Chapter 142: Kotodama - Setsuna!
"Boss, the final Settle Main Quest task has been completed. The final rating is S-."
"The rewards are being drawn…"
[You have obtained the Special Item: Gene Targeting Optimizer (Purple - Extreme)]
Kaito Shirogane stood in the black, illusory space of the Nexus, holding a vial of glowing purple liquid.
[Gene Targeting Optimizer]
[Quality: Exceedingly Rare]
[Description: The pinnacle of genetic technology from the world of The Boys and its derivatives. It can be used to directionally optimize superhuman genes.]
[Effect: When used, grants a superhuman-type lineage one advancement. This advancement is guaranteed to produce a trait of Exceedingly Rare quality.]
He swirled the liquid, then stored it away. In terms of rarity, this item was second only to his [Secret Trove: Cursed Blood Origin]. For any Supe-type Reincarnator, this was an item that would undoubtedly spark a bidding war.
[Reincarnator Ex051 has returned. Commencing settlement.]
[Calculating…]
[World: The Boys Derivative World B4110]
[Main Quest: Bloody Hunt. Complete.]
[Main Quest Completion Rating: S- ]
[Detecting 2 Reincarnator kills in Team Arena mode. Rating increased.]
[Detecting Special Milestone: Savior. Rating increased by a half-step.]
[Final Mission Completion Rating: S+] (Note: Lowest rating is E, highest is SSS)
[Mission Rewards: 4500 Dimensional Points; 6 Character Attribute Points]
[Note: Karma Reincarnator Ex051's rank is below "Strong." Attribute points have been automatically allocated.]
Kaito stood in the void, watching the events of his time in The Boys world replay before him from a third-person perspective. He stroked his chin, re-evaluating his own actions.
Even after doing all that, I only got an S+ rating? he thought. What in the world do you have to do to get an SSS? Screw the entire world?
He thought about it carefully. While he had done well on a macro level, the details and the ending had been imperfect. Although he had killed two of his rival hunters, [Heartless] had survived. The Seven hadn't been completely wiped out. And strictly speaking, Butcher and Queen Maeve hadn't been killed by him.
The tearing pain of his muscles and nerves being re-written passed in an instant. He didn't even flinch. He was back in his private space.
The once-small, ten-square-meter dorm room was now a vast, cavernous space. Likely due to absorbing the private spaces of the monsters Bad Kid and Kalpa, it had now grown to nearly two hundred square meters.
Kaito took a moment to check his panel.
[Karma Reincarnator - EX051]
[Codename: Mercenary Tao (Changeable)]
[Equipped Milestone: Savior (Exceedingly Rare)]
[Lineage: Human (Mythical, Myriad) - Body of Ten Thousand Spirits from the Underworld (Stage 1 - Refined x1; Enlightened x1)]
[Talent: Primal Gene Lock - Stage Two (Extreme) (Similarity 73%) (A+);
Absolute Territory - Ultimate Power (Similarity 70%) (A)]
[Abilities: Devil Lance Lv3; Divine Finger Technique Lv3]
[Proficiencies: Martial Arts Aptitude Lv5 (4+1); Street Fighting Lv3, Hand-to-Hand Combat Lv6, Footwork Lv5 (Crane)]
[Foundational Attributes] Strength: 18 (15+2) Agility: 17 (15+2) Constitution: 17 (15+2-4) (Underworld Erosion Status) Spirit: 17 (21-4) (Spirit Curse Status) Energy: ? (Special constitution, cannot be anchored)
[Assets]
Singularities: 3 B-rank; 1 C-rank; 1 D-rank; 1 E-rank
Dimensional Points: 20,700
Items: Secret Trove: Cursed Blood Origin (Purple-Extreme); Gene Targeting Optimizer (Purple-Extreme); Treasure Map of a Mysterious Sea (Blue); Material: Eye of a Hero; Misfortune's Knock (Blue); The Terminator's Grip (Blue)…]
[Rank: Mortal-tier, Low (Anomalous)]
Kaito then searched his newly-expanded private space. He found a number of things. Bad Kid's space had been full of personal items, but the one that interested Kaito most was a black notebook, filled with writings in Korean. Since he was no longer in a mission world, he had lost his universal language comprehension, so he couldn't read it for now. He put it in his inventory and destroyed the other daily necessities. Kalpa's private space had been full of Buddhist paraphernalia and sex toys, nothing of value, which Kaito also threw away.
He looked at the huge, empty room, snapped his fingers, and willed it to become a clean, minimalist space. He had no real interest in interior design. He then left for the public space.
The turnover rate of Reincarnators in the East Sector was extremely high. When Kaito arrived in the Stall District, he overheard many people talking. That somewhat famous diviner, [Black Wizard - Damascus], had been hunted down and killed. Some guessed he had taken on a dangerous job and had been counter-hunted by his target. Kaito remembered that he had been the one to hire him to find Vincent.
"So careless, Damascus," he murmured, without any particular feeling. He first went to his own rented stall and paid another 1000 DP to extend the lease for another mission cycle. He then put up all the items he wasn't planning on using: [The Butcher's Leather Coat], [Stormfront's Cape], [The Debt Collector], and others.
The unique silver glow of the Story Equipment immediately drew a crowd. As Kaito put out more and more items, the crowd grew larger.
"This Mercenary Tao… he must have done something big again…"
The Reincarnators who recognized him knew that, with his vicious reputation, this many items couldn't have just been a normal mission haul. He must have hunted more Reincarnators.
When the [Gene Targeting Optimizer] was placed on the stall, its Exceedingly Rare purple glow caused an uproar. People from other districts were being called over.
"Hey! Tao! How much for the vial? Put up a price!"
Kaito saw the speaker was dressed in a black robe, their face hidden in a hood. A middleman, most likely. He just waved his hand, not bothering to reply. The Reincarnators who could actually afford this item were all "faces." And he meant that literally. The truly powerful players rarely hid their avatars. Without a recognizable face, you couldn't build a reputation. Humans were social animals. Most of their value was built on a system of trust, which was tied to reputation. Reincarnators were no different.
"If you don't have a B-rank Singularity, don't even look at it. Move along."
The woman's voice was a little hoarse, but very magnetic. Kaito looked up and saw [The Intestine Hunter] had appeared again, her revealing purple robe leaving little to the imagination. She was looking at Kaito with an annoyed expression.
"Tsk. It seems your hunt went well." Her words implied that her own had not.
Kaito smiled and, with a deliberate gesture, held his thumb and index finger just a tiny bit apart. "Yes. It went… a little well."
The Intestine Hunter was about to say more, but a wave of heat washed over the area. A massive red dragon flew over the Stall District. It was Flame Fiend, one of the East Sector's Four Fiends. While the public space prohibited any abilities that could affect others, personal abilities like transformations were allowed.
The Intestine Hunter stopped. "I was asked to act as a middleman," she said. "He wants your vial." Seeing the frown on Kaito's ugly red face, she pinched the bridge of her nose and explained, "The item he has to trade… I believe it's something you won't be able to refuse."
Kaito had been planning to browse the stalls anyway, looking for an ability that could trigger his [Death-Taint] more frequently. He set all his items to "accepting offers," and then teleported with the Intestine Hunter to the Z-district.
This was the part of the bazaar closest to the inner circle, right on the edge of the Goddess's Sanctum. The stall prices here were the highest, and the stalls themselves were few. Generally, only high-ranking Reincarnators set up shop here.
She led him past the white jade streets to a single stall. The owner had the appearance of a silver-haired man, his hair so long it fell past his waist. He was wearing an orange trench coat, a color combination so striking he was instantly recognizable.
"This," the Intestine Hunter introduced, "is [Stardew Silverlight], Tsukishiro. A Titled Reincarnator."
This was the first time Kaito had ever seen a [Titled Reincarnator] in person. Due to the Nexus's concealment, he couldn't use his [Transparent World] to observe his muscles or breathing. But the man radiated a special aura. He seemed completely unaffected by his surroundings, and his movements had a special rhythm. He was the type of person who would unconsciously draw your attention in a crowd. His presence was far greater than that of a normal person.
The Intestine Hunter then pointed at Kaito. "This is [Mercenary Tao]. The rest of the deal is up to you. Just remember my commission."
Tsukishiro seemed very easy-going. He just smiled and nodded at the woman's demand. He stood up, looked Kaito over, and marveled, "Your taste… is quite unusual."
He was the first Reincarnator to show genuine appreciation for Kaito's avatar. Kaito was quite pleased. He nodded, willing to deal with this man. He showed him the [Gene Targeting Optimizer]. "We're both in the bazaar. You could have just messaged me. Why go to the trouble of having her bring me here? Is it because you knew someone else would be bidding against you?"
Tsukishiro knew that no one who made a name for themselves in the Nexus was a fool. He didn't hide it. He nodded. "Some people just like to make things difficult for others. I had to make my own arrangements."
This likely involved some drama between Titled Reincarnators. Kaito wasn't interested. He just shrugged. "That has nothing to do with me. I only care about what I can get."
Tsukishiro nodded and showed him his own item. Or rather, an entire arm.
[Material: Arm of Silverwing - Charlotte]
[Quality: Exceedingly Rare - Extreme]
[Description: The arm of the dragon Silverwing - Charlotte, from the world of Dragon Raja and its derivatives. Contains the mystery of extreme speed.]
[Effect: Upon fusion, you may obtain one of the following traits.]
[A: Dragonkin. Gain the extremely rare Dragon Blood trait. Constitution +2. Possess the potential to purify Dragon Blood. (Scarce)]
[B: Shooting Master. Gain an additional bonus to Shooting Proficiency. Shooting Proficiency +2. (Rare)]
[C: Setsuna. Active Trait. Can briefly activate the Kotodama known as Setsuna, forcibly increasing the user's speed by 2x (Stage 1). This trait can be upgraded to a maximum of Stage 8 (256x). (Exceedingly Rare)]
It was a material with only three fusion options, but every single one of them was incredibly useful. [Dragonkin] was a path to a top-tier fantasy lineage. [Shooting Master] was a god-tier trait for any shooter. And for Kaito… he now understood why the Intestine Hunter had said this was a deal he couldn't refuse.
[Kotodama: Setsuna]. A special ability from the world of Dragon Raja. It had only one, simple, and powerful effect: to exponentially increase the user's speed. It was an absolute god-tier skill for any physical combatant.
Tsukishiro, seeing the look in Kaito's eyes, knew the deal was done. "This version of [Setsuna] is a trait, not tied to the bloodline, so it has no negative side effects. It's one of the highest-value universal enhancements."
"Let's trade," Kaito said. He knew that the [Optimizer] was less valuable than this material, but this was a perfect fit for him. Tsukishiro was paying a premium for speed and certainty. He was fine with that.
Tsukishiro smiled, his appreciation clear. "I'm giving you a bit of a discount on this one. When you reach [Titled] rank, remember you owe me a favor, kid."
[You have lost Item: Gene Targeting Optimizer.]
[You have obtained Material: Arm of Silverwing - Charlotte.]