The 31st Piece Overturns the Game Board

Seol couldn't help but feel excited checking Ur's stats.

But after seeing the stats… Seol’s expression went stiff.

[[Ur the Sealed]

Title: N/A

Rank: Immortal

Race: Shadow

Level: 24

HP: 100/100

MP: 100/100

Strength 10 Dexterity 10 Constitution 10

Intelligence 10 Wisdom10 Spirit 10

Talents: Master Linguist, Knowledge Seeker, Legendary Teacher]

‘Why are his stats so low? Aren’t these… just the basic stats?’

- This wasn’t what I ordered…

- It was, though? Look at the receipt.

- Hahaha… That’s weird… But it isn’t, okay?

Ur appeared completely absent-minded.

Upon seeing Ur’s face, Seol believed those stats might have been accurate, but something still felt off.

‘He’s Immortal-rank, isn’t he? It’s one rank above Transcendent, so why?’

There was definitely something else in play here that Seol was missing.

‘Ah… now that I think about it…’

There were still a couple of things Seol hadn’t checked yet.

Ur’s skills.

Before, when Seol acquired new summons, they all had 2 or 3 skills despite being Heroic-rank.

‘But... Even though Ur is Immortal-rank, he has only two, just like the others.’

Seol, while thinking, checked Ur’s skills.

First was Wizardry.

[[Wizardry]

- Wizardry serves as the foundation for all mana-based skills. It is influenced by the environment, the type of mana, and imagery, a completely distinct field from conventional magic.]

‘That’s… all?’

- Alright, class~ We’ll be learning about wizardry today!

- And that was all! Everyone enjoyed our lesson today, right? 👍

- EZ!

- But wasn’t Ur originally a bad guy? He was also strong before…

- But now he’s just chilling next to me in bed 😳

Seol couldn’t discern much from this description. He couldn’t gauge Ur's strength, his new summon, nor could he grasp the nature of his skills.

‘I guess the only thing that’s left is… Maverick?’

Since Wizardry’s description was a bit lacking, Seol hoped that Maverick’s description was more detailed.

Seol then meticulously read through all the details, ensuring not to miss even a single letter.

[Maverick]

- All other summons are canceled upon Ur's summoning. While Ur is present, he gains stats equivalent to the total stats of the canceled summons.

However, this effect is not absolute. There are also many situations where summoning Ur is not possible.]

- OH SHIIIIIIIIT!

- Ur had a plan!

- So this is why his stats were shit, eh?

- That’s insane… How strong can he get then?

Seol finally felt relief after reading Maverick’s effect.

‘Fuu… At least he won’t be a waste of Shadow Space.’

Since Ur could become extremely powerful with just that skill, Seol felt immensely relieved.

‘Still, it is a bit sad that I can’t use him with the other summons.’

Jamad wasn’t considered a summon while Seol was in the Night Crow form so, that was fine, but he couldn’t use Ur with the Twin Knights.

‘Then summoning Ur should have just as many benefits, and... what does it mean by summoning is not possible?’

Unfortunately, there were no additional details about that.

‘Is it just something that I’m supposed to figure out? Hm…’

There was no longer a reason, or need, to split up the expedition party. However, the combined members now numbered much fewer than half of the original party.

They then discussed the route they would take to return and ultimately decided to go through the Wet Fog Hills.

They had a friendly relationship with the Black Thunder Tribe now, after all. There was no reason to take the roundabout way.

Creaaaaaak…

“We’ll be setting up camp here today! Get it done!”

“Yes, sir!”

Whether it was the magicians, who initially appeared too lazy to lift anything, or the pilgrims, who seemed as if they had never done something like this before, everyone pitched in enthusiastically.

‘It makes sense that they’ve changed after all we went through, though.’

There was a fire in each of their eyes.

The adventure in Alcatron had become a catalyst for change for everyone in the expedition party.

* * *

The camp was a bit wet, but it wasn’t inhospitable.

Since the expedition members who took the roundabout path all swore this path was much nicer, there was no reason for anyone to complain either.

With no more food left, Seol once again showcased his skill with the hunted monsters and spices he had brought along.

“Haah…. This is so good.”

“Hahaha. I think I might cry when we have to split up. I’ll miss this food too much.”

"Seriously, it would have been better if I had never eaten it. All I’m going to do after this adventure ends is hole up in my research room and do nothing."

Whether it was the magicians with their beards that had grown to ridiculous lengths or the pilgrims praying for the fallen, the large-scale adventure was nearing its end.

It was a strange time where emptiness and fulfillment co-existed.

‘Is this why everyone joins large-scale adventures?’

Having a number of people all move toward one objective was rather appealing.

Seol especially felt this way because he had been mostly embarking on solo adventures until now.

‘Still… it’s too dangerous.’

For large-scale adventures like this, there are often cases where, even if you prepare as best as you can, it is still impossible.

The difficulty was high, as it required a lot of people to clear, and there were often unpredictable variables as well.

If you weren’t able to instantly adapt to the situation, it only took a second for you to die.

‘This adventure would have been impossible too if it wasn’t for Frannan. Well, if we didn’t have Mael and Chameli, a lot more people would have died as well.’

Since everyone was valuable, you had to protect everyone.

That was the dilemma of large-scale adventures.

‘And that’s exactly what I don’t like.’

Seol had his hands full just keeping himself safe, as he had been on equally perilous adventures the entire time.

Slide…

"What are you up to?" asked Chameli as she approached Seol and sat next to him.

It wasn’t necessarily strange that she did that.

After all, Seol was currently quite popular in the expedition party.

Many had called out to him, and just as many believed he was more helpful on this expedition than even Frannan, the Aspect Magician.

Only after Frannan threatened to find anyone who thought so did people stop expressing such opinions.

Nonetheless, many remained curious about the identity of the Aspect Magician’s apprentice.

Chameli was excluded from this, obviously, as she already had a good idea of the type of individual Seol was.

“I’m just… thinking about this and that.”

"Ah... So you're experiencing post-expedition symptoms.”

“Post-expedition… symptoms?”

"There's a saying that goes something like this: Ten people go, but only three return. A hundred people leave, but only ten come back home.”

“So the after-effects from loss, huh?”

“There’s that too, but… a lot of things happened. Some people lost a close relationship…” said Chameli before looking at Frannan. “And some lost an eye. A lot of things happened in a short amount of time.”

“I see,” answered Seol.

As the mood became gloomier, she shifted the topic.

“So… is that tiny spirit really that terrifying Ur?”

“...Hmph.”

Ur still hadn’t opened up his heart to Seol.

He sat cross-armed, turned away from Seol like an upset child.

‘Well… it’s not like I’m completely open to Ur yet, either.’

Though Seol pondered over Ur, who remained a complete mystery to him, he eventually reached the conclusion that all he could do was slowly learn about him.

As Seol stared at Ur, he shouted back, clearly upset.

“I have nothing now!”

“...What?”

"The power I built up... my absolute mana... it's all gone. This is all because you turned me into your summon. And that's why I can't help you. I'm incompetent!"

Faaaaade…

For some reason, Ur’s body seemed hazier than normal.

“H-his body is turning blurry!”

“What?”

“What if he dies like that?”

Only then did Ur fix his attitude.

"W-Well, I can still do a few things if I give it a bit more attention. Maybe it’s just a matter of will?"

Fwoosh…

“Phew… he turned back to normal. That was dangerous.”

Frannan approached the pair before sitting by them as well.

“The real ones in danger are us,” said Frannan. “It all depends on how he acts now.”

A new voice spurred out of Ur.

“Ohohoho… No need to worry, Frannan. Ur can no longer separate himself from me, so he will have to deal with my scrutiny for the rest of his life.”

“Haha… I don’t think I’ve ever respected you as much as this, Bornuil,” said Frannan.

“I am not doing this for respect. In fact, I am a bit excited that I have something to do in my later years!”

As the two conversed, Seol pulled out something from his inventory.

“Frannan, could you take a look at this?” asked Seol.

“Let me see… hm… is this that…?”

“Yes, the thing that Koko left behind.”

"Hm... Demonic spirits, not monsters, are my specialty, so... unfortunately..."

After hearing that, someone else butted in.

“Ohoho… this must be… their traces, no?”

“Their traces?”

Bornuil continued.

"Powerful individuals always leave behind their traces. Just as a tree picked up by a storm leaves behind traces of its roots and large beasts leave behind their tracks, so too do powerful individuals. It is likely that Koko..."

"I thought it was an old person trait to ramble on and on about things they didn’t understand in only my era. Is it still the same? I’m shocked.”

“...Ur?”

While Seol wasn’t surprised about two voices exiting the same body, as it's something he does as well with Jamad, he was definitely surprised by Ur joining the conversation on his own.

“Ohoho… Are you saying I’m wrong?” said Bornuil.

“Then what? Are you telling me that you can’t hear this wolf’s whimpering?”

“Whimpering?”

"This isn’t his trace. It’s a shadow wolf’s defensive measure."

“Defensive… measure?”

“Yes. When I attacked the wolf, I felt it quickly concentrate its powers into that. I didn’t break it because it was unimportant to me, though, but… hey, summoner. Is he… your summon?”

Though Koko had acted as if he was Seol’s summon, he wasn’t.

- We aren’t friends, but we did get burgers before…

- McDonalds?

- Nah, Burger King.

- Ah… that’s a bit ambiguous then…

“He isn’t my summon.”

“Is that so? How strange.”

“What’s strange?”

"When shadow wolves sense death approaching, they concentrate all their powers to revert to their primal form. While this might make them sound like phoenixes, who are revered as divine beings, their methods have flaws. Firstly, it requires a portion of their energy to revive. Secondly, they lack the ability to revive on their own."

"....They can’t revive on their own? No, more importantly, if they can revive… are you saying Koko can come back to life?"

"Let me finish speaking first," said Ur. "If a shadow wolf doesn’t have anyone they can trust near them when they’re about to die, they would never revert back to their core. They would just accept their death."

“Then you’re saying that…”

“He believes that you will be able to wake him from his core. Didn’t he follow you rather well? Still, it is quite interesting… shadow wolves are difficult to commune with, after all.”

Bornuil finally spoke up after Ur finished explaining.

“Then… the great Ur must definitely know of a way to wake the shadow wolf from its core, right?”

“Obviously I…”

Ur, who had initially responded to Bornuil incredulously as if it was an obvious question, quickly halted his response.

“Hold on. Why am I telling you this?”

“Ohohoho…”

“Did this old fuck irritate me on purpose?”

“Ohohoho… I apologize, Snowman. I was caught.”

“I’m not going to tell you anymore!”

Ur almost looked like he was sulking right now.

As such, Bornuil spoke in his place.

“Do not worry too much, Snowman. I’m sure he’ll say more the more you irritate him. Ur is the kind of person who loves to brag about how much they know. Even though he’s so young, he acts like such an old man, tsk tsk… It’s unfortunate. Regardless, the more foolishly you behave, the more he will teach you.”

- I just finished picking all the parts for my pc guys! I bet no one can make a pc better than this~

- Go refund all your pieces before I shoot you. I’ll tell you what to pick.

- Ur, the asshole on the internet who lowkey gives good advice.

Seol thought for a moment.

“Ur,” said Seol.

“...What?”

“Are you sure you don’t know how to do it?”

“What?”

"Yeah, so that’s why you stopped talking… You should’ve just told me earlier. I wouldn’t have had to waste time then."

“Waste… time?”

Ur scoffed as his eyes turned red.

“Take back those words right now. How dare you say something so ridiculous to a fountain of knowledge like me…”

“Who’d believe someone that only calls themselves a fountain of knowledge…”

Seol carefully observed Ur’s expression as he continued.

- Come on… Who would fall for that LOL

- It would be weirder if he fell for it LOL

“Fine! You must be a fool to test my knowledge! I shall give you a peek into the depths of my knowledge!”

- He fell for it?

- He did?

- He’s a weirdo too?

Anger.

Everyone holds certain things in high importance, sacred and untouchable by others.

For Ur, it was the knowledge he had amassed over the years.

Through this conversation, Seol considered himself fortunate to have learned what Ur’s pet peeve was.

“Let me… give me that!”

Grab!

Ur quickly swiped Koko’s core from Seol’s hands before inspecting it.

“Hm… It seems like… it would be impossible for him to be revived as your summon.”

“I knew you were lyi–”

“I’m serious. Also, I don’t lie. More importantly, I said that it would be difficult for him to be revived as your summon. I didn’t say that he couldn’t be revived at all.”

“Then that means…”

Ur reverted to his original smug expression.

“Resurrecting things is my specialty.”

Ur, an expert of resurrection, smiled insidiously.

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