I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-92

Ch-92

—

But the contents felt strangely familiar.

And whenever I saw something like this, my decision was always the same.

**《You challenge the Hidden Quest.》**

**《You have achieved the achievement: “An Adventurer Who Wishes to Become the God of Mastery.”》**

**《New constellations of the *People’s Hall* have begun watching you.》**

 

—

—

“Boss, let’s go back.”

The archer Malibu spoke to Joaquin.

Stay here *thirty more days*?

Even finding the entrance again would cost them ten lives.

It was no different from being told to go die.

“No matter how important money is, this isn’t right.”

The spirit mage Shaun added.

Had they not nearly died several times on the way here already?

“Do you know how many people can casually fork over 1.1 million gold?”

But Joaquin thought differently.

That man… was no ordinary person.

More than just being wealthy—there was something unmistakably extraordinary about him.

And the woman traveling with him carried holy power rivaling that of a saint.

*He didn’t even flinch during the monster attack.*

Thinking back, the man had been composed from start to finish.

Normally, even the boldest of people panicked when faced with a swarm of grotesque beasts.

But he was completely unshaken.

Not even a flicker in his eyes.

He was, at the very least, no ordinary mortal.

More than that—if judging by presence alone, he was in the realm of geniuses.

“Besides, he’s not just some rich kid. He’s at least the son of a noble knightly family.”

“Like the Darcan family—the Empire’s famed swordsmanship clan?”

To Shaun’s question, Joaquin nodded.

Both he and the spirit mage Shaun had once directly encountered the scions of House Darcan.

“Darcan… yes, it felt like that. Meaning this might not simply be a matter of a million gold.”

Three million split three ways was a million each.

Enough to live comfortably in most cities, but a million gold wouldn’t turn one’s life upside down.

But what if what he offered exceeded the value of money?

—*Make your own judgment.*

Those words still echoed in his ears.

That one word—*judgment*—lingered persistently in his mind.

If Joaquin’s guess was right…

“That man gave us a chance. A chance to climb higher.”

This might be their opportunity to escape the suffocating cartel life.

Yet the mercenaries were still hesitant.

“Boss, our food supplies are nearly out. How about returning in thirty days instead?”

“He’s right. Surviving thirty more days here is unrealistic. And nobody will know whether we left and came back, anyway.”

Better to retreat, prepare thoroughly, and then return to find the entrance.

They wouldn’t know the difference.

It was the most realistic option—but Joaquin shook his head.

“Enduring feels like part of the trial. Anyone who wants to leave may leave.”

“Boss, that hurts to hear.”

“Come on, I’m just saying. How many times have you saved our lives?”

They were comrades bound as one mercenary company.

They were nothing like Maxim and his vile mercenary crew.

*He’s extraordinary. Even beyond the Darcan heirs I’ve met.*

It was a personal conviction, so he kept it to himself—but the aura he felt from that man surpassed even the scions of the Empire’s greatest swordsmanship family.

Perhaps it was an illusion.

But Joaquin had rolled through battlefields since childhood.

A mercenary’s average life expectancy was around ten years.

Most ended poorly.

For him to have survived this long and still be active meant his instincts were sharp.

He absolutely trusted those instincts.

This time was no different.

—

—

*

After the Abyssal Labyrinth was cleared…

When the erosion rate exceeded 15%, anomalies began occurring across the world.

“Warp outbreaks are becoming more frequent. More monsters are emerging.”

“The monster species are diversifying—and getting stronger.”

“Where are the Warriors?”

Panic swept through the populace.

Only Dimension Warriors could kill monsters.

But at a certain point, their appearances started dwindling.

“Chief, vampires appeared from the warp in Gangwon-do. The city is requesting immediate support.”

“The ‘Death-Horn Shark’ has appeared off the coast of Haeundae in Busan…”

Reports of invasions continued pouring in.

The Alliance Chief scowled.

“Damn it. We’re far too short on fragments. Anyone available to deploy?”

“We’ve hit our limit.”

“Shouldn’t we first replenish fragments of the *Broken Golden Scale*?”

Korea’s Hero Alliance was dealing with the same headaches.

They had consumed vast amounts of Broken Golden Scale fragments attempting to enter the Abyssal Labyrinth.

“How exactly are we supposed to get more?”

“Push the main quest…?”

“Or clear Transcendent-level dungeons?”

It was reasonable.

But everyone had already pushed their main quests to their safe limits.

Attempting more was too dangerous.

Transcendent-level dungeon clears were the same.

Clearing level 11+ dungeons yielded many Golden Scale fragments.

But the effort required was immense.

The level-11 “Sky Whale Dungeon” had rewarded a total of 40 hours’ worth of fragments.

Split among twenty challengers—barely two hours each.

And preparing plus clearing the dungeon had taken a month.

Not efficient at all.

And if they attempted it without thorough preparation, the casualties would be severe.

Thus, this method too was unrealistic.

“A way to get fragments quickly… the only thing left is PK. Damn it.”

Player killing.

Hunting players who held large amounts of fragments.

Unthinkable for the Hero Alliance.

Then a guild member spoke.

“What about Phantom? Wouldn’t *he* know?”

“And how do you expect to find him?”

“He’s probably at the Mountain of the Practitioner, of course.”

“And who in our Alliance can enter that place?”

“…No one at the moment?”

Once a player reached level 7, they could ascend the mountain exactly once.

Most players had already used their attempt.

Everyone knew Phantom was there, but nobody could check.

“What about that one guy still at level 6? We could force level him and send him up.”

“Push him to level 7 and dump him on the mountain? Even if he finds Phantom, would Phantom politely tell him anything?”

“If it’s Phantom, he probably set his restrictions to the maximum. If this kid goes in *without* restrictions, he shouldn’t die.”

“Maximum restriction settings? Who in their right mind would do that?”

The Mountain of the Trainees had been thoroughly studied.

Setting restrictions to maximum was madness.

Only someone suicidal would do it.

And even with increased mastery gain rates, overly harsh restrictions turned it into a net loss.

If the body couldn’t function, increased mastery meant nothing.

Phantom obviously understood this.

And forcing a meeting risked provoking him.

“Is there truly no other way?”

At the Chief’s question, another member cautiously raised his hand.

“The new constellations appearing in the People’s Hall…”

“The ones that suddenly replaced the old ones?”

“Yes. One of them approached me earlier—offering an Apostle Contract. He said he’d grant me some fragments.”

“What? What’s the condition?”

“He’d give me ten hours’ worth of fragments and a skill related to my class… in exchange for thirty percent of all fragments I earn.”

“…Isn’t thirty percent basically slavery?”

“But the skill is pretty useful.”

Constellations of the People’s Hall had never demanded Apostle contracts before.

The newly replaced constellations seemed fundamentally different.

Thirty percent was steep—but they were desperate.

Immediate fragments and an extra class skill didn’t sound bad from a practical standpoint.

“Oh, and he said if I offered a *Complete Golden Scale*, I wouldn’t have to pay the thirty percent.”

“Complete Golden Scale?”

Nobody had heard of such a thing.

Not broken fragments—but a complete one?

“I don’t know what it is either. But signing might at least put out the fire.”

“Not just anyone can sign, right?”

That moment—

A message abruptly appeared before the Alliance Chief’s eyes.

**《The “Constellation of Tidal Waves” holds you in high regard.》**

**《The “Constellation of Tidal Waves” invites you to form an Apostle Contract.》**

**《Upon contracting, you will receive 20 hours of Broken Golden Rule fragments and the skill “Spear of the Wave.”》**

**《However, 28% of all future fragments earned must be offered.》**

**《Offering a Complete Golden Scale removes the tribute requirement.》**

—

—

…My vision was hazy.

My whole body felt as heavy as if weighted with lead.

Because all restriction settings were at maximum.

It was a setting that pushed humans to their absolute limits.

Sight, smell, touch—every sense was over 99% paralyzed.

Barely functional.

I could still make out shapes and faint sounds, but even that would fade with time.

“Maximum restriction settings? Another suicidal fool, huh.”

Voices murmured nearby.

Probably one of the Trainees who resided in the mountain—an NPC helper who assisted climbers.

Trainees could inspect the restrictions of those who ascended, so this reaction was inevitable.

Restriction Settings: Maximum.

All stats reduced by –99%.

All five senses nearly gone.

Most stats effectively at 1. Moving was nearly impossible.

The Practitioner spoke.

“Listen, kid. Leave while you can. Climb the mountain in that state and you’ll die.”

A well-meaning warning—but after accepting the Hidden Quest, I could no longer leave even if I wanted to.

I forced my unbearably heavy body to move and drew a sword from the armory.

“Fine… do what you want. Don’t blame me when you die.”

The Practitioner shook his head in disbelief.

“With that condition, you’ll barely move. Try swinging once. Hit the ‘Training Dummy.’ You might change your mind.”

“Seia.”

“Yes~”

Seia blessed me.

**《The Saintess’s Blessing reduces restrictions by 5%.》**

All my stats went from 1 to 5.

Still hopelessly low—but at least enough to move.

I picked up my sword and lumbered toward the “Training Dummy.”

Despite the grand name, it was just a wooden practice doll.

It was the first thing every climber encountered.

Those who set restrictions tested their physical state by striking it.

“…To offset your restrictions with a blessing—looks like you had something in mind.”

The Practitioner spoke again, sounding utterly incredulous.

A blessing strong enough to compensate—even slightly—for self-imposed restrictions. Such a thing was impossible unless the caster was at least saint-class.

Did that mean that woman was a saint?

But never once had a saint climbed the Mountain of the Practitioner.

*Even so…*

The Practitioner shook his head.

Even with that much offset, it was meaningless.

If he climbed the mountain, he would die.

This place was not somewhere one could take lightly.

*It truly is beyond imagination.*

The heavier his body felt, the heavier the sword became.

It felt like gripping a 100-kilogram steel beam.

Still—this was already decided.

I swung my sword slowly.

Thud!

**《Sword Mastery has risen to Lv. 7.》**

Thud, thud!

**《Sword Mastery has risen to Lv. 8.》**

It rose to Level 8 after only a few swings.

As expected of a 450% mastery gain rate.

Combined with the base mastery gain rate, it nearly reached 550%. The speed at which levels rose was an insurmountable wall.

And that wasn’t all.

*Riley the Sword Saint’s experience really is something else.*

I had already summoned the soul of Sword Saint Riley and wielded sword mastery reaching Level 26.

It meant that, unlike the inherited memories of Wilhelm, this was a qualitatively different experience etched into my body.

Because of that, even factoring in the mastery gain rate, it *felt* like the levels were rising even faster.

Huff… huff…

The problem was how grueling it was.

The fatigue was no joke. Every muscle and cell screamed.

I raised my right hand.

“I’ll heal you~”

Swoooosh—

Light washed over my entire body, and the fatigue vanished.

As expected of my personal heal-shuttle.

Good. At this rate, it was manageable.

I continued swinging the sword.

“…What… is this…”

The Practitioner’s pupils quivered.

He had observed countless trainees over an incredibly long time, but never one like this.

A healer on the level of a saint, and a trainee who had set *every* restriction to maximum.

And beyond even that—he could *feel* the trainee’s mastery levels rising at an absurd speed.

Holding and swinging the sword was becoming natural at a rapid pace.

*If he keeps forcing himself like that, his mind will collapse.*

Even if healing magic restored the body, the human mind had its limits. Receiving too many heals in a short time would eventually shatter one’s psyche.

There had been some who climbed the mountain with a healer in tow.

Trainees who set their restrictions high.

But most eventually gave up.

Because restoring the body did not restore the mind.

Rather, the rapid pace of recovery only wore them down faster, pushing them into the brink of collapse.

Thud! Thud!

Swoooosh!

Thudthudthud!

Swooooosh!

Thwack! Thwick-thwick!

Swooooooosh!

“……………”

But this trainee… was different.