“GGRRNNNG......!”

After getting a solid rest, Hyunsoo stretched and pushed himself up.

The fatigue he’d piled up over time eased out of his body.

‘Alright. Time to slot the Saint’s Sword back where it belongs.’

Hyunsoo logged straight into Ares.

After connecting, he traveled with Kern, the NPC.

Walking alongside Kern, one thought surfaced in Hyunsoo’s mind.

The Dual Class Saint.

‘As long as I stay in Atlas, hints about the Dual Class Saint will keep popping up—and I might even be able to change classes soon.’

What Hyunsoo was wrestling with was this.

‘Once I take a Dual Class change, I can’t undo it. And in the second Ares, Dual Classes are going to get handed out a lot more...’

It had to happen.

Over four years, user skill had risen, and they needed new content.

That was why the concept of Dual Class would give users a new kind of fun.

‘But should I really change into a Dual Class now, before the second Ares even starts?’

There would be an overwhelming number of Dual Classes.

Is it right to take it just because the opportunity exists?

‘What if there’s an even better Dual Class out there?’

And more importantly, Hyunsoo still didn’t know what kind of power the Dual Class Saint actually had.

‘It might not match me.’

Sometimes, if two classes don’t mesh, you’re better off not taking it at all.

‘If I slot the Saint’s Sword back in, I should learn something.’

Hyunsoo placed the Saint’s Sword into its original position.

From the start, the initial setting was supposed to be that the Saint’s Sword was pulled out.

‘The quest probably would’ve progressed from the moment it got pulled.’

[Please draw the Saint’s Sword.]

Hyunsoo hadn’t built the “can’t be drawn” function into the Saint’s Sword.

So when he applied force, the Saint’s Sword slid out with a smooth pull.

[You have drawn the Saint’s Sword.]

[It is a marvelous achievement.]

[You obtain 49 Seeds of Life.]

‘Oh...?’

Hyunsoo grinned, pleased at the extra seeds.

[You have a large number of Seeds of Life.]

‘Huh?’ 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Hyunsoo frowned in confusion.

It was weird that the system went out of its way to say he had “a large number.”

“I told you that if you drew the Saint’s Sword, I would tell you more about the Saint.”

This was the moment Hyunsoo had been waiting for.

Kern nailed the exact part Hyunsoo was most curious about.

“The Saint possessed a truly special power. Even now, I can hardly believe it.”

Hyunsoo listened closely.

“The power the Saint displayed changed depending on the moment.”

“Changed depending on the moment?”

Hyunsoo’s expression sharpened.

“Yes. At times, he borrowed the power of the Pope—the greatest one in the Ares Church’s legends. And when he fought a dragon, he borrowed the power of Kanzar, who long ago was called a Dragon Slayer.”

Borrowed. Fought [N O V E L I G H T] with.

That was the part that made Hyunsoo pause.

And Kern continued.

“In other words, he was someone who could borrow the power of the mighty figures from stories of the past.”

“......!?”

Hyunsoo’s eyes went wide.

Borrow the power of the mighty left behind in stories?

That was a concept Hyunsoo found extremely familiar.

“Kern, wait. Are you saying...”

“Yes, my lord.”

Hyunsoo’s voice rose.

“Do you know about Story Stone?”

“......?”

At the words “Story Stone,” Kern jolted like he’d been shocked.

“Of course I do. Story Stone is a mineral the Saint created eight hundred years ago by breathing his power into an exceptional ore.”

So the Story Stone Arte had given him... was something the Saint had left behind.

And there was one outstanding thing about Story Stone that Hyunsoo already knew.

He pulled up the information for Story Stone that he’d saved as a screenshot earlier.

(Story Stone)

Grade: Legendary

Restriction: Level 400+ Blacksmith

Difficulty: Highest

Special Ability

·Depending on how perfectly you recreate the story, the artifact’s effect increases from a minimum of 50% up to a maximum of 350%.

·When crafting a sword: if there is no story, it will have only 50% slashing power; if it is a decent story, it may have 50–100% slashing power; if you drew out a story no one could ever imitate, it may produce 100–250% slashing power.

Description: Story Stone is a special mineral capable of containing a story.

Story Stone literally drew out power depending on the story.

Hyunsoo’s Twin Dragon Sword, in the end, had been forged from Story Stone, a Legendary-grade mineral.

The funny part was, by now Hyunsoo had crafted artifacts with multiple Legendary-grade minerals.

None of them had produced a Transcendent grade.

But from Story Stone, two Transcendent swords had been born.

Hyunsoo was convinced the reason was the story.

The text written in Story Stone’s description was proof.

Of course, it was also true that Hyunsoo’s excellent understanding of the Twin Dragon Sword had served as a foundation.

“Depending on how perfectly you recreate the story, the artifact’s effect increases from a minimum of 50% up to a maximum of 350%.”

Up to 350%.

Could you even imagine that?

An artifact’s effect could rise all the way to 350%.

Of course, “how perfectly you recreate the story” was abstract.

But one thing Hyunsoo could say for sure was this: Admiral Yi Sun-sin—greatest of Korean legends—and the Twin Dragon Sword he used as his armament.

Add to that a flawless method of production, and the system must have dramatically elevated the effect.

‘Maybe Story Stone is a mineral that can carry Transcendent-grade value, as long as you have a great story and the skill to support it and recreate it.’

That was why Hyunsoo had already asked Arte before—where Arte had obtained it.

And Sage Arte had said they didn’t even know where it was.

So Hyunsoo had assumed that was the end of what anyone knew about Story Stone.

Then Hyunsoo asked the most important thing.

“I once obtained Story Stone. This Story Stone...”

“It matches the location I know. But how in the world did it end up there...?”

The place Kern knew was an unknown region that even Hyunsoo, as lord, couldn’t go to right now.

In fact, the ones who had gone to obtain Story Stone were Feya, the Absolute Shield, and Luwan, the Grand Mage.

“Is there Story Stone somewhere else too?”

“I don’t know. It might not exist.”

Hyunsoo let out a sigh.

Then Kern glanced at Hyunsoo’s Twin Dragon Sword and spoke.

“However, my lord... do you truly need Story Stone that badly?”

He did. Desperately.

“Half of my artifact crafting comes from story. Of course, even without Story Stone, these things are powerful. But if Story Stone’s power is infused into them, they might become even greater.”

It wasn’t easy for the strong to become stronger.

It wasn’t easy for excellent artifacts to become even better, either.

The breakthrough was right in front of him—and yet it felt like it had vanished into thin air.

Hyunsoo couldn’t help feeling regret.

Then Kern’s eyes lit up.

“Then, my lord, isn’t there a simple method?”

A simple method?

Hyunsoo tilted his head.

It didn’t add up.

“The Saint created Story Stone by breathing power into an exceptional ore.”

Kern smiled like it meant something.

“Doesn’t that mean the Saint possessed the power to turn ore into Story Stone?”

“......!?”

Hyunsoo understood what Kern was pointing at.

“If my lord becomes the Saint, you may be able to obtain that power.”

Hearing that, Hyunsoo muttered without realizing it.

“Creating minerals...!”

“Exactly. Of course, the Saint merely breathed power into it—but even so, it would still fall under the concept of creating minerals.”

Hyunsoo was honestly stunned.

“Kern. I can’t tell you how glad I am you’re one of my territory residents.”

He felt like hugging Kern on the spot.

Of course, his earlier worries still stood.

Dual Classes would be unlocked far more widely in the future.

So—could he really be satisfied with just becoming a Saint?

Truthfully, he still wasn’t satisfied.

But for creating minerals?

That, he could be satisfied with.

“Kern, do you know a way to obtain the Saint class line?”

If he hadn’t drawn the Saint’s Sword, Kern wouldn’t have told him.

Kern probably would’ve given him a quest through another route, and only told him after Hyunsoo cleared it.

But Hyunsoo, his lord, had already done everything.

“This is simple as well.”

Kern spoke while recalling Atlas—the place where everything had collapsed after being struck by a dragon’s Breath long ago.

“If you gather as many Seeds of Life as possible, won’t the Saint consider you the right person?”

DING!

[Class Quest: Seed of Life]

[Grade: ???]

[Restriction: Lord of Atlas]

[Reward: Dual Class Saint]

[Penalty on failure: You cannot change class into Saint.]

[Description: You are the Lord of Atlas. Through quests, monster hunting, and everything else, you can obtain Seeds of Life. Gather as many Seeds of Life as possible.]

“How many do I need?”

“That, even I cannot know. But isn’t more always better?”

Hyunsoo agreed with that part.

Depending on the seeds, he could awaken the ones sleeping in the ancient territory Atlas.

But one thing was unexpected.

‘An NPC that tells you how to change classes doesn’t know the number? That’s surprising.’

Ares was usually an extremely definite game.

Hyunsoo thought to himself:

‘They said China planned this territory, right?’

That was something he’d learned after meeting Team Lead Wang Wook.

‘The story planning is a mess.’

But Hyunsoo was wrong.

China Branch’s planning was perfect.

It was just getting crushed by Hyunsoo.

*****

China Branch Head Tao urgently opened a video call.

Everything about Atlas.

Even the Saint—everything had been planned by the China Branch.

Soon, on the other side of the screen, CEO Lee Sejin’s face appeared.

-I’ve heard the story so far, Branch Head Tao.

CEO Lee Sejin’s voice was calm.

And within that calm voice, it felt like a sharpened blade was carving into Branch Head Tao.

That calmness came from one thing: the fact that Lee Sejin was placing full responsibility on Tao.

But something more urgent remained.

“User Hyunsoo’s Seeds of Life count has passed five hundred.”

Yes. The Seed of Life gathering quest had only just been triggered, and he was already above five hundred.

Was it because they feared too many of Atlas’s residents would awaken?

No.

“He is approaching one of the conditions for the Absolute Sovereigns.”

The Absolute Sovereigns were a planned feature for the second Ares, and only three users could reach them in total.

Since the second Ares was the road of kings, Pureum Co., Ltd. had judged who would become a king two years from now.

And they predicted that two years and six months from now, a few kings would appear, and by the four-year mark, there would be quite a lot of user kings.

Among those, there were meant to be three special kings—and that, too, was a class line.

-Absolute Sovereigns... you mean the top-tier upgraded class above Saint.

Just as Lee Sejin said.

From the start, the Saint class was a class line held by a lord.

And even if you became a Saint, it would be difficult to step onto the road of kings where only three could ascend.

-If he reaches that class line, he would obtain it when he becomes a king.

That was also true.

But Branch Head Tao felt like their vision was going dark.

The Saint’s top-tier upgraded version.

Even so, Lee Sejin seemed to understand Tao’s feelings to some extent, and spoke.

-Also, it isn’t something you can obtain simply by collecting seeds. To reach it, wouldn’t it require an astronomical number of seeds?

Right. That.

At Lee Sejin’s words, Tao thought perhaps they’d been worrying for nothing.

Then Lee Sejin continued.

-That said, do not let your guard down.

And beyond the screen, Lee Sejin wore an interested expression.

-After all, those three kings existed... but they were class lines no one might ever obtain.

That was true.

Because the conditions were too strict.

And Lee Sejin spoke the names of those beings.

The first king.

-Overlord King(?). The undefeated strongest king.

The second king.

-Tyrant. A king driven mad by slaughter, who would make the entire continent fear.

And the last.

-Virtuous King. The king who leads a continent.

That was the name of the Virtuous King—what User Hyunsoo might reach.