Survive the labyrinth with EX-grade traits

“Huff… Phew.”

I slapped my cheeks hard to calm my excited mind.

The absolute defensive power of the golden crown protected my head, but I struck myself to snap out of it, and thankfully, it didn’t hurt.

‘I hit myself to feel the pain, so it’s a problem if there’s no pain. Alright, let’s calm down and listen carefully.’

With a stern face, I looked at Chaos.

From the moment I turned my eyes to the statue, she finally opened her mouth.

“Is it over? Can we start the explanation again?”

“Yes. I’ll listen carefully and won’t miss a single word, so don’t worry.”

“Why worry? I believe that as my partner, you’ll do well!”

Chaos smiled at me and said, “Being here doesn’t make time flow outside, but… It’s against Karma to keep you here for too long, using the excuse of upgrading your traits.”

Against Karma?

“If you forget something in the middle, I can’t repeat it several times. Please keep it in mind!”

She was saying that there’s no room for mistakes.

I replied that I understood, and the long explanation of the three paths began.

“First, let’s start with the first one!”

Chaos raised her index finger and pointed to the statue on the left.

A statue of a human figure in perfect harmony of black and white.

[Avator of Chaos]

“The first choice given to you is the ‘Avator of Chaos’; in other words, the power of the Chaos Goddess, who is my master and the one who poured Karma into you, will be infused into your body!”

“The power of Ceres? Specifically, what kind of power?”

“You’re impatient. Wait a moment!”

Saying this, Chaos grabbed my hand and stopped in front of the statue.

“The essence of chaos is that it’s unpredictable and that different powers merge and are reborn as something new. These are the two main points.”

Of course, there are other characteristics, but they’re not important enough to go into detail about now, she added.

“If you choose the path of chaos… Your weak authority will be strengthened, allowing you to absorb the traits of your enemies more frequently and with greater strength.”

“Wow.”

“Additionally, by gathering various energies and condensing them into a new chaotic power, you’ll be able to use it as a powerful finishing move in future battles.”

In summary, if I choose the ‘Avator of Chaos’, I’ll be able to absorb traits from other beings at a higher frequency, and the effects of the traits I absorb during the activation of authority will be slightly stronger than the original.

Just like the four-color combo move I used to finish off Cresdouzer, I’ll be able to weave together various traits and use them as new ‘Chaos Power’ techniques.

As I organized the information in my head, Chaos pushed me towards the statue as if she had a reason for bringing me here.

“In the world you came from, there’s a saying: ‘One sight is worth a thousand words’!”

‘Isn’t that saying, ‘A picture is worth a thousand words’? Why now?’

“The explanation is over, and the effect of the statue, which I prepared in advance, will now appear. Place your hand on it and observe the Chaos Eye!”

Tap.

Without hesitation, I placed my hand on the surface of the statue.

Focus. I’m going to see this with my own eyes.

[The Chaos Eye is observing the first arrangement.]

The moment the system message appeared before my eyes, the unprecedented power within the statue enveloped me.

.

.

.

I didn’t need to snap out of it because the space had changed when I opened my eyes.

It seemed like I was in a spiritual state, just like Yeriel with the pocket watch, and I couldn’t do anything but observe.

A gray space.

The ground, the sky, and another me.

In this space, where these three elements were all that existed, the other me suddenly began to move.

He summoned a sword with the gathering of weapons, which he had never seen before, and wielded it with dazzling skill.

Flame! Zap!

Swish! Boom!

With each swing of the sword from left to right, up and down, a pillar of fire rose, lightning struck, the ground froze blue, and a fierce storm disturbed the atmosphere.

But that wasn’t all.

Bang! Bang!!

He suddenly unsummoned the sword and summoned a gauntlet, emitting an intangible wave with his fist.

Swish. Whoosh! Whoosh!!!

He also summoned a long spear, infused it with magic power, and demonstrated the Ran Chaal and Spear Throwing techniques by spinning, pushing, and stabbing.

Phew! Boom!

He then summoned a longbow and, just like Martin’s special move, created a massive gray magic arrow that he fired into the sky, which then split into a shower of arrows.

Wow… Is this a magic swordsman and weapon master build?

The way he freely used various traits and weapons made me feel like I was seeing the future of the path I had been walking on, and it was strange.

It also felt like I was previewing a future job in a role-playing game.

“Everything, including light and darkness, will repeat birth, death, and rebirth.”

What does that mean?

Whether I was puzzled or not, the other me didn’t even glance at me and stretched out his right arm, pointing his index finger.

Zing—

“Ugh!”

Although he only stretched out his index finger, I felt like I was about to be sucked in.

Struggling desperately in my spiritual state was all I could do.

Soon, his index finger began to merge black and white energies, creating a yin-yang symbol.

Were those divine power and dark magic?

Then, the five-colored energies joined the circle, and as they merged into a single sphere, they mixed beyond recognition and turned gray.

The other me uttered a single word.

“Apocalypse.”

───────

Light. Sound. My existence.

In an instant, everything disappeared as the sphere burst and the energy spread.

The power of destruction that defied resistance.

“Shit—”

That was the last thing I remembered.

Zing.

My eyes opened automatically when I touched the ‘Avator of Chaos’ statue again.

“Huff. Huff. Huff.”

“Are you okay? If it’s too hard, you can take a break and continue the story later. What do you want to do? I can increase the time you can stay here with my power.”

I took a deep breath and said, “I was a bit shocked at the end, but there’s no real damage. I’m fine. Let’s move on to the next one.”

Chaos, with a worried expression, held my hand and headed towards the second statue.

A statue with a sword engraved on it, piercing through various magic circles on a flat stone.

[Cursed Magic Sword]

Chaos stopped and said in a low voice, “The second choice given to you is the ‘Cursed Magic Sword’. Personally, I don’t recommend this path.”

Well, if Chaos, who usually adores me, says that, there must be a reason.

Still, it’s one of the three choices, so I should listen to the explanation.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Please explain it to me.”

“If you choose the path of the magic sword… You’ll have a tremendous advantage in magic resistance, and you’ll gain immense destructive power at the cost of your mental power.”

Tremendous advantage and immense destructive power?

Sensing my hesitation, Chaos continued with a troubled expression.

“By choosing this path, you’re essentially stepping onto the path of destruction. Every time you swing your sword and see blood, you’ll feel an intense urge.”

“An urge to kill and destroy when you see blood?”

“Yes. Didn’t I say that you’ll have to pay the price with your mental power? That’s the true nature of magic. It burns not only the lives of your enemies but also your own.”

After hearing the explanation, I realized that the second statue’s danger level had skyrocketed.

Even though there’s an incredible boost to magic resistance and attack power, the mental issue I struggled with during the previous battle might become even more severe.

I’ll take a look, but this is a bit awkward.

Tap.

Alright, let’s see how badly my mind is broken.

[The Chaos Eye is observing the second arrangement.]

Once again, a system message appeared before my eyes, and my soul was sucked into the ominous statue.

.

.

.

Blood and flesh. Countless corpses.

A forest illuminated by moonlight.

I fell into the bloody space as a spirit.

“Is that me?”

With disheveled hair and bloodshot eyes, I saw myself swinging a dark blue magic sword and slaughtering countless monsters.

If it weren’t for the golden eyes that flashed between the bloodshot eyes, I wouldn’t have recognized myself due to the huge gap between the current me and the other me.

“Hahaha! Demon King! Demon King’s Reign!”

Kwaaaaaaang!!!

He was no longer human.

Just a beast driven mad by slaughter.

“Demon King, my ass!”

What kind of nonsense is Demon King’s Reign?

I felt embarrassed and hot-faced, as if I had a case of middle school syndrome.

Phewahahaha!!!

He wasn’t even human anymore.

Just a beast driven mad by slaughter.

“Tch!”

That wasn’t all.

As countless monsters appeared and rushed towards him, a giant monstrous figure appeared behind him and devoured the corpses, absorbing their life force.

“He’s even sucking blood?”

But that wasn’t all.

In this virtual space, where monsters appeared endlessly and charged at him, some of the monsters used magic, firing spells at him.

The other me, with a smirk, slashed through the spells and absorbed them, nullifying them, and then pointed his sword at the sky.

“Dimensional Sword!”

The sky shattered, and a massive magic sword appeared from a gate, descending and judging the enemies below.

The other me, acting as if he were me, kept spouting cheesy lines, which was annoying.

But the destructive power he displayed in a short time was unparalleled.

Even without considering the last technique I saw from the first statue, the destructive power he displayed was beyond compare.

“No matter how I think about it, this is not right.”

Even if I wanted to become stronger, there was a line that shouldn’t be crossed.

The other me, whom I saw in the second statue, had crossed that line.

I didn’t want to become a madman, rolling in the mud and vomiting blood, just to pursue strength.

A giant sword falling from the sky… Tch, the technique was romantic, but that’s not enough.

If I chose that path, it would be obvious that I’d have to survive alone without any comrades.

“Let’s go. There’s no point in looking further.”

I shook my head and decided to leave, and as soon as I touched the statue, my eyes opened.

I sighed and said to Chaos, “You were right to discourage me from choosing this path. I’ll skip this one. Let’s move on to the last statue.”

“Good choice! There’s no need to step onto a path that looks so disturbing! Come on, let’s go to the next one!”

For some reason, Chaos seemed excited as she led me to the third statue.

A statue with an overwhelming presence, taking the form of a dragon.

[Awakened Dragon]

“The third choice given to you is the ‘Awakened Dragon’!”

Perhaps because it was related to the dragon species, like Chaos, she seemed extremely excited as she explained the last statue.

“This path is chosen because my blood has seeped into your heart, forming a dragon core, and our souls have merged, making us true partners!”

Chaos placed her hand on her waist and rejoiced that this path was chosen due to the bond between us.

Isn’t this like a veiled threat, forcing me to choose it?

I rubbed the back of my neck and listened quietly.

“Since your trait name is already ‘Dragonian’, as the dragon species blood deepens, new techniques or passive effects will be added to your body!”

“For example?”

“Hmm… Well, I don’t know what effects will be added, but I’m sure they won’t be bad!”

So, not only will my existing stats increase by one level, and I’ll have infinite magic power, but there will also be random positive elements added.

This is a tremendous advantage.

Chaos continued, “Not only that, but your trait is already ‘Dragonian’, right? As the dragon species blood deepens, new techniques or passive effects will be added to your body!”

“For example?”

“Hmm… Well, I don’t know what effects will be added, but I’m sure they won’t be bad!”

So, not only will my existing stats increase by one level, and I’ll have infinite magic power, but there will also be random positive elements added.

This is a tremendous advantage.

Chaos continued, “And most importantly, when you grow and meet the conditions later, you’ll be able to transform into a dragon species, not often, but sometimes!”

Transform into a dragon?

“Let’s go see it now. Is there anything else I need to know?”

“No, this is the end of the explanation. Take your time and come back when you’re done.”

Tap.

I must have caught the enthusiasm from her.

The mention of transforming into a dragon made my blood boil.

Anyway, with an excited mind, I entered the last statue.

.

.

.

This is crazy.

The moment I entered as a spirit, I saw another me, armed with a tattered cloak and old armor.

I wondered why he was dressed like that.

Should I call him a wyvern?

As a group of flying-type monsters rushed towards him.

A dragon species appeared.