The worry that it might not be properly applied disappeared as soon as the light from the original faded.
[New trait acquired.]
“Did it pop up?!”
The system window popped up, clearly indicating that it had been used.
What did I get? I was curious about the result, but first, I decided to check the location of the mark.
‘It would be a bit troublesome if it was engraved in a very visible spot.’
Since the mark’s location is random… if you’re really unlucky, it might even end up on your nose.
Of course, in the game, no matter where the mark was engraved, it didn’t cause much trouble other than messing up the character customization a bit. But now, in reality, the location of the mark was extremely important.
With that thought, I anxiously looked around my body, and fortunately, the engraved location was successful. Just below the left collarbone.
It was a place that wouldn’t be easily noticed unless I took off my clothes.
But that’s not important right now. I had to check what kind of mark was engraved.
Let’s see… this shape… this color…
[Good for the body and tastes good]
[Are you eating snakes because you have nothing to eat?]
[The stealth of the snake is applied.]
It’s a snake.
Oh, damn, this is ridiculous.
I’d rather have the mark on my nose with something else… No, wait. That wouldn’t be it.
If I couldn’t erase it and had a wolf or butterfly engraved on my nose, that would be a problem in its own way.
But this is just not it!
“A snake? Me, a snake?!”
The performance of this ability was just one.
From the moment you learn it, some of the character’s sound effects are deleted.
You know, the sounds of walking, running, and stuff like that?
Those disappear.
That’s it. They must know this ability is funny because even the trait name and description are a joke.
I subtly rolled my foot lightly, and sure enough, there was no sound at all.
You might think that’s a good thing, but this only removes the sound, it’s not a stealth ability that erases your presence.
Since your presence doesn’t disappear, if you get close, they’ll notice you, so it’s pretty much a useless ability.
…Sighing alone won’t change anything.
“Sigh. Well, what can I do about what’s already happened.”
In the end, I had no choice but to accept this situation.
Who knows. In the game, only the sound effects disappeared, but maybe in this reality, it could be more helpful.
It was clear that thinking more about the already finished draw would only stress me out, so I decided to move on.
I should continue exploring inside.
After finishing my thoughts, I started rummaging through the piled-up treasures again.
Even if I couldn’t take them outside, there would be no problem using them here.
Trial version vibes.
I’m just trying to use this thing once to see how it works.
If only I had an inventory, I could try out all kinds of stuff, but since I have to carry everything myself, I can only test out one or two things. What a bummer.
At least one thing is a sure bet. There’s something here I can use wisely.
As for the rest… I was thinking of just picking a sword, but then I remembered my injured arm.
Just in case, I should probably go with a shield.
I thought about carrying more, but I stopped myself because I didn’t want to get hurt trying out too many things.
It feels weird trying to use my injured arm.
After roughly picking out the items I wanted to try, I looked away from the pile of treasures.
Originally, looting the treasure might have been the priority, and stopping any potential traps would have been a bonus… but now that it’s reality, the treasure has become secondary.
Beyond the treasure, there are three doors with handles that you turn to open—pretty standard stuff.
But two of them are traps, and only one is the correct path.
It’s a nasty, completely random setup, so I have no idea which one is the right one.
However, I did know about a gimmick that could help me make a choice closer to the correct one.
“What was it again? The Monty Hall paradox, or something?”
Let’s say there are three doors, and behind one of them is a prize.
Behind the winning door is a car, and behind the other two are goats.
When a contestant picks any door, the host opens one of the remaining doors that has a goat behind it.
With two doors left, should the contestant switch their choice?
In this situation, switching your choice actually increases your chances of winning—that’s the Monty Hall paradox.
This place seems to operate on that principle.
So, if I just walk up to any door and knock…
*Click.*
One of the unknocked doors that’s a trap locks.
From here, it’s just pure luck.
I just have to open one of the remaining two doors and go in.
Statistically, following the paradox would give me a higher chance.
So, switching my choice would be the rational decision.
But I just got a snake with a 1/3 chance, didn’t I?
Isn’t it more likely that I got it right this time?
With that thought, I didn’t switch my choice and opened the door. At the same time, I heard the other door lock.
Now there’s no turning back. All that’s left is to take responsibility for my choice.
And the result is…
“KAAAAAAHHHH!”
“Ugh, damn it.”
Total annihilation.
Facing a horde of undead gargoyles, I was reminded that probability is an independent event.
My luck is absolute garbage today.
I had a feeling, but the snake’s stealth was, as expected, completely useless.
The moment I was spotted, our eyes met.
What’s the point if it doesn’t make any noise?
But no worries, I brought an item just for times like this.
I pulled out a pendant I had grabbed earlier.
[Holy Light-Emitting Talisman]
[Resurrecting the dead is a sin.]
[Activates Supreme Purification on one undead ahead (Cooldown: 30 seconds)]
If the system had displayed the item description, this is what would’ve popped up.
That’s right. Knowing that all the monsters here are undead, I brought this undead-exclusive OP item, the Holy Light-Emitting Talisman… or “Holy Light Tal” for short.
With no conditions or costs, it can unleash Supreme Purification every cooldown. With just this, assuming the enemy is undead, you can dominate without breaking a sweat.
You might think, “What kind of broken item is this?” But don’t forget, this is the playground for experienced players.
It’s basically a place where they hand out toys to players who’ve finished the game and have nothing left to do, so balance is pretty much thrown out the window.
But while they threw balance out, they also threw out practicality.
Undead mobs don’t show up much in the story, and when they do, it’s usually a swarm of low-level ones. Single-target purification is pretty much useless.
I think the developers just got lazy and slapped this together.
From my perspective, I’m just grateful they made it at all.
“Kaaaah!”
“Kaaaahhhh!”
“Kah! Kaaaah!”
Of course, it’s not a single target but a whole group, so it might take a while to pick them off one by one… but it’s not a big deal.
*Flash!*
“Kyaaaaaah!!!”
If I just keep at it, I’ll eventually get them all. Grinding is a gamer’s basic skill, right?
I dodged the gargoyles’ attacks, buying time until the Holy Light Tal’s cooldown was up, then took them out one by one.
When used, the light dimmed, and after 30 seconds, it lit up again, so I didn’t need to time it manually.
Meanwhile, I checked if “The Revenge of the Hermit Witch”… too long a name. Let’s just call it “Witch’s Grudge.”
I checked if the grudge stacks were building up properly, and even though I dodged attacks, it still counted as “blocking” somehow. I could vaguely feel something filling up inside.
But it was so minimal… I got a bit dizzy thinking about how much time it would take to fill it up completely.
It doesn’t seem practical for actual combat.
Well… I brought it as insurance for unexpected situations, so no reason to be disappointed.
After a long stretch of repetitive work, there were no more undead left in this place.
The shield I brought didn’t even get used. I just brought it “just in case.”
It was actually better because it was disposable—once used, you couldn’t use it again.
Anyway, quite some time has passed. Maybe I should head back today.
The night is long, but that doesn’t mean I can stay here until morning.
I should go back and sleep now.
With that thought, I retraced my steps, tossed the light armor and shield back into the treasure pile, and left the area.
And then I ran into her.
“Where did you just come from?”
Seria, sitting right in the middle of the guest room.
She looked like she had a lot of questions.
I hadn’t expected to run into her like this, so I was awkwardly standing there when Seria’s gaze suddenly landed on my left arm.
I tried to hide it, but that only made it look more suspicious.
“…What happened to your arm?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Let me see.”
It was too late to hide it, and if I didn’t show her now, who knows what might happen. So I reluctantly held out my arm.
Seria carefully unwrapped the cloth I had tied around it, and the wound was revealed, along with a sudden sting.
The bleeding seemed to have stopped, but the tear was still there, and it didn’t look great.
Seria’s expression instantly turned serious.
“…How did this happen?”
“Stuff happens.”
“Let me rephrase. Where did you just go?”
Her firm attitude made it clear that dodging the question wasn’t an option.
Still, I tried to deflect.
“By the way, why are you here?”
Honestly, I was genuinely curious.
Didn’t she lend me a book and leave?
It was late, so I thought she’d gone straight to bed. Why was she waiting here for me to show up?
That was the question I asked, but she confidently dropped a bombshell.
“Well, the tracking spell I put on Rudion suddenly disappeared. I got worried and came to check.”
“…What?”
“…Oops.”
Tracking… what? I think I heard something I wasn’t supposed to.
“P-pretend you didn’t hear that!”
“I didn’t hear anything.”
“Liar! Don’t lie to me!”
What am I supposed to do?
I don’t know what tune I’m supposed to follow, but one thing was clear.
“Seria… you’ve finally turned to crime. Your family will be so disappointed.”
“No… it’s not like that…”
She had become a stalker.
Are you watching, Royal Palace?
Your beloved Seria has turned into a terrifying stalker.
“It’s not like that!”
Thud! Thud!
She even started hitting me, but… thanks to her weak muscles, it didn’t hurt much.
