🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter : 20 I Became Strong-Hearted (5)
“Lightning Arrow!”
As soon as the magic circle engraved with an arrow shape appeared before his palm, the Core and Circle drew out mana and amplified it.
The runes on the magic circle lit up one after another.
In an instant, every rune shone brightly, and a yellow arrow formed in front of the circle.
Crackle.
A lightning arrow that scattered sparks and radiated an overwhelming pressure.
“Piiieeeek!”
Before he knew it, the leader had appeared right in front of him.
“Stop!”
The arrow pierced straight through the leader’s forehead.
Thud.
Crackleeeee!
“PIIIIEEEEEK!”
The lightning arrow embedded between its eyes unleashed electricity and heat, and the creature’s scream exploded through the dungeon as though it would tear the place apart.
The ruins filled with the smell of burning flesh as the creature continued screaming, its legs and wings twisted at grotesque angles.
“You think this is enough to finish you?”
The magic circle of <Lightning Arrow> appeared once more.
“Fire!”
Whoosh. Thud.
Crackleeeee!
“Piiieeek! Piiek!”
Without stopping, he continued firing <Lightning Arrow>.
Thud. Thud.
Crackleeeee!
“Piiek! Piiek!”
Boom.
By the time the first <Lightning Arrow> had exhausted all its mana and disappeared, the giant creature finally collapsed to the ground.
Step. Step.
Approaching it to check, he found that it was still breathing.
“Tough bastard.”
Gripping the jungle knife in a reverse hold, he raised his arm.
“Farewell. Let’s never meet again.”
After even finishing his parting words, he was about to drive the jungle knife into its temple when he suddenly stopped.
“Ah! The eggs.”
Come to think of it, not only the eggs but also the by-products from the ordinary Big Parrots needed to be collected first.
Once the leader died, an escape portal would open, and before long the dungeon would collapse.
“These guys were so clustered together I almost forgot something important.”
The creature was breathing heavily, but it no longer seemed capable of posing any threat.
“Let’s finish the work first.”
Once again realizing the necessity of having a helper, he pulled out a dagger.
He diligently harvested the beaks, claws, and tail feathers.
“Need to grab the eggs too.”
He headed toward the nest where the creature had been incubating them.
“What’s this?”
There were five eggs in total.
“Do they have cuckoos here too?”
Four of the five eggs were the size of ostrich eggs and shared the same pattern, but the remaining one was completely different.
For starters, it was twice as large as the others, and its color was entirely black, giving it an unsettling appearance.
“Looks like monsters practice brood parasitism too.”
He had absolutely no interest in the reproductive habits of monsters, but the current situation was rather fascinating.
The existence of another monster that had laid its egg in a Big Parrot nest caught his attention.
Carefully, he picked up one of the Big Parrot eggs.
“It’s warm.”
Perhaps because the leader had been incubating it until just moments ago, the egg was surprisingly warm.
“I heard people used to eat raw eggs for their throats. Should I try one?”
Ever since discovering Habe Honey, he had not neglected searching for edible dungeon resources.
“Will I get sick if I eat it?”
He was a little worried, but somehow he felt it would simply increase his mana without causing any problems.
“Let’s just try one.”
Holding the egg in his left hand, he swung the jungle knife in his right.
Crack.
The top of the egg broke apart, revealing its contents.
“It just looks like an egg.”
It was not much different from the eggs he usually ate.
He did not hesitate for long.
Holding the egg with both hands, he brought it to his mouth.
“Piiieeeek!”
The leader’s scream echoed out.
A monster with maternal instincts…
Ignoring the monster’s cry with ease, he gulped down the egg.
Gulp. Gulp.
There was a fishy taste at first, but once the yolk started going down, a rich savory flavor filled his mouth.
“Krrr.”
After downing the Big Parrot egg in one shot, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand like a real man.
Ding.
[You have consumed Pasero Egg (E), a food imbued with mana.]
[Your mana has increased by a minute amount.]
“It increased.”
The female voice that had become familiar now echoed inside his head.
“Right. So these guys were called Pasero.”
He had also learned that the continent referred to these creatures as “Pasero.”
“I should take the rest with me.”
Perhaps because he had just swallowed an ostrich-sized egg, he felt completely full.
Since by-products could be taken out of the dungeon, he packed the eggs into his bag.
Then he approached the still-gasping leader once more.
“I’ll make good use of your eggs too. You’re leaving quite a lot behind. Well then, goodbye.”
Thud.
The creature moved its beak as though trying to say something, but since he would not have understood it anyway, he did not stop.
Looking at the creature with the jungle knife embedded in its neck, he spoke quietly.
“Soul Absorption Conversion.”
Ding.
[You have absorbed the soul of Monster Leader Pasero (E).]
[You have absorbed the soul of Pasero (E).]
[You have absorbed the soul of Pasero (E).]
…
…
…
[Your mana has increased by a minute amount.]
[Assimilation rate has increased by a minute amount.]
[Current assimilation rate: 29.2%]
[Your body has been slightly strengthened due to the increase in assimilation.]
Having successfully overcome ornithophobia—the lingering remnant of Min Woohyuk’s humanity after living as a magic sword for a thousand years—he stepped through the escape portal.
Fortunately, neither the Capital Defense Force nor a strike team from the Dungeon Management Administration had to be dispatched.
“H-Hunter? A-Are you alright?”
“Yes. Nothing happened.”
The administrator stammered in shock at the sight of his half-naked upper body covered in blood, but he answered casually as though it were nothing and walked away.
The Hunter Association employee and the purchasing officer who had come to buy magic stones reacted similarly, but he did not mention anything that had happened inside the dungeon.
After selling all the by-products and magic stones and confirming the payment had been deposited, he put on the association T-shirt handed to him by a Hunter Association employee and climbed into a taxi.
I should buy a car too.
The first thing he did after arriving home was take a shower.
His wounds had apparently healed already, as no more blood flowed from them. He washed away the dried blood stuck to his body and let the fatigue of battle flow down the drain along with it.
Returning to his room, he looked at the Big Parrot eggs and the mysterious black egg he had taken from his bag before picking up another Big Parrot egg.
Should I eat one more?
Now that the tension had faded, he felt a little hungry and decided to eat another one.
Crack.
He sliced off the top with the jungle knife and drank the contents.
Gulp. Gulp.
“Krrr.”
Perhaps because it was his second time, he barely noticed the fishy taste.
Ding.
[You have consumed Pasero Egg (E), a food imbued with mana.]
[Your mana has increased by a minute amount.]
I need to keep increasing my mana if I want to create the third Circle.
A smile naturally appeared on his face when he heard the welcome message.
I wonder if cooking them would still increase mana?
Looking at the remaining eggs, he found himself wanting to cook them rather than eat them raw.
Would they work for non-Awakened people too?
As he thought about sharing something healthy, Choi Misoon and Shin Hyunyoung naturally came to mind.
I unconsciously started thinking as if I were Shin Hyunwoo.
Neither when he had lived as Min Woohyuk nor as the magic sword Veradion had he ever felt the warmth of family.
Before he realized it, he seemed to have assimilated into Shin Hyunwoo.
A mental assimilation born from his longing for Shin Hyunwoo’s life with such a warm family.
Right now, I am Shin Hyunwoo. I already decided to live as Shin Hyunwoo.
Min Woohyuk had disappeared ten years ago.
There was no way to live as Min Woohyuk while wearing Shin Hyunwoo’s face, nor did he have any attachment to that life anymore.
Compared to the twenty years he had spent as Min Woohyuk, he had lived far longer as the magic sword Veradion, causing those memories to fade.
I’ve been reborn as Shin Hyunwoo.
It was a new life.
A newly granted opportunity and compensation for the painful life he had endured as a magic sword.
He still did not know how such a priceless opportunity had come about, but one thing was certain.
His life as Shin Hyunwoo was precious.
From now on, Choi Misoon and Shin Hyunyoung are my family. I have to protect them.
After reaffirming his resolve, he picked up the black egg.
If the three of us are going to eat together, it’s better to cook something with the bigger one, right?
He swung the jungle knife at the top of the black egg.
Clang.
“Huh?”
The egg he expected to crack apart remained completely unharmed.
Putting more force into it, he swung again.
Clang!
“What is this?”
For a moment he was stunned by its hardness, but soon his determination and obsession to break it flared up.
Clang. Clang. Clang. Claaang.
He struck the egg repeatedly, but not even the slightest scratch appeared.
“What the hell is this thing?”
It was definitely not a Big Parrot egg.
Its appearance was far too different.
Another monster had clearly laid it in the Big Parrot nest, but he had no idea what kind of creature it belonged to.
If only I could enter the Library of Memories, I could look it up…
Inside the magic sword Veradion were two separate spaces: the <Spirit Chamber>, where sealed souls resided, and the <Library of Memories>, where the memories of its tenants were stored.
Perhaps the memories of a previous tenant—or even memories he himself had forgotten—contained information about this egg.
But it was a pointless thought.
Now he lived in the body of the human Shin Hyunwoo.
There was absolutely no way for him to access the <Library of Memories> inside the magic sword.
If it won’t break, it can’t be helped.
He gave up cleanly.
Instead of cooking with the mysterious egg, he began preparing dishes for Choi Misoon, now his mother, and Shin Hyunyoung, now his sister, using the remaining Big Parrot eggs.
From rolled omelets to various other egg dishes, he made everything he could think of.
For the first time in a long while, Min Woohyuk the bachelor resurfaced, and he proudly displayed his cooking skills.
Perhaps because of that, laughter bloomed around the dining table when everyone finally returned home from work.
“Wow. You made all of this yourself? Since when did you learn how to cook?”
“Our Hyunwoo cooked a whole meal for Mom. I’m so touched.”
“The market nearby was selling eggs cheaply, so I bought some. Haha.”
“Then let’s try it.”
Shin Hyunyoung picked up some egg salad with her chopsticks.
Gulp.
“Wow. This is delicious!”
“Really? Let me try some too.”
Choi Misoon tasted the rolled omelet.
“Oh my. The seasoning is perfect. My son is ready to get married.”
“Haha. Married? Come on.”
The mother and daughter began eating in earnest.
If they knew this was made from monster eggs, they’d probably faint.
Perhaps because they had worked all day and were hungry, neither woman’s chopsticks slowed down.
No need to tell them.
“Hyunwoo, you didn’t put some kind of medicine in this, did you?”
“What are you talking about? You were eating just fine a second ago.”
“No, it’s just… I feel strangely energized. You didn’t add some kind of tonic, did you?”
“What nonsense. Why would I put something like that in food?”
“Come to think of it, I feel more energetic too. Maybe it’s because our son cooked it with love. Hoho.”
After hearing the same silly comment from Choi Misoon following Shin Hyunyoung, he became slightly suspicious.
Can ordinary people absorb mana too?
Their reactions clearly indicated they had sensed some sort of physical change.
No. It’s probably just like medicinal herbs—a vitality-boosting ingredient because it contains mana.
It had already been ten years since gates and monsters appeared on Earth.
If ordinary people could accumulate mana, society would have been thrown into chaos hundreds of times over by now.
If the eggs had at least helped relieve their fatigue, then the Big Parrot eggs had been put to good use.
This is nice.
A simple but warm and harmonious family.
A smile appeared on his face at the thought that it now belonged to him.
Of course, he also felt both gratitude and guilt toward the real Shin Hyunwoo, who had unwillingly given up this place.
Ringggg. Ringggg.
Just as the meal was coming to an end, Choi Misoon’s phone rang.
After checking the number on the screen, she hurried into her room and closed the door.
Shin Hyunyoung’s expression darkened immediately.
Is something wrong?
He listened carefully to Choi Misoon’s conversation through the door.
Thanks to the heightened hearing granted by his enhanced senses, it was effortless.
“Please give me just a little more time. I’ll repay the money somehow. I promise I’ll pay it back.”
