Trait Hoarder

Stockholm Grand Palace — Part 3

“Alright.”

“We just need to summon Frigg.”

Both Sigmund and Hjordis agreed.

The two of them were Level 5.

Honestly, it would have been impossible for them to accomplish much on the Vigrid Plains anyway.

I had no doubt that most of the work would fall on me.

We immediately set off for the Vigrid Plains.

The two had also brought their own flying car.

[It will take approximately one hour to reach the Vigrid Plains]

The magical spirit informed me.

[Internet searches indicate that many pilgrims are already on their way.]

“Because of Skidbladnir?”

Ugh, that name’s such a mouthful.

Once it’s mine, I’ll have to consider renaming it.

[Yes. Several deaths have already been reported.]

“Tsk…”

Soon enough, the Vigrid Plains came into view.

The Twilight of the Norse Gods.

The land where Ragnarok had taken place.

Even now, eternal snowflakes fell lightly over the battlefield.

The memories of Ragnarok were still replaying, an endless loop of its catastrophic events.

It was truly an eternal warzone.

[We have arrived.]

The frozen ground stretched out before me.

The weather was surprisingly clear.

In the sky, mana auroras danced, while mana-infused sleet fell, freezing any superhumans it touched.

On the ground, fierce battles were underway.

“Waaaah!”

Warriors charged forward, screaming.

“Die!”

Mages unleashed spells in dazzling displays of light.

“Oh, gods!”

Priests offered fervent prayers.

But none of them were living beings.

They were ghosts—or rather, memories—pale and translucent.

That didn’t make them any less dangerous.

Whether alive or dead, they were all still superhumans of Level 5 or higher.

“Let’s get down.”

I parked the Red Cougar at the outskirts of the plains.

Sigmund and Hjordis followed suit, exiting their vehicles.

Around us, groups of superhumans had gathered in small clusters.

Most of them were just observing, hesitant to act.

After all, Skidbladnir was nowhere to be seen on the battlefield yet.

“What now?”

“Not sure…”

There wasn’t much to do at the moment.

While waiting, I opened my golf bag and pulled out a magic cauldron, cooking tools, and alchemy equipment.

I began preparing food and brewing potions.

The fragrant aroma caught the attention of some Nordics nearby, who sniffed the air eagerly.

A few of them even had the nerve to approach and ask for some, but I turned them all away.

Why would I hand out doping items to my competitors?

“Eat up. You need a full stomach to fight properly.”

“Ah, that’s true. Should we have some mead too?”

“Maybe just a little… Actually, hand it over.”

I mixed a potion of courage into the mead.

This would speed up its effects.

If only I had a brewing trait, it would’ve been even better.

We passed the time eating and drinking.

By the time I had finished preparing all the necessary potions, the moment we’d been waiting for arrived.

“Skidbladnir!”

“What? Where?”

“There! It’s over there, at the center of the battlefield!”

Sure enough, it was.

A magical ship reminiscent of an aircraft carrier, far larger than even the Nimitz-class, floated in the air.

The ship’s golden hull glimmered, radiating an overwhelming presence.

Its sheer size was enough to inspire awe.

To exaggerate just a little, its shadow covered the entire battlefield.

The gathered superhumans collectively gasped, their mouths hanging open.

One of the quicker superhumans immediately climbed into their flying car.

“Skidbladnir is mine!”

Swish!

The flying car shot into the sky like a bird.

“Oh no, you don’t!”

“It’s mine! Get out of the way!”

“Back off!”

More flying cars followed, speeding after the first one.

Sigmund anxiously looked at me.

“Shouldn’t we chase after it too?”

“Wait and watch.”

In the game, Skidbladnir was only obtainable through paid gacha pulls.

There was no way to acquire it through free content.

However, there was a scene in Episode 4, during the Evil Dragon raid, where Skidbladnir made an appearance.

From what I remembered…

Wooooom!

A massive magical barrier suddenly unfolded.

Invisible waves of mana swept over the flying cars.

It was none other than a slowing field.

The flying cars’ speeds dropped to less than one-third.

Then came the mana projectiles, raining down like a storm.

Shwoo! Shwshwshwoo!

The barrage was incredibly precise.

It was hard to believe they weren’t being aimed manually.

Several flying cars were shot down and plummeted to the ground.

The thunderous crashes and the eerie sound of tearing air hammered into my ears.

Unable to endure, the remaining flying cars tried to retreat.

But it was too late.

Magical arrows pierced through the air, striking the fleeing vehicles.

Some managed to dodge, but others weren’t so lucky and were hit.

Even though the pilots of the flying cars were superhumans, the firepower of Skidbladnir was beyond comprehension.

Its power, precision, and range were all absurd.

Sigmund let out a shaky breath, his hand on his chest.

“That was close. What is that thing? Is there a pirate captain aboard or something?”

“Something like that.”

The captain of Skidbladnir.

It’s likely the same as in the game.

Although it was never featured as a raid boss, its stats had been revealed through datamining.

[Axe Expert] [Lightning Slash] [Bellow]

[Command] [Orders] [Designation]

A warrior and commander.

It marks its targets with [Designation], then uses [Command] and [Orders] to enhance its subordinates’ attacks.

Once you board the ship, it’s a straightforward fight—but getting to that point is the challenge.

I calmly analyzed the range of the magical barrier, the trajectory of the mana projectiles, and the speed of the magical arrows.

‘I can do this.’

Thanks to the Red Cougar, that is.

If I had a standard flying car, it would’ve been impossible.

In the game, you’d have needed to find Heimdall’s memory and use a fragment of Bifrost to board Skidbladnir.

“Sigmund.”

“Yeah?”

“I’ll charge in first. Watch carefully and follow after I board. Don’t come too early.”

“What? You’re going alone?”

“That’s too dangerous!”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Let’s go together!”

“You can’t keep up with me. Don’t you see my ride?”

Even among flying cars, there were different tiers.

Sigmund glanced at the Red Cougar and swallowed hard.

Then, after a moment of hesitation, he shook his head and sighed.

“Charging in just because you have a good car is reckless.”

“It’s not about trusting the car. It’s about trusting me.”

“Haa… Fine. You’ve gained two levels in just a few months since inheriting the cultivation technique, so I guess you can pull it off. But still, be careful.”

I climbed into the Red Cougar.

Vroooom!

The magical spirit roared to life, making the engine growl as though it were welcoming the chaos ahead.

[Finally, it’s my time to shine!]

“Yeah, let’s go all out.”

I swapped out my traits.

[Driving] [Riding] [Focus]

[Bright Eyes] [Sixth Sense] [Empathic Vision]

I felt a shiver run down my entire body, the fine hairs standing on end.

Here I was, in a sports car, charging headlong toward an aircraft carrier.

Was this how Don Quixote felt?

What went through his mind as he charged at windmills on his scrawny steed?

Swish!

The boosters roared, and the Red Cougar shot forward aggressively.

From a distance, I could hear the jeering voices of the superhumans who had narrowly escaped.

“What’s with that guy?”

“He’s charging in alone?”

“Hah, he’s going to eat a mana shell and get shot down.”

“What a waste. That car looks expensive.”

“He’s gonna regret that.”

Well, we’ll see who ends up regretting this.

Before long, the mana auroras were almost within my reach.

Wooooom.

The Prophet’s Ring vibrated as if to warn me.

I could see it now—mana waves rippling, shifting, and forming into the magical barrier.

It was taking shape, solidifying.

Hoo.

I took a short, deep breath and stomped on the accelerator like I intended to break it.

Boom!

Rapid acceleration.

No, it was more like a controlled freefall.

I shoved the control stick forward, sending the Red Cougar diving toward the ground like a mad beast.

Exactly 33 degrees.

I skimmed just outside the boundary of the magical barrier, barely brushing past it, closing in on Skidbladnir from below.

Shushushushushung!

The mana projectiles rained down, as if they had been waiting for me.

This wasn’t just a barrage—it was a monsoon.

A torrential downpour that pounded the ground relentlessly.

My grip on the controls tightened.

[Bright Eyes], [Golden Eyes], [Sixth Sense], and the Prophet’s Ring all activated to their limits.

I could see it—the trajectories of the countless crimson beams falling like rain.

And in between, a faint thread of a path.

A narrow passageway, barely there.

It wasn’t even a zigzag; it was more like a hairline thread.

A bottleneck. A tightrope.

It looked impossible to traverse with the Red Cougar, with any flying car, or any vehicle for that matter.

It was too narrow, too complex, too unpredictable.

But I kept going.

“Haaaap!”

I let out a battle cry, my hands steering furiously.

My head felt like it was burning.

I pushed my traits to their limits, pouring mana into the Red Cougar.

Swish!

I felt the wind rush past me, as if I were feeling the air on my skin.

By this point, I was no longer just driving the Red Cougar—I had become the Red Cougar.

The engine was my heart, and the boosters were my legs.

I could feel it.

The mana circuits acting as my nervous system.

And I could feel it.

The intricate magical formations etched into every part of the car, like capillaries running through my body.

Popopopop!

The Red Cougar blinked forward like a teleporting phantom.

Then, the impossible happened.

Defying all physical laws, the car twisted and changed directions mid-air.

Once, twice, three times. No, more than that.

It must have been dozens of times.

It moved as though it had no mass, as if it were nothing but a cluster of mana, or a bolt of lightning.

In an instant, I traced the path I had seen with my own eyes.

[Incredible, Master!]

The magical spirit cheered.

My head burned.

My mana boiled to its peak.

Overwhelmed by an intense euphoria, I instinctively twisted the controls again.

Swish!

A magical arrow narrowly scraped past me.

The danger was gone.

Skidbladnir loomed right in front of me.

“Hah… Hah…”

My breathing was ragged.

My heart pounded uncontrollably.

Did I really just do that?

I had believed I could do it, and I had committed to the attempt, but even I was amazed at what I had pulled off.

[That was amazing! Master, let’s do it again! Please, just one more time!]

The magical spirit’s excitement was palpable, its voice buzzing with glee.

“There’s no time.”

I cut it off coldly.

Pulling off that feat again wouldn’t be hard.

[Unity] and [Piloting].

I had just acquired these two traits.

But if I wasted time here, the other superhumans would lose their minds and chase after me.

That couldn’t happen.

Skidbladnir was mine.

“I’m going in!”

I kicked open the door and leapt out with all my might.

The wide deck greeted me.

The ancient memories, now taking human form, turned their eyes toward me.

Among them, the warriors raised their axes.

Some aimed their bows.

“$%&@#%!”

The captain in golden armor shouted commands.

I could feel their magical gazes locking onto me.

Their attacks, enhanced by [Command] and [Orders], came down like a storm.

Swish! Shwsh! Boom!

Any ordinary superhuman would have been turned into Swiss cheese by this concentrated barrage.

But I wasn’t an ordinary superhuman.

[Iron Skin] [Mana Soul] [Mana Shield]

[Divine Power] [Divine Relic] [Empathic Vision]

I spread a milky white shield before me, like a true paladin.

Aegis flared to its maximum output.

A divine shield thickly blocked my front.

Axes, arrows, magic—all of it was deflected.

Even after dozens of attacks struck it, the divine shield remained intact.

“$%&#@!$&!”

The ancient Nordic tongue was incomprehensible, but the emotions behind it were clear: panic.

Their faces twisted in frustration.

Boom!

I leapt into the air, reversing my direction, diving toward the deck like a thunderbolt.

It wasn’t just a jump.

After a brief double-jump midair, I charged downward with explosive force!

BOOM!

A deafening crash echoed as I hit the deck like a bomb.

[Mana Soul] [Mana Explosion] [Grand Assault]

[Divine Power] [Divine Relic] [Empathic Vision]

In my right hand, I gripped Mjolnir.

The lightning and explosions engulfed the memories crowding the deck.

KRA-KOOM!

Thunder roared, and mana erupted in a fiery explosion.

The warriors raised their shields, but it was useless.

They were electrocuted, tossed into the air like leaves in a storm.

They looked like bowling pins struck by a ball.

“%$&@#%!”

“!@!@^^&(%@!”

The more experienced warriors shouted in fury.

The Level 7 captain and the Level 6 elite warriors remained standing.

Their furious roars grated on my ears, grating my nerves.

You think you’re the only ones who can shout?

I can shout too!

“Shut up!”

I bellowed with all the strength in my lungs.

I packed mana into my voice, pressing it down tightly.

I even used Mana Explosion to amplify it.

It was a copy of what the captain and elite warriors had done earlier.

Unexpectedly, my throat felt clearer, and a thunderous wave reverberated outward.

The memories flinched.

And as a bonus, their morale visibly wavered.

It was the effect of the [Bellow] trait.

How convenient.

That made it the third trait I’d acquired today.

With Skidbladnir practically offering itself to me, these memories were nothing short of a giving tree.

If that’s the case…

I should face them with my best efforts.

I went all out.

Just like when I fought the former Division Commander in the secret Forbidden Zone on Baekma Hill.

I utilized every trait I had.

I unleashed Sword Qi, hurled Mjolnir, slammed them with Aegis, and riddled them with bullets.

Hundreds of memories surrounded me?

It didn’t matter.

[One-Man Army]

Against this trait—and the [Massacre] embedded within it—sheer numbers were meaningless.

In fact, it worked to my advantage.

Every enemy I killed restored my stamina.

“Graaah!”

The captain roared, his bloodshot eyes filled with rage.

So what?

His roar might have been meant to weaken my stats, but it was useless.

[One-Man Army] included [Unmatched], a trait that strengthened me against high-level enemies.

Naturally, it also provided resistance to debuffs.

“I said, SHUT UP!”

I shouted again, veins popping in my neck.

It didn’t take long.

Fifteen minutes, maybe, since I started the assault?

The battle ended shortly after.

Standing on the wide deck, there was only one person left.@@novelbin@@

Me.

Warrior Kim.

The only one.

Everything else had vanished, leaving behind nothing but mana dust.

All that remained were scattered spoils of war.

“Monster…”

The captain muttered, staring at me.

His torso was crushed, and his limbs had been severed.

A monster?

Well, that wasn’t entirely wrong.

Even I thought I was something of a super-monster.

I had just taken down one Level 7, five Level 6s, and a hundred Level 5s all by myself.

Sure, it was made easier thanks to Divine Power, and most of them were below R-grade, but still, this was beyond the realm of common sense.

‘Am I getting too strong?’

Every time I drank a reconstruction elixir, I felt an explosive surge in power.

Though honestly, it had to be this way.

I worked my ass off to gather the materials for those elixirs.

I raised the Black Tiger Sword high and brought it down.

“Farewell.”

With that, the deck was cleared.

A few remaining minor memories lingered, but cleaning them up was only a matter of time.

Now, Skidbladnir was mine.

Mine to do with as I pleased.

‘Huh?’

Where the captain had fallen, something shiny caught my eye.

I picked it up to examine it—it was a magical ring.

An artifact imbued with the [Acceleration] trait, though to me, it was essentially a junk item.

‘What a lucky find.’

Still, it wasn’t a bad thing.

I could extract the [Acceleration] trait with Diamonds if needed.

It was also a material for the Lightning Slash trait, making it doubly useful.

“Hah…”

“Is… is this even possible?”

“A dragon disguised as a man, that’s for sure!”

“Oh, Odin above!”

A crowd of superhumans had gathered on the deck.

I spotted Sigmund and Hjordis among them, as well as the very superhumans who had mocked me earlier.

All of them were staring at me with a mix of awe and unease, itching to rush toward Skidbladnir’s bridge but hesitating.

As if I’d let them.

I stomped the deck with a loud thud, calling Sigmund and Hjordis to my side.

Then, I turned to the other superhumans and declared:

“Get lost. All of you.”

–TL Notes–

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