Chapter 66

Chapter 66
## Customization (2)

‘An Elf… I actually have the option to turn into an Elf?’

This presented a chance to morph into an entirely fresh species, distinct from the human-derived paths like vampires or the undead.

Driven by anticipation, he activated “Customization.” The twig gripped in his fingers crumbled into dust and vanished, demonstrating that the focal item was strictly for single use.

In a departure from prior instances, a shimmering, semi-transparent form manifested directly in front of him.

The figure was an Elf bearing a clear resemblance to him, characterized by dark hair, dark irises, and pointed ears.

‘He possesses a different kind of attractiveness compared to Heinz.’

While Heinz the Second carried an aura that was frosty and sharp, this form radiated the charm of a handsome man with a gentle, inviting presence.

‘…Should I tweak his features a bit?’

Connecting this countenance to his true identity would already be a stretch for anyone, but maintaining extreme caution was paramount.

The collection of his manifestations would only multiply as time went on.

This process held no relevance for Hans since he existed as a skeleton, while Heinz the Second and Harley maintained the capacity to alter their own forms at will.

He was powerless to alter Heinrich, who had already established an immense web of relationships, but it appeared that Hubert would require an aesthetic overhaul in the near future.

For a span of multiple hours, he threw himself into fine-tuning the visage with absolute focus.

With pale skin, golden locks, and emerald irises, the ideal Elf emerged, shaped with the devotion of a master craftsman.

‘Swapping genders isn’t an option.’

He investigated the possibility just to be certain, but whether due to an inadequate skill grade or unfulfilled prerequisites, generating a female manifestation proved impossible.

“It isn’t that I feel let down… I was merely testing the boundaries. Besides, it would have served as an excellent way to mask my true self.”

He mumbled these rationalizations to the empty room, cleared his throat, and shifted his focus back to refining the manifestation.

The moment had arrived to distribute his starting attributes.

The prospective paths available to him were Archer and Spirit Summoner, and he refused to discard either option.

‘In that case, I will simply pursue both.’

This was separate from an actual video game, meaning there were zero penalties for advancing along two paths simultaneously.

Furthermore, both disciplines represented foundational talents inherent to Elves.

‘I’ll channel the bulk of the attributes into affinity. That should grant the Spirit Summoner path a much swifter progression rate.’

The vast majority of his points were shifted directly into affinity.

Naturally, he had to avoid draining his physical attributes completely since he intended to function as an Archer as well, but he could enhance those physical traits through dedication and practice down the road.

‘My innate healing rate has taken a massive hit, but since “Super Recovery” remains available as a universal trait, it should compensate for the deficit to a degree.’

Because the trait functioned by multiplying his current recuperation speed, its efficiency would naturally drop alongside a diminished baseline stat, but it remained vastly superior to having no backup at all.

Following a lengthy process of careful adjustments, the Elven manifestation was at last finalized.

-Individual Name: Harris

-Race: Elf

-Common Traits: “Mind Hub”, “Persona”, “Super Recovery”, “Clear Mind”

-Individual Traits: “Child of the World Tree”

-Special Notes: The seventh manifestation belonging to Han Seong-hyeon. Brought into existence as an Elf utilizing a branch from the World Tree as the anchoring medium. The advancement velocity for affinity and primordial environmental energy is immensely accelerated under the grace of “Child of the World Tree”.

Observing that any mention of “Instant Death Immunity” was absent from Harris’s status screen—mirroring what had occurred with Hans earlier—it became evident that this particular benefit was excluded from the personal status display.

‘Up close, his appearance is even more striking.’

The stunning Elf positioned before him offered a gentle grin.

He caught the crisp aroma of a woodland environment, though it might have simply been a trick of his senses.

‘Given that he was brought forth through “Customization”, his initial capabilities seem to mirror the nature of the medium used.’

The individual attributes felt far too tailored to be the result of a random distribution.

This was almost certainly an added perk derived from utilizing “Customization.”

This piece of knowledge would undoubtedly prove advantageous when the time came to forge another manifestation.

Suddenly, the warm smile on Harris’s face shifted into a grimace.

He found it difficult to maintain a pleasant look owing to an irritating sensation that had been building for some time.

“It feels so restrictive…”

It was as if a heavy fog had settled over him.

The remaining traces left by the eco-friendly atmosphere cleanser that had vanished were bleeding away, allowing the contaminated ambient air from outdoors to drift inside.

‘His sensitivity is far greater than I anticipated.’

While his primary physical form remained completely unaffected, Harris was incredibly attuned to his environment.

Standing in the center of a concrete wasteland devoid of true nature save for sparse roadside trees and tiny public grounds, merely breathing in this space felt suffocating.

‘Could it be that my connection to nature has degraded because I’ve grown accustomed to this city lifestyle…?’

Exposing the form to these conditions for an extended duration served no practical purpose, so he opted to temporarily dismiss Harris.

Having already utilized the dimensional crossing array earlier to transfer Hans to the grand sanctuary, he would have to wait until tomorrow to dispatch him to Auterica.

‘Regardless, Heinrich has finally woken up.’

Well over twenty-four hours had transpired within Auterica while he was completely absorbed in crafting his latest form…

And inside the medical ward, Heinrich finally pulled himself out of unconsciousness.

—

“Ugh…”

“Oh! Sir Heinrich, you’re finally with us!”

As a low groan escaped his lips and his eyelids fluttered open, the thrilled voice of a woman reached his ears from beside the mattress.

“Where am I currently?”

“You are residing in the critical recovery ward. A full day has transpired since you were carried inside. It brings me immense joy to see you open your eyes.”

The beast-kin restoration cleric let out a sigh of pure relief and proceeded to re-evaluate Heinrich’s physical state.

“Your current prognosis is remarkably positive, particularly when considering you sustained a direct hit from a curse of that magnitude with your unprotected physical form. Your capacity for self-healing is truly outstanding, amplified by the Blessing of Fortified Body, meaning permanent complications are highly unlikely.”

“That is a comforting thought…”

In truth, this precise outcome had been engineered through meticulous forecasting, yet Heinrich simply offered a solemn nod.

“Even so, the corruption hasn’t been entirely purged, necessitating vigilant supervision. We must track your progress for roughly a month…”

“Ugh~”

The restoration cleric proceeded to detail a long list of instructions.

Though he remained motionless while absorbing her words, an uncomfortable tightness gripped him, prompting him to push himself into a sitting posture.

“Ah! You must refrain from sudden movements! The pain will be immense!”

Just as she predicted, the volume of data being processed and partitioned by “Mind Hub” spiked dramatically from that minor shift in position.

Had he been forced to navigate this agony without that barrier, he would currently be thrashing about in a state of weeping misery.

“Ah… There is a degree of discomfort, but it is manageable.”

“Y-you can withstand that? Ah… Oh! Even so, you must not! Please lay back down, lay down!”

She was momentarily stunned by his tolerance, only regaining her composure after firmly insisting that Heinrich return to a reclined position.

“This concerns more than physical agony. That specific affliction inflicts deep trauma upon the consciousness, meaning you must rigidly stabilize your thoughts for the foreseeable future. Your threshold for pressure is compromised, meaning even a trivial disturbance could trigger a psychological episode.”

“Hmm, is that the case?”

Naturally, this information was already well within his grasp.

The affliction had been handpicked from an assortment of advanced malevolent sorceries specifically because it would fail to cause him genuine, lasting harm.

‘“Mind Hub” successfully insulates the cognitive decay emanating from the “Immortal King’s Heart”, making a curse of this caliber trivial… ’

Instead, his curiosity centered on the sequence of events that unfolded following his loss of consciousness.

When he pressed for details, the restoration cleric merely urged him to prioritize tranquility and banish all concerns, operating under the assumption that it would induce harmful agitation.

“Lying here in absolute silence is suffocating. This lack of knowledge causes far more strain than the alternative. Could you not provide me with a brief summary?”

Faced with Heinrich’s unyielding requests, she eventually let out a soft sigh and relented.

“To begin with, we suffered zero fatalities. While the sanctuary’s protective boundary was vital, the ultimate undoing of the Immortal King was his own arrogance and drop in vigilance. The count of wounded is substantial, but everyone has been admitted and is currently undergoing restoration.”

She went on to explain that the containment regiment sent into the corrupted wilderness had made a panicked return, resulting in a dramatic reinforcement of the sanctuary’s defensive perimeter.

Following an infiltration of that scale, the defensive posture was bound to remain elevated for the foreseeable future.

“The members of the Heresy Inquisition are operating at full capacity to reconstruct the timeline.”

Beyond executing meticulous grid searches on-site to ascertain the exact path the Immortal King utilized to bypass security, regional Heresy Inquisitors had been deployed to the corrupted wilderness to uncover the underlying reality.

‘This turn of events must put the Elves in an incredibly awkward position… ’

They had inadvertently played a role in compromising the sanctuary’s defensive net…

While the faith would avoid launching public accusations against them, the Elves were bound to feel deeply uncomfortable after witnessing the chaos of the previous evening.

‘Well, the moment the Heresy Inquisitors stumble upon Hans’s concealed laboratory, the suspicions weighing on the Elves will naturally dissipate.’

The investigators possessed more than enough competence to trace exactly when and by what means Hans vanished from that location.

“Ah! Sir Heinrich! You’ve returned to consciousness!”

The Saintess, entering the medical ward at that exact moment, locked eyes with Heinrich.

The restoration cleric who had been sharing the updates offered a polite bow and slipped out of the room as the holy figure drew near with an expression of pure relief.

“What is your current state? Should you not be resting? Would it not be far more beneficial to slumber rather than remaining propped up? Allow me to grant you sleep.”

Observing her frantic behavior as she claimed the seat beside his mattress, Heinrich rapidly shook his head to decline.

If he remained passive, there was a genuine risk she would employ divine sorcery to force him into a slumber.

“Ah, I am perfectly fine. I was merely resting in a reclined position. Listening to the aftermath of the battle actually proved quite therapeutic. You mentioned that everyone survived, correct?”

She offered a nod and released a breath of relief, clearly appeased by his quick redirection of the dialogue.

“The credit belongs entirely to Sir Heinrich for driving the Immortal King away at the critical juncture. While it remains a regret that we failed to destroy him permanently on the spot, we successfully averted the catastrophic outcome of total annihilation.”

“The result stems from the collective sacrifices of everyone involved. I could never have achieved it in isolation.”

“Even so! The exact instant you received divine favor during that crisis and impaled the Immortal King’s chest with your blade of radiance—it mirrored a passage from an epic chronicling legends!”

The space separating the Saintess, who poured out adoration with gleaming eyes, and Heinrich, who offered a timid smile while maintaining his humble facade, grew noticeably warm and relaxed.

However, given the gravity of current events, this lighthearted interlude was brief.

“I have just returned from checking on Lord Rapori. Because of how the situation developed, I requested that he track the Immortal King’s current coordinates once more…”

Rapori, fully grasping the urgency of the matter, had immediately initiated a fresh divination at the Saintess’s behest.

Predictably, the signature of the Immortal King, which had lingered within the corrupted wilderness up until yesterday, had completely dissolved.

“To be clear, I harbor no distrust toward the Elven Kingdom. Lord Rapori is a recipient of the Blessing of Silence, and such actions would serve no purpose for their people to begin with.”

Though the alignment of events was suspicious, it was far more plausible that the Immortal King had merely exploited a window where the sanctuary’s defenses were spread thin, rather than pointing to Elven treachery.

The mechanism of ‘how’ the foe pulled it off, however, remained an absolute enigma.

“Ah! Listen to me go on and on! You are recovering from severe injuries, and I should refrain from draining your energy!”

“Please do not worry. As I stated moments ago, this is vastly superior to sitting in isolation. Having a companion to converse with brings me joy.”

Furthermore, this method allowed him to harvest a wealth of intelligence.

They bounced topics back and forth until the Saintess eventually departed to attend to her official duties.

—

A full ten days went by following Heinrich’s admission to the medical ward before the opportunity to operate the dimensional crossing array presented itself once more.

《Transfer to the Auterica Dimension complete.》

Harris was instantly materialized at the side of Hubert, who was currently occupying their hidden safehouse located within Tarak.

From Hubert’s hands, he claimed the High Elf’s bracelet, an item that retained its pristine condition despite being constantly worn by the subordinate.

“Hmm… The sensation is night and day.”

The moment the band settled over his wrist, an immediate feedback loop triggered.

Because his baseline affinity was already remarkably elevated, the feedback loop was entirely distinct from what his other manifestations experienced when handling the artifact.

The ambient natural energies in his vicinity manifested with supreme clarity, and his perception of elemental attributes sharpened exponentially.

This artifact was, without question, custom-tailored for Harris.

‘Furthermore, this serves as definitive end-game gear requiring zero subsequent enhancements. It was originally wielded by an actual High Elf.’

While he ran his fingers over the surface of the band with an appreciative grin,

An unpredicted alert materialized in his field of vision while he remained locked in contemplation of his heightened senses.

《The World Tree gazes upon its child.》

“What?”

The World Tree had actively turned its focus toward Harris.

It seemed his secondary identity was evolving into a monumental figure.