I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-45

Ch-45

—

Anyone could see it—he was a monster.

Perfectly, unquestionably, undeniably so.

“······But right now, you’re human, aren’t you?”

“You’re a picky one.”

Gulp.

I swallowed the core again.

At once, bones and flesh wrapped around my body, and feathers sprouted.
In an instant, I had become the King of Corpse Crows, and Dramut flinched when he saw me.

“H-How? How can a human take on a monster’s form?”

“It’s one of the abilities I possess, *kaaak*.”

“An ability that lets you become both human and monster······ actually exists?!”

This wasn’t a mere disguise. I became a monster in the truest sense.

Even an ancient dragon using polymorph could never become a *perfect* human.
Likewise, no matter how great a mage was, one could never transform into a perfect monster.

At best, it was mimicry.

If someone didn’t know better from the start, maybe they could be fooled.
But if they knew the original form? They would inevitably sense the tiny differences.

Yet now, there was no difference at all. Not a trace of foreignness existed.

The man standing before Dramut had shattered something akin to the very laws of the world.

“Dramut, *kaaak*. Tell me everything you know, *kaaak*.”

“······Stop giving me orders while cawing.”

He preferred me human.

Being ordered around by a corpse crow cawing at him was worse for his dignity than dealing with a rude human.

*

*

Dramut vomited out everything he knew.

The reason the Star Guardians gathered in Cramdel.
It *was* because of the 33rd star.

But Cramdel had begun changing a year ago, and the Star Guardians only arrived now for an entirely different reason.

“The star here is completely different from the 32 stars that existed on the continent.”

“Wasn’t it simply the corpse of a goddess turned into a star? There shouldn’t be such a thing as a completely different star.”

A natural doubt.

Those 32 stars were merely the corpse of the dead goddess, called “stars” out of convenience.

If it wasn’t part of the goddess’s body, then it couldn’t become a star—wasn’t that obvious?

“The goddess whose body became the 32 stars was the goddess Leah. But she had a twin sister—Pina.”

“That sounds like something I’ve heard somewhere.”

“Setting?”

“Never mind. Continue.”

I didn’t care much about setting lore from Pangaenia’s creation myth.

I’d skimmed past it, but I remembered something similar.

Dramut tilted his head, then spoke again.

“······Goddess Leah created the earth, and goddess Pina created the sky. But in the war against the primordial ‘Ruin,’ Leah died. Before she died, she split her body into 32 pieces and scattered them across the continent.”

Those became the 32 stars.

Indispensable for humans to transcend.

Gamers—players—competed over those stars.

Even if one had the qualifications, if no stars remained or one couldn’t find one, they could never transcend.

But if someone who transcended died, the star would fall back to the continent.

Hence the frequent “Transcendent Hunts.”
Unless one possessed overwhelming power like Wilhelm, those who transcended only halfway often became prey to large factions.

‘That’s why factions were crucial for rankers.’

One of the reasons gamers allied together was to protect their stars.

As someone who played alone, I inevitably clashed with alliances constantly.

Some of my previously transcended characters had been killed by them, too.

Dramut continued.

“Before the entire continent was consumed by the Abyss, Pina lifted the remaining landmasses into the sky. The disconnected lands could still be connected through ‘warp.’ All thanks to goddess Pina.”

This explained why the continents were fragmented.

The lore behind having to warp every time you traveled between cities.

The continents weren’t on the ground anymore.

They all floated in the sky.

The original earth below was occupied by the Abyss.

And deeper still lay what people called the Demon Realm.

If not for the twin goddess Pina, all continents would’ve perished to Ruin.

“So what you’re saying is—gracious goddess Pina may have died as well?”

“······We don’t know. That’s why the Star Guardians gathered so urgently.”

“Then why are you still dawdling here?”

“A tremendously powerful veil of ‘Mystery’ surrounds the star.”

Even the White King had said so.

A unique-grade Mystery was deployed there.

Which meant even he couldn’t look inside.

“You only need to remove that Mystery?”

“I don’t know *how* one would remove it. But even if one could, it must be done carefully. Deploying a Mystery means *something* is near the star.”

Mystery was proof.

A pebble kicked along the roadside could never possess Mystery.

Only the living—those who aimed to prove their existence—were granted Mystery.

If a unique-grade Mystery was in place, then something of equal power was inside.

I silently stroked my chin.

“If they deployed something that strong near the star, it could be a Star Guardian.”

“······Unlikely.”

I roughly understood.

The Star Guardians themselves were panicking because they couldn’t breach the unique-grade Mystery.

And no one knew what resided inside.

‘So they know nothing.’

Which meant they were no better off than me.

But I had one advantage over them.

“Dramut. I can destroy that ‘Mystery.’”

“Hah! Mystery is akin to truth. How could you possibly destroy it?”

Dramut laughed like I’d told a bad joke.

Blatant mockery.

“Let alone a unique-grade Mystery. Even the White King—the one who rules Cramdel—and the strongest Star Guardian gave up. And *you* think you can?”

“You didn’t hear that I erased the Imoogi’s Mystery before the Gate of Mysteries?”

“There *was* some ruckus······wait. That was you?”

Dramut’s eyes widened.

No matter how uninterested the Star Guardians were in Cramdel’s affairs, there was no way they hadn’t heard about the commotion at the Gate of Mysteries.

“A corpse crow knelt an Imoogi and went to meet the White King with Four Pillars······.”

“That was me.”

“······.”

Dramut was speechless.

Come to think of it, the main culprit had indeed been a corpse crow.

And there had also been a rumor that someone destroyed the Imoogi’s legendary-grade Mystery.

All the Star Guardians had dismissed it as nonsense.

After all, something like that shouldn’t be possible.

But the culprit was standing right before him.

The master of the star he protected—Randolph.

He had infiltrated the Gate of Mysteries disguised as a corpse crow and overturned Cramdel.

And he was now showing interest in the 33rd star.

“······Can you really erase it?”

“Of course.”

A clean, immediate reply.

Dramut’s head spun.

He had always been a strange man—but thinking about it, even when he first claimed his star, he had undergone no trial. He hadn’t even been chosen by the goddess.

Normally, an unqualified person touching a star would be incinerated instantly, but Randolph simply touched it and became its owner.

If, by some chance, Randolph really *could* erase that veil, it would be a monumental event.

‘My standing would rise as well.’

Among the Star Guardians, who treated him like leftovers, his status would soar overnight.

He would be the one who helped accomplish something the strongest Star Guardian couldn’t.

But the risk of failure remained.

“The moment we approach the veil, the Star Guardians will notice. We cannot approach secretly.”

“And?”

“You must do it in full view of all Star Guardians. But······if you fail, be prepared to die.”

The Star Guardians were serious—fanatical—about the goddess and anything related to the stars.

They would never allow an unauthorized person near the star.

Even if they did grant permission, failure would cost one’s life.

“No big deal.”

I shrugged. Dramut answered solemnly.

“All I can do is bring you to the veil. I cannot protect your life.”

“That’s enough.”

Coming to Dramut had indeed been the correct choice.

If I went alone, I’d have been torn apart by the incoming Star Guardians.

And seeing that they even knew the White King had visited, approaching secretly was clearly impossible.

“Good. Wait here.”

Dramut left the room.

To persuade the other Star Guardians.

‘I should prepare as well.’

I needed to be ready for anything.

‘The Constellations of the People’s Hall—their direct rewards.’

The reward list from clearing Main Quest 5.

I still hadn’t selected one.

‘The Constellations most favorable to me… I should check their rewards first.’

Those who favored me would likely offer the most useful gifts.

A reward born from scoring an overwhelming 500 points.

Each one was undoubtedly capable of shaking heaven and earth—but worthless if I couldn’t use it.

Choosing carelessly could land me in a trap.

《Hourglass of the Clockwork Constellation》
《Ring of the Adventure Constellation》
《Four-Leaf Clover of the Luck Constellation》
《Spear of the Battle Constellation》
《Armor of the Moonlight Constellation》
《Invention of the Alchemy Constellation》
《Hair of the Nameless Constellation》
《Blueprint of the Blacksmith Constellation》
······

After reviewing the list, I carefully selected one of the Constellations’ rewards.

*

*

Underground, beneath the hot springs.

In the subterranean cavern where the springwater flowed, an expansive veil was spread.

“That corpse crow can really erase a ‘Mystery’?”

“If it’s a lie, Dramut—you will answer for it.”

Nearly ten Star Guardians were gathered.

Their displeased gazes all focused on one figure.

The King of Corpse Crows.

All attention was on whether the corpse crow standing before the veil could truly erase a unique-grade Mystery.

But the Star Guardians weren’t the only ones present.

“······White King and Four Pillars.”

“What are you guys doing here?”

The Star Guardians’ expressions soured further.

With both the White King and Four Pillars present, there was reason enough.

The White King shrugged.

“Is it wrong for me to stand on my own land?”

“I let you off once—did I not warn you that approaching the ‘star’ again would mean war?”

The strongest Star Guardian, the *Giant of Ruin*, lifted his chin.

One of the few remaining giants—a race that served the goddess and boasted unmatched power.

“I only came to watch. If that displeases you… then we’ll have to spill some blood.”

But the White King didn’t back down.

He was genuinely curious.

Whether the corpse crow could truly destroy a unique-grade Mystery.

‘Didn’t expect him to act before I even announced the Five Pillars.’

His decisiveness was astounding.

He was curious too how Dramut managed to persuade the Star Guardians.

But more than anything, he was interested in the possible destruction of the Mystery.

Unique-grade.

Even he, and the other Star Guardians, had failed to breach it.

“Hm.”

······And in front of all their gazes, I couldn’t help but furrow my brows.

The thing unfolding before me was undeniably a Mystery.

The issue was the text it displayed to *me*.

【The First Wall (Unique-grade Mystery)】

【Pangaenia Collapse: 9.96%】
【First ‘Dimensional Rift’ begins in: 0.04%】

【When Collapse reaches 10%, the First Wall will dissipate.】

【Upon dissolution, the first Dimensional Rift linking to Earth will form.】

【‘Main Quest ???: Eliminate the King of Dimensional Rifts’ will begin soon.】

At the same time, something inside the veil met my eyes.

It was a star.

A black-stained star held in the hand of the King of Dimensional Rifts!

And countless nightmares under his command lurked inside the veil.

Main Quest ???

Were the others unable to see this?

Even if they missed the system text, the sheer number of nightmares inside the veil exceeded even the gathered monsters in Cramdel.

And the King of Dimensional Rifts holding the black star radiated unmistakable presence.

‘Looks like only I can see it.’

Otherwise, they wouldn’t be watching peacefully right now.

Perhaps because I was a player, only I could see the information and the monsters inside the Mystery.

The First Wall.

‘That must be the first dimensional rift.’

Once Collapse hit 10%, the First Wall would vanish, opening a rift leading straight to Earth.

The “rift” that had been hinted at since the moment I was summoned to Pangaenia—this must be it.

The beginning of a full-scale invasion and erosion.

‘But why is it in Kramdel’s underground?’

Why would so many nightmares gather here, of all places?

There was no doubt: the star had caused the goddess’s tears to flow through the underground spring.

The black-stained star’s tears soaked the springwater and revitalized Cramdel.

And—

‘It called me.’

That star was calling me.

Back when I met Isaac and entered the springwater—

<‘The Blind Goddess’s Hand’ begins to search for you.>

The spring exploded as the Blind Goddess’s Hand sought me.

Strange.

I’d never been particularly close to the goddess.

Wilhelm, who transcended with five stars, was called the “Goddess’s Knight,” but that was just a title. There had been no personal connection.

As a player, maybe the goddess had developed a peculiar obsession with me.

Or perhaps the star inside really was connected to me.

What was certain was this:

The moment I removed the Mystery, countless nightmares would pour out.

‘······Only 0.04% remains.’

Even if I did nothing, it would activate soon.

I didn’t know what caused the collapse rate to rise, so there was no way to stop it.

At the current pace, it would hit 10% within a week at most.

In that case—

‘This might actually work out perfectly.’

I shifted my thinking.

Instead of waiting for a rift to open at an unknown time, opening it at a chosen moment and attacking it would be far better.

No—*undeniably* better.

—

 

 

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