I Became a Disaster-Class Newbie by Stealing Abilities - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 27. Invader
Thud!
Huk-am Dae-ju’s head fell to the ground.
The fight was over.
[Trait 666’s duration has ended!]
Right on cue, Pennywise’s power faded as well.
‘More impressive than I expected.’
A full thirteen-star caliber warrior.
They say he’d once crossed blades with the deputy commander of the 2nd Knight Order himself—and that claim proved to be no exaggeration whatsoever.
A mere taste of combat revealed the full depth of his power.
‘The only pity is that resurrection probability sits at just 6.66%….’
Far too low a chance to rely on in actual combat.
Solving this would require something quite extraordinary.
But that’s something I’ve already given thought to—I can work through it later.
Footstep.
Ju-sang moved forward.
Before him, the Hundred Ghosts—now freed from the Nightmare—huddled together, trembling uncontrollably.
“P-please spare us.”
“Aaah! We’re sorry!”
Having finally encountered a master of Cheon-oe-cheon, they understood what terror truly meant.
That alone had been sufficient correction.
As if to prove the point.
Ding!
A golden status window flickered.
[You have plundered the skill Ice-Fire Boundless Sword!]
[Acquisition Difficulty: SS]
[Description: An advanced sword method of the Ice-Fire Divine Sword that allows you to erase the sword path itself and unfold the realm of the Boundless. Additionally, upon mastering this technique, you gain access to the foundational forms of the Ice-Fire Divine Sword.]
A top-tier sword method with excellent synergy alongside Sword Spirit Unity and Annihilation Star Style alike.
Most importantly.
‘Being able to use the foundational forms of the Ice-Fire Divine Sword is what I like most.’
With this single skill, I’d essentially acquired two sword methods at once.
The expected value of spending Trait 666 was more than sufficiently repaid.
“You all stay here for now.”
After laying down the law one more time, Ju-sang approached Baek Seol-gi.
“You’re unharmed…? For a moment there, I truly thought you might not return.”
Baek Seol-gi greeted him with a faint smile.
“Drawing on my full power after so long left me no choice but to enter a comatose state.”
“Still, thank you. That dreadful manager made things so difficult…”
Of course he had.
Huk-am Dae-ju would stop at nothing to achieve his ends.
That Baek Seol-gi had endured a hellish existence was obvious without asking.
“Your body—is it alright?”
“Yes. I can shake this off quickly enough.”
Baek Seol-gi slowly rose from her seat.
For how casually she spoke, her condition looked far from well.
The Curse of Black Ice Stone was proving far more severe than anticipated.
Black vein-like threads around her neck were gradually thickening.
‘If I leave it like this, she could die.’
Proper absorption would bring tremendous realm advancement, but that was nearly impossible.
The materials required to aid in absorption were simply too difficult to obtain.
Damn.
What was the right course of action?
Time was slipping away, but no clear answer came to mind.
It was as Ju-sang wrestled with this dilemma.
Two figures emerged from the ruins of the Western Watchtower.
“Wow. What’s all this? I heard Huk-am Dae-ju took direct action, but the result turned out like this?”
A beautiful woman with long, flowing red hair and
“Huff, huff. Lady Hong, I’m a technician type, not a racer! How can you run that fast and expect me to keep up?!”
A muscular man catching his breath.
An ominous presence hung in the air.
Six-star? Seven-star?
No. Higher than that.
Especially the woman — she radiated such formidable power that it felt downright dangerous.
Jeong Ju-sang’s eyes narrowed.
‘They’re not from The Emperor.’
There was no way he wouldn’t recognize individuals with such high cultivation ranks.
He’d already committed every notable figure to memory — except for those veiled knight order members, of course.
Which meant…
they were Heroes.
From the same Earth.
“Who are you two?”
Ju-sang asked, wariness etched across his face.
“Whoa, whoa, relax. We’re not here to pick a fight.”
The muscular man struck a pose that seemed absurdly fearful for his build.
The red-haired woman, by contrast, was remarkably direct.
“We’ve been searching for someone who stood out in the 33rd Hero Selection Tournament. But we’ve struck out nine times already and we’re getting worn down. So I’m really hoping this one pays off, yeah?”
Someone who distinguished themselves in the 33rd…
‘That would be me.’
Information about that place had leaked somehow.
Did someone with the ability to receive revelations exist?
Or had one of his batch-mates from the 33rd tournament opened their mouth?
His mind churned with possibilities, but he let none of it show on his face.
He maintained his poker face and waited for them to reveal more.
“Hard to read. Can’t tell if that’s good or bad.”
The red-haired woman smiled with a hint of seduction.
“I don’t talk to people who won’t introduce themselves. That’s a principle of mine.”
“Oh, come on. Why didn’t you just say so? I’m Hong Su-a. This charming specimen here is Bang Dong-hyuk.”
“Lady Hong! For you to call me ‘charming’ when I’m pure muscle through and through — I demand a correction!”
Bang Dong-hyuk flexed his muscles for emphasis, but well.
By any reasonable measure, Hong Su-a seemed right.
“I’m Jeong Ju-sang. And yes, I am a Hero. Let’s leave it at that for now.”
“So which batch you’re from is off-limits?”
“Figure it out yourself from here.”
Ju-sang drew a firm line.
Hong Su-a promptly changed targets.
“Anyway, this girl’s been hit hard by the Curse of Black Ice Stone. Tsk. That Huk-am Dae-ju really used something vicious. Without proper treatment, she won’t last a week.”
“If you know time is running out, I’d appreciate it if you’d show me the way quickly. I need to source materials right now.”
“My, my, don’t be so cold about it. What if I told you — maybe I can solve that problem for you?”
“You, surely not…? You have the materials to cure her?”
“That’s right. I do. The Ten-Thousand Year Cold Ice Flower and an Elixir. Both.”
Hong Su-a drew a pristine white flower and a flask filled with violet-tinted liquid from her pocket dimension.
A premium Ten-Thousand Year Cold Ice Flower and what appeared to be at least mid-grade Elixir.
Even by conservative estimates, each was worth over ten billion — ultra-rare items.
“If I tell you I’m the person you’re looking for, you’ll give me these?”
“No. That alone wouldn’t be enough. I have no way of knowing if you’re lying. In that sense, I’d rather you prove your worth through strength than through words.”
Hong Su-a shrugged as she answered.
“Ju-sang. I’m… I’m fine. Don’t get pulled into this for my sake.”
Baek Seol-gi clutched at Ju-sang’s sleeve, her breathing labored.
Her grip was far weaker than usual.
‘Proof of capability…’
Normally he wouldn’t have entertained such juvenile games.
But with Baek Seol-gi’s life hanging in the balance, everything changed.
“How many seconds do you need to settle this?”
“What? Ha-ha-ha! This is great. I don’t even remember the last time I heard something like that.”
“Take it as my acceptance.”
With those words.
Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack!
Ju-sang released his power.
[The Ice-Fire Boundless Sword activates!]
[Through Sword Spirit Unity, all sword-related stat increases to maximum!]
Following Caballado’s Short Sword, a blade light so keen it made the eyes burn burst forth.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
Killing intent spread outward in all directions like spines.
But only for a moment.
Cut.
Thousands of sword paths and killing intent vanished all at once.
As if everything had been swallowed into the void itself.
“Your, Your Majesty?”
Baek Seol-gi’s pupils trembled.
The Ice-Fire Boundless Sword—a martial art so difficult that even three Hundred Ghosts working together could scarcely manifest its fragments.
And yet, he was wielding it alone, with ease.
Strangely, while the blade’s raw power fell far short of what the Hundred Ghosts could achieve…
That peculiar sensation of erasing sword paths felt far more refined than theirs.
‘Why would he choose such an inefficient method?’
If he unleashed the power he’d shown when dealing with Huk-am Dae-ju, there would be no need to do anything like this.
Unless…
‘Is he showing me?’
Ah. So that was it.
He must have found her struggles against those three Hundred Ghosts pathetic.
So he was offering instruction directly.
To let her taste firsthand the essence of what the Ice-Fire Boundless Sword and the Ice-Fire Divine Sword truly were.
Everything fell into place if she reasoned it that way.
Baek Seol-gi swallowed hard.
Her eyes darted to capture every minute motion he made.
* * *
“L-Lady Hong!”
“I see it. I’ve got eyes too.”
Hong Su-a ran her tongue across her lips.
This aura.
This sensation.
On an entirely different level from all the small fry she’d faced until now.
This was unquestionably the person they’d been searching for.
If she simply handed over the item and made a recruitment offer, everything would wrap up peacefully.
But.
It ignites within her.
Over two and a half years, treading the line between life and death countless times, her body had come to crave combat itself.
Above all else, she hungered for a clash with a true strong one.
“I need a taste.”
Somewhere along the way, the Red Whip materialized in Hong Su-a’s grip.
Crack!
The whip split the air.
But the moment its tip approached him,
Crash!
An invisible blade cut its trajectory askew.
The whip instead tore only harmlessly at the ground.
“What—what is this?”
Anyone meeting such a thing for the first time would be left bewildered.
The subtlety of the Ice-Fire Boundless Sword’s techniques was something even those hailed as geniuses found impossible to match.
His eyes had turned white.
She could feel the intent to end it in one blow.
“Lady Hong!”
Bang Dong-hyuk rushed in, both hands fitted with Gauntlets.
Boom-crash!
With a tremendous impact, his massive frame was driven back several meters.
“Ugh, quite the weight. Feels like taking a shot from a male ogre.”
It had been too close.
Had Bang Dong-hyuk been even a moment slower, that strike would have found Hong Su-a.
But as Bang Dong-hyuk’s gaze snapped forward to track his opponent’s next move,
“……!?”
Ju-sang had already vanished from view.
“Should I do more?”
The voice came from directly behind him.
Ju-sang, gripping the short sword in reverse, had taken position at Bang Dong-hyuk’s rear.
“No. That’ll do.”
Hong Su-a nodded in agreement and stowed the whip away again.
With that, she tossed over the Ten-Thousand Year Cold Ice Flower and an intermediate-grade Elixir.
“Use these well.”
“If you’re grateful, why not join us? We’ve got an organization called Invader—stagnant waters only, people of real skill gathered together. You won’t lose anything by it.”
“I don’t know. Belonging to any group doesn’t suit my temperament.”
Ju-sang refused without hesitation.
If a third party had been present, they probably would’ve said he’d gone mad on the spot.
No one in the Republic of Korea was ignorant of just how formidable the organization called Invader truly was.
“Krahaha! Lady Hong, you just got shut down in spectacular fashion. Tonight I’ll have to grab a shot of soju with the leader, won’t I?”
“Shut your mouth! This is only the first proposal!”
Hong Su-a ruffled her hair in exasperation, then handed over a sheet of paper.
It bore the address of a specific website.
“Locals can’t access it. Only those who’ve chosen the Door of the Hero or the Door of Possession can enter. If you change your mind later, get in touch through there.”
Had she created some kind of community site?
I couldn’t be certain without checking, but it seemed like it would be quite useful.
I was already familiar with the idea of a space where you could converse behind the mask of anonymity.
Ju-sang carefully slipped the paper into his pocket.
“Oh, wait. Let me ask one thing too. Who exactly is this leader of yours?”
“That’s something I can’t just blab about unless you join us.”
“Don’t be so cold just because I struck out, Lady Hong. Your leader operating under the nickname ‘Full-time Rice Eater’ isn’t exactly a huge secret, is it?”
Wait.
‘Full-time Rice Eater…?’
A face immediately came to mind.
One of the community members.
I remembered the comment asking if I’d really abandon a hundred billion won.
That’s right.
So that bastard had been running that organization all along.
I’d given tips to that runty kid back in the distant past, and that connection had led us to operate in the same community for over eight years.
“How nice.”
“Huh? What’s nice?”
“Nothing. Just thinking out loud.”
It felt good to hear the name of an old friend for once.
If the opportunity arose, I thought I should visit those guys’ headquarters someday.
* * *
A moment later.
The two of them, having parted ways with Ju-sang, descended the mountainside toward the foot of Namhansan-seong.
“Lady Hong, I’ll grant that the guy’s something special, but didn’t we just get fleeced? Giving up items like that?”
“Sigh. You really don’t understand anything.”
Hong Su-a exhaled deeply.
That oblivious oaf was easy to be around precisely because of that.
Simple, single-track thinking was all he needed.
But Hong Su-a had seen clearly.
The fractures that had opened in empty space, and the something unknowable visible through the gaps.
“He wasn’t even using 10% of his power.”
If she’d changed her answer and refused to give the items….
If she’d provoked him further or attempted any clumsy tricks….
‘It would’ve been dangerous.’
They would’ve had to fight for their lives.
“I should’ve at least asked what his old nickname was.”
The Left-Handed Spoon Murderer—the one the leader was desperately seeking.
That filth was almost certainly among the over ten thousand who’d participated in the first Hero Selection Tournament.
And just like the nickname suggested, he’d definitely been using only his left hand….
But why?
The weight of regret settled over her—wishing she’d asked him that one crucial question.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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