I Became a Gallery Newbie Beloved by Transcendents-Chapter 33: The Golem’s Fortress (3)

ㄴ Heavenly Demon: You’re trading with me as well?

I could guess why Heavenly Demon senior’s comment carried a hint of unease.

Trading with Shrine Maiden senior—who outright stated she could provide a charm to block lightning—was a necessary preparation for my inevitable battle with The Son ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) of Thunder.

But to him, trading with me probably didn’t seem like an immediate necessity.

Still, I was more drawn to the martial arts from Heavenly Demon senior than to the Shrine Maiden’s charm, which I probably wouldn’t be able to use permanently.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*: Heavenly Demon senior, let’s go.

Of course, I had no intention of showing any excitement in my comment.

I had to keep it tightly hidden.

Tightly.

ㄴ Ice Queen: Frozen!

...Was my mind getting corrupted from reading too many of these comments? Frozen-speak?

ㄴ Shrine Maiden: Climber-kun can give me anything he wishes, and I will be satisfied. Just seeing Climber-kun use the charm will be enough to fill my heart.

ㄴ Heavenly Demon: Hmm, I’d like to have a proper plate of pasta for once.

I had plenty of food to offer.

[User 'Heavenly Demon' has requested an 'Interdimensional Trade.']

[Do you accept?]

I pressed the circular blue button attached to the text.

[You have accepted the trade request.]

A separate chat system, accessible only during interdimensional trade, appeared.

[Heavenly Demon: What I’ll give you is a martial arts manual. It includes some footwork techniques, similar to how Sword of Light’s Dragon Slayer Sword incorporates movement principles.]

[Heavenly Demon: The book will be fully translated as you read. For the more complex techniques, I’ve included detailed diagrams. Given your evident talent in martial arts, you should be able to make good use of it.]

[Heavenly Demon: Later, when you reach the 30th floor and gain access to the Climber Gallery, just tell them you’re the disciple of Baek Un-hui, the Heavenly Demon.]

[ㅇㅇ*: ...Uh, I’ll think about that when the time comes.]

Right.

If I suddenly announced, "I’m the disciple of the Heavenly Demon!" wouldn’t everyone just find that suspicious?

[Heavenly Demon: Fine. But once you properly read the manual and master the techniques, you’ll naturally take pride in being my disciple, whether I acknowledge you or not.]

What a massive ego.

Judging by the reactions of those who flocked around him, he probably really was strong.

But unfortunately, he carried zero gravitas.

[Heavenly Demon: And... what food do you have?]

[ㅇㅇ*: Roskatsu, sandwich, stir-fried pork over rice, cream bacon pasta. Pick one.]

[Heavenly Demon: Hmm...! The pasta is the best of the bunch, I suppose. But it lacks authenticity. Do you not have something like Aglio e Olio?]

[ㅇㅇ*: Nope, not available.]

[Heavenly Demon: Tch, I’ll have to walk the path of heresy, then. Send the cream bacon pasta.]

Wait.

If cream bacon pasta is "heresy," does that make Aglio e Olio the path of righteousness...?

[ㅇㅇ*: Got it. Since when did you become so knowledgeable about pasta?]

[Heavenly Demon: After the 30th floor. Clearing dungeons and indulging in fine cuisine became my only pleasure.]

Fair enough.

I took the cream bacon pasta out of my inventory, keeping it in its container.

"Designate."

The pasta instantly vanished before my eyes.

[Trade completed.]

CRACK—

A book emerged from the torn space.

I picked up the thick volume.

A martial arts manual.

The title read: Flowing Flame Sky-Breaking Fist (流燃破空訣).

I flipped through it briefly.

Just as Heavenly Demon had said, the more complex techniques were accompanied by detailed illustrations.

But reading and mastering the manual right away wasn’t realistic.

For now, I needed something I could immediately use.

[User 'Shrine Maiden' has requested an 'Interdimensional Trade.']

Here it was.

Without hesitation, I pressed the accept button.

[Shrine Maiden: Hawawa, the Holy Convergence Charm (結聖符) has enough pre-stored power to be used about 100 times.]

Holy Convergence Charm.

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[ㅇㅇ*: 100 times?]

[Shrine Maiden: Roughly estimated, based on battle conditions. Assuming around 20 minutes per use.]

[ㅇㅇ*: That’s not a small amount.]

At first glance, 20 minutes seemed short, but that wasn’t the case.

Most battles ended within 10 minutes at the longest.

Reviewing all my past fights, every encounter had been decided in an instant.

Real combat wasn’t a sparring match meant to improve skills.

It was a fight to take each other’s lives.

Victory was determined in fleeting moments.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

[Shrine Maiden: Hawawa, I’d love to make it permanent, but then the interdimensional trade system would likely classify it as an invalid exchange.]

[Shrine Maiden: The only reason it even reached 100 uses is because I focused the charm solely on defense.]

[Shrine Maiden: I don’t know for sure yet, but it seems like the interdimensional trade system is connected to the tower. It won’t allow Climber-kun to ascend easily.]

Damn it.

[ㅇㅇ*: After 100 uses, can I recharge it myself?]

[Shrine Maiden: Since the charm’s power source is spiritual energy, you’d have to consume a significant amount of mana to recharge it. Right now, you’re probably too busy managing your own skills, but by the time you exhaust the 100 uses, you should have enough surplus mana to spare for recharging it.]

[ㅇㅇ*: Thanks for assuming I’ll live that long.]

[Shrine Maiden: Hawawa, of course! If Climber-kun disappears, I’ll be terribly bored.]

[ㅇㅇ*: What do you want in return?]

[Shrine Maiden: Hmm! I don’t have much of an appetite, actually.]

Ah.

Another "Anything is fine" answer.

Alright, stir-fried pork over rice it was.

[ㅇㅇ*: I’ll send something reasonable. How do I use the charm?]

[Shrine Maiden: Just channel a speck of your mana into it, and it will activate.]

Wait.

Didn’t she say my mana wasn’t necessary?

[ㅇㅇ*: How much mana are we talking?]

[Shrine Maiden: Just a tiny bit! The charm can channel energy in five directions, and depending on the direction you choose, it will determine what kind of attack it blocks.]

[Shrine Maiden: Just infuse your mana and throw it toward the direction you need! Hawawa! Whoosh!**]

She seemed way too excited about this explanation.

I got the general idea, though.

"Designate."

Both of our items were selected for exchange.

CRACK!

Once again, space tore open, and a single sheet of paper fluttered down.

I caught the falling charm.

Since it was an item from outside the tower, there was no item description window.

The same thing had happened when Sword of Light gave me two items and when Heavenly Demon handed over his martial arts manual.

With this, my two trade opportunities were used up in one go.

The Holy Convergence Charm had four marked directions.

At the end of each extending path, a circle was drawn.

North, South, East, West.

East—Blue.

West—Red.

South—Gray.

North—Black.

At the center was a black circle.

Once the trade ended, communication with the trader was immediately cut off, so I had no choice but to pull out my device.

Title: Gotta read the martial arts manual in the 5th-floor waiting room. Shrine Maiden, does the charm block lightning from the east or the south? Looks like it's attribute-based defense.

Author: ㅇㅇ*

No idea when variables might occur, so I need to finish this quickly and get out.ㄴ Heavenly Demon: Speed-read it.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*: I’ll skim the first few pages and fight first.

ㄴ What speed-reading? Lololol, this isn’t school. You need to use it in combat. Read it properly.

ㄴ Shrine Maiden: Gray blocks lightning. Blue is for water. Red is for fire. Black is for curses. In places like the Forest of Beasts, channeling a bit of mana into black completely negates mental attacks!

ㄴ Look at her rambling excitedly because I’m using her item.

ㄴ You’d be the same if it were yours.

ㄴ I know that’ll never happen, which is why I’m making fun of her.

ㄴ ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

ㄴ Heavenly Demon: With your talent, you should be able to grasp Flowing Scale Breaker and Ripple Flash right away.

ㄴ Forcing techniques on him, I see.

ㄴ Famous Guy: Heavenly Demon seems to have very high expectations for the climber.

ㄴ Archmage: They are high.

ㄴ Pioneer: If the boss is The Son of Thunder... that thing probably doesn’t just rely on lightning. Watch out for close-range attacks.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*: Even the golems used swords.

ㄴ Spear King: Most thunder golems wielded tridents. No real martial technique to their thrusts, but their sheer power surpassed Rank 4.

ㄴ Demon Dragon King: Beltui- When its eyes turn black, lightning strikes.

ㄴ Pioneer: There are golems with twelve arms swinging all sorts of weapons, too.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*: We just called them octopus golems.

ㄴ Beast King: Now I want octopus.

ㄴ Elf Guy: Keep that to yourself, you beast.

ㄴ Beast King: Heheh, struck a nerve, huh?

What a mess.

ㄴ Sword of Light: Go and come back.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*: ㅇㅇ, I’ll survive.

I closed the gallery and stowed the device.

I considered using the charm once before entering the gap, but the 100-use limit kept nagging at me.

Better to save it for actual combat.

As Heavenly Demon requested, I skimmed through the Flowing Flame Sky-Breaking Fist manual, quickly reading Flowing Scale Breaker and Ripple Flash.

I got the general idea.

CRACKLE!!

Another streak of blue lightning erupted from the gap.

This wasn’t a single, isolated strike.

"Looks like I won’t even have to go down."

KRRRRRRUMBLE—!

A massive golem lifted its brutish arms from the fissure, then fully emerged.

BZZZT... CRACKLE—

[BOSS MONSTER]

The navy-blue golem extended countless tendrils of lightning from its body, matching its color.

[The Son of Thunder]

The boss monster of the fourth-floor stage had made its entrance.

Both of the golem’s eyes turned pitch black.

Lightning tore through the air and shot toward me.

I channeled a speck of mana into the Holy Convergence Charm in my left hand.

CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!!

The charm surged forward, absorbing every bit of lightning.

Not a single spark reached me.

The charm settled into a blind spot to my left, as if making that judgment on its own.

Its eyes darkened again.

Lightning followed me as I moved closer, striking acrobatically in sync with my approach.

Yet, the charm pursued each strike relentlessly, blocking them all.

BZZZT!

I threw myself between the remnants of discharged electricity.

The trajectory of the trident, lunging toward me like a bolt, was tracked by my eyes to the very end.

I dodged by a razor-thin margin.

[Skill 'Trajectory Insight' has leveled up. Lv.3]

KRA-KOOOM!!

Lightning filled my vision.

Just like before, the charm pulled the attack in like a magnet, scattering the bolt into nothingness.

It’s time to finish this.

At that moment, the seemingly immobile golem suddenly moved left.

Trailing electricity.

SCREEEEEEEECH!

Its fist was right in front of me.

The second form of Flowing Flame Sky-Breaking Fist surfaced in my mind.

Flowing Scale Breaker.

A technique combining footwork and hand technique.

Its fluid motion allowed me to dodge the massive punch.

The air cracked apart from the force of the strike.

A ringing filled my ears.

I concentrated pure-white Sword Aura onto the Fierce King’s Sword.

CLAAAAANG!

Hjartagnyr.

A direct stab—the second form of Dragon Slayer Sword—pierced the center of the golem’s torso.

But it only managed to dig into the surface.

Not enough.

This isn’t enough to break through and destroy its mana core.

- Sword of Light: "Sword Aura moves according to your will."

I thought of a wave.

The technique that Rank 4 Knight Liner had used.

That eerie sensation as he tried to kill me.

Concentrate everything into the Aura—

And release it in an instant.

That’s my will.

Dragon Slayer Sword, Sixth Form.

Sword Aura Detonation.

Vortex Flow.

BOOOOOM—!

A blinding white explosion erupted.

Hundreds of shattered stone fragments scattered across the battlefield.

A glowing red mana core was exposed.

THUD.

I stomped down hard.

One more time—Hjartagnyr.

[Boss Monster 'The Son of Thunder' has been defeated.]