Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 77

Light and Shadow (8)

Torchlight guided them as they ventured into the dark, lengthy cave.

The cave followed a straightforward path, and its simple layout allowed them to reach the end without getting lost. Bright sunlight poured in, bathing them in light.

“Phew, finally out,” Eile exclaimed, looking around as they emerged from the cave.

Unlike the towering cliff they had entered from, the exit opened onto a lower corner of the valley.

The complex terrain surrounding them made it unlikely they would be spotted, suggesting the Bloodstained Twilight Society’s followers frequently used this passage.

“Which way?” Eile asked, pausing at the fork in the path.

Neshua silently raised a finger, pointing to the left.

It was the opposite direction from Eile. They exchanged a brief farewell before parting ways.

Bound by a shared quest, they both knew this wouldn’t be their last encounter, making a lengthy goodbye unnecessary.

However, Eile hesitated, turning back. “Want me to help you get revenge?”

“……?”

“Why not join my quest?”

Regardless of who they were, those individuals had tried to kill him alongside Eile, making reconciliation impossible.

If they learned of the destruction here, they might try to hunt down and assassinate Neshua.

Having been betrayed by his original faction, Neshua’s best option was to align himself with their enemies.

And Eile happened to be undertaking a quest for the White Forest.

If they formed a party and pursued the quest together, Neshua would naturally have opportunities to avenge himself against his betrayers, potentially even receiving aid from the High Elves.

However, Neshua chuckled softly and shook his head.

It was the first time Eile had seen him smile since they met.

“……”

Neshua scribbled something on a piece of parchment, awkwardly folded it, waved his hand in farewell, and departed.

* * *

‘Seeing it again, it’s even more incredible.’

After boarding a carriage heading to his next destination from the village below the valley, Eile began to seriously examine the rewards he had obtained.

[Contribution Points Held: 5,410]

The total Contribution Points spent against Malagos were 1,650. The Contribution Points gained from clearing the dungeon amounted to 4,600.

A substantial amount of Contribution Points earned from a single dungeon raid.

Malagos, being a blasphemer, a demonic monster, and a minion of Venaron, embodied everything the Order of Light detested.

He had accepted Lugh’s special quest against such a creature and defeated him in an unconventional manner, deviating from the standard dungeon scenario, resulting in an additional bonus.

Furthermore, his Favor stat, previously around 58 percent, now stood at 61.25 percent.

Surpassing 60 percent was a significant achievement, and most Inquisitor players considered maintaining this value the benchmark for successful Favor management.

‘The title I received is excellent as well.’

[The title ‘Agent of the Goddess’ has been applied!]

[All stats +20, Damage against Heretics +5%]

The newly acquired title, ‘Agent of the Goddess,’ was an upgraded version of the previous ‘Divine Punisher.’

It increased all stats by 10 more points than the Divine Punisher title and granted a powerful effect that increased damage against heretics by an additional 2 percent.

‘This is the first time I’ve received equipment as a reward from Lugh.’

Eile glanced down at the white longsword resting on his lap.

[Nuir Longsword Infused with Moonlight]

– Grade: Heroic

– Type: Longsword

– Restriction: Level 34 or higher

– Physical Attack Power 50

– Strength +15, Agility +8

– Special Effect ‘Full Moon’: Increases Holy property attack damage by 15%. Deals 35% additional damage against the Undead.

“……”

A Heroic-grade longsword.

It was a weapon with such formidable specifications that modifiers seemed unnecessary.

The attack power, additional stats, and special effects were perfectly balanced.

Moreover, as a weapon bestowed directly by the goddess, its design was elegant, featuring a clean white color and red accents that complemented each other beautifully.

He was beginning to feel the need to upgrade his weapon, and receiving such a reward at this moment strengthened his faith in Lugh.

After briefly clasping his hands in prayer, Eile opened his eyes to examine his next reward.

‘This is what I’m most curious about.’

Whoosh!

Eile opened his inventory and manipulated the screen, moving his arm.

He wanted to check the list of items he had obtained after defeating Malagos.

Because the dungeon was collapsing, he hadn’t been able to dismantle the boss’s corpse, nor had he had time to examine the loot.

‘Let’s see……’

Eile began to sort through his inventory, classifying and checking the newly acquired items one by one.

Various miscellaneous items to be sold at the store.

A superior mace with decent stats.

A rare-grade shield with magic resistance.

Metals used as materials for equipment refinement.

Four pieces of generally mediocre armor and accessories.

And a black skill book of unknown origin.

“A black skill book?!”

Eile stood up from his seat without realizing it.

But he wasn’t the only one surprised.

“Adventurer, it’s dangerous to suddenly jump around on the carriage!”

“So… Sorry.”

Eile sat back down, chastised by the coachman.

But his heart continued to pound.

‘No way……’

Eile rubbed his eyes, doubting his own vision.

A black skill book was a higher grade than the purple skill book he had obtained previously, ranking just below the golden skill book, the highest grade among Warlord’s skill books.

Yet, there it was, a black skill book occupying a slot in Eile’s inventory.

The appearance of such a high-level skill book on top of the already generous rewards for clearing the dungeon left Eile feeling dazed and bewildered.

‘Is this even possible? No… it is possible. Even though it’s a dungeon designed for two people, the difficulty is so high that most players wouldn’t be able to survive it. Besides, I broke the original scenario and caught the boss, right?’

[‘Light’s Arbiter, Lugh’ is watching the situation with interest.]

Even Lugh’s message appeared, indicating his piqued interest in the black skill book.

However, Eile calmed himself.

The appearance of a skill book of this caliber was undoubtedly a good thing.

However, even a high-level skill book only increased the probability and potential for good skills to appear. If he was unlucky, he could still end up with a low-level skill, like last time.

He needed to temper his rising expectations.

‘And I shouldn’t just wish for high-level skills unconditionally. It’s time to balance my skills.’

Many players, blinded by grades, overlooked the fact that the real key to skill allocation was achieving an appropriate balance.

No matter how good a skill was individually, it was useless if the synergy between the skills was lacking.

Even if you filled your skill slots with Legendary-grade skills, if they were all simple attack skills, your character development would be flawed.

Basically, skills were divided into numerous categories, including attack skills, defense skills, evasion skills, buffs, debuffs, and crowd control skills.

Even within the same category of ‘attack skills,’ there was a wide variety.

They all played different roles depending on their cooldown time, required preceding actions, additional effects, and whether they were single-target or wide-area.

For example, Eile currently possessed a great burst damage skill called Flash Cut, but if he learned another pure attack skill with no additional effects, the roles of the two skills would overlap.

This was a situation to be avoided as much as possible in the mid-to-low-level stages, where each skill was crucial.

Furthermore, Eile had only obtained active skills from skill books so far, and now he needed to acquire some useful passives.

‘There’s a saying that passive skills are the foundation in Warlord, and active skills are for creating opportunities. It’s a very accurate description.’

Unless they were buffs or toggle types, active skills only exerted their power when activated, and then they required a cooldown period.

However, passive skills were ‘foundational’ and always applied to the character, whether they were performing basic attacks or using other skills.

Without sufficient passive skills to support his stats, even with numerous active skills and flashy battles, he would lack substance.

Of course, that didn’t mean that passives were superior to active skills.

If you neglected active skills and focused solely on passives, your ability to create opportunities would be significantly reduced, making efficient combat impossible.

With no means of attack other than simply extending a sword and swinging it, monsters or players could easily counter him.

This highlighted the importance of balance and synergy between skills, as mentioned earlier.

‘What I need now is a passive skill, to solidify my foundation. Especially if a skill comes out that overlaps with the role of an existing skill, I may have to forgo it.’

Eile thought, holding the skill book in his hand.

Amidst the anticipation, Eile first retrieved an item from his inventory before opening the skill book.

A red gem with a dazzling aura.

It was a luck stone obtained by dismantling the red undead in the Village of Destruction.

Crack!

[The effect of the luck stone is activated!]

[You feel like something good is about to happen.]

The message appeared as the luck stone shattered in Eile’s clenched hand.

The effect of the luck stone, as the name suggested, was to increase the user’s luck, even if only ‘slightly,’ for a short time.

Even though the value of luck in Warlord could be systemically compensated in most cases, it was a rare item that many people coveted, despite its relatively low value.

However, the duration of the luck stone was less than 10 minutes.

Due to this short duration, it was difficult to use efficiently in other situations, making it common practice to use it before looting boss items, opening treasure chests in dungeons, or right before opening skill books, as Eile was doing now.

‘This is all I can do on my end. Now all that’s left is to pray earnestly.’

Eile took a deep breath and slowly reached out, placing his hand on the skill book.

The black skill book reacted, and a bright light spread around.

Whoosh!

* * *

“Ha… I’m going crazy.”