I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-122

Ch-122

—

Even the current Baal was far stronger than the first Baal.

“Is… is the crow winning?”

“Looks like it?”

“If that goat thing is Baal, then… does that mean we can survive?”

Gooooooh!

The more the blood of the Black Sun soaked the ground, the louder Baal’s groans grew.

His entire body thrashed as his skin peeled away.

Anyone could see that the ill-omened crow was overwhelming Baal.

There seemed to be no way it could lose.

And then—

“Ah…!”

“W-What is that?!”

People recoiled in horror.

Screeee—

Suddenly, Baal’s face split cleanly in half.

—Slice!

In the blink of an eye.

Something burst out from within and swallowed the crow’s head whole.

And then—

Thud!

Kuuuuung!

…The crow, now headless, staggered and collapsed to the ground.

It happened in the span of a breath.

A situation no one had predicted—no one *could* have predicted.

“W-What… what just happened?”

“Did both of them fall?”

No one understood what had occurred.

They hadn’t even been able to see it.

All they saw was the crow losing its head and collapsing, as if it had happened out of nowhere.

‘This is…’

And Gracia was no different.

The crow—fifth pillar—was not the only one down.

Even Baal had collapsed as though dead.

But unlike the crow, Baal’s body continued to writhe.

《‘The One Who *Is* the Abyss’ begins evolving into ‘A Deeper Abyss.’》

Seeing the message float before his eyes, Gracia frowned deeply.

“…You’ve got to be kidding me.”

He spat out a curse.

Evolving even further now?

If that monster—one even fifth pillar couldn’t stop—grew stronger still, how could humanity possibly stop it?

‘It’s over.’

No other thought came to mind.

*

*

 

《You have died to the Fragment of Ruin.》

《Game Over》

I looked around.

Two lines appeared before me.

Death. And Game Over.

A scene I had seen countless times.

From games.

You die, and that’s the ending. Simple.

But just moments ago, I had been overwhelming Baal.

I’d been forcing him into a corner.

Then why?

‘Don’t tell me… again…’

Like when I killed the Demon King—did I accidentally trigger another forced bug?

But unlike that time, this wasn’t a game.

This was reality—the world I was *living* in.

“…Seriously, what kind of trash game is this?”

I never thought I’d utter those words again.

And worse, this wasn’t even a game.

If I die here, I don’t come back.

The Fragment of Ruin.

It must function similarly to what appeared when the Demon King died.

This was the problem.

This damned world was filled with variables ready to lop my head off the moment I let my guard down.

I never imagined this would happen even after using the Throne of the Most Radiant Light.

Am I in the afterlife now?

As I was looking around, that was when—

《Game Ove》

The window before me.

One letter suddenly erased itself.

At first, I thought I’d misread it.

《Game Ov》

《Game O》

…That was the beginning.

All the letters vanished.

No more “Game Over,” no more “You have died.”

Instead, the empty space began to fill with new words.

《Consuming ‘Flame of Life.’》

《Hidden Trait ‘Randolph (Eternal)’ activates!》

 

Fwoooosh!

At the same time, flames erupted from my chest.

In an instant, the flames spread across my entire body.

‘This fire is…’

Yet something felt off.

The true nature of these flames—this thing burning me as fuel.

Because these flames were unmistakably the aggregate of souls killed and stolen by the Reapers.

The so-called ‘Flame of the Sinner.’

But the new message called it the “Flame of Life.”

A sinner’s flame cannot become a flame of life.

Its nature had completely changed.

If that was possible, then the reason was obvious—

‘Did Hel… swallow it and spit it out?’

Only Hel’s influence could explain it.

When Hel ate and spat it out, the other lineages rejected the flame with disgust.

It wasn’t just a simple “ate it and spat it out” issue.

It wasn’t dirty—they literally *could not consume it* anymore, because its nature had been rewritten.

And by consuming this altered flame, the hidden trait—

‘Randolph (Eternal)’—activated.

‘Mystic Destruction, and evolving the Iron-Blood Monarch’s Heart into the Eternal Monarch’s Heart.’

The effects of Randolph (Eternal).

I’d assumed that was all there was.

Honestly, even those two abilities alone were absurdly valuable.

Destroying any monster’s mystic regardless of its grade, and deleting dungeon conditions via the Eternal Monarch’s Heart…

Naturally, it was difficult to imagine there being more.

‘…But those two weren’t all. There was a third function.’

One that only activated upon death.

Only now did I understand why it was called **Randolph (Eternal)**.

My entire body burned from the Flame of Life, until finally, I turned to ash.

Immediately afterward—

Twitch—

From the black ashes, change began.

【‘Clestial’ raises its head.】

【‘Mutant’ opens its eyes.】

【‘Great Sage’ watches.】

【‘Void’ flares its nostrils.】

【‘Beast Lord’ scents the air.】

【‘Glutton’ opens its mouth.】

【‘High Druid of the Great Nature’ sings.】

【‘Dexterity’ reaches out its hand.】

【‘Weapon Master’ grips the heart.】

【‘Eternal Monarch’s Heart’ beats violently.】

【‘Giant’s Anti-Magic’ rises.】

【‘All Master’ begins to run.】

【‘Golden Grace’ stabilizes the core.】

【‘Randolph (Eternal)’ begins eternity.】

*

*

A black barrier surrounding Jeju Island.

Warriors gathered around the perimeter of the territory completely engulfed by that darkness.

Among them was Park Tae-woo, leader of the Hero Alliance.

Standing atop a large warship—

“Even the ‘Projection’ ability users can’t see inside, Sir.”

“Neither can the ‘Piercing Mirror.’ Nothing shows up.”

Park Tae-woo clenched his fist and bit his lip.

It was already the 16th day.

Since Baal became ‘The One Who Is the *Abyss*,’ and since the warp engulfed Jeju, there had been no progress at all.

All communications were cut.

Entering from outside was impossible.

No one could grasp what was happening inside.

‘Are we supposed to just watch like this?’

Damn it.

Even if they’d planned to abandon Jeju, this wasn’t how it should’ve gone.

He had intended to assemble a rescue team as quickly as possible, to save whoever he could.

But they were blocked before they could even begin.

‘This is my failure.’

His failure.

He shouldn’t have kept it hidden.

When he found the red warp, he should’ve reported it and taken action.

‘If I hadn’t hidden it then…’

More people might’ve escaped Jeju.

But regret came far too late.

No amount of it could change reality now.

“How did the inquiry go?”

Park Tae-woo asked. The deputy leader replied:

“We… couldn’t make contact. Gracia’s associates blocked Korea’s link entirely.”

Link severed.

Meaning: no access whatsoever.

“So we can’t even learn if he’s alive or dead?”

“No, sir. There’s been no announcement either.”

Park Tae-woo only wanted to know whether Gracia was alive.

If the true body that had descended into the Abyss during the Cartel event was alive, then the people of Jeju might still be alive as well.

“What about the others? Gracia wasn’t the only player in the Cartel.”

“The twelve we confirmed—all dead.”

“…”

It was hopeless.

Their real bodies on Earth were dead.

They died when they were dragged into the Abyss.

The deputy added,

“We’re checking foreign cases as well, through other channels but…”

“Not easy, is it.”

“No. But—Reporter Kim Hana told us something strange.”

Kim Hana.

A journalist who dove into any Dimension Warrior matter without hesitation.

She made her name through her interview with Gracia, and was the first to mention “Randolph” publicly.

An uncomfortable presence for players—one best avoided.

“Speak.”

“She said… the ‘Sage’ is alive. That the people of Jeju are alive as well. And she’s been trying to contact us repeatedly.”

“Who is this Sage?”

“She said she can’t reveal that.”

“Even now?”

“She swore to the Sage that even if she dies, she will not reveal their identity.”

A vow?

Was she being blackmailed?

But words alone weren’t enough.

Without confirming the source, it was no better than a conspiracy theory.

“…Sir, the government is urging withdrawal.”

“Already?”

“Yes. They want us to set up defenses at Wando and prepare for the worst.”

“So they’ve written off Jeju.”

His mouth tasted bitter.

Abandon Jeju? Retreat?

He had spent sixteen days and nights on the coastline, never once leaving his watch.

Because he believed everything was his fault.

“…Not yet. I’ll retreat later if I must—but before that, I need to meet Reporter Kim Hana.”

If he could confirm the Sage’s existence, then it meant the people of Jeju were alive.

He *had* to confirm it.

The deputy bowed.

“Yes, sir. I’ll bring her quietly.”

*

*

Kim Hana swallowed hard.

It was forbidden for any civilian—let alone a journalist—to approach Jeju, aside from soldiers and Dimension Warriors.

Yet Park Tae-woo had secretly brought her in.

“You confirmed that the ‘Sage’ is alive?”

Park Tae-woo asked, handing her a coffee.

“Yes… And many people on Jeju are alive as well.”

She answered with certainty.

Alive. Hope must not be abandoned.

Park Tae-woo spoke bitterly.

“I’d like to believe that too, but the government ordered us to withdraw.”

Kim Hana’s eyes widened.

“T-The government? How could they…”

“A disappearing Jeju is less important than a surviving Korean peninsula.”

“…”

Kim Hana was at a loss for words.

She had never imagined the government would make such a decision barely sixteen days in.

Even if—by some miracle—people managed to emerge alive from Jeju, a rescue team would be necessary to retrieve them quickly.

And they were pulling all of that back?

“Besides, most people already believe Jeju has been ‘erased.’ In that sense, the government’s judgment is realistic.”

Many had already accepted Jeju’s disappearance as fact.

The only one who hadn’t given up was Park Tae-woo.

Park Tae-woo spoke quietly.

“…Unless I see that ‘Sage’ with my own eyes.”

But Kim Hana shook her head.

“That… isn’t possible.”

“Why not? If you could just verify whether the Sage is alive, we wouldn’t have to withdraw the frontline from Jeju.”

Death in Pangaenia meant death in reality.

If that Sage had sunk into the Abyss alongside Baal and yet was still alive, then their true body on Earth would also be alive.

With that as evidence, they could justify maintaining the defensive line.

“Instead, I’ll give you other information.”

“…Better than that?”

Kim Hana nodded and, with a grave expression, took a *book* from inside her coat.

“What’s happening inside. And why the frontline absolutely cannot be withdrawn right now.”

…What in the world was written in that book?

Park Tae-woo accepted the book she handed over and quickly flipped through it.
It was written in the style of a diary.

*

*

—Day 1

The day after the clash of the giant monsters.
People banded tightly together, preparing for the worst.

A small number of “Curse-Born” had survived and begun harassing people again.

—Day 2

When we woke up, all the Curse-Born were gone.

But on the barren land, people were still shaken.

Because they had witnessed the headless corpse of the ill-omened crow being absorbed into Baal.

—Day 3

The surviving warriors gathered to attack Baal.

Led by Gracia. But they couldn’t leave so much as a scratch on Baal’s outer shell.

 

 

 

---