I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-203

Ch-203. **Upending the Game**

—

The number of souls displayed by the man wearing the lion mask was roughly twenty.

Each one—beginning with the Star-bearer—was the soul of an exalted being.

And yet, I couldn’t quite grasp what exactly *190,000* meant as a score.

One thing, however, was certain.

**‘He has been preparing far longer than I have.’**

This banquet was nothing like the previous one.

These were souls they had cherished and collected over a long period.

As if they were finally deciding to open the vault they had guarded all this time.

Unlike them, my time as a Patron had been short. There was barely any time to prepare anything.

I had only prepared exactly two souls.

Union—and the Cursed Soul.

*Shrrip.*

*Thud! Thud! Thud!*

When the lion-masked Patron pulled out his souls, every other “Lineages” fell speechless.

Drooling, eyes glimmering, trembling with excitement like they could jump forward at any moment.

**‘The light of the Red Moon is affecting Hel as well.’**

Hell was no different.

I didn’t know exactly what that moonlight was, but one thing was clear: the “Great Moon” was undeniably connected to the Lineage.

“Does anyone else have confidence that they can exceed the *value* of the Golden Lion?”

The Golden Mask continued the proceedings.

Clearly the bar set by the lion-masked man was high—so high that no one could raise their hand lightly.

If someone took up the challenge recklessly only to be judged as having pathetic value, it would bring nothing but humiliation.

Then finally, when someone did raise a hand, the Golden Mask reacted with mild surprise.

“Golden Monkey. If you are stepping forward, that must mean you are confident.”

“Ah yes. It’s only that the Golden Lion’s banquet turned out far more unimpressive than expected.”

A blatant provocation.

The Golden Lion clenched his fist at the remark.

“Unimpressive?”

“Yes—unimpressive. At best, you’ve gathered star-bearer and their riffraff, haven’t you?”

“…Is there a soul among those we hunt that has more value than a Star-bearer?”

They despise Players.

They loathe everything related to the Goddess.

There was simply no soul more valuable to them than that of a Star-bearer.

The Golden Monkey sneered.

“You’re blinded by prejudice, Golden Lion. Didn’t they call this a *Special Banquet*? It doesn’t have to be related to ‘Sinners’. Use your head, if you have one.”

“Monkey. Are you sure you want to die?”

Around the lion-masked man, everything began to rise—
as if gravity had vanished.

The atmosphere primed to explode.

“…Enough. The will of the Great Moon is watching this sacred venue. Fighting must not occur.”

“…”

*Thunk.*

The oppressive air receded.

It seemed the invocation of the Great Moon’s will had worked.

The Golden Mask followed up smoothly.

“We fight only through the *value of souls*. The one with higher value is the victor. The one with lesser value is the loser. If one rejects this simple and clear rule, they have no right to attend the banquet.”

“…Very well, then. Let us see whether the will of the Great Moon agrees with the monkey’s remarks.”

The lion-masked man nodded.

There was no need to respond to a monkey’s cheap provocation.

He could judge after seeing the value of the soul the man would present.

**‘He’s on a completely different level.’**

A moment ago—the murderous intent that crawled across my skin.

He was nothing like the transcendents wearing silver masks that I’d seen outside.

At least 3★. Perhaps higher.

And yet—I still could not see their *information*.

Hidden Traits—or perhaps something else—were completely concealing it.

> 《You are designated as an “Unobservable Target.”》

A sudden message surfaced.

All of them were designated as **Unobservable**.

I hadn’t known before my ascension into the “Eyes of Truth.”

And according to the message, **someone** had deliberately made them impossible to observe.

**‘The same as the *Aspect of the Radiant Pureblood*.’**

There are many tools or equipment that grant an *unobservable* option.

But to make the **wearer themselves** unobservable—or specify someone else as unobservable—there is only one item I know that can do that.

The *Aspect of the Radiant Pureblood.*

If so, perhaps the other **Rings of the Absolute** have similar functions.

Which would mean—

**‘Somewhere in this palace, there is a Ring of the Absolute.’**

That was the only reasonable conclusion.

At least one—if not more—Rings of the Absolute were present in this palace.

Would it belong to one of the Patrons?

Or someone else altogether?

**‘Not the Patrons. They don’t trust each other.’**

It wasn’t one of them.

Someone who values them as a group had bundled them together under that protection.

For example—

**‘The Sleeping Emperor… perhaps.’**

It wouldn’t be strange for the Sleeping Emperor to possess such a ring.

He could have designated the eleven Patrons as unobservable.

—

“I have prepared the soul of the ‘Black Emperor.’”

“You mean the Black King?”

The Black King of the South.

He was also called the Black Emperor—a supreme being.

If he had captured that soul, then no number of Star-bearers could ever compare.

When the lion-mask asked in shock, the monkey-mask shook his head.

“No. I mean one of the Six Emperors—those who once rivaled the Hexagon of the old Empire.”

“The Six Emperors…? Those storm-lords of the old continent?”

“Yes. The details aren’t fully recorded anymore, but once you look, you’ll understand the value of the Black Emperor’s soul.”

Dozens of reapers rose behind the monkey-mask.

Roughly fifty souls.

The one at the center was supposedly the Black Emperor.

All eyes focused on it, and soon the red light gathered—calculating the score.

**【120,105】**

…The result was far below the lion-mask’s.

The monkey-masked man trembled.

“Th—there’s no way…! Something must be wrong!”

His voice cracked with disbelief—the score was far lower than he’d expected.

But no matter how he shouted, the number did not change.

The Patrons clicked their tongues.

“What a disgrace.”

“Hmph. The will of the Great Moon must be disappointed.”

The Golden Lion’s laughter rang across the chamber.

“Hahahaha! Foolish monkey. So confident, and you only managed *120,000*? If I were you, I’d never show my face again.”

“…”

“Black Emperor? What a waste of a name. Oh? Or did you mistake him for the Black Earthworm?”

“…”

The tides had turned.

The victor was the Lion; the loser was the Monkey.

And losers deserved silence.

There was no one to blame but his own rotten eyes.

“Does any wish to continue the challenge? Everyone must reveal their offering eventually. The will of the Great Moon may look favorably upon the one who steps forward first.”

The lion-mask spoke with pompous arrogance.

“Then why don’t *you* step forward first, Golden Mask?”

“That is true. Very well.”

The Golden Mask nodded.

He should set the example.

Behind him, countless reapers rose.

Yet he had prepared exactly **two souls**.

But their size—
they were so enormous that multiple reapers struggled to support each one.

“What… is that?”

“Are souls supposed to be that big?”

Even the Patrons were stunned.

They had never seen souls that massive.

The Golden Mask spoke casually.

“Twin giants who once supported the world in ancient times.”

“You can’t mean… *Cheonrak* and *Narak*…?”

“Yes, Golden Lion. You know them as well, I see.”

“…!!”

Not only the Golden Lion—but every Patron who knew that name flinched.

Cheonrak and Narak.

Names from the mythical era of ancient times.

They didn’t literally hold up the world—but they were *that enormous.*

Giants so large even other giants called *them* giants.

One body, two faces—thus two souls.

“Hmph. Even so… size isn’t everything. They were famous for their size, but didn’t they lack meaningful mythic feats?”

The lion-mask tried to hold his ground.

**【250,000】**

But the score completely eclipsed his.

“…!”

“Two-hundred fifty thousand points. Not bad.”

The Golden Mask shrugged.

The lion-mask stood frozen stiff.

No doubt his face beneath the mask had gone pale.

Scores continued.

**Most landed in the 100,000 range.**

Only one Patron besides the Golden Lion surpassed 200,000.

**【245,000】 — the Fox Mask.**

She had prepared the souls of both a High Cardinal and a Saint of the Goddess Cult.

Yet even they could not compare to the mythic twin giants.

Still—his was formidable.

“This might be the finest banquet ever assembled.”

“If we could consume all of this, we could soar in a single leap.”

Everyone marveled at the level of souls gathered.

When the score verifications of all eleven concluded—

“It is now your turn, Golden Goat.”

…At last, my turn.

I sighed inwardly and slowly stepped forward.

Standing beside the Golden Mask, I hesitated for a moment.

**‘Hel cannot summon reapers.’**

Unlike the others, Hel cannot summon reapers.

At least, it has never done so yet.

It only transforms.

But all other Patrons had shown reapers bearing their souls, so yes—
I was worried.

But I could no longer back down.

“So, this time—did you prepare anything?”

“Well, even if he did, it won’t amount to much.”

“Hm.”

Compared to them, the time I had to prepare for this banquet was absurdly short.

Perhaps that’s why most of them openly gazed at me with scorn or ridicule.

*Heh-heh-hkyaak!*

Hel swung its scythe.

Then—

*Rrip!*

Its body bloated and twisted—transformation complete.

The Patrons stared, perplexed.

“What is that hideous form?”

“He didn’t summon a reaper… he *became* one?”

“A freak among freaks.”

An Lineage turning into a reaper rather than summoning one.

Grotesque. Abnormal.

A true aberration.

Regardless, Hel drew forth a single soul—shrouded in black.

“Only one?”

“Hm… does he not intend to win?”

“He won’t get another chance. This is the final turn.”

Everyone had presented **at least two** souls.

Some had offered more than a hundred—waging war with sheer volume.

And yet—I had only one.

Clearly, I had no intention of winning.

…Judging from their reactions, that was the obvious conclusion.

I murmured quietly:

“The soul I prepared is that of the ‘Cursed One.’”

“The Cursed One? That is all?”

The Golden Mask asked.

I nodded.

“That is all.”

It was the truth. I knew nothing else.

Not even a name.

Only that it was “the soul of the Cursed One.” No way to explain it beyond that.

I didn’t expect much.

It’s said to be the soul the Ruin used to curse Einhassar and corrupt him—but who could say whether its value could compare to the Golden Mask’s display?

“Is this simply the ‘bare minimum preparation’ required to attend the banquet…?”

Even the Golden Mask looked puzzled.

It seemed he believed I only brought the **minimum** necessary to participate.

He wasn’t exactly wrong.

“Let us see, then. Golden Goat—whether you can create an anomaly again, as you did in the first banquet.”

…What a bastard.

**‘From the beginning, he intended to exclude me in front of everyone.’**

He had set the board to leave me behind.

In the first banquet, Hel caused an anomaly—

stealing everyone’s opportunity.

This time, it was *my* turn to be robbed of mine.

“…”