Chapter 24: Chapter 11.1

(EP-11.1) Orientation

011 - Orientation

The laws of the hidden world apply differently than in the material world.

Even if you just use a single portion of food as a burnt offering, the people here can all drink, play music and do other things.

“Ah… I'm wasted…”

“This is the good shi†…”

“…”

As a result, there's a bunch of drunken angels currently lying on the floor. I'm watching all this while holding up a sigh.

However.

Regardless of how much they look like wasted drunkards right now, if they are put in the material world, each and every one of them is a being capable of a power comparable to that of a military corps. There’s no need to do anything disrespectful.

“Hey, I ate well.”

The one with the reddest face among the scattered angels stood up.

Obviously… it was the Lord Angel. Among the angels present, he's clearly the one with the highest rank.

“Thanks to you, working became enjoyable for a bit. It's been a while, and who knows when we're able to experience this again.”

“They're not feeding you at work?”

“What kind of food would there be in this world? We don’t even have physiological needs.”

“…Do you have something else then?”

“Look at our condition. What do you think?”

“…”

Oh my God.

Doesn’t that mean that they're on military service for eternity without pay?

According to the setting, this race is virtually immortal in the hidden world.

What angels? They're just winged slaves.

“Don’t think about useless things, now tell me.”

As I was giving the other person a sympathetic look, the Lord Angel smiled and pointed at something.

It was the still-smoking Divine's Ultima incense burner.

“Yes?”

“You came to us because you wanted something. Tell me and I'll give it to you.”

Around me were loud mumbling of Iya~ Squad Leader is so hot~ He's alive~

The angels twisted, nonessential rambles were dizzying.

“…”

But, well, he's not wrong.

Even though the purpose of the Ultima was simply to reveal the hidden world, the reason why it is classified as a ‘survival’ item is that when you encounter this side in the game, it'll unconditionally get infused with divine protection.

“Say what you want and I'll do the best I can.”

However, it was totally unexpected that they'll just give it to me before I could even negotiate.

I’ve even prepared dozens of bargaining chips specifically for them.

While I was blankly staring at this development that had worked so well for me, the main angel continued.

“You just don't decide to offer things to air. Looking at you, it seems that you know the rules and laws of angels.”

“…To be honest, I kinda do.”

“I can see it.”

The Lord Angel's eyes flashed with all kinds of colors as he said so.

I know this ability.

Insight.

It's a skill that could grasp one's ‘essence’ just by looking at them. You can say it's like reading the other person’s Status Window in great detail.

“I see that you're someone who's going to be big in the future. Think of this like an investment.”

“…”

“I can see potential. It's just not fully developed yet.”

The other angels lying nearby woozily echoed too.

This is a burdensome high evaluation. What could he possibly be referring to?

‘This must be it…’

He's probably talking about my Special Gift.

The ability to gain favor from the wicked.

If we're talking about my potential, then there’s nothing else that comes to mind other than this.

“That is more powerful than you think. I'm interested to see how you deal with it.”

The angel said with a burst of laughter.

However, the sentence that followed was not something to be said lightly.

“But it’s not necessarily always good.”

“Yes?”

“You've been bitten by something terrible. I can’t see its full form yet, but I can tell it’s bad. It seems to have stuck because of your abilities.”

What is he talking about?

Blinking in wonder, the Lord Angel continued to speak while scratching his head.

“But again, it’s kinda funny. It certainly is bad, but it doesn’t look that harmful.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“It feels strangely friendly. At least I don’t feel like it's trying to harm you. Even, it's trying to help.”

“…”

What is it?

“I can’t even see its shape right now, so it won’t have a direct effect on you. Just prepare yourself sometime soon.”

Still blankly blinking, I was net with another word bomb.

“Let me give you one piece of advice. If it could mean your survival, you’re thinking of taking everything even if they're not yours, right? That incense burner is also something that should've gone to someone else.”

“…How did you know?”

“I told you, I can see everything.”

The angel replied with a smirk.

“But I have no intention of interfering with anything. I would've advised against it if it were another person and not you.”

“Yes?”

“Take it all. Whatever it may be, gather all the means available to you. It would be really hard to survive if it's involving with such an abomination.”

The weight of his words was heavy.

Though, his following words went back to a light-hearted tone.

“But don't worry too much.”

“What? You just made a big deal about it.”

“I can tell just by looking at your expression. Usually, humans I’ve seen get scared right away when they hear these words.”

A ferocious smile crept across his face.

“But you... You remained calm and even planned on how to live through to see the next day. People like that typically have a long life.”

“…”

“Trust me, the average person don’t do that. You're a bud waiting to bloom.”

Again, it's an onerously high evaluation.

I’m just trying because I don’t want to die.

But this is still coming from an angel. I'll need to give it some serious thought. This is pretty important-

“Squad Leader, you're talking nonsense after receiving the good shi†?”

“Come here quickly, use the shovel not eat it.”

“Look at these little f*cks. Hey, you sons of bi†ches became my superiors all of a sudden, huh-”

“…”

It will be important.

Maybe.

Hopefully...

●

‘This is great.’

Thinking so, I looked at the incense burner in my hand.

The protections I received from the angels were quietly dwelling inside.

[ Divine's Ultima ] [ Item Grade: C+ ]

[ This incense burner has been used for ancestral rites for a long time. It has been influenced by the divine who exist in the hidden world and have acquired special powers. ]

◎ Built-in Skills ◎

■ [ Penance ] [ Skill Grade: C ]

[ Temporarily converts all additional stats to ‘Endurance’. ]

[ Consumes a small amount of mana. ]

※ [ This skill can be evolved! ]

Upon evolution, the skill changes to [ Proof of Faith ]!

■ [ Guardian Shield ] [ Skill Grade: C ]

[ Creates a protective shield that absorbs incoming attack once. ]

[ Consumes a small amount of mana. ]

[ The strength of the shield is affected by the ‘Endurance’ stat. ]

[ Has a 20 second cooldown. ]

※ [ This skill can be evolved! ]

Upon evolution, the skill changes to [ Stigmata ]!

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{T/N: This is yesterday's chapter, but I fell asleep before I could upload}