I Became an Almighty All-Master with EX-Rank Spirits - Chapter 29
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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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Chapter 29
Episode 29
Jin Arin, the youngest daughter of Ain Group, swallowed hard as she gazed up at the villa.
It was just one of countless ordinary villas scattered throughout Seoul, yet it housed someone who could make even her tense with anticipation.
A major player she absolutely had to bring to her side.
But tension was all she felt.
Anxiety? Zero.
Of course there wasn’t.
‘My preparation is flawless.’
She had spent the past few days thoroughly researching her target.
Where they lived, what they wanted—she knew every detail.
She’d even prepared the perfect gift.
Besides, she wasn’t asking for much from them in the first place.
For now, all she needed was to establish a connection.
She knew better than anyone that rushing things from the start would be a mistake.
Yes, she had mapped out the entire plan in her head.
All she had to do was follow the steps in order, as always.
“Oh, an Elixir again? Are we having an Elixir party today? Thank you so much.”
“……Ah, not at all!”
It went wrong from the start.
Since they’d been using fire-related Skills, she’d prepared an Elixir accordingly.
A perfect gift for a first meeting!
She’d assumed that since they’d only recently Awakened, they wouldn’t have even seen an Elixir before!
‘How is this possible?! How do they already have a complete Flower of Fire?’
Her mind reeled.
It was an A+-ranked Elixir, no less.
Rumor had it that even among successful Awakeners and wealthy magnates, it was nearly impossible to obtain.
What shocked her even more was their attitude toward it.
They’d casually tossed it into their inventory as if it were nothing.
This confirmed everything.
They were an even greater monster than she’d imagined.
“I just moved in, so I don’t have much to offer. Would water be all right?”
“Oh, yes, of course! I’m not picky at all! Even toilet water is fine!”
“Toilet water? That’s a bit much.”
“Ah! No, I didn’t mean—that’s not what I—. Ha! I’m sorry. Just regular water, please.”
…….
I felt awkward having brought it up.
Was this really Jin Arin?
She was completely different from the Jin Arin featured in various media outlets.
She seemed unusually nervous.
Fire said she was harmless enough, so there shouldn’t be much danger.
If anything went wrong, I had Spirit Jump and the protection of the earth spirit.
And I had Fire, the most reliable presence of all.
“What brings you from the Awakeners Association Headquarters?”
“Ahem, I’ll get straight to the point. Are you aware of the Awakener who’s recently been setting new records at the Trial Tower?”
“Of course. That’s me.”
“That…… wait, what? You admit it just like that?”
I shrugged.
“You already knew coming here. I’ve made enough noise going through Gates. It’d be stranger if you didn’t know.”
“True, but I didn’t expect you to admit it so readily.”
“No need to complicate things. So what does the Association want?”
Her surprise was brief.
In an instant, she composed herself and her eyes took on the sharp gleam that had appeared in various media features.
“Nothing. I came to see you today simply to pay my respects and confirm your identity in person. But since you’ve already confirmed it…”
So in other words, she didn’t want to overstep?
She was approaching slowly to avoid putting pressure on me.
I’d been slightly on guard since the famous Jin Arin had come to visit in person.
‘I really am a big fish in this pond.’
My worry had been for nothing.
“Thank you so much for acknowledging who I am.”
“It’s nothing special, really.”
“Right. Well. That’s quite impressive. The entire world in chaos, and yet you call it nothing. You truly are cut from different cloth than ordinary Awakeners.”
“Ah, thank you.”
That wasn’t what I meant at all.
I was too busy raising Fire to spare a thought for such things.
Better to spend that time hunting for another Mana Stone or Spirit Stone.
She seemed to have gotten the wrong impression.
That my vessel was so vast, trifles like this meant nothing to me.
Well, so be it.
It wasn’t a bad misunderstanding, and correcting her would be more trouble than it was worth.
“I have a business card for you. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to contact me anytime.”
“Oh! Actually, I’ve been meaning to ask—how does the tax situation work?”
It was something I’d wondered about every time I passed through Namdaemun.
Awakeners paid taxes too.
Plenty of them, proportional to their earnings.
And tax was terrifying.
You heard it often enough—monsters were nothing compared to the tax man.
I’d be no exception.
“There’s nothing to worry about on that front. We’ve already handled it, though we do need to confirm one thing.”
“That I’m the person in question?”
“Yes. I apologize if this is intrusive, but we need to be certain.”
It was no trouble at all.
“When I clear the tower, I’ll send you the confirmation via this number.”
“Perfect! I’ll process everything right away as soon as I hear from you!”
I should focus on tackling the tower tomorrow.
I needed to deal with the poison gas, but it hadn’t appeared even in the random treasure boxes.
If it hadn’t shown up in the boxes that gave me what I needed, then I didn’t need it.
‘I’ll figure something out. Worst case, I can always get it from Namdaemun.’
Jin Arin rose carefully from her seat, her business concluded.
“It’s your first day moving in, so I’m sure things are hectic, but thank you for taking the time to see me.”
“I should be thanking you for going to all this trouble to visit.”
“Ha ha, not at all. If you have any questions, please call the number on the card. I’ll be waiting twenty-four seven.”
She was just about to leave with all the proper courtesy observed.
Ding-dong.
“Delivery!”
The order I’d placed had arrived.
Had that much time really passed?
I’d thought it would take a while with such a large order, but today it came fast.
The quantity was so massive that I had to pay in person.
I was pulling out my card to settle up when Jin Arin stepped in front of me.
“I was feeling a bit awkward just leaving, so this works out perfectly. Let me get this.”
“Team Lead? Are you sure? It’s quite a bit of food.”
“Of course I’m sure! Absolutely sure! Mmm, smells wonderful! Chinese food on moving day—that’s the way to do it!”
It was the Elixir, I suspected.
Her grand plan hadn’t worked, so she was trying to salvage something here.
The moment she opened the door to pay, her bright smile froze solid on her face.
“My goodness, are you throwing a party? How many orders of jjajangmyeon did you get?”
“This is killing my arms. I’ve worked at a Chinese restaurant for years, but I’ve never delivered this much to one place before.”
“Huh? Wh—?”
There were ten delivery drivers in total.
That alone should have tipped her off.
But the real shock was the price.
“Your total comes to 3.72 million won.”
“…….”
A profound silence fell over the room.
* * *
Jin Arin trudged back to the Awakeners Association Headquarters.
Her face was drained of all vitality.
Not from finally meeting the person she’d been waiting for.
But from the money that had just evaporated.
“Three million, seven hundred twenty thousand won! Nooooo!”
Being the youngest daughter of the famous Ain Group didn’t mean she had money.
Her father had money.
Especially when she’d come here specifically to recruit talent.
In exchange for the position of team lead of the talent recruitment division, financial support had dried up completely.
Her only income was her salary.
She’d just blown eighty percent of that salary today.
On top of that, the Petal of Fire she’d brought as a gift had cost money too.
When she thought about rent and living expenses…
“I’ve lost my mind. But seriously, why did she order so much?”
“Hm? Team lead, is something the matter?”
“Phew, it’s nothing. Go ahead and clock out. I need to report to the higher-ups and head home myself.”
“Get home safely. Oh, by the way—are you coming to the Gate Management Team dinner?”
“Hey, you know the team lead doesn’t go to dinners.”
“Oh, right. Sorry about that…”
“Wait! I’ll just submit my report and be right back! Don’t leave—wait for me! Speaking of which, what’s the menu?”
“Beef. The department head is coming specially today.”
“Yahoo!”
The two employees exchanged puzzled glances as Jin Arin hurried away.
“Wasn’t she on a diet and only eating salads lately?”
“Don’t ask me. It’s not like a chaebol would show up for a free meal because she’s broke. She’s probably just going because the department head is there.”
“Yeah, that must be it.”
They believed it without question.
* * *
“Saved on food expenses today!”
The tension Jin Arin had felt attending the Awakeners Association as its representative had vanished entirely.
All that remained was the joy of having saved 3.72 million won.
She mixed the jjajangmyeon well, took a bite, and let out an involuntary exclamation at the taste.
“Mmm! There’s nothing quite like eating on someone else’s dime! You experience this every day, don’t you?”
-Chirp! Chirp!
[Fire (EX) says what kind of thing is that to say!]
[Fire (EX) says he earns his keep!]
“Alright, alright. Can’t even joke around.”
It wasn’t just jjajangmyeon.
Sweet and sour pork, kung pao chicken, shared platter noodles.
Moving day was practically paid for.
“It’s a party!”
She decided to enjoy it to the fullest.
After finishing everything and cleaning up, she headed to the Spirit Shelter and fell asleep.
The next morning.
She tackled the task she’d postponed yesterday during the celebration.
Consuming the Flower of Fire and its petals.
Naturally, the recipient was Fire.
There was little benefit to her eating it herself.
-Chirp! Chirp!
[Fire (EX) says he’s so grateful that she bought him delicious food and gave him the Petal of Fire!]
“Me too. She certainly doesn’t do things halfway.”
No wonder she was a chaebol.
Who else could drop several million won all at once like that?
Thanks to her, he’d eaten well yesterday.
Today too.
She placed it directly in Fire’s mouth.
[The Flower of Fire (A+) has been consumed!]
[Fire (EX)’s Hunger increases by 15,000,000.]
[All fire-related stats permanently increase by 2.5x!]
[All fire-related skills permanently increase by one rank!]
[The Petal of Fire (C) has been consumed!]
[Fire (EX)’s Hunger increases by 500,000.]
[All fire-related stats permanently increase by 1.1x!]
“The effects are insane.”
Just the Hunger being filled amounts to 15 million.
Add to that the stat boosts and skills related to fire.
It was a proper A+ grade Elixir.
Sweet enough to kill for.
As I consumed the Elixir, my Hunger naturally climbed toward its target threshold.
[Hunger has reached 40,000,000!]
[Fire (EX) has advanced to Level 2!]
❰Fire (EX) Lv. 15❱
❰Skills possessed: Hellfire (EX), Meteor (EX), Hell Sphere (EX), Hunger Booster (C+)❱
❰Hunger: (0/100,000,000)❱
……New skill unlocks upon reaching Lv. 20
……New skill for me unlocks upon reaching 100,000,000 Hunger
……New spirit can be awakened if clean water is supplied
Fire’s new skills and the new skill I’d gained were both important.
They were the two things I needed to focus on most, but a single new condition that occurred to me changed everything.
[A great deal of water is required to awaken a spirit.]
[Please provide clean water!]
[Slumbering Spirit (???): 0ℓ/100ℓ]
“A new spirit!”
The fact that my Hunger had reached one hundred million didn’t matter anymore.
Finally, a new spirit had come.
It would be a lie to say I wasn’t nervous.
Something even more formidable than Fire appearing—
But the gains would surely outweigh the risks.
There was a solid chance it would become the main force to clear this twelfth floor.
Water posed no difficulty.
South Korea’s water supply is exceptionally clean.
All I had to do was pour tap water into the Black Hole that had manifested.
The moment I finished filling exactly one hundred liters, a system message appeared.
[Slumbering Spirit (???): 100ℓ/100ℓ]
[Conditions have been met!]
[The spirit (???) drinks the clean water.]
[The spirit (???) drinks the clean water and quickens with life.]
[The Water Spirit King (EX) is born!]
❰Water Spirit King Lv. 1❱
❰Skills possessed: Divine Baptism (EX)❱
❰Thirst: (0/1,000)❱
……New skill unlocks upon reaching Lv. 5
……I gain a Hidden Stat upon reaching 1,000 Thirst
❰Divine Baptism (EX)❱
Description: Purifies all debuffs in the surrounding area, transforming it into a complete sanctuary of healing.
Then a brilliant white light erupted, and a blue form took shape.
Like Fire, it bore the shape of a tiny human, trembling and withdrawn as it carefully raised one hand.
A-ah… waah.
[The Water Spirit King (EX) regards you cautiously and offers its greeting.]
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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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