The chief's eyes narrowed fiercely.
"Where have you heard about the Spiritual Footprint? It's not something young warriors can know about."
Of course, the first place I learned about it was through the game. It was impossible for me, a professional player, to be aware of something so basic.
I told him frankly,
"I read it in a book."
There was nothing to admit because I had already confirmed that the information could be easily founded in the library books.
"The book says that the Spiritual Footprint was of great help in the fight against the fairies during the War of the Sacred Relics-."
"Ha ha ha!"
Interrupting me, the chief burst into daughter. To be honest, it was fucking terrifying, but I didn't end up peeing my pants because the daughter sounded quite cheerful.
"Have you read a book? What humor! Both Ainar and you, seeing two strange students appear at the same time!"
"Have you read a book? How funny! Both Ainar and you saw two strange students appear at the same time!"
Fortunately, in the chief's eyes, we were nothing more than young barbarians eager to learn.
"...If the contents of the book are true, I want to receive this secret art."
"Certainly, I have no reason to refuse a Spiritual Impression if the warrior demands it! But young warrior, there is a problem!"
"Problem?"
"It costs a lot of money."
Dang, I was scared for no reason. Why was he saying something so obvious in such a serious tone?
A Spiritual Imprint requires a lot of expensive ingredients. The problem with high-level prints wasn't money, but if the ingredients weren't available, there were plenty of things to receive.
"HAHAHAHA! It's commendable that you've come this far after reading a book, but it seems you haven't learned that much yet!
"I have money. How much is it?"
The boss looked at me like I was a monkey.
"The cost of an Imprint of Immortality is, well, about 800,000 stones!"
I frowned.
Ugh, 150,000 stones is more expensive than the game.
Even so, I could afford it.
"I will pay."
"That?"
"Will you do it?"
The chief and Ainar shared at the same time.
Before they could bother me with questions, I opened my bag and took out a 500,000 stone and three 100,000 stones. Upon hearing this, doubts appeared in the chief's eyes.
"Bjorn, Yandel's son, where did you get so much money?"
It would have been a shame if he hadn't asked me. I'd even planned my lines beforehand. I'd heard the story with Erwen.
In broad strokes, I said that I had met a fairy on the first floor and treated her like a slave when the essence came out by chance, then her sister had paid the price for it...
"Hahahahahaha!!! Those idiots!"
"They'll be the first to rob those sly fern-faced bastards! Bjorn, son of Yandel!"
The barbarians liked this story more than I expected. Not only Ainar and the chief of the tribe, but also the elders who were far away came and laughed. Did they really have so much bad blood between them?
«Ha ha ha! I don't know how long it's been since I laughed like that».
Soon the chief took 600,000 stones from my hand.
Hey? I'm sure he just said 800,000 stones...
As I tilted my head, the boss touched my shoulder.
«My gift to a young warrior who has demonstrated great qualities!»
I felt like my shoulder was dislocated, but the reward was sweet.
Shit, 200,000 stones with one word!
Our boss's personality was as fiery as that of any barbarian. I screamed with all my heart.
«From now on, I'll make sure I become a great warrior by fucking more fern faces that cross my path!»
«I'm looking forward to doing it! Bjorn, son of Yandel, young warrior!»
Is this what it means «more attractive the more you look at it»?
Little by little, he began to take a liking to the barbarians.
***
A Spiritual Footprint was a type of strengthening technique. Its principle was that it gave the body a special ability by infusing it with the «spirit» present in the magical ingredient. It was also the reason why all the barbarians were covered in tattoos.
I think I read that they had to be tattooed as babies while they had a relatively clean soul so that the soul circuit could be seen in adulthood. That was definitely the context.
«I'll give you one more chance to think about it. If you choose this path, you will not be able to receive an impression of another path. Will you still do it?»
«Of course.
I knew all the other paths, so I won't be able to change my decision. The higher level Immortality Imprint was the core of my leveling method, and even without that, all of the Immortality Imprint's abilities were mostly high-performance abilities.
«It looks like the old people have arrived too, so you should leave now».
«I will.»
After Ainar left, the chief took me to the shaman's tent.
And then, the ritual officially began.
«Hmm, your circuit is pretty clean. If you continue to keep your heart pure, the spirit will provide you with great power in the future».
The blindfolded shaman said words I couldn't understand and stuck a needle along the tattoo on my upper body.
Y...
«Uhhhhh...»
«Young warrior, don't hold back. You can scream. Everyone does it».
«Aaaaaargh!!!»
I felt as if a pain ten times stronger than a potion had invaded my body.
Damn, I thought it was just a normal tattoo. Do I have to feel this pain every time I climb a higher path?
«Okay, it's over. I'm tired, so you can go».
By the time the shaman spoke the words he had been waiting for, it was already dark outside. The chief of the tribe who brought me here was nowhere to be found.
«Thank you.
«It's the first time a warrior thanks a shaman», he chuckled.
Hey? Did I do something wrong?
I didn't know it, but I left the store before I could get suspicious.
[You have activated «Immortality Imprint: Stage 1». Natural regeneration has increased greatly].
[Your Physique has increased by 20.]
Although I was mentally exhausted, strangely, my body was full of energy. Was this the power of a spirit? It was very strange. I could almost feel an unknown power in my body.
You should check it out in more detail later.
«Open the door!»
After leaving the sacred ground and returning to the inn, I tested my newly acquired skills a few times, then collapsed and fell asleep.
***
Another day passed and morning came. I returned to the shopping district I had visited with Erwen the other day.
It was to invest the remaining 900,000 stones in me, thanks to the chief's discount.
«You are the one who came last time. Looking to sell again?»
«No, this time I came to buy».
I needed a new gun. I sold the hammer I had gotten from the heartthrob along with the rest of the team from last time. It hadn't sat badly on my hands, but the handle was too long to use as a one-handed weapon, making it uncomfortable.
«I want to see blunt weapons from one hand».
«Blunt one-handed weapons...»
As a result of the battle with Ainar, I had decided that this suited me more than something sharp.
Sword-type weapons required skill and dexterity.
Well, there's nothing you can't do with enough practice, but...
Anyway, the weapon itself would only be used in the early phases, so that was ineffective. After all, once I acquire that essence, I will only focus on using the shield.
«Hmm.»
The employee scanned me and showed me a one-handed blunt that didn't look like a one-handed blunt. The lightest seemed to be three times heavier than the two-handed hammer he had sold.
Is this a one hand weapon?
«They are all one-handed blunt weapons favored by barbarians.»
Oh yes, they would go crazy for these.
Even my shield was a simple piece of equipment made from a piece of iron, but.....
«I want something a little simpler.»
«Understood.»
I didn't need something so loud. Such a weapon would prove to have destructive power with each hit several times stronger than my last weapon, but...
The monsters on the first floor were already a coup de grace. It wasn't like he was going to fight a big monster, so there was a better chance that carrying such a weapon would be cumbersome.
Soon, the clerk pulled out new weapons.
«How are you?»
Of course, they were also far from the norm, but for a barbarian's body, they were the right ones. I chose a moderately medium sized mace.
«How much does this cost?»
«250,000 stones.»
250,000? Last time he had sold six weapons for only 350,000!
When I frowned, the clerk added,
«Manufacturing this weapon itself is not difficult, but the iron content is high, so the price cannot be avoided.»
Ah, I see.
I accepted the explanation. Although not without complaints.
«If you set the price to 220,000 stones, I will buy it right away».
When I tried to haggle, the clerk looked at me with curious eyes.
... What kind of pusillanimous life did these barbarians lead?
«No one will buy this type of weapon anyway».
«Many barbarians usually come looking for her».
Well, maybe if it's the first weapon you show them.
The barbarians I know wouldn't choose something so mediocre. More importantly, most barbarians preferred a sharp-bladed weapon like an ax over a blunt weapon. When I added such reasons, the employee responded to the offer so easily that it almost took my breath away.
«Okay. I will sell it for 220,000 stones».
...Maybe I should have said 200,000.
[The total level of the item increased by 85]
Anyway, after that, I turned around and bought two extra pieces of equipment.
First, a half armor.
[Total item level increased by +57]
It was shaped like a bulletproof vest, but was made of flat iron. The price was 360,000 stones, and I was able to get it cheaper because there was one of the right size.
If it had been custom made, I would have paid double... like the helmet I bought second.
«It will take three days. Write down your address and I'll have someone give it to you».
In the case of helmets, they had to be made to order because they had to fit well on the head. Instead of giving up the design completely, I was able to come to terms with a relatively cheap price of 170,000 stones.
[The total level of articles increased by 47]
As a result, I had about 50,000 stones left.
...i don't think I can eat more meat in the future.
***
My daily routine was this.
Wake up at 7am, then have breakfast with Erwen.
«Wow, today's stew even has potatoes!», he was happy.
«But why do you have breakfast here every day?». I answered.
«It's delicious and cheap!».
After lunch, I headed straight to the library. Walking slowly, I was able to get in as soon as it opened at eight.
«Parsytiev».
By now, he was already used to receiving the charm of this chronically tired librarian.
«So, good luck».
«.....»
Of course, we hadn't had a proper conversation yet.
Growl!
After reading until 4 in the afternoon, if possible, I always tried to eat something simple at a restaurant I had never been to.
Mm, this place is expensive but tasteless.
But there were a lot of explorers, so it was good to eavesdrop on their conversations.
«Hasn't Ainar arrived yet?»
«Yes! Until I come, I will face you!»
After lunch, I headed to the barbarians' dormitory, which meant I would arrive around 5pm.
From the 7th day of training, he had started competing with other barbarians as well. Like them, I took off my top garment, brandished my fists, strangled their necks, and fought fiercely.
Although it was far from the systematic fighting technique that I expected... The combat with the barbarians, whose instincts and intuitions were extremely well developed, was of great help to me in the end, since
I was a barbarian too.
[Flexes have improved slightly with repeated training.]
[Flexibility has improved slightly with repeated training.]
[Dynamic visual acuity has...]
[Physique has increased by 1.]
Now I had a better idea of how to use this body.
«Bjorn, son of Yandel has won!»
«The greatest warrior of all time!»
Even without the help of the new team, he occasionally won against Ainar. He was certainly skilled, but his weakness was that his fighting pattern was always the same. I gave her some advice about it, but it seemed like it had already become a habit that she couldn't easily fix on her own.
«I'm tired! I'm going to sleep».
«Me too!»
«A wise warrior knows when to rest!»
At 9 p.m., all the battles reminiscent of real battles were over. So, I took my body covered in sweat and dirt back to the inn. By the time I finished washing, Erwen was coming to see me again.
«Lord! Hurry up and take a bath! The food is going to get cold!»
«Okay.»
Not every day, but about five times a week, we would meet again at night to eat and chat. Most of the conversations were about normal things, like what Erwen had done and how she felt that day.
«Aren't you tired of walking an hour to come here?».
«No? The food here is cheap and delicious!».
'Cheap and delicious', she says.
I didn't know why I was here when I had an older sister who made a lot of money.
«Thanks for the food!»
When we finished eating, it would be around eleven at night. When that time arrived, Erwen would also return to her inn.
«So, good night. Oh, and I can't come tomorrow».
«If you had come, I wouldn't have seen you. Because tomorrow we'll both be busy».
So much for the daily routine that I had repeated.
After checking the time, I quickly went up to my room and fell directly onto the bed. It had already been a month.
Y...
[23: 41]
There were about 24 hours left until the maze opened.
***
.
[Bjorn Yandel]
Level: 1
Physical: 46 (New +21)
Spirit: 36
Special ability: 1
Item level: 202 (New +185)
Overall combat power: 133.5 (New +67.25)