Chapter 57: Chapter 57

Autobahn.

As befitting a village chosen by many users, the square was bustling with users and NPCs.

Even the starting village and Idenharc weren’t this crowded.

“I never thought I’d see this place again.”

Isaac looked around the Autobahn square with a touched expression.

To think he would see this sight again, alive.

Tears streamed down his face at the vivid scenery.

“…”

Jeong-Hoon waited silently for him to calm down.

How much time had passed?

Isaac, having collected himself, scratched his cheek awkwardly.

“I apologize for the unsightly display…”

“It’s okay.”

“Ahem, then let’s go quickly.”

Isaac, having returned to his hometown, led the way familiarly.

Autobahn, like Idenharc, was a territory belonging to the empire.

It prospered with the lord’s castle as its center, and the residents lived in villages outside of it.

And the place where Isaac lived was a small village where poor people gathered.

“It’s a wheat field?”

The first thing that caught Jeong-Hoon’s eye when he entered the village was the wheat field.

The entire surrounding area was a wheat field.

“That’s right. Our village makes a living by farming wheat.”

“I see.”

Even to Jeong-Hoon, who was clueless about farming, the wheat looked to be in very good condition.

“…I’m worried. Looking at the wheat field, it doesn’t seem like that much time has passed.”

Isaac muttered with a tense face.

“How long do you think it’s been since you were trapped in the Desolate Dark Street?”

“I don’t know. I was too busy trying to survive in a situation where I couldn’t see anything…”

His vision was blocked, and there were Dark Soldiers threatening his life all around.

The concept of time didn’t exist for Isaac.

Just surviving each day was the best he could do.

“Is that so?”

Jeong-Hoon replied nonchalantly.

He was confident that Isaac would be reunited with his family.

The flow of time in the Desolate Dark Street and New World was different.

One hour in the Desolate Dark Street was only 20 seconds in New World.

So even if he was trapped there for a day, only 480 seconds would have passed in New World.

That was only 8 minutes.

If Isaac had survived in the dungeon for a year, only a little over two days would have passed in New World.

As proof, there was hardly any change from the last time Isaac saw the village.

“Isaac?!”

At that moment, a woman suddenly emerged from the wheat field.

Isaac’s eyes welled up with tears when he saw her.

“Charlotte!”

He forgot his dignity as a knight and hugged her, sobbing for a long time.

* * *

The time Isaac had spent was longer than expected.

A whopping eight years.

He had spent eight years in the dungeon.

In Autobahn time, over two weeks had passed.

“Thank you so much for helping my husband. I don’t know how to repay you…”

Charlotte, who had heard everything from Isaac, sobbed for a while before expressing her gratitude to Jeong-Hoon.

“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it.”

Considering the help he had received from him in his previous life, this was nothing.

Also, he had successfully won first place in the event, and Isaac had helped him until the very end.

There was no reason for him to receive such gratitude for simply accompanying him once.

“How can it be okay? We can’t just let this go.”

As she said this, a red exclamation mark was blinking above Charlotte’s head.

Isaac had met the quest conditions by reuniting with his family.

[Quest Completed.]

Then, she took out a necklace and held it out.

“This is?”

Jeong-Hoon’s eyes widened as he checked the necklace.

[Fragment of the Ancient Warrior’s Mark]

-Type: Material

-Grade: Epic

-A fragment of the Ancient Warrior’s Mark.

-If you collect all the fragments, you might be able to learn how to use it.

A fragment of the Ancient Warrior’s Mark.

He never dreamed he would see this here.

“It’s a family heirloom.”

“Charlotte…!”

Isaac’s face went blank at the appearance of the mark.

Charlotte’s family had been a family of knights for generations.

Her father was a knight, and so was her grandfather.

She was also a knight.

She had first met Isaac at the knighting ceremony, and that led to their marriage.

However, she had retired due to the aftereffects of an injury.

With Isaac missing as well, it was hard to imagine how difficult it must have been for her.

“This is the most precious thing I can give you. And please take this gold too.”

Two gold coins were additionally placed on the table.

She wanted to repay double the 1 gold that Isaac had used for the portal.

“…”

Isaac lowered his head as he saw the gold.

Tears were dripping down his face, showing how moved he was.

However, Jeong-Hoon didn’t take the gold.

“The gold is fine. And I won’t take this heirloom either.”

Charlotte’s eyes widened as Jeong-Hoon refused all the rewards.

“You won’t take it…?”

“Yes. I only did what was right.”

The Warrior’s Mark, along with the completed Beginner’s Mark he had obtained in the tutorial, was used as a material for crafting items.

Therefore, he had to take that reward, but Jeong-Hoon had a history of collecting all the marks except for the completed Beginner’s Mark.

And he had obtained the Fragment of the Ancient Warrior’s Mark in another village, not Autobahn, and he knew how to restore it.

There was no reason to take the reward here.

‘Because she said it’s a family heirloom.’

A family heirloom passed down through generations.

She offered such an heirloom as a price for Isaac’s life.

If it weren’t for what happened in the past life, he would have accepted it without hesitation, but now he couldn’t bring himself to do so.

It was better to follow the plan and restore the mark.

[NPC Isaac’s Trust has greatly increased.]

[NPC Charlotte’s Trust has greatly increased.]

As he refused the reward, Isaac and Charlotte’s trust in him increased significantly.

Then, Isaac hugged Jeong-Hoon and sobbed.

“…Thank you for saying that. Thank you so much!”

Even Charlotte, who had been calm, was now teary-eyed.

“But we can’t just let this go.”

However, she had no intention of backing down.

[Keep the heirloom safe and hand it over to the rightful person when they appear.]

That was because of her ancestor’s will.

Her husband, Isaac, was her everything.

That’s why she wanted to give the heirloom to the benefactor who saved his life.

But Jeong-Hoon refused the heirloom.

‘I only did what was right as a knight.’

He didn’t mention the word ‘knight’.

But that’s how it sounded to Charlotte.

‘Ah, he’s a true knight.’

The way he didn’t expect anything in return for saving someone.

The mindset of being able to open his wallet without hesitation to someone asking for help.

Wasn’t that the true spirit of chivalry?

“So please accept it.”

That’s why this heirloom had to go to this benefactor even more.

Charlotte’s eyes were determined.

‘I guess I have no choice but to accept it.’

It wouldn’t be polite to refuse any further.

In the end, Jeong-Hoon accepted the mark.

“Then I gratefully accept.”

[You have acquired the Fragment of the Ancient Warrior’s Mark.]

[You have acquired the qualification to collect the Completed Warrior’s Mark.]

Hmm?

Jeong-Hoon’s eyes changed as he checked the new notification.

Completed Warrior’s Mark?

‘That’s strange? The one I restored was the Warrior’s Mark?’

Each class had its own mark.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Jeong-Hoon had obtained all the marks except for the Beginner’s Mark.

And he had failed to create the Tyrant Titan because he couldn’t get the Completed Beginner’s Mark.

So he thought he would definitely succeed in combining the Tyrant Titan this time by obtaining the Completed Beginner’s Mark, which he couldn’t get in his previous life.

‘Could it be different from what I thought?’

Warrior’s Mark, Archer’s Mark, Thief’s Mark.

He was able to collect these marks because he was an all-master.

But now, a new possibility had been added: that he might not be able to create a proper Titan with just the ordinary marks.

‘All the marks need to be completed.’

There was a reason why the quest that offered the mark as a reward was hidden grade.

‘I would have been in big trouble if I hadn’t received it.’

A fact he wouldn’t have known if he hadn’t received the mark.

He would have ended up failing to create the complete Titan and regretting it once again.

Jeong-Hoon inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

“Please take the gold too.”

Charlotte pointed to the 2 gold coins next to her.

“No, it’s okay. I’ve already received such a precious heirloom, how can I take the gold as well? This is enough.”

“Alright. Then why don’t you stay for a meal since you’re here?”

This time, Charlotte stepped back.

“A meal…”

Isaac’s eyes welled up again.

How much he had missed the meals Charlotte made for him while he was eating weeds.

“How can a knight be so tearful?”

Charlotte chided him lightly, but a gentle smile was on her lips.

* * *

After the meal, Jeong-Hoon was led to an empty room on the second floor of the mansion at their invitation to stay the night.

Although it was an unused room, it was clean and well-maintained, as it was occasionally used by guests.

Jeong-Hoon sat on the bed and immediately took out the skill book.

===

[Skill Book: Fusion (One-Time Use)]

-Type: Skill Book

-Grade: Epic

-Using this skill book allows you to learn ‘Fusion (One-Time Use)’.

===

Skill Fusion.

He had used fusion a lot.

Steadfast Will for skills.

And the fusion potion from the achievement shop for combining items.

But this skill book made possible combinations that those couldn’t handle.

[Acquired the one-time use skill, ‘Fusion’.]

[The fusion will disappear after using the skill.]

A skill that could only be used once.

As he used the skill, a new window appeared in front of Jeong-Hoon.

[Register the skills you want to fuse.]

[Only currently possessed skills can be registered.]

Currently possessing skills.

Jeong-Hoon chose skills related to archery.

-Critical Arrow (Epic)

-Calm Breathing (Epic)

-Hawk Eyes (Epic)

All skills acquired through Steadfast Will.

And skills that didn’t fuse because Steadfast Will didn’t react to them.

Now it was time to acquire that skill.

But Jeong-Hoon didn’t stop there and added another skill.

‘Let’s add one more.’

It was Soul Arrow, which he had acquired in the Desolate Dark Street.

Although it was impossible to try in his previous life because he hadn’t obtained divine power, which conflicted with mana.

Even so, Jeong-Hoon didn’t think he would fail.

‘If divine power had been added, an even more amazing skill would have been born.’

The skill he was going to fuse this time was one of the skills that Jeong-Hoon had created himself through countless trials and errors.

This was because it was very difficult to raise the level of a skill, so he had to forcibly increase the power of the skill through fusion.

That’s why he knew better than anyone what was lacking.

Jeong-Hoon, having upgraded all the skills, activated the fusion.

[Fusion begins.]

The registration window flashed for a moment, and then a new skill appeared with a brilliant light.

[Fusion successful!]

[Acquired ‘Extreme Archer: Soul’.]

Done!

He had acquired the skill he had planned for.

‘It’s been upgraded even further.’

In his previous life, the skill Jeong-Hoon obtained through fusion was ‘Extreme Archer’.

But this time, the word ‘Soul’ was added at the end.

It must be an additional option due to the divine power.

===

[Extreme Archer: Soul]

-Type: Passive

-Level: 1

-Grade: Epic

-Bow damage permanently increased by 20%. (Critical Arrow always active)

-Physical/Magic evasion rate permanently increased by 10%.

-When holding a bow, breathing is not disturbed, and body tremors are minimized.

-When holding a bow, vision is secured up to 500m.

-Enemies hit by arrows are incapacitated for 3 seconds. (Cannot be stacked)

-Enemies hit by arrows have their abilities sealed for 7 seconds. (Cannot be stacked)

===

It was truly an amazing skill.

Damage permanently increased by 20%, and Critical Arrow was always active.

Even without holding a bow, the evasion rate against physical/magical attacks increased, so it would show excellent performance in close combat.

Finally, an option superior to Soul Arrow was added, and an additional fraudulent option that paralyzed enemies hit by arrows was added.

‘Alright.’

To think that this was just an epic grade.

He was already looking forward to how powerful it would become when it was upgraded to legendary or higher in the future.