Chapter 65 : Chapter 65
Chapter 65. An Unintended Variable
The special match, ‘Extreme Environment Survival,’ which had been the most talked-about event among connoisseurs in recent times, had come to an end.
“This match was one for the ages.”
“I’m glad I took the time to come see it.”
Although the scheduled award ceremony was canceled as the victor, Hyunwoo, also collapsed, the faces of the spectators leaving the arena were filled with satisfied smiles.
While the spectators excitedly chatted about the day's match, the arena below was in the midst of cleanup.
The cleanup was the main duty of the ‘Treatment Team’.
Kruger, the head of the Treatment Team, shouted with the veins on his neck bulging.
“Move it, move it, if you don't want to be cleaning up corpses! Hey—! You there!”
“Yes—!”
“If that one dies, you'll be dead today too, you hear me!”
“Understood—!”
After a match, the role of the ‘Treatment Team’ was to save as many of the surviving gladiators as possible.
“Tsk. A bunch of slowpokes.”
Kruger wore a displeased expression as he watched his subordinates running around.
He had to save even one more gladiator. Each and every one of them was an asset to the arena.
Moreover, the treatment fees charged to the saved gladiators were one of the arena's main sources of income.
“…Ugh. A lot of them died.”
However, looking at the gladiators being carried out, a groan escaped him.
The gladiators lying collapsed as if dead were, in fact, almost all dead.
“Was this… a match designed to kill all the Gold gladiators?”
To the spectators, it might have been just a match with plenty to see, but as an arena employee, he couldn't comprehend it at all.
The match had been so excessive that it naturally raised such questions in Kruger's mind.
The extreme environment of the arena had led most of the injured gladiators to their deaths.
What was even more shocking was that the number of gladiators killed by the human named Hyunwoo was greater than the number who died due to that environment.
That human had even defeated ‘Champion Equitar’, who had remained unchanged for several years.
Just then, a passing subordinate was carrying that very human.
“…Handle him with care. If anything happens to that one, it’s all our necks.”
As Kruger looked at Hyunwoo being carried out on a stretcher, his eyes filled with fear.
It wasn't just because their lives depended on the well-being of a human.
‘A monster…….’
To Kruger, who had watched his entire fight, Hyunwoo did not look like a weak human at all.
He just looked like something else wearing a human guise.
It seemed he wasn't the only one who thought so.
As Hyunwoo was carried out of the arena,
“……”
“……”
A moment of silence fell among the bustling Treatment Team.
Everyone's gaze turned to Hyunwoo.
Awe, admiration, fear.
Everyone’s complex gazes, mixed with various emotions, were similar.
A moment later, Kruger, who came to his senses first, scowled and yelled.
“Stop slacking and move, you bastards! You want to work until tomorrow!”
A being who captured the attention of all who watched the match, and naturally carved awe and fear into their hearts.
That Hyunwoo was currently.
‘…I feel like I’m going to die.’
He was enduring his groans against the immense pain.
There wasn't a single part of his body that didn't ache from the delayed side effects of the potions.
Beyond the feeling of being pricked all over, it felt as if thinly sliced blades were riding his blood vessels and gnawing at his entire body.
The pain was unbearable even with Pain Tolerance, and his eyes slowly closed.
“Hyunwoo—!”
After confirming it was Van calling him from a distance, Hyunwoo closed his eyes completely.
He would take care of the rest.
***
Hyunwoo slowly blinked his eyes open.
A familiar ceiling came into view.
It was his room.
As he tried to sit up, a faint groan escaped through his teeth.
“Keuu……”
“Are you alright?”
Van, sitting in a chair beside the bed, had a worried expression on his face.
The scene of himself lying in pain and Van showing a worried face next to him.
It felt like it had been a long time since he’d seen this setup, and a hollow laugh escaped him.
“You’re laughing right now! Just how many potions did you drink? The Treatment Team said it was a miracle your body didn't explode.”
“I survived, that’s what matters. Don't you know the famous saying, ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survives, but the one that is the most adaptable to change.’?”
Drinking several potions at once was certainly a dangerous act.
Of course, his body would not have exploded.
It was a potion concoction made by the developer; there was no way a problem would arise.
Besides, he also had the insurance of ‘Mana Circulation’.
It was an action he had taken after considering a double safety measure, but in Van's eyes, it just looked like a reckless act.
“…Seeing you talk nonsense, you must be fine.”
“What about Lucas?”
“That one is also lying in his room.”
“See. Lucas survived too. That’s proof that he’s strong.”
Van shook his head, let out a low sigh, and left the room.
After confirming he was gone, Hyunwoo let out the groan he had been holding back.
“Keueung……”
It hurts like hell, really.
He couldn't feel any energy in his body.
His throat was dry.
Hyunwoo weakly raised his arm and fumbled on top of the drawer next to his bed.
He managed to grasp the water cup Van had left, but.
Jaenggeurang―!
His trembling hand ended up dropping the glass to the floor.
‘Ha…….’
It reminded him of the past, his early days when he would faint after every match.
How long has it been since he was this exhausted…
It seemed it wasn't just because of the potion's aftereffects.
‘Is it because I used the final secret technique of the Crux Swordsmanship?’
The final secret technique of the Crux Swordsmanship.
Cross Barrage.
It was a skill he had acquired upon mastering the Crux Swordsmanship.
The problem was that using ‘Cross Barrage’ consumed an enormous amount of stamina and mana.
Thanks to that, there was no stamina or mana left in his body.
It felt like his body was completely empty.
‘Still, the result was good.’
He tried to get up a few times, then gave up.
He just didn't have the strength to get up.
Hyunwoo stopped trying to sit up and lay back down in a comfortable position.
He had mastered the Crux Swordsmanship.
And.
‘I survived.’
That was enough.
He lacked the will to overcome his heavy eyelids to think of anything more.
Hyunwoo stopped thinking and slowly closed his eyes.
He thought it wouldn't be so bad to just rest like this for a few days.
***
Three days passed.
Hyunwoo did not leave his bed during that time.
A leisure he hadn't felt in a very long time.
It was a time when he didn't have to fight the constant drowsiness that came with recovery.
If he had his way, he would have loved to stay one with the bed and laze around, but,
‘That’s over now too.’
He couldn't lie down forever. His body had recovered enough.
It was time to return to reality.
Hyunwoo sat up in bed and stretched.
“Keueung……”
He had moved for the first time in three days, but he felt nothing wrong with his body.
He swung his arms around while sitting.
They moved perfectly well.
‘It’s okay to be a little more sick…….’
Hyunwoo's legs, having left the bed, supported his body firmly.
It would have been nice if they were a little shaky.
With such a sturdy body, he couldn't even pretend to be sick.
Hyunwoo licked his lips and left the room.
In the living room, as always, the two idiots were amicably enjoying their teatime.
It was Lucas and Van.
The two were looking at each other's faces, having a friendly chat.
The first to speak was Van.
“You seem to have recovered quickly for someone of your station. It would have been better if you were bedridden for about a month… Tsk.”
“Do you think this body is the same as a weak-willed beast like you? You inferior creature.”
When Hyunwoo roughly interpreted their words, it meant something along the lines of, ‘Have you recovered well?’, ‘Yes. Thank you for your concern.’
They were still on good terms.
Hyunwoo approached them and opened his mouth.
“You two get along well.”
“Hyunwoo! Are you feeling better?”
“Who’s getting along with a beast like this?”
Van and Lucas greeted Hyunwoo in turn.
Their interest in Hyunwoo was brief.
The two continued their criticisms of each other, diligently sipping their tea as if not to be outdone.
Pfft―
A laugh escaped him at the sight.
Hyunwoo also naturally approached and took a seat on the sofa.
“By the way, why did you use magic at the end? I told you it would be dangerous.”
“Whether I use magic or not is my freedom.”
Hyunwoo chuckled.
He might grumble like that, but he must have thought a lot before using magic in that situation.
He was definitely a guy worth having as a comrade.
“So, what about the aftereffects?”
“There’s no such thing.”
He had collapsed while vomiting blood just a while ago, so there was no way that was true.
“I didn't hear you coming out of your room?”
“I was just catching up on my reading. It was getting boring. So I came out.”
“……?”
Were there books in Lucas's room?
His memory was hazy.
As Hyunwoo tilted his head, Van snorted and chimed in.
“Talking nonsense when you barely managed to crawl out of your room this morning.”
“……”
Seeing Lucas unable to offer any rebuttal, it seemed to be true.
Of course.
Under normal circumstances, Lucas would have been fine after drinking a cup of blood.
For it to take him three days to recover, he could guess how much he had suffered.
Lucas, who had pretended not to hear Hyunwoo, put down his tea and spoke again.
“So what are you going to do from now on.”
“My future plans?”
“With this match, Hyunwoo, you could become the Champion.”
“Champion… Nah, no way.”
It was true that Hyunwoo had killed the previous champion, ‘Equitar,’ but it wasn't a position given just for fighting in one Gold match.
The Champion of the arena wasn't just anyone who was the strongest.
It was a position where one had to continuously defeat challengers and prove their worth.
Of course, with a little more time, there was a possibility that Hyunwoo could become the Champion.
‘Now, most guys won't be a match for me.’
Hyunwoo checked his changed status window.
⌜Name: Kim Hyunwoo
Title: Super Rookie, Calamity Hunter
Skill: ■Crux (3-Star)―100%(M)(New!), ■Skirma Swordsmanship (2-Star)―100%(M), □
Unique Trait: Swordsmanship Synthesis, Master of Copy, Swordsmanship Genius, Pain Tolerance, Oxygen Tank, Mana Circulation
General Trait: PhysiqueⅠ, SwiftnessⅡ(New!), BalanceⅠ, ManaⅠ⌟
All the slots were completely filled.
‘I didn't expect to master the Crux Swordsmanship this time.’
Perhaps because the gap between himself and Equitar was larger than he thought, his swordsmanship proficiency rose quickly.
Thanks to that, he was able to master the Crux Swordsmanship.
Moreover, what he had gained this time wasn't just the mastery of the Crux Swordsmanship.
⌜Crux Swordsmanship (3-Star)―100%(M)
Trait: SwiftnessⅡ⌟
Through mastering the Crux Swordsmanship, he was able to obtain the trait SwiftnessⅡ.
⌜Trait: SwiftnessⅡ
Description: ‘The world will slow down.’
Reaction speed and movement exceed their limits. Performing consecutive movements becomes easier.⌟
‘To think I’d get SwiftnessⅡ first.’
‘Swiftness’ wasn't just a trait that allowed him to move quickly.
It was a trait that enhanced all abilities that made the body's reactions nimble, from sensitivity to notice external stimuli, to dynamic visual acuity, the ability to perceive targets with the eyes, and even the synapses through which information travels in the brain.
Therefore, it was a trait that could be very advantageously used for survival.
Hyunwoo had thought the first Tier 2 trait he would get would be PhysiqueⅡ.
‘Bation's Potion,’ which was revealed due to his injuries in this match.
It was the potion Jude had bought at the auction.
Since it was a potion bearing Bation's name, there was a high possibility that drinking it would grant him PhysiqueⅡ.
Once he achieved PhysiqueⅡ, the Champion position would be almost guaranteed.
However, it wasn't a position he particularly coveted.
No.
On the contrary, it was poison to him.
“The Champion position is a shackle. You become something like a mascot for the Bellatus Arena.”
“Hmm… is that so.”
“It is. If you think about the future……”
Tiring―!
A system notification sound that rang out of nowhere interrupted Hyunwoo's words.
“Huh?”
A window popped up in front of Hyunwoo, who tilted his head.
⌜You have acquired a title.⌟
“……?”
At the notification that he had obtained a ‘title’ without any warning, only a question mark floated above Hyunwoo's head.
Suddenly?
⌜Title changed. Super Rookie —> Champion of the Bellatus Arena.
Effect: Skill proficiency gain increased by 200% within the Arena.⌟
“…Huh?”
Seeing Hyunwoo staring blankly into the air, Van showed his concern.
“You don't seem to be well yet. Go back inside and rest some more.”
Hyunwoo didn't hear Van's words.
This event was that far outside of his expectations.
He was planning to leave the arena soon… what’s this about suddenly being a Champion?
An unintended variable.
What in the world was happening in a place he knew nothing about…
He couldn't even begin to guess.