Chapter 147: Ending the Vacation (2)
"I could never find this particular time boring."
This was likely my second favorite time of day since I arrived in this world.
For the record, my first favorite was naturally the time I spent with the heroes I admired... excluding that five-hour lecture from earlier, of course.
"Now, let us check the results right away."
Even if the night was long, I still needed to get some sleep. Even if I did not feel extreme physical exhaustion, it was important to relieve the accumulated fatigue.
Therefore, without further ado, I immediately checked the new information.
"First, the Influence Points."
The foundation of my talent was, after all, Influence Points. Thus, I checked the notifications regarding Influence Points before anything else.
[You have influenced the world’s fate by an immense amount!]
[You have acquired 210,000 Influence Points!!]
"...Is this for real?"
My jaw dropped the moment I saw it. The amount was so staggering that I could barely speak.
"I expected the amount of points to be high, but..."
There was Ha Eun-ha’s talent awakening and Ryu Jin-oh’s talent flowering, both of which happened earlier than planned. Then there were the deaths of the Sect Leader and the Apostles—events that never occurred in the original story—and the survival of Yu-hyeon.
Looking at these factors alone, I expected to gain a large amount of Influence Points. But I never imagined it would be this much. Simply put, it was more than double what I received for the midterm exams. It would have been strange if I were not shocked.
"...I planned to check everything first, but I need to think about how to spend this."
I was curious about the other changes, but this was more urgent. 210,000 points. I needed to seriously consider how to distribute and use them.
"If I combine them with my existing points, I have about 230,000."
Influence Points were not just rewarded for major events; they could also be earned through smaller incidents. Since I had only been with Yu-hyeon since the midterm, I had not gathered many, but it seemed the players in charge of monitoring villains had been quite impressed by the recent battle. Thanks to them, I had managed to collect some points.
With all of them combined, I had 230,000.
"I must decide carefully."
The first thing that came to mind was the Admiration Shop. However, I could not make a firm decision as easily as before.
"There is nothing left that offers good value for the price."
What exactly was the Admiration Shop? It was a place where I could purchase the talents of the heroes my talent recognized, as well as artifacts they had used in the novel. In short, there were almost no lower-rank talents to begin with. The two I had already purchased were the most cost-effective among the few lower-rank talents available.
"The units change completely once you even look at A-Rank talents..."
So, while it was true that 210,000 points was a massive amount, it was a rather awkward sum when considering the Admiration Shop. If I had to choose from the D-Rank or C-Rank options, the only one left was Do Gang-ho’s Physical Enhancement, but...
"It would be better to just borrow that one."
Do Gang-ho’s Physical Enhancement was a talent that performed reinforcement based on relative values rather than absolute ones. Even if I did not borrow Do Gang-ho’s physical abilities and only borrowed his talent, the enhancement would be based on Do Gang-ho’s physical stats. If I were to buy this talent permanently, it would mean the enhancement would be based on my own body, which was not ideal. Since it was a cost-effective talent to borrow via my glove, I decided to pass on it.
"Then the remaining options are either saving up or buying an artifact."
In truth, leaving the points alone was not a bad choice. If I spent all 210,000 points on borrowing Kim Su-hyeok’s power, I could probably borrow about 80% of his prime state. Of course, that was only for his physical abilities, not his talents. It was difficult because the amount of points required increased as the percentage gauge went up. Still, at 80%, I would have at least two S-ranks in my stats.
Regardless, my point was that saving the points was a viable option. But...
"The artifact side is not bad either."
First of all, they were cheaper than buying talents. Talents were naturally more valuable, and since the artifacts for sale were replicas, that factor was likely taken into account. Therefore, either choice was a good one. Since it was not a conclusion I could reach easily, I pondered for a moment until a forgotten fact suddenly surfaced.
"Should I start with some window shopping?"
Shopping is not something you do after deciding what to buy; it is about buying things when you find something you want. Even if I decided on an artifact, it would be a waste of thought if there was nothing I liked. So, instead of continuing my useless worrying, I immediately began scrolling through the shop list.
"Oh?"
While doing so, I discovered one change.
"Ha Eun-ha’s talent and artifacts have been added."
Ha Eun-ha’s talent and artifacts had appeared in the shop. I had not known because I had not checked the system notifications, but it seemed Ha Eun-ha had been added to the Embodiment of Admiration.
"I suppose it makes sense, considering I felt quite moved when I saw her awaken for the first time."
I still felt the same way. The fact that Ha Eun-ha awakened her talent meant she had overcome her painful past, and that was certainly something worthy of admiration. However, unlike my happy feelings, the reality before my eyes was quite cruel...
"As expected of Ha Eun-ha... Wait, am I seeing this right? What the hell? Ten million Influence Points?!"
Setting admiration aside, the prices in the shop were practically like reaching for the stars.
***
"Whew, I have mostly sorted things out."
It had already been an hour since I nearly fainted upon seeing that astronomical price of ten million. I had finished organizing the newly changed information to some extent.
"There was nothing that changed drastically, after all."
Aside from being able to swing a sword with both hands, not much else had changed. Of course, that did not mean there had been no remarkable growth.
"Excluding the Influence Points, there are two things: stats and my swordsmanship talent."
My stats were generally similar to before. Vitality and Agility were still B- and B, respectively. My Strength had increased slightly to reach C-Rank.
"That is only natural."
It was normally difficult for stats to increase once they reached B-Rank. And since my fighting style did not rely on raw power, it was inevitable that the rate of increase for my Strength would be small. However, what did I say earlier? I said there had been remarkable growth. As if to prove that, my Mana Affinity showed a significant jump.
"To think it would rise all the way to C-Rank in one go."
What was the reason my Mana Affinity had been so low until now? While others had grown steadily since they were children, I had lived a life where mana did not even exist before coming here. Even if I studied mana, it was inevitable that I would lack understanding, and my growth rate would naturally fall behind. If there was a reason for such a sudden rise in Mana Affinity...
"It must be because I used Yu-hyeon’s talent."
There was no other plausible reason. There had been no other occasion for me to gain such a sudden realization.
"I never thought indirect experience would be that effective."
Well, I did feel something while using Yu-hyeon’s talent. If my mana increased based on that, it made sense. Furthermore, I might have gained something through the Demonic Path Opening.
"I wonder if using it one more time would lead to another growth... Probably not."
I could feel it instinctively. The growth I could achieve based on Yu-hyeon’s talent ended right there. This world was not that lenient. Well, it was still quite good. It was essentially a reward obtained without effort. I was satisfied enough with this.
"I can actually feel the difference."
They say mana is the stat where you feel the growth the most, and those words were not in vain.
"Next is the swordsmanship talent."
There was not much to explain here. It had risen from B- to B, and the side effects had disappeared.
"It is likely the result of no longer wearing clothes that do not fit."
It felt as though the penalty incurred from learning two-handed swordsmanship but only swinging with one hand had been rectified. That was all. So, there was nothing more to explain...
"Now, is it time for the grand finale?"
The grand finale was, of course, the product I obtained with my Influence Points. With that thought, I looked at the artifact placed before me.
[Naughty Fairy’s Iridescent Paint (Replica)]
Rank: B-
Category: Accessory
Information: Paint used by an unnamed naughty fairy from a certain world. The fairy used this paint to color the world as she pleased until it was confiscated by the Fairy Queen. Somehow, it seems to have found its way here.
Ability: Can apply color to the effects of artifacts or talents.
"Hmm, it is exactly as I saw earlier."
The paint I purchased using Influence Points. As shown by its rank, it was a B-Rank item, and its price was quite substantial. I had to melt away a whopping 190,000 Influence Points for it...
"It was a damn waste."
How could it not be? I had to spend 199,900 points on a toy-like artifact that was not even for combat. However... even if it was not for anyone else, it was an incredibly useful artifact for me.
"Being able to color my talents is a very necessary function for me."
What was my talent? It was the ability to copy and use the talents of the heroes I admired, and additionally, I could use the talents of others through my glove. However, as I mentioned before, two identical talents cannot exist in this world. Even if similar talents existed, the laws of the world dictated that identical ones could not.
"But I have bypassed that law."
Therefore, when others were watching, the range of talents I could use was significantly reduced. For example, there was Shin Yu-hwan’s Black Spear or Im Seong-cheol’s Blue Flame. There were actually quite a few others. Even something like Kim Su-hyeok’s Master of the Sword might not seem obvious, but when used, it created a refreshing blue aura when swinging the sword. This meant that the number of talents I could use openly was actually quite small.
"In such a situation, this paint is effective."
This was the artifact that could turn the Black Spear into a white spear, or turn the Blue Flame into a violet color. Furthermore, as indicated in the category, it was a ring-type accessory, so it was not difficult to use. I only needed to wish for it in my mind to change the color of a talent. If I did that, I might still receive suspicion, but at the very least, people would not say the talents were identical.
"Haha..."
Damn it. I still could not help but feel it was a waste. 190,000 Influence Points did not just grow on trees. I even felt a bit of resentment toward Kim Su-hyeok for keeping this instead of throwing it away when he received it as a gift in the novel. If it did not even exist, I would not have had to buy it.
"...No. Thanks to this, I can avoid unnecessary attention. Let us look on the bright side."
What would happen if the fact that I could use the exact same talents as others became known? I could not guarantee what would happen next. Of course, I could earn a lot of Influence Points based on that.
"But it is also something with enough impact to create many enemies simultaneously."
As I said just now, it was a violation of the laws of the world. I had no idea whether this would act as a positive or negative result. It was possible that someone might hire a villain to kidnap me for research purposes. Furthermore, if it became known, I might have to talk to my companions about my talent. How would I explain it then?
I can use these because I admire you. Oh! For your information, this is based on your abilities from your prime. How do I know about your prime and why do I admire you? That is because I read about you in a novel and then entered that novel! Like that?
"I would not just be a crazy person; I would be the king of crazy people."
I could tell a lie, but I did not particularly want to lie to the heroes. Is it not wrong to deceive them from the start? Absolutely not. An ancient sage once said that if you do not get caught, it is not a crime. Besides, I did not answer because they did not ask, so what could be wrong with that?
"Yes, exactly."
Indeed, that was it. If someone heard my thoughts, they might say I was just thinking in a way that was convenient for myself, but what are they going to do about it? I am the one who ended up in a novel, and I am the one who has to live in this world. If they have a problem with it, they can enter a novel like me and lecture me.
Well, not that such a thing would ever happen.
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