Thank you to everyone who gave comments and coupons! Episode 177
56. Magical Beasts and Little Gods – #2
『Achievement ‘Incarnation’ has been achieved.
You can choose one skill from the list as a reward.
《Roll》: You can roll.
《Bounce Back》: You can bounce back.』
━ Huh…? What is this?
I squinted at the text floating in front of me. I’ve gotten choices when evolving every five levels before, but a choice of skills like this? That seems new and confusing!
Gaining divine powers must also be an unusual method—just when I was about to wonder, my gaze fell on the two items below.
“Rolling and bouncing back? What’s up with that? Is that it?”
Is something wrong here? There’s not even a proper description, and now I’m starting to doubt my own eyes.
“Isn’t there some kind of hidden fingerprint or something? Is this really the end?”
As I blinked in confusion, Adonai, the little guy who looked like he could fit in my pocket, casually asked me a question.
“Do you feel a change? The power you realize after baptism awakens the unique divine powers that have been asleep within you. It’s like a body part you’ve had from the beginning, and you won’t need anyone to teach you how to use it.”
━ No, more importantly…
Rolling. Bouncing back.
With these two bizarre choices, I couldn’t help but wear a face of vague uncertainty about which I should choose.
“You seem to be staring at the void. Can you see something only you can see?”
As I continued to stare at the letters, Adonai showed an interest in my gaze. This little guy, despite his size, is a member of a divine existence that once ruled the world.
Maybe I could get some useful information from him—just as that calculative thought zipped through my mind.
━ I can see the letters.
“Letters. You can’t hear a kind voice, just the letters showing up, right?”
━ Exactly.
“The liberator Nirvana’s 《All Things》—that mystical power has already taken root in you. The letters appearing are probably due to that. You had one power even before it was awakened.”
━ So seeing these letters is my power?
“Correct. The liberator Nirvana possessed the mystical ability to understand and perceive everything. It manifests complex laws and truths of the world in a way that’s easy for individuals to grasp. And it seems it took the form of letters.”
━ So these letters are that?
I started nodding, rubbing my chin.
I had been wondering why I could see these letters showcasing abilities and skills that others couldn’t, and it seemed it was a power from a divine being who lived an age ago.
The World Tree that devoured that god named Nirvana. Could it be that the filtered and refined power has now nestled within me as its fruit?
“So, what do you see? What do the letters signify? Is there nothing about this fading body?”
Adonai touched his delicate hand to his chest, moving with the grace of an elegant actor.
━ No, I can’t see anything about you.
“Really…? They say Nirvana could know about others too. But I guess you wouldn’t reach that state of understanding oneself and others—objectivity and subjectivity becoming one.”
━ So my power is still unstable?
“Don’t be disappointed, little brother. Among us, only Nirvana could do that. I wondered how much time I have left…”
━ No, I’m not particularly disappointed.
It seemed more like Adonai was the one feeling let down. Upon realizing that I couldn’t see anything about myself, his movements and shoulders drooped visibly.
“So, what are those letters that you can see?”
━ I’m told to choose between rolling and bouncing back.
“What, what…? Is that really what you said!?”
Adonai looked as flustered as if he had bitten his own tongue. Though he was small, maintaining the majesty of a god, his shock was so pronounced that it also baffled me.
━ Why, why, what, what’s going on? Did something go wrong?
“Did you say rolling and bouncing back? Goodness, that’s nestled in your body, little brother. Amazing. Both are excellent powers.”
━ Huh? Really?
Rolling and bouncing back. Without much explanation and rather concise names, honestly, I was worried that I had drawn the short straw. But judging by Adonai’s reaction, it seems that’s not the case.
I started wagging my tail playfully, turning back to Adonai for clarification.
━ What is this? If you know, please explain!
“Both were talents possessed by an unnamed man long ago. He reached divine levels and truly became akin to a god.”
━ Hmm…
With a puzzled expression, I stared intently at the letters spelling rolling and bouncing back.
━ So which of these two is better?
“I can’t distinguish them. Rolling and bouncing back, both are incredible techniques that, if used correctly, can even help you avoid doom. Truly unbeatable. It’s an unbeatable talent.”
Avoidance, unbeatable.
From what Adonai said, it seems that rolling and bouncing back are heavily defensive techniques.
Having played several PC games, I started to guess that rolling might be an invulnerability move included in the evade technique, while bouncing back could be a counterattack type of technique that literally bounces attacks back.
“Surely, like those in various games, these two techniques are quite overpowered. They are basic yet vital techniques…”
So they should be categorized as fundamental yet crucial skills.
I envisioned myself rolling to dodge enemy attacks. Having lived like a beast in the wild, it seemed to fit me quite well.
“If I add a dodging skill like rolling to my enhanced agility, I’d hardly ever get hit!”
There seemed to be no downside to this ability. That’s the conclusion I reached regarding rolling.
“Well then, what about bouncing back…?”
Could bouncing back be interpreted as a reflexive attack technique typically used by game characters?
Perhaps it’s a technique where you could bounce back incoming attacks at the right moment, defending yourself while also breaking your opponent’s stance to create big openings.
“If I could handle it freely, it would be a perfect technique.”
However, the image of me bouncing back was hard to visualize.
Bouncing back referred to deflecting arrows or blades with some tool like a sword or shield. In my case, since I don’t have such tools, it means I would have to bounce back attacks using my front paws or tail…
“If I deflect a sharp blade with my tail, wouldn’t that just end up damaging my tail? The only hard part of my body is probably just my claws.”
I carefully examined my paws, glancing at the nails embedded in the soft flesh. My claw length was about 5 cm, which is long if you think of it, but also short if you don’t.
“Hmm. It seems unrealistic to deflect attacks with this.”
Yet, since deflection techniques, commonly known as parries, can show immense effectiveness if mastered, it would be regrettable to abandon it so easily.
Hmm, sigh.
As I continued to sigh in agony, Adonai, who had been watching me quietly, spoke up as lightly as a breeze.
“Choices always leave regrets. Even I, who has changed my base to the West, cannot escape this. It must be a source of great concern for you, little brother.”
━ Both have such merits that it feels wasteful to choose just one. Can’t I have both? Do I really need to choose?
“To have the talents of Nirvana, yet possess a greed unseen in Nirvana—that is an unusual quality indeed. It would be quite a challenging method, but it’s possible.”
━ Oh, really? You should’ve mentioned that earlier.
My discomfort in choosing between rolling and bouncing back melted away under the summer sun like white snow.
━ So, what’s the method?
“You must elevate your standing over a long period of time. Abilities flow like water. If you try to catch the flowing water with your hand…”
Adonai perched on a branch of a trembling tree while reaching out to the running water below.
Gush, gush, gush.
The water streamed past Adonai’s little palm as it slipped between his fingers.
“It will slip right through your fingers. This is the same for abilities. A power unsuitable for your body will slip away if you try to grasp it. Therefore, you will need to let go of one of these two: rolling or bouncing back.”
━ So I need to increase the size of my body so it doesn’t slip away? How long will that take?
“I observed the talent and size of the vessel within you while granting the baptism. My estimation is that for you to possess both abilities fully, it would take at least a hundred years.”
━ A hundred years…
That indeed sounds long.
“Even though you wear the guise of a mortal beast, you are one of us. A hundred years will pass in the blink of an eye. How about taking your time to cultivate?”
From Adonai’s perspective, who has lived for over ten thousand years, a hundred years may be comparable to just a couple of months for me.
But for me, a hundred years is an immense time, slightly longer than an entire lifetime!
━ No, a hundred years is too long for me! Plus, my pursuers are much too diligent.
The twelve mythical creatures of the World Tree and Batus are undoubtedly scrambling even now to capture me.
In this tiny world, I had no leisure to indulge in divine play.
━ Is there any way to shorten that hundred years?
“What a pity! If so, you would need to use a very difficult and dangerous method. There’s a chance it could ruin your mind and body. Can you bear that?”
━ What is it? Let me hear it first.
“I’m not sure, but time flows relatively. For someone, the flutter of a butterfly’s wings may be but an instant, while for another, it can feel like an eternity. The ticking seconds always move at a constant rate, yet everyone lives in different times,”
I might not understand all that well, but it seemed Adonai was talking about the relativity of time.
━ So what does that have to do with anything?
“The power residing within this body is very weak, but it might be possible to create a moment for you that feels like a hundred years.”
━ So in reality, it’s just a short moment, but you can stretch it out to feel like a hundred years?
“Exactly! Quick on the uptake, just like a descendant of Nirvana. Little brother, for you, it will feel like a hundred years have passed, but in this existing world, it would be merely a second. And during that time, you would have to endure a painfully long tedium without the flow of time. It may be destiny, but this was also the training method of Nirvana. Only a few among his siblings could endure it.”
━ So it’s a remarkable method, after all.
In reality, just a second would pass, but I’d need to endure what felt like a hundred years inside myself.
For a brief moment, I plunged into thought, reflecting a hundred years’ worth of ideas.
━ Alright, I’m in!
“I understand. Close your eyes and listen closely to the voice inside you.”
Adonai placed his small palm on my nose as he had when granting my baptism. Following his instructions, I closed my eyes and concentrated on whatever this inner voice was.
But nothing much was coming through.
‘How do I do this?’
I tried to open my eyes and ask Adonai about the method, but my eyelids felt heavy as if massive weights were pressed on them. Not only that, but it seemed my mouth and tongue were also stiffening.
━ Whawawawawa…
The sound spilling from my throat stretched out for what felt like an eternity. At that moment, I realized someone inside me was calling for me.
“Sergeant, ━ is this a disease you’re suffering from?”
“Eh?”
I opened my eyes at the sound calling me. Once I regained my senses, I found myself surrounded by dense greenery, with the continuous buzzing of cicadas echoing in my ears.
“If you sleep there, your mouth might turn! You should be careful about your old age, you know?”
“Did you just say ‘old age’?”
I stood up from my spot, bewildered at how this happened. An all-too-familiar landscape spread out before me.
This was the quiet scenery of Hyunri in Inje, Gangwon-do, a place I could never forget—even in dreams where I turned into a beast. My usual standing guard in the ammo depot, where time never seemed to pass.
‘What the hell is going on? Just a moment ago, I was with Adonai…’
I found myself burdened with uncomfortable military gear and a harness holding a rifle, along with heavy body armor and solo combat gear.
“What is this…what’s happening? I have fingers! This, this…what is this…?”
“Were you having a bad dream? You don’t seem well… The shift change will come soon, so I think you should head inside the barracks for a good rest.”
“Shift change is coming? Uh, when is it?”
“Hmm, the next shift guards must be getting ready to change shifts soon…”
Covered by the shadows of a bulletproof helmet, a white smile flashed from my junior’s face.
“Maybe in about a hundred years?”
“d*mn it…!”
[Author’s Note] If you enjoyed reading, please press the recommendation button at the top of your mobile screen! With just two seconds of your time, you can give a writer a happy day!
