Interlude 1-01: Blessing of the Voice of Dusk and Blessings of the Spirit
Takahashi Takakai opened his eyes.
"The ceiling is unfamiliar..."
He murmured quietly, slowly sitting up on the floor of the small wooden house.
Turning his head, he saw the backyard.
There was also the two-story building he had just explored after being isekai'd.
Turning back, he looked at his own body.
The burn marks were gone, his body was completely healed, and he was back to a state of health.
No, wait, this wasn't just health.
It seemed as though a gentle sound was gradually fading from his ears.
That transformation had permeated every cell in his body.
Takakai stood up.
He could feel his body was now stronger than before, so much so that it was almost reaching the limits of human capabilities, perhaps even surpassing some of those limits. Whether it was strength, speed, reflexes, or other fundamental physical aspects, everything seemed entirely different, reaching a level that an ordinary person could never achieve in their lifetime.
"Ha..."
Taking a deep breath, Takakai stepped out of the small house, leaped into the air, flipped three times, then landed firmly on his hands, holding a perfect handstand.
He felt like he had an endless source of energy.
His spirit was also incredibly lifted.
This is... the blessing?
As Takakai began to contemplate this, some information instantly appeared in his mind, helping him understand what was going on.
After overcoming Shirakawa, as a reward for completing this stage, he had received a blessing from the Sacrifice Game.
Dusk, Dark Night, and Red Moon.
These were the three difficulty levels in the Sacrifice Game.
When a player overcame one of these levels, they would receive a rating from A to D. Those with an A or B rating would receive blessings, granting them physical abilities and lifespan far beyond that of humans, possibly even breaking the limits of humanity. An S rating was a hidden level, going beyond the four basic levels, accessible only to those like Takakai, who had discovered weaknesses in the game's core and destroyed them to reach it.
Currently, Takakai had received the [Blessing of the Voice of Dusk], the highest blessing that the Dusk level dungeons could offer.
Blessings Cannot Be Stacked
Blessings could not be accumulated.
If a player achieved a B rating and later achieved an A rating, they could upgrade the level of their blessing. However, if a player reached the highest rating in a dungeon at that level, even if they replayed the same dungeon and completed it again, they would not receive any additional blessings. Instead, they could only earn Obsession items or other resources as rewards.
Additionally, only players who achieved two A ratings in the Dusk-level dungeon were qualified to enter the Dark Night dungeon; and only players who achieved two A ratings in the Dark Night dungeon could enter the Red Moon dungeon.
This made Takakai curious about players who could achieve two A ratings in the Red Moon-level dungeons. Could they encounter hidden things on the third level?
"So, the reward for destroying the Shirakawa dungeon was just turning me into a little Captain America? The problem is, I don't even know how to fight, but it could explain why the physical strength of those two previous players was so powerful."
Takakai shook his head, muttering in amazement.
Just, this power still felt nothing particularly special.
Even Old Guo, who could withstand the physical attacks of Fake-Kaguya, had to die when facing the direct strength of the horror story. This blessing, in the end, could not help players fight against the aberration of horror stories. On the contrary... it gave players even greater strength to deal with other players.
"I don't need to run faster than the horror stories; I just need to run faster than other players. I don't need to defeat the horror stories, I just need to defeat other players and exploit them? Is this the real purpose of the reward in the Sacrifice Game?"
Takahashi closed his eyes, whispering, his face growing serious.
So, what's next...
[Thank you——]
It seemed as if he heard a faint sound echoing in his ears.
Takakai paused, then felt a power gradually spreading through his body, bringing him a completely different sensation, unlike when he received the Dusk blessing. This feeling was warmer, gentler, and deeper.
He realized it was the blessing from the little girl and Xu Sheng.
It was a type of blessing different from Obsession, not uncontrollable, without any corruption, the most sincere blessing, deeply embedded in the soul.
Takakai first saw the little girl, saw her smile softly at him, and then disappear.
Immediately, he realized that his perception had subtly changed. He realized that from now on, whether others had good or ill intentions toward him, he could instantly recognize it. Not only that, but he could also identify those who were not human but disguised themselves as humans through some rule, and he could sense their abnormality.
His physical strength increased once again, and his ability to resist hunger, pain... the suffering the little girl had once endured, now he had a stronger resistance to it, and his healing speed had also improved.
And... he seemed to have developed a stronger liking for sweets?
Blessings of the Spirit?
Breaking the core of the horror story, freeing the dungeon, and even receiving a reward like this?
Takakai felt extremely surprised, and right after, he saw the illusion of Xu Sheng appear.
[The road ahead of you is still very dangerous, this is the only thing I can give you——]
A vast amount of knowledge immediately enveloped Takakai.
Survival in the wild, first aid, climbing, high jumping, special forces training, freestyle combat, using and maintaining rescue equipment...
All the skills that Xu Sheng possessed, or the skills he was better at than Takakai, were instantly transmitted into Takakai's brain, strongly transforming into skills that he had mastered, and he immediately acquired the abilities of a rescue team captain like Xu Sheng.
Bump——
A moment later, Takakai could no longer withstand the immense amount of information and sat down on the ground.
Not only that, Takakai also felt his spirit had been enhanced, as if his will had been strengthened even further.
And then...
Takakai took out the waterlogged rescue team badge from his watch.
After the rescue team at the Shirakawa Apartment was freed, this badge no longer functioned as an Obsession.
But now, after receiving Xu Sheng's blessing, the badge had once again restored its Obsession function, and Takahashi could clearly feel that the contamination it carried had significantly decreased. He guessed that even if he wore it all day, it likely wouldn't cause any problems.
Then, beyond all that, Takakai discovered a new memory in his mind—a segment from Xu Sheng college years. This memory included knowledge from various subjects, from the first year to the final year, arranged quite thoroughly, although the memory suggested that the student at that time hadn't really studied hard.
Oh, Xu Sheng saw that he had graduated from high school and didn't continue with his studies, so he had specially shared his college experience to help him improve his education level?
Takakai was truly grateful to Xu Sheng, but if this cramming process could be a bit gentler, it would be better. He didn't want to feel his head spinning like this anymore.
Takakai sat on the ground and took a moment to adjust, before finally standing up.
But this time, when he was about to do something, the shrill sound characteristic of the Sacrifice Game echoed in his ears once more.
No, not again?!
Takakai really wanted to curse, but he had lost control over his body and could only stand still, listening to the voice that rang in his head.
[Player Takahashi Takakai]
[The time to begin your next mission: After 30 days]
[Expected mission difficulty: Dusk]
[You may choose to trade a dungeon ticket from another player to replace this mission, or participate at the scheduled time]
The voice came quickly and disappeared just as fast.
Takakai quickly regained control over his actions, then angrily turned back to the two-story house.
He took a shower and changed into clothes that fit him inside the house.
After putting on a hat and a face mask, Takakai grabbed his keys, opened the door, and went out to the street, where he hailed a taxi.
"To Shuchiin."
After saying this, Takakai sat down in the seat, silently gazing out the window, and began to think about what he would say and do in the time ahead.