I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-265

Ch-265. **New Technique**

—

《Threat detected.》

《“Heart of the Iron-Blooded Monarch” has been activated.》

Energy tangled within his gaze.

Raiga’s presence had already far surpassed the boundaries of everyone gathered here—to the point where merely looking at him was judged as a *threat*.

A powerhouse who had once stood shoulder to shoulder with primordial beings.

When he unleashed his full presence, hadn’t he even surpassed the Heavenly Demon in a single instant?

Raiga was a warrior fully qualified to stand among the strongest beings in the world.

And yet, his “threat” failed to pierce through the **Heart of the Iron-Blooded Monarch**.

After all, it was a hidden trait that literally bestowed a heart of iron-blood.

An absolute safeguard that protected the bearer’s mind from all forms of energy and pressure.

“…?”

Raiga could not help but feel puzzled.

Only a handful of people in existence could endure his gaze.

Without having devoured stars and transcended, it was impossible.

Yet the man standing before him—who met his gaze head-on—was nowhere near a transcendent.

“Level… 4?”

The number **4** floating above the man’s head.

It meant that his level was only four.

Wasn’t that absurd?

A level at which one wouldn’t be surprised if they fainted—or died—just from meeting his eyes.

And yet, a mere level-4 man was facing him directly without faltering.

“The Archangel’s information can’t be wrong.”

There was no way the displayed value was incorrect.

The Archangel of the Reaper Cult.

Its authority lay solely in reading information and converting it into numbers.

An existence capable of performing miracles that pierced truth itself.

Thus, level 4 had to be correct.

“Equipment that protects the mind… tools… or a hidden trait.”

He ran through the possibilities, but none seemed plausible.

First, it wasn’t equipment or tools.

To perfectly deflect his pressure, one would need at least a **Unique-grade** artifact.

It made no sense for a treasure treated as a national relic in any kingdom to be given to a mere level-4 nobody.

Then the only remaining possibility was a hidden trait—

“But the conditions to awaken the Heart of the Iron-Blooded Monarch can’t be fulfilled at level 4 either.”

Even for someone with overwhelming talent, awakening that trait was no easy feat.

No human is born into the world having honed their talent to the extreme.

Of course, there were exceptions.

Those who were human—and yet not.

“Players.”

Beings the Reaper Cult referred to as “sinners.”

They were born with countless talents.

A rare few even manifested *hidden traits* from the moment they appeared in the world.

Wasn’t that unfair?

That someone could reach heights others couldn’t attain even after devoting their entire lives—without any effort at all.

No matter how extraordinary Raiga’s talent was, *he* had trained.

The moment he opened his eyes, he swung his sword.

He swung it while eating, while relieving himself.

He even continued strength training in his sleep.

Compared to that, how absurd were Players?

“Even if they’re talented, I have no intention of making a Player the successor of Fang.”

This tournament had been opened to see all the world’s talented individuals.

But he had no intention—whatsoever—of accepting a Player as a disciple.

They weren’t even natives of this world.

Even if you burdened them with responsibility and duty befitting a successor, they could simply run away.

“There are no Players here.”

And he could be certain of that.

Players were, at their core, possessors.

No different from evil spirits parasitizing another body.

Such possession caused imbalance in body, soul, and mind.

The Archangel was currently identifying such unstable “imbalanced ones,” and at least within the Tower of the War God, there wasn’t a single person suspected of being a Player.

They had filtered them all out with utmost care.

So then—what was that man?

Level 4, and not a Player.

“…I’ll find out soon enough.”

Raiga turned his gaze aside.

Just how extraordinary that man truly was would become clear as the tournament progressed.

—

—

 

The **Warrior** bracket—participants from level 1 to level 5—was held on the 2nd floor.

Being the lowest tier, there were fewer participants and even fewer expectations.

Empty stands.

A pitiful arena.

Dust even drifted through the air—it looked utterly neglected.

“It’s been a while.”

Standing there, I found myself reminiscing.

The time I climbed the Tower of the War God as an emperor penguin, together with Auril, the bunny-girl elf.

A disguise meant to draw the attention of Sansha, the administrator—who ended up dead anyway.

I killed him using the Supreme Sword Saint’s exclusive skill, **Supreme Sword**.

“Hey. If you don’t want to die, forfeit. I can’t control my strength.”

A voice rang out nearby.

…Right.

Come to think of it, the match had already started.

More than ten seconds had passed.

The man wielding an axe had a vicious glare.

Someone weak of heart might have pissed themselves just from seeing it.

【Lv. 5】

The highest level in the Warrior bracket.

Judging by the looks of it, he had boosted his stats with buffs to scratch the Solid Celestial Stone.

A **buffer** stood nearby, actively supporting him.

“Isn’t that cheating?”

Hm.

Thinking about it, there was no rule against buffs.

I clenched my fist.

“If you don’t want to die, forfeit. I can’t control my strength either.”

“You bastard. Are you mocking me?”

“I’m serious.”

“Fine. Don’t regret it when you’re dead.”

Whoosh!

The man swung his axe down with murderous intent.

**BOOM!**

At the same moment, his body flew the opposite way and slammed into the wall.

The axe shattered.

His chest was crushed.

Instant death.

“W-what?”

“What just happened?”

Everyone blinked in shock.

“Hyun of Adrium City—victory!”

Hearing the referee’s shout, I lightly dusted off my hands and exited the arena.

“As expected, I really can’t control my strength.”

The **Heaven-Supporting Whale Talisman** equipped on the Primordial Armor.

It granted me absurd stats—but that wasn’t the only issue.

I truly couldn’t control my power.

I recalled the talisman’s information.

【Heaven-Supporting Whale Talisman (Great Omen)】

* Essence of the Heaven-Supporting Whale, a great calamity beast that once collapsed the axis of the world

* Amplified by the Primordial Armor ×1.5

* Strength +30

* Adds a random additional strike up to 1.5× the holder’s Strength stat

“…+30 to a single stat from one talisman.”

Even looking at it again, it was insane.

I had never seen an item in all of Pangaenia that boosted a single stat by this much.

The random additional strike—up to 1.5×—was just as absurd.

Among the rewards from Main Quest 11, this was easily the most practically useful talisman.

Thanks to it, my stat growth was astronomical.

“Can this really be called a level-4 stat line?”

I clicked my tongue after checking the numbers in my status window.

<Stats>

Level: 4
Strength: 90 (60+30)
Stamina: 56
Agility: 60
Intelligence: 56
Mana: 92

“Total stats… 354.”

Comparable to an average level-9 character.

And strength and mana were on an entirely different scale.

“That means random additional strikes up to 135 strength.”

The talisman’s option.

From a minimum of 1 to a maximum of 135—added randomly.

Calculated purely based on *Strength*.

Even if my hit barely landed, as long as it was recognized as a “strike,” the effect would trigger.

“If it had procced at max, he’d have been reduced to dust.”

A bit cruel—but this was a tournament where killing was allowed.

A place where failing to go all out meant *you* would die.

I quietly left the arena.

—

—

 

After three days, the shape of the tournament became clear.

Speculation about the winner began to spread.

Among them, attention focused on two brackets.

The **Knight Champion** and the **King Champion**.

Higher levels meant more spectacle, and all the favorites were famous figures.

“…Is this all?”

Raiga asked the knights as he reviewed the reports.

They nodded.

“Yes. Aaron, son of Cardinal Johansson of the Goddess Church, and Husta, disciple of the Mercenary King, are the leading candidates in the Knight bracket.”

“In the King bracket, Hugh of House Dersian, Arkan—the sole survivor of House Darkan—and Sir Hanches, the Knight of the Sun, are locked in fierce competition.”

“And besides that—”

Tap.

Raiga set the report down.

Powerhouses from all over the world had gathered, many with well-known names.

Yet none fully satisfied him.

“How is the Warrior bracket progressing?”

“Well… nothing noteworthy.”

The knights looked awkward.

The Warrior bracket was, frankly, a gathering of stragglers.

There *was* a leading candidate, but compared to the earlier names, he didn’t amount to much.

“Tell me. It seems to be missing from the report.”

“There’s a man called ‘Hyun’ from Adrium. He’s the sole leading candidate.”

“Hyun?”

“Yes—this man. But…”

A supplemental report was handed over.

Hyun’s record was written there.

10 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses.

Despite the rule that three losses meant elimination, it was a perfect record.

Then why wasn’t he emphasized?

“Seven of those ten wins were forfeits.”

“Seven people forfeited?”

“Yes. Every opponent who didn’t forfeit was brutally killed… It seems the rest were frightened into forfeiting.”

The records supported that.

Killed in a single blow, with horrifying aftermaths.

Terrified by that, people forfeited en masse.

Given the low levels in the Warrior bracket, many lacked fighting spirit.

Thus, he was considered an awkward candidate to label a “true favorite.”

But Raiga thought differently.

“It’s him.”

The man who had endured his gaze.

Someone who knew how to dominate the field.

The best way to avoid unnecessary fights was to present overwhelming *threat*.

Didn’t he obtain seven forfeits after crushing three opponents so brutally?

And those three weren’t weak enough to be killed in a single hit.

“There’s something there.”

Something even he hadn’t grasped yet.

After organizing his thoughts, Raiga spoke.

“All participants who’ve achieved ten wins—send them to the 10th floor.”

“All of them?”

“All.”

“Understood.”

The knight bowed and left.

This tournament wasn’t simply about raw power.

It was a competition that granted everyone an equal chance.

“They’ll all start from zero.”

A test to see how well they could navigate a situation where everything they had learned so far became useless.

How many would truly pass?

Perhaps not even one.

This trial was of such extreme difficulty that even Raiga himself couldn’t be sure of the outcome.

—

—

 

Upon entering the 10th floor, what lay before us was a single book.

“Read it and master it.”

One of the Fang Knights said.

About a thousand people had gathered on the 10th floor.

All eyes turned to the book.

“**Life-and-Death Boundary**.”

A strange title.

But that wasn’t all.

Beside the knights stood an enormous mana crystal.

Why it was there was unclear.

“Is mastering it all we need to do?”

“Yes.”

Just master it.

A strange instruction—but simply reading and mastering something should’ve been easy.

Yet soon, everyone’s expressions twisted.

“What is this?”

“There’s nothing written here!”

“What are we supposed to master?”

Turning the pages revealed not a single word.

Naturally, there was nothing to read or learn.

The knights remained silent.

“Hidden text?”

“A special way to read it?”

They tried every method they could think of.

Nothing appeared.

Even the most renowned individuals panicked.

Accusations of fraud nearly burst out.

“…Huh.”

“…What kind of nonsense is this?”

Only a handful seemed to notice something—and even they struggled.

No one could turn the first page.

Until—

Thud.

One man closed the book and stood up.

Less than ten minutes had passed.

“…Hyun of Adrium.”

“If you stand without mastering it, you’re disqualified.”

Was he voluntarily forfeiting?

Step. Step.

Amid everyone’s gaze, I walked toward the knights.

Then placed my hand on the mana crystal beside them.

And—

**Whoooooosh!**

Mana was sucked into my fingertips.

《Using the principles of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, you have mastered the Devouring Essence Art.》

《You have absorbed all mana from the Large Mana Crystal.》

《Mana increases from 92 to 95.》

 

 

---