"Young Master, what is this place?"
"What do you think? It's a cave. Get in."
"Uh, yes."
Giranox scratched his head and stepped through the open door. I checked the surroundings once more before following.
Rumble!
As if triggered by a sensor, the door closed automatically once we were both inside.
Click, click, click!
The dark cave lit up instantly, fluorescent-like lights flickering on from the ceiling.
"Wow, never seen anything like this, Young Master…"
"You're just a country bumpkin. This is common."
"R-Really…?"
[Common, my foot! What are you?!]
'What?'
Agnes piped up for the first time in a while, her voice brimming with uncontainable shock.
[How do you know about this place?!]
'The Great Prophet told me.'
[Don't mess with me! Is the Great Prophet a fool? They don't care about status, rank, or money. Even if you were a marquis, not just a marquis's son, you wouldn't get this kind of info!]
'It's true.'
[Argh, you!]
Agnes is sharper than I thought.
[Hey, master, spill it!]
"Hmm-hmm."
Humming to dodge her question, I kept moving along the path.
"Giranox."
"Yes."
I stopped at a spot with a large, rounded wall protruding and called him.
"Know where we are?"
"No clue."
"That place you call the Dragon God Cave is right next to this."
I tapped the thick, curved wall.
"What?"
"This wall's pretty thick, but beyond it is where people pray and bow."
"So…"
"They're basically praying to us right now."
"Ehh?!"
Thanks to my inner energy's sensitivity, I could feel people bowing behind the wall, and it made me chuckle.
"Most legends are underwhelming when you see them up close."
Writing the novel, I tangled things up so much that legends often turned out to be trivial, and mundane things gained weighty significance.
"But I heard places like this have traps…"
"Here they come."
The traps start now. They're more for identifying intruders than repelling them, so they shouldn't be too bad.
"Don't step there. Obvious, right?"
"Oh, yes!"
Giranox narrowly avoided an blatantly protruding stone.
"What happens if I step on it?"
"This whole place turns into a fiery inferno."
"Wha?!"
I said the traps were simple, but stepping on one could still be deadly, so I stayed vigilant.
"We're here."
At the path's end was an empty space, no door.
"Huh?"
"Hmm…"
The room was bare, like an empty cave.
"Nothing here."
"Haha, is there?"
Unlike Giranox, I was relieved. With the story altered, someone might've been here, but thankfully, no one had.
In the center was a hole shaped like the one I pulled to enter the cave.
Click.
Reaching in, I felt a handle and pulled.
Rumble…
"Ohh!"
The ground split, and a low stone table rose.
On it sat an ornate golden pouch and a small jewelry-like box.
Click.
Opening the box released a refreshing fragrance. Inside was a golden orb.
"Bingo."
[Th-This is…]
"Oh, you know it?"
[My old master ate one once. It's the Warrior's Orb!]
I never fleshed out Agnes's old master, so him eating this was news to me.
As the name suggests, the Warrior's Orb is combat-related.
I once considered finding it to master the sword if my Sichuan Tang traits didn't fully awaken.
The Warrior's Orb transforms any body into one optimized for battle, instantly maxing out strength, flexibility, and agility.
In short, it creates an ultimate physique.
"Nice. Very nice."
Pocketing the Warrior's Orb, I picked up the golden pouch.
"Let's see…"
Peering inside, I saw a sea of gold coins—more than I could spend in a lifetime.
"Jackpot!"
"Young Master, what's in it?"
Clink!
Instead of answering, I grabbed a handful of coins and tossed them into the air like flower petals.
"Wow!"
Magic pouches vary by grade, and this top-tier golden one could hold two shipping containers' worth. It had at least one container's worth of coins. Grinning, I scattered more.
Suddenly, my spine…
A chilling, goosebump-inducing sensation hit me.
Never felt this before. We need to leave.
"Pick up the coins, quick."
"What?! Why scatter them if I have to pick them up?"
"It's human nature to toss coins you've collected!"
"Is it…?"
Giranox looked baffled but gathered the coins without complaint.
"Keep those. Might need them."
"Wha—This is too much!"
The coins he picked up were worth far more than what I gave him for his shop.
"Take them."
"Thank you so much."
"We're done. Let's go."
"Yes."
This place was a stronghold of an ancient group, built as a contingency for their decline. In the novel, a random herbalist stumbles upon it and gains its power.
I didn't want to meet that herbalist or those devilish folks, so leaving quickly was best.
Giranox and I exited the cave and descended the mountain, still bustling with climbers.
At the base, souvenir shops and taverns crowded the area, packed with people.
"Young Master, it's too crowded. Should we move somewhere else?"
"Let's do that."
Huh?
As we started to leave the crowd, my senses locked onto a woman. Sight, hearing, smell—everything instinctively focused on her.
Her overwhelming beauty made everyone else seem like background extras. If Ilia had a refined charm, this woman exuded a captivating allure that drew the world to her.
Why doesn't anyone notice her?!
Despite the crowd, no one looked at this stunning woman. She walked toward the mountain with a provocative gait, as if alone in the world.
No way, is she…?!
This bizarre phenomenon told me who she was.
Crack!
I tried to look away, but our eyes met briefly. A dizzying sensation, like my soul was being pulled out, hit me.
Pretend you didn't see. Act normal.
Biting my lip hard to stay focused, I kept my composure.
"Hey, know a good tavern with tasty snacks?"
"I heard up the mountain that Dragon King's Rest is good."
"Wanna grab a drink there?"
"Really?"
I acted oblivious, chatting with Giranox.
"Yeah, let's drink there."
Glancing back subtly, I saw her stop, staring at me.
No, she hasn't caught me yet.
"Sounds great!"
I passed her casually. I wanted to look back, but her piercing gaze on my back stopped me. Biting my lip, I kept walking.
"Some tourists ahead said we should order Dragon King Black Beer."
"Oh? Then we'll get that and some snacks…"
Chatting with Giranox, we left the tourist area for the village.
"Haa, haa…"
"Young Master?"
I was drenched in cold sweat.
Why's that monster here? Was she headed for the Dragon God Cave?!
Her only business here would be the cave. She knows about it, but in my novel, she never enters it.
Something's changed again…
"Giranox."
"Yes!"
"Cancel the drink."
"What?"
"We're going back to As Castle."
Since warps are limited to the wealthy, using one here might tip her off.
"Understood."
Giranox, briefly startled, read my expression and led the way without question.
"Young Master!"
"Yeah?"
Lost in thought, I looked up at Giranox's call.
"There won't be more inns ahead. Let's rest here tonight."
Looking around, it was dark, with only a few inns and houses nearby.
"Let's rest here."
"Yes!"
After a light meal, I collapsed onto the inn's bed.
"Ugh, running into her already? Totally unexpected…"
That woman is someone the protagonist doesn't meet until mid-to-late story. Encountering her now is bad news.
"No choice."
With no idea what's coming, I can't hold back.
I pulled the Warrior's Orb from the golden pouch.
Click.
"No time to save it. Hoarding's for fools."
I popped the golden orb into my mouth.
Slurp.
It melted like water, flowing down my throat.
"Urgh!"
As the Warrior's Orb spread through my body, messages appeared.
[You have consumed the Warrior's Orb.]
[Initiating Bone-and-Flesh Reconstruction.]
[Ten Thousand Poison Magnetic Spirit aids the process.]
[Harmonization of both forces enhances your body.]
[Awakening Celestial Martial Body.]
[Acquired Trait: Celestial Martial Body.]