TDWAD 27

Chapter 27  

“Show me your status window.”

“Right now?”

As Doyun nodded, a blue gleam flickered in Han Yeonha’s eyes.

A player’s exclusive authority—Status Window.

One could tell whether it was activated by observing the pupil,
but reading the contents inside required a special skill.

But Doyun had something else inside his head—

51 million compressed memories.

…Han Yeonha, Day of Awakening, First Glimpse of Status Window.

The moment he closed his eyes, the memory etched itself behind his eyelids.

The strange, glowing letters she saw at dawn when she first looked up at her suddenly bestowed destiny.

Doyun felt a tingling deep inside his skull.

It was as if every fold of his brain was bristling.

A peculiar sensation gradually subsided.

When he opened his eyes…

…Yeonha’s status window hovered beside her.

– Name: Han Yeonha
– Status: Player
– Rank: S
– Points Held: 0P
– Stats: Strength – 4, Stamina – 4, Agility – 3, Regeneration – 20, Resistance – 14, Intelligence – 9, Willpower – 2, … Healing Power – 23, Holy Power – 21
– Skill: [Blessing of Radiance (S)]
– Traits: [Guide of Life (S)], [Crystal Mentality (F)]
– <Player Shop>
– <Earth Channel>

‘It works.’

A subtle smile crept onto Doyun’s lips.

The fourth application of the Memory Network—Memory Projection.

It was useful for visual referencing, like the Library of Memories,
but it came with several caveats:

• It only worked if keyword search and memory activation were in place.

• It showed fragments of another’s memory, so it was incomplete and lacked guaranteed accuracy.

But for simply snooping on someone’s status window?

It was more than enough.

As Doyun absorbed her stats—

‘Is this brilliantly balanced, or just a disaster?’

If she had a VVIP account, the system would’ve likely evaluated her like this:

(VVIP Advice)
A five-tool healer with both excellence and instability.

• Regeneration: Good

• Healing Power: Outstanding

• Holy Power: Remarkable

• Synergy between S-rank Skill and S-rank Trait: Glorious
  But—

• Physical Ability: Terrible

• Mental Fortitude: Fragile

• Crystal Mentality (F): Prevents growth in Willpower
  → Without proper balance, she risks collapsing under her own weight. Compensate for vulnerabilities to ensure sustainability.

‘A fortress built on ice.’

If he could restructure that shaky foundation…

When Doyun touched the projected status window, his Memory Link pulled up adjacent memory fragments.

“You’ve got some skills and traits, right?”

“Yes, an S-rank skill and trait… and also an F-rank.”

“Show me the S-rank ones in detail. You know how, right?”

Yeonha nodded slightly.

[Blessing of Radiance (S)]
A radiant white light blooms from your righteous hands.
With every life you restore, the light flares brighter, embracing more souls with your warmth. (Lv.1 0/1,000)

• Lv.1 – Healing Touch, Light’s Barrier (Unlocked)

• Lv.2 – Lifeline (Locked)

• Lv.3 – ??? (Revealed at Lv.2)
  …

[Guide of Life (S)]
A sacrificial light spreads along the path of life.
By giving yourself, you leave behind a noble trace.
Devotion returns with greater strength. (Lv.1 0/1,000)

• Lv.1 – Regeneration Boost, Sacred Cycle (Unlocked)

• Lv.2 – Shield Conversion (Locked)

• Lv.3 – ??? (Revealed at Lv.2)
  …

“Want to read them out loud?”

“Uh… there’s a lot of stuff here.”

“It’s fine.”

“Okay then, I’ll start with Blessing of Radiance. This skill…”

Doyun half-listened—he could already see it—but inwardly, he was stunned.

‘What kind of broken combo is this? If I didn’t know better, I’d think she was a freshly generated character.’

But Yeonha, eyes wide, was focused only on reading line by line.

“…That’s the end.”

“Did you feel anything from that?”

“That I’m lucky?”

“Exactly.”

“Your declaration really moved me. When you said, ‘Fulfill your duty not as a player, but as a hunter’—it struck a chord.”

She clasped her hands together.

“That’s when I decided I needed to contribute, even just a little.”

‘It’s not “just a little” though…’

“That’s why I wanted to accompany you. But, um, I’m still scared of combat, so I’m relieved I awakened as a healer.”

“Wait, that’s why you think you’re lucky?”

“Yeah…? Isn’t there more?”

“You didn’t feel anything from that explanation?”

“……?”

Sure, she was newly awakened, but this was beyond clueless!

“Look—Blessing of Radiance gains proficiency based on healing output. The more you use your healing sub-skills, the stronger it gets, right?”

“I guess so.”

“Guide of Life seems to gain proficiency through self-sacrifice—or rather, altruism. Did your numbers change?”

Yeonha nodded.

“They went up slightly since lunchtime.”

“Just as I thought. You gave me your shield. You see the pattern now?”

“Y-yeah…”

“When you repeatedly use your skills, new sub-skills unlock.
When you fulfill devotion conditions, your trait proficiency increases.
Then the unlocked traits synergize strongly with your skills.”

– [Regeneration Boost]: Increases target’s regeneration by 25%.
– [Sacred Cycle]: When someone you heal (including yourself) heals another, their healing output is increased by 15%.

“…You still don’t see how busted this is?”

“Uuuugh.”

Yeonha pressed a finger to her lips and made a helpless noise.

“But, um, I still don’t get what this has to do with NPCs.”

“These synergies aren’t just bonus rewards.
They’re systemic benefits only players get.
NPCs can’t grow this way.”

“I read an article that said some NPCs can grow and aren’t always worse than players.”

‘That only applies to rare NPCs pushed to extremes. Conditions, timing, and luck must align perfectly. And she’s not one of them.’

Besides, across all cycles, Yeonha had always been the Saint of Snow—that proves enough.

“You shouldn’t use exceptional cases to prove general rules.
Now go into the ‘Stats’ tab.”

“It’s open.”

“How many points do you have?”

“Um… 28,000.”

The numbers began spinning in Doyun’s mind.

He simulated combinations and subtracted amounts, calculating the most optimal configuration for her body.

“Distribute them like this: Strength 13, Stamina 15, Agility 21, Resistance 24. That’ll cost 25,000 points—”

“All done.”

“…You didn’t even wait for the reasoning?”

“Why would I?”

Yeonha tilted her head.

“You made the decision, so I trust it.”

‘…You really don’t need to trust me that much.’

Doyun swallowed his words.

“Do you feel anything different?”

Yeonha opened and closed her hand, then stared at her palm.

“Huh?”

The sensation of strength clenching through her fingers was unlike anything before.

She moved.

Her body felt not just light—it felt airborne.

“W-whoooa!”

From one side of the staff room to the other, Yeonha flew across like a fish flopping onto land.

“It’s like 100 sandbags suddenly fell off my body!”

• Strength has risen to elite athlete levels.

• Stamina is now on par with a marathon runner.

• Agility has surpassed human limits, entering superhuman reaction speed.

• Resistance has reached the upper tier of superhuman level.

“Still think NPCs can compare to awakened players?”

“Uuuugh…”

Sure, it was thanks to Doyun’s help, but that was only a week’s worth of points.

With just that, her physical prowess skyrocketed.

From a long-term perspective, his point stood unshakably.

“But… but isn’t an NPC’s real power their special abilities?
If Irene unnie hadn’t been there, all the passengers would’ve—”

“Yeonha.”

Doyun’s tone turned cold and sharp.

“I never said NPCs are useless or that I reject them.
You don’t need to defend the Seiren in front of me.”

“…Ah.”

“As I said, NPCs are fated to be cut down by hunters.
The system is built that way.
The tragedy is, by the time they realize it…
Their sins will have already piled up like a mountain.”

Vengeful hunters.
An icy, merciless public.

In every cycle, NPCs became scapegoats and were marched to the guillotine.

Every. Single. Time.

“…So that’s what New NPC Order was about!”

Yeonha’s eyes widened.

“It’s about priorities.
Irene had something more urgent than helping us.”

At last, she understood—

Doyun’s true intention.

“…To tell the world that NPCs are human too.
That they’re no different from us.
That we can walk together.”

“Glad you finally get it.”

“If only unnie had known about your grand plan…”

Yeonha looked regretful.

Doyun gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

“But you shouldn’t be wasting time either.”

“…?”

“We have our own priorities.
There’s something you need to learn right now.”

“Learn? What is it?”

“If you’re curious, follow me into the <Earth Channel>.”

The past week had gone by in a blur.

She’d been too busy healing and fighting the Black Ghost’s schemes to explore her skills or traits in detail.

Naturally, <Earth Channel> was still foreign to her.

And when she logged in—

[Unseen Messages: 2]

[From: Player Hyun Doyun] “Learning” refers to knowledge and enlightenment instantly granted by the system.
[From: Player Hyun Doyun] It includes everything from recorded data to techniques, refined senses, and even…

“D-Doyun-nim?!”

Startled, Yeonha stared.

Doyun didn’t respond, continuing his explanation:

“Martial arts, magic, summoning—paranormal abilities included.
To use them in battle, you’ll need at least two stars of proficiency.”

“W-what?”

“First, accept the trade.”

The words ringing in her ears sounded like alien language.

Still, Yeonha did as told.

[Trade Completed]
[Trade Result]

• Given: None

• Received: “Cloudstep Manual (Rare)”

“Alright, now sit in lotus position.”

“Let’s gooo!”

“…No, not let’s go. I said lotus. Oh, whatever, sit however you want.”

Doyun taught her the method of Learning. Yeonha, still uncertain, took a deep breath and calmed herself.

[Training Begins.]

And so began—

—a flood of insights from Cloudstep Manual.

‘What is… this…?!’

Her mouth opened, but no sound emerged—only a silent scream.

Her brain had never felt this overloaded.

It was a tidal wave of knowledge.

‘No wonder they call it shocking and terrifying.’

Still, she’d absorb it without issue.

There had never been a reported side effect from learning a rare-ranked technique.

What she needed now was the strength to protect herself.

The combination of Agility and Step Technique wouldn’t just let her dodge.

It would become a bridge of life—taking her anywhere.

Doyun had saved that rare footwork for her since the moment he pulled it from the random box.

‘It’s stabilized. My turn now.’

Doyun sat in meditation, eyes fixed on the top of his [Items] tab.

All this time, he had been holding out with just his Qi stat—a pitiful existence.

But now, he finally held in his hand the Epic-grade internal cultivation manual—[Heavenly Flame Scripture].

‘It was… beautiful.’

Even just absorbing it briefly revealed a whole new dimension.

And now—something to take it even further:

– Beast Lord’s Core (Heroic)

[VVIP Advice: High-density energy detected. Improper usage may lead to qi deviation. Do not use until sufficient mastery is achieved.]

[Use item? Y/N]

‘Use it.’

Without hesitation, he confirmed.

CRACK—!

[Beast Lord’s Core (Heroic) has shattered.]

A burning sensation surged in his abdomen.
The internal energy within him raged like a beast freed from its cage.

[Core absorption initiated.]
[Failure Penalty: Qi Deviation]