Chapter 66

Chapter 66
## Chapter 66

### The World Tree’s Fruit

If word of this reached the Empire and they decided to intervene in the labyrinth, the situation would turn into an absolute catastrophe.

Regardless.

‘Preparation is non-negotiable.’

A ten-day window had been granted before the gates opened, a grace period intended for everyone to ready themselves before crossing the threshold.

It served as a final call to collect the necessary shards of the Golden Rule required for navigating the depths of the maze.

‘My supply of shards is more than sufficient.’

I possessed enough fragments to sustain me for nearly a thousand hours, so that wasn’t a concern.

The only lingering issue was my companions.

Isaac and Isabella.

Each held pieces of the Broken Golden Rule.

We had scavenged them as a team during our previous trials.

Those shards would likely only provide a few dozen hours of protection, but they would undoubtedly prove vital during the initial descent.

During this remaining time, I had to ensure their attributes were properly elevated while simultaneously honing my own masteries to their peak.

‘I can’t afford to sit on my rewards any longer.’

The Abyss Labyrinth was the kind of challenge that demanded every ounce of power I could muster.

Without further delay, I retrieved a shimmering gold fruit from my storage.

It was a gift bestowed by the constellation of the Radiant Hero.

A potent elixir of sorts.

Under normal circumstances, my physical form was unresponsive to most elixirs. My array of innate talents and existing traits usually prevented further enhancement from standard sources.

‘However, this fruit is of a different caliber.’

This particular item was unique.

Unique enough to be considered a risk.

I had hesitated previously because of the volatile energy it radiated, but with the deadline looming, hesitation was a luxury I no longer possessed.

I popped the fruit into my mouth and swallowed.

At that exact moment.

[You have ingested the ‘World Tree’s Fruit.’]

Gurgle! Churn!

My internal organs felt like they were being put through a thresher as a wave of agonizing torment lanced through my entire frame.

“……!”

I clamped my jaw shut, biting my lip hard enough to draw blood.

If I allowed my mouth to open even a fraction, the fruit would be expelled instantly.

The internal rejection was more violent than anything I could have imagined.

Even after all my time as a player, I had never experienced this level of sheer physiological torture.

I gripped my own throat with both hands. The fruit seemed to be fighting back, pulsing against my esophagus as if trying to tear its way out.

Before I could register it, I was convulsing on the floor.

My skin turned a feverish crimson, and my consciousness began to fracture into a blur.

‘Dammit……!’

A surge of regret hit me like a physical blow, but there was no turning back now.

Just as the darkness began to take me.

[Digestion of the ‘World Tree’s Fruit’ has commenced.]

[You have completed the achievement ‘The One Who Broke the Taboo.’]

[The fruit’s essence is permeating your physiology.]

[Excess energy is being vented.]

[Total energy retention achieved through the ‘Glutton’ trait.]

[Absorption efficiency: 110%!]

[The ‘Holy Lineage’ contained within the seed has been successfully assimilated!]

[Hidden trait ‘Druid’s Nature Affinity’ has ascended to ‘High Druid’s Great Nature.’]

[Nature-centric talents have reached specialization.]

[A new skill has been manifested.]

……

The Demon Realm.

Perched upon his throne at the furthest edge of existence, the Demon King inspected his physical vessel.

‘This frame…… it is flawless.’

The Demon King was nearing the final stages of cementing his control over Wilhelm’s corpse.

As his dominance solidified, his admiration for the vessel grew.

It was a body that had been pushed to the absolute zenith of mortal capability.

Even though the life-spark granted by the stars had been extinguished, the muscle memory and the experience of breaking through mortal barriers remained woven into the very sinews.

In all his eons of existence, the Demon King had never encountered a shell so perfectly forged.

The spiteful intervention of the goddess had ended the life within, halting its progression, but what remained was more than enough.

Once his soul was fully anchored, his power would eclipse his former self several times over.

[‘The Abyss Labyrinth’ has unsealed, my Sovereign.]

The resurrected seven lords of the hierarchy bowed low before the Demon King.

Upon hearing the news, he traced his jawline, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.

“So, the phantoms of the deep are finally crawling out.”

“Shall we remain mere spectators?”

“Do you truly believe I would stay idle?”

The Demon King let out a quiet, dark laugh and gave a sharp clap.

From the shifting shadows, a woman stepped forward.

The lords of the hierarchy could not mask their bewilderment at her appearance.

“She is……?”

“Is that not the despised vanguard of the Goddess Church?”

The Demon King gave a slight nod.

Then, fixing his gaze on the woman, he gave his order.

“You are aware of your objective, Saintess Seya.”

“I am.”

Saintess Seya, the one who had offered up her life to save her teammates during the Great Expedition.

She hadn’t actually perished.

To be more accurate, she hadn’t been allowed to die.

Her consciousness had been methodically wiped away, leaving behind nothing but a hollowed-out tool.

The Demon King’s grin widened.

‘Watch as every pillar of hope you cling to crumbles into despair, mortals.’

The Attitude Toward God

How long had the suffering lasted?

She had to fight the overwhelming urge to disconnect nearly a hundred times before the storm in her nerves finally quieted down.

A gut feeling told her that logging out in the middle of the process would have crippled the absorption efficiency.

“Are you conscious?”

“……Hudson.”

She pulled her eyes open to find herself lying in a bedroom.

Hudson was sitting by her side.

He let out a heavy breath of pure relief, his expression then shifting into one of intense gravity.

“Why didn’t you just log out?”

Hudson had already deduced her identity as a player.

It had become clear the moment she presented him with that top-tier elixir.

As a fellow player, the signs were obvious to him.

Furthermore, he had discovered the name Randolph, so it was inevitable he would put the pieces together.

She gave a small shake of her head and braced herself up.

“How much time did I lose?”

“Two full days. You stayed connected the entire time. Was that some kind of unique elixir?”

“It was.”

The World Tree’s Fruit.

To ensure the best possible result, she had remained in-game for forty-eight hours straight.

She had simply endured the unrelenting agony through sheer willpower.

Hudson just shook his head in disbelief.

“Most people disconnect when it gets that bad. No sane player sits through two days of pure pain.”

She hadn’t realized that was the norm.

Elixirs.

Concoctions that granted supernatural boons.

Most of them triggered a painful reaction upon use, and it seemed the majority of players chose to log out to bypass the sensation.

However, having survived the ordeal, she felt that logging out would have been a mistake.

“I stayed here to watch over you in case things went south. Priest Andrew has been stationed outside the door this whole time as well…… but please, don’t pull a stunt like that again.”

“I can’t make that promise.”

“You’d actually do it again?”

“Disconnecting during the assimilation process of an elixir degrades the results.”

She was certain of it. Logging out hampered the absorption. You had to experience the process fully to reap the maximum rewards.

“It’s probably a 1% difference at most.”

“Even 1% is a significant margin.”

“……”

Hudson stared at her in stunned silence, clearly struggling to understand her mindset.

Who in their right mind would trade two days of agony for a single percentage point?

‘Almost no one.’

But it was those 1% margins that had built the legend of Wilhelm.

She understood that better than anyone, which was why she refused to take the easy way out.

After a long pause, Hudson spoke with a tone of newfound resolve.

“Mr. Randolph. Are you looking after your physical body in the real world?”

“Just enough to keep it functioning……”

“……You were under for two days, and you call that ‘enough’?”

“Since I started playing, my real body has become unusually resilient.”

“That’s just a placebo effect. A player’s actual body remains as fragile as any other human’s.”

The placebo effect.

The phenomenon where believing in a falsehood makes it manifest as reality.

Players who pilot powerful warrior avatars often start to believe their real-world selves are just as sturdy.

But the reality was different.

Hudson was acutely aware of the chasm between the world of Pangeniar and the real world.

‘But it’s the truth.’

Regardless of what Hudson believed, her physical body had changed. Her muscles were more defined without training, and she had the strength to lift a person without effort. She could even go days without basic hydration.

It wasn’t quite at the level of Randolph, but it was far beyond the limits of a normal human.

Did other players really not experience this?

“You’re aware the Abyss Labyrinth unseals in seven days, right?”

“I am.”

“The player base is in a frenzy. The forums are exploding…… My own sources indicate that we won’t be the only ones entering.”

“If not just players, then who else?”

“Both the Goddess Church and the Earth God Church began issuing statements regarding the Abyss Labyrinth immediately after it was announced.”

“I see.”

Her focus sharpened.

The two most powerful organizations on the continent were moving in sync.

The news would be common knowledge across the land soon.

In fact, it probably already was.

If the heavy hitters of Pangeniar were joining the fray alongside the players?

‘It’s going to be a bloodbath.’

It wouldn’t be simple.

She didn’t need to inquire about the entry requirements—the fragments of the Broken Golden Rule.

Even the creatures in Kramdel carried them.

Furthermore, unlike the inhabitants of Pangeniar, players were burdened by their physical needs in the real world.

Hudson hit the nail on the head.

“This is going to be a war of attrition. If you log out, you lose your position in the maze, so you’ll need someone to look after your real body while you’re deep inside.”

“That is a valid concern.”

There was no way to tell how long the conquest would take.

If the competition became fierce, the timeline would only stretch further.

Going in without a plan for the real world was a recipe for disaster.

Even with a massive stockpile of shards, having to log out to eat or sleep would reset her progress.

Her real body was tougher than average, but it wasn’t invincible; it couldn’t survive weeks without care.

And every other player was facing this same dilemma.

“If you don’t have anyone you can trust with your safety, come to England.”

“England?”

“I’m aware that Phantom doesn’t usually take handouts…… but if you come to my home in England, I can guarantee you a secure and private environment.”

Even as the words left his mouth, Hudson felt a wave of doubt.

He knew Randolph was the legendary Phantom, but that was the extent of his knowledge.

No one knew Phantom’s true identity.

The secrecy was absolute.

There was no logical reason for him to expose himself to someone like Hudson.

“Fine.”

“I understand if it’s too much to—Wait, what?! *Cough! Hack!*”

Hudson nearly choked on his own breath, shocked by the immediate agreement.

He looked at her as if he couldn’t decide if he was dreaming.

‘Hudson is reliable.’

He was the man Serengeti had personally endorsed.

She trusted Serengeti’s read on people far more than her own.

Moreover, she could see Hudson’s ‘status window.’

It was the first time she had been able to see another person’s stats since becoming a player.

That alone made him worth her trust.

“Where in England specifically?”

“You’re actually coming…… No, wait. Your nationality and name? I’ll get everything sorted immediately.”

What was the cost of a ticket to England these days?

Hudson mentioned his family was wealthy, but even a standard flight was incredibly expensive. It felt like quite a burden to place on him.

“I can handle the arrangements.”

“No, absolutely not! This is the least I can do. Please, let me handle it!”

“If you’re that insistent, then I won’t stop you.”

Refusing such a sincere offer would have been dismissive.

She provided him with her legal name and nationality, and Hudson practically sprinted out of the room.

“P-Please, just give me a moment!”

……It felt like a whirlwind had just torn through the room.

Only after Hudson had vanished did she finally have the quiet she needed to inspect her ‘updates.’

[Status Window]

Name: Randolph

Class: Star Successor

Level: 6

Strength: 83(73+10) Stamina: 83(73+10) Agility: 89(74+15)

Intelligence: 83(73+10) Divine Power: 86(76+10)

Special: Attributes augmented by ‘Star Successor – 2 Stars (All stats +10)’ and the equipment ‘Shatiros’s Terror (Agility +5).’

Every base stat had increased by 1 point.

This was a benefit that hadn’t been mentioned in the description of the World Tree’s Fruit.

‘It seems the high absorption rate pushed my stats beyond the limit.’

Gaining stats at the level cap was unheard of with standard elixirs.

‘Agility is almost at 90.’

Between the point gained from defeating Maxim and the bonus from Shatiros’s Terror, Agility had become her dominant trait.

At 89 Agility.

Her reflexes and perception were now on a superhuman level.

Once Agility hit 100, one gained the ‘instinct’ ability, allowing for near-instantaneous reactions to hidden threats.

However, the stat boosts were secondary to the evolution of her talents and hidden traits.

‘The four fundamental elements have shifted.’

【Primordial Fire】【Primordial Water】【Primordial Earth】【Primordial Wind】

The basic elements were now prefixed with the term ‘primordial.’

Primordial.

The foundational source from which all things originate.

What did that actually change?

She turned her attention to the candle flickering on the bedside table.

She hovered her hand directly over the open flame.

‘Ah.’

The fire didn’t just touch her; it climbed up her skin, wrapping around her hand like a living shroud.

It was a mesmerizing, magical sight.

But there was no sensation of burning.

Only then did she realize the true nature of ‘primordial’ power.

‘My elemental resistance has reached a new peak.’

The Magic Resistance of a Giant only mitigated spell damage; it didn’t allow for physical immunity to elements.

This was different.

She could likely walk through an inferno unscathed.

Classes that specialized in elements often reached a point where they stopped using mana and transitioned entirely to ‘elemental authority.’