Bursting out of the small hut, Hokuto froze as his expression stiffened—the thick, roiling smoke around him had nearly swallowed up his vision. For a moment, he was stunned. At first, he had thought the mine had exploded, but from the looks of it… someone had set the entire mountain ablaze!?
After a moment's thought, Hokuto quickly darted back into the hut and grabbed a soaked towel. The smoke was far too heavy—if he charged blindly into it, he feared he'd suffocate long before he managed to make it off the mountain.
Pressing the wet cloth over his mouth and nose, Hokuto wasted no more time on hesitation and sprinted downhill as fast as his legs could carry him.
Thanks to the thick smoke shielding him from sight, Hokuto managed to rush down without encountering a single overseer along the way.
Could it be they've all gone to fight the fire?
He wasn't sure, but it didn't matter—his mood grew lighter with each step, his pace quickening. Choosing the simplest option had once again proven to be right. Finally, he was about to escape this cursed place.
Yet, just as Hokuto passed through the last unguarded checkpoint and neared the foot of the mountain, a burly man with a massive blade slung over his shoulder suddenly appeared before him.
The man blinked, startled, then roared:"Damn cur! You're trying to escape!?"
I'm finished!
Faced with the gleaming edge of that blade, Hokuto didn't even know how to dodge. He simply crouched down, clutching his head in despair, convinced his end had come.
One second… two seconds… three seconds passed.
Cursing the damned system in his heart for setting him up to die, Hokuto slowly realized… he hadn't been cut down?
Swallowing hard, he mustered the courage to glance upward—and found the burly man standing stiffly, a gaping hole in his chest. After coughing up several mouthfuls of blood, the man's eyes rolled back and he collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
He… he's dead!?
Corpses no longer fazed Hokuto; two months in the mine had shown him far too many deaths, most far uglier than this one.
What shocked him was how a healthy brute could just… drop dead on the spot.
"Young brother, are you all right?"
A hand suddenly clapped down on his shoulder. Hokuto nearly fell backward in fright.
"Wh-who!?" he shouted, spinning around.
Behind him stood a man in flowing white robes, smiling gently. His long, glossy black hair cascaded down his back; his angled brows arched sharply above piercing black eyes. His lips were thin and composed, his features finely chiseled, his tall frame lean but not rugged. His entire presence radiated a righteous heroism.
At that moment, three familiar glowing options materialized before Hokuto's eyes:
Option 1: Shout, "Don't come any closer!"Reward: Flame Dragon Chant (Yellow Rank, Superior Grade)
Option 2: Turn and keep running down the mountain.Reward: Thirteen-Linked Chain Spear (Yellow Rank, Inferior Grade)
Option 3: Cry out, "Hero, save me!"Reward: +1 Random Basic Skill Point
Hokuto didn't hesitate. He instantly chose the third option and, with all the pitiful emotion he could muster, cried:"Great hero… save me!"
His smoke-reddened eyes, streaked with ash-stained tears, made him look heartbreakingly wretched.
The white-robed man blinked in surprise. After all, he had just slain a man in front of Hokuto. Normally, those he rescued would recoil in terror, stammering, "Don't kill me, don't kill me!" as they backed away in fear.
That was why he'd deliberately worn a reassuring smile—to avoid frightening the boy. But it seemed this youth's courage was far greater than he'd expected.
"Very well. I'll take you down the mountain now."
Without further ado, the white-robed man lifted Hokuto onto his shoulder and carried him swiftly downhill.
Later, after Hokuto had been settled somewhere safe, the truth was explained to him.
His savior's name was Roku Hakki, a disciple of the Kishin Sect. He had brought several junior disciples down the mountain to undertake a trial mission: the eradication of the black-market mine hidden on Mount Ryōmu.
However, his juniors had been arrogant, dismissing the miners as mere mortals. Without informing him—the one entrusted with leadership—they had stormed Ryōmu Peak on their own. Once discovered by the overseers, the guards immediately activated the Guardian Array, engulfing the entire mountain in flames.
According to Roku Hakki, this Guardian Array was particularly sinister. Its purpose was not to defend against intruders, but to burn away all traces of the mine's existence in one sweeping inferno, ensuring that no evidence remained for outsiders to investigate.
Hokuto shivered at the thought. If he had chosen to remain in the hut or gone to help fight the flames, he would already be charred to a crisp.
By always choosing the simplest options, Hokuto had once again stumbled into survival. Through Roku Hakki's recommendation, he was accepted into the Kishin Sect, finally gaining a place to call home.
Drawing his thoughts back to the present, Hokuto sighed softly."If not for Senior Brother Roku back then, I would have died on Mount Ryōmu long ago."
Roku Hakki smiled and shook his head."It was wrong of me to dredge up unpleasant memories. I'll punish myself with a cup."
Lifting his cup of Winter Spring Wine, he drained it in one gulp.
Hokuto hurriedly picked up the cloth-wrapped bundle before him."Senior Brother, this is far too generous of you."
"Still being so polite with me? Shall I punish you with a drink as well?"
"Yes, yes, I deserve it." Hokuto laughed, raising his own cup and downing it.
"Go on, open it. See if you like it."
"Since it's from you, of course I'll like it," Hokuto said, unwrapping the bundle. Inside was a bronze mirror with a raised, rounded center.
"This is… a Heart-Guard Mirror!?" Hokuto exclaimed in delight.
"Yes, though the quality isn't the highest—it's just a Superior Grade piece. Use it for now. Next time I visit the Roku estate, I'll try to get you an even better one."
"Senior Brother, you're too kind. Even a Superior Heart-Guard Mirror is already more than I could hope for. I almost feel guilty accepting it."
It was only after joining the Kishin Sect that Hokuto had finally understood why his earlier rewards—martial skills and weapons of Yellow Rank—had always seemed impossibly hard to obtain.
In this world known as the Genryū Continent, treasures were ranked by four exalted tiers: Earth, Heaven, Mysterious, and Yellow. A Yellow Rank artifact was already imbued with spiritual power—something ordinary people couldn't even dream of, and which smaller sects might revere as their most sacred heirloom.
Learning this had once made Hokuto want to throttle his so-called "System" and demand what grudge it bore against him—why it insisted on pushing him toward certain death.
After all, items of Earth, Heaven, Mysterious, or Yellow rank were far beyond reach. Even the disciples of great sects could rarely hope to wield such treasures.
Below these exalted ranks, however, artisans crafted weapons and armor with their own grading: Common, Fine, Superior, Exquisite, and Perfect. A Superior Grade item was already a remarkable gift. Among sect disciples, gifting such a piece was a sign of extraordinary generosity.
"Don't say that," Roku Hakki replied. "The truth is, this Heart-Guard Mirror is also my way of thanking you. That bottle of Fragrant Elixir you gave me last time was extraordinary. Did you really refine it yourself?"
"Yes," Hokuto admitted without hesitation.
"Then you are truly gifted. If you'd like, I could recommend you to the Herbal Pavilion. Since you have little interest in martial cultivation, perhaps you could excel in alchemy. In time, you might even rise above me in status."