Free Web Novel[Ben’s body reaches its limit.]
There were many people who liked the old man.
The Special User Management Team.
Team Lead Kim Taeseok and Associate Lee Jihee liked the old man as well.
In the beginning, the old man’s personality had been set like this.
[He is the eccentric, self-centered father of spearmen. He has spent his whole life chasing the path of the Spear God, and his goal is to complete the Spear God’s steps.]
[At the same time, he lives with terrible loneliness and pain.]
That initial setting was not easy to change, but by now, the old man’s setting had completely transformed.
[He is an old man who cares for his people, realized how foolish the path he had walked was, and found happiness in communicating with his people, laughing and talking with them.]
[He is no longer lonely, and he laughs a great deal now.]
“.......”
Associate Lee Jihee liked the old man more than anyone.
As CEO Lee Sejin had said.
He was an NPC changed by a user.
Also, when the initial planners created a character, they decided both their beginning and their end.
Originally, the old man was supposed to “throw himself into the burning Small World Tree and die together with it.”
But several years had already passed since the Small World Tree caused that fire.
The old man had already defied his fate.
After that, watching the old man change had been a happy thing.
She liked the times when he read picture books to the children and said, “Tsk, your grandfather is reading you a book, and you’re dozing off?”
She also liked the sight of the old man entering the marketplace with his hands clasped behind his back and slyly asking, “Heh heh, how have things been lately?”
But now, Lee Jihee was facing the notification blinking before her eyes again.
[Ben’s body reaches its limit.]
The crying Lee Jihee was synchronizing with the NPC.
There was a reason for the tears she shed, and Team Lead Kim, who was ranked higher than her, was also sad.
Because he was a higher-ranked employee, and because the Special User Management Team knew how to practice the rule that “one must not be too swayed by emotion,” he patted her back and said,
“Already......”
With a choked voice, Team Lead Kim looked at the monitor.
“It’s the sixth time.......”
A notification that an NPC’s body had reached its limit meant the character’s extinction.
Within thirty seconds of the notification, the NPC would die.
But Ben was enduring.
Past the first time, all the way to the sixth.
Only to complete the “skillbook” for Divine Step.
The fact that he was an extraordinary powerhouse played a part in how he could endure, and the fact that he had entered the path of a Demigod midway also helped.
But the greatest reason was his desire to complete this skillbook.
However, at present.
[Divine Step skillbook completion rate: 12%.]
It was still only at that level.
Worse yet.
[Ben’s body reaches its limit.]
The frequency of the notifications was increasing, and Ben inside the screen was turning into ash faster and faster.
But the Ben inside the screen did not put down his pen, and only then did the message ring out.
[A Myth for a Dear Friend reacts.]
Team Lead Kim rose to his feet. Even he, who had been trying to stay composed, now found it hard to remain calm.
Stories about tales had already been heard a fair number of times.
But this was the first story being crafted into a Myth.
And they understood what kind of event this Myth was arising from.
[Even in his final moments, the old man writes for his dear friend.]
It was not because he was a special NPC.
It was that the system had recognized and praised the story of Hyunsoo and Ben.
A “Myth” was not necessarily something excellent and extraordinary.
A representative example was the Most Beautiful Sword in the World.
Like that, this came from the old man’s heart, which thought of him at the very end.
Also.
Even if the person who had learned Divine Step was Ben.
In such a short time.
And with a mind that had been faint.
There was no way the Divine Step he wrote could be perfect.
That was why Team Lead Kim knew the truth of the “Divine Step” being recorded.
At most, it would be Rare or Epic.
However.
The fact that this notification had rung meant that some part of a reward would be given.
[Ben’s mind becomes clearer, and his will to complete the Mythic Divine Step grows stronger.]
[Ben endures a little longer beyond the limits of his body.]
[The chance of Divine Step becoming Mythic increases.]
It was giving Ben a little more time to endure.
But although both Lee Jihee and Team Lead Kim wanted him to complete Divine Step as a Mythic skill......
“There’s no time......”
The problem was that the user Hyunsoo was not logged in right now.
It began to feel pointlessly resentful that, of all days, he was not logged in today.
[Divine Step skillbook completion rate: 31%.]
And even with so little time left, even though the old man’s mind had become clearer, he only grew slower and slower.
Once again.
[Ben’s body reaches its limit.]
The notification rang out.
[Ben will soon fall into eternal sleep.]
The two lowered their heads deeply.
[Ben falls into extreme terror.]
[Ben misses one person with extreme intensity.]
It was only natural.
Ben had fallen into the terror of a human standing before death, and the two of them knew.
“He drew his own memorial portrait, built his own coffin, and put everything in order, but now that he’s finally standing before death, he’s terribly afraid.”
“.......”
Lee Jihee’s sobbing echoed through the Special User Management Team.
At that moment.
A single change reached the running carriage.
*****
“......Cough!”
“Elder!”
Only after Ben coughed up blood and drew 53% of Divine Step did he realize it.
I was foolish again.......
Showing Hyunsoo a peaceful image of him closing his eyes without showing his end.
Drawing one memorial portrait and telling him not to be sad.
Leaving the Small World Tree behind for him.
All of it was because he wanted Hyunsoo to grieve less.
There are parents like that.
Even though they are in pain, they deliberately do not say so because they fear their children will grieve, because they fear their children will worry.
And only later do they realize that it will make those left behind even sadder and hurt them even more.
THROB—
The fear Ben realized too late began reaching an extreme.
Now, he no longer had the strength to move even a single finger.
The story being recorded as a Myth also stopped.
The old man standing before death fell into deep darkness.
The thing he had believed would be comfort came upon him as immense fear, and he thought that he alone was sinking into the sea, sinking “forever.”
When he felt that fear.
A large, callused hand took hold of his hand, which was slowly turning into ash.
“.......”
Ben, who had been scattering away in the posture of having let go of his pen, opened his eyes, and a massive man was kneeling on one knee beside him.
He was pouring every bit of mana he possessed into Ben with all his strength.
Then he smiled faintly.
“......Now that I think about it.”
He spoke in a choked voice.
“It seems the spear is a little better.”
“.......”
Warmth came from that large hand.
It was Sword King Barad.
He had received the news before Hyun, who was not logged in, and had cast everything else aside to rush here.
Ben stroked that hand and let out a laugh.
“Heh heh. You only realized that now?”
Barad smiled faintly.
A huge sadness surged up like a tide, but Barad saw the Divine Step Ben had written, the pen he would not let go of until the very end.
And because Barad knew Ben’s personality better than anyone, he gripped the old man’s cooling hand even tighter.
Ben, who had been slowly scattering away, stopped for a brief moment.
Ben picked up the pen again and began writing.
Divine Step is dancing. To perform that dance, the subject must see the threads.
As the old man wrote it down, he also reached a belated realization.
Because the power Sword King Barad poured into him made his mind clearer and sharper, he realized it.
It will be difficult for Hyunsoo to use Divine Step.
When the old man used Divine Step, he had crossed the limit of fifty steps and walked a thousand.
Of course, Divine Step did not happen within a single second.
But it made no sense for an ordinary human to take that many steps in only a few dozen seconds.
So.
He changed the idea.
Set Divine Step at a low stage at first, and as he learns it, allow it to rise to the realm I used. Yes, a growth-type Myth.
[The process of Divine Step has been described simply.]
[One who understands the basics of Ghost Step will not find it difficult to use.]
He smiled.
He became curious about the dance of Divine Step that Hyunsoo would perform in his place.
Another drawing over one sheet.
And how to step.
He sank into extreme concentration again.
As the outline of the Divine Step skillbook slowly revealed itself, Ben’s hand holding the pen began moving briskly once more.
Whenever he started slowly scattering away again, Barad poured mana into him with enough force to burn even his own life force.
When even that ran out and Barad’s mana began to dry up.
When it reached 82% completion.
Someone else climbed onto the carriage again.
It was Prak, Heir of Azure Heaven.
Unlike Barad, Prak was honest with his emotions when he saw Ben dying.
He stood right in front of him and burst into tears, biting his lip and choking on sobs.
“You have become the new king, so should you not be happy?”
Prak shook his head hard, and the old man laughed as if there was no helping him.
The crying Prak placed his hands on the old man’s body.
At some point, the carriage was nearing the Papal Palace.
Near the Papal Palace, tens of thousands of spearmen who had come with Prak and guarded the old man were waiting.
“Loyalty!”
Looking at them, Ben smiled faintly and focused on drawing again.
Then the notifications began ringing out again.
[The old man looked back on himself.]
[It was not a lonely death, but a happy one.]
[Everyone placed their hands over the old man’s powerless hand and drew together.]
[One step was a step they gave him. Hundreds of steps gathered to form one “Divine Step.”]
[At last, the old man put down the pen.]
Tap.
Roll—
Brilliant light burst from the skillbook.
FLAAAAAASH—!
[Mythic-grade Divine Step is completed.]
[Its completion level is extremely high.]
[Every movement is expressed easily and perfectly, so even an ordinary person will be able to learn it.]
[Mythic-grade Divine Step is a bound skill for only one person!]
[Mythic-grade Divine Step grows over time.]
(Divine Step)
Active Skill
Grade: Mythic
Mana Cost: 7,000
Cooldown: 1 hour
Level: 1 Proficiency: 0%
·The moment it is used, the user receives the buff effect of Divine Step.
·All stats increase by 20%, Physical Attack Power increases by 200%, Critical Rate increases by 90%, Cutting Power increases by 300%, and attack success rate increases by 500%.
·Movement speed and attack speed increase by 300%.
·Lasts for 10 seconds.
·It will not be easy to dare nullify a Myth.
·“Lines” become visible to the user’s eyes.
·When striking the exact point along a line, double damage is applied.
·With repeated use and training, proficiency can rise and the skill can level up.
·Each level gained increases the usage time.
·A special event will occur for only one person.
“Heh, heh heh.......”
Ben exclaimed in admiration.
The weakness of Ghost Step was that it applied only ordinary strike damage. In other words, only basic attacks.
Even if one took forty steps with Ghost Step.
Before an additional 4,000% damage, it was sometimes weaker than that.
However, the Divine Step set only for Hyunsoo was weaker than the Divine Step he had just unleashed, but it had achieved several stages of advancement beyond the power of Ghost Step.
Even without walking Divine Step, the buff effect increased movement speed and attack speed by threefold.
In other words, if Hyunsoo had struck three times per second before, he could now strike nine to ten times.
And there were increases to critical hits and Cutting Power.
Especially.
An increase to attack success rate......?
The most difficult thing was precisely this attack success rate.
Because it gave him the power to kill even beings far above himself.
Once he confirmed everything, the final story rang out.
[Myth. The Old Man and the Young Man is completed.]
Ben was saddened by this notification.
This notification, in the end, declared that he would not be able to see him again before he left.
WHOOOOOOOOSH—
He believed he would turn to ash and disappear completely.
But that thought was wrong.
Notifications were not “prophets.”
Barad’s urgent voice echoed faintly.
“Saintess Aria, hurry. There is no time!”
“Where is Hyunsoo? Where is Hyunsoo!?”
Saintess Aria and Karsel held onto the scattering old man as much as they could.
And when he opened his eyes at some point.
Hyunsoo, who had arrived late, had laid Ben’s scattering head on his lap and was looking down at him.
“......I’m here. Don’t be afraid, Elder.”
“Heh, heh heh heh, heh heh heh heh!”
With the last of his strength, the old man hugged him tightly.
And so the old man scattered away in his arms, crying and laughing.
