Chapter 22

I Became a Newbie Favored by the Transcendents Chapter 22

[‘NinthCircleArchmage’ registers ‘Hair.’]

I thought she was going to teach me some powerful Fourth Circle magic, but suddenly, hair?

Ah, could the magic itself be called Hair or something?

Haha!

“...Nope. It’s really hair. What the hell is this?”

What sat inside the slot for registering trade items was literally hair.

While I was too bewildered to type anything for a moment.

‘NinthCircleArchmage’ asked me a question.

-NinthCircleArchmage) Naturally, you haven’t received the Baptism, have you?

Baptism?

Ah.

-“When purebloods are born, we make them touch the remains of Iris ancestors who reached the Ninth Circle in life. The ‘Baptism.’”-

I remembered what Helena had told me inside the Gate before.

Didn’t she say that touching the remains of an ancestor would unlock the true power of the ‘Immortal Loop’?

But why was she suddenly bringing that up... Ah, wait, don’t tell me?

‘Is she one of those ancestors?’

Judging from the circumstances, ‘NinthCircleArchmage’ was from the Iris family.

And considering her username alone, it was basically confirmed that she had reached the Ninth Circle while alive.

Only after my thoughts reached that point.

Did I realize why she had given me her own hair.

‘Could she be telling me to upgrade the Immortal Loop using her hair...?’

Hair was still part of the body, so it could technically be called ‘remains.’

The moment I understood ‘NinthCircleArchmage’s’ intention, I was about to answer her question.

‘Wait.’

I hurriedly erased the message I had been typing.

If I told her here that I hadn’t received the Baptism.

That would essentially be admitting that I knew what the ‘Baptism’ meant.

I had already made it clear that I wasn’t from Iris, so I couldn’t give her anything else to misunderstand.

Therefore, play dumb.

-Me) Bap?tism?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Ah, you don’t know?

-Me) Nope

-NinthCircleArchmage) Hmm... Really? Haha

What’s with that reaction?

‘Does she suspect I’m from Iris?’

That meaningful ‘haha’ at the end made it obvious.

But I clearly told her earlier that I wasn’t.

...Strictly speaking, I only sent a question mark when she asked if I was from Iris, but whatever, it basically meant the same thing.

-NinthCircleArchmage) I once served as the 17th head of the Iris family

-Me) I see. So?

-NinthCircleArchmage) No one besides the participants can see one-on-one conversations. Not even the Administrator can view them. This place is entirely ours alone right now

-NinthCircleArchmage) So you can be honest here. Do you really think I’d expose my descendant’s identity in the gallery? Haha

-Me) I am not your descendant

Don’t just casually decide I’m your descendant.

Maybe it was because she was a mage, but her imagination was certainly rich.

-NinthCircleArchmage) Ah, fine. Fine. We’ll say you’re not from Iris. Case closed!

“Not ‘we’ll say you’re not,’ lady. I’m actually not.”

Ugh, whatever. Think whatever you want. I give up.

While I shook my head in frustration, ‘NinthCircleArchmage’ eagerly explained what the Baptism meant.

And also why she had given me her hair.

-NinthCircleArchmage) Since you haven’t received the Baptism, touching my hair, which is part of my remains, will allow you to release the Immortal Loop’s true power!

-Me) Got it completely. But is it okay to touch the remains after already awakening the Immortal Loop?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Yes. The order doesn’t matter

So it wasn’t as though I had to touch the remains first in order to upgrade the Immortal Loop.

...Jackpot.

That meant I could also―

-“You can gain inexhaustible infinite mana and a body favored by the four great elements.”-

Enjoy that absurdly overpowered effect Helena had mentioned.

Crazy.

Naturally, I had never expected anything because there was no way I’d ever get the chance to touch the remains of that family’s ancestors.

I never imagined an opportunity like this would fall into my lap.

While a grin naturally spread across my face from the rising thrill.

I suddenly asked about a question that had been sitting in the back of my mind for a while.

-Me) But how were you so sure I hadn’t received the Baptism? Even though you misunderstood me as someone from Iris

-NinthCircleArchmage) Ah, that. The reason is very simple

Her next message came as though it were nothing significant.

-NinthCircleArchmage) I burned every last one of the ancestral remains in the family mausoleum

-NinthCircleArchmage) So the Iris purebloods who came after me couldn’t receive the Baptism at all haha

“...”

-Me) Why would you commit such an unfilial act?

-NinthCircleArchmage) I don’t really know either

-Me)???

-NinthCircleArchmage) I’m sure I had some unavoidable reason... but I don’t remember. Probably because of the Curse of Oblivion?

This is making my head spin.

Even if you’re suffering from the Curse of Oblivion, at least remember something that important.

‘This woman might actually be completely insane...’

No wonder.

Something felt off from the moment she was the only person in the gallery who consistently used polite speech.

As a rule, it was best not to get too deeply involved with lunatics if you cared about your own well-being―

[‘NinthCircleArchmage’ registers a ‘Soul Stone.’]

At that moment, ‘NinthCircleArchmage’ registered another trade item.

A Soul Stone.

It was an item I had received from ‘SaviorOfTheEmpire’ before as well.

If I remembered correctly, it was a stone containing part of someone’s memories or knowledge.

-Me) What’s this?

-NinthCircleArchmage) You said you were looking for some fucking insanely strong Fourth Circle magic. This contains the formulas for the powerful Fourth Circle spells you wanted

“Hmm, maybe I can get a little involved?”

Yeah, so what if she was crazy?

She was a crazy person who helped me.

She willingly handed over part of her remains and even taught me powerful Fourth Circle magic, so maybe we should get along from now on.

The fact that she personally burned all her ancestors’ remains?

Ah, she said there must have been an unavoidable reason~.

-Me) Loyalty loyalty ^^7

-NinthCircleArchmage) Part of the reason I’m giving you the Soul Stone is because I hope you realize the greatness of magic, but there’s an even more important reason

-Me)?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Once the Immortal Loop’s true power awakens, you’ll suffer from mana overheating for a while. Think of it as your body adapting to the infinite mana flowing through the Loop

-Me) What happens when mana overheats?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Nothing much, your whole body aches like you got beaten with a hammer and your temperature shoots through the roof haha

Excuse me, I don’t think that’s something to laugh about?

-Me) Then what do I do?;

-NinthCircleArchmage) You need to calm the mana rampaging inside the Immortal Loop. The best way is to use as much magic as possible and burn it off

-Me) How long do I have to do that

-NinthCircleArchmage) Until your body adapts. There’s no set time, but probably around four days?

To put it simply, it was the same principle as making an overly energetic wild horse run as much as possible to drain its stamina.

-Me) Got it. Thanks lol But for the trade to go through, I need to give you something too. Is there anything you need?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Anything is fineee

Now I understood how ‘IAmLegend’ had felt when I told him anything was fine.

I had received something from her too. I couldn’t just give her any random junk.

I looked around for something suitable.

“Ah.”

My eyes landed on the highest-quality Mana Crystal that I had carefully placed on the shelf.

To the Transcendents of Pantheon, Mana Crystals were the only things that could alleviate the Curse of Oblivion.

‘NinthCircleArchmage’ should be satisfied with this.

Unless she was twisted enough to consider oblivion a blessing like ‘IAmLegend.’

I immediately registered the Mana Crystal in the trade window.

There was no response for several seconds.

Was she probably freaking out right now?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Am I seeing things?

-NinthCircleArchmage) Is this really a Mana Crystal?

-NinthCircleArchmage) No, how did you get a Mana Crystal in Pantheon?!

-Me) Not telling haha

-NinthCircleArchmage) Tell me!

-NinthCircleArchmage) I’m your ancestor!

No, you’re not.

After that, the pattern repeated, with her persistently asking where the Mana Crystal came from and me stubbornly refusing to answer...

[The allotted time has elapsed. The trade will now end.]

The chat window closed with perfect timing once we used up the entire allotted time.

Nice timing.

If it were up to me, I’d like to tell her where the Mana Crystal came from too, but what could I do?

If the Transcendents in Pantheon found out I was still alive, I didn’t think I’d be able to deal with the consequences.

Tap!

Once again, the moment the chat ended, the trade items popped out of thin air.

Three strands of hair carrying a vivid blue hue like the sea, and a Soul Stone.

First, I grabbed the hair.

Really, all I did was hold it.

And yet―

[Hidden condition achieved]

[The true power of the ‘Immortal Loop’ is released!]

[The power of infinite providence acts upon your body!]

“...?!”

Fuck.

There was no way I could keep myself from swearing.

An enormous wave of muscle pain suddenly hit me.

At the same time, my mind grew hazy as though I had spent the entire night drinking hard liquor.

When I touched my cheek, it felt like touching a hot pack.

I didn’t even need a thermometer to know my temperature had shot up to at least 39 degrees Celsius.

‘This must be the mana overheating NinthCircleArchmage warned me about.’

My heart was pounding like crazy.

It wasn’t because my pulse had accelerated, but because the Divine Power inside the ‘Immortal Loop’ wrapped around my heart was going berserk.

Didn’t she say the only way to resolve this was to use as much magic as possible?

I reached out with a trembling hand and grabbed the Soul Stone.

=====

<​Soul Stone>

-A stone containing someone’s knowledge.

-Upon destruction, inherit knowledge concerning ‘Flame Orb’ and ‘Invisible Hand.’

=====

Ah, shit, my vision is so blurry I can barely even read the words.

The instant I hurriedly shattered the Soul Stone in my hand.

Strange characters and diagrams I had never seen before began filling my mind.

They were things I had never encountered, yet instinctively, I understood them as though I had always known them.

These were spell formulas.

Blueprints used to construct magic.

It felt like I could use them right now if I wanted.

‘Magic...’

I’d have to be insane to use it inside my studio apartment.

Conveniently, there were still three Gates the director had reserved for me.

I could use it there.

‘NinthCircleArchmage said I’d suffer from this for at least four days. Three Gates won’t be enough.’

First, I texted the director asking if he could secure a few more Gates.

Then.

I staggered to my feet, my body feeling like it was about to tear apart from muscle pain.

‘...I have to run Gates in this condition.’

Anyone who saw me would probably think I was insane.

______________

Over the past few days, a strange phenomenon had been occurring repeatedly in the Republic of Korea.

In a good way.

[The Republic of Korea’s national Contribution increases.]

[Current Contribution: 58.03%]

[The Republic of Korea’s national Contribution increases.]

[Current Contribution: 64.97%]

[The Republic of Korea’s national Contribution...]

The nation’s Contribution had been skyrocketing like crazy over just a day or two!

The Contribution value, which hadn’t even reached 50%, shot past 70% with the end of the month approaching.

An explosive rise!

The reaction on internet communities was explosive too.

[Whoa, what the hell is happening right now?]

[The Contribution is suddenly shooting up like crazy?]

[Jackpot. Seriously, jackpot!]

[It just passed 70%. Let’s keep going!]

Until the middle of the month, the atmosphere in Korea had been gloomy.

Because it had seemed certain they wouldn’t be able to fill the national Contribution quota assigned by the system before December ended.

If the Contribution quota wasn’t met, Players would receive penalties, and an outbreak would occur.

Ordinary non-awakened people might not care about the former, but the latter was different.

If monsters spilled into reality through an outbreak, civilians could lose their lives as well.

But what was this?

As though Gates were naturally disappearing on their own, the Contribution value began rising at an unprecedented pace.

People who had nearly given up began to feel a ray of hope.

[But why is the Contribution suddenly rising this fast?]

[There’s only one reason. The Players finally realized their asses were on fire and started grinding Gates like crazy lol]

[Should’ve done this sooner, bastards!]

[These guys can do well when they actually try... Why do they always have to fuck around first...]

[Honestly, after getting crushed in the last Korea-China Arena match and everything, I was really disappointed... Cheering for you guys haha]

Netizens assumed that the explosive rise was because Players were grinding themselves down to clear Gates.

But the truth?

It was thanks to Junbeom clearing no fewer than seven Gates entirely by himself, all at S+ rank.

Of course, there was no way the public could know that.

And after one day, two days, three days, four days passed...

Junbeom achieved yet another S+ clear in order to resolve the mana overheating phenomenon.

[The Republic of Korea’s national Contribution increases.]

[Current Contribution: 90.76%]

At last, it surpassed 90%.

The date was exactly December 31st.

The deadline on which the system would determine whether the national Contribution quota had been met.

The festive atmosphere in Korea grew gloomy once again.

December would end in just twenty-four hours, but they still had a full 10% Contribution left to fill.

Just as people began despairing, thinking perhaps they had gotten their hopes up for nothing.

[(Breaking) Golden Dragon Guild Successfully Clears ‘Wyvern Nest’ Gate]

News appeared like salvation.

After a prolonged battle lasting a full half month, the <​Golden Dragon> Guild had succeeded in clearing the Gate.

The ‘Wyvern Nest’ they entered had been rated as the most dangerous Gate to appear in Korea that December.

Naturally, the amount of Contribution awarded for successfully clearing it was equally high.

Even though their result was the somewhat disappointing B- rank.

[The Republic of Korea’s national Contribution reaches 100%.]

It was more than enough to fill the remaining 10%.

[WE DID IIIIIIIIT!!!!]

[Whoa, they actually pulled it off.]

[As expected, the only ones our country can trust are Golden Dragon!]

[God Hanseong! God Hanseong! God Hanseong! God Hanseong! God Hanseong!]

[At least 2026 is ending on a happy note.]

[Golden Dragon, thank you all so much for your hard work. You’re heroes.]

With this, there was no longer any risk of Players suffering a national penalty or an outbreak occurring.

Everyone unanimously praised the <​Golden Dragon> Guild and Lee Hanseong, the commander-in-chief of this raid.

Perhaps because they could finally breathe again?

The public’s attention shifted toward a topic they hadn’t had time to think about before.

[But doesn’t the system choose an MVP Player every six months?]

[Yeah. Since it’s December, the MVP should be decided soon.]

[Who do you think it’ll be? Lee Hanseong, obviously, right?]

[Is that even a question lol He cleared Wyvern Nest and got rid of other Gates too. Who else could it possibly be besides Lee Hanseong?]

[Didn’t Lee Hanseong get MVP last time too?]

[Then let him get it again lol Lee Hanseong deserves it.]

Namely, the question of ‘Who will become the MVP?’

Once every six months.

The system selects the single Player who contributed the most to increasing national Contribution and grants them a reward.

And people.

Had no doubt that person would be Lee Hanseong.

______________

“<​Golden Dragon> Team 1. Everyone, you worked truly hard.”

“Great work!”

The sound of glasses clinking echoed from all around.

A celebration party commemorating the successful clear of ‘Wyvern Nest.’

The <​Golden Dragon> Guild had rented out an entire top-class restaurant in Gangnam for the occasion.

“Man, we somehow managed to pull it off in the end. When we fought that boss at the end, I seriously thought we were screwed.”

Lee Chaeyeon, vice leader of Team 1, lightly patted Lee Hanseong’s shoulder as he quietly drank from his glass.

They had only just exited the Gate today.

But there was no trace of exhaustion on the faces of her or the other guild members.

Of course.

Not only had they succeeded in clearing the Gate, but the national Contribution had also reached 100%.

They could all welcome the new year together with smiles on their faces.

If not today, when else would they celebrate this happy moment?

“Ah, if only that bastard boss hadn’t suddenly abandoned its nest and run away at the end! If that hadn’t happened, an A-rank clear would’ve totally been possible. Team Leader, you agree, right?”

“I’m satisfied that no one on our team died. I couldn’t care less about the clear rank.”

“Hmm, true. You’re right about that.”

Lee Chaeyeon readily agreed.

If even one person had died during the raid, they would have been holding a memorial service instead of an after-party.

“Even if we had failed the raid, it wouldn’t matter. I’m happier that all my teammates are safe. Think of this as a celebration of all of us returning alive.”

“Yeah, yeah. But isn’t there one more thing to celebrate?”

“Hmm?”

“Come on, you’re pretending not to know again. Let’s see, it’s 11:49 right now, so...”

After checking the time on her smartphone, Lee Chaeyeon struck a salute and shouted.

“Team Leader! Congratulations in advance on becoming December’s MVP in eleven minutes!”

“...Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.”

“What do you mean, count my chickens?! Hey, you guys! Do you think I’m getting ahead of myself?!”

When Lee Chaeyeon called out to the guild members...

“Of course not!”

“MVP is definitely guaranteed for our Team Leader Lee!”

“We get to hear the New Year’s bell and watch our Team Leader become MVP too! Damn!”

“I’m jealous!”

The guild members reacted exactly the same way as Lee Chaeyeon.

The atmosphere already treated Lee Hanseong as though his MVP selection were guaranteed.

Lee Hanseong sighed and continued drinking.

“I said stop...”

“You say stop, but deep down, you agree too, right? How about it? Am I right? Am I right?”

“...”

Lee Hanseong didn’t answer.

Truthfully, he couldn’t refute what Lee Chaeyeon had said.

It wasn’t arrogance. Even objectively speaking, there was no Player besides himself who seemed qualified to take MVP.

It was Lee Hanseong who had dealt the final blow to the boss of ‘Wyvern Nest.’

And even before ‘Wyvern Nest,’ Lee Hanseong had already cleared several high-risk Gates.

It would hardly be an exaggeration to say that roughly thirty percent of the 100% Contribution had been achieved through Lee Hanseong’s efforts alone.

It wasn’t that the other Players were incompetent.

It was proof of just how far above everyone else Lee Hanseong stood.

In any case, after the after-party atmosphere grew livelier for a while.

Lee Chaeyeon shouted.

“One minute left! Hey, turn off all the lights!”

“W-why the lights?”

“So when the MVP result appears and the spotlight comes down, it’ll look way more dramatic!”

“Lee Chaeyeon, you...”

Lee Hanseong glared at the thoroughly excited Lee Chaeyeon.

What happened when the MVP selection result was announced at exactly midnight?

Simple.

Unlike the Tutorial Battlefield, the system didn’t display a global announcement in front of every Player in the world.

Instead, light simply descended over the head of the Player chosen as MVP.

That was the ‘spotlight’ Lee Chaeyeon was talking about.

Click!

The guild members hurriedly switched off every light in the restaurant.

They all wanted to see the spectacular sight of brilliant light enveloping Lee Hanseong in the darkness.

Though Lee Hanseong himself looked mortified enough to die.

They even turned on the TV.

Because they still had to hear the New Year’s bell.

And five seconds remained until the new year.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

Perfectly timing it, Lee Chaeyeon shouted.

“Congratula...!!”

―tions on MVP, was never completed.

Because there was no brilliant light.

Only pitch-black darkness.

“...”

“...?”

“Huh?”

An unbearably awkward silence flowed.

Even Lee Hanseong, who had closed his eyes in advance in preparation for the brightness, slowly cracked them open in bewilderment.

Sweating coldly, Lee Chaeyeon checked her smartphone.

“...Is my phone clock fast or something?”

-The words had barely left her mouth.

Dong― Dong― Dong―

The bells announcing the new year rang through the silence and darkness.