The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 71

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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 71. Spoils of War (3)
Concept Skill, Infinite [M].
If my suspicion is correct, this was an authority possessed by the Abyss Lord.
And it was an ability I could not Devour [S+] in my previous life.
◆Infinite [M]
: A state in which a certain concept is infinite and possesses no end. The player may attempt to graft this skill onto a specific concept based on [Understanding of Infinity]. Upon grafting, the state of that concept is converted to Infinite.
The measurement grade signifies Myth, denoted as [M].
It was a higher tier than [L], which signifies Legend.
Furthermore, this is a skill I absorbed by Devouring [S+] Avarus.
From the skill description, I could discern how Avarus was able to wield infinite stamina and mana.
In other words, even the most absurd abilities paled in comparison to this—.
‘A Concept Skill?’
Concept Skill.
It was a type I had never obtained in my previous life.
It was only natural, given it was an authority of the Abyss Lord, but precisely because of that, I could not determine what the skill truly was or how to use it.
However, borrowing the knowledge of the Grand Mage, a hero of the Allied Forces—.
—A concept is, in essence, an abstract notion derived through induction from concrete facts. It encompasses everything: philosophy, language, psychology, logic, and more.
As expected.
It was knowledge I could not comprehend, a memory from my previous life.
Still, forcing myself to recall memories from before—.
—For a simple example, the variety of canines encompassed within the species classification of [canine] is vast.
Large canines, small canines, fierce canines.
Purebred, mixed breed, hunting dogs, military dogs, yellow dogs, and so forth….
—Yet we disregard all these concrete distinctions and differences, referring to them simply as [canine].
We extract only the genetic commonalities they share and ‘generalize’ them into the species classification of [canine].
—In this manner, the generalization of a collective of objects is termed a ‘concept’.
This is not limited merely to tangible entities.
It encompasses invisible subjects as well: human thought, time, divinity, transcendent phenomena, and the like.
—In this sense, the word ‘concept’ itself is already a concept.
From this perspective.
The Concept Skill, Infinite [M], could be understood as the abstract concept of ‘infinity’ generalized and transformed into a skill.
So, let me use the Concept Skill, Infinite [M]—.
◆Error: The player’s current understanding of Infinite is insufficient to graft onto the concept of ‘Strength’.
…For some reason, it would not graft.
It seemed that merely knowing the concept of infinity was not enough.
I had to truly ‘understand’ that concept.
Just as saying [canine] does not reveal whether it is a large canine or a small one, purebred or mixed breed—the same principle applied here—.
Was that the reason?
◆Error: The player’s current understanding of Infinite is insufficient to graft onto the concept of ‘Agility’.
◆Error: The player’s current understanding of Infinite is insufficient to graft onto the concept of ‘Stamina’.
◆Error: The current player’s understanding of Infinity is insufficient to integrate with the concept of ‘mana’.
…Somehow, everything failed.
Not only the power and agility of Infinity, but even the infinite stamina and mana like Avarus couldn’t be integrated.
It seemed the applicable scope varied depending on [Understanding of Infinity].
Just as with ‘concept’ skills.
It appeared I needed to raise the skill’s ‘understanding’ rather than its proficiency.
‘I can’t use it right now.’
It was a pie in the sky—beautiful on the surface but ultimately worthless.
Still, there must be a reason the grade is [M], denoting Mythic.
Just looking at the description alone, it’s an ability dripping with absurdity.
Eventually, ways to utilize it will emerge.
‘It’s certainly different from the Beast Lord.’
An inexplicable dread beyond description—The Abyss Lord.
His authority too defied explanation.
In that sense, absorbing his authority was no trivial matter.
Frankly, without Ian’s ability—Player’s Will [EX]—I would have perished.
Mental fortitude and regeneration [B+] were useless against it, leaving me helpless.
This was the part where I understood why the description had been so emphatic.
Player’s Will [EX] didn’t grant complete immunity.
Fortunately, my mind didn’t collapse, but it was still perilous.
As if aware of the loopholes in Player’s Will [EX], whispers continuously eroded my consciousness.
In that sense, someone appeared within the illusion.
Though I couldn’t see their face—.
‘They called themselves a hero.’
They referred to themselves as a ‘hero’.
More precisely, people in the illusion called this someone a hero.
And as far as I know, there’s only one being called a hero.
‘Ian.’
Which means that voice and the protagonist of the illusion I witnessed was Ian—.
‘…That can’t be right.’
That made no sense.
Of course, it wasn’t Ian’s voice.
The nuance, the atmosphere, the manner of speech.
None of it matched Ian.
Besides, this was a voice I could hear after devouring [S+] that strange entity called Z’thulonak—in other words, whispers and illusions from The Abyss Lord’s authority.
If that figure in the illusion were Ian?
It would mean Ian is The Abyss Lord.
‘That’s absurd.’
Of course, no one within the Allied Forces had ever directly seen The Abyss Lord—.
‘There’s no way.’
I could be certain of this much.
It was a hypothesis that didn’t even warrant considering the slightest possibility.
Yet the fact remained unchanged—the figure in that fantasy was called the “Hero.”
‘Ian must know something.’
The only being to have faced The Abyss Lord directly—Ian.
If it were Ian, he would surely know something.
I had gained yet another reason to reunite with Ian as soon as possible.
After organizing my thoughts, I looked around—
Kai stood motionless beside me, like an ancient tree rooted deep in the earth.
His face and expression, as he gazed at me, seemed bewildered, as though confronted by something incomprehensible—
“You weren’t… dead?”
Kai spoke the same words Seraphia had uttered last time.
To any observer, it would have seemed like the two of them were siblings rather than me.
“I’ve been resurrected.”
“Pardon? Yes, yes…?”
Kai questioned me as if asking what nonsense I was spouting, but I brushed it aside lightly.
Truthfully, any further explanation was impossible.
I moved past Kai and continued surveying my surroundings.
Though the main course—what could be called the principal prize—remained tantalizingly out of reach, mere decoration—
‘I’ll scrape up every last morsel that remains.’
Avarus, the Architect of Avarice.
As his epithet suggested,
Avarus was a creature brimming with greed.
Therefore, if Avarus had made Beneron Barony his stronghold, there would almost certainly be a ‘secret vault’ somewhere.
He had likely concealed it meticulously, plastered with magical barriers.
For me, whose mana sensitivity approached zero, detection would have been impossible—but now I possessed agility reaching 111.8.
A perception now bordering on genuine ESP rather than mere approximation.
My honed senses overlooked not a single fragment of information perceived through the five senses.
‘Let me see…’
I examined the ruins of Beneron Manor with meticulous attention.
* * *
Adrian floundered like a fish hauled onto shore.
In Kai’s eyes as he watched Adrian, confusion and astonishment mingled with a hint of fear.
Though he tried to accept this impossible phenomenon—a return transcending death itself—as reality, Kai simply could not bring himself to accept this incredible sight.
Truly—
“He’s been resurrected.”
He could not comprehend this person called Adrian.
Only the expression ‘because that’s Adrian’ could reconcile Kai to it.
Just as Kai was soothing his bewildered heart,
“It should be somewhere around here…”
Adrian suddenly began looking around, searching for something.
“What are you looking for?”
“Dessert.”
“…Pardon?”
“I’ve finished the main course, so now I need dessert.”
What in the world is he talking about now?
Does he really intend to keep eating?
He once picked up something strange and ate it, only to die from it?
“Ah, is it over there?”
Adrian suddenly took a long stride forward.
Kai’s gaze naturally followed Adrian—
—but there was nothing particularly distinctive about it.
Only a landscape covered in shattered debris was visible.
However, as Adrian cleared away the shattered debris—
Crunch!
More precisely, as he tore away the wall along with the debris—
Crash—!
The space rippled and warped with the sound of a barrier shattering.
The distorted space gradually returned to its true form.
A dimly lit entrance to the Underground Vault and a spiral staircase descending below.
As the hidden space revealed itself, Kai’s eyes widened involuntarily.
…I had no idea.
“How did you know?”
“Just did.”
Adrian answered indifferently and descended the stairs into the darkness.
But Adrian soon emerged again.
Beyond Kai’s tilted gaze
Adrian’s body was submerged in the darkness of the Underground Vault.
Only his face protruded from the shadows.
It resembled a ghost with only its face floating in empty space—
“Kai, come here and use your aura to light up the darkness.”
Kai gathered his scattered wits and drew his sword.
* * *
As they descended using the blue aura that gathered on Kai’s blade like a torch—
A thick door blocked their path.
At first glance, it didn’t appear to be an ordinary door.
Adrian glanced over it briefly before speaking.
“It’s a door made of RuneSteel.”
“RuneSteel, you say…”
RuneSteel.
A special steel imbued with magical power.
Yet its hardness and durability were not particularly high.
From what Kai understood, it was only slightly harder than ordinary steel.
But the true value of rune steel lay not in its hardness or durability—it was its ‘resistance to mana’.
All energy derived from mana: aura and magical power.
It possessed tremendous resistance against both of these forces.
More than mere resistance—it could even temporarily ‘nullify’ aura and magical power.
In other words, rune steel was a metal that even Kai could not bear.
“Seeing that this is made from solid rune steel, there must be something quite precious inside.”
And if it’s a solid block of rune steel at that—.
Crunch—!
In an instant, the rune steel was torn apart like tissue paper.
Kai lost his grip on reality once more.
Rune steel or whatever else—it didn’t matter.
Crack, crunch!
Adrian was simply tearing it open as if it were a paper door.
…Is that even a person?
But Kai found himself already accepting it with the thought, ‘Well, Adrian’s always been like this anyway.’
…Somehow, I’m losing my mind too.
Adrian had torn apart the entire rune steel door in mere moments.
Adrian strode boldly into the space beyond.
And then Adrian emerged again just as quickly.
“What are you doing? Come in and light the way.”
Kai barely gathered his scattered wits and stepped inside.
And as he illuminated the interior with the light of his aura—.
“This… this is…!!”
Mountains of gold coins and silver coins, along with glittering jewels, filled the space from floor to ceiling.
The wealth of mingled gold and silver radiance shone even in the darkness, and upon it lay expensive ornaments and artifacts arranged like decorations.
At minimum, tens of millions of gold.
Kai’s soul nearly departed his body.
It was wealth so staggering—so astronomically vast—that he had never seen its like in his entire life, nor ever would again.
It was no coincidence that the vault’s location had been hidden behind all manner of barriers.
And it was no accident that the vault door had been forged from solid rune steel—.
Clink.
Suddenly, a clinking sound reached Kai’s ears.
Looking toward the source, Adrian was sweeping gold coins into a pile.
Adrian was shoving the coins into a large sack.
Each time, the gold coins slipped into the sack with a clinking sound.
But where on earth had he gotten that burlap sack from?
“….”
Adrian was utterly incomprehensible, no matter how hard I tried to understand him.
* * *
The gold coins stacked in the secret vault appeared to number in the tens of millions at minimum.
I scraped and gathered every last coin into burlap sacks, leaving not a single piece behind.
Yet the gold coins seemed to have no end—
‘I wish I could just dump it all into my inventory.’
Crudely put, I was itching to use my inventory.
But unfortunately, my inventory had a weight capacity limit.
Specifically: [Strength stat × 40kg].
My current Strength stat was 87.4.
◆Current inventory capacity: [3,496kg].
It was a considerable amount I could store, yet it still wasn’t enough.
The mountain of gold coins and jewels sprawled before my eyes explained precisely why Avarus was called the Architect of Greed.
3,496kg wouldn’t even scratch the surface.
Just as I was diligently scooping coin after coin into the burlap sacks—
‘Would the Infinite skill apply to my inventory?’
The thought struck me suddenly.
Without hesitation, I activated the Infinite[M] skill—
◆Merging the Conceptual Skill Infinite[M] with Inventory.
The translucent text materializing before my eyes jolted me awake.
◆Inventory weight capacity converted to ‘∞kg’.
…This actually works?

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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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