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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: The Returning Golden Armor
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"No, I can't just toss it out like that."
I paused while debating whether to recycle it or not, after pulling out a trash bag and initially planning to melt it down as scrap metal.
As a staff member working at Academia, where we train Awakeners and Hunters, I knew the value of a 'Legendary' grade item all too well.
Depending on its options and power, it could change a guild's standing—not to mention, in some cases, shatter the balance between nations. It was a true balance breaker.
If one turned up, it could spark conflicts from guilds all the way to wars between countries. If I just dumped it and a massive war broke out around here as a result, my 'ordinary' daily life would be snatched away just the same.
"First things first, let's head to work."
I mulled it over until it was almost time to clock in, and since work came first, I headed out.
Of course, I didn't forget to close the box containing that damned 'Legendary' item and tuck it away in a corner.
'How the hell am I supposed to deal with this thing?'
"Team Leader, is something wrong?"
"Oh, no, nothing at all. I was just double-checking the task order to make sure nothing got mixed up."
I brushed it off with a suitable excuse to my subordinate, then continued with my duties while pondering.
The team I led was one of the maintenance crews—basically handling facility inspections and restocking supplies inside Academia, while supporting other tasks as needed.
Put nicely, that's how it was. Put bluntly, we were just SCVs.
'Hmm, selling it recklessly seems dangerous too, so discarding it might be the best option after all.'
[Team Leader Yoo Seongwon, come to the research building once you're done with your tasks.]
"Yes, got it."
Anyway, while continuing my SCV duties, I agonized over it relentlessly.
I did think about selling that damned golden armor and washing my hands of it, but that would drag me right into the mess of tracing its origin and all the ensuing chaos—with a 100% chance I'd end up dead.
Pessimistic? Maybe, but considering the value of a 'Legendary' item, it wasn't unreasonable.
'Should I just hand it over to Academia? They're government-affiliated, after all…'
What if I turned it in anonymously, like I'd just found it?
Once the government took it, no one could complain, and I'd get a modest reward plus some credit for Academia. Not a bad deal.
But there was one more problem with that.
'Damn it, that freaking SSS-grade trait skill!'
[Knight's Grace (SSS-grade Trait)]
Yeah, logically speaking, scoring a 'Legendary' gear might just seem like stumbling into some lucky opportunity, but the Association guys aren't that easy to fool.
They'd naturally conduct a thorough check on me, and the moment my SSS-grade trait came to light, I'd become a person of interest—and living 'ordinarily' would be nothing but a pipe dream.
'So the only option left is one: toss it.'
In the end, it boiled down to secretly burying it in some remote mountain or sinking it in the ocean.
Skills and traits wouldn't be exposed unless I spilled the beans myself, so I figured I'd take a half-day off today and get it done.
"A half-day off out of nowhere?"
"Yeah, something urgent came up…"
"Well, if it's urgent, no helping it."
They do say a person's usual conduct matters.
With no family or close friends, just faithfully sticking to my job, the section chief approved my half-day off without any hassle.
Right after lunch, I rushed back to my dorm, pulled that damned golden armor out of the box, split it into my suitcases, and headed out.
'You evil thing threatening the peace and safety of my life! Begone!'
I set Incheon's seaside as my destination. On the quiet bus ride during weekday daytime, I finally took a look at the SSS-grade trait skill I hadn't checked yet.
The gear would be gone once I ditched it, but this skill I'd gained after awakening couldn't just be discarded at will, so I wanted to know the precautions and activation conditions.
'Knightly honor or whatever doesn't really click with me.'
[Trait - Path of the Great Knight]
Rank: SSS
Detailed Description
The 'Path of the Great Knight' guides you to the seat of a knight who protects the world. Rewards are granted each time you uphold justice, exterminate evil, and protect the weak. Additionally, you can acquire all skills from 'Knight' class lines.
Penalty: Unable to use magic, unable to equip ranged weapons, unable to equip poison or hidden weapons.
'The merits are vague, but the drawbacks are crystal clear…?'
It didn't specify exactly what upholding justice, exterminating evil, or protecting the weak entailed— just vague rewards, making it hard to feel the benefits.
The one clear perk was being able to learn all 'Knight'-related class skills, but given the SSS rank, those rewards had to be better than they seemed.
'But no issues here. No sudden explosions or uncontrollable power surges from these conditions! No risk of incidents from my actions either!'
Since my goal was to live 'ordinarily,' I had no reason to do those things in the skill description. I figured as long as I dealt with the gear, everything would return to normal.
***
"Alright, no one around? Hup! Begone!"
After arriving at Incheon's seaside, I climbed to a deserted cliff and hurled the suitcases with that damned golden armor into the ocean.
Confirming the splash and the cases getting sucked into the depths, I grinned like a man who'd just had a nagging tooth pulled.
"Wasted a perfectly good half-day off for nothing, but let's call it venting some stress. The suitcases sting a bit, though~"
This could pass as just another minor hiccup in an 'ordinary' life.
Since I was already at the beach, I figured I'd grab a plate of sashimi. After downing some flatfish with a shot of soju at a nearby place, I headed back to my dorm.
I'd left early after lunch for a quick errand, so even after returning, it was only around 5 PM.
The early finish lifted my spirits even more. Thinking 'time to crash,' I unlocked the door—and froze in shock.
"What the? What's this?"
There, smack in the middle of my room, sat two familiar suitcases.
Startled, I rushed over without even taking off my shoes and opened them.
"Son of a…"
Sure enough.
Inside gleamed that ornate golden armor I'd meant to ditch that morning.
Twinkling like little stars, shining so beautifully. In the western sky, in the eastern sky too…
I snapped out of the mind-numbing confusion and took stock of the situation.
"Phew~ First… let's figure out how this came back. Phew~"
Yeah, freaking out wouldn't solve anything.
To deal with this nuclear bomb, I decided to check the gear's options first.
I opened my status window and selected the basic appraisal menu to view the item's details.
After nine years as Academia staff, I'd only watched other Awakener employees and students do it—doing it myself felt different, but right now, handling this thing took priority.
[(Legendary) Golden Guardian Beast Armor]
Equipment Type: Full-body Protection Armor
Options: Guardian Beast's Oath - The Guardian Beast swore to the gods. No matter where its master is, it will follow to the end and protect them. It will share its soul until death. Already fused with your soul, it shares life and death, providing various functions.
Leather Dyed in Divinity - Leather blessed with divinity gains resistance to all kinds of magic.
Aura of Purification - The sacred Guardian Beast's power emanates, preventing the user from being tainted by impurities and purifying nearby poisons and contaminants.
Beast's Power - Imbues the user with the beast's power. All stats +1 rank (2x)
"…So, they saw this coming and made it a soulbound item. And that tracking function has to be in there, right?"
I tapped the 'various functions' part to examine this Legendary item's options in detail.
Magic defense, poison and contamination purification, +1 rank to all stats, and even summoning its dedicated familiar— it was already a total cheat item, and now it had convenience features too? Ridiculous.
[Guardian Beast's Oath Additional Functions - Breath Maintenance, Temperature Regulation, Subspace Storage, Auto-Equip, Auto-Retrieve, Auto-Repair, Survival Augmentation]
"Got every convenience feature imaginable. And the auto-retrieve probably brought it back to me?"
Impressive as hell, but the moment anyone found out about it, my life was over—I was reminded of that starkly.
As insanely good as it was, there'd be more people wanting it than pebbles on the beach, putting my life in danger.
"…So in the end, I have to wear it and store it in subspace. Haah~"
Even chucking it into the ocean depths, it chased me down.
Stashing it at home risked someone finding it, or someone barging into my dorm—so the only safe option was wearing it constantly.
"How do I even equip this? Hmm… Maybe a command word like 'Equip'…!"
Shaaah!
In that instant, the armor turned to light and enveloped my body like it was being sucked in. After a brief moment, it auto-equipped itself.
A fully sealed type covering my whole body, even my face. It had weight, but no discomfort—just pure comfort.
And with summer creeping in and the heat rising, wearing it felt like an internal cooler was running; nice and cool.
'Definitely top-tier gear. But… the appearance is way too flashy.'
I checked myself in the mirror.
A brilliantly shining golden armor with a blue cape—fitting its Guardian Beast name, it had a lion-like beastly vibe, making me look far bulkier than my actual build.
"Uwaaah… Kinda cool, damn it. Snap out of it! Uwaaah! Giving something like this to me is useless anyway. Let's see, the subspace option…"
Cool as it was, I wasn't so daft as to forget reality.
Calming my rattled mind, I convinced myself that if I set my mind to it, I could handle this.
Awakened or not, as long as no one found out, it was fine. This damned armor? Just treat it like a handy new tool.
'Damn, it's exhausting me.'
Stories packed with dreams, hopes, love, and friendship suit fresh-faced teens or early-twenties types, not a guy like me.
Why the hell did this land on me? A trial? Or just to torment me?
I wanted to go back to yesterday's worry-free self, but that wasn't reality.
"…Haah~ But I can't just stay like this, right?"
Even with this stuff dumped on me, I had zero interest in becoming a Hunter or a hero.
But that didn't mean my safety would hold just by talking big.
With soulbound Legendary gear that couldn't be removed, every bastard out there would want to kill me and take it—and plenty more would come after my trait.
'If I could just hand it over, fine—but soulbound to my body and soul, without power to defend it, I'd end up a puppet on strings or a treasure goblin.'
I hated this sudden twist of fate, but there was no choice.
If I had something others coveted, I had to protect it—and to have a say, I needed power.
No time to waste; I had to move now.