Arena

Chapter 93 – What Happened When I Got Back (Part 1)

In the time left in the Arena, I made the flames of life and spent the time leisurely playing the violin.

I sent the two flames of life to the Maple Tree Village and the Thuja Tree Village. Because of it, the two trees were growing well and all those in the villages were happy.

When I surpassed the Suzuki violin book 6, my skill level increased by a level.

-Reflex (synthesis skill): Knowing how to move your body

*Intermediate level 3: Obtain godlike athletic and reflex abilities

When my level increased by just one, my violin playing skills suddenly greatly increased as well.

With my violin playing improving smoothly every single day, my elf audience grew too.

And when the exam time period was nearly up, another happy result happened.

-Spirit summons (main skill): summon spirits and obtain the power of nature.

*Spirits that can be summoned: Sylph, Kasa

*Entry level 7: summons time 3 hours 30 minutes

I spent my time in the Tree of Life so the spirit summons increased again!

‘This time, I barely raised it one in a whole year.’

I don’t know how many years it will take to raise it to the next level.

It seems impossible now to increase the spirit summons level for free by using the Tree of Life.

That’s because I don’t think the next, the 7th exam, will be one where I can leisurely spend years with the elves.

‘It might be that in the next exam, I will have to say goodbye to the elves.’

Looking at the flow of the exams thus far, in context, the next exam will have to do with those dark magicians, I’m sure of it.

‘Did he say his name was John Omento?’

He was a part of an organization.

Thus, an unknown and suspicious group was planning nefarious things.

Thankfully, I met John Omento the necromancer, so I can use the guider skill to point me in the direction that I need to go in.

‘If I had my way, I would want to just stay here but that can’t be helped.’

As the exam time end neared, I felt sadness.

***

-Name: Kim Hyun-ho

-Class: 16

-Karma: 0

Mission: protect the elves on Brown Mountain (Achieved)

-Time limit: 31 seconds

Pat!

When the time limit was up, the exam door appeared before me.

‘It’s finally over!’

I need to hurry home and first, see Min-jeong. With this sprightly body I have starved 12 months!

I quickly entered the exam door and the baby angel greeted me.

“You aren’t going to blow your horn today?”

“I don’t have a hobby of greeting men in heat with a horn.”

“Smart. Well, I guess I should check the results first. Summon board.”

-Name: Kim Hyun-ho

-Class: 21

-Karma: +5,100

-Mission: rest until the next exam

-Time limit: 100 days

For a second, I grew suspicious of my own eyes.

“Hey, is this right? It’s not an error is it?”

“If we are talking about errors, your role is an error.”

“Wow-! Nice!!”

I raised both arms and rejoiced.

Look at that frightful amount of karma! Look at how the class leaped from a 16 to a 21!

This is how much I achieved in my 6th exam!

This exam too, I didn’t do much and it made me wonder if this prize is okay.

“You were told to protect the elves but you practically revived them. You made 3 more elf villages as well, that was some good thinking.”

“I am so good.”

“You formed an alliance with the count of Wolfenbrooke and annihilated the Silver clan and eliminated future trouble. Looking at all those achievements, it would have been okay to even get more than this.”

“Then give me more.”

I said unashamedly.

“Wow, you are so shameless. But did I not say? That how hard you work also plays into the grade.”

“Are you saying I didn’t work hard?”

“Well, then, did you?”

“…… that depends.”

“Don’t lie. And you did raise your spirit summons and gained other benefits so be happy with that. Honestly, even for an examinee like Odin, getting that much karma after clearing an exam is hard.”

“Really?”

“Now now, if you’re all done with your business here, go on back. Facing a man in heat, I feel like I’m gonna to get pregnant.”

“Why don’t you make such bad jokes after you take that wee bundegi off?”

I walked out through the exam door that appeared in thin air.

***

11 am.

I woke up in the hotel room I stayed in the night of the exam.

I checked my smartphone and there were two texts.

[Cutie wife <3: It’s a good morning here~! Have a good day at work!]

[Cutie wife <3: Wahh…… no reply ;( Is it cuz you’re on the plane? ?? ]

Min-jeong thinks I have gone abroad on a business trip and won’t be back until this morning.

I should reply now.

[Me: I just arrived at Incheon Airport. I miss you.]

She should be at work now but the reply comes in a few seconds.

[Cutie wife <3: me too ??]

[Me: How dare a new employee use her phone at work? You aren’t working are you.]

[Cutie wife <3: ?? Hmph, I’m just taking a quick break.]

[Me: ok work hard.]

[Cutie wife <3: you aren’t going to say I should just quit?]

Here she starts again.

I send her an appropriate response.

[Me: ??]

[Cutie wife <3: ??Hmph!!]

[Me: I love you too.]

[Cutie wife <3: Well, I don’t like you!]

[Me: And I said I love you too.]

[Cutie wife <3: hahahaha]

[Me: hahahaha]

Ah, sending texts like this, I could feel myself calming down.

[Cutie wife <3: Btw oppa, I’m going to be late today.]

[Me: ……]

[Cutie wife <3: some friends I met from cooking school, we’re meeting up. You want to come to?]

I let out a deep sigh.

[Me: I’m tired so I can’t. Have fun.]

[Cutie wife <3: I’m so sorry! But when I get home ? okay? ? <3]

[Me: If you come home past 10, I’ll be upset.]

[Cutie wife <3: aww, until 11, okay?]

[Me: do what you want.]

[Cutie wife <3: wahhhh ?? ]

Min-jeong sent all kinds of emoticons and was being cute. I think maybe, I’ll forgive her, when.

[Cutie wife <3: I’ll grant one wish, whatever you want.]

[Me: Anything?]

[Cutie wife <3: Yes, anything <3]

[Me: okay, remember you said anything, okay?]

[Cutie wife <3: okay ??]

My peeved-ness dissipates easily.

[Me: go and have lots of fun. No, want me to pick you up when you’re done?]

[Cutie wife <3: You suddenly changed! What are you going to have me do -_-]

[Me: It’s nothing really, it’s just that it has come time to show off my amazing prowess.]

[Cutie wife <3: hahahaha that again hahaha]

I whistled while I checked out the hotel and left. My exam grades and other things, this day is going great.

When I have returned home, I focus on how I was going to use the karma prize.

“Show me all my skills.”

-Now showing all skills that examinee Kim Hyun-ho has acquired.

-Main skill: spirit summons (entry level 7).

-Assist skill: physical strength buff (intermediate level 5), guider (entry level 1), and teleport (entry level 4).

-Special skill: skill synthesis

-Synthesis skill: Divine Protection of the Wind (entry level 5), Divine Protection of Fire (entry level 1), reflex (intermediate level 3), flame of life (intermediate level 2), transmission (entry level 1), space bag (entry level 4), shooting (entry level 1).

-Remaining karma: +5,100

“How much do I need to raise my spirit summons to intermediate level 1?”

I focused on spirit summons, which I realized was very important this past time.

At my question, the board began to move its letters.

-Spirit summons (main skill) to raise to intermediate level 1 showing the karma needed.

-Spirit summons (main skill) summon an intermediate spirit and possess the power of nature, absorb the energy of the surrounding nature into the body.

-Summonable spirits: Sylph, Kasa

-Intermediate level 1: summons time 5 hours

-Raising to intermediate level 1 will use 5,100 karma

-Remaining karma: +5,100

‘This thing is a ghost.’

How does it know I have 5,100 karma!

As expected of a main skill, raising it to intermediate level 1 would use a large sum of karma.

But it does seem to be worth it as well.

Even without summoning a spirit, it is because I could use the energy of nature from my body.

‘This completely explains how Derrick is able to run faster than me.’

This also makes it clear how losing a Tree of Life makes the elves weaker.

A body that grows strong with the power of nature.

That specialty of the elves, if I can get an intermediate spirit summons, I can do it too.

The effect I gained would not be just that.

Divine Protection of the Wind.

Divine Protection of Fire.

These two skills also receive strength from the spirit summons. If the spirit summons goes to intermediate level 1, the strength of those two skills will also increase.

‘What about raising my reflex skill?’

From this past 6th exam, I practiced the violin all year long and the reflex skill barely went up by one.

I think it will continue to be near impossible to raise the reflex skill through training alone.

‘Ah, this is a dilemma!’

I grabbed my head and thought and thought, and the skills I want to raise are more than just a few.

But it was impossible to satisfy my greed.

I made a decision.

“I will raise my spirit summons to intermediate level 1!”

I was now, already, a 6th turn examinee. I was looking ahead to the 7th exam.

Having already butt heads with the suspicious dark magic organization, the best tactic to be used when fighting them would be the spirit summons.

‘Because dark magic and the power of nature are opposites.’

Last time, while fighting the skinny middle aged necromancer John Omento, I realized this.

-Raising spirit summons (main skill) to intermediate level 1 with 5,100 karma.

Pat!

The light coming from the board washed over my body.

-Remaining karma: 0

“Whew.”

Seeing the remaining karma go to 0 made me sigh.

This was the feeling of sadness of a worker that lived paycheck to paycheck seeing his money just pass through his bank account.

Anyway, when the spirit summons raised to intermediate level, something changed inside my body too.

I could feel a strange energy flowing through my body.

‘Is this the power of nature?’

It was warm and felt good and I got the sense it is a good energy.

Because I did not choose aura control as my main skill, my body was still currently at the physical strength buff intermediate level 5, but I can become better with the power of nature.

‘An advanced spirit summons, when compared to Odin’s aura master, won’t lose!’

Derrick showed that to me.

He joined himself with an advanced spirit and had the abilities of a powerful spirit!

At that level, even if my body lagged behind, there was plenty of potential to surpass that limit.

‘I should research more ways to use the shooting and spirit summons together.’

I planned on thinking it over carefully for a while. Since this rest period is 100 days.

[Cutie wife <3: Oh, I made some kimchi jjigae at home.]

After I received the message, I became very hungry.

The elves didn’t eat meat so I too, for 1 year, had to be vegetarian.

‘I hope it has lots of meat in it.’

I looked at the kimchi jjigae left on the gas stovetop.

Inside, the jjigae was half kimchi, half pork.

[Me: Is this a kimchi jjigae or a pork jjigae?]*

(TN: Jjigae translates to stew)

[Cutie wife <3: And that upsets you?]

[Me: You’re incredible.]

[Cutie wife <3: haha]

I took out a mountain sized heap of brown rice from the rice pot and ate it with the kimchi jjigae like a beast.

The first time I’ve had meat in a year! I thought I would go crazy from the taste.