... I couldn't afford to waste another day. I had to meet Tudor today.
Why? Because... I'm really strapped for cash...
I had spent a considerable amount of money on the taxi fare, meals, and purchasing clothes and a mask.
Now, after having my evening meal, I would be left with just enough money to spend a night in a really cheap motel.
Of course, there was the magic stone I obtained from killing the tentacle monster... or rather, the one who lost his form.
If I managed to sell this stone, I could easily make several million won in an instant.
However, selling it safely required some effort and legwork.
I didn't want to deal with the ruthless illegal money changers who, under the guise of service fees, would take a whopping 40-60% cut.
Plus, if luck wasn't on my side, I could get tangled up with shady characters which would lead to assaults or robberies.
In the end, regardless of what I acquire in the future, having connections is essential for disposing of it safely and effectively.
In addition, I was in search of someone who could also provide me with jobs..."Tudor", the person I was on my way to meet operated as an underground broker of sorts.
For the purpose of visiting Tudor's place of business, I traveled to Geumchon Station which was two stops away from Unjeong Station.
Walking along the main road, once I see Haknyeongsan Mountain... Oh, there it is.
Haknyeongsan Forest Park is a modest hill rising in the middle of Paju city. Halfway up the mountain, you could see the huge building of Haknyeongsan Temple and the huge brass-seated Buddha statue in its courtyard.
The giant 20-meter Buddha statue, erected as if looking down upon the city, was radiating a vivid yellow light in the sunlight.
What a magnificent sight...
My destination was not Haknyeongsan Temple though. It merely served as a reference point for navigation.
And for the time being, I had no need to encounter the fake monks of Haknyeongsan temple.
Indeed, it was more comfortable to avoid them as much as possible.
Unless I took an unusual route, I wouldn't likely encounter them again until I escaped from this world.
I deliberately turned my head and headed towards the gloomy back alley where Tudor was located.
It was a shabby alley clustered with motels, rundown diners, cheap one-room buildings, and outdated karaoke signs, along with buildings conducting business illegally without even a sign.
On the surface, it seemed like a dirty neighborhood neglected by urban development, but once you entered the alley, you could feel the thrilling magic and the faint scent of danger.
It was a problem that I was wearing a mask, but a bigger issue was my magical power that couldn't be completely hidden.
Though I tried to suppress it as much as possible, the sheer amount was so absurd that complete concealment was still impossible.
Professionals hidden in the alley and buildings were surely on guard because of me.
After wandering through the twisted alleys several times... a clean café painted in bright colors that did not fit with the image of the lifeless neighborhood appeared.
The signboard with 'Café Vasilisa' written on it was well-maintained and gleamed brightly.
The café wasn't really out of business, but it was all a disguise.
Intense magical power flowed from within the café. It was a different caliber of power, even in this Geumcheon alley full of professionals from various fields.
There was no need to hesitate. Nothing there could influence or frighten me now.
Without stopping, I immediately opened the door to the café and entered.