Chapter 11: Rubix’s Blessings and the War Mage’s Infamy

[Returned Avatar]
  
[Rank: Epic, Special, Unique.] 

[Condition: Win once in a duel against a mage affiliated with the Magic Tower.]
  
[Reward: Rubix’s Epic Cube, Rubix’s Skill Cube Fragment, Rubix’s Treasure Cube Fragment.]  

“Win by fighting a mage?”  

That’s a pretty simple quest.  

And it’s understandable why such a quest was assigned.  

Rubix said that the War Mage’s mission was revenge against all mages.  

Levan let out a sigh deep in his chest at the straightforward quest content.  

“The duel itself shouldn’t be too hard, but the problem is…”  

The problem was whether there was a mage of a suitable level that he could easily hunt right now.  

“What exactly is the target? A user? Level 80? If it’s limited to a user, that could be tough.”  

Especially if the target is a user, the quest difficulty definitely rises.  

Because while there are many newbies in this game, mage newbies are practically nonexistent.  

“I guess I’ll have to do some legwork.”  

Still, he didn’t lose hope.  

Sometimes, there are rare ‘black bulls’—players who insist they’re different and switch their class to mage.  

“Of course, that guy has to accept the duel.”  

After checking the quest details, Levan fixed his gaze on Rubix.  

Rubix was making an awkward expression.  

*Is this all? If so, that’s kind of disappointing…*  

If you’ve invited someone all the way to your place and only throw out one Epic Quest, it feels disappointing in many ways.  

That was when it happened.  

Was Levan’s fortune the cause, or did Rubix quietly smile and utter sweet words?  

“In the future, it will be a truly joyous day. Not only have I found my successor, but also someone who understands my will, which no one else could.”  

“No, it’s just that people are ignorant and couldn’t comprehend Rubix’s grand intentions.”  

“Ha ha ha, right? That’s how it has to be, isn’t it?”  

“Of course, Rubix.”  

Praise can make even a whale dance.  

Levan continued to gently stroke Rubix’s ego until he was completely delighted.  

Then, finally, the words Levan wanted to hear started coming from Rubix’s mouth.  

“Of course. In that spirit, I can’t send my successor away empty-handed.”  

“Ah, you really don’t have to...”  

“No, no. This process had to be done anyway. Now, first, receive my Blessing.”  

[Rubix bestows upon you the Blessing of Strength.]  

[Your Strength has increased by 10.]  

‘Oh, oh, oh, oh.’  

Gaining 10 points in Strength, which is difficult to raise even once, was a massive blessing.  

Levan’s pupils dilated involuntarily, and his heart thudded in excitement at the unexpected huge blessing.  

“Is there more? What’s next?”  

Rubix definitely said “first,” meaning other rewards were prepared.  

Levan couldn’t hide his grin as he tried to maintain a humble expression.  

His appearance resembled a dad’s friend visiting home and reluctantly accepting a pocket money offer.  

Rubix’s next gift followed.  

“And next... almost forgot that.”  

[Rubix bestows upon you the Blessing of Balance.]  

[‘Skill Cooldown’ has been generated.]  

[‘Skill Cooldown’ has been generated at 20:00.]

“Phew, almost forgot. Until now, the War Mage’s greatness had no limit imposed, but the magic of the War Mage itself isn’t something learned directly like other mages, right?”  

“And?”  

“But now that we’ve acknowledged the War Mage’s greatness and you’ve reached a basic standard, as promised, a limit has been imposed on you too.”  

“Excuse me? Who is ‘he’? Who exactly is the one imposing cooldowns on well-used skills?”  

“He’s the deity who made me a god.”  

“Eh?”  

“He’s a great being who balances this world. So this is a perfectly natural law of the world. Accept it with a glad heart, haha!”  

Levan was speechless.  

Was all this progress suddenly a curse?  

Still, the skill cooldown had been generated, and Levan quickly checked the info on his only skill, Hold.  

Seeing the 30-second cooldown stated, his world darkened.  

Damn, I thought things were going too well. 

Unless the skill is ‘breath,’ most skills have cooldowns.  

So Levan felt a strong sense of despair.  

“If that’s the case, why not just not give it from the start?”  

Levan felt a bit depressed, as if his rights had been forcefully taken.  

Seeing Levan’s gloomy face, Rubix spoke.  

“Successor, why the long face?”  

“Nothing.”  

“Are you really that upset?”  

“No.”  

“I anticipated this, so I prepared another gift.”  

“Another gift?”  

Ha, as expected of Rubix.  

Levan thought so, and the new blessing followed soon after.  

[Rubix bestows upon you the Blessing of Proficiency.]  

[All skills now have a proficiency option applied.]  

‘Proficiency option?’  

After seeing the system notification, Levan checked Hold’s info window again.  

[Hold]  

[Rank: Rare] 
 
[Progress: (0.0%)]

[Effect: Stuns the target for 5 seconds.]
  
[Cooldown: 30 seconds] 
 
[Proficiency Options:] 
 
[* Using 22 Cubes applies 30-second cooldown.]  

[* Using 33 Cubes applies 15-second cooldown and increases Hold duration by 2 seconds.]  

“What’s this?”  

Proficiency option.  

Levan had expected something grand, but it was just an experience bar next to the skill rank and skill effects differing depending on the cube chosen.  

“Isn’t that just the original function?”  

Still, he figured it was better than nothing.  

Rubix asked with a gentle tone,  

“How do you like it? Is it to your liking?”  

“Yes, well...”  

“In the future, I’m glad you like it. Then, we’ll meet again when fate calls.”  

“What? That’s it?”  

“Ah, don’t worry. I had no intention of sending you off empty-handed.”  

[You have obtained Rubix’s Growth Cube.]
  
[You have obtained 10 Rubix’s Skill Cube Fragments.]  

“No, not this kind of thing...”  

“Then farewell.”  

With Rubix’s farewell, a bright light flashed, and Levan opened his eyes in the starting village.  

~  

“Finally.”  

Back in the village, Levan let out a short sigh.  

Gaining 10 points of Strength was definitely a big benefit, but the proficiency option and cooldown were clear nerfs.  

“I think my play style is drifting further from what I initially imagined.”  

Users playing as Warlocks typically develop their characters to fit the job scenario or Epic Quest.  

But the War Mage’s job scenario was all about revenge against all mages.  

That meant his future would inevitably diverge from the vision he had when he first obtained the Legendary Reclass.  

“Sigh, can’t cancel now anyway. I’ll just raise my key stats for now.”  

Levan invested all unspent bonus stats into Strength and then checked his status window.  

“Status Window”  

*Snap!*  

[Levan]
  
[Level: 10]
  
[Deity: Rubix] 
 
[Class: War Mage] 

[Stats:  Strength: 39]

[Sensory: 9 (+5)]  

[Intelligence: 4] 
 
[Dexterity: 4] 
 
[Traits:  +10% movement speed in combat, +5% movement speed out of combat ]
 
[Remaining Stat Points: 0]  

Compared to other stats, Strength was remarkably high.  

And due to the Rabbit Foot he possessed, he enjoyed an additional effect that boosted Sensory by 5 points, making it 9 total.  

*Definitely a terrifying growth rate.*  

Levan recalled his past when he played a clumsy warrior and quietly comforted himself.  

After settling, Levan took the new Growth Cube from Rubix.  

Separate from the Epic Quest, Rubix’s Growth Cube was a growth system allowed only for Levan.  

So he had to keep clearing it steadily.  

Levan easily activated the cube again.  

[Successfully matched Rubix’s Growth Cube.] 
 
[A deity you serve proposes a small trial for your growth. Do you accept?]  

As always, he accepted without hesitation.  

[Trial accepted.] 
 
[Quest started.]  

Snap! 

[Gain Favor with Houm]  

[Rank: Special]

[Condition: Achieve 70% or higher favor with Houm, who lives in the Warrior’s village Helum, level 40 or above.]
  
[Reward: Rubix’s Growth Cube, Rubix’s Skill Cube Fragments.]  

Houm? 

Levan briefly doubted his own eyes.  

Houm was a warrior he knew well at level 40.  

That made sense since the village he switched to as a warrior was none other than Helum.  

Moreover, Houm was a well-known clumsy warrior in Helum.  

So it was impossible for Levan, also a former clumsy warrior, not to know him.  

And now he had to reach 70% favor with that Houm?  

First, fight mages, and now I have to make friends with warriors? It was hard to understand.  

But since it was a quest, what else could Levan do as a user? 

His level had just hit 10, so Levan set his next destination to Helum and moved.  

*Heh heh, in the past, I’d have walked since I had no money, but now my pocket situation is different.  

Every resurrection hub had mages who charged for teleportation to other places.  

They were called taxis.  

Users often called such level 40 warriors “taxis” or “drivers,” and even in starter villages, taxis existed.  

But since taxi fares were a burden for beginners, there was only one taxi operating in the starter village, and even that taxi was barely used.  

But Levan was an experienced user and a dark gamer who paid his living expenses through the game.  

His pockets would never be empty.  

Levan, humming ‘Konorae,’ headed to the taxi stand.  

“Excuse me, sir. I want to use the taxi.”  

The taxi stand was a small hut on one side of the plaza.  

Since there were almost no customers, there was no need to build a big structure.  

The taxi mage, who was dozing off in his chair almost like a statue, asked in a hoarse voice without removing his eye mask,  

“Where to?”  

“To Helum.”  

“Helum… That’ll cost 1 gold.”  

1 gold.  

Considering that the minimum currency unit for a Warlord was silver, and 100 silver equaled 1 gold, 1 gold was a very expensive fee for beginners.  

But for Levan, it was affordable.  

“I’ll pay. You can leave anytime.”  

“Huh? Going now?”  

The driver didn’t remove his mask and responded lazily, as if many customers were trying to check him.  

But a rare real passenger had appeared, and the man sprang up like a spring and removed his mask.  

The driver shouted happily,  

“I’ll take you to Helum with the utmost comfort and no motion sickness... hmm?”  

Despite his joyful tone, the moment the driver saw Levan’s face, his expression changed suddenly, and he said,  

No way, I’m not going.  

“What?”  

“I said I’m not going. No can do. It’s just unlucky that the rare passenger is a War Mage.”  

“What? What’s that supposed to mean?”  

“Didn’t you hear? We don’t operate taxis for War Mages. If you want to poke the village chief, go ahead.”  

At that moment, Levan remembered one fact.  

“Could it be?”  

That fact was that War Mages were hated by all other mages in the world.