I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-99

Ch-99

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**The end of the world was drawing near.**

The clash between two monsters.

Mountains collapsed, and black storm clouds surged in from every direction.

“L-Let us go!”

“If we stay like this, we’re all going to die!”

Panic.

Everyone—human or monster—was thrown into chaos.

Even the monster battalion that had occupied the mountain became flustered the moment Raktusha began to be pushed back.

There was no way out.

Then there was only one option left: help Raktusha.

But the problem was the trainees climbing the mountain.

Just as Raktusha had ordered, they had detained all the trainees, but there was no way they could fight a *Four Calamity* with “baggage” hanging behind them.

“Commander Enkasa, what shall we do with them?”

“Kill them all.”

The monster battalion chose the complete massacre of the trainees.

“Aaagh!”

“P-Please spare us!”

In the end, the trainees met their deaths without even being able to mount proper resistance.

Enkasa—Raktusha’s strongest gladiator.

A lion-headed beastman who had been captivated by Raktusha’s skill and had pledged his entire life to support him.

“From this moment, everyone assists Lord Raktusha.”

“B-But the opponent is a Four Calamity…!”

Shraak!

A member of the battalion, trembling in fear, opened his mouth—and before he could finish speaking, his head was severed.

Enkasa then scattered golden sword-energy through the air and spoke expressionlessly:

“Is there anyone else afraid?”

“……”

Of course there wasn’t.

Enkasa turned his head.

Raktusha had told them to detain the trainees, but since no trainees remained to detain, he had not disobeyed orders.

It was then.

*Hmm?*

A different presence stirred nearby.

When Enkasa turned his gaze, someone was descending the mountain.

A trainee or practitioner from the upper levels?

“Sir Enkasa, isn’t that the White King’s daughter on that human’s back?”

“Y-Yes! It’s definitely the White King’s daughter!”

A human carrying the White King’s daughter—and another unknown man over his shoulder.

Enkasa frowned.

*Trying to escape in the chaos, I see.*

But luck was not on their side.

They had run into him head-on.

Even if they were about to help Raktusha, they could not simply ignore the White King’s daughter—their original target.

“Captain Enkasa, let’s kill them right now and take her.”

“…… Wait.”

Ten thousand strong—the monster battalion.

Killing a single human would be trivial.

And yet… something was wrong.

Deeply wrong.

A nagging dread crawled up his spine, and soon he understood why.

*…He came down from the summit without being affected by the curse?*

The summit—the battlefield where the Four Calamity and Raktusha were fighting.

If he descended from there, he should show signs of the curse.

Even Raktusha was not immune to Baal’s curse.

But this human…

“Move.”

“……”

What was this confidence?

He didn’t even blink while facing an army of ten thousand.

Rather, he spoke in a commanding tone—as if telling *them* to move if they didn’t want to die.

Enkasa raised sword-energy the color of his golden mane.

He felt uneasy, but he could not waste time.

He would kill him quickly and take—

Fwooooong!

At that moment—

A brilliant golden aura erupted from the human’s entire body.

The aura intertwined like threads, weaving itself into a single shape.

A sword.

“T-That…!”

Gulp—

Enkasa faltered.

He couldn’t help it.

That was not sword-energy.

If it were merely sword-energy, he would not have been so shaken.

Simply coating a blade with energy was on a completely different level.

This was…

This was…

*Sword-Force…!*

A technique that wove sword-energy into threadlike strands and completed them into a perfect, solid form.

He could not be mistaken.

This was the legendary Sword-Force spoken of in ancient tales!

But even Raktusha could not wield Sword-Force.

Enkasa clenched his fist.

If it were fake, he would have noticed immediately.

But it was real. This oppressive pressure could never be deception.

“Commander?”

His subordinates looked puzzled.

Because they did not understand the fear of Sword-Force.

GUOOOOOOO!

BOOM! BOOM! RUMBLE!

The roar of the Four Calamity spread even louder.

And as time passed, Raktusha was being overwhelmingly pushed back.

He would not be able to escape the Calamity’s attacks.

“…Move aside.”

“C-Commander?”

“We must assist Lord Raktusha.”

If they tried to face this unfathomable human, Raktusha would surely die.

And Raktusha’s survival was far more important than the White King’s daughter.

Even if all of them died, saving Raktusha held greater meaning.

*

*

Mercenaries Joaquin, Shaun, and Malibu felt like their minds were about to snap.

“C-Captain… this isn’t courage-training, right? Those things… those are all real, right?”

“I think… we really need to run now…”

Hearing their subordinates’ trembling voices, Joaquin looked into the warp.

Raktusha and the monster battalion had gone through the warp to the Mountain of Trainees, and not long after, the Four Calamity appeared.

Inside the warp, flickering like fire, the situation looked catastrophic.

“At this point, that man must be dead!”

“A F-Four Calamity… This is insanity!”

Judging by the scale of the chaos, the man must have died.

No matter how incredible he was, surviving between a Four Calamity and Raktusha was impossible.

Joaquin clicked his tongue softly.

Time to retreat.

By now the Mercenary City would also be in chaos.

“Wait.”

Suddenly, a silhouette appeared in the distance.

Approaching the warp—

It was the very man who hired them.

“The Employer…?”

How had he survived that ordeal?

And he wasn’t alone.

He had gone in with two people but returned with four.

“Carry one person each.”

“…Sir?”

“Carry one each and get out of here. As far as possible. The warp will explode soon.”

“Ah…!”

If the warp exploded…

This land could sink into the Abyss.

If it did, escape would become impossible.

*Shit!*

If they wanted to live—they had to run until their legs burned.

*

*

The warp was collapsing under the presence of the Four Calamity.

With teleport books unusable, the only way out was to run.

Run until they reached the warp that linked to the next city.

*Why the hell is Seia unconscious?*

They had even found Saintess Seia—fortunate, but she had been lying unconscious near the warp.

No idea why, but surviving came first.

Under Joaquin’s guidance, they miraculously crossed into the warp of the Mercenary City, Cartel.

“Huff! Huff! Huuurf!”

“Haaah! Huff!”

The tension was suffocating.

At the same time—

KWOOOOOM.

The warp trembled violently.

And then—

The warp linked to the Mountain of Trainees darkened, as if the power had been cut.

“…… The warp has sunk.”

“A moment later and we would’ve…”

The entire region had submerged.

The mercenaries swallowed nervously.

A moment later, and they would never have returned.

*So Raktusha and the battalion weren’t enough…*

Whether dead or alive, they had failed to eliminate the Calamity.

“What… what happens now?” Shaun asked.

What now?

One thing was certain: the Calamity had not died.

Since it lived, it would soon invade another domain.

One of the five neutral cities connected to Cartel.

If they could stop it, good. If not—disaster.

Several cities, perhaps entire kingdoms, could be destroyed.

*The White King’s daughter handed me a book.*

Facing the monster battalion, he had realized the white tiger beastman was indeed the White King’s daughter.

Before fainting again, she had given him a book.

He took it out from his coat and opened it.

*Sword-Saint’s Journal.*

A book titled *Sword-Saint’s Journal*.

At the same time—

《You have awakened the arrangements of the Sword-Saint.》

《To control the ‘Four Calamity Baal’, you need the ‘Sword-Saint’s Journal’, the ‘Baal Helm’, the ‘Baal Armor’, and the ‘Baal Talisman’.》

《One component required to control ‘Four Calamity Baal’ is missing.》

《The location of the ‘Baal Armor’ will be marked in the tome.》

A map appeared over the book.

A red dot in the center.

*The Empire.*

Somewhere within the Arhon Empire.

Meaning the Baal Armor was there.

If he acquired the armor, would he be able to control Four Calamity Baal?

But that wasn’t all.

《‘Main Quest 7: Achieve Mastery Level 15 in the Mountain of Trainees’ has been completed.》

《Calculating results.》

Once he fully escaped the Mountain, Main Quest 7 ended and calculations began.

**Endless Calculation**

A wide conference chamber.

Thirty ‘Rulers’ gathered in one place.

Each one the master of a city, wielding vast authority and overwhelming power.

The rulers of the five cities connected to the Mountain of Trainees—and the twenty-five cities connected to those five—were all gathered here.

The sight itself was astonishing.

Shrouded in the mystery of the Rulers’ presence, they exchanged sharp, tense words about the current crisis.

“What did you just say? You intend to sever the warp and break ties?”

Cartel’s master, **Red Lynx Zeraph**, raised his voice.

Other rulers frowned and shook their heads.

“The next target the Calamity strikes will be one of the five cities linked to the Mountain.”

“We cannot risk ourselves simply because the warp connects us.”

“Hm. Zeraph, we will at least not hold back on material support.”

At a time when unity was necessary to prepare, they were talking about severing warps.

Cutting a warp meant cutting relations.

Ending travel between cities, and effectively breaking alliance.

The reason was simple—

To distance themselves from the Calamity’s invasion.

“And you think that makes sense!?”

BANG!

Zeraph slammed the round table.

Nonsense. Completely unacceptable.

Warp connections were vital. Cities connected by warp naturally formed implicit alliances.

After all, without at least three warp connections, a city would sink into the Abyss.

“If you sever them all, you intend to bury Cartel in the Abyss!?”

“You neutral cities can simply connect among yourselves.”

“Yes. If the five cities link together, you need not fear the Abyss.”

Zeraph trembled with fury.

“So you want us to handle this alone? That the five cities connected to the Mountain should fight and die among ourselves?”

“That’s not exactly what we mean… You could ask for help from the Empire or the Goddess Church…”

“Ahem. Mercenaries tend to overreact, I suppose.”

Their intent was clear.

They wanted the five cities connected to the Mountain to deal with the Calamity alone.

Even if they failed—once the five fell, the Calamity’s strength would be greatly drained.

They were demanding the sacrifice of the neutral cities.

And Zeraph fully understood their obvious scheme.

“You think it ends once those five fall? You think the Calamity won’t invade just because the warp isn’t connected?”

Ridiculous.

The Mountain of Trainees had already sunk.

And with high probability, the Calamity would soon become the **Lord of the Abyss**…

 

 

 

 

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