NOVEL NEXT WORLD chapter 338
338. Japanese Demon Realm Gate (1)
I fell asleep in my Master’s arms, lost in a daze.
When I opened my eyes, nearly 18 hours had passed.
“Did you sleep well?”
“…….”
“I’m sorry, but I have to go soon. Something has come up.”
My Master said that what I wanted was what they wanted to do, but…
Honestly, I felt ashamed.
I hadn’t even had a meal and had wasted our date on sleep.
Still, my Master smiled gently, telling me not to worry, and stroked my head.
‘And the master couldn’t awaken any special traits or skills.’
Of course, it wasn’t that the expression on the departing master’s face was bad.
Somehow, guilt pricked at my heart.
‘I should give him some kind of gift next time. By the way, I feel like I saw something strange in my sleep… Was it a dream?’
I wasn’t sure since it was in that hazy state between waking and sleeping.
It was I, not the master, who had awakened.
Well, it seemed to be a 1% increase in ability for each person connected by a soul bond.
Was the total ability increase rate 9%?
Even I, a specter who had poured my body and time into the Velvet Sra and the community, had never even seen something like that.
The closest thing was the tier 1, overpowered item ‘Ring of Affection and Obsession.’
But that only gave an increase to other characters with high affinity, not to the wearer themselves.
And the enhancement rate capped at a maximum of 4%.
‘No way, could there really be such a ridiculous trait?’
Yeah, considering Lina was involved, it was definitely a dream.
“Status window.”
I called up the status window with a light heart, just to check in after a while.
And when I saw the stats, my mouth fell open.
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Name ─ Jin Yuha (☆☆☆☆)
Gender ─ Male (21)
Stats
Strength ─ 100 (+10, +9%)
Mentality ─ 119 (+10, +10%, +9%)
Magic Power ─ 100 (+10, +9%)
Endurance ─ 101 (+10, +9%)
Speed ─ 100 (+10, +9%)
Charm ─ 130 (+10, +9%)
Specialization ─ Swordsmanship SSS [True Moonlight Sword Technique] (new!)
Title
─ Flower on the Cliff [Aehwa(崖花)]
─ Master of Swordsmanship [Geomgwi(劍鬼)]
─ Unconscious Flirting Hotspot
─ Flower on the Cliff
─ Homme Fatale
─ Chef of Destruction
─ Eye Bird
─ National Side Dish
─ Incubus
─ Big Person
─ Truck with a Broken Handle (new!)
─ Instructor (new!)
─ Everyone’s Lover (new!)
First Achievement Title I ─ One Who Defeated the Impossible Enemy. Masal(魔殺)
{ Additional 10% damage to all types of demons and demon races. }
First Achievement Title II ─ One Who First Killed the Fire Dragon. Dragon Slayer(龍殺者)
{ Additional 10% damage to all types of dragon races. }
First Achievement Title III ─ One Who Killed the Demon King. Demon King Slayer(王殺)
{ Those with magical powers feel an instinctive fear. }
Skill ─ [ One Cut, One Slash ], [ Draw Sword ], [ Sword Dance ], [ Shadow Stealth ], [ Moonlight Earring Equipped ], [ Bow and Capture ] (new!)
Traits ─ [ Perception ], [ Awakening ], [ Intuition ], [ Charisma ], [ Unmoved Heart ], [ Grip Strength ] (new!), [ Magic Circulation ] (new!), [ Tough Body ] (new!), [ Stealth ] (new!)
Exclusive Weapon ─ Moonlight (月光)
Items: Bracelet of Experience (Bound), Ability Enhancement Ring (Bound), Moonlight Earring, Ring of Affection and Obsession (Bound)
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[ Connection ]
[ Connection of Souls, increases stats by 1% per person. ]
[ Current Connection List ]
– Lee Yoori
– Kang Dohee
– Shin Sehee
– Lim Ga-eul
– Sophia
– Ichika
– Alice
– Baek Seol-hee
– Lina
Total increase of 9%.
────────────────
“!!!”
It wasn’t a dream.
It was real.
“Is this for real?”
I checked my status window repeatedly, flustered, turning it off and on again.
“No, really?”
Zzarr—
A surge of exhilaration coursed through my entire body.
All my stats had surpassed 100.
Until now, everything except for my mental and charm stats had been in the 90s.
To jump over 100 overnight like this.
Considering how hard it was to raise stats from the 90s to 100 even with all the boosts in the game,
this was practically a bug-level occurrence.
Strength surpassed 100, unlocking the grip characteristic.
Magic surpassed 100, unlocking the mana circulation characteristic.
Endurance surpassed 100, unlocking the tough body characteristic.
Speed surpassed 100, unlocking the stealth characteristic.
Just this alone was incredible.
Thanks to receiving swordsmanship teachings from the Sword Master, my originally SS-ranked swordsmanship specialization had risen to SSS.
“Wow… This is insane. Really.”
At this level, it was a figure you’d only see when forcibly shoving money into a corrupt character to grow them to a decent level.
The other party members shouldn’t be envious just because they got some sweet traits and skills.
Rather, it is a deception.
“If this much investment was made in a specific character in Velvet Sra, then from that point on, it holds a special significance.”
My stats are over 100.
SSS-grade specialization.
4-star rank.
When those three conditions are met, one acquires the minimum qualifications to transcend to [EX] grade.
Transcendent (超越者).
The position that current CEO Lina occupies.
This is the end content prepared for those who have done everything in Velvet Sra and drained all the sweet juice.
As much as it requires intense grinding, it is an area that is nearly impossible to reach without spending or with minimal spending.
“In my previous life, I barely achieved one after going beyond the 8th round…”
Transcendent Kang Dohee.
The might of that time, when she used the avatar of the divine and filled the full screen, sweeping away the final boss in one hit, was truly enviable compared to any other ranker.
To think that was achieved in the first round. Through grinding without gacha.
Honestly, at this point, I can be proud of it.
What? Did I cheat after sucking up all the Alice currency in the early stages?
Well, still, the character is Jin Yuha.
With this, it should be counted as free-to-play.
“So, now I just need to raise one more star rank…?”
Currently, my rank is 4 stars.
The best way to increase the rank is to pull hundreds of the same character and synthesize them to break the limit.
However, since there is no gacha in this world…
In the end, it means I have to break through with my own body.
“Hmm, that’s really not easy…”
I became 4 stars from 3 stars because I was lucky enough to catch the Four Heavenly Kings boss, the Demon Realm, early on.
Honestly, I find it hard to believe there will be another opportunity like that in the future.
Without looking far, it’s been quite a while since our party’s Gukbap has been stuck at 3 stars and still hasn’t even stepped on the threshold of 5 stars.
Even so.
“If I don’t challenge this, I’m crazy.”
Transcendent. Jin Yuha.
Isn’t it truly a resonance that makes your heart swell?
It was then.
Ding─♬
[ Chairman Rina: You scoundrel! What on earth have you been up to!!! ]
Chairman Rina summoned me.
* * *
Velvet Hunter Academy Chairman’s Office.
A twin-tailed girl with purple hair was looking down at me with a disdainful expression, arms crossed and legs crossed.
She had raised the chair so high that her feet didn’t touch the ground, and her toes were dangling in the air, making her look every bit the ‘brat’.
“You’ve done something very audacious.”
Chairman Rina narrowed her eyes as she spoke.
“Audacious?”
“Yes.”
“What did I do?”
I tilted my head and asked, and a vein popped on Rina’s forehead.
“Changing girls every day and enjoying dates openly, what? You ask what you did!? Did you really think nothing would come of it!!! These are all complaints that have come to the academy because of you! You rascal!! Look at this!!”
Flutter─!!!
The stacks of documents piled up like towers on either side of Chairman Rina soared and scattered, dancing in the air.
[ Caught in a secret meeting with Yuhwa and Yoori! ]
[ Jin Yuhwa going for a massage with Chunhwa. ]
[ Couple model with Sophia? The whole world is shocked! ─ Confession of Marta, who was in charge of the shoot that day. ]
Ah.
Well.
I did wander around here and there with the kids, saying I was progressing my personal story.
On the first day, I was caught by academy students going to a dungeon alone with Gukbap.
With Shin Sehee, it was a street date.
And with Sophia, we even turned Milan upside down.
It was no wonder that people who were keenly watching the direction of Utopia were paying attention.
As I was choosing my words, unsure of how to respond, Rina snorted.
“Ha, don’t think for a moment that I was fooled by your ridiculous antics.”
“Ridiculous trick?”
“Yes. The curse of the demon? It’s laughable. That Seolhee, of all people? There’s no way she would fall for such a pathetic demon’s curse.”
Chairwoman Rina knew.
She knew that the whole situation of being cursed by the demon was just a show.
Watching Chairwoman Rina quietly, I thought to myself.
“Is she jealous right now?”
Ah. A mistake.
The thought slipped out of my mouth.
“What?”
Rina’s mouth dropped open in disbelief.
“Me? Jealous? Of you? Seriously?”
“Don’t put a question mark at the end of every sentence. It makes it seem like you really hate me.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? Do you live in the delusion that every woman in the world likes you? If so, I know a good hospital. I’ll recommend it.”
No.
That’s not it.
‘It’s because your name is clearly marked on the soul-bound connection stats…’
But, explaining this to her would only make things noisier, so I chose to keep my mouth shut.
“Tsk, stop with such ridiculous delusions.”
Swoosh─
As Rina waved her hand, the papers that had fallen to the floor neatly arranged themselves back on her desk.
“It doesn’t matter to me how you meet or what you do when you meet. But, how do you plan to deal with the demon gate like that? The ones that will appear in the future are nothing like the half-wits you’ve faced so far. Back when I was active, those who were distracted by love had their heads split open. And─”
Rina suddenly started lecturing, reminiscing about the past.
“So, you can deal with love affairs after everything is over. Besides, you said you wanted to be my successor─”
Hmm.
If I keep listening to this, my ears will bleed from her nagging voice.
‘This was supposed to be a way to get stronger…’
Well.
It’s better to show than to say a hundred words.
I released all the mana in my body in front of Rina.
“So, you need to take more responsibility for whose progress you’re currently continuing─ Wh-what!? You!? W-what the hell is that power… What!”
Lina, who had been chattering away, suddenly widened her eyes in shock.
Well, of course.
Now she must have realized that I was on the brink of transcendence.
“W-what is this…”
I couldn’t help but smirk at the thrill of having silenced Lina.
“Does this mean you’re relieved about me being the chairman’s successor? Ah, and not just me, but the other party members have also made progress, one step at a time.”
Lina, still in disbelief, gaped at me.
“No, this is insane… It’s not like you get stronger from dating or anything…”
“Well, it seems that way?”
“Ha, if just three dates can let you dominate the world…”
Honestly, I also wondered if it made any sense to get this strong just from one date.
But given that the essence of this world revolves around the affinity between patrons and characters in a cute girl game, what can you do?
Well, in fact, it was just breaking open the piggy bank of personal stories that had been piling up, so I could only do it once.
Lina probably wouldn’t have to worry about things like that right now.
Ha.
In an instant, Lina’s expression, which had been blank, shifted, and she blurted out something unexpected.
“E-even so! I have no intention of dating someone like you!! Besides, what’s the age difference anyway!”
“How much is it?”
“I don’t need to know that!”
I looked at Lina with cold eyes.
This conversation was enough for now.
There was no need to go further; it would only get confusing.
I hardened my expression seriously and opened my mouth.
“Chairwoman Lina.”
“W-what is it!”
“I’m planning to collect my debts soon.”
At that, Lina adjusted her posture.
“…Is that so.”
“Yeah.”
“You’ve done quite a lot for me so far. No, to be honest, if it weren’t for you, I would have missed out on many things and many parts would have been broken. I didn’t realize it until it hit me. But as time passed, I came to understand. Yes, what you can ask of me is quite significant. When do you plan to use it?”
“The last. When facing the last enemy of this world.”
“······Right. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Rina nodded seriously.
*
And.
A little while later.
“A new demon realm gate has appeared!”
“Location!”
“In Japan!”