Trait Hoarder

Transcend – Part 2

Why is the [Hero] trait surfacing here?

The [Hero] trait strengthens me when I fight against formidable enemies.

It would activate if I fought the River Goddess again, sure—but I haven’t awakened it yet, so it shouldn’t even be usable.

As I stood there, puzzled, the goddess dropped an unimaginable line.

[Your teacher left you something good.]

“Pardon? Ah… yes. I’m always grateful.”

[As you should be. He passed on the totality of his life and experience.]

The goddess kept staring intently at my lower abdomen.

“Use it?”

[Indeed. Sword Star. You’ve visited that desolate, frozen land, haven’t you? You even brought this ship back from there.]

“Yes.”

I remember it well even now.

The Vigrid Plains.

There, in a battlefield of endlessly repeating memories, I emerged victorious and claimed Skidbladnir—the true form of the Sky River.

[It’s similar to that. You’ll magically reinterpret and recreate the power your teacher left behind. Then you’ll experience your teacher’s life and trials.]

“That’s even possible?”

[Child’s play.]

Experiencing the Legion Commander’s memories…

Not a bad idea.

It might help me awaken the [Hero] trait—and possibly even forge a Unique Trait of my own.

A Unique Trait…

What could my Unique Trait possibly be?

No one knows better than me what I’ve lived for and what I’ve been running toward all this time.

Survival.

I’ve been clawing my way forward just to survive.

But given how many traits I’ve acquired—how scattered they are—I don’t think it’ll result in a survival-type trait.

The goddess reached out her hand to me.

[Do not rush.]

Her hand touched me.

[Reaching Level 8 is only the planting of a small seed. Whether one becomes a supreme deity ruling over this world or a minor god with a single river as their domain, it all begins the same.]

Divine power surged in like a crashing wave.

[Reflect on yourself. Define your world. Erect the pillar that supports you. This won’t be done in a single day. Think of this as laying the foundation—the cornerstone. It’d be nice if you realize your essence, but it’s fine if you don’t. Just feel it. Feel your teacher’s life. Feel how your teacher faced the world and transcended humanity. And one last piece of advice…]

The world turned blue.

As if I had plunged into a river.

[Contemplate deeply the power the World Tree bestowed upon you.]

Fwoosh!

The world faded away.

The goddess, the Sky River’s private chamber, even the divine power surrounding me—all of it vanished into the distance.

They shrank into a single dot, and the world flipped upside down.

And what came to meet me… was an entirely different world.

“Khak!”

I violently coughed up blood.

“Urgh… Sword Master! You traitorous dog!”

My mouth moved on its own, completely against my will.

Sword Master?

I didn’t even have time to process it before my vision shifted.

Blood had covered my eyes, but I wiped it away roughly with my left arm.

Naturally, a man entered my sight.

A suit, a fedora.

And a Japanese sword in his right hand.

I knew that blade.

Masamune.

That alone told me who he was.

A character that only existed in lore—without even a single illustration.

Sword Master.

Father of the Massacre Empress, and a traitor to the nation.

“This is getting boring. Why don’t you surrender already?”

The Sword Master spun Masamune casually as he spoke.

Then the massive figure collapsed beside me let out a roar.

“Eat a potato, you traitorous bastard!”

“Hmph. You beast. You’re begging for a beating.”

“I am a human!”

“Look in the mirror, monster bear.”

“My name is Yoo Hyeoncheong!”

“Bullshit.”

I glanced to my side, stunned.

His appearance resembled a bear.

Armor-like steel hide, majestic horns.

It was the chieftain of Monster Village, now captain of the Sky River—Grizzly Bear.

But his face looked much younger and smaller than I remembered. He was staring at me, crying out in desperation.

“Comrade Gu! Run!”

“How could I abandon Comrade Yoo and flee?”

“You idiot! If one of us lives, it should be you! What’s the point of me surviving? While I hold off this traitor bastard, you get out of here! Now! GRAAAAH!”

Grizzly Bear roared and charged at the Sword Master.

True to his mutant nature, his momentum was overwhelming.

But the Sword Master only scoffed coldly.

“Hmph.”

A cold, gleaming blade light.

A crescent moon of Sword Qi rose.

Even Grizzly Bear couldn’t withstand the force of that Sword Qi.

“Graaah!”

A scream burst as blood exploded into the air.

Yet Grizzly Bear still held on.

“Run! Please, just run!”

Grizzly Bear’s desperate cries pierced straight through my chest like daggers.

I clenched my teeth, glaring at both Grizzly Bear and the Sword Master.

Rage and anguish boiled up like wildfire in my veins.

Should I run?

Withdraw and plan for the future?

But what about Grizzly Bear?

Yoo Hyeoncheong. A comrade who looked like a monster but had a heart warmer than anyone I knew—what would happen to him?

My head burned.

My heart boiled like lava, urging me toward one singular answer.

I knew, logically.

There was no winning this fight.

We were both Level 7, yes, but the Sword Master was clearly two steps above me.

On top of that, I’d already burned through a good portion of my mana battling the Sword Master’s disciples in that gauntlet before this.

Running was the smart choice.

Then regroup and fight another day.

But, still—still…

Grizzly Bear’s howling.

The determination of a warrior sacrificing himself to save me—it was stabbing into my heart over and over again.

So I raised my sword.

I steeled my resolve.

“Comrade Yoo. We swore an oath, did we not?”

I spoke in a calm voice.

“To share glory in life, and in death… to become guardian spirits of Korea together.”

“You idiot! I told you to run!”

“I can’t do that. I don’t know how to run away and leave a comrade behind.”

“You idiot! You think you’re some kind of hero?”

“I’m no hero. Just a man with pride.”

I tightened my core and spoke firmly.

“I can’t face my son, Jungju, one day and tell him I abandoned a friend to save myself.”

“You stupid bastard…”

“Whether we die or live, we do it together.”

I stomped the ground.

Hurled myself forward.

Like a runaway train, I crashed toward the Sword Master.

“Ha ha ha!”

The Sword Master burst into a loud laugh.

“Looks like I’ll make a name for myself today!”

His sword was indeed sharp.

It was overwhelming me.

Even when I thrust my blade, it couldn’t reach him.

Every flash of his cold-blue sword light carved a new wound into my body.

“Gragh!”

It was only thanks to Grizzly Bear throwing his body in the way at critical moments that I hadn’t lost my head.

I narrowed my eyes.

‘This won’t do.’

But that was just my thought.

The Legion Commander of this memory was crying out even more fiercely.

‘More!’

Stronger.

‘More!’

Faster.

‘More!’

Sharper.

A transcendent will called forth a miracle.

The pillar of the mind stood tall, and it demanded a change in the world.

Slash!

With each wound, a thread of a mana circuit was carved.

Shhhk!

With every strike, another strand of the circuit extended.

A vast, intricate web of mana circuits began to take shape.

No, it was on another level entirely.

It resembled a three-dimensional magic circle more than a circuit.

Like a grand magic ritual led by an Archmage and supported by dozens of other mages.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

Even the Sword Master sensed something was wrong.

His Sword Qi began to sprout like icicles.

He pulled Masamune behind his body.

A stance for the ultimate technique—End of Heaven and Earth, the finisher of the Massacre Empress.

“No! Stop!”

“You monster bastard!”

Grizzly Bear threw himself in to stop it.

The Sword Master roared and counterattacked.

As a result, Grizzly Bear’s arm was severed clean—but the End of Heaven and Earth was canceled.

And I, without pausing to breathe, dove in.

“You bastard!”

The Sword Master roared and slashed at my head.

I saw his eyes.

In those deep brown pupils, I could see myself—or rather, the Legion Commander.

The air shifted strangely.

His eyes glistened like glass beads, and thick steam, unrefined and murky, rose in waves.

A common phenomenon during a superhuman’s awakening.

Unrefined moisture in the body meets mana and evaporates, creating that effect.

But for a Level 7 superhuman to awaken?

This wasn’t Level 0 to 1, or even Level 1 to 2. At Level 7—Ultimate Realm—you should have perfect control over your mana, blood, and bodily fluids.

‘This is it.’

Time seemed to slow.

The blade that once flashed like lightning now crawled toward me.

But I didn’t bask in it, nor was I drunk on the feeling of victory.

I simply burned.

With searing passion, I struck forward.

“Die, traitor!”

Blade met blade.

It was no longer one-sided.

As wounds were etched into me, so too were wounds carved into the traitorous Sword Master.

I was even starting to push him back.

His swordplay was better, yes.

His skill, superior.

But the fierce heat blazing within me, the mana circuits forming anew, lent me strength.

“This—this is impossible!”

The Sword Master screamed.

“This is the Heavenly Demon’s trickery!”

“Not a chance. This is the will of the heavens.”

I said coldly.

“Die, traitor. Every soul of this land prays for your death.”

My sword pierced him.

Right through his chest.

Through his heart.

It pierced his torso and burst out his back.

The Sword Master’s face trembled violently.

“This is a dream…”

“This is undeniable reality. Your time is up.”

I withdrew my sword and severed his neck.

His head rolled across the floor.

And as I saw it, emotion surged through me.

Satisfaction. Euphoria. A deep sense of achievement.

Of course, they weren’t my feelings.

They were the Legion Commander’s—the true owner of these memories.

“You did it! You really did it!”

Grizzly Bear shouted, hopping around on one arm.

And with that, the world faded away again.

My vision darkened, then brightened again, revealing a familiar scene.

“This is getting boring. Why don’t you surrender already?”

The Sword Master twirled Masamune as he asked.

I had returned to the start of this memory.

“Eat a potato, you traitorous bastard!”

The same memory, repeated.

The moment the [Hero] trait was born—experienced a second time.

It was hot.

The Legion Commander’s emotions burned so fiercely that just being part of it set my heart ablaze.

But…

I asked myself a question in silence.

‘Goddess… what’s the point of all this?’

Was she asking me to accept the Legion Commander’s life?

That was impossible.

Now that I had felt his thoughts and emotions directly, I knew.

He and I were complete opposites.

The reason the Legion Commander awakened the [Hero] trait?

Simple.

Because he lived selflessly.

He charged in, ready to die, and brought down a powerful foe.

For the sake of his comrade.

For Grizzly Bear—a companion scorned by society and cursed with a monstrous form.

That process, that result, became the [Hero] trait.

And me?

Sure, I’ve overcome hardship. I’ve killed powerful enemies.

But why?

For myself.

I fought to survive. I fought to protect what was mine.

Other people?

Never even crossed my mind.

That’s where the critical difference lies.

No matter what I do, I can’t forge the [Hero] trait on my own.

I can use the one the Legion Commander passed down, sure.

“You did it! You really did it!”

“You did it! You really…”

“You did…”

A short life repeats endlessly.

The Legion Commander’s will begins to fade.

And in its place, my own will awakens—giving me control over my body once again.

[Hero] [Black Tiger Invincible Sword Art] [Black Tiger Invincible Heart Technique]

[Master of the Sword] [Righteous Merchant] [Rampaging Train]

I died several times.

Sometimes we both died together.

And sometimes, I succeeded in killing the Sword Master.

Each time, the [Hero] trait lent me its strength—but I still hadn’t understood the goddess’s intent.

‘What is it?’

What am I meant to gain here?

All I’m doing is improving my swordsmanship.

Until now, I’d relied entirely on traits.

But after clashing with the Sword Master hundreds—no, thousands—of times, I was beginning to stand as a master of the blade, as its rightful owner, even without traits.

I’d fought so many battles that I could now overwhelm him while letting my mind wander.

‘She told me to reflect.’

I turned the goddess’s words over in my head again.

‘Watch the Legion Commander’s life, feel his way of being, and contemplate the World Trait.’

There was one thing I had come to understand.

I cannot live like the Legion Commander.

The world may idolize me, call me a hero, but I’m selfish to the bone.

In my life, I come first.

Sure, I’ve helped people.

I treated my employees well.

I looked out for residents during the redevelopment.

But the truth is—I only did that because I had traits to gain from it.

Or because there was some other purpose.

That doesn’t prove altruism.

It just means I used to be one of those exploited people in my original world, and I didn’t want to become the exploiter.

I’m selfish, but I do have empathy.

I’m the very definition of a normal person.

Isn’t that who I really am?

A completely different type of human than the heroic Legion Commander.

‘I’m not like the Legion Commander.’

A small but clear realization.

So then what kind of will should I impose upon the world?

What principle should I stand for, what cause should I carry through?

‘…I want to grow stronger.’

The thought hit me suddenly.

Yes. I want to be strong.

To survive—and to have more.

More than now.

Beyond the ultimate, into transcendence.

Beyond even transcendence—into constellation.

I want to rise to that lofty state and look down upon the world, like a star in the sky.

“To grow stronger…”

I knew it instinctively.

This alone isn’t enough.

It’s too vague.

I need something concrete.

At that moment, my eyes lit up.

‘Traits.’

My everything.

My beginning, and what carried me to this point.

‘Traits are the answer.’

I imagined it.

Building a fortress, stone by stone.

That’s what this was.

I’d collect the stones called traits and assemble them.

Stacking high-tier traits like walls, then building them up further to create ultimate-tier traits.

That’s how I’d grow stronger.

I would—

By stacking traits.

Truly, Trait Hoarding Warrior Kim.

CRACK!

Lightning struck.

A white flash streaked across my mind.

Thunderbolts rained down in this mental world.

A blaze that could only be called the lightning of enlightenment split the air.

And with that, the World Trait began to change.

Just slightly—ever so slightly, it began to sprout.

I couldn’t yet tell what kind of trait it was.

Nor could I reap any benefits from it yet.

But it was mine.

A trait I was forging myself.

The seed of my Divine Authority—my beginning.

Fwoooosh!

The world closed in on me.

This wasn’t the Legion Commander’s memory world.

It was the Sky River’s private chamber—familiar to my senses, as though I had been here just months ago.

[Congratulations.]

The River Goddess fluttered toward me, smiling.

I noticed something strange.

The transparent magic cauldron, which should’ve still been spinning furiously.

It should’ve been brimming with a power beyond mana—but it was empty.

[You have become a Transcendent.]

–TL Notes–

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