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Chapter 64 – Test and Awakening (4)

“Lou!” When Gi-Gyu shouted in excitement, Lou replied,

-You can’t lose your focus now, you idiot.

Heeding the warning, Gi-Gyu moved; seconds later, a long sword pierced that spot. The other blades in the sword hurricane also began rushing toward Gi-Gyu as if on cue.

“Impressive,” the half-man murmured.

-Hey, why is that dude making such awkward comments?

When Lou tried to joke, Gi-Gyu replied as he blocked one of the black swords, “How should I know?!”

Slash!

The hurricane gave Gi-Gyu numerous gashes; they were bleeding heavily. Thankfully, he wasn’t in much pain. The stamina regeneration potion he drank earlier was helping him greatly. When the black swords around him slowed for a bit, Gi-Gyu took a moment to breathe and asked, “Your physical body?! What does that mean?”

-...

Lou didn’t answer immediately; instead, he took his time replying.

-What is there to understand? As I said, that’s my body.

“I heard you the first time, but what exactly does that mean?” Gi-Gyu asked again, still confused.

-I used that body when I was alive.

Lou sounded bitter as he explained. A shocked and still very confused Gi-Gyu gaped, but he slowly began piecing the puzzle together. Gi-Gyu murmured, “When you were alive?”

Gi-Gyu remembered El mentioning something like this, but at the time, he didn’t know what it really meant.

-Just know that I can beat his ass six ways to Sunday. He isn’t even half as powerful as I used to be.

It was more of a brag than an explanation, meaningless. Lou continued, ignoring Gi-Gyu’s confusion,

-After all, I, the soul, am here in your sword. That body’s only functioning thanks to my old memories and nothing more. On top of that, its physical form isn’t even in that great a shape.

“So, to sum it all up, that body is yours, it’s not in good condition, and it’s not as strong as you.”

-...

Lou gave Gi-Gyu’s sum up the silent treatment, but it seemed Gi-Gyu did get the gist of the situation. Gi-Gyu could feel how proud Lou was of his past strength. Uncertain about his next move, Gi-Gyu asked, “But that’s your body. Are you sure it’s okay for me to kill it?”

Once Gi-Gyu killed the creature, there was a good possibility that Lou’s former body would be destroyed forever. Gi-Gyu wondered if Lou was really okay with this.

-There is no other way. Since this space is special, I think it might be possible for you to do this. I will lend you my power for a moment, so make sure…

Fury filled Lou’s voice as he continued,

-...you destroy it so that no one can ever taint my body like this again.

Suddenly, Lou’s sword form began to spew violet smoke. Its destructive and ominous aura caused every hair on Gi-Gyu’s body to stand on end.

Lou asked politely,

-Please do this for me.

Gi-Gyu had never seen this side of Lou. From the moment they first met, Lou had acted childish and rude. Realizing the seriousness of this situation, Gi-Gyu replied in determination, “All right, I will make sure to destroy your physical body.”

Suddenly, the man began to scream in madness, “How dare you! How dare you!”

Ignoring the man’s angry roar, Gi-Gyu began to walk toward him. If he had hurried and moved rashly, he probably would’ve suffered severe injuries due to the sword barrage still storming toward him. He took one careful step at a time as he heard the system announcements.

[Your sensitivity to magic is increasing.]

[The assimilation level has reached C-grade.]

[You can now use your Ego’s abilities more effectively.]

[You have learned “Death” from Lou.]

[You now have partial access to “Death.”]

The system announcements pleased Gi-Gyu greatly.

***

Hundreds of swords flew at Gi-Gyu, but he didn’t panic and just calmly swung Lou.

Shhh.

The violet smoke from Lou slowly engulfed the swords, turning them into dust and scattering them into the air.

“W-what the! How…! But those belong to me!” the man howled again in rage. He picked up one of the swords and swung it in the air. He was trying to do what Lou just did by releasing the violet smoke, but he failed miserably and just waved it in thin air.

Pssss!

The half-man’s swinging sword hit Lou and crumbled into nothing. Lou’s physical body whispered in shock, “T-this can’t be! I-I’m…”

Gi-Gyu asked Lou one last time,?‘Are you sure this is okay?’

-I already said yes! Stop asking me.

Lou replied in annoyance, but Gi-Gyu could feel his Ego’s confusion. Even as Gi-Gyu drove Lou into the physical body, the man didn’t stop murmuring. “I am…”

The violet smoke gradually embraced the man, turning him into dust too. Even as the creature’s face scattered away, he whispered, “I am the king of the devils.”

The man, Lou’s physical form, was dead.

[You have passed the special test.]

[Perfect clear.]

[An additional reward will be given.]

The space around Gi-Gyu began to crumble down.

[The special test’s reward will be given now.]

A dark space surrounded Gi-Gyu. Standing in the world devoid of all things, he heard the system making further announcements.

[You have obtained new skills!]

[You have obtained "Combination!”]

[You have obtained “Grant!”]

[Your assimilation level has increased.]

Slowly, a bright light began to fill Gi-Gyu’s vision. Then, he found himself in a blindingly bright space. From somewhere above, two boxes floated down toward him like gifts from God. Without a word, he accepted them.

The two boxes, one made of diamond and the other of gold, were now in Gi-Gyu’s hands.

***

“Lou, we need to talk,” Gi-Gyu murmured as he stood in the 30th-floor landmark.

-...

When Lou didn’t answer him, Gi-Gyu insisted, “I know you can talk now. Stop hiding and have a serious talk with me.”

Gi-Gyu suddenly realized that he was treating Lou like a pouting girlfriend; the thought was enough to give him chills. Then again, what else could he do? He had to talk to Lou about the new skills and rewards and what happened with his physical body.

-Why…?

Lou replied in a cautious voice. Feeling a little upset, Gi-Gyu asked, “When did you complete the awakening process?”

-A while ago.

“Then why didn’t you say anything?”

-El already told you. I needed some time to think.

Before Gi-Gyu could reply, Lou continued quickly,

-Do you know what immortal beings do to endure eternity?

Gi-Gyu knew it was a rhetorical question, but he could tell Lou was ready to have a serious conversation. After a short contemplation, Gi-Gyu replied honestly, “I don’t know.”

Gi-Gyu tried to come up with an answer. If he were immortal, how would he survive the neverending time? Wealth and respect would fade, and being the strongest would also lose its meaning over time.

So what was the right answer? Gi-Gyu waited for Lou’s reply expectantly.

-It’s oblivion.

“Huh?”

-I said you need oblivion. To live that long, one must forget that they’ll live eternally. If not, you’ll lose your existence in time.

Lou’s explanation sounded cryptic. Gi-Gyu still couldn’t quite understand it, and Lou continued without giving him the time to process everything,

-I will just give you the answers to what you’re curious about. Like El and my physical body told you, I am the master of black magic and evil swords.

Gi-Gyu gulped loudly as Lou added.

-And the king of the demons.

“King of the demons…?”

Gi-Gyu knew two things about them: They were enemies and had a deep connection with the Tower and the gates. The incredibly strong Perez was the lowest level demon. Gi-Gyu couldn’t even imagine how powerful the creature El sealed away from the world must’ve been.

And now, Lou was claiming to be the king of all devils.

-But some of my minions betrayed and imprisoned me. Those traitors! I ended up losing my body and spending eternity alone. Over time, my fury and desire for revenge became faint, but I needed to protect my existence somehow.

Lou sounded sorrowful as he continued.

-So…

Lou paused as if he was reminiscing his painful past.

-I chose to forget. I gradually erased most of my memories over time. First, I erased my purpose in life. Then, my name and the rest. Eventually, I even forgot what I was; I saved my being by forgetting.

Wasn’t forgetting your purpose in life and your identity the same as losing yourself? Gi-Gyu wondered about this, but he didn’t voice his thoughts.

-The memories I sealed away were released for a moment recently.

Lou explained as if he was telling Gi-Gyu a bedtime story.

-I couldn’t remember everything, but even the tiny pieces of my memories were enough to confuse me. It made me doubt myself. I couldn’t even decide what I should do next, so I had no choice but to do it.

“Do what?”

Gi-Gyu felt like he could hear Lou laughing as he continued,

-I decided to forget everything once more. I chose oblivion again.

***

Gi-Gyu didn’t bring up that topic again since he didn’t want to muddle Lou’s consciousness. Also, since Lou had already erased most of his memories again, he couldn’t answer Gi-Gyu’s questions anyway. But overall, Gi-Gyu was satisfied with the outcome.

‘He can make new memories with me now.’

Gi-Gyu treasured Lou since Lou was his first Ego and Lou first gave him hope. So he didn’t care about Lou’s past. Also, whatever Lou went through didn’t seem like something he could help with anyway.

“I didn’t expect to receive an Ego’s fragment as a reward.”

-I agree; it’s strange.

Lou answered quickly. Just then, Brunheart chimed in with excitement,

-Lou! Lou! Let’s be friends! I’m Brunheart!

Brunheart didn’t interrupt Gi-Gyu and Lou while they were discussing such a heavy topic. But now that the serious conversation was over, Brunheart greeted Lou with his usual cheerfulness.

Lou asked Gi-Gyu in annoyance.

-What the heck is this?

“He’s a gate Ego and he has inherited the previous Brunheart’s memories. He’s a nice boy, so be kind to him, Lou.”

-Gate Ego? Gosh, this world is full of weirdos.

-Lou! You are Master’s very first Ego, right? I hope I get to show you my utmost respect!

-If you insist.

Lou acted as if Brunheart annoyed him, but Gi-Gyu could tell Lou was pleased with Brunheart’s respectful behavior. With a nod, Gi-Gyu returned to the main topic.

“So the gold box had three Ego fragments.”

Those three fragments vanished the second he opened the golden box; they were now displayed on his status screen. Since he also wanted to check his newfound skills, he delayed opening the diamond box and just examined his status screen.

“Wow, I’m checking my stats after so long,” murmured Gi-Gyu. Since his personal stats rarely changed, he rarely checked them and was usually more interested in his Ego’s status screens. His heart pounding expectantly, he first looked at his status screen.

[Level 1]

[Job: Ego’s partner]

[Unique Ability: Link (Can sync with Egos.)]

-Abilities-

[Assimilation (B): You can use 60% of your Ego’s stats.]

[Death: Can control death.]

[Combination: Can combine Egos.]

[Grant: Can grant an Ego.]

[Retained Ego: Chang-Gyung, Choi Min-Suk]

[Retained Ego Fragments: 4 pieces.]

“I feel so happy.” Gi-Gyu smiled widely as he read his stats.

-Why are you so happy?

“How could I not be? I used to have only a line or two. I know it’s just a few more lines, but it still feels like a huge difference to me,” replied Gi-Gyu in excitement. The first thing he noticed was the assimilation grade. He skipped a few grades, but that wasn’t important; the significant change he could feel was. He could now use much more of his Egos’ powers, and he could already tell that by how his body felt.

Lou had briefly explained the new skill “Death” to him, and Gi-Gyu decided to try it out later. Then, there were the other two new skills: Combination and Grant.

“So I can combine and grant Egos?” Gi-Gyu murmured in confusion. Just the description wasn’t enough for him to understand these skills. He realized he had to try them out to learn their true functions.

Gi-Gyu wondered aloud, “So if I combine Lou and El, will it be like Ellou? Or Louel? Does that mean a new Ego will be created?”

-Don’t even say something so creepy!

-Master, I must protest as well.

Both Lou and El screamed in annoyance. Gi-Gyu chuckled, surprised that even El was so against the idea.

“Fine, anyway, Grant…” Was he to use this skill on the Ego fragments? Or on Chang-Gyung and Choi Min-Suk’s Egos? Gi-Gyu couldn’t tell what he was supposed to do with this new skill. In the end, he decided he wouldn’t know until he tried using it.

“Okay, this is the last box,” murmured Gi-Gyu as he touched the diamond box.

-Are you expecting something good?

When Lou asked, Gi-Gyu replied expectantly, “Of course! It’s a?diamond?box. I got the elixir the last time I opened one.”

Gi-Gyu received a diamond box with the elixir inside the Maze of Heryond. Did that mean there would be another elixir in this diamond box?

Heart beating like a drum, Gi-Gyu slowly opened the box.

“T-this is…?!” Gi-Gyu stammered in confusion, and Lou’s shocked gasp followed it.

-...!