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Chapter 25: Breaking out of the Egg – 3

[You’ve received one roulette coin for today’s login. With five coins now in stock, you can spin the VIP roulette once! Would you like to spin it now?]

It was the morning of the second day of the Shinyoung Sports Day, when the rookie competition was going to be held. Welcoming Kang Shin-hyuk in the morning, was the message that he had been expecting to receive recently.

“I thought the coins were stacking up, but I collected all five faster than I thought.”

[The VIP roulette is one of Hero Universe’s finest services that only VIP members can enjoy! Please enjoy the roulette where you have the chance to win invaluable items from the countless dimensions!]

The Administrator took the chance to enthusiastically explain, but Kang Shin-hyuk wasn’t really into it.

Whether it was roulette or card flipping, he learned very well from growing up in Korea, the heaven of gambling games, that the factor of luck was not reliable.

[Our VIP roulette doesn’t have blank draws. What’s more, the roulette will more than likely end up upgrading your stats, so the more active you are in the Hero Universe and the more you devote your efforts to your self-development, the more rewards you will get!]

“But since my synchronization rate is low, my upgrades won’t have much effect. Doesn’t that mean the roulette’s rewards will be lower in quality?”

[It’s all right. VIP roulette has rewards that go beyond stat upgrades, so you can expect to receive great rewards!]

“Then can you reveal the probability of winning certain things or something? I would be satisfied even if there’s a 3% chance of winning a good reward. . . . . .”

[I’m sorry, I cannot do that.]

As expected, it was simply a game where you draw lots and leave it all up to fate. Kang Shin-hyuk threw away all expectations at that point.

But the login bonus was a gift from Hero Universe, so he had no reason to complain. If something was free of charge, even if it was something as trivial as mint chocolate frappuccino, Kang Shin-hyuk would gladly accept it.

“Then I’ll spin it right away.”

[We’re about to spin the VIP roulette. Please throw the dart at any time you want!]

He thought it would be over with a simple command and the result would be decided right away, but that wasn’t the case. A hologram-looking translucent giant disk had appeared on the other side of his bed!

It began to turn furiously as soon as it appeared, and he was holding a small dart in his hand before he could notice.

[Throw it!]

“What happens if I miss?”

[Throw well so you won’t miss!]

Kang Shin-hyuk felt slightly disappointed as he thought that the Administrator’s personality seemed to have changed a little these days. But since a free opportunity was present before him, he decided to empty his mind and throw the dart.

‘It’d be best if I can get a defensive artifact, but. . . . . . Wait, my hand is moving!”

Of course, Kang Shin-hyuk couldn’t miss, as his throwing ability was also considerably enhanced by his trait and skill.

The moment the dart hit somewhere on the roulette, the speed at which the roulette turned slowed down and quickly stopped. Where the dart was hit, it said ‘Lestia’s hatching item’ was written in Korean.

[Lestia is a world that blesses the birth of all living things. This is a special item that borrows the power to speed hatching from that world.]

“I see. So I guess I was pretty unlucky.”

Kang Shin-hyuk was fluent in martial arts but he didn’t have the ability to lay eggs. However, the Administrator seemed oddly pleased with the reward he drew.

[Do you really think so? I have already told you that the reward will likely end up helping with your stats’ upgrades.]

“Well, should I ask the cafeteria if I could borrow some eggs or something?”

[The hatching egg doesn’t have the ability to turn an unfertilized egg into a fertilized one!]

Of course, Kang Shin-hyuk was grumbling only on the surface; he wasn’t actually that disappointed. He knew well that nothing related to the Hero Universe was ordinary.

He decided to keep the item, believing that it may become useful one day. Fortunately, it was possible to store the roulette’s reward in his inventory.

“Shinyok, are you ready?”

“Maybe? What about you. . . . . . Nevermind, I guess there’s no need to ask.”

On the morning of the second day, Baek In-ha seemed particularly energetic at the large stadium.

The first day of sports day wasn’t quite challenging for Baek In-ha, who had already transcended other 1st-year students, but the school-wide competition of the event’s second day included the 2nd-year and 3rd-year seniors, so it wasn’t surprising that he was hyped up.

“You really only brought that sword. I should’ve prepared a proper defensive artifact for you.”

The adjective “proper” didn’t go with “artifact,” Kang Shin-hyuk thought. If an item had the word “artifact” attached to it, it was worth at least hundreds of millions! Kang Shin-hyuk smiled bitterly at Baek In-ha’s words and tapped into the bag. He invested some of the money he earned from the War Troll’s corpse and bought a suitable defensive tool.

“Nevermind that it’s not an artifact, that’s just a D rank defensive tool. . . . . .”

“This should do the job.”

Many of the students who went to school today wore heavy equipment as they were allowed to own personal equipment for the individual competitions.

Baek In-ha was wearing thorny gaiters on his knees and an unusually blue pair of metal shoes. Kang Shin-hyuk had already known, but he witnessed yet another evidence of how stupendously rich Baek In-ha was.

Many people naturally paid their attention to Baek In-ha, though Kang Shin-hyuk, who was wearing nothing but a sword on his waist, also bought the interest of a lot of peo0ple different way.

“Ah, I guess that’s the difference of family. I was looking forward to him since yesterday’s games.”

“You idiot, he might hear you. He didn’t do anything wrong to you–why the fuck you gotta be like that?”

“But it’s true. The individual competitions are the best place to raise your reputation, so if you lose you might not even get sponsored.”

“That’s his problem, nothing for you to worry about.”

Thanks to Kang Shin-hyuk’s constant care and the axe it had absorbed, the Godslayer now had a fairly appealing black gloss, but to others, it looked like an insignificant weapon that was D rank at best.

Since the Godslayer sword doesn’t contain mana and its appearance didn’t show a sign of possessing a notable trait, people’s judgment was destined to be ill-informed. They would surely be surprised by learning that the sword is a C rank weapon.

‘Adding to that, the real strengths of the Godslayer sword is not a meager C rank. My memory isn’t that clear, but I’m the one who built this weapon, so I know better than anyone else. Even if it’s lacking a dragon heart, it’s not going to fall behind some artifacts that the students will bring.’

Kang Shin-hyuk had sworn to himself to not pay attention to other people’s thoughts of him, and he wasn’t about to fail that vow by indulging in people’s dismissal of his sword.

But of course, there were some people who thought differently.

“Hey, Kang Shin-hyuk. You should have brought the right weapon even if it meant taking out loans and putting yourself under a debt. Are you planning to make an excuse when you lose against me?”

As soon as the attendance call at the playground was over, Do Woojin ran to Kang Shin-hyuk and said to him with frustration.

“Don’t you know how important this competition is? People whom you would never meet in your life are gathered here to see our cute actions. It’s a place where we have to show our abilities and potential as much as we can. You should have prepared a proper weapon even if it meant selling your organs to buy one.”

“. . . . . . You.”

If it had not been for the existence of the Godslayer sword, every word he spoke would be spot-on. In other words, Do Woojin was sincerely disappointed, rather than feeling a sense of dismissal.

Do Woojin is really hard to understand, Kang Shin-hyuk thought. How did things turn out this way? One day, he completely ignored him, and on the other, he’s feeling sorry for him. They were the same age, but Kang Shin-hyuk really couldn’t understand the minds of his peers!

“Thanks for your concern, Doo Woojin.”

“. . . . . . What? Who said I’m worried!”

“But this is a really good weapon, so don’t worry. I’ll prove it to you.”

“. . . . . .”

Do Woojin shut his mouth, thinking that his confidence didn’t seem to be a bluff. And then he turned around with a light chuckle, which Kang Shin-hyuk laughed at.

After all, they were little kids. Their minds and attitude constantly changed depending on their emotion and the circumstance they were trapped in. It wasn’t their fault, though, it was the fault of the system that was designed to prompt such a volatile state of mind.’

Kang Shin-hyuk himself was no exception to being young. But, unlike others of his age, he had the ability to objectively observe himself, which was largely due to the presence of the old man in his memory.

[Bartender noona: Hey, popular guy, big news.]

[Kang Shin-hyuk: I’m not popular. But what’s the news?]

Clare’s text message brought Kang Shin-hyuk back to reality. He waited for her answer, pushing the face of Baek In-ha constantly trying to steal a glimpse of his stick.

[Bartender noonar: Eunah wants to sponsor you via the association.]

[Kang Shin-hyuk: Me? The Thunder Empress? Did she notice?]

[Bartender noona: No, I don’t think so. But she does seem to have laid her eyes on you. She even approached you herself yesterday, so. . . . . .]

He would probably get more attention from her today by carrying the Godslayer sword. And one wrong word could lead to a full revelation of his identity.

Kang Shin-hyuk felt as if he had become a death-row convict watching the executioner get closer to him step by step as he waited with his head on the executioner’s stand.

[Kang Shin-hyuk: By the way, did the association sponsor students?]

[Bartender noona: Of course it’s not like the wild sponsorships that large guilds hand out. The association likes to sponsor students of poor background who are nevertheless exceptionally talented–people like you, that is.]

[Kang Shin-hyuk: Hm, sponsorship. . . . . . . I don’t intend to decide where I want to join at this moment, but thank you for telling me.]

[Bartender noona: Of course, it all depends on your performance in the individual competitions today.]

[Kang Shin-hyuk: I know. Aren’t you going to cheer for me?]

[Bartender noona: Mmm. Your noona will buy you chicken.]

[Kang Shin-hyuk: Okay.]

Though he didn’t express it in his text messages, he was incredibly fired up to pull off an impressive performance at the prospect of free chickens.

He hesitated to text her if he could give her a kiss after the victory, but he regained his sanity just before tapping the send button.

“Game’s about to start, Shinyok. Let’s wrap this up quickly and move onto the next game!”

“Okay. But if you don’t want to be disqualified, take that artifact off.”

“Oh, right, I was only thinking about the individual match. . . . . .”

On the second day of sports day, there were more games to show off their superhuman abilities. In particular, Magic majors had various traits that stood out, but many Knight majors were also under the spotlight for their unusual traits.

“Oh, that one’s interesting. . . . . . But I wonder if that will be effective in a real battle.”

“B rank trait? That one? Well, there’s still a lot we don’t know about the rank calculations of the Gaia system. Still, I guess it means that one has potential.”

While the students were fiercely competing in their matches, the scouts of each guild calmly assessed their potentials.

“Well, that one’s a no for me. Where’s the list of promising students you kept yesterday? Let me see it.”

“The individual competitions are about to start. So let’s go to our seats.”

“Whoo, it seems like the Thunder Empress and the Alchemist will be watching the rookie competition.”

Although Shinyoung’s name was very highly regarded, the scout of every visiting guild was also an alumnus of Shinyoung or an equally prestigious training academy.

The spots for the guild’s ace were limited and the competition was fierce. The competition to determine the students’ future paths had begun now.

[Shinyoung Sports Day’s individual competition will be held soon! All the players who have advanced to the round of 16, please gather at the venue! I repeated, the Shinyoung Sports Day’s individual competitions will be held soon!]

By the end of lunchtime, a broadcast finally rang out throughout the school marking the start of the individual competition.

“See you later.”

“Later.”

Everyone excitedly stood up from their seats with a look of “the time has finally come” for the main event of the second day. Kang Shin-hyuk gave Baek In-ha a fist bump and turned around to head to gymnasium 2 where the rookie competition was held.

[Fresh sprouts of Shinyoung, a contest of infinite possibilities for 1st-year students! Welcome to Shinyoung’s rookie competition. This year’s students are also attracting a lot of interest with their sparkling potential.]

“Hurry up and get started!”

[Haha, president of the Sivie Guild, please be patient for just a little longer. We still have time before the competition begins!]

The gymnasium was already crowded with the voice of the host covering the noisy auditorium. But just as Kang Shin Hyuk found his waiting room.

[All students who participate in this rookie competition will earn extra points in their academic assessment, and those who make it to the semifinals will be eligible to participate at the 15th World Superhuman Conference in Paris, France, as a guest representing the academy this fall. Furthermore, the winner and runner-up will be given special rewards!]

“Rewards?”

Kang Shin-hyuk, who was weak when it came to rewards, raised his head at the words mentioned. Two items in a transparent box were seen on display at the podium of the gym, where the host was standing.

[These are highly invaluable items that had been collected by various schoolmasters with great trouble. The first item is an artifact that was recently unearthed in a dungeon! As a mask-type artifact, it has the ability to speed up the flow of mana when worn.]

Shinyoung was indeed an incredibly rich school, but to think that a B rank item worth billions of won was offered as a reward! This year’s rewards didn’t seem to be ordinary compared to the previous years’, as indicated by the fuss in the audience.

But the item that caught Kang Shin-hyuk’s eyes was not the mask, but the other reward.

[And the second reward is an unnamed spherical OOPArt that was found in a(A rank gate!](1)

“A sphere. . . . . .”

[Although mana cannot be detected, its surprising firmness is indicative of the infinite possibilities that are suitable for our rookies. The winner of the competition will get to choose the desired reward, while the runner-up will receive the remaining reward. To make sure you get the prize you want, you better win!]

The host was making it sound all impressive, but in short, it was just a hard ball whose use was so far unknown.

‘But that one, that one could perhaps be. . . . . .’

Kang Shin-hyuk raised his head and stared at the gray sphere on the platform.

Kang Shin-hyuk could see a faint beating of certain energy inside the object, as if something was alive inside. It was none other than spirit power.

Looking at it more closely, the object looked like an egg.

[Didn’t I tell you?]

“Yes, the Administrator is the best.”

[A 100HP bonus from the Administrator for the kind words!]

Only

The Administrator said with a swagger. He hated the “I-told-you-so” attitude, but he had to admit it. Kang Shin-hyuk smiled and nodded.

“I’ wonder what’d come out of that egg, but I guess I have to win to find out.”

Five minutes later, the round of 16 match between Kang Shin-hyuk and Do Woojin began.

Editor/Translator Notes:

(1) “An out-of-place artifact (OOPArt) is an artifact of historical, archaeological, or paleontological interest found in an unusual context” (Wikipedia)