Trip to Korea (2)
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Name: Jin Yong-tae / Taira Ryuta / ■■■ Lv 01
Stats
Physical
Strength: 2 Agility: 3 Stamina: 2 Resistance: 2 Recovery: 2 Nerves: 3 Appearance: 10
Mental
Intelligence: 2 Knowledge: 2 Concentration: 2 Willpower: 4 Creativity: 2 Charisma: 4 Judgment: 3
Other
Luck: 5
Skills
Shinkai Yatsude (Martial Arts Lv 2)
Traits
—
The stats were based on Level 1, and an average person was between 1 and 2.
Still, it's a relief there were no 1s.
They were not bad starting stats.
The highest stat, Appearance, was incredibly high at 10.
Considering that a stat of 10 is the maximum limit an ordinary person without any innate talent can reach, it meant I was the most handsome guy among ordinary people.
Well, if we're talking top celebrity level, there are probably a fair number of people who exceed 10.
But it was a shame that my Charisma was low compared to my Appearance.
Usually, Appearance and Charisma are proportional, but it seems my charisma couldn't keep up with my looks.
For reference, the Appearance stat in the Physical category and the Knowledge stat in the Mental category couldn't be raised with level-up points.
Appearance had to be raised with elixirs or surgery, and Knowledge could only be raised through learning.
In the case of Knowledge, it could be easily raised by downloading if you had cyberware installed.
And what's this Shinkai Yatsude in the skills section?
As I focused on Shinkai Yatsude, a translucent description window for it popped up.
◆Shinkai Yatsude (深海八手) [Mythical Martial Art]
Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢ a fisherman from Tateyama, boarded a deep-sea fishing vessel and, high on drugs, had a dream in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Startled to see an octopus god sitting on a throne in a city made of stone in the deep sea, a place so deep no one could go, Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢ asked, "Who are you, great one?" The octopus god said one word, "Astonishing," and pierced Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢'s forehead with a tentacle. At that moment, Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢ realized several truths.
Waking from his dream, Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢ went on an unstoppable rampage, claiming that he had learned martial arts from the octopus god of the deep sea and declaring that he was no longer a fisherman and would not work.
Dozens of his fellow fishermen could not tolerate S҉a҉t҉o҉ G҉e҉n҉'s declaration that he would suddenly stop working in the middle of the ocean and tried to lynch him.
However, it was the dozens of men who ended up being brutally defeated by the one man.
Because his fighting style was like that of a demon, Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢ was called an Oni, and upon reaching land, he opened a dojo and fully established the martial art he learned from the octopus god as the martial art of Shinkai Yatsude.
Shinkai Yatsude has been passed down only through single-heir succession; Sa҈to҉ Gen҉̟̜̞͢ passed it to Soda Haruto, Soda Haruto to Fujigasaki Rinka, and Fujigasaki Rinka passed the martial art to Taira Ryuta.
…Isn't this completely Lovecraftian?
Come to think of it, this Jin Yong-tae guy said he learned martial arts to overcome being bullied for being a Zainichi Korean.
But what kind of terrifying martial art did he learn?
Then again, if he had just learned some normal-grade karate, I would have complained.
Still, at this level, I didn't need to worry about close combat.
If it's Mythical-grade, its performance is pretty much guaranteed.
I got a good roll with Jin Yong-tae.
In the [Megacorp's Youngest Son] game, if you got a character this good on random mode, it would be a totally blessed character.
More importantly, it's time to eat the Cheonwanghwan.
After I shouted "Status Window," if I focused my mind on an item I was holding, a translucent window would pop up.
◆Cheonwanghwan [Legendary Elixir]
An elixir containing the power of Virūpākṣa. Randomly increases physical stats by 1~7. Grants the trait Regeneration. Breaks through the limit of physical stats. +1
No doubt about it.
I put the Cheonwanghwan in my mouth.
And I lost consciousness.
***
When I opened my eyes, it was 10 AM.
It seemed I had been unconscious for almost a dozen hours.
I'm hungry, I should probably get up.
But when I stood up, something felt strange.
My field of vision felt much higher.
I must have grown taller because of the elixir.
In the game, only the stats changed, but here, it seemed the stats also changed my external appearance.
I went to sleep wearing a robe yesterday, but when I tried to put on my clothes to leave now, they didn't fit.
The one saving grace was that the waist fit, but the thighs of the jeans felt like they would burst, the cuffs were far above my ankles, and the sweatshirt had become a complete muscle tee.
If I flex a little, aren't my clothes going to burst like in a cartoon?
That would be pretty funny.
Just how much did my stats increase for this to happen?
Physical
Strength: 8 Agility: 6 Stamina: 9 Resistance: 6 Recovery: 8 Nerves: 10 Appearance: 15
.
.
.
Traits
Regeneration
Strength went up by 6, Agility by 3, Stamina by 7, Resistance by 4, Recovery by 5, Nerves by 7, and Appearance by 5.
It was supposed to increase by 1 to 7, so this was a lucky roll.
The lowest increase was 3, after all.
I feel great.
On top of that, I even got the Regeneration I was hoping for.
◆Regeneration [Growth Trait]
An ability to repair wounds when injured. With enough time, can even restore lost body parts.
—
It was a short description, but it still felt good.
It also applies when I'm training my body, so it was an unparalleled trait for the physical side of things.
First, let's go out and buy some clothes.
I was originally in the upper 170s, which wasn't short in Japan, but now I seemed to be at least in the mid-to-upper 180s.
What should I tell Mom?
Should I say the samgyetang was really effective?
Now that I mention samgyetang, I'm craving it again.
I searched for a nearby clothing store on my phone and bought a tracksuit, top and bottom, from a casual sports brand store.
When it comes to clothes, it's gotta be Nike.
It's so comfortable.
After paying, I asked them to throw away the clothes I was wearing, and the part-timer blushed as she looked at my face.
Is this what an Appearance stat of 15 feels like?
It was a feeling I had never experienced before my possession.
Back then, I was just at an average level.
It felt good, but if I kept getting this much attention, it would create a whole host of problems for obtaining items, so I bought a hat and a mask and put them on.
I'll enjoy this later.
I didn't come on this trip to Korea to have fun.
This time, I had to go quite far.
The place I had to go was Hwacheon, Gangwon Province.
I had to take the subway to Yongsan Station, then the ITX to Chuncheon Station, and then a bus to Hwacheon.
In Hwacheon, there was a secret research facility of a certain corporation, and someone had hidden an artificial elixir, a prototype created at the facility, nearby.
I arrived near the area safely.
After wandering the mountain for a while, I dug under a tree that had grown in the shape of an X, just as I remembered, and a box appeared.
Nice.
Now I just have to be careful of the occasional patrols....
"Who's there?"
Busted!
Still, it was a relief that I had managed to grab the box with the elixir.
I heard a gunshot and got hit in the side.
Keuk!
The Yeouiju's damage reduction must have been working, because the pain wasn't that great.
Perhaps surprised to see me running vigorously even after being shot, the two guards paused for a moment, then started running after me.
We were in the mountains, so there were plenty of places to hide.
But I chose to do something other than hide.
If I kept running, my back would become a beehive.
Shinkai Yatsude, Shokushujin (Tentacle Blade)
I spread my fingers and gathered them into a spear-hand, hid behind a tree, and as a guard passed by, I struck his neck.
The guard couldn't withstand the strength enhanced by the Cheonwanghwan, and his Adam's apple caved in as he died on the spot.
I grabbed him by the neck and charged at the remaining guard.
"Don't come any closer!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
I blocked the bullets with the dead guard's body and then stabbed the other one in the forehead with Shokushujin again.
It felt as if my hands were moving on their own, without my conscious thought, as if I were naturally using a martial art I had practiced for years.
The tips of my fingers shattered the bone of his forehead and sent a shock to his brain.
The guard foamed at the mouth and collapsed.
I caught the collapsing guard and stripped off his clothes.
I had to change because I had been shot in the side.
I couldn't walk around in blood-stained clothes.
In the middle of taking off the clothes, I couldn't hold it in and threw up on the side.
I killed people.
Two of them.
After a round of retching, I changed into the guard's dress shirt and pants.
"It was self-defense."
I had only exercised my right to self-defense against a gun.
I hypnotized myself.
With my enhanced strength, I tore the clothes I had been wearing to shreds.
Then I scattered the pieces as I descended the mountain.
As the gunshot wound slowly healed due to the Regeneration trait, the bullet popped out of the wound and fell onto the snowy ground with a soft thud.
I immediately got on a bus heading for Seoul, sat down, and opened the wooden box.
It was a green liquid in a small glass vial.
◆Mental Enhancer Prototype [Artificial Elixir]
Increases Willpower by 2-4 and Concentration by 1-3.
Compared to the Cheonwanghwan, the increase was minimal, but elixirs that raised mental stats were rare in themselves, so it was a valuable item.
I opened the lid and drank it immediately.
It was a prototype, so they probably didn't bother with the taste, because it was disgusting.
If my willpower increases, will I be able to overcome this guilt of having killed people?
Feeling the elixir's energy churning in my stomach, and at the same time feeling the rhythmic vibration of the bus, I forced myself to sleep.