Genius Gamer Reborn into a Family of Heroes

Chapter 66

A Harmonious Family Mea

After fully completing and reporting his mission, Harang finally returned to Green White Palace after a long time.

Even though the palace had been prepared as a residence solely for Harang, it still felt unfamiliar to him, likely due to not having used it for so long.

“You’ve fulfilled my request, Soirin.”

The atmosphere of the Green White Palace was significantly different from the last time he visited.

Harang hadn’t been fond of the excessively medieval furniture arrangement, so he had instructed Soirin to redecorate it with a more modern interior design. This was both a test of her abilities and a trial for her to endure.

The worst approach she could have taken would have been to stubbornly insist on doing everything by herself and ending up with a half-hearted makeover. Harang had expected that if she truly wanted to prove her abilities, she would gather and effectively utilize a team to complete the task. However, he hadn’t anticipated that she would accomplish so much in just a month.

“Y-Yes, Young Master. I hope it pleases you.”

“It’s excellent. I only gave you verbal instructions without any detailed plans, yet you managed to recreate it so closely….”

The interior design, with its simple wallpaper and monochrome furniture, had shed all the overly ornate decorations. Some might say it lacked a noble’s touch, but Harang appreciated this lighter, more modern interior. It reminded him of the dormitories he stayed in during his pro-gaming days, and the less cluttered environment helped him focus better when playing games.

The sofa, as well, had been made just as he wanted—practical and soft, rather than resembling something from the medieval era.

‘If only there was a TV and computer here… but I suppose expecting that level of technology would be too much.’

In his previous life, Harang hadn’t been an expert in this area, and even though he knew what a computer was, it wasn’t something he could just conjure up with magic.

‘Anyway, I need to think about how to use this potential awakening agent I’ve acquired.’

As a reward for completing his quest, Harang had received an item called [Potential Awakening Agent], which allowed him to awaken one skill of his choice. He felt a bit bitter, wondering why he was only getting something like this now.

‘It reminds me of all those days when I went through hell just to awaken a single skill….’

The awakening agent was small and round, just the size to be held between his thumb and forefinger. The idea that consuming this red pill could bring forth a skill was fascinating.

“Hmm?”

As Harang examined the awakening agent using the Eyes of Truth, the term ‘potential’ caught his attention and made him pause.

If it was meant to awaken potential, wouldn’t it be a waste to use it solely for a skill?

When he examined it more closely, he finally understood its true nature.

“Ah… so that’s how it works.”

Potential Awakening.

As the name suggests, it was a drug that provided a slight revelation to those who had reached a level where they should have gained a certain skill through training but had not, thereby helping them to achieve a new level of mastery.

In other words, the skills that could be obtained with this were ones that were essentially already within reach, just waiting to be awakened.

This meant that Harang, who was at a 4-star level, could not suddenly acquire a 7-star level skill.

There was no such convenient pill that could grant any skill one desired at any time.

Even with the powers of Kaladan, such a thing didn’t exist.

Kaladan seemed to have handed this down with the pretense of allowing him to acquire any skill he desired, but it was too valuable a pill to be used so easily.

‘Wouldn’t it be possible to enhance a skill I’ve obtained in this world, rather than just one from my past life?’

For example, acquiring or enhancing a skill that had been stagnating for some time.

‘The Sky Sword? No, that’s impossible. The mystery of the Sky Sword is still too vague. Combining a skill with the Kaladan First Technique… that’s something I can accomplish on my own if I just invest the time.’

Harang scratched his head. The pill couldn’t help him acquire a high-level skill he hadn’t yet grasped, and it could only awaken skills that were already within his reach.

‘A 4-star magic spell? No, that’s something I can achieve through study since my mana core is sufficient. My swordsmanship isn’t strong enough to enhance it yet…’

After a moment of thinking, another thought crossed his mind.

“Isn’t this a dud?”

Looking at it this way, it didn’t seem like such a great reward after all.

“Um… Young Master.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“I’ve prepared the coffee with ice as you requested….”

“Oh, thank you.”

In this world, drinking iced coffee was considered strange. He could understand why Soirin tilted her head in confusion.

‘Hmm, actually, even in Italy, they say some people cringe at the mention of Korean iced Americano.’

No matter what others thought, a cold coffee with sugar was the only treat Harang truly enjoyed.

Smoking was out of the question due to his poor health, and he could hardly drink alcohol.

‘Why do people smoke in the first place?’

Why would anyone willingly ruin their healthy body? For Harang, who had lived with an incurable disease from birth, it was incomprehensible.

“…A healthy body, right. Ah, that’s it.”

He suddenly remembered that he had recently gained the [Divine] stat.

Although it had merged with his mana core, the level of divine power he could currently wield was only at a 1-star level.

He had prepared a simple prayer that could be used to heal minor injuries or purify poisons, but expecting a grand blessing like Ezakt’s was beyond his current ability.

Blessings required a strong belief in the divine, after all.

‘But… I really want to have that blessing.’

The Great Blessing was highly desirable to Harang, not only because it had the ability to heal diseases and dispel curses simply by being received, but because it temporarily boosted one’s stats significantly.

How great would it be to cast a buff on oneself before a battle?

Of course, achieving such a feat was anything but easy. If it were simple, every Holy Knight of the Makris family would have already mastered the art of blessings.

Even the knights of Makris, who were known for their devout faith, struggled with it. Harang, with far less religious devotion, had little confidence in accomplishing something so challenging.

But.

‘I still want it.’

Among the skills Harang had in his previous life, “buff-type skills” were exceedingly rare.

He had been overjoyed when he obtained the buff-type skill Tangakhyang Descent some time ago.

‘Though I’ve never used it since I don’t know how to refine mana crystals….’

Harang’s deliberation didn’t last long.

‘I might as well try.’

Since he knew he could easily obtain other types of skills later, the best choice for him now was to strengthen his divine power, which was the most difficult to train and had the most restrictions.

“Soirin. I’m sorry, but could you leave the room for a moment?”

“Understood….”

After sending Soirin out, Harang casually popped the pill into his mouth and downed his iced coffee in one gulp.

Then, resting his chin on one hand on the armrest of the sofa, he waited.

A system window appeared before him.

[Available Skill List]

As he casually skimmed through the list, Harang waved it aside, not particularly interested. He then closed his eyes and focused intently on what he desired most.

‘Blessing.’

[Warning, the Blessing skill does not exist in the available list.]

‘Give me the Blessing.’

[Warning, the Blessing skill does not exist in the available list…]

‘If it doesn’t exist, then create it.’

[Warning, the Blessing skill does not exist in the avail…]

‘Blessing, blessing, blessing.’

Harang clasped his hands together, interlacing his fingers, and fully activated the system’s divine protection, drawing out every ounce of divine power within him.

‘Please, let me have a blessing….’

Dozens, no, hundreds of failures.

Even though he failed multiple times every second, Harang refused to give up. He squeezed out every bit of his divine power without leaving a trace behind.

Finally.

[Notification: The skill ‘Blessing (Temporary)’ is in the process of being created.]

Harang had achieved what he wanted. However, since he was creating a skill that hadn’t even existed as a possibility, the process was anything but smooth.

[No subject of faith exists. Please designate a deity of worship.]

“A subject of faith…? Can’t I just choose myself?”

An alert sounded.

[Not possible]

“…So I don’t have a choice. Can I just pick any random religion?”

Although it was pointless to ask a question into the air with no one to answer, Harang felt slightly awkward as he pondered his options. Suddenly, out of nowhere…

Ziiing!!

The ceiling seemed to open up as if a hole had been pierced through it, and a pillar of light poured down, illuminating Harang.

“Ugh…?!”

[A passage to the Divine Realm is temporarily being connected!]

Immediately after, countless notifications began to flood Harang’s vision.

[Notification: ‘Mystic Divinity’ wishes to bestow divine inspiration upon you.]

[The Dragon King Kalantatis has kicked them away!]

[Notification: ‘Divinity of Serenity’ wishes to bestow divine inspiration upon you.]

[The Dragon King Kalantatis has kicked them away!]

[Notification: ‘Divinity of Deep Freezing’ wishes to bestow divine inspiration upon you…]

[The Dragon King Kalantatis has kicked them away!]

[The Dragon King Kalantatis has kicked them away!]

[The Dragon King Kalantatis has…!]

“What is this?”

Despite the chaotic situation, Harang quickly grasped what was happening.

“…Ah, so that’s how it is?”

A ‘god’ with many followers possesses greater divine power.

It was a common concept, one often found in stories.

This was a rule that applied even in this world. Additionally, if a follower was famous or possessed great power, the reputation of the god they worshiped would rise even further.

‘So that’s why priests are so diligent about spreading their faith.’

Harang smirked and brushed aside the numerous messages that had appeared before him.

“You can stop now and go back to resting, my precious contractor and partner. Accepting divine inspiration from those guys would mean being subjugated to them.”

Harang chuckled as he spoke to the ‘divinities’ who might be watching from somewhere above.

“I’m going to become their equal, or even surpass them… so why would I make such a contract?”

As soon as he finished his audacious statement, all the messages disappeared in an instant, as if they were fleeing.

One by one, the messages vanished. However, one message stubbornly remained, staring back at Harang until the very end.

[Notification: ‘Divinity of the Silver-White Sword’ has extended a hand to you.]

The phrasing was slightly different. Instead of bestowing divine inspiration, this divinity had extended a hand, which was quite unique.

Kalantatis hadn’t kicked this divinity away, allowing it to remain, which made Harang pause and consider a certain hypothesis.

“Could it be… are you Hero Kaladan?”

There was no response. Was it because gods and humans couldn’t communicate directly?

But Harang was certain.

Though he couldn’t see it, he felt as if a hand made of light was reaching out to him.

Harang slowly rose from the sofa, tying his hair back.

A gesture of respect toward Kaladan.

“…I respect you.”

He knelt on one knee and reached out his hand toward the sky, and it felt as though he was grasping a hand made of light.

It wasn’t just empty words—Harang truly respected, admired, and was grateful to Kaladan.

If Kaladan hadn’t entrusted Kalantatis with training a successor, Harang would have been dead long ago.

He wouldn’t have been able to enjoy this blissful second life…

‘The first human to surpass the 10-star level and reach the realm of divinity in a human body.’

Harang’s heart raced. How could one not feel a ceaseless admiration for someone who had surpassed the world’s most powerful beings and become an equal to the gods with such a fragile body?

The mere fact that he could come face-to-face with such a person filled Harang with pure, overwhelming emotion. He lifted his head toward the sky and closed his eyes, wanting to feel the intense energy even more deeply.

The presence of the light’s touch grew stronger and stronger until, finally, a brilliant burst of light exploded, so bright that it became impossible to keep his eyes open.

Sensing that this was the end, Harang conveyed the last words he had wanted to say.

“I will never forget the grace I’ve received and will always keep it in my heart.”

Shuuu…!

Had the light somehow heard him?

Gradually, the pillar of light that had poured all its radiance onto Harang began to narrow and eventually vanished entirely.

With Kaladan’s presence no longer felt, Harang slowly attempted to stand.

That is, until a sudden, agonizing pain gripped his heart.

“Urgh?!”

[Potential Awakening Agent has been used!]

[The attribute ‘Divine’ has reached 2 stars, and changes are occurring in the Mana Core.]

[Mana Core has reached 5 stars!]

[Due to the addition of Divine power to the Mana Core, a fusion of ‘Silver Heart’ and ‘Mana Core’ is underway.]

[…Error detected.]

“Gah…!”

Harang coughed up blood.

When he raised his hand to cover his mouth, he saw that the blood was entirely black, like oil. He recognized this from a previous experience.

This was all the impurities that had accumulated in Harang’s body, specifically in his heart.

[During the fusion process, unnecessary mana stored in the Mana Core is obstructing circulation.]

[Would you like to burn away all impure mana and remove it?]

“Impure mana….”

Although it was impure, it was still Harang’s mana. Removing it would mean significantly reducing the total amount of mana he possessed. Was there really a reason to do such a thing?

But Harang’s skill, White Silver Sky Dragon Heart Technique, had been warning him for a long time.

‘…Now that I think about it, I often felt like something was clogged when I tried to use my mana.’

Most people who trained in mana in this world experienced this feeling, but since there was almost no solution, they had no choice but to live with it.

Harang had often described it as feeling like “moss clogging the pipes.”

Most martial artists and magicians had to live with these impurities inside their bodies… but what if he could remove all the impurities?

At first, it might feel as if his total mana had decreased, making him weaker.

But in the near future…

Or in the distant future, Harang would possess a ‘pure mana core,’ unmatched by anyone else.

“Alright, let’s begin. I’ll take the lead.”

It was a monumental decision, to let go of the majority of his mana. But it was also something that could only be attempted now, while he was still only fourteen years old.

Had he waited until he was twenty, most of his mana would have become impure, making it impossible to attempt this.

Fwoosh-!!

“Argh…!”

As white light began to envelop his entire body, starting from the area around his heart, Harang gritted his teeth and activated White Silver Sky Dragon Heart Technique.

He would shed most of his mana and compress what remained into the purest form possible.

It was excruciating, a painful ordeal.

But for the sake of the future, it was a task that had to be done.