Chapter 249: Trait, World – (1) |
Trait, World – Part 1
This was a little unexpected.
Nothing like this ever happened in the game.
Even if you raised the World Tree, all you got was a spirit contract, World Tree materials, or maybe an alliance with the Elves through a dimensional rift.
‘No, wait.’
Let’s flip the perspective.
Even in the case of the Sky Ship, Skidbladnir, just using it as-is was the limit.
Turning the River Goddess into the Sky River?
That never existed in the game.
‘Then the way to use that is…’
Turning it into an artifact would be hard.
It’s just too big.
It easily dwarfs the size of my building in Gangnam—both in thickness and length.
Then I’ll have to use it as the River Goddess suggests.
I gave a respectful bow.
“Thank you. I never expected a gift like this. I think I’ll fuse it into the Sky Ship’s hull.”
[That’s what I was thinking too, Sword Star.]
[Shall I merge them?]
“I’d love that.”
Shaarung.
The World Tree shook its branches.
Then, the branch resting atop the Sky River began to emit a deep green light.
And then, it started to melt.
It seeped into the deep blue hull, merging with it.
The Sky River began to change.
From the bridge, dark brown wood began to spread and grow—
A part of the World Tree itself.
It extended across the once entirely blue hull, overtaking it and forming a new wooden structure.
Naturally, the quality of the Sky River rose.
To its original water attribute, a new wood attribute was now added.
A sphere of water surrounded it, encasing the wooden aerial carrier.
And the surrounding area filled with a mist that dominated space.
‘Perfect.’
I clenched my fist tightly.
I could feel how much stronger the Sky River had become.
Attack power, defense, magic resistance, speed, onboard comfort…
Everything had leveled up far beyond what the River Goddess alone could provide.
An aerial carrier of such power had never been implemented in the game.
Calling it the ultimate sky carrier wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
‘If I can just craft a Trait unique to my home… and recruit just a few more crew members…’
I’m certain, no matter how massive a force the Old Father’s Cult throws at us, this ship won’t fall easily.
“Thank you, Grandmother.”
[Don’t call me that. Makes me sound old.]
“Yes, World Tree.”
The World Tree spoke like a child.
Even though she must be older than Grandfather Dangun. Isn’t that a bit much?
Then again, she is a young deity.
If the Wooden Matron was more like a tree spirit, the current World Tree is undeniably a true god.
Depending on how she grows, she might reach the same tier as the old Anuket.
[Sword Star. Come closer, would you?]
“Yes.”
Is she going to ask for my blood now?
I stepped as close to the World Tree as I could.
Close enough to nearly touch the massive trunk, thicker than the monsters of Monster Village.
A branch lowered over my head.
So vast and high, its leaves shimmered in the air like something from another dimension.
The branch slowly tilted downward.
The tip—its vibrant leaf—brushed past my nose and touched my chest.
To be precise, it touched the necklace hidden beneath my Star Spawn protective suit.
The [Heart of Abundance] I once received from Kim Saje.
An artifact that boosted all stats and granted a luck effect.
[You’ve got something nice there. But Sword Star, it doesn’t seem quite enough for someone like you.]
Drip.
The tip of the branch opened, releasing a heavenly scent.
Blood?
No.
Golden sap began to fall like droplets, dripping onto the necklace.
The sap seeped beneath the gem.
A particularly large leaf descended and wrapped over it, followed by a piece of the branch twisting into the leaf to affix it to the Heart of Abundance.
Finally, unification.
Paaaah!
A radiance burst forth.
Dozens of beams of light flared up, then merged into a single hue—
A pale green.
The same energy radiated by the World Tree herself.
[How is it? I put in a bit of effort.]
The World Tree asked, voice full of anticipation.
I peered into the necklace with my inner sight, then gave her two enthusiastic thumbs up.
“It’s amazing!”
The original effects—stat increases and luck—remained.
Actually, they had been slightly enhanced.
Roughly 20% stronger.
The surprising part was the new effect that had appeared on top of that.
Should I call it [Protection of the World Tree]?
First, all elemental resistances had received a significant boost.
If I equipped matching resistances alongside magic resistance, I could probably endure any attack with a smile.
It also included damage reduction and improved recovery speed.
Stronger even than [Endurance] and [Vigor], which I had relied on so much before.
To put it simply, the Heart of Abundance was no longer just an SSR-grade item.
It was a divine artifact.
On par with Mjolnir, Aegis, and the Dragon Monarch’s Crown.
“This is insane. I’ve never seen a necklace this powerful. It’s practically a divine relic. I’d need something like Brísingamen or Amaterasu’s Magatama to even compare.”
[Of course! Do you know how much power I put into that?!]
In the game, the World Tree enhanced existing necklaces by blessing them.
But this one blows those out of the water.
That’s how well the Heart of Abundance meshed with the World Tree’s blessing.
Honestly, the name ‘Heart of Abundance’ doesn’t do it justice anymore.
Right.
From now on, I’ll call it the Heart of the World Tree.
Fwoooosh.
And the blessing embedded in the Heart of the World Tree was influencing me as well.
It surged through my entire body, strengthening me and elevating my class.
Still not enough, though.
Even with this third blessing—after Poca and the River Goddess—the wall of Level 8 was still impossibly thick.
[Now then. The most important part remains.]
Thump!
My heart gave a powerful beat.
The World Tree’s branch, the Heart of the World Tree, her blessing—all of them were incredible rewards.
But this wasn’t it.
There was a different reason I’d poured an absurd amount of money into raising the World Tree.
“I’ve been waiting for this.”
[Oh my. You would’ve gotten mad if I didn’t give it to you, huh?]
The World Tree teased playfully.
But she didn’t seem to be joking in the slightest.
Crack. Crrrack.
The thick bark before me split open on its own.
A crevice wide enough for a person to walk into formed.
Gulp!
Someone audibly swallowed.
The World Tree had wounded herself.
Golden sap evaporated from within, releasing a sweet scent.
Even humans and mutants around were swallowing their saliva.
From deep within the crevice, a drop of blood-red liquid fell with a soft plop.
The blood of the World Tree.
Even back when she was the Wooden Matron, her blood was strong enough to unlock divine power in me—but now, it held a far greater, sublime force.
[Take it.]
The World Tree’s voice came faintly.
She’d used up a significant amount of energy.
Far more than when she snapped off a branch, or even when she blessed both me and the necklace.
I took one step forward.
Pressed my body close to the World Tree’s bark.
Then reached inside with my arm.
I felt it at my fingertips—a drop of the World Tree’s blood, hardened and sealed like a gem, yet radiating a soft, overwhelming power.
Gently, I pulled it toward me.
And then something strange happened.
Following the path of the blood, along the wall of the bark, through the inner layers of the World Tree—some kind of force, or concept, was being injected into me.
A strange sensation.
But not an unfamiliar one.
I had felt this before.
Just a few months ago.
Not far from here.
Right after my sparring session with the Eastern Army Division Commander.
When he placed his palm on my back and injected his mana into me.
“World Tree?”
[You’ll need it.]
The World Tree replied, her voice exhausted.
[If you want to resist a vast evil… or a noble malice.]
The River Goddess, watching from the Sky River, also chimed in.
[Indeed. But World Tree… did you give him too much? Even if it regenerates over time, you’ll have to sleep for a while.]
[That’s still better than being burned alive or eaten.]
[That… is true.]
What exactly did the World Tree just give me?
I activated my Inner Sight, Sixth Sense, Magic Brain, and Meditation to examine myself.
Specifically, my inner world.
And then I saw it.
A tiny Trait—visibly small, but complex enough to rival [Hero]—a mana circuit that reminded me of a magical seed.
‘What is this?’
Did the World Tree ever give Traits?
Not in the game.
No matter what quest you did, no matter how much you raised the World Tree, even if you went through a dimensional rift to deliver something, she never gave a Trait.
There was a mention of one in Episode 10, during the Great Cataclysm.
But the exact Trait wasn’t revealed.
‘Could this be it?’
I equipped it directly.
Cleared out all other Traits—left only this mysterious one.
Then activated it.
…
Nothing happened.
No increase in stats.
No noticeable power.
No heightened senses.
What on earth?
I tilted my head in confusion, and the Goddess spoke, laughing.
[The ability the World Tree has given you, Sword Star… if we had to put it in a language you’re familiar with, it would be ‘World.’]
World?
That’s it.
That’s the name.
The Trait that was teased in Episode 10, planned for a future update.
I remembered the devs hyping it up as a brand-new kind of Trait, unlike anything else in Arcane Seoul.
I’d been too obsessed with Ares’ Law or the strongest Warrior-class Traits to pay attention back then.
“What kind of superpower is it?”
[It is fusion and harmony—a power of totality.]
“Then…”
[You can bind entirely different elements into one, and create something completely new.]
Seriously?
My eyes widened.
I’d thought about this before.
Mars Swordsmanship. Nephilim Sword. Kalaratri.
The three great sword techniques of Arcane Seoul.
Their synergy was poor, so I had to swap Trait sets depending on which one I used.
But with the World Trait… I could fuse them?
Could I even hold myself back?
I immediately went into Trait switching.
[Mars Swordsmanship] [Nephilim Sword] [Kalaratri]
[Master of the Sword] [Thor Cultivation Technique] [World]
Then activated it again.
The World Trait.
The one the Goddess had described as fusion and harmony, the power of totality.
But…
Still no reaction.
The World Tree’s leaves swayed gently, as if shaking her head.
[Your class is still lacking.]
“My class?”
[Yes. You’ll need to become a Transcendent, at minimum.]
Transcendent.
Level 8.
[You need to fully make your soul’s class your own.]
“My soul’s… class…”
I don’t get it.
I know I have a great soul—people like the Saintess, gods, and priests keep going on about it.
But I’m not so sure about how great I really am.
Does it have something to do with what the Saintess said—about me being from this world?
What, do I need to recover my past-life memories or something?
[Think carefully.]
[And there’s one more thing you should know.]
The Goddess, still listening, cut in.
[The power the World Tree gave you—that’s not how you use it.]
“Excuse me?”
[Do you really think it was just given so you could combine a few superpowers? The World Tree would be heartbroken.]
[Hey now, he’s human. Naturally, his imagination’s limited.]
[You’ve been blinded by your omnipotence. Think about why it was named World. Consider why the mana circuit looks like a seed.]
Are we playing riddles now?
I furrowed my brow slightly.
The World Tree gently whispered in a soothing tone.
[There’s a reason I can’t explain it any other way. Please don’t take offense.]
“I understand. I think I get what you’re saying.”
Probably some prophetic nonsense, as usual.
If they tell you directly, the future gets fixed—blah blah.
Growth and evolution get restricted—blah blah.
Predictable, totally predictable.
Yaaaawn.
The World Tree let out a long yawn.
[I’m so tired… I think I’ll sleep now…]
[You’ve done well, World Tree. Leave the rest to me and Sword Star. By the time you open your eyes again, everything will be over.]
[I hope… I really hope I can open my eyes… I don’t want to die either…]
The World Tree’s consciousness began to fade.
Her swaying branches and rustling leaves came to a stop.
Even the wind could no longer move them.
Like a still life painting, painted with vivid colors instead of being truly alive.
But in return, a dramatic transformation occurred.
Pop! Pop!
The roots of the World Tree.
Some of them split open, and golden sap burst forth like a spring.
And that wasn’t all.
Leaves that had been melting into the air materialized and gently floated down—
Like golden gingko leaves in autumn.
Then, on every branch, transparent fruits began to form.
Within seconds they ripened, glowing like jewels before dropping to the ground.
“Whoa!”
“Gasp!”
“Hhhhk!”
The World Tree’s sap, leaves, and fruits.
All rare magical materials and consumables.
Even consuming them raw could strengthen the body and elevate the soul.
While everyone stood there swallowing hard, the World Tree murmured one last thing in her sleep.
[Do whatever… you want… eat it if you want… kuuuurrrr… smear it if you want… kuuuuhhh…]
The World Tree’s consciousness fully fell asleep.
The heavy presence pressing down on the area vanished.
The Goddess dwelling in the Sky River let out a soft laugh.
[I should rest a little too.]
The Sky River folded itself up.
Turned into a toy-sized ship and slipped neatly into my pocket.
Naturally, every eye turned toward me.
My disciples, my subordinates, the mutants of Monster Village—all of them.
I smiled back.
“Let’s hold a festival.”
“A festival?”
“I’ve heard liquor made from World Tree sap is absolutely legendary.”
“Liquor!”
“If you make rice cakes with World Tree leaves, they’re to die for.”
Gulp!
“World Tree fruit cookies are the undisputed king of all snacks.”
Honestly, how could anything made from these ingredients not taste amazing?
World Tree materials were the ultimate elixir and divine seasoning in one.
No matter what dish you made or how you prepared it, it would be so delicious you’d forget everything—even if someone dropped dead from eating too much.
People and mutants raised their arms and cheered.
“Hurrah!”
“Thank you, World Tree!”
“We’ll eat well!”
“Kyaaaah!”
“Kikik! Kiiit!”
Even the fish-people joined in.
Apparently, the Sky River had slipped out of my pocket again.
They wanted a taste of the World Tree too.
Not that I minded.
If the fish-people grew stronger, that only benefited me, right?
“A festival!”
“Festival!”
“Kyakki!”
And so began a glorious feast.
In the blink of an eye, World Tree liquor, World Tree rice cakes, and World Tree cookies were all being made.
Everyone was having a blast, but I didn’t join in the merrymaking.
Instead, I quietly picked out a few World Tree fruits and settled down in a corner.
Why?
Because the World Tree fruit was a primary ingredient in a certain consumable.
An item I barely got to use in the game.
Only in front of Thor did I ever get to eat my fill of those cookies.
The ingredient used for the premium item—
Ambrosia.
–TL Notes–
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