novelraw Chapter 223: Growth (6)
Chapter 223: Growth (6)
Translator: Dreamscribe
The 3,000 Heroes were growing.
They didn't realize it themselves, but the Latent Potential dormant within their souls was seeping out, little by little. It was as if thick shells had begun to crack, as if eggs were hatching.
Trials make Heroes stronger.
And if those trials were intense enough to shake one's emotions, or even powerful enough to shatter one's heart, the effect was doubled.
Like tempering steel, violent emotions hammered at the soul, and a broken heart became fuel that made the soul's light burn ever brighter.
A game.
Through experiences in a fictional world, the Heroes' souls were growing.
Ella and Helby watched the scene and thought of Jinwoo.
For over a hundred years, Jinwoo had been broken and shattered. He had been crushed time and again, driven to despair. It was an environment where hope was nearly impossible to recall.
What would a soul from Earth have to endure to become a Transcendent Being?
Earthlings possessed resilient souls that could withstand even Erosion. Such a soul had to overcome a crumbling mind, gather the fractured pieces of one's heart, and stitch them back together with wounded hands, one by one. Only when body, mind, heart, and soul were in tatters yet somehow whole could one become a Transcendent Being.
Jinwoo had gone beyond Transcendent Being and become a god.
Ella and Helby fell into silence.
When Jinwoo entered the Magic Tower after finishing work at his office, the two looked at him at the same time.
He flinched.
There were so many emotions in their gazes that Jinwoo flinched just as he was about to take his seat.
"What's with you two?"
Ella walked up to Jinwoo, pulled him into a hug, and gently patted his back. Helby nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. Jinwoo couldn't understand what any of it meant and simply tilted his head in confusion.
'Did the credit card bill come out too high?'
That seemed like the most likely explanation.
The lab was gradually filling up with Ella and Helby's belongings. He would need to set aside a day to clean it all up eventually.
"How are things?"
"They have Regressed an average of five times. No Hero has made it past the entrance ceremony yet."
When Jinwoo asked, Tiris gave her report.
The Heroes had been exchanging ideas in the chat room, brainstorming ways to safely clear the entrance ceremony. After their first Regression, they had already known what would happen, so they were confident.
But that was a grave miscalculation.
There was no way Tia had designed it so sloppily.
If the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre that appeared at the entrance ceremony wasn't dealt with, the Erosion Worshippers would use the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre as a catalyst to create an Erosion gate.
If the Heroes fled outside the city with the key NPCs, a curse mark would appear, causing those key NPCs to slowly wither and die. And beyond that, a variety of other trials lay in wait.
Key NPCs who had formed deep emotional bonds with a Hero could not escape death on the day of the entrance ceremony, no matter what.
Tragically, death scenes kept piling up with every Regression!
When the 3,000 Heroes couldn't find a solution on their own, they turned to Arsilan Worlds for help. In response, a test game forum was created on Arsilan Worlds.
It was currently the hottest topic.
Everyone had assumed it was just a technical test game, but the level of polish was incredible. And the content struck straight at the Heroes' hearts.
'Stream it! Please, someone stream it!'
'How the hell did they make a game this insane....'
'It's an academy game and they can't even get past the entrance ceremony?'
'Whoa, every Hero gets different characters?'
'Solo play?! Let me in on it!'
'When does it release? When does it release?'
The response was overwhelmingly intense.
"Love & Friendship: Heart-Pounding Sion Academy" was no mere dating game. It was closer to a comprehensive game that combined the core technology and production quality of Arsilan Saga with a blend of multiple genres.
Jinwoo looked at Tia, who was watching all 3,000 situations with sparkling eyes.
"By the way, why'd you name it like that?"
"Because it makes the Heroes let their guard down."
Ah.
So that was why.
A childish name like that had been hiding that kind of intent all along.
Given everything the Heroes had been through so far, it wouldn't have been strange to slap a dark name on it like "Nightmare" or "Academy of Despair."
Jinwoo looked through the test game forum on Arsilan Worlds. The 3,000 Heroes had recorded and uploaded their situations, and many Heroes, including the Named Heroes, had gathered to share their opinions.
Title: I've Regressed 10 times.
I couldn't protect Senior Gotun again this time.
I told him the truth, barely managed to make him understand, and we prepared together to fight the Twin Head Ogre, but he sacrificed himself for me.
I can't think of any way to save him and still clear the entrance ceremony.
Anon1: I compiled all the info you guys posted and organized the items, materials, and event lists.
└Anon2: Wow, there are so many events.
└Anon1: New events keep popping up even now.
Anon3: Senior Gotun is seriously amazing....
└No.2321: Yeah. I feel like I've changed a lot because of him too, but..., still....
└Haebyul: Don't give up! You're a Hero!
└No.2321: I guess I don't deserve to be happy.
└Haebyul: Fight back!
LifeHunter: A Corrupted Twin Head Ogre, huh..., if you thoroughly prepare for a hunt over the two days, the odds aren't zero. There's about ten days left in the test period in your world's time, so you can squeeze in a few more Regressions.
└No.2321: There are only two days before the entrance ceremony. Is that really possible?
└LifeHunter: Looking at the compiled information, there's a forge, an alchemist's workshop, and a library with magic texts. As soon as you wake up in the morning, head to the forge and craft a weapon capable of piercing the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre's hide. And then....
LifeHunter, one of the most famous Named Heroes, posted a detailed breakdown of the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre's weaknesses, habits, and behavior patterns. He also advised that even at a low level, if one dedicated the full two days solely to preparing to kill the Twin Head Ogre, it was possible to overcome it.
The Heroes participating in the test became certain that this nightmare would never end unless they killed the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre.
However, there was a problem.
No.0321: ...I guess I shouldn't meet Seirun.
No.1352: There's no time to meet her....
No.2352: We have to start preparing the moment we wake up until the day of the entrance ceremony.
Through multiple Regressions, the Heroes had struggled to protect the precious people they had come to care about in this Love & Friendship: Heart-Pounding Sion Academy. But in order to protect them, they had to turn away from those very people as they reached out.
That heartache was tearing the Heroes apart.
Tiris observed everything and nodded.
"Currently, they are avoiding contact with key NPCs and preparing to hunt the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre."
"Hmm...."
"Several Heroes have already reached the verge of Latent Potential awakening."
Once their Latent Potential awakened, their souls would grow significantly stronger. They would acquire high-rank skills, and it was clear they would grow not only in stats but in many aspects that couldn't be expressed in numbers. It was no different from breaking through a wall, just like the Heroes who had mastered Aura after long training.
Should he be glad about this?
The demo version, made for testing purposes, was generating an insane level of response. Of course, he had expected some degree of reaction. Even if it was fun, he would have scrapped it if the results were poor.
But in less than a month, the results had far exceeded projections, so there was no scrapping it now.
Jinwoo watched the situations of the Heroes who were on the verge of Latent Potential awakening.
* * *
HoHoGamMan bit his lip.
He had no choice but to say cold words to Miel in front of the gate. If he hadn't, Miel would never have left his side.
"...Okay. I won't pretend to know you. Sorry for bothering you."
Miel's expression crumbled with hurt as her eyes reddened, and then she turned and ran away.
He had Regressed many times.
Miel wouldn't remember, but there had been times when he tried to fight the Twin Head Ogre together with her. But those attempts had ended in miserable failure. On his last Regression, he had steeled his resolve and spent good time with her.
HoHoGamMan clenched his fists.
People might point fingers and call it being too immersed. They might mock him for clinging so desperately to a fictional world.
"Haah...."
But once he actually lived through it, the circumstances, conditions, and reasons didn't matter. He simply wanted to do it.
No.0001: I'm starting too.
No.2113: You got this.
No.1232: That f**king monster. Let's kill it and finally enroll.
No.2421: Let's gooo!
No.3000: Best of luck.
Heroes who had been timid and did nothing but watch others' reactions had changed.
To save the ones precious to them, to have a happy entrance ceremony, they left messages on the forum and reached out to one another.
HoHoGamMan closed his eyes and let out a deep breath. When he opened them again, fierce determination surged within him.
He pressed the video recording button.
He wanted to leave information for analysis in case he failed. And he wanted to share the information if he succeeded.
Every Hero participating in the test surely felt the same way.
He rummaged through the mansion's storage, gathered money, and then ran toward the city.
The first place he went was the forge.
"Oh! An Academy student? In that case...."
"Basement level two, storage room one, third display case. Second shelf from the bottom. Please make this with the materials there."
"What...."
The dwarven blacksmith was caught off guard.
HoHoGamMan pulled out a coin pouch and held it out to him.
"It's urgent. Please have it done before the entrance ceremony."
"Hmm...."
The dwarf looked into his serious eyes and nodded. He opened the coin pouch and took only a few gold coins.
"I don't know what's going on, but the look in your eyes fires me up. I'll craft my finest masterpiece, so don't you worry."
"...Thank you."
The dwarf looked at him and smiled.
"First time I've seen you today, but somehow you don't feel like a stranger. Maybe it's my time to go, eh? Ha ha ha!"
"......"
"Come back before the entrance ceremony."
HoHoGamMan bowed to the dwarf. Then he ran straight to the alchemist's workshop. Combining the information he had gathered before his Regression with what he had obtained from the test forum, he crafted several potions and tools.
"An interesting combination recipe. That's a potion formula that was popular twenty years ago. It's been improved recently, so the effects can be enhanced even further."
The alchemist watched with interest and offered advice. A physical enhancement potion and a mid-grade recovery potion were completed. After that, HoHoGamMan put on heavy armor from a storehouse on the city walls and began running.
Since there were no monsters nearby, he intended to gain experience through training this way and raise his level. He broke his time down to the second and kept moving.
Whenever his body grew exhausted, he drank potions and pushed through.
At last, the day of the decisive battle arrived.
When he visited the forge, the dwarf handed him the completed spear. The spearhead was sharp enough to pierce the hide of a Corrupted Twin Head Ogre.
Instead of entering at the start of the entrance ceremony, he arrived at the auditorium a little late. Miel, whose expression had been anxious, looked relieved when she saw him walk in.
Their eyes met, and HoHoGamMan flashed her a grin. Miel's eyes widened, and then she smiled faintly in return.
The entrance ceremony began, and the Erosion Worshippers summoned the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre. HoHoGamMan thrust his spear through the worshippers' chests before the Twin Head Ogre could fully materialize. Thanks to that, the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre was summoned incompletely. It was missing one arm, drastically reducing its strength.
"KYAAAHH!"
"AAARGH!"
Even so, the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre was still formidable. It let out a monstrous roar and raised its club. Just as the club was about to crush the students of Class B,
WHOOSH!
HoHoGamMan closed in on the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre and drove his spear forward.
THUNK!
The spear pierced through the hide and lodged itself in. The Twin Head Ogre staggered and retreated. He had fought it so many times before that he already had its patterns memorized.
"H-Ho-in?"
Miel's face was filled with worry. Even while paralyzed with fear, she was concerned about HoHoGamMan.
"Stay back."
HoHoGamMan squared off against the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre.
He leveled his spear at the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre.
He would get past this thing and have his entrance ceremony. He would live the heart-pounding Academy life.
GRAAAHH!
The Corrupted Twin Head Ogre went into a frenzy, wildly smashing its club against the ground. The entire auditorium shook as if an earthquake had struck, but the tip of HoHoGamMan's spear did not waver.
"Come on."
THOOM! THOOM! THOOM!
The Corrupted Twin Head Ogre charged at him.
He knew its attack patterns. HoHoGamMan had faced many monsters before, so he felt no trace of nerves.
Dodge the club, then thrust.
The savage wind from the club tore at his skin, but he moved without hesitation.
STAB! STAB!
Using the spear's long reach, he punched multiple holes into the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre's body.
The Corrupted Twin Head Ogre howled in pain and started swinging its club wildly. He barely managed to block the incoming club with the shaft of his spear, and his body was launched into the air and sent flying backward.
HoHoGamMan pulled out a potion and gulped it down.
The mid-grade recovery potion was remarkably effective. As his wounds healed rapidly, HoHoGamMan began moving again.
The number of large and small wounds on the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre's body kept growing.
'I can win this.'
Just as he felt that certainty,
The Corrupted Twin Head Ogre's body went rigid. Its enormous eyeballs bulged out and dropped to the floor, and flames of Erosion took their place.
"Berserk...!"
It had gone Berserk.
The Corrupted Twin Head Ogre was never supposed to be able to use Berserk. Caught off guard by this unexpected development, he faltered.
Erosion energy gathered on the club.
KRAKOOM!
When the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre swung its club, the floor erupted and the wall behind it collapsed.
"Gah!"
The Erosion energy crashed over him. His body tumbled across the floor and was thrown against a wall. He tried to use his spear as a brace to stand, but all the strength had drained from his body.
The Corrupted Twin Head Ogre approached with a mocking sneer.
'...One more Regression....'
How much time was left in the test period?
Could he try again?
Just as those thoughts crossed his mind, the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre raised its massive club above him.
In that moment...
"No!"
Miel stepped in front of him.
The club looked like it would come crashing down on Miel at any second.
HoHoGamMan's eyes went wide.
The sight of the club descending on Miel seemed to move in slow motion.
He had always run away.
It was the same with his relationships in real life, and things hadn't been much different in Arsilan.
He had built walls around his heart.
Because he was afraid of what others would think of him, afraid of the things they might say behind his back. Perhaps the reason he clung to Affection Grinding in Arsilan was because he wanted people to unconditionally like him, at least in that world.
'This time..., I face it head-on.'
HoHoGamMan erased the word Regression from his mind.
He couldn't watch anyone die again.
He had to end it here.
Even if he got hurt and fell, he had learned to rise to the challenge.
True Affection Grinding was overcoming fear and approaching others honestly, with nothing to hide.
The moment he gripped the spear shaft tight, something burst forth from deep within him.
Strength surged.
And powerful Mana came rushing in like a storm. A blue light resembling a tempest swirled around the spearhead.
He planted his foot firmly and charged past Miel, rushing forward.
"Get the hell out of my entrance ceremony!"
The instant the tip of his spear met the club,
KRAKOOOOM!
A storm tore through, shattering the Corrupted Twin Head Ogre's club. And it didn't stop there, ripping the monster's massive body to shreds.
[A latent skill dormant in the soul has been awakened.]
[A] Raging Storm
A Hero's heart can hold a storm.
This great storm born from the heart shall grant you the power to protect your comrades and crush your enemies.
Where the storm passes, regret shall remain, but it will become a path toward the future. Together with a storm that surpasses Aura, press ever forward.
It felt cleansing.
It was as if every toxin that had built up since childhood had been flushed out.
He sank to the floor, completely drained.
There wasn't an ounce of strength left in his body. Miel ran over and caught him.
Miel looked at him and tears streamed down her face. He looked up at her and barely managed to lift the corners of his mouth.
"At the gate..., I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."
"I know. I already knew."
Miel reached out and gently stroked his cheek.
Just as their gazes drew closer and closer,
Miel froze as if time had stopped. All the color drained from the surroundings, everything turning black and white, and then his vision went dark.
"Huh?"
[The test period has been completed.]
[Thank you for participating in the test!]
HoHoGamMan's soul left his body.
"N-NOOO! Why now...!"
No!
Miel was waiting!
No.0001: OPEN THE DOOR! OPEN THE DOOR! OPEN THE DOOR! OPEN THE DOOR!
No.0231: FS Games open up right now! FS Games open up right now! FS Games open up right now!
No.2113: Why'd you end my life?! Why'd you end my life?!
No.1321: We can log back in after two hours, right? It's not over, right? Please.....
.
...
....
The chat was going berserk.
All 3,000 Heroes immediately logged into Arsilan Saga and flooded the Grand Temple in Alusion.
"Creator God! Come out here."
"We need to talk!"
"We won't hurt you. We just want to talk."
"Get out here right now!"
For the first time in Arsilan Saga's history, a protest had broken out!
*****
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