I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-40

Ch-40. **Awe**

—

Isaac and Isabella exchanged glances.

*‘There are… more and more of them, aren’t there?’*

*‘……’*

*‘Shouldn’t we at least be slipping away before this gets worse?’*

Isabella shook her head firmly.

Isaac frowned.
The situation was taking a strange turn.

As the Tower of Mystery began to change, monsters from all across Cramdel gathered.

And that wasn’t all.

After Gunggi appeared, now the entirety of the **Four Pillars**—the actual rulers of Cramdel—had joined as well.

There wasn’t a single gap left to escape through.

*‘Someone might recognize my transformation…’*

Isaac felt a deep, creeping anxiety.

Among this many monsters, there could very well be one capable of seeing through the fact that he was human.

If that happened, it was instant death.
There would be no way to leave alive.

But he wasn’t the only one in danger.

*‘I can’t shake the feeling I’ve gotten tangled in something terrible.’*

The half-dragon woman before him and the King of Corpse Crows.

The moment those two appeared, Isaac’s peaceful days evaporated.

For the past year, no one had ever found him.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that his carefree life in Cramdel was completely over.

And yet, he’d received something—he couldn’t simply cut ties.

And so, Isaac was dying to ask:

*‘…Don’t tell me this whole situation was caused by that Corpse Crow?’*

—meaning the half-dragon woman.

Isabella.
Her eyes carried an odd certainty.

But he couldn’t ask.

The moment he opened his mouth—even the softest whisper—they would catch it.

The tens of thousands of monsters gathered around were undoubtedly reading every subtle movement.

Any suspicious sign and his head would roll.

Or he would turn to stone and hang upon the gate for eternity.

Either way—horrific.

*‘I need to think of a way out of this.’*

Isaac rubbed his chin.

He had to devise a way to smuggle out this self-proclaimed Star bearer—the King of Corpse Crows.

When the tower opened, the hundred monsters who had previously entered would burst out simultaneously.

He needed a method to smuggle out only the Star bearer…

…while hiding it from the eyes of the Four Pillars and the nearly hundred thousand monsters around them.

*‘As if something like that exists.’*

He shook his head inwardly.

No matter how skilled he was at escaping, he could never flee from the Four Pillars.

Even if he poured in everything he had, he’d be caught in under ten seconds.

…Honestly, probably less than five.

He had no intention of racing Gunggi—the fastest being in the world.

Dodging Medusa’s gaze spreading in all directions was impossible.

If the Great Earth Dragon breathed even once, every escape route would collapse.

If the Death King seized his soul, his end would be even more miserable.

There were thousands—no, tens of thousands—of escape techniques,
but not one that would work here.

*Gulp.*

*‘But…’*

Isaac swallowed and looked closely at the Four Pillars.

Then he tilted his head.

*‘The Four Pillars… look tense?’*

Something was off.

He could feel the tension radiating from them as they gathered before the tower.

Impossible.

Who were the Four Pillars?

Each one was an unmatched sovereign.

Monsters capable of wiping out an entire city on their own.

For instance, the Death King had once annihilated an entire metropolis now known as “Necro Valley.”

It had been the thriving capital of a kingdom—
reduced to a heap of corpses in a single day.

Now, only tombs and wandering dead remained.

Since then, humans never dared step foot in Cramdel—the domain of the Four Pillars.

And yet, beings at the level of the Death King—four of them—were all gathered.

Creatures capable of killing even a Demon King were… tense?

All because of the tower’s change?

*‘The moment the rings became five…’*

What was certain was that back when the rings were only four, they hadn’t been this tense.

The moment the fifth appeared, their tension visibly spiked.

Could this change—this so-called Myth Trial—really be enough to make the Four Pillars nervous?

—FWOOOOOOSH!

Then it happened.

The five rings at the top of the tower changed.

They shone even brighter—then began merging.

They combined into a single form—
a crown.

…And that crown.

Isaac blinked.

*‘That’s the crown the Star bearer— the King of Corpse Crows—wears.’*

He wanted to scream.

No matter how he looked, it was unmistakably that crown.

He had thought—*no way, no way*—
but it truly seemed this change had been caused by that self-proclaimed Star bearer.

One single person had drawn the attention of every monster in Cramdel…
as well as the Four Pillars?

“Here they come!”

“The tower has opened!”

As the monsters shouted, the entrants began emerging one by one.

And immediately, they stiffened.

“S–Sovereigns…!”

“Why are they all gathered here?!”

Countless monsters were assembled—
including the Four Pillars.

But they were not the same.

Especially the Four Pillars—just laying eyes on them was crushing.

No monster here would dare not tremble.

The mythic species like Imugis or the phantasmal Phoenixes were slightly better off—
but even they couldn’t move a muscle.

One by one, the Four Pillars stepped forward, surveying the frozen monsters.

Somewhere among them had to be a Transcendent.

A true monster who had surpassed even the feat of the White King—
who had created five rings.

“…Were you all waiting for me?”

Then—

Everyone’s attention turned.

The being who had emerged from the tower with no sign of intimidation—even with the Four Pillars before him.

If anything, he was relaxed, even making jokes.

Monsters watching from afar whispered.

“An Imugi!”

“Well… if it’s an Imugi, there’s at least a chance.”

The one who’d appeared was a mythic Imugi.

And not just any—one on the brink of becoming a dragon.

To prove it, the Wish Pearl embedded in his chest was swollen as if about to burst.

*‘As expected of the Four Pillars—they must’ve sensed my potential.’*

The Imugi puffed out his chest.

The Four Pillars themselves were spectators.

Such a spectacle could only mean one thing—

They must have responded to the ‘Mystery’ he’d obtained.

If not for inviting him—to acknowledge his potential—
why else would they be gathered?

“The Mystery I gained is the very *Proof of a King*!
It is the qualification to surpass even the Great Earth Dragon!
No need for more words—the legendary Mystery: **Phantom Dragon’s Mist**!”

Mist spread around him.

Seven colored lights shimmered within it—like a rainbow blooming.

Phantom Dragon’s Mist.

A legendary Mystery, said to be the remnant of the Phantom Dragon of myth.

By invoking the Great Earth Dragon, he was essentially declaring his ambition.

The Four Pillars spoke one after another.

“Not him.”

“No.”

“Mm. Definitely not.”

“…….”

Unanimous.

The Great Earth Dragon, Gunggi, the Death King, and Medusa all agreed:

This Imugi was *not* a Transcendent.

After him, a Trueblood of the Blood Race emerged—
but again, they shook their heads.

“All of them are wrong.”

At the Great Earth Dragon’s words, the other Pillars agreed.

Ninety-nine entrants emerged—
and all were disappointing.

None could possibly be the Transcendent.

Even the mythic and phantasmal species whose racial values dwarfed others—
worthless.

But it wasn’t over.

*‘The last to emerge must be the Transcendent.’*

It had to be.

And then—

*Tap.*

The final entrant stepped out.

And the Four Pillars immediately swallowed disappointment.

“Hmm…?”

“A Corpse Crow…?”

The King of Corpse Crows.

…The most unimpressive creature among them all.

—

—

 

# **《You have cleared the Trial: Wall of Species (5).》**

The message floated before my eyes.

The fifth trial was complete.

The five stages—from Corpse Crow, to Void, to Giant, to Druid, and finally Celestial—
had come to an end.

*‘Was the trial of the Celestial… the refusal of the final reward?’*

The first four trials had all been battles.

I had added traits one by one, strengthening the skeleton soldiers.

With not a finger’s worth of strength left in me,
there was simply no way I could clear the Celestial trait—
worth a racial value of twenty.

Then the message appeared:

*“Final reward.”*
*“Myth Completed.”*

They had even named the Mystery after me, calling it Unique grade.

Anyone would have been tempted.

Any sane player would accept the reward and finish.

After all, if no reward existed beyond that,
why continue?

But the unsettling feeling—the refusal to accept—
pushed me to decline.

*‘…Don’t tell me that was the correct answer?’*

If so, it was a problem in itself.

*‘Then what is the Celestial trait?’*

What I wanted above all was to see the Celestial trait.

I needed to know what a Celestial was—
and why it had twice the racial value of any other hidden trait.

Or… was this choice itself tied to “Celestial”?

At that moment—

—

# **《To the indomitable challenger who runs toward the ending they themselves chose.》**

# **《The Tower feels awe toward your pure desire for completion.》**

# **《You have achieved the feat: “The Challenger Who Became Myth Itself.”》**

# **《Honor +500》**

# **《The Tower promises: Your challenge will be recorded forever within the Sarcophagus of Mystery.》**

# **《You have received the Out-of-Standard grade Mystery: “Eternal Randolph.”》**

Out-of-Standard.

An entirely new rank.

A grade that cannot be classified above Unique.

Thus—Beyond Standard.

A reward indicating that any further trials or choices were meaningless.

—

# **《All constellations of the People’s Hall cannot believe their eyes.》**

# **《At the existence of a thing that should not exist!》**

# **《Constellations tremble before the ultimate Mystery.》**

# **《Main Quest 5: Obtain a Mystery — Completed.》**

# **《You have obtained: “Very Large Fragment of the Broken Golden Scale” 300h (200+100).》**

Finally—
I had achieved the purpose of coming to Cramdel.

To clear Main Quest 5 with overwhelming results.

The constellations’ ramblings hardly registered.

All my attention was focused.

—

# **《Calculating results…》**

# **《Out-of-Standard grade cannot be calculated.》**

It couldn’t be scored.

A non-existent grade could not be converted into points.

As I frowned, new messages appeared:

# **《By unanimous vote, the highest score is awarded.》**

# **《Total Score: 500》**

# **《Updated to Hall of Fame.》**

# **《The “Constellation of Luck” gives a thumbs up. Rewards are further upgraded.》**

# **《The “Constellation of Adventure” shouts your name. Rewards are further upgraded.》**

# **《The “Constellation of Clockwork” acknowledges your achievement. Rewards are further upgraded.》**

# **《The “Constellation of Moon Shadow” nods quietly.》**

# **《The “Nameless Constellation” lends a silent hand.》**

……

……

……

# **《Level Up!》**

—

# **Domination**

At that exact moment—

All players worldwide were struck speechless.

“Are my eyes broken?”

“Has anyone ever seen a score like this?”

“What the—”

“Wait… this is possible?”

“I thought 250 was the limit?”

The rankings for Main Quest 5 had updated—
and those who checked the Hall of Fame saw the impossible.

“500 points? Not even with a question mark?
A straight 500?!”

Main Quest 5:
**Obtain a Mystery.**

No sane player would risk their life for such a trivial quest.

One could clear it simply by buying any Mystery from a mystic dealer in any city.

And human Mysteries on Pangaenia were weak from the start—
unless they were those used by kings or rulers, they barely had any effects.

“…Master.”

The original rank 1 for Main Quest 5 was “Master.”

240 points.

He had maintained first place with a gap of more than 50 points over rank 2—
the strongest monster among humanity.

The ruler of the ruin-city Rundella, commander of legions of players,
essentially already a king.

He had been certain the record would never be broken.

Even Gracia had given up.

Who would dare challenge his achievement?

But someone dared.

And surpassed.

By an overwhelming margin—

Reaching a height no one could ever touch.

—

 

 

 

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