After Returning, My Abilities are Infinite

Episode 78. Difficulties always happen at once (1)

I closed my eyes slowly.

The monsters crawling around me, the unpleasant noise they made, the terrible stench spreading everywhere, and the sticky feeling that came from being inside a Rift.

All of it sank slowly beneath my consciousness, and eventually, nothing was left.

“Whew….”

[‘Link’ has been activated.]

I slowly opened his eyes in my unconsciousness where nothing existed. It was the effect of my upgraded Link. My inner mind, which contained numerous people’s stories and souls, had now become a kind of a world.

The lives of hundreds of people and their achievements and histories were neatly recorded inside me, just like books in the library.

‘The Shadows are tricky, but not enough to use Link. I didn’t expect them to corner me this much.’

There were too many of them. No matter how good I was at fighting multiple enemies at once, if that number of monsters clung to me like parasites and gnawed away, there was no way for me to win.

[Didn’t you say you weren’t going to use Link?]

The Traveler, who was looking at me in my unconsciousness, asked abruptly.

“But I can’t save it until I die. It’s not like I’m dying in a heroic battle with the Great Overlord. Dying because those guys sucked away all my mana would be a shame. A shame!”

[Hahahaha, that’s funny.]

I replied as I chose from the stack of histories. The reason why I said I was going to save Link was simple. There were so many characteristics and skills accumulated in my body that if I used Link rashly, the forces sometimes collided and caused an overload.

Having many abilities had its advantages. But as they say, too much of a good thing isn’t always good. My power had increased too much before my body got used to it.

[Didn’t I tell you that if you refine your martial arts a little more and complete your Ki, your soul’s vessel will grow much more stable? You were too hasty.]

“I had no time to lose. And thanks to being hasty, I met Seung-hyun Hyeong, and I’m about to become a 1st class hunter. It was the right decision.

[Well, they say that when in a hurry, take the long way around… But it is quite refreshing to watch.]

Tap.

I moved my hands here and there and then picked up a story. The Akashic Records were powerful but could cause harm if used incorrectly. But fortunately, I was the one using it.

[You have completed your selection.]

If you make a mistake, the abilities may collide with each other. But if you choose well, countless abilities could come together to create a perfect synergy.

What you needed in the process was intuitive analytical skills and familiarity with how all the abilities interact with each other. And in those two areas of expertise, I was the best of all the human Analysts.

“Whew.”

I opened my eyes slowly with a small breath. My consciousness resurfaced, and the horrifying sight of the Rift, which my inner world had concealed, revealed itself.

My faraway senses became clear again. My whole body was sticky as if I was wet, and I could smell a bad odor every time I breathed in. Here, I sorted the power I had newly accepted. Hundreds of characteristics swirled into place.

“Grrrrr!”

Shadow Knights went crazy when they saw living creatures, and one howled as it rushed towards me.

The persistent monster was taller than three meters and physically a lot stronger than the Goblin species. It approached with a dark spear in its hand.

Looking at it, I glanced around and controlled a Mirage instead of moving.

Clank. Clank.

The colorfully shining Mirage moved like a machine part and turned into a large shape behind my back. Thanks to the long time we fought together, the Mirage was smarter than most hunters. It already noticed what my Link’s ability was.

“Grrr!”

I felt a cold sensation near my throat. The pitch-black spear had already reached my neck. But I didn’t even attempt to raise my hand to remove it or turn my waist to avoid it.

I just stood still with a smile on my face, as if I were watching a child play cute tricks.

“Grrr….”

The Shadow Knight opened its mouth wide and rushed in, drooling like a starved person who saw food. And then…

“Grrrrrr!”

The top of its wide-open mouth flew off entirely.

Its tongue and teeth flew into the air and then fell to the floor, and its body collided into the ground, driven by momentum.

Dust clouds shot up, and the smell of blood spread out. Smoke rose from its head. There was a pile of black ash at the top of it.

『 You’re so calm even when your life is in immediate danger. I’ve never seen a human like you.』

“It’s been a long time. We don’t see Undead monsters in our world, so there wasn’t an occasion to call you for a while.”

I could hear a soft voice flowing in my head. The entity’s power and experience seeped into me naturally as if they were mine. Feeling a tingle in my fingertips, I leaned back on the completed Mirage.

The Mirage had transformed into a cross that came to my chest, and it was rooted in the ground.

[The watchman that drives the darkness away.]

[The story of a great hero that resonated in the Empire’s temple begins to dwell in your soul.]

『When he was here, evil spirits and wicked people feared even to breathe.』

Tap, tap.

I looked at the hesitating monsters, casually tapping the cross as if I had come out for a walk.

“What are you doing?”

[A sanctuary has been proclaimed.]

[Divine energy permeates the ground.]

“Come on in, you bastards.”

Three meters to the east, west, north, and south, starting from the cross. In this space, I was able to release Divine energy as powerful as the advent of Jesus.

The halo behind my back shone on the area nearby. A few monsters groaned as if the bright light were painful.

“What’s so painful? You guys should really turn on some lights. Are you emo or something?”

Snap! I snapped my finger, and a cluster of light swept through like a storm. It burned the monsters and tore apart the ugly Rift plants.

“Grr… grraaaww!!”

The instinct of Undead monsters that feared Divine power seemed to have finally kicked in, and the monsters turned around and started to run away.

I casually strolled along as I burned the running monsters one by one. It felt like I was playing a shooting game. Hmm, it’s no fun just to catch the ones running away.

“Grrrrrr.”

Of course, some of them tried to use their heads. I could see a few crouching just beyond my sanctuary. I glanced at the ridiculous sight. And then I grabbed the top of the cross and pulled it out of the ground.

[I feel sorry for them.]

“Don’t use your heads, you bastards.”

The sanctuary moved slowly along with me. The monsters that were glaring at me made a face of despair and fled rapidly. They trampled on each other as they tried to run even one step further. It was a desperate sight.

Of course, I showed them no mercy.

The flashing light equally burned them all to death in a single blow. Although there were many of them, there was nowhere for them to run in this tiny Rift.

“Kkyyy.”

I even burned a monster that was crying pathetically as it hit its head against the wall.

“This won’t take as long as I had thought.”

“Grrr.”

I went further inside. There wasn’t anything special, just a bigger shadow. I’m sorry, but no matter how big you are, you can’t harm me.

Snap!

I simply snapped my finger, and a violent flash of light perfectly penetrated its head.

“Kyaaaa.”

Behind the collapsing monster, I saw something that looked like a large sphere. It was the Rift’s core. It looked like I had cleared this Rift quite easily.

Thump, thump.

I slowly approached the core, using my cross as a walking stick.

There weren’t any fancy traps or hidden boss monsters.

[You have cleared the Rift ‘The World of Black Things’.]

And the notification window confirmed it.

* * *

“Ugh, I’m so tired….”

Thud. Thud.

A woman lamented as she used a longsword to support herself. She was a mess. Her forehead was torn horribly, and sticky blood flowed down. A deep wound showed her bone on her knee, which was exposed below her shorts.

“Ugh, those guys are so obsessive. My pretty leg, oh…….”

The woman looked at the dried blood on her leg and made a sad face. It was bound to leave a scar. Her other teammates always admired her legs, but it looked like she wouldn’t be able to wear shorts anymore.

She killed everyone in the heat of the moment, but it didn’t relieve her anger.

“There’s no one to carry me, no one to drive me… I thought they were all useless, but I do feel a bit lonely without them. I’ll have to make sure I don’t kill the next idiot I find.”

The woman grumbled as she limped along. Her opponent was strong, but she was also careless. Inside the fortress she built, she was usually stronger than anyone else.

If she hadn’t let them inside, no one would have died. She could have resolved the situation without getting hurt, even if they were the Flame Queen’s experienced hunters.

“How much farther do I have to go?”

The woman reached into her pocket and took out a small navigation device.

Destination: Monster Field.

It was close by on the map, but she couldn’t grasp how far it was.

“They told me to go through the Field and escape over to North Korea if things went wrong. I should borrow some sort of transportation over there.”

Sigh.

A long sigh came out. She hated annoying things, but it was better than dragging her feet and ending up meeting the Flame Queen, then getting even more injured.

A poor woman who was attacked and wounded by a monster. She was planning to act the role to enter the Field office building, fill her stomach, and rest in a warm place.

“They don’t know me in Korea yet… So, I won’t get caught, right?”

The woman mumbled with a long yawn. Well, it didn’t really matter if she was caught. She could just wipe them all out and rest for a bit. Fighting annoyed her, but it didn’t scare her.

“Oh, is that it? It is!”

She threw away the sword. She had killed a hunter to use his sword as a walking stick. If a helpless woman who barely survived had a sword, people would be suspicious.

Acting like she was about to die, the woman rushed ahead, limping. She could faintly see the CCTV installed up high.

The woman took a deep breath and shouted with all her might.

“H-help me. Please help me!”

And after a slight pause, a man’s voice came out of the speaker installed next to the door.

– What’s the matter?

“A monster, a monster suddenly appeared. My brother and parents were caught, but I, I, I….”

-Okay, please come in first.

Kugugugung.

With a deep rumble, the door to the Field office building opened.

Her acting was successful.

* * *

“Good job.”

An employee greeted me dryly and wiped the blood off of me. He handed me clothes to change into.

I took off the hunting suit and changed into the ugly Association uniform. The matching blue color and slightly large size. Even the gym clothes at the Academy weren’t this bad.

“What about the others?”

“They already left to eat. They said you don’t like them waiting.”

“It’s only been a week, but you guys know me well.”

I put on a jacket and walked down the hall, stretching lightly. The defense line was now stable, and I destroyed the Rifts. Now, I could set up a more relaxed schedule.

“What should I eat today? Any recommendations?”

“Stone pot bibimbap.”

“Do you only eat that 365 days a year?”

“I’ve been eating only that for the last two years.”

“Looks like you’re even more persistent than I am.”

I headed toward the cafeteria, exchanging lame jokes with the staff member. The cafeteria was full of hunters, probably because it was lunchtime. But the atmosphere was different today.

“What’s going on?”

I grabbed a hunter heading to his seat with his meal and asked.

“Oh, nothing much. A survivor who was swept away by a Rift came in.”

“Really? It must have affected areas outside the Field as well. I should have cleared it as soon as possible… Oh, man.”

“Well, we can’t take responsibility for that. But apparently, she’s a very pretty college student. Since this place is only full of men, a few hunters have been approaching her, trying to comfort her.”

“Oh, nothing good will come from hitting on someone having a hard time….”

“They aren’t hitting on her. They’re probably literally comforting her. These guys aren’t that crazy. Most people here on the Field have their reasons, you know. So, they’re adding a word or two because she reminds them of their old selves.”

Hm. I nodded slightly and lined up behind the other hunters to get my meal. And as I moved forward, I happened to get a glimpse of the survivor.

‘……?’

But.

‘What is this?’

The survivor’s face looked familiar. No, to be exact, the face of the fake survivor looked very familiar.

Her head was down as if she had really experienced something bad. As soon as I saw her, I almost burst out laughing because it was a face that didn’t suit her at all.

The woman that easily made me lose my composure and got way under my skin. The crazy bitch that still showed up from time to time in my nightmares.

-The person who failed to escape their past glory days becomes a Disaster.

-That is the Third…

The witch’s prophecy I heard on the news before I came back in time flashed through my mind.

-The Third Disaster, Seol Ah-rin.

-Leader of the world’s worst group of villains, -The Great Legacy-.

Since she was definitely a part of the villain group that the Flame Queen was going to destroy, I thought she would show up a lot later.….

“It’s okay… I’m really fine.”

But why was she here, right in front of me? Why wasn’t she fighting the Flame Queen and struggling to hide?

“Sob….”

And putting on an award-worthy show at that, shedding precious tears.

I stood dumbfounded, trying to understand the situation.

Well.

It looked like things had become complicated.