Pick me Up – Chapter 260 – Requiem (6)
I opened my eyes.
A lifeless metallic room. It was my room on the fourth floor of the Lobby.
Metal bed, wardrobe, desk, and chair. On the left side of the room, there was a large shelf for placing figurines. The shelf from the eighth floor was almost filled. I would have to ask the carpenter to make a new one.
I took off my armor and spread out the items I had hidden in the safe on the floor.
El Cid's twin swords, Colada and Tizona, the wolf fur cloak, and the Book of the Inverted Sky.
I crouched down and flipped through the Book of the Inverted Sky.
‘The master key to Server 1?’
To solve the problem, they say I have to go to Server 1.
Then, no matter what I do here... the outcome is already decided.
‘The destruction of Taonier.’
Fortunately, there is still time.
Anything has only reached level 60.
It's not too late to make a decision when the time comes.
[Hiccup!]
I looked up while crouching.
Iselle, with a red face, was awkwardly floating around the room.
She had drunk quite a bit. Her unsteady flutters were worrying.
[Loki is... the best.]
Iselle murmured in a drunken tone.
“If you're tired, go to sleep.”
[You won... against number one...]
Nonsense.
I didn't win.
We didn't even fight seriously.
What would have happened if Tel hadn’t intervened?
There might have been a fierce battle between Niflheim and Dorado.
Of course, the outcome would have been the same. From the beginning, El Cid had no intention of fighting.
He would have pretended to fight and then deliberately lost.
Thinking about it made me angry.
‘I don’t like this.’
Clang.
I drew the sword from its sheath on the floor.
The blade was white like lightning.
It was a masterpiece comparable to the five relics of Niflheim.
[Glug, glug, glug...]
Then I took the wolf fur cloak.
The scan showed its durability and insulation were high, but it had no special abilities.
It seemed to be a symbolic item representing El Cid.
[Puhah!]
Iselle raised an empty glass bottle.
“What are you doing?”
[Hangover antidote.]
It seems to be working well.
Iselle, moving more nimbly, flew toward me.
[Loki, what were you doing outside? You didn't answer my messages.]
“I was investigating El Cid. There were many suspicious things.”
I gave Iselle a brief summary of my encounter with El Cid.
Iselle, tilting her head, observed the loot on the floor.
[So, this is from El Cid?]
“Yes. I was lucky to get it.”
[Oh...]
Iselle picked up the large book and flipped through the pages.
Then, as if electrocuted, her hands trembled, and she threw the Book of the Inverted Sky.
[Argh!]
“What’s wrong?”
[The magical interference is enormous. It's almost like pure crystal.]
I had no problems when I read it.
Iselle looked at the twin swords beside her.
[These items are incredible too. They must be at least SS grade.]
“Well, it’s not like I can use them.”
If the swords had versatility, I could have given them to someone like Belkist.
But these weapons were exclusive to El Cid and only in his hands could they show their true power.
And even if I could use them, I already had Bifröst.
[Are you going to leave them there?]
“I’m going to modify them.”
I stood up and put the Book of the Inverted Sky back in the safe.
Then I strapped the twin swords to my waist, draped the cloak over my shoulders, and opened the door.
“Follow me.”
There was still time until morning.
At least six hours until the workshop staff arrived.
The durability of the wolf fur cloak was extraordinary.
If handled well, it could block blades, arrows, and even bullets.
And Colada and Tizona.
Both swords had top-notch magical engravings.
Though it would be difficult to utilize the metallic material as it was, transferring just the magical engravings could be possible.
Although there would be some degradation, it would be better than leaving the weapons as relics.
‘Item fusion.’
The workshop facilities had improved quite a bit.
If Iselle helped, we could create useful items.
But I needed someone else.
I reached the end of the dark hallway, in front of a door.
“Are you awake?”
Knock, knock.
There was no response.
Well, it was logical given the hour.
I opened the door.
“Mmm... nyaa…”
I carried Katio, who was deeply asleep on the bed, over my left shoulder.
“What? What time do you think it is?!”
“Don’t make noise. You’ll wake the others. I need a favor.”
“I’ve been waiting to sleep in my bed for a week! Please!”
Was it that serious?
Katio, on my shoulder, almost cried.
“Can’t you ask tomorrow?”
“I need to do it now.”
“But…”
“I’ll give you the morning off.”
“Do you know how many times you’ve said that?”
“This time it’s true. You can trust me.”
There was no one else I could ask for this.
Katio’s skills exceeded my expectations by far.
He built an aircraft with minimal materials, and the aircraft didn’t have a single failure. Moreover, its maintenance and repairs were impeccable. He had outstanding basic combat skills and versatility in support magic. Not to mention his enchantment skills.
‘He must be really good.’
He hadn’t been exploited in the Lobby without reason.
The more I pushed him, the more useful he became, so I couldn’t leave him aside.
“Lie! It’s a lie! Let me go! I want to sleep…!”
I took Katio, who kept protesting, to the item workshop.
Finally, Katio calmed down, resigned.
“What do you need?”
He seemed finally willing to listen.
I placed Katio on the ground.
This was the enchantment room, one of the underground facilities of the item workshop.
A place where various spells could be imbued to finished equipment. Originally, the enchantment room belonged to the magic hall, but with the facility upgrades and integration, the place had changed.
“Your task is simple.”
I placed the twin swords and the cloak on the ground.
On the ground, there was a large purple magic circle.
“Transfer the magical engravings from the swords to the cloak.”
“Transfer enchantments?”
“Exactly.”
“Hmm, it’s not difficult.”
Katio knelt down and approached the items.
“Let’s see, the engravings…”
A faint magical energy emanated from Katio’s hands.
And... in less than ten seconds, his face turned pale.
“What is this?”
Katio looked at me with rigid eyes.
“Where did you get these items?”
“From here and there.”
“This… isn’t human magic… The magical patterns… are completely different…”
Katio began to murmur incomprehensible words.
“So, can you do it or not?”
“I can’t do it!”
“It doesn’t have to be all. If you manage to transfer half, it’s fine.”
“Not even half! I can’t touch it! Could you handle foreign magic? Besides, it’s protected…”
“Don’t worry about that.”
I snapped my fingers.
Iselle twirled in the air, scattering stardust.
[Initiating item creation!]
A familiar holographic window appeared.
I opened the menu and touched the central button.
[You have selected ‘Item Fusion’!]
[Different items can be combined to create equipment with new features. Item fusion requires a magical technician, and the result varies depending on the process. Be careful!]
[Tip/ In manual fusion, you can improve quality through a minigame.]
“What are you doing?”
Katio tilted his head.
Well, this holographic window wasn’t visible to a common hero.
I shrugged.
“I’ll handle the protection. Is that enough?”
If I solved the puzzle correctly, I could nullify that penalty.
“I think so, but…”
“You didn’t say no. I won’t complain if you fail, so try. I’ll return the favor later.”
“It’s tremendous pressure.”
Katio, grumbling, began to examine the items with magical waves.
That meant he was willing to try.
There were two conditions I had imposed on Katio.
The first was that he couldn’t be seen while enchanting.
That meant he had to come here every early morning to work.
The second condition was that he had to leave the original intact.
“What annoying conditions. As if it wasn’t hard enough already…”
Katio sighed deeply and extended his hands towards the swords.
‘I must reward him somehow.’
I had exploited him quite a bit.
Not even a medieval slave was treated like this.
Anyway, the reward will come after the job is done.
I adjusted the creation window in front of me.
I switched to manual fusion and selected the puzzle difficulty.
‘Iselle will also be busy for a while.’
I would have to manipulate the game records to avoid Anything’s attention.
I shook my hands. I hadn’t played a puzzle in a long time, but I still had the touch.
Puh. I sighed lightly.
‘The inheritance of the Golden City.’
I laughed inwardly.
They seemed to be useful items, so I’ll use them, but I didn’t say I’d go to Server 1.
Whether I’d stay on Earth or continue fighting here, the decision was mine. Sijel had made it clear.
‘I don’t know if it’ll be possible.’
I never chose to fall here.
So talking about decisions now made no sense.
I could only do what was in my hands.
[Puzzle ready!]
I raised my right hand.
“KO punch.”
The woman clicked her tongue.
“Isn’t the master’s name too ridiculous? It’s disgusting. How little thought did he put into naming it? Don’t you think so?”
“Yes, second sister. I think so too.”
“Tell the master to change his name. I feel sick every time he mentions his name when killing someone.”
In a dark room.
Sharp laughter echoed.
“And Anything…?”
“The same. Seems like he put no thought into it. I prefer ‘KO punch.’ Right?”
“Yes, sister.”
A dark, wide room.
In the center of the room, a hologram was playing a video.
In the video, a man wrapped in blood-red lightning was fighting fiercely.
“Wow, impressive. That’s the number 1 star. Graduated as the best from Niflheim, champion of the Raid Festival. He cleared high-difficulty missions alone. A super elite.”
“That’s how it should be... to make it worth it…”
“Right. It’s more exciting to hunt them down like that.”
The woman threw something she was holding.
It rolled across the floor and hit the wall.
It was the head of a man with eyes wide open.
“What was the name of the biggest Guild in Server 2?”
“Liberty, sister.”
“Ah, yes. Them. They were incredibly boring. A few neck slashes and they surrendered. What garbage.”
Ha, ha.
Another sharp laugh echoed.
“Why did they interfere?”
The woman murmured with a voice full of hatred.
A cold, emotionless tone filled the room.
“If it hadn’t been for Liberty, we would have had El Cid’s head.”
“If we had time… we would have exterminated the intruders…”
“If they were going to give the Book of the Inverted Sky, they should have said so earlier. I had to leave without makeup.”
“A thieving cat… stole the reward…”
The woman stood up.
The video kept playing in the room's hologram.
“How stupid do they think we are to show all the fights of their hero?”
“Idiots…”
“Stealing others' things.”
“Stupid…”
“Then.”
The woman walked to the corner of the room.
And smiled maliciously.
“We must make them pay the price.”
She stepped on the man's severed head.
Crack! The crushed head fragments flew everywhere.
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