I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-50

Ch-50 **Gift of the White King <End of Volume 2>**

 

—

‘Then is the nameless Constellation actually the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven?’

It was a bit puzzling.

The master of the golden band is Śākyamuni Buddha. But it didn’t seem likely that Śākyamuni would disguise the golden band with a strand of hair.

If someone disguised it with hair to guide my choice, the one more likely would be the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven.

In any case—

‘I’ll make good use of it.’

I had every intention of using Ahram’s skill, stolen through the golden band, to the fullest.

But there was something I had to do first.

**<The ‘Golden Band’ steals one of the unique skills from the sealed ‘Ahram’.>**

Skill theft!

The moment it activated, Ahram twisted his entire body like a pretzel, completely aghast.

—Y-You thief…! Grrraaaagh!!

A unique skill.

These weren’t common skills, but abilities built up uniquely by each being.

The crystallization of a creature’s life and experience.

Naturally, they were far stronger than ordinary skills.

And so they were the equivalent of a “Power”—one absolute, irreplaceable thing per being.

The Golden Band could steal such “unique skills” from those it sealed.

—No… no, don’t…!

Ahram screamed.

From his body, three bubbles rose, each holding faint smoke as if his soul was being pulled out.

Those three must have been his unique skills.

—Just kill me! Kill me instead…!

Pathetic.

Not once, but twice.

Even after devouring a star and growing stronger, he had lost again.

Had he died in battle, it would be one thing—yet he was beaten, sealed alive, and now even his unique abilities were on the verge of being stripped away.

What humiliation could be worse than this?

“Swamp of the Dead. Sword of the Dead. King of the Dead.”

I spoke the names in order.

I wanted to watch Ahram’s reaction as I uttered each name appearing within the bubbles.

—Anything but the Sword of the Dead…!

He burst out desperately.

The Sword of the Dead. Obviously that massive greatsword he used.

But even without thinking, I could tell he was lying.

Because when I said the others, he reacted even more sharply.

‘You really can’t act, can you.’

He clearly wanted me to take the sword—but tough luck.

Expecting me to fall for acting that poor was foolish.

Then again, Ahram had never had a reason to act.

He had ruled as though he were a true king, calling himself the Gatekeeper of Hell. There was no way he had ever needed to deceive someone before.

—N-No! Please, stop—!

I reached out without hesitation.

**<You have stolen the unique skill ‘King of the Dead (Lv.10)’.>**

The bubble flowed into me, and I felt a new skill etch itself into place.

I checked it immediately.

—

**【King of the Dead (Lv.10)】**

* Unique skill of Ahram, King of the Dead.
* Draws in the dead and commands them.
* Can implant dominated dead into other bodies.
* Gain additional stats when commanding dead rated as Raid Boss or higher.

—

The description wasn’t complicated.

It was a skill that allowed complete command over the dead.

‘This connects perfectly with Master of Corpse Art.’

It fully complemented the shortcomings of the “Master of Corpse Art” skill of this corpse-crow body.

‘Corpse Art can’t move freely on its own.’

Corpse Art is about *creating* things.

Stacking, linking, assembling—nothing more.

To move them, I had to summon other corpse crows to carry them.

Even when I made golems and packed them with corpse crows to fight, there were clear limits.

But **King of the Dead** let me implant a dead spirit into something I crafted.

Which meant it could move freely.

‘So that’s why Andasar’s head was there.’

Now it made sense.

Why Andasar’s head had ended up there.

With this skill, it had naturally reached the place… then fallen under Ahram’s control and begun its ‘madness’.

‘Dominate a Raid Boss–level dead and gain stats.’

Not only that—stat bonuses depended on the caliber of the dead.

Perfect.

Because Andasar’s head was right here.

When I turned my head, I saw Andasar’s head shoved into a corner.

And the Dullahan’s body holding the head also entered my view.

“Open your eyes.”

The moment I finished speaking, Andasar’s eyes snapped open.

She had already been dominated once by this skill, so controlling her again wasn’t difficult.

**<You have dominated ‘Andasar’ with the skill ‘King of the Dead’.>**

**<‘Andasar’ is a ‘Super Elite Raid Boss (Lv.9)’ class dead being.>**

**<Dominating ‘Andasar’ permanently increases Star Power by 3.>**

My Star Power rose by 3.

But something about the phrasing bothered me.

‘No way…?’

I quickly checked my status window.

—

**<Stats>**
Level: 6
Strength: 82 (72+10)
Constitution: 82 (72+10)
Agility: 82 (72+10)
Intelligence: 82 (72+10)
Star Power: 85 (75+10)

—

My pupils trembled faintly.

‘It raised my *base* stats?’

Not bonus stats—actual, pure stats.

Ordinary bonus stats disappear if the effect is removed.

But a pure-stat increase remains forever.

Even if I lose the skill.

‘It breaks the level limit. A true unique skill indeed.’

Every level has a stat ceiling.

Usually, you cannot raise a stat more than 10 points per level.

Mine was 12, but even so—without leveling up, you cannot exceed the limit.

But **King of the Dead bypassed that limit**.

Even if I lost the skill later, the gains remained permanently.

Among everything I had earned so far, this was top-tier.

—Y-You accursed…! Grrraaaagh!!

Was it the pain of losing his power?

Ahram squirmed in agony.

The golden band automatically inflicted pain on him.

“Only think good thoughts and say good words, caw. Then the pain will stop, caw.”

It was an auto-correction device of sorts.

The golden band punished any malicious intent in those it sealed.

And because Ahram had lost a skill, he had shrunk even more.

From a child’s size down to something only as big as two adult fists placed together.

‘I’ll crush him into submission and extract information.’

Even for Ahram, that pain didn’t look ordinary.

Eventually he would yield, and then I would wring out information about the Demon Realm and the Demon King.

He was useful in many ways—not only as a source of skills.

Most importantly:

‘Ahram is also a dead being.’

He was dead too.

It might be difficult now, but once he broke or once I grew stronger, I could dominate him.

“Who… are you?”

A faint voice spoke.

Andasar.

Held in the Dullahan’s hands, she addressed me.

“Do you know Priest Andrew, caw?”

“Who… is that?”

She didn’t even remember her own father, Priest Andrew.

Dead.

One who had lost everything.

I had suspected as much—apparently all her memories were gone.

“Do you remember when you were an Elder Lich, caw?”

“…I do not. I know only my name—Andasar—and that you are now my new master.”

White hair. Red eyes.

Her head and body were separate, but she was still Andasar.

When she had become the hybrid core, she was pure madness—but now that I dominated her, reason had returned.

The problem was her memory.

‘Actually, that might be for the best.’

It might be better if she didn’t remember.

She had been turned into an Elder Lich by a cursed grimoire, then made into a Dullahan by the Four Kings, then made into a hybrid core by Ahram.

‘…Her life really was a rollercoaster.’

Thinking about it again, those memories were nothing but poison.

Better to forget them—in fact, a billion times better.

Priest Andrew would weep, but what could be done?

Better to build new, peaceful memories than live with nightmares.

He might get expelled from the Holy Church if they discovered his daughter had become a Dullahan, but… well, that wasn’t my problem.

“O Lord of the Five Pillars, may I enter?”

“You may, caw.”

The Death King appeared.

This was his castle—of course he would be curious about what I was doing.

When he saw Andasar and Ahram, he was visibly shocked.

“Hoh. Remarkable. You have completely subjugated the two of them?”

“One is still being trained, caw.”

—GRAAAAAH!!

No need to ask which one.

“To seal the Gatekeeper of the Demon Realm and even tame him… You truly exceed my expectations.”

“What business brings you, caw?”

“The White King has decided, after much thought, on what reward to offer you.”

His tone had changed.

At first he had merely been intrigued. Now he recognized me as an equal.

“I’m curious, caw.”

“A territory. He will give you one city of your choice. All chief pillars possess a city. For reference, this place, Cramdel, is jointly owned.”

“What city do you mean, caw?”

“What city do you desire?”

Wait.

…What city do I desire?

They weren’t listing cities they controlled—they were simply asking *what city I wanted*.

That intent was strange.

“…? Any city is fine, caw?”

“Well, there are exceptions. Cities protected by the Black King in the southern continent, and cities owned by the Arhon Empire are excluded.”

“So, aside from those two, I may choose any city, caw?”

“Exactly.”

Insane.

Only then did I understand his meaning.

‘He will conquer it and give it to me.’

Completely mad.

Nothing could be more outrageous.

If I desire a city, they will take it and hand it to me.

Of course “give” does not mean “manage and defend”.

Once handed over, it’s mine to deal with.

But still—it was insane.

Was there any city the White King and the Five Pillars could not conquer?

‘None.’

If they wished, no city could stop them.

The Golden City Arcana?

The Garden of Knights? Ruin Cities?

Major capitals across various kingdoms?

They would all fall.

Only the Arhon Empire—the sole empire on the continent—was immune, and that was solely because players had not reached it yet.

If my prediction was correct, every player and every faction’s ultimate goal would be the conquest of Arhon.

‘I have to be more cautious than ever.’

This was not a reward I could choose lightly.

I needed to understand the continent’s balance of power and choose the city that would benefit me the most.

Completely unexpected—and far beyond anything I imagined.

“For someone of your level, any city is possible. But with the names of the Five Pillars and the White King behind you, trouble would be minimal.”

The Death King added.

Once they conquered it, the city would become mine.

They would openly declare it with their names.

Who would dare antagonize the White King and the Five Pillars?

There would be no “trouble”.

“Must I choose now, caw?”

“The White King is not known for his patience.”

He was urging for my answer.

As if the White King knew what the Star Guardians intended to offer me.

‘He’s listening to this conversation too.’

I became sure.

He had sent the Death King, but he was listening.

‘He’s wary of me.’

He was wary that I might choose the path of becoming a Star Guardian instead of a Lord of the Five Pillars.

Though the reward was incredible—if he truly feared me, I must proceed carefully.

This wasn’t mere wariness because of another Star Guardian.

‘The White King sees me… as a threat.’

A welcome ceremony.

He viewed me as something that could threaten him.

This wasn’t simple caution.

‘He sees me as his equal.’

Equal. Someone whose power couldn’t be ignored.

That was why he was forcing a choice.

Would I stand as his enemy—or his ally?

“Is there even a need to consider? The reward offered by the Star Guardians is nothing more than a ‘title.’”

…As expected, he knew.

He knew and still asked.

The Star Guardians had promised to grant me a title if I became one of them officially.

It didn’t sound like much, but their “titles” raised stats.

Like the Giant of Ruin.

A title recognized by all Star Guardians would possess mystique and grant its own honor and power.

Hardly trivial.

‘It’s actually enormous.’

If they officially recognized me and gave me a title—

They might even give me clues to other Stars easily.

—

 

 

 

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