Chapter 182

Chapter 182

“Hmm...”

Upon stepping outside the Department of Martial Arts’ main building, Se-Hoon confirmed there was no one around before pulling his left hand out of his pants pocket.

Twitch, twitch-

His left hand was wriggling uncontrollably. Despite it being very clearly part of his own body, it moved like a separate entity.

If I wasn’t suppressing it with Soul Honing, it would have strangled me by now.

The method he had used—synchronizing the Kwang-Soo's synesthetic mindscape with his left hand, specializing it for his body, and then recreating the techniques contained within—was something he had seen or analyzed a few times before. But while its use wasn't too difficult and proved highly effective, the side effects were significant.

I originally intended to just crudely mimic his techniques, but it ended up being so effective that my left hand has essentially become a clone of Kwang-Soo’s left hand...

In hindsight, it made sense. For those who could handle mana, the synesthetic mindscape was essentially the source that enabled them to control that power. And since he had directly integrated someone else’s synesthetic mindscape into his body, the different source settled in and took control.

It kinda feels like I have an AI based on Kwang-Soo’s personality controlling it.

It was a situation that would horrify both the winner and the loser. Se-Hoon, however, found it fascinating.

With this kind of effect, it might actually be quite useful.

Before the regression, Se-Hoon had no notable talent except for his blacksmithing skills. In combat especially, he was subjected to harsh criticism.

He could always somehow learn the basic movements and improve their efficiency to some extent. Yet, every time, he found himself blocked by the next step: blending his synesthetic mindscape into it.

I understood it in my head, but my body just didn’t follow.

To be honest, he had accepted it, thinking it was fine as long as he could forge equipment. However, now things were different. Having experienced numerous battles toward the end of his last life, he realized how necessary it and mastering the basics of combat were to lead the fight against the Demon Force.

If I can just systematize this, it’ll be perfect.

If he couldn't perform techniques embedded in his own synesthetic mindscape, then he just had to adapt and use others’, like he did earlier. Moreover, since his soul seemed to have changed after regressing, giving him talent in combat, it would be much easier too.

It wouldn’t be easy, but...

Tap, tap!

Staring at his left hand, which seemingly wanted to tear at his throat, Se-Hoon watched it threateningly clatter its thumb and four fingers together like a mouth. He frowned at it in distaste.

Vrrr-

Feeling a vibration from his left pants pocket, he instinctively pulled out his phone with his left hand.

Smack!

It ended in his phone being slammed to the ground.

“...”

Surprised, Se-Hoon just blankly watched the phone vibrate pitifully on the floor, feeling his left hand remaining still and acting like it didn't do anything. Eventually, he let out a dry laugh.

What a nasty temper.

His left hand moved true to Kwang-Soo's synesthetic mindscape.

Moving to pick it up, Se-Hoon made sure to use his right hand this time.

[Erika Inoue]

“Hm?”

Why was she calling during the exam period? Wondering what it could be, Se-Hoon picked up.

“What's up?”

—Do you want to practice barrier spells with me?

At the sudden proposal, Se-Hoon went silent to think about it for a moment.

“Alright. I'll head over there.”

He was finished assessing Jake anyway. From what he had seen during the recent exam, he was in a favorable situation. So since that was the case, he thought that checking on Erika wouldn't hurt.

I have some free time.

Getting the location from Erika, Se-Hoon headed straight there—to the training room of the Department of Spells, where Erika was practicing.

“It’s this place.”

Meeting up with Erika outside, they walked into the octagonal training room with iron mannequins at each vertex. Every mannequin’s hands were clasped together, forming hand signs.

Like I thought, the training is exam-oriented.

In contrast to other classes, Barrier Composition had already announced the exam format.

They would be tasked with creating barriers that could withstand various attacks prepared by the professor, which was exactly what the training room seemed to be designed for.

“I didn't know there was such a training room. Did Professor Robert set it up for the exam?”

“I made it myself,” Erika denied, shaking her head.

“Impressive. Those mannequins too?”

“I brought those from home for training purposes.”

At that remark, Se-Hoon glanced around the training room at the iron mannequins placed throughout.

No wonder they look so unique...

Unlike the golems made by the Marionette Factory and other workshops, the ones in the training room had a distinct atmosphere which was likely due to their detailed human faces.

They probably didn’t make them look that good just for aesthetics... perhaps they have something to do with magic?

Intrigued, Se-Hoon began pondering the purpose of the mannequins’ designs, stopping when he sensed a gaze behind him.

“...That.”

Standing right in front of him now, Erika stared intently at his left hand. Her gaze was so intense that Se-Hoon began to feel uneasy.

Then, with her eyes remaining fixed on it, she asked, “Did you get your left hand transplanted?”

“No, it's still my hand.”

“Then why does it seem like someone else's hand?”

“...”

Se-Hoon was a bit taken aback. He had expected her to notice something was off, but not pinpointing it so accurately.

Withdrawing his mana from the Ascension Ring, he placed his hand on the incense burner and infused it with the divine mana stored in his body.

WOONG!

Glowing with divine mana, a white smoke soon began to seep out of the gaps of the incense burner, shining with a mix of white and gold light. Seeing the mysterious mist, he activated Divine Magic that he had learned long ago.

Bang!

Arrows formed from the mist and shot into his left hand, glowing golden as they penetrated deeply.

Through it, divine mana seeped in and began to fuse the shattered bones and reconnect the severed muscles. The recovery speed was remarkable, like watching time reverse to before the injury.

“Wow...”

He had cast the Divine Magic, Physical Restoration. Not only did it heal his injuries, but it also minimized the discomfort that usually followed recovery, making it a highly advanced healing spell.

Before the regression, he just had a vague understanding of how it worked and was unable to activate it, but now, things were different with the Pilgrim’s Incense Burner.

Infusing divine mana into the incense burner automatically completes the casting of any Divine Magic.... What an absurd effect.

There were countless Sacred Artifacts that assisted in casting Divine Magic, but the incense burner was still in a league of its own. Unlike others that simplified the process, like instant food, the incense burner took the ingredients and prepared a custom dish from start to finish.

It’s probably thanks to the Pilgrim’s power contained within and his synesthetic mindscape that was imprinted on it from past use.

Had the Pilgrim created a new Sacred Artifact and just imbued it with his power without using it once, it would merely enhance the user’s strength. However, the incense burner was something the Pilgrim had personally utilized many times, imprinting his synesthetic mindscape. It would react to any divine mana, resulting in an artifact that could automatically cast any kind of Divine Magic.

If I didn’t have my own divine mana, it would have consumed its embedded power with each cast, reducing it to a disposable item...

The Pilgrim likely intended for it to be used that way, but Se-Hoon had outwitted him.

“Oh, it’s done.”

Breaking out of his thoughts, Se-Hoon looked down and noticed that his left hand had fully healed. He flexed his hand, inspecting it.

The injuries had all healed cleanly, leaving no residual discomfort. It had cost him half of his stored divine mana, but it was better than arguing with doctors about the time to recuperate.

Now I’ve confirmed that I can cast high-level Divine Magic like Physical Restoration.

A smile unconsciously formed on his lips. Previously, he had been worried about how far he could utilize his divine mana, but now he was assured.

This Pilgrim guy is the best.

While the Ascension Ring and the Eternal Nocturne’s Phalanx, both imbued with the powers of Perfect Ones, were effective, they each had significant drawbacks. The Ascension Ring was difficult to use due to its pure spatial abilities, and the Eternal Nocturne’s Phalanx, being part of his body rather than crafted equipment, caused his body to erode with each use.

Consequently, Se-Hoon couldn't fully utilize their potential. But with the Pilgrim’s Incense Burner, there were no such limitations.

Maybe I should test something other than healing spells...

Flipping through the different Divine Magics he remembered, he tried to search for something challenging. Suddenly, he paused on one.

Ah, there’s divination.

Divination was a method of connecting with the divine to foresee the future. He had heard that its accuracy was quite high but had never fully trusted it due to its dubious nature.

After all, before the regression, the Pilgrim, the technique's creator and authority, had died early in the war.

If he couldn’t foresee his own death, the effectiveness of divination is questionable. And if he saw it but couldn’t change it, it's meaningless.

Despite thinking that was true even now, Se-Hoon decided to try it out anyway since his current goal was to test the limits of what the Pilgrim's Incense Burner could cast in terms of complex Divine Magic.

Let’s see...

Recalling the instructions, he placed his hand on the Pilgrim’s Incense Burner.

Oracle Cards

WOONG!

Once again, the incense burner, infused with Se-Hoon's divine mana, produced mist. However, this time it coalesced into a ring in the air. The ring, shining golden, resembled the holy symbol of the Pilgrimage Church, which intrigued Se-Hoon.

Looks convincing enough...

Having never experienced it before, he expectantly watched. Soon, a change occurred at the ring's twelve o'clock position.

Ssss-

White particles formed a card that then moved to the one o'clock position. It was followed by the creation of another card that also moved from the twelve o'clock position. Like that, the process continued until seven cards were within the empty ring.

Seven cards... not bad.

According to Archbishop Kamal, the more cards that appeared, the more accurate the divination was. Supposedly, the number of cards was determined by the caster’s skill and the amount of divine mana, with the highest record among the Archbishops being nine cards.

Considering Se-Hoon’s limited divine mana, the Pilgrim’s Incense Burner allowed the user to cast divine spells at an Archbishop level.

Alright, I’ve got a rough estimate of its output now.

Satisfied with the performance of the Oracle Cards, Se-Hoon smiled and looked at the cards arranged inside the ring.

...I might as well check.

It just seemed wasteful to cancel it now. Pressing down his doubt, he curiously flipped over the first card on the far left.

A picture with a white border caught his attention. It depicted a man looking at a clock, with the word “Future” written in gold below it.

Hmm... this looks like a tarot card.

Invested now, he continued flipping the cards one by one, reading the images and words.

[Tower] [Trial] [Intruder] [Friend] [Disaster]

In the future, under the white tower, many trials would be faced, only to suddenly confront an intruder, alongside a friend, leading to disaster—the six cards formed a narrative, and something stirred within Se-Hoon as he looked at the last unflipped card.

“...Phew.”

Taking a deep breath, he quickly flipped the final card and revealed the picture.

He saw a picture of a man kneeling on desolate ground, his head and arms hanging limp as if drained of strength, with a dagger plunged into his solar plexus.

“...”

Silently staring at the image, Se-Hoon gaze slowly inched down to the the word below it.

[Death]

With these seven cards, what was this so-called god trying to tell him?

“These damn frauds...”

The divination was telling him that he would die during one of the exams.