Year 5, The True Beginning (4)

The first god to recover from the shock and terror of “I won’t tell you!” was Ludicer. She asked, her tone genuinely serious.

“That can’t be… a joke?”

“It’s true… But other gods, please go now. I need to talk with Ludicer. It’s about powers, so I’d appreciate it if you yield.”

Mors and Genesis, still unsteady, protested fiercely, but Sophia ushered them off and vanished.

It had been ages since I’d had a private meeting with Ludicer.

After the five goddesses disappeared, I spoke.

“We have a conversation we absolutely must have, right?”

“…You mean ‘Dive’ and ‘Assimilation.’”

Ludicer hesitated, as if sorting her thoughts or weighed down by some other worry.

Then, as if deciding, she waved her hand a few times and snapped her fingers. A hologram appeared, displaying the list of powers I had seen at the initial contract—only the required points were absent.

“This is the list of powers from the time of the contract that Kim Han is also well aware of. To be honest, I did not expect Kim Han to choose Dive and Assimilation. And I truly did not know those two powers would strengthen a representative like Kim Han in this way.”

“Well… I didn’t know either.”

It was true; even I hadn’t known that a game-like element could grant such potential from the start.

“These are the powers generally known—the ones other gods usually grant when they contract with a representative.”

―Power of Lightning

―Power of Flame

―Way of the Sword (劍道)

…

…

On a whim, I clicked one of the powers in the air.

“This…”

It’s more potent than I thought.

Depending on how one lives and how much effort they put in within the Battlefield of the Gods, results will vary, but with these powers and ordinary effort one could certainly be called strong.

“Yes. It’s powerful. Most other gods’ Origin powers are like that. Of course, among my powers there are ones suitable for combat, similar in degree. These are exactly the skill categories that include powers Kim Han also possesses.”

“I expected Kim Han to choose Skills and the two powers below. At the time Kim Han seemed so skilled and experienced. But Kim Han chose Dive. I can understand Assimilation—it’s related to replication. But Dive is a kind of test power to check errors within my domain. I didn’t know that power would do something this enormous.”

I said nothing and listened as Ludicer continued calmly.

“But it’s already happened, and there’s a reason Dive was set to low value. Kim Han’s dimension is unusual. If it had been a different dimension—say, one without a ‘game that a certain number of humans log into and enjoy’—you couldn’t have used Dive.”

“…Why?”

“Dive is a kind of descent of a god, or like spirit possession. The difference in rank must be enormous. You already attempted Dive on Arun, didn’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you understand why Arun reacted like that?”

“…No.”

Midway through the first year in the Battlefield of the Gods, I had attempted Dive on Arun.

I checked the skill description, placed my hand on Arun’s head, and attempted Dive.

If previous Dives felt like sinking underwater with a muffled sensation, that Dive felt like entering water but as if someone forcibly shoved my head under.

It was uncomfortable, awkward, and suffocating.

And then,

A Dive that should have lasted over 206 hours had been reduced to a mere thirty seconds. I didn’t think I could even endure those thirty seconds.

When I hastily released the Dive, Arun’s expression is something I will never forget.

Arun’s face went as white as paper, eyes wide with terror; sweat soaked his clothes, and he looked like he might crack.

A little later, when I visited the Garden of Gods in the second year and asked Ludicer about Dive and Assimilation, she told me to wait until the fifth year. She said it with a resolute face I hadn’t seen in a long time.

It wasn’t just because of the timing. I also trusted she wouldn’t do anything to harm me.

“It’s because of a self-defense mechanism engraved in the soul. Dive wasn’t originally made to be that finely tuned. Of course, it’s my Origin power that I had even before it was adapted for the Battlefield of the Gods.”

“Self-defense?”

“Yes. A descent of a god means forcing a soul out of a body and occupying it. No soul would welcome that.”

“So… I can’t use Dive?”

“For now, yes. Above all, it’s dangerous for Kim Han. Forcibly descending into a body whose soul has a strong personality—like a representative—would keep wounding Kim Han’s soul.”

“Then… do I have to put the power on hold?”

“Strictly speaking, yes, but it’s not that there’s no method at all. Here is the current information on Kim Han’s Assimilation.”

“Based on this, you could touch a lifeform and assimilate it at 10% efficiency. Until now it was a training period to protect representatives, but that’s over. Any representative, or even a transcendent, is possible. There are just some restriction conditions not explicitly recorded in the description, like with skill book creation. I’ll display them now.”

“Ugh… Given my current physical stats, that’s inefficient, isn’t it?”

Three times a day. Only three times—and only ten percent.

And it reflects the contacted target’s current physical condition. So if you try to assimilate a prime beast that’s been beaten to near-death or exhausted, the effect will be minimal.

“Still, investing 20 seconds—at most one to two minutes a day—to raise physical stats even a little would be an enormous gain.”

That’s true. But someone who used to take the easy route wouldn’t readily accept such inconvenient, inefficient conditions.

I’m still within the range of ordinary people. The reason I don’t shout and rampage like before is probably because I’ve reached a higher level.

I haven’t just trained my muscles—I’ve gained strength accompanied by mental enlightenment.

“That’s all…?”

Contrary to my expectation of an immediate answer, Ludicer bit her lip and hesitated.

Is it some extremely difficult and dangerous method? Seeing Ludicer hesitate so long put me on edge.

“There is… a method.”

I didn’t reply. I only nodded, anxiety doubling as I clenched my fists and stared at Ludicer’s lips.

Ludicer furrowed her pale brow, bit her lip, and almost spat the words out.

“…Love.”

“…What?”

The tension snapped; an involuntary hoarse sound escaped my throat.

What kind of line is that, like from a shonen manga—what love are you talking about? Out of the blue!

Maybe she felt my sullen stare.

“Not that kind of love!”

“Then what kind of love?”

What kind of love is that, and what kind is not that? I wanted to ask, but I held back. For some reason Ludicer seemed very displeased.

“I mean the ‘love’ of intimacy.”

“Ah…! Oh?”

Now that she said it, I realized I had never asked before. Ludicer always bristled at Hazel’s name.

Why is only Hazel’s intimacy labeled as ‘love,’ while Lee Hyo-ju, Mae Young-ryeong, and Naruan are labeled as ‘Trust’?“

“Intimacy ‘love’?”

“…Yes.”

“Wasn’t that an error or something?”

“No.”

Ludicer answered firmly, though she looked like someone forced to say something she didn’t want to.

“It’s a prerequisite that a target with intimacy of ‘Trust’ or higher genuinely loves Kim Han. Additionally, Kim Han must genuinely love the other person—that’s a kind of hidden piece. At minimum, Kim Han’s sincere recognition and acceptance of the other is the minimum condition for intimacy ‘love’ to appear.”

The decisive difference between Lee Hyo-ju, Naruan, Mae Young-ryeong—the three—and Hazel.

Lee Hyo-ju, who, due to betrayals in a past life and long painful love, finds it hard to open her heart.

Mae Young-ryeong, whose every action feels strange since the Melun incident.

And Naruan, well… a bit because of that appearance, she’s kind of like that.

“What do you mean by love?”

“I mean… that… with the person you love, that… at night, that……”

Ludicer’s face turned scarlet as if on fire; uncharacteristically, she stammered.

“What god would hesitate about that. Sex? Bed? Thrusting?”

“How…”

I almost imagined steam rising from Ludicer’s head. I wanted to tease her more, but worried I’d be the first to watch a god die of embarrassment, so I changed the subject.

“So what am I supposed to do then?”

“If you Dive then, it will be the ideal Dive—no resistance from the soul. Moreover, the other person will feel a sense of unity with Kim Han, strengthening the emotional bond. Still, the maximum Dive time won’t exceed five minutes.”

“But you can only do the body stat assimilation once.”

“That’s right. Why do you ask?”

“Ludicer, are you trying to make me the king of a harem kingdom?”

“…!!”