With Lyn Dragos’ enthusiastic send-off, I left the room and approached the nearest door, holding up the key.
Unlike a physical key, the key to Lyn Dragos’ lair was a kind of artifact, crafted by the master of spatial magic herself.
All I had to do was insert it into any keyhole, and I’d be instantly transported to her treasure vault.
And, much like the Hermit’s Flooded Forest, this lair was also a sealed space, meaning stealing a treasure and escaping wasn’t even an option.
Not to mention, the guardian golem standing watch—Titan Mark I—was as tall as a ten-story building.
Before anyone could even think about stealing a treasure, they’d have their head crushed to dust.
Welcome, Kim Sunghoon, to Lady Dragos’ lair.
Your time limit begins immediately.
You now have 59 minutes and 52 seconds remaining.
You may choose one treasure and submit it for inspection before leaving.
With leisurely steps, I headed straight for the artifact I had already set my sights on.
For the record, Iris had already chosen the Falconwing Shoes, a flight-type artifact, from this very vault.
I had deliberately refrained from advising her during the selection process, wanting to encourage her independent decision-making.
Iris wasn’t an idiot—she was a genius, even blessed with the Talent: Insight.
If I, as an omniscient Constellation, constantly interfered in her every decision, she might one day stop thinking for herself and become fully dependent on my guidance.
In the end, the Falconwing Shoes weren’t the most valuable treasure in the lair, but they suited Iris quite well.
After all, no matter how gifted she was, she couldn’t fly yet at her current level.
“Later, once she masters aerial footwork, they’ll become kind of useless… but I can always offer them as tribute and convert them into Karma Points when the time comes.”
Already looking forward to converting a barely-used artifact into Karma, I approached Titan Mark I, holding two items—a crescent moon-shaped necklace and a long iron staff.
“Mr. Kim Sunghoon, if I may be so bold, you are currently carrying two artifacts. You are only allowed to take one artifact with you when leaving the lair.”
“Watch closely. These two artifacts were originally one.”
I removed the chain from the crescent moon-shaped necklace and, with all my might, tried to attach it to the iron staff.
However, my base strength stat was so low that even lifting the staff was a struggle, and I failed repeatedly.
With no other choice, I turned to Titan Mark I, giving him the most pitiful, desperate look—like a puppy that needed to go outside.
Sensing my silent plea, the golem used just his pinky finger to gently press the connection point.
“Click!”
The two artifacts snapped together perfectly.
“See that? This is the legendary spear once wielded by the hero known as Moonlight—the famed Moonglaive!”
“Analyzing the connection structure… Your claim appears to have merit.
However, the Crescent Amulet and the Quarterstaff were each fully functional artifacts even before being combined.
This creates some ambiguity.
I will first report the situation to Lady Dragos and—”
“Wait, wait! Just hear me out for a second. Let’s say you temporarily detach your right arm for repairs. Does that mean your right arm suddenly becomes a separate entity called Titan Mark II?”
“No. Even if temporarily detached, it remains a part of Titan Mark I and cannot be considered a separate entity.”
“Exactly! The same logic applies to Moonglaive. It was originally a single weapon, only separated due to an unfortunate accident.”
“Your reasoning is sound. Running logical verification… Calculation complete. It has been determined that you may leave with the artifact. The exit is this way.”
With graceful movements that didn’t match his massive frame, Titan Mark I escorted me to the exit.
Dragging the Moonglaive behind me, I stepped out—only to find myself not in the headmaster’s office, but in my shabby dorm room instead.
Apparently, Lyn Dragos had used spatial magic to seamlessly connect the headmaster’s office, her lair, and my dormitory room.
It didn’t seem like Lyn Dragos did this out of consideration for me.
More likely, she was just annoyed by my constant backtalk and wanted me gone as soon as possible.
“Not that I’m complaining—carrying the Moonglaive was going to be a pain, so this actually worked out for me.”
Having all F-rank talents naturally meant my spear proficiency was F-rank as well.
Even so, I chose the Moonglaive, despite struggling to lift it.
The reason was simple:The Moonglaive was one of the quest items that allowed even someone without talent to form a Heroic Spirit contract.
Or rather, to be precise, having no talent actually made the quest easier.
The quest required a Stigma-bearing individual to practice thrusting techniques with the Moonglaive a specific number of times.
For an F-rank spear user, only 10 repetitions were required.
For an E-rank, it was 100.
And so on—the higher the talent, the more repetitions needed.
This was because the Heroic Spirit of the Moonglaive, Moonlight Duren, had been born a serf and never received any proper training, constantly scorned for his lack of talent.
That backstory led to this quirky quest mechanic, which was basically a jackpot for someone like me.
Still, even 10 repetitions weren’t something I could just casually do in my dorm room.
If I swung the Moonglaive around carelessly and sliced my only mattress in half, it would be a disaster.
So, I decided to head outside.
“Huh? What’s this?”
As I was leaving, I noticed a piece of paper sticking out from under my door—just like the notification I had received before the school trip.
For a moment, I panicked, thinking it might be a medical bill for my recent injuries.
But thankfully, it was just a Summer Martial Arts Tournament participation notice.
Held once every season, the Martial Arts Tournament was a mandatory event, much like the school trip.
Students in fields like alchemy or crafting could opt out by presenting their own potions or artifacts at an exhibition instead.
But since I wasn’t in either of those categories, I had no choice but to enter the tournament as a warm body to fill the roster.
And during the Spring Martial Arts Tournament, where Iris took first place, I had immediately forfeited at the start, getting eliminated from the preliminaries in just one second.
I had been booed relentlessly, but compared to the nightmare that was the school trip, it was nothing.
I planned to do the same thing this time.
However, there was one key difference between the Summer and Spring Martial Arts Tournaments:As the previous Junior Division champion, Iris had earned a seed and could now participate in the Senior Division.
“Well… it’s about time Iris experienced a harsh defeat at least once.”
She had indeed accomplished the impressive feat of defeating a Grade-2 Devil Doll, the Human Faced Fish, all on her own.
But against the Senior Division students?
Even getting one win would be a struggle.
The upperclassmen, already familiar with wielding the power of their Celestial Patrons, were on a whole different level.
Moreover, they didn’t just attend classes at the academy—they frequently fought Devil Dolls in real battles across different dimensions, making them even tougher opponents.
Still, I had my own problems to deal with.
I gritted my teeth and hoisted the Moonglaive, extending it forward with great difficulty.
Rather than a proper spear thrust, it looked more like I was ringing a temple bell with a wooden log.
Even one attempt was exhausting, forcing me to rest after every strike.
After repeating this stab-and-rest cycle ten times, cracks began forming on the Moonglaive’s surface.
The fractures spread outward, distorting the entire surrounding environment until my view of the world itself was completely overturned.
CLINK!
“A lack of talent doesn’t mean you can’t become a great spearman.”
“I, Moonlight Duren, am living proof of that.”
“So, which one of you seeks to learn my secrets? That young man over there? Or that lovely young lady?”
“A… a young lady? Who are you talking about…?”
Turning my head, I saw none other than Baekya, playing a game of self-Go on a paper board.
With long hair and an androgynous charm, and his fan covering his mouth and throat, it wasn’t surprising that Duren mistook him for a woman.
But more importantly—if Baekya was visible, that meant this place was the inner world within my Stigma.
Was this really how the Moonglaive quest was supposed to work?
Well, regardless, Duren had the tall and gallant image of a true Heroic Spirit, so I respectfully bowed my head and spoke.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Kim Sunghoon, and I wish to form a contract with you, Sir Duren.
As for the person over there, that’s Baekya, who formed a Heroic Spirit contract even before you.
And just to clarify—he’s not a woman, but a man.”
“Wh-What?! The most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen on a lady belong to a man?!
No, it’s a lie! A trick! You’re just saying that because you’re afraid I’ll flirt with him, aren’t you?!”
“Hahaha. So, an interesting new companion has entered this world within the Stigma.
I was starting to feel a bit lonely in this vast space, so this is quite the welcome change.
But… seeing as you’re trying to form a contract with a new Heroic Spirit, does that mean… you think I’m not good enough?”