Kim Do-Jin felt deep cynicism and skepticism after his battle against Vincent.
‘To be defeated by someone like that…’
He had been distracted by Yu-Seong during the battle and had chosen to save the man, so he had been at a disadvantage against Vincent. He had almost died. In fact, if Yu-Seong had failed to defeat Vincent, Do-Jin would already be dead right now.
Thinking about it, Do-Jin could not help but feel angry at himself. He was a proud man, and he had always felt great glory from being the number one in the world.
Aside from revenge, Do-Jin didn’t care about anything else or thought anything else could be a priority. He thought that wealth, honor, and strength would naturally come to him over time. Of course, that wasn't a false belief.
Do-Jin, as a warrior of another world, was pursuing growth through his current abilities. He was confident of becoming an existence who would overshadow everyone else. However, he just had one problem.
‘It's only a legend if I can survive until then.’
Kim Do-Jin had an incredible rate of growth, but there already were stronger individuals in the world who had surpassed him. This was not a fairy tale where the Demon King would help the hero to grow by selecting and sending suitable opponents to increase his experience points.
‘So I have to go to the extreme.’
Do-Jin knew himself well. The faster he pushed himself beyond his limits, the stronger he would become.
Most people improved their abilities by breaking through certain limits, but Do-Jin had much more potential than an average person. That was why he could overcome numerous obstacles and defeat even the Demon King. And now, in the present day, the skill he had acquired as a B-rank promotion reward was no different.
『Special skill: Hero who returns from death.
This skill does not have a rank.
Death is a danger that always accompanies the hero. And when they overcome that danger, they will grow explosively.
Currently, player Kim Do-Jin has experienced death once.
Cause of death: Poison.
He gained the characteristic of "Thousand Poisons Invulnerability."
All physical abilities and mana have increased slightly.
All skills have additional + rank effects applied.
Skills become stronger every time he experiences the danger of death.』
These benefits had already taken Kim Do-Jin's own talent and skills into consideration. Of course, he could still die by misusing this particular skill. However, from the beginning, he already knew that he couldn’t get stronger without any resolve or ample preparation.
'Even Choi Yu-Seong must have become stronger by risking his life.'
Choi Yu-Seong, the rascal and the neglected son of the Choi family, had been useless aside from looking pretty. However, the previously worthless Yu-Seong had become an active hunter one day, and he had now single-handedly hunted down an S-rank hunter.
Do-Jin knew something for a fact.
‘He’s stronger than I was during my C-rank days.’
Do-Jin’s determination was reflected in his clenched jaw and blazing eyes. He did not yet know if Choi Yu-Seong was also a returnee, but he was aware that it was not easy to grow so strong even if one was a returnee. He knew that for a fact because he himself was going down this very path.
In other words, Choi Yu-Seong's strength was the result of his tremendous effort, sweat, and blood.
‘Never again…’
Kim Do-Jin was determined not to fall behind Yu-Seong again. From now on, Do-Jin would pour all his strength into growing stronger, even if it meant shedding his blood and sweat like rain.
With this resolve in mind, Do-Jin leisurely walked around in search of a stronger opponent. At that moment, a small gust of wind sprang up from the rooftop of a five-story building behind him. He instinctively drew his sword and cautiously looked around with his eyes wide open.
He could not see his opponent, but he felt a cold, heavy, and sharp weapon brushing past his face. He reflexively dodged that attack, then squinted at the weapon.
‘A hand ax?’
The hand ax that had just cut his cheek was returning to the darkness of the alleyway, barely missing Do-Jin’s back. A pale hand reached out of the alleyway and caught the ax. Kim Do-Jin saw a pair of red eyes glaring at him.
"Wow, you dodged it. Not bad, you."
"...who are you?" Kim Do-Jin asked as he crouched in a defensive stance.
The opponent was emanating an extraordinary force. Looking at them, Do-Jin felt shivers running down his spine. He felt a sense of danger.
With a head of blazing red hair that fluttered like fire, a woman casually emerged from the darkness wearing a bright smile. She pointed at herself and said, "Me?"
Do-Jin suddenly gasped and swung his sword to the side. He was pushed back as he deflected another hand ax that had appeared from the darkness. Smoke began rising up from the ground; he trembled and held onto his arm.
"Who am I?"
When the opponent disappeared once again, Do-Jin summoned a spell. He wanted to pursue the red-haired woman. A blue flame flashed in his eyes.
‘Flame!’
There was a sudden burst of flames from a pentagram upon Do-Jin’s command. However, the woman simply rushed towards him without fear. She dove into the flames with a maniacal smile and said, "Try to hit me. If you do, I'll spare your life, okay?"
Bang-!
Kim Do-Jin blocked the incoming attack with reinforced magic power from the spell he had cast. With a cold smile, he said, "If you can, sure."
"Oh, you are confident."
The conversation did not slow down the fast-moving hand ax, which continued to injure Do-Jin in quick attacks.
Kim Do-Jin knew that he couldn’t underestimate this strong opponent. It was accurate to say that he had never encountered such a potent blood odor and intimidating aura before. This woman was truly a figure of evil. As someone who had directly fought against the Demon King, Do-Jin knew that better than anyone.
'This woman is more dangerous than anyone I know on this earth.'
Do-Jin thought it would be easier for him to confront Choi Woo-Jae, who was a rational hunter. However, he found this situation to be favorable for him. He shook off the hand ax with all his might and laughed even as he felt the hot sensation of his opponent's sword slicing past his jaw.
'She’s not weak.’
This woman would be the stepping stone to the growth that Do-Jin had been seeking.
“Let's dance.”
“Hahaha. Sure. I love to dance!”
As Kim Do-Jin's sword clashed against Rachel’s hand ax, a burst of fire ignited in the air.
***
『Special Skill: Wind Thunder Dragon God Art
This skill does not have a rank.
It is a power wielded by the Dragon God of Wind and Thunder.
※ Warning. This is a high-risk skill.』
The Wind Thunder Dragon God Art skill had a rather brief and simple description, so the true depth of this ability was difficult to grasp. Even Yu-Seong was at a loss after reading the description.
‘There's no rank and no explanation of exactly what kind of ability this is.’
However, Yu-Seong did know how to use the Wind Thunder Dragon God Art skill.
‘It did appear in the original novel, after all.’
Yu-Seong could clearly recognize the method and the skill itself because of a flashback scene that had showcased the legendary combination of his techniques with the Wind Thunder Dragon God Art skill.
‘I just need to chant its name to activate it.’
It was a disadvantage that Yu-Seong had to chant its name to activate the skill, but successful activation would help him gain immense power and lightning speed in an instant. For skills related to Wind or Thunderbolt, their power would also increase to an unbelievable extent.
The skill’s effects looked simple, but its power was almost immeasurable. Just look at what had happened to Vincent. However, the skill had a specific criteria to be activated. The user had to have at least one skill that was related to Wind and Thunderbolt.
Fortunately, Yu-Seong was able to satisfy the skill’s essential conditions thanks to his skills Dancing Electric Doll and Wind Control.
Also, there were a few penalties to take note of.
‘From now on, I cannot use any attribute skills other than Wind and Thunderbolt.’
In other words, even though Yu-Seong was an All-Rounder, he would not be able to use any gained skill such as Flame or Freezing in the future.
The usage of the skill also brought about a strong rebound effect, as Yu-Seong had personally experienced. The rebound effect would only lessen if he had a strong physical ability and trained the Wind Thunder Dragon God Art skill even further.
'However, that's too far-fetched for me now.’
The Wind Thunder Dragon God Art skill was not ranked like other skills, but the original novel had described it to be similar to an EX rank. This was no exaggeration because it could increase the C-rank Yu-Seong's speed to one that rivaled sound.
‘No matter. Two attribute skills are enough for me anyway.’
Yu-Seong could end up being labeled as a miscellaneous player if he trained haphazardly with no plan in mind, despite being an All-Rounder.
‘Spear, Thunderbolt, Wind.’
Three skills were enough. It was important for Yu-Seong to commit to a choice, and he did not doubt his own judgment.
Suddenly, Yu-Seong looked at the low stone ceiling.
‘What was that just now?’
For some reason, he felt a chill running up his spine and over his head. That feeling of unease suddenly made him think about Kim Do-Jin, whose face popped up in his mind. However, he was quick to shake his head from side to side.
"...it will probably be nothing."
According to the original novel, Kim Do-Jin, the protagonist, would never die. No matter how much of a butterfly effect there was, someone like him wouldn’t get easily killed off. And clearly, the earlier incident with Vincent had proved this for a fact.
Vincent's Blood Poison was a very dangerous and powerful skill, but even it had failed to kill Kim Do-Jin.
‘If there is such a thing as fate…’
Yu-Seong believed that Kim Do-Jin's death would never occur within that loop.
He slowly closed his eyes. Even if Kim Do-Jin was in danger, he could only be of help once he was fully recovered. He could do nothing but wait. If Yu-Seong pursued Do-Jin now, he would only be good for dying by Do-Jin’s side.
‘Unlike that guy, I already have to face death as my destiny.’
Yu-Seong had to be as careful as possible since he wanted to meet his fate in the best condition possible.
Three days later, Yu-Seong finally recovered.
As if she had known that Yu-Seong was fully recovered, Helen finally showed up. She had a sinister look on her face, but she appeared to be satisfied. She said, "Your body seems to be in pretty good shape, huh?"
Yu-Seong nodded, stretching his body on the bed. He commented, "It's the best. I also feel stronger than before.”
"Yes, iron gets stronger the more it gets hammered," Helen said.
"I'm not iron; I'm a person," Yu-Seong said.
"Sometimes, humans can be as strong as iron," Helen replied.
Shocked, Yu-Seong shook his head. He said, “If you continue showing me such hospitality… I am not going to accept any of your kindness and immediately escape using the Return Stone.”
"Ke ke..." Helen chuckled briefly and shook her head with an unreadable expression, then looked up at the ceiling.