Chapter 27: What you need to learn

“Ugh.”

Back at Olympic Stadium, Jo Sung-Il groaned.

“I almost died.”

[Remaining Energy: 4%]

Almost empty.
He had been close to death.

“Hectos?”

The World Tree, who had remained near the stadium, approached him with a worried expression.

“Are you dying?”
“I’m not dying.”

Not yet, anyway.

“Did you… win?”

The World Tree asked cautiously, seeing his battered state.

He nodded.
“I won.”
“Yay!”

The World Tree raised her hands in the air.

“Hooray for Hectos!”
“…That’s a strange cheer.”
“Huh? Is it?”

The World Tree tilted her head.

It was clear she wasn’t used to interacting with others.

Jo Sung-Il muttered,

“Winning is what matters.”

He had faced an unknown calamity and emerged victorious.

“I wasn’t sure if I could do it, but I managed somehow.”
“Somehow?”
“Yes, somehow.”

He chuckled dryly.

‘I should call it luck. I almost died.’

His energy was so low that his physical abilities were severely impaired.

He looked down at his unresponsive body.

Below 10% energy, his body felt heavy, like it was soaked in water.

Below 5%, his movements became sluggish, and his vision blurred.

Like a computer entering power-saving mode.

‘I need a solution.’

The energy consumption during battle was too high.

He wasn’t sure if he could defeat another being like Titan.

He was too vulnerable in a battle of attrition.

“World Tree.”
“Yeah?”
“I need energy.”

The World Tree grimaced.

“If I give it to Hectos, my tummy will rumble.”
“If you don’t, I’ll die.”
“!”

The World Tree’s eyes widened, and she placed her hand on his body.

“Mean Hectos! Bully!”
“…Where did you learn that?”

Grumbling, she shared her energy. As his energy level rose above 5% and then 10%, his condition improved.

When it reached around 20%, he gently pushed her away.

“That’s enough.”
“All done?”

The World Tree collapsed beside him, groaning.

“I’m tired.”
“You look like it.”

If it weren’t for the World Tree, he would have had to find something to eat immediately.

Hunting in his weakened state would have been difficult. He could finally relax.

‘I haven’t checked the quest yet.’

He felt a sense of connection with the system window, a subtle form of communication.

A reciprocal relationship.

“Quest window.”

[Today’s Mission 1: Obtain the title ‘Adversary’ instead of ‘Champion’ from Titan.]
[Today’s Mission 2: Learn Hibernation. ☞]

“Oh, sh*t.”
“?”

The World Tree tilted her head, hearing him curse.

“What’s ‘sh*t’?”
“…Nothing.”

Jo Sung-Il sighed, embarrassed and irritated.

‘Why didn’t it notify me earlier?’

Titan was already gone.

The first mission was now impossible.

‘It can give two missions?’

He had thought it only gave one. He would have been more careful if he had known.

‘No.’

He should have been more attentive, even with just one mission. If he wasn’t going to stay hidden, combat was inevitable.

‘I was too complacent.’

He hadn’t anticipated encountering an opponent like Titan.

He had easily overpowered everyone he had fought before.

But Titan was different. If it weren’t for his ability to inflict status conditions, especially Fear, it would have been a dangerous fight.

‘I need to be more serious.’

He couldn’t afford to be complacent if he wasn’t content with just surviving as a monster.

He had seen it with his own eyes during the battle with Titan. Countless world-devouring monsters were waiting to descend upon this world.

‘…How do I learn Hibernation?’

He noticed a finger icon next to ‘Learn Hibernation’ in the system window. He touched it, and a description appeared.

[Hibernation: A state of self-imposed inactivity to conserve energy when energy levels are low.]
[Learn Hibernation: Lie down and close your eyes. You will see a button labeled ‘Enter Hibernation.’ Select the button with your eyes. After doing this once, you can enter hibernation even while standing.]

It seemed simple enough.
He lay down, following the instructions.

“Hectos, what are you doing?”
“Learning how not to die until you come back.”
“Until I come back?”
“Yes.”

He couldn’t share energy with anyone else while hibernating.

‘I need a way to contact you.’

He needed a way to summon the World Tree from afar. He lay down.

A button labeled ‘Learn Hibernation’ appeared in his darkening vision.

Click.

He moved his eyes slightly, and a cursor appeared. He selected the button.

“!”

His body went limp, as if all his strength had been drained.

But unlike exhaustion, it felt… comfortable. He felt drowsy.

Perhaps he was actually falling asleep. It was hibernation, after all.

[Learned Hibernation.]
[Claim your reward upon waking.]

“…”

He glared at the system window for not telling him about the two missions, then consciously tried to wake up.

Crack!

His muscles relaxed, and he opened his eyes, sitting up.

‘Hibernation, not bad.’

He felt refreshed, even after such a short time.

[Reward: Seasoning.]

“Seasoning? What’s that?”

First, a palate adjustment, and now seasoning. He chuckled in disbelief.

“Is it telling me to eat and rest well?”

Thud.

As he complained, something appeared and fell from the sky. He instinctively caught it.

“It’s actually seasoning.”

It was a large container of seasoning.

Inside was a fine, white powder that looked like sugar.

“I can’t carry this around.”

He would have to leave it here. A giant monster carrying seasoning would be a ridiculous sight.

[Magic Seasoning: Seasoning your food will gradually increase your maximum energy capacity.]
[Can increase maximum energy capacity up to 100,000, assuming your current capacity is 100.]
[The increase in energy capacity varies depending on the type of food and the amount of seasoning used.]

“What?”

Jo Sung-Il stared at the system messages, stunned.

“This is essential.”

Increased energy capacity would give him an advantage in battle.

He still needed to add flair to his battles to earn bonus points and quickly fill his increased capacity, but that no longer seemed like a chore.

“I wouldn’t have gotten this even if I had earned the ‘Adversary’ title from Titan.”

Regret was pointless. It was his fault for not checking the system window properly.

[When multiple quests are given, only one offers the main reward.]

A system message, as if answering his question, appeared.

“You’re definitely not just a system.”

This time, there was no response. He chuckled.

“Anyway, good.”

He had learned one reason why he needed to become stronger.

“I need to focus on growth, like the Hunters.”

He looked at the World Tree.

“World Tree.”
“Yeah?”
“Join me.”

He didn’t want to do it alone.