I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-266

Ch-266. **Descent of the Heavenly Demon**

—

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

In an instant, silence fell.

To decipher the tome, master it, and even deploy it with full proficiency—in less than ten minutes!

“Hyun of Adrium…!”

Aaron, who hailed from the same city of Adrium, furrowed his brow deeply.

The Goddess Church that encompassed all of Pangaenia.

Was he really inferior to some refugee-like nobody, when he himself was the son of one of the twelve cardinals—the very elite of the Goddess Church—and had always been hailed as a genius?

“…This test was probably designed with at least a full day in mind.”

There had been no time limit from the start.

In other words, it was a setup meant to account for long hours.

The rule that standing up meant elimination was clearly intended to assess endurance, concentration, comprehension, and interpretive ability in equal measure.

No eating, no relieving oneself—sit still and read the book, and nothing else.

On the 10th floor of the Tower of the War God were gathered the tournament favorites.

And beyond them, nearly a thousand so-called “geniuses” were assembled in one place.

And yet…

Even so—

“How can a mere level 4…?”

Hyun of Adrium.

The number embroidered above his head.

That number—the lowest here—was **4**.

Compared to the countless “geniuses” gathered here, he looked frail and utterly ordinary.

Some here had reached as high as level 12.

Aaron himself was level 10.

Among those who had climbed to the 10th floor, Hyun was the only one who came from the Warrior bracket.

That was why he had mocked him.

—Level 4?
—Did he take a wrong turn?
—Go drink more of your mother’s milk and come back.

Aaron wasn’t the only one who had laughed.

Everyone knew that the number above one’s head—*level*—quantified martial strength.

Naturally, the lowest-level participant became the target of ridicule.

“Even if the number isn’t absolute, it’s still a meaningful benchmark.”

Lower-level fighters defeating higher-level ones happened often enough.

But there were limits.

Victories across a gap of two levels or more were exceedingly rare.

At level 4, it should have been normal for him to lose to absolutely everyone here.

“Was he just lucky? Or is his ability to decipher texts exceptionally high?”

…The very object of that ridicule—

Hyun of Adrium completed the test faster than anyone else.

All eyes turned to the knights.

Was that truly the correct answer?

“…Remarkable.”

That was the first thing the knight said upon seeing the mana crystal completely drained.

The Fang Order.

The strongest knightly order in the Empire, and at the same time the strongest on the continent.

Veterans who had fought wars against the Abyss and contributed most to the Empire’s prosperity through countless reversals!

Even they—who rarely found anything surprising—were clearly shaken by this situation.

“But it is not the correct answer.”

The response, however, was the exact opposite.

Only then did Aaron let out a sigh of relief.

As expected.

After all… how could this possibly make sense?

Just as most of the participants were thinking, *That figures*—

Thud!

Someone newly entered the 10th floor of the tower.

“…!”

The moment they saw him, everyone froze like stone.

The Fang knights were no exception.

Their eyes went wide as they stiffened.

“How could…!”

The man who had appeared approached Hyun of Adrium.

Even his expression showed disbelief.

In fact, his eyes were sharper than anyone else’s here.

“Why is Lord Raiga here?”

“And why does he look like that?”

…Raiga.

He had come to the testing grounds himself.

And with an unmistakable sense of urgency.

“How did you… complete this?”

…Completed it?

Completed *what*?

Did that mean the book handed out to everyone was incomplete?

And Hyun of Adrium had completed it?

“Did you already know it? Or—!”

“Just…”

At that point, Hyun of Adrium finally spoke for the first time.

But his answer was unsatisfying.

Just?

“…?”

“I just… understood it when I looked at it.”

“…What?”

For a moment, Raiga was utterly dumbfounded.

Understood it just by looking?

What kind of nonsense was that?

*The Life-and-Death Scripture.*

This book was an unfinished work.

It had existed since the founding of Fang, but from the very beginning it had been incomplete.

Generations had tried to complete it, but none had succeeded.

Completing the book had long since become Fang’s fervent wish.

Yet even as a half-finished text, it had one definite function.

*A book that triggers the mutation of a hidden trait.*

A mandatory hidden trait for becoming Fang’s successor.

For the successor to fully absorb the mana and blessings passed down by the previous Fang bearer, a “mutant” was necessary.

Thus, this book existed to provide a clue toward awakening that hidden trait mutant.

“Read it, master it, and slowly gain a mutant trait along with a small absorption ability.”

Of course, reading the book itself was exceedingly difficult.

Deciphering invisible text was no easy task.

Using the technique learned that way to absorb *a small amount* of mana from the mana crystal—that was the essence of this test.

Yet Hyun of Adrium absorbed *all* the mana from the crystal.

That was impossible unless the half-finished book had been completed.

Even more shocking was the absurd thing the man said next.

Pretending to hold a pen, he pointed at the book.

“Should I write it down for you?”

—

—

 

Honestly, I was surprised.

The Life-and-Death Scripture.

When I saw the contents written within it—

“The Heavenly Demon Divine Art?”

It was similar.

Far too similar to the principles of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art that the demonic god of the Heavenly Demon Blade had babbled about.

And at the same time, I realized it.

“…It was originally one and the same technique as the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.”

They shared the same underlying principle.

Though there were slight differences.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Art amplifies mana, while the Devouring Essence Art draws mana in.

Originally, those two functions were meant to coexist.

But they had been split apart.

Even the Heavenly Demon Blade had not learned the Devouring Essence Art.

Why?

Had the demonic god not taught it?

Or did even the demonic god not know?

“So that’s why the demonic god was sealed in the Heavenly Demon Blade.”

The reason a fiend who once ruled the heavens was sealed within a mere sword.

Perhaps the one who sealed him had divided his martial arts, fearing the fiend’s overwhelming power.

So that he would never be completed again.

So that he would never emerge into the world again.

The problem lay in the contents of the Life-and-Death Scripture.

“Large portions are missing.”

This book, too, was incomplete.

As if someone had deliberately erased parts of it.

And I thought I understood why.

“Since it couldn’t be mastered anyway, they must have left only the parts that *could* be learned.”

Without mastering the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, the Devouring Essence Art could never be fully learned.

So only the necessary learnable fragments were left behind.

So that Fang’s power could be fully inherited.

So that the hidden trait “Mutant” could be manifested.

“…The first Lord of Fang sealed the First Heavenly Demon.”

A truth I had never known.

That meant the two were mortal enemies.

The first Lord of Fang wished for his power, techniques, and blessings to be passed down.

And through the First Heavenly Demon’s martial art, that became possible.

Thus, under normal circumstances, the Heavenly Demon’s martial art should never have been completed.

…Because no one could have predicted the emergence of someone like me.

“Heh.”

The Heavenly Demon Divine Art, taught directly by a demonic god.

With its principles and interpretation in hand, I could immediately identify the missing portions upon seeing the half-finished Life-and-Death Scripture.

And at the same time—

《The “Heavenly Demon Divine Art” has been completed as “Heavenly Demon Divine Art – Record of Life and Death.”》

《You can now use “Heavenly Demon Descent.”》

It was complete.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Art—something not even the Heavenly Demon himself had been able to finish.

The martial art that even the demonic god had lost!

“…You’re saying you can write down the missing parts?”

At the same time, Raiga’s hands began to tremble ever so slightly.

The Life-and-Death Scripture was not merely for triggering “mutant.”

It was Fang’s long-cherished wish.

How tirelessly they had struggled to complete this book.

Now, at the very brink of fulfilling that wish—

How could he not tremble?

“Either way, you won’t be able to master it.”

I hadn’t offered to write it down thoughtlessly.

If I did, he would have to accept me as his disciple.

He would have to declare me the definitive champion.

And even if I told him the missing parts, he wouldn’t be able to master them anyway.

Only by mastering the Heavenly Demon Divine Art—taught directly by a demonic god—could it be completed.

And there would never again be an opportunity to learn the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Just as I was about to nod—

Rumble!

The tower began to shake violently.

Thud! Thud-thud!

Chunks of dirt fell from the cracked ceiling.

The swaying was so severe it was hard to maintain balance.

“W-what is this?”

“I-is it collapsing?”

The people stared in confusion at the violently shaking tower.

No one knew what was happening.

Was this another trial?

They all looked to Raiga.

“……”

But one look at Raiga’s expression told them it wasn’t.

His face had frozen solid.

The difference, however, was that Raiga knew exactly what was about to happen.

“War God Karas… you bastard…!”

《All challengers on the 10th floor will be moved to the 11th floor.》

《Participants who are not challenging the tower will be automatically eliminated.》

《Face the new trial and forge another myth!》

《Climb to the 30th floor of the tower and challenge the champion!》

《Those who create a new myth shall be remembered forever!》

—

—

 

War God Karas.

He wanted to see it.

“How beautiful is one who surpasses their limits.”

The sight of challengers surpassing their limits within the tower.

When they had climbed the tower and challenged him—

He had never forgotten that thrill.

They shattered limit after limit, defeated the champion, slew Sansha the Demon of Envy, and then challenged War God Karas himself, who had reclaimed his divinity.

“I want to see records that should never be broken—and yet are broken.”

Randolph.

The records he set were unprecedented.

But as the master of the tower, Karas wished to see those records surpassed.

Even if not, challengers who reached the champion should appear regularly.

“…Foolish humans.”

They were far too complacent.

Like this, they would never surpass their “limits.”

They didn’t even consider climbing to the 30th floor to challenge the champion.

Winning a mere tournament was nothing compared to challenging the tower.

And yet they dared to stop at the 10th floor?

Once you climb the tower, you must challenge it to the end.

You don’t get to decide where it ends.

That was why Karas applied *his* rules.

He forced them upward.

“They fight, compete, and surpass their limits. But that’s not all.”

The newly refurbished tower was different from before.

It wasn’t merely an arena for combat.

True struggle lay elsewhere.

“A battle against oneself is the surest path to transcendence.”

That was the most certain way to know oneself and surpass one’s limits.

The Tower of the War God.

Those who climb it.

Climb, and climb again, until they stand at the summit.

Will be perfected—

As true War Gods.

—

—

 

At that moment.

When Isabella arrived in the Kingdom of Valan, she couldn’t help but panic.

“W-where did he go?”

…Randolph had vanished without a trace.