Chi-Woo and Philip went outside to find dawn approaching its tail end. Chi-Woo let out a deep sigh once he returned home. So many things had happened in the past couple of days, and his head was still in a complete mess. Still, Chi-Woo had no regrets, and he felt like he had safely overcome another difficulty. Now it was time for him to rest.
—So, how was it?”
As Chi-Woo lay on his bed, Philip flew over to him.
—It was your first real expedition.
Truthfully, Chi-Woo wouldn’t call that an expedition.
—It’s not over just because you came back. You know that, right?
‘…The experience has gotten me thinking though.’
—Oh, thinking about what?
‘A method for me to become stronger.’
—That’s what you have been thinking about for a long time now. Why are you acting like you’re doing something new?
It was true. Chi-Woo had felt the necessity to become stronger a long time ago. The issue was how he was going to become stronger now. For that, Chi-Woo had organized the information in his head. He’d gained a couple of things from the expedition: the discovery of a survivor and an unexpected reward. It was also clear that he would have accumulated a significant number of merits from this incident too.
—Why? Are you planning to save them again until you need to make big payments?
‘No,’ Chi-Woo firmly said. ‘I’m going to use merits for myself from now on.’
He had done enough for the greater good; it was time he did things for himself. That was one of the pivotal things he realized during the expedition: heroes who had joined this mission as recruits didn’t need him to take care of them every step of the way. As long as someone gave them a push once, they would be able to do well for themselves.
‘I realized my worth.’ The one who needed the most care was Chi-Woo.
Chi-Woo had established his foundation for growth in the cave. Now, it was time for him to step on it, jump over it, and go higher, much higher.
‘I’m going to make full use of the growth system.’
—Oh…how? By increasing your ranks?
‘No, I’ll do that later.’
—Then, how?
Instead of answering the question, Chi-Woo looked up at Philip and said, ‘Thank you.’
—Huh?
Philip was taken aback by Chi-Woo’s sudden declaration of gratitude.
‘I think I can understand a bit why...you told me to experience things first-hand.’ At that moment, a faint stream of light shone through the brightening sky of the breaking dawn. Chi-Woo closed his eyes, his lips curled into a small smile.
* * *
Flap. A page flipped. Raphael had her glasses on today, and midway through reading, she narrowed her eyes.
“These guys. Look at these guys.” She shook the stack of paper a few times and laughed, baffled. “Their attitude changed immediately because the situation became a bit better. It’s ridiculous considering that they didn’t do anything even when we were gathering the seventh recruits.”
“Well, it’s a rare opportunity for them.” Laguel, who had come to report, said calmly. Raphael chuckled. It truly was rare. Liber was known to be a place that even legendary heroes couldn’t do anything about, so it was even more unbelievable that someone else besides Choi Chi-Hyun had succeeded in saving Liber, albeit only for a little. The hero who had accomplished such a feat would soon gain a reputation that surpassed legends. Half of the twelve families who lit up the Celestial Realm coveted such a title, especially after the prophecy orb changed its oracle.
“Well, seeing the list of names, it seems they’re still testing the water.”
“Three of the twelve families responded to the recruitment and were deemed suitable to enter.”
“They were…but none of them passed.”
“Sorry? Passed?”
“Well, one of them passed,” Raphael said with a chuckle and searched through her memories. She hadn’t known it at the time, but it seemed the prophecy orb had a specific purpose in mind when choosing the different groups of recruits. The first recruits were meant to be pioneers who would prepare a tavern for those who came after them. The 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th recruits’ purpose was to simply support and maintain the situation, preventing things from getting worse like diluting poisoned water. The 7th recruits were sent to pave the way with everything bet on one person. Likewise, the 8th recruits had their own special characteristics. But all in all, they were all elites that had gone through a very selective process.
“Good, then—” Raphael pushed the stack of paper off her desk and got up. But she stopped when she saw Laguel, “Hey, what’s up with you? Are you sick?”
Laguel didn’t look too good. Raphael asked again, “Are you worried about something? If you want to say something, spit it out. No need to hold it in.”
“…No,” Laguel replied and bit her lips. “It’s nothing.”
* * *
The day was bright, and after waking up, Chi-Woo suddenly thought, ‘Now that I think about it, Ms. Mimi is quiet these days.’
Then he remembered how he had forgotten to turn her audio back on after muting her. Thus, he quickly called forth his user information and did that.
[Haaaaaaa…]
A very long sigh followed.
“Haha, hahaha…” Chi-Woo scratched his head awkwardly.
[You really…you really are…]
Mimi couldn’t even find the words to say because she was so enraged. She just kept sighing like she had suffered for a long time. Then she gulped and said in a calmer voice.
[I am your helper. I don’t know how you think of me, but you’ve crossed a line in the way you treated me.]
Chi-Woo apologized and begged for her forgiveness. After all, he had turned the audio off because of the annoyance he felt at the moment and not because he was truly bothered by her.
—Huh? Who is this?
It was then Philip’s beauty radar activated.
—Wow. I only heard her voice…and she sounds like an angel from the Celestial Realm.
[User Choi Chi-Woo? Who is this person?]
‘Um… Many things have happened while you weren’t around.’ And thus, Chi-Woo began to explain what had brought Philip here in an apologetic tone. As he did so, Philip smoothed a finger down his nose with a proud look on his face.
[A master who will lead you in the right direction… I suppose that’s not a bad thing if true.]
—Yes. Let’s get along well, mademoiselle.
[Yes, we can do that for now. I will be on the lookout though.]
—Of course. Let’s make sure we raise our son well.
[Quit your strange nonsense. I’m not your wife; I haven’t even married yet. Neither do I have the tiniest bit of desire to become a parent with you.]
—Oh my!
Philip raised both hands into the air. But of course, he wasn’t the type to back down immediately.
—What a formidable lady you are. But I like that too. A rose with thorns is what’s truly beautiful.
[Why don’t you leave it at that?]
And as these two talked, Chi-Woo went outside. He couldn’t miss a day of training. After finishing his noon exercise, Chi-Woo went to the temple. The growth system was pretty basic. It was divided into tiers and ranks, and every time he went up a rank, the system improved his physical attributes and sometimes gave him new class skills. However, the important thing was how the prerequisites changed every time he rose in ranks.
The growth system was like a bank. If he earned merits and deposited it, a god would use the deposit to invest in a hero who passed their screening. And for heroes who failed, there existed other methods to strengthen their abilities; these methods included training, modifying body parts, or taking medication. But it was here that Chi-Woo faced a problem. For basic attributes and skills, he knew how to raise their ranks; but for abilities he gained through forming a contract with La Bella, he didn’t know how to begin at all. After all, how did one level up Golden Ratio or Core of Balance?
‘What do I need to do?’ Chi-Woo had an inkling of what he should do. Like Laguel had told him once, there were many ways to use divinity, and he had someone to consult with—for instance, a god. But here, there was no temple holding La Bella, nor a relic. There was only a temple where Shahnaz’s relic was, where heroes who made a contract with Shahnaz could visit.
‘But could I go?’ Chi-Woo wondered. In the end, he went to meet Shahnaz.
—That’s a stupid concern. Aren’t you already holding a relic?
Shahnaz said sharply.
‘Sorry?’
—The heart. Your heart.
Hearing this, Chi-Woo recalled the white pearl he saw inside the cave’s lake.
—Your heart has already assimilated with the Core of Balance. In other words, you already have the relic inside you, and there’s no need for you to find a denomination.
In short, Chi-Woo was basically a walking denomination and temple.
‘Then, does that mean…?’
—You’re wasting your time here.
La Bella and Chi-Woo were one in body and soul. La Bella had decided to make it such when Chi-Woo swore to follow her, and truthfully, Shahnaz had thought Chi-Woo and La Bella’s circumstance quite a special case. But it was also understandable since Chi-Woo was involved. After all, Chi-Woo was earning merits that far surpassed all the other heroes Shahnaz had made contracts with.
—But I’m sure that’s not the only thing you came to ask me about.
Encouraged, Chi-Woo told Shahaz about his other worry.
—Hm. Digitalizing merits. So, in other words, you want merits to be represented with numbers in all processes. I get what you’re saying, but do we have to go so far?
‘But I think I will only be able to make exact calculations then.’
—Yes, I understand that, but it’s dangerous.
Shahnaz expressed her concern. The growth system utilized a tier and rank system to show that a hero needed to display a certain level of competence to become stronger. However, if heroes got what Chi-Woo was requesting now, they would learn exactly how much more merit they would need to rank up, and eventually start to wonder why they deposited merit regularly rather than using them in areas they wished to improve upon. In that case, who was going to undertake the risks of a dangerous mission? People would choose to do only safe missions to accumulate the necessary merits. Therefore, Chi-Woo’s request was something that could shake the very foundation of the growth system.
Yet, Shahnaz could understand Chi-Woo's perspective, and she felt hesitant to just flat-out refuse his request. In the end, she said:
—This doesn’t seem like a conversation you should be having with me.
Shahnaz meant that Chi-Woo should talk to La Bella since he had made a contract with La Bella instead of her.
—What you want is a very special request. It’s something that can’t be done under normal circumstances…but it may be a different story for you. At least a part of it could happen.
Chi-Woo, who had been downcast thinking that his request would be rejected, fell into deep thought after hearing Shahnaz’s response. He couldn’t keep pestering her when he was basically asking her to level only him up. But if he hadn’t misheard, she seemed to be saying that he might have a higher chance of getting what he wanted compared to other heroes.
‘Um…why would it be different for me?’
—What do you mean? Didn’t I just tell you?
Shahnaz sounded baffled.
—It’s because you are already different from other heroes… Wait, no way. Do you perhaps…
[Do you still think of yourself as a mortal or a human?]
Chi-Woo suddenly recalled what somebody had asked him once. And as he walked out of the temple, Chi-Woo pondered deeply. He had Core of Balance, and he was one with La Bella. What were the implications? He wasn’t sure, but he had an inkling ever since he was able to see a particular existence’s soul light.
[Your user information has been updated.]
Then, Chi-Woo suddenly got an alarm. When he called up his user information, he saw a star marking one of the sections.
<User Information>
1. History
2. Stat
3. Abilities
4. Others ★
5. Fostering
‘Fostering?’ That was new. Chi-Woo clicked on it.
<Fostering Information>
[User Choi Chi-Woo’s Merit Count: 24,608]
1. Inherent – [Core of Balance F] (5,277 Up↑!)
2. Inherent – [Divine Blood F] (2,352 Up↑!)
3. Inherent – [Golden Ratio AAA] (2,178,675 Up↑!)
4. Inherent – [Halo F] (1,051 Up↑!)
Chi-Woo soon realized that La Bella had already fulfilled his request. It wasn’t a lie when she said she would always be with him. And her intention was clear in what the foster system showed: because Chi-Woo's request would shake the foundation of the system, La Bella didn’t fulfill it completely, but instead displayed only the amount of merits necessary to upgrade the abilities he gained from his contract with La Bella. And of course, the change itself cost him merits as well.
‘Thank you, Goddess La Bella.’ Chi-Woo placed his hand on his heart and bowed. He was grateful that La Bella fulfilled his wishes and did it in a way that was easy for him to understand. It was clear that the numbers before the upward arrows were the number of merits he needed to upgrade the ability to the next level. But when he saw the numbers, his feelings of gratitude vanished.
‘No. Why are they so expensive?’
He thought he wouldn’t need many merits to upgrade an ability from F to E. And considering how the number of merits necessary to upgrade would increase exponentially after that, Chi-Woo was dumbstruck by how much things cost already. But it couldn’t be helped. Upgrading basic abilities was akin to upgrading a common iron sword, while Core of Balance would be more like a divine sword made out of divine stones that didn’t exist in the human world. Accordingly, the system required more quantity of quality ingredients. Of course, since Chi-Woo wasn’t privy to any of the details, he was incredibly dissatisfied with what he saw.
‘Did rank S come after rank triple A….?’ Chi-Woo wondered if he could raise the rank of Golden Ratio to S, but when he saw the number of merits required, his mouth dropped. He knew that S rank was one that surpassed humans, but wasn’t this a bit much? He would need not 200,000 merits, but more than 2 million. Even after he had prevented the capital from getting blown away and captured a demon in the 66 demon rank, he got only a bit more than 20k. 2 million seemed unattainable even if he defeated all 66 demons of the Demon Empire.
‘Does this even make sense?’ he thought. ‘Ms. La, aren’t you going too far with your joke!?’
Slap!
Chi-Woo felt somebody smack him on top of his head.
“Ah! Who was that!” Chi-Woo teared up from the sudden pain and looked around him.
—W-What? Why are you glaring at me suddenly? It wasn’t me!
Philip waved his hand defensively from a distance away. On the other hand, Mimi sighed quietly. She almost said, ‘You always make me worry for you…’