I Became a Disaster-Class Newbie by Stealing Abilities - Chapter 32
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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 32. The Celebration Feast (5)
Ding!
[You have stolen the unique ability ‘Guillotine Match’!]
[Guillotine Match]
[Acquisition Difficulty: AAA]
[Description: For 5 minutes, reduce your own physical and magical resistance by 50%, while reducing the target’s physical and magical resistance by 75%. Critical hit probability and stun success rate both increase by a factor of two.]
Incredible!
They said I’d achieved a hidden condition, and what came out far exceeded my expectations.
‘Guillotine Match….’
One of the most highly regarded abilities among the skills possessed by the Berserker class.
And it was the unique ability version, no less—not just a skill.
This meant not only shaving away resistance, but also adding critical hit probability and stun options to boot.
‘I could create an enormous variable in a one-on-one against a strong opponent.’
There couldn’t be a better saying than “give flesh to take bone.”
This was the moment when all the hardship of playing the villain felt worthwhile.
But right then.
Tap.
A sharp sensation brushed against the nape of my neck.
“First, I’m grateful that you saved us all. But you need to explain how you’re able to use that swordwork.”
The perfect distance of a knight.
The hand gripping the spear was trained directly at the lord’s heart.
“How dare you—”
Baek Seol-gi reacted immediately.
Right after capturing Cheon Su-ho and rescuing Python, she had come expecting praise.
Instead, she found the lord being threatened.
It would be a lie to say her anger didn’t surge.
Yes, I understood that feeling.
Please, just calm down.
If she cut down the knight here, all the effort we’d made so far would go up in smoke.
…….
At that desperate gesture, Baek Seol-gi reluctantly sheathed the sword she’d half-drawn.
But the chilling murderous intent still radiated from her entire body.
If she inflicted even the smallest wound, what Guul had done would look like child’s play.
“Lord Raymond said I had talent and taught me.”
The lord delivered an answer he’d already prepared in his mind.
“That can’t be right. Lord Raymond would never have broken the Order’s taboo.”
“I too expressed hesitation on that point, but he insisted that one who could draw the Twilight Slash on the first attempt must be taught, even if it meant creating credentials that didn’t exist.”
“What?”
Python inhaled sharply.
The statement was so shocking that he nearly bit his own tongue.
The apprentice knights watching were equally astonished.
“Impossible. You’re saying he copied it after seeing it just once?”
“I heard that even those with talent need half a year of training just to manifest the shadow of moonlight.”
“The world’s wider than I thought. All the geniuses I’ve seen so far look like common folk now.”
It was a story that defied common sense.
Yet what had just been displayed were truly the Twilight Slash and the Lightning.
And that wasn’t all.
He had used not one but two techniques simultaneously—feats that would have been overwhelming for a master swordsman to perform alone.
A talent like that of a demon.
Python closed his mouth firmly.
‘So Lord Raymond judged that this couldn’t be missed.’
He understood that sentiment to some degree.
For he was witnessing with his own eyes a gem that shone brighter than any raw talent he’d ever seen.
“Would it be alright if I examined your mana circuits?”
“Of course.”
The lord granted permission readily.
Python examined the lord’s body carefully.
The method of inspecting mana circuits couldn’t confirm details down to the day, but….
He could determine approximately when the Starfall Technique had been mastered.
……!?
It’s true.
Recently, traces of a circuit unique to the Starfall Technique being activated.
No more than ten days, even stretching it.
“Does this satisfy you?”
“…Yes. No doubt about it. I’ll formally apologize for the misunderstanding. I’ll see you’re properly compensated for this later.”
Python gave a slight bow.
The moment the Swordmaster acknowledged it, the scouts’ eyes gleamed with avarice.
Well, it couldn’t be otherwise.
A genius who mastered the Starfall Technique in a single day.
And this monster was carrying along someone who’d taken down a Guul executive as a companion.
Just being on speaking terms with Python was more than enough to make them recruitment gold.
But now the stakes had shifted entirely.
“I’m Lee Dong-su, a scout with the Jusin Guild. Our owner is the Teheran-ro Landmark Building, and we have a nine-star archer named Hae Mo-su as our Master.”
“Ha. With Saulabi, I trust you understand such explanations are hardly necessary.”
“Hold on! Didn’t you people already recruit two of them at the last banquet? Let us have this one.”
“What are you saying? I’ll hand over both of those entirely. In fact, I’ll throw in the contacts we signed before that too—just don’t take this one.”
The reaction was explosive.
Scouts from the major guilds immediately rushed toward Ju-sang like madmen.
* * *
Jusin. Saulabi. Taesan Group. Arahan. Jeoksong.
The sole concern of Korea’s five greatest guilds was singular.
To become the kind of guild that receives direct imperial patronage.
‘Once you secure that status, the Master of each guild receives a Nobility Title.’
In a world where even the wealthiest could lose their heads at a nobleman’s word, titles meant power that transcended money and force alike.
And there was a path to that sweet pinnacle?
They couldn’t resist.
Even if it was only a baron’s title—the lowest rank—they could seize power that lay beyond mere wealth and strength.
But among the tens of thousands of guilds scattered across the world, only a handful could claim this glory.
That’s why they had to actively participate in all the dangerous missions the imperial court assigned.
“If you sign with us, we can immediately provide you with residential rights in Gangnam.”
“A three-room officetel near Gangnam Station runs two billion for deposit and five million monthly. That’s just standard with us.”
“If you’re interested in raising your Star Rank, come with us—we hold conquest rights to fifty Dungeons and Labyrinths. We can put you in the vanguard.”
No matter how many promising talents and skilled players you have, there’s never enough.
That was precisely why the scouts were so desperate.
“I appreciate the offers, but I have no intention of joining any organization right now.”
Ju-sang politely declined.
The five great guilds could certainly offer support on a different scale….
But compared to growing alone, the merit was marginal.
In a position where you need to monopolize all opportunities, they’d only be dead weight.
“I…I see.”
“Hmm….”
The scouts from the five great guilds couldn’t hide their bewilderment.
This was the first time in their lives they’d been turned down.
-He doesn’t want to be the dragon’s tail?
-Then he’s aiming to be the serpent’s head?
Once Ju-sang had dismissed all the five great guilds’ offers, the mid-tier scouts who’d been watching for their moment stepped forward.
“Would you perhaps be interested in a spot on our main assault team?”
“I can personally guarantee we’ll make three percent of guild shares happen.”
The one with rice cakes to give doesn’t even think about it, yet the greedy ones thrash around.
Though that performance he’d just shown was certainly dazzling enough.
But then.
Tap.
Ju-sang’s footsteps stopped in one spot.
He’d spotted a familiar guild insignia.
“Blue Blood…?”
“Oh. You know about us? What an honor.”
At Ju-sang’s murmur, the Blue Blood scout’s expression brightened noticeably.
“Ah.”
“Damn it. He has connections with them?”
The other mid-tier guilds sent envious looks his way.
“I’m Cha Seong-ho, main scout for Blue Blood Guild. Did we perhaps have some connection with you?”
“Lee Seong-hyeon. I met one of your guild members on a train.”
“Ah, so you’ve seen Seong-hyeon. Ha. He hasn’t been with us long, but the kid’s got real talent.”
“I wouldn’t know about talent, but he sure had a way with words. What did he call my people again? Incompetent fools and greenhorns, wasn’t it?”
“I… beg your pardon?”
The scout’s face went white as a sheet.
“His language was so harsh I got curious about just how impressive the Blue Blood Guild really is. Now I finally have the chance to ask a representative directly. If a member who just joined speaks like that, your guild must be at least Star Rank 8 or higher, with the Starfall Technique something you practice before breakfast, yes?”
“That’s… that can’t be right. There’s been some misunderstanding.”
To call rising talents recognized by knights—and their comrades—incompetent fools and greenhorns.
Even the guild’s elite rankers wouldn’t dare speak that way.
“If you don’t believe me, ask him yourself.”
“Please, just wait a moment?”
Cha Seong-ho hurriedly pulled out a Communication Mana Stone.
A brief silence passed.
Beep!
The other party accepted the call.
-Hey, where are you right now!
-Ah, Seong-ho. The thing is… something’s come up… anyway. We need a bounty issued immediately. Some incompetent thugs disrespected our guild and started trouble. White-haired greenhorns, but if you give me the go-ahead, I’ll drag them in half-dead.
Lee Seong-hyeon’s blunt words came through the Communication Mana Stone without filter.
-Effective immediately, stay out of sight. Gyeonggi Province. Actually, just cross over the wall.
-What? Brother, what are you saying?
-I don’t have a brother like you. Stop calling me that and get out of here! Before I issue a bounty on you instead!
-Wait, just a second—!
Click.
The light from the Communication Mana Stone vanished at the same moment.
Lee Seong-hyeon’s urgent voice disappeared with it.
“I sincerely apologize. We’ve immediately expelled him from the guild, and I earnestly hope you won’t judge all of Blue Blood by the actions of that reckless fool.”
“Given your attitude, I’ll let it end here.”
By now, Blue Blood had done everything they could.
Lee Seong-hyeon, for his part, was about to experience hell.
And so the incident came to a close.
The delayed distribution of rewards resumed.
Naturally, the prevention of Guul’s terror was factored in.
[Jung Ju-sang and Baek Seol-gi have each been awarded 10,000 Merit Points.]
[One billion won in cash has been distributed.]
[You have been granted the right to choose one item (Grade A or lower) from the Empire’s inventory.]
“They’re giving us all this?”
“10,000 points at once. Unbelievable.”
“And that’s each, for both of them. Has there ever been a case like this?”
Those watching erupted in shocked exclamations.
The money and items were tremendous, certainly, but they paled beside the Merit Points.
10,000 points was enough to relocate from the front-line Hanam to the relatively safer Gangdong.
Considering that hunters living in Hanam often couldn’t accumulate 10,000 points even after three years of constant raiding….
It was genuinely extraordinary compensation.
“Still, they deserve every bit of it.”
“Of course. Without those two, we’d all be buried here.”
“Whichever guild gets them will completely shatter the existing balance.”
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Thunderous applause and cheers erupted.
* * *
A force that existed to guard the God of Light and uphold his word and law.
The Vatican had been granted special status by the Empire, allowing it to possess considerable territory in Eastern Europe.
In the center of a garden where grand fountains and flower beds spread wide.
“Amy!”
“There you are!”
Young priestesses came scurrying over.
Standing there was a blonde Holy Knight engaged in Holy Power training.
“Hah, hah. What brings you all here?”
Amy set down her heavy shield and war hammer.
She wiped her brow with a handkerchief, catching the sweat that streamed down her forehead.
The priestesses unfolded a newspaper.
“Is this the person we’re thinking of?”
“The one Amy sings about every single day!”
Inside was news from Korea.
A story about a hero who had saved people from a group called Guul.
“Thank you so much. You went out of your way to find this for me.”
“Oh, don’t mention it!”
“But really—who is this person? A relative? Someone you know? Or… a lover?”
“Eeeek!”
The priestesses clung to each other and bounced in place.
They looked like teenage girls talking about their first crush.
In Vatican, romance was strictly forbidden, so naturally their excitement was all the more intense.
Then.
“A benefactor… someone truly precious to me.”
Amy reached out and gently touched the photograph in the newspaper.
“Oh, but why is that woman’s part all crumpled up?”
“What? Oh! That was… just an accident.”
The section with Baek Seol-gi’s face was badly creased, though it truly had been unintentional.
“So that’s why you train so hard every day—for this person?”
“Yes. If I want to live up to their expectations, I can’t waste a single day.”
Amy clenched her fists tight.
Like a vow to herself.
“I need to attend the afternoon service, so I’ll take my leave. Have a wonderful day, everyone.”
Moments later, Amy departed.
“My, how does someone shine so brightly like morning sunlight?”
“I know. She’s been even more radiant since returning from Korea.”
“I wish I could go outside just once…”
The priestesses’ eyes grew distant and hazy.
In their hearts, longing for Amy and the world beyond bloomed like spring flowers.
* * *
Footstep…
Amy, heading toward the chapel, soon changed direction.
Footstep.
She turned toward the basement.
Down an endless flight of stairs, descending into the depths below.
At the very bottom, there was nothing.
Yet Amy, as if familiar with the way, placed her hand against a section of the wall.
Click.
A hidden door swung open, and from within came a reek so vile it made the air itself foul.
It was the stench of death and despair.
“Aaahhh! That m-mad holy knight is back again!”
“P-please, save me! No wait—just kill me. I can’t go on like this!”
“I repent of all the sins I have committed. Please, I beg you!”
Prisoners locked in this underground catacomb, all of them guilty of heinous crimes.
“For the sake of becoming a proper Necromancer of House Bastion, I ask for your cooperation once more today.”
Amy smiled with the warmth of morning sunlight.
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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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