141 – Value for Money: Second Transcendence

Ichinose Jun saw it in Rohan.

A precarious conviction nestled deep within.

His own unacknowledged sense of justice and principles of action were, in a way, things well-suited to being called madness.

To speak plainly, Rohan lacks the strength to force through that stubbornness, that madness.

‘He must have lived doing dangerous things without hesitation, without pause, almost as a habit.’

What Juyeon, who tutored him closely, couldn’t find, Ichinose Jun could see just by looking.

That Juyeon didn’t find it, and that he did, wasn’t a matter of skill. Juyeon is an educator without peer, after all.

The reason Ichinose Jun could so blandly find and see it was nothing particularly grand.

‘Is he walking the same path as I did, as Momo said?’

A feeling, faint but verging on something like camaraderie.

Wouldn’t it be because Ichinose Jun himself walked that same path in the past, a fellow traveler?

‘The difference being… I escaped the shadows thanks to Momo and Yui, but you are still trapped.’

Truth be told, Ichinose Jun wasn’t in a position to offer advice drawn from experience and insight.

Even so, his mouth opened.

Simply, because if something happened to this student Rohan here, his daughter would grieve.

The greatest reason he broke his own rule that silence is golden was for that cause.

‘And…’

Ichinose Jun knows men like him.

Perhaps because of the overlapping factors in their unique auras, he seems somewhat like a man he remembers.

‘This man, Rohan…’

Though he might be soft and flustered by a crying child on the street, easily swayed this way and that…

A tenacious sort who wouldn’t flinch in the line of fire, who wouldn’t bow his head no matter what evils he suffered at the hands of villains.

Isn’t that a good thing?

That righteous people increase in this chaotic world.

There are no complaints to be had.

If Ichinose Jun were alone in this world, perhaps it would be different, but the world his family lives in absolutely must be like that.

*

“If you have things you need to sort through, do so cleanly and return.”

Ichinose Jun left, and Rohan remained alone.

‘…’

Ichinose Jun simply presented Rohan with one path, based on his own experience and insight.

Amidst the dizzying array of branching roads, he pointed to that one with conviction, saying it was good.

The establishment of direction.

Whatever the intention, it resonated deeply within Rohan.

Each word spoken by Ichinose Jun felt like a serendipitous encounter.

[The Second Transcendence blossoms.]

───CRASH!! The reality before him shattered like glass, revealing a new world.

Different, yet similar to the previous transcendence.

‘What will it show me this time?’

It was a space darker than night.

No moon above, not a single speck of light to be found.

─ Fire unveils the hideous things that hide beneath the dark.

A small flame flickered to life in Rohan’s palm.

The light spread, revealing itself to Rohan’s sight.

Hideous monsters surrounding him.

“…”

He wasn’t particularly surprised. He was sick of nocturnal ambushes.

It was merely frustrating that his body wouldn’t move as he wished.

He simply extended the hand with the blossoming flame with gentle slowness.

─ Grrr…

The monsters recoiled, retreating as the flame drew closer.

Rohan could tell just from that.

That these hideous things feared the fire.

The monsters scurried away into the darkness beyond.

Rohan clenched his fist. The flame that bloomed like a flower retreated inward.

The embers settled within his soul, his heart.

A rising sense of fullness.

The emotion gifted by a soul enriched.

‘My work here is done.’

He realized it instinctively.

Fire blazed outward from the spot where Rohan stood.

Monsters hidden in the darkness screamed as they went up in flames.

─ …

─ ···.

Hideous monsters perished, and silence descended.

The world, shattered into fragments, rewound itself, repairing.

A soft rustle──.

All that was broken returned, reflecting Rohan’s image like a mirror.

He returned to reality.

[You can designate multiple targets for Weakness Application.]

[Special items will appear randomly in the Shop Skill.]

[The Celestial Sun Judgment Sword (天日聖裁劍) is applied as critical damage to targets with Weakness Application.]

‘Good. Well done.’

Rohan exhaled slowly, extracting a chilled water from the vending machine.

He absorbed the notification windows, acutely feeling his growth.

The growth that had come to Rohan wasn’t merely transcendence.

The chaotic mass of things he deemed necessary and piled up in his mind seemed to be organizing, just a little.

*Krrrrk!* He twisted the cap off the bottle and gulped it down.

The chill of the water accentuated his now clearer mind.

‘Transcendence is generally the most cost-effective up to the second one.’

This was from the perspective of Abyss City. Among players, a concept of ‘cost-effective transcendence’ existed.

The very act of transcendence, which required drawing the same character again, was absurd to call cost-effective, but.

For the most part, definite efficiency was achieved up to the second transcendence.

The rest revealed a somewhat sluggish aspect, with the highest efficiency appearing at the sixth and final.

‘What about me, though?’

He didn’t know. Anything was fine. There was no need to think too deeply.

If there were lacking aspects, he could accept them as they were.

He could cultivate overwhelming skill, or he could rely on the hands of his comrades, who always stood by his side.

‘Ah, the main story, and I need to find out what the ‘Perpetrator’ condition is for the achievements.’

These things required real-world time, so it would be difficult to finish them here.

Rohan dusted himself off and stood.

··

··

The parking lot, a stage for conversations blossoming around individual themes.

Just as Eungae Nose, at Momo’s urging, finished exchanging numbers with the two girls, Sion and Clara.

Ichinose Jun returned first.

And after what felt like mere minutes, the figure the girls had been so eagerly awaiting approached.

“···Oh my?”

“!”

Juyeon and Momo were visibly startled by Rohan’s arrival.

The other girls might not grasp it immediately, but Juyeon and the Ichinose couple, having surpassed a certain level of skill, could discern the change.

“Hoo, not bad at all.”

Ichinose Jun, too, was considerably surprised, his usually heavy lips parting to emit an exclamation he hadn’t consciously willed.

Rohan’s face, his eyes, had become remarkably…refined.

‘Even with guidance, the realization and execution is one’s own, a matter of talent.’

It wasn’t merely spiritual growth, it seemed.

Perhaps he’d grasped a new framework for distributing his mana along with his realization, resulting in an overall enhancement.

To hear someone’s advice and accomplish even a single aspect was the mark of a genius among geniuses.

To enact two together, regardless of the means, was to ascend to a level above.

‘If I recall correctly, he said he only received proper training after entering the academy.’

Even compared to his own daughter or Noah, daughter of the Snow Tiger Emperor, this was an unprecedented rate of growth.

If he continued to progress at this speed, how long would it take him to reach this level?

‘Soon, our generation will become the old guard, I suppose.’

He already felt a weight lifting from his shoulders.

A welcome sense of liberation.

And.

If his daughter desired to become a warrior, then she belonged here.

Regardless of their relationship, having someone so far beyond the norm nearby would be enough to inspire motivation and push her past her limits.

Ichinose Jun suppressed the upward curve of his lips.

He raised his hand and gently stroked his daughter’s head.

“···Father?”

“Eat well. Get plenty of sleep. It’s enough to just have fun and be happy.”

He finished speaking and offered his daughter a faint smile.

Yui opened her eyes, a bright smile spreading across her face, and nodded. She shared a rare hug with her father, a man not often given to displays of affection.

“Momo. Let’s head back now.”

His daughter had returned from the dungeon, and he’d confirmed she was safe.

Nothing could be better.

He had also learned a truth he, as a father with a daughter, never wished to know, but surprisingly, it wasn’t so bad.

With this feeling now settled within him, it was time to return to the Samhwa Nation and address the backlog of work.

Ignoring the phone as it threatened to catch fire could only go on for so long.

“Honey. You seem relieved?”

“···.”

Momo asked with a laugh, but Ichinose Jun remained silent.

*

“Ughhh···!”

Ichinose Yui, having seen her parents off, was groaning in her dormitory.

She hugged her stuffed animals and rolled around restlessly.

Before Noah, who was asleep with a full belly, woke up and paid her a surprise visit, she wanted to sort out her thoughts.

But it wasn’t easy.

‘How did this even happen…?’

The more she reflected on the day, the more she realized that while there was much joy, there was even more regret.

She’d blurted out that she kissed him because she was blinded by jealousy.

Then, trying to salvage the situation, she frantically insisted it was merely first aid.

‘It would have been a perfect opportunity if I had subtly hinted at my own feelings.’

Her actions, fueled by various embarrassments and confusions, bordered on denial, so wasn’t this more likely a demerit?

Instead of staking her claim on him, she felt like she had bragged about him to her rivals and then backed away.

“Haa…”

Was Rohan spending time with two beautiful girls right now?

She thought about sending him a message, but it wasn’t as easy as before to casually contact him without a second thought.

‘I like him too…! I want to be by his side too…’

The girl hugged her stuffed animal with suffocating force.

She rolled around on the bed, endlessly recalling meaningless regrets and happy moments, over and over again.

*Ding!*

The sound of a phone.

Ichinose’s tumbling thoughts ceased.

It wasn’t the message he’d been expecting.

Rohan’s messages had a different ringtone.

Ichinose reached out, grabbed the phone, and checked the message.

“···!”

He bolted upright from his reclining position.

[Sion Testarossa: If you’re free tomorrow, I’d like to meet with Clara.]