Survive the labyrinth with EX-grade traits

The most important issue right now.

It wasn’t that Yeriel had transformed into a paladin, but rather that the light and smoke from the pocket watch, along with the loud noise, might have caught the attention of Christopher and the monster.

‘Phew. I guess we were lucky that we didn’t get noticed because we hadn’t fully entered the central area yet.’

It was fortunate that I had moved the party back before the pocket watch activated.

The explosion must have been loud, but we were lucky.

Anyway, was that really Yeriel?

“Darn, there are too many restrictions to maintain all my equipment.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the helmet of the paladin Yeriel disappeared with a crackling sound, just like when the pocket watch first activated.

With the helmet gone, her face was revealed.

Yeriel’s spiritual body from this world was surprised and asked in a shocked voice,

“W-When did you cut your hair, or rather, how did it get so short?”

“Hmm. Is this world’s me still naive? Why are you speaking so formally when you’re me? Just speak casually since I won’t be staying long anyway.”

Still, their speech patterns are similar.

“Eek… I can’t argue with the word naive, so I’m even more upset! So, what’s the answer?”

“Well, what’s the big deal? I just cut it because it was getting in the way when I moved. Don’t worry, everything will go back to normal when I leave.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Paladin Yeriel held up the ticking pocket watch.

“This item is directly providing me with various information in my head.”

She shrugged her shoulders.

“To begin with, the reason I came to this world was because I suddenly heard a strange voice asking for help.”

Yeriel silently nodded her head, slightly disturbed.

‘If another version of yourself enters your body and controls it, and you can only watch from behind… what would you feel?’

Didn’t she say she was from the seventh timeline?

The appearance of the Yeriel from a parallel future world, referred to by the system as ‘Paladin Yeriel’, was quite different from the Yeriel I knew.

Her pure white hair barely reached her shoulders.

Unlike the shy and cute Yeriel from this world, her eyes were half-lidded, giving off an indifferent air, and her entire body exuded the aura of a seasoned warrior who had survived countless battles.

Her usual delicate priestly attire was gone, replaced by a bright yellow light and luxurious plate armor, which exuded the righteousness of a paladin.

────

[Yeriel]

[Strength: B] [Agility: B] [Endurance: B] [Stamina: B] [Magic Power: B] [Luck: B]

[Possessed Traits] (Collapse)

Divine Martial Arts
Lucky Star
Devotion
Magic Affinity
Battle Continuation
Light’s Blessing
Saintly Forging

────

────

[Light’s Blessing (A)] [P]

A blessing that is said to be bestowed upon only a handful of the countless followers of the God of Light.

As a paladin of the Church of Light and an executioner of evil, she is always accompanied by the blessing of the God of Light.

• Separate from the divine power converted from magic power, pure divine power constantly rises and accumulates within her body.
•
• The color of divine power is fixed.
•
• The ability to manipulate divine power is greatly increased.
•
• Magic power regeneration is greatly increased.
•
• ────
•
• ────
•
[Saintly Forging (A)] [A]

No matter where or when, the user can forge weapons with the dense divine power and starlight that shines upon them, as long as they have the image of the weapon in their mind.

• Forges weapons with dense divine power and starlight.
•
• The forged weapons cannot be destroyed or damaged by normal attacks.
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• When attacking with the forged weapons, they deal additional light attribute damage to dark attribute enemies and impart the ‘Star’s Trace’.
•
• When the supply of divine power to the weapons is cut off, they transform into a light swarm and disappear.
•
────

“Wow.”

A-grade traits, but there are no penalties at all.

⋯Right, I was missing the most important thing.

I was amazed by the display of A-grade traits, but I quickly asked Paladin Yeriel a pressing question.

“Hey, is there any way to find out how much time is left before you return or what conditions need to be met for you to leave?”

She replied, telling me to relax and put down the pocket watch.

“Don’t worry. I don’t know the exact principle behind the pocket watch, but at least I’ll be here until we defeat that giant monster.”

“That’s good news. I was worried that we’d have to rush in before the item’s effect wore off.”

“Heh. That’s understandable, because if I left before we defeated the monster, it would be meaningless to accept the request for help.”

“Yeah. Since the contract is so powerful, it wouldn’t make sense for me to leave before fulfilling it.”

She patted her chest armor.

“With so many restrictions on my abilities and traits, the remaining conditions must be lenient to maintain balance.”

She was saying that having all B-grade abilities and those traits was already a restricted state. How far into the future was she from?

I silently cursed under my breath. ‘Next, let’s check the information window of the named monster. I wonder what traits it has.’

────

[Cresdowzer]

Originally a lowly ghoul, but due to the necromancy of the adventurer Christopher and the gluttony granted by the ‘Corpse Conveyor’ trait, it has transformed into an enormous monster, no longer an ordinary creature.

The power emanating from its massive body is strong enough to overturn the ground in an instant.

The beams of magic power emitted from its two cores deal massive damage to enemies, and the things it has devoured through gluttony serve as fuel for regenerating any damage to its body.

As the contract has surpassed the contractor by far, it will not disappear even if the necromancer dies.

[Possessed Traits] (Locked)

Gluttony
Two Cores
Beam Attack
Super Regeneration
Earthquake

────

Each of its traits was terrifying, fitting for its enormous size.

Damn it. If it’s necromancy, it must be an evil god. Even if it was resurrected as early as two or three months ago, why did it have to be resurrected now?

If it had been resurrected earlier, an adventurer who managed to escape through the portal might have spread rumors, or a high-ranking adventurer might have been assigned a special quest to deal with it after the Adventure Guild’s upper management noticed something amiss when parties entering the Resting Place started dying.

Or perhaps it could have been defeated by a powerful adventurer who was rapidly clearing the Resting Place.

The timing is incredibly unfortunate.

As I was grinding my teeth over Cresdowzer’s information, Paladin Yeriel examined my face and spoke.

“Ahren, you’re still the same in both worlds. It’s a relief to see that you’re still in good health.”

“Being in good health… does that mean there’s a big problem with the me in your world?”

“Uh-huh. It’s difficult for me to say it directly, but I couldn’t protect □□ in □□ and ended up □□□□□. Ever since then, all that was left was a figure filled with venom, and it hurt my heart to always watch over them like that.”

Wait a second. It feels like something important was just mentioned.

I asked her to repeat it to clarify the part that was muffled or omitted.

“Can you repeat just the beginning? Where and what couldn’t you protect?”

“□□… Ah, I see from your expression why you’re asking again. It must be that, due to certain restrictions, you can’t hear about things from another world. Am I right?”

“That’s correct. That part gets muffled, and I can’t hear it clearly. Isn’t there any way to get around it?”

She shook her head firmly.

“Anyway, even just looking at your current self, I can tell you’re walking a different path from the □□ Aran I knew. Just forget about it and focus on living in the present.”

Again. Again, I can’t hear it. What exactly happened between me and Yeriel in the seventh timeline?

“This time, I think I know which words you couldn’t hear.”

Noticing the curiosity written all over my face, Yeriel smiled faintly.

“To my spouse from another world, you already seem to be on good terms judging by the vibe, but anyway, make sure to cherish the me in this world, okay?”

“…What?”

She stuck out her tongue slightly and whispered softly.

“This is from experience. When you raise □□□ all at once, it gets troublesome, so from now on, try to restrain yourself from unintentionally charming other women. Got it?”

“?!”

「W-what?!」

Even as a spirit, Yeriel’s face turned reddish, and she covered her mouth in shock.

“Gasp.”

“From the way she said it, just how many…?”

Lumia and Veronica, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, muttered with their lips slightly parted in astonishment.

The title “spouse” and the comment about raising three traits at once—could it be?

[Chaos frowns, wondering why they are discussing strange stories about the other half of her soul.]

[Chaos, uninterested in events from another world, demands that they quickly figure out a way to get rid of the creatures blocking the portal.]

Chaos’s words snap me to attention.

‘Yes, the fact that Priest Yeriel took the Paladin route in that world indicates significant differences in their paths. The experiences she had while growing up and the knowledge of the future she possesses won’t be of much use to me.’

Regardless of what I failed to protect or who I was with or how we ended up together,

In the end, it was the life of another Seo Do-jin and Ahren, not my true self, so there was no need to be overly curious or invested.

At this moment, what we need to do is not listen to tales from another timeline but find a way to reach the portal.

Lowering their voices, they suggest setting aside the chitchat and focusing on strategizing how to break through the center.

“Before we devise a plan, let’s familiarize ourselves with the information we have on the enemy. I’ll explain what we’ve learned so far, so pay attention.”

Looking around at his companions, he continues,

“Among the traits possessed by the resurrected creature, the ones we should be particularly cautious of are—”

‘Blythe Commander’s Necromancy,’ which allows him to raise low-level undead hordes like skeletons and ghouls and then consume mana to grant them special enhancements.

‘Corpse Guide,’ which can assign random traits to one or two undead creatures within a certain rank.

Additionally, while we don’t know the exact details of Cresdowzer’s traits, the names of some, like ‘Destruction Ray,’ ‘Super Regeneration,’ and ‘Earthquake,’ give us a general idea of their abilities. He ensures that everyone is informed by sharing this information without omission.

“Okay, everyone, remember this?”

As he is about to move on to the next topic, saying that they need to devise a strategy for the upcoming battle, Saint Rael speaks up.

“I’ll take on Cresdowzer alone. While I’m doing that, you guys quickly take out the Necromancer, and then join me.”

Is she going to take on a creature of that size alone?

Before he could say that her confidence might be a bit over the top, he changes his mind.

If she feels that the restrictions are severe, it’s likely that she was originally an A-rank or higher high-ranking adventurer.

Whether it’s confidence from experience or faith in her combat skills, honed through the use of traits despite the restrictions,

For now, trusting her judgment to stand alone is the best decision.

“Okay, Yeriel, I believe in you.”

“Yes! Even if the Necromancer doesn’t disappear upon death, the contract still binds us, and any harm will affect us. Let’s do our best to defeat them!”

Thanks to her, they only have to deal with the undead commander for now, but in fact, there isn’t much of a strategy.

When it comes to facing a commander who raises and enhances undead creatures, no matter how much they rack their brains, the answer is to defeat the summoned creatures and get close to finish them off.

The range of dimensional jumps is tricky, making it impossible to teleport into the enemy’s ranks and assassinate them in one fell swoop.

If they were to unleash enough lightning to kill the commander, but if they were to faint from the pain, it would be pointless, making this method equally impossible.

“Let’s move to the center now.”

In the end, all that’s left is a life-or-death battle between the one who breaks through and the one who blocks.

.

.

.

After walking for about ten minutes, they reach the vicinity of the undead commander and Cresdowzer.

Saint Rael says to Ye-riel, who is in a spiritual form,

“You, it’s dangerous to stay behind, so quickly enter your body.”

[Okay! Whoa. Whoa. Here I come!]

Yeriel, closing her eyes tightly and taking a deep breath, disappears into her own body, starting with her head.

‘Is this similar to the mechanism of a Banshee’s spirit possession?’

Being her own body, she succeeds in the unification at once.

[Yeriel casts ‘Holy Forging’].

Now, as oneand no longer needing to distinguish between the two, Yeriel draws upon her divine power, creating a weapon made entirely of light.

“I’ll go first, so don’t space out and follow me closely.”

-Whooo!!!

Covered in a bright yellow light from head to toe, she charges forward with a deafening roar.

“Huh?”

─Kuoohohohohohoh!!!

Christopher, who was standing there absentmindedly, finally notices the anomaly and raises his head, and Cresdowzer, sensing the malice, stands up and roars, shaking the entire place.

However, Yeriel, having already closed the distance, takes a stance and infuses her weapon with immense power, rendering the loud threat meaningless.

“Eat this─!”

Unlike the common white or ordinary golden colors associated with priests,

The warm yet formidable power that only Yeriel, as a Paladin, can display, a bright yellow wave of divine power, envelops Cresdowzer in an instant.

Kwaaaahhhhhh────!

“Huh.”

A hole is blown through, revealing what’s behind Cresdowzer.

One strike.

With a single swing, the giant’s right arm is obliterated.