Arcanium, the magical city.
The city, which floated in the air, far away from the clutches of land, gave the illusion of a massive carousel hanging in the middle of nowhere.
A carousel that flashed brightly in many shades of blinding lights.
This city, which hovered through magic, was said to be about half the size of Seoul.
I realized I was in another world as I watched the city float under the night sky; its radiance flipping away the dark veil that hung around us.
In the grand city of Arcanium, there were five prestigious academies, as well as a famous Mage Tower and Association of Magic Knights. Stella Academy was known among them for possessing the most powerful mages and the most outstanding students.
Geniuses and aristocrats flocked from all over the world, and I wondered what kind of talent Baek Yu-seol had to enter this place, where dragons ran rampant.
"Are you awake yet?"
"Yeah."
"We're nearly there, but you appear like a ghost."
At that moment, I noticed that the wagon was being driven by a different mage compared to last night. It appeared that they switched shifts along the way.
I leaned back in my seat and summoned the System.
I was promised one of three rewards last night.
A downgraded item, a downgraded skill, and a small amount of EXP.
'What should I do now?'
I had a lot of items and skills. In the long run, it would not be a bad idea to ask for body strengthening skills, but it seemed like they could be learned separately later anyway.
First of all, I picked the item I loved the most.
'Is it possible to get my 'Glare'?'
[The search reveals that the grade of the item is too high, so the downgrading is in progress.]
'Well. What about 'Hyper Flash'?'
[As per the results of the search, it is impossible to acquire this skill because it is a higher level sub-skill of 'Flash'. However, you can use the reward by slightly enhancing the 'Flash'.]
'Do we really have to downgrade? Can we not do it?'
[Your 'Narrative Power' is lacking, so it is impossible for it to fully materialize.]
'What's that?'
[The power of storytelling is called 'narrative power'. Like yesterday, if Baek Yu-Seol unfolds the story in a direction different from the original, the Narrative Power builds up.]
'Oh, I see.'
Why complicate things when you could simply say, 'I can't give you a character item just because you're a newbie?'
'Then I'll decide...'
Most of my equipment was of high grade, and even if I reduced them by several grades, my options were still limited as a high grade item did not imply a good item.
Despite my low rank, there were numerous items and skills that could result in high efficiency in my current situation.
'Evasion' allows you to avoid or block one attack unconditionally, but it has a long cooldown, whereas 'Frost Steps' allows you to flee from any danger. For a limited span of time, 'Augmentation' make one nearly invincible, and increases movement speed.
If someone's wondering why they were all escape skills, it was because I lacked the necessary attack and defense abilities. I wanted to live longer because I was a character with poor survival skills, so I only learned escape techniques.
I rarely used them after becoming a veteran, but they might come in handy because the game turned into a reality.
However, not just yet. There was one item that was more important for the [Episode] progress right now.
'Secret Folder.'
[TN:- Kind of an external storage software which archives all data.]
A word that is particularly familiar to men.
When I was serving on active duty, I once was cursed at by the company's boss because someone created a Secret Folder on my computer in the administrative unit.
"Did you put porn in here? What's the password? Give it to me now!"
"It wasn't me."
"This is really killing me! Do you want disciplinary action?"
"I really don't know..."
Those desperate cries were still fresh in my mind. I felt wronged and resentful because I had never really created such a folder.
However, it was discovered that the folder was created by an administration official and contained highly confidential information. When the facts were revealed, that guy apologized to me.
Since then, I also found 'Secret Folder' to be a good storage space to save the information or take notes no matter what game I play.
[... After a System review, it is judged that it's possible.]
As soon as I saw the confirmation message, I clenched my fists tightly.
'Good. Do that.'
[Item: Sentient Spectacles] Phenomenon Analysis, Summary, Information Retrieval, Night Vision, Infrared Vision... etc, all functions will be deleted.]
Tuk!
Round spectacle with a black frame fell on my palm. Even if I care about fashion, it was pleasant in its own way since it was based on the design used by celebrities.
All major functions were removed after the downgrade, but the most important function still remained.
[Sentient Spectacles]
[Grade:- ~]
[Description: Do you remember what you had for dinner yesterday? Did you immediately forget the account number you just heard? Don't worry! These glasses will remember everything you have seen, heard, and read!]
[Special Features]
[Secret Folder]
[Seal]
[It is activated by consuming your mental power.]
It was impossible to recall and read information about demons I had successfully hunted or knowledge I had gained in the game Aether World. Whenever I forgot, I needed to return to the map and read it again.
Where did the materials come from? Which characters did I interact with? And what contributions did I make to the kingdom?
Nothing of the sort was provided.
So, players developed top-level systems like the 'Secret Folder' to store information.
And there was only one reason I got these specs now.
I forgot most of the game's information.
The items I obtained from a specific hunting ground, or the type of rare item I obtained from a specific dungeon, and so on. All of this important information was documented inside the folder.
Furthermore, this was the one I used while playing the game, so the information should be there.
[View the Secret Folder.]
[Alchemy Ingredients]
[Hunting Ground]
[Dungeon]
[Demons]
[Character]
[Magic]
[Other...]
As soon as I put on the spec, countless folders lined up one after another appeared in front of my eyes.
Unfortunately, the story was not recorded, and since I was not interested in the characters, the folder was mostly empty, but it was still a satisfactory result.
'For the prize, it's good enough.'
'Now all I have to do is figure out how to use these glasses.'
The amount of information I had was enormous.
I had been traveling the world for ten years and had only collected the best items. To say that I was fortunate enough to get them was not enough.
'Even if I can't recover all of the skills of the character I've developed over the last ten years, I should be able to catch up to half that level in the near future.'
'Now that I think about it.'
'Among the effects of this spec is the ability to summarize and reveal the character's information.'
'I mean, maybe I can figure out the identity of the gray-robed girl sleeping next to me.'
"We've arrived."
However, as soon as the wagon arrived in Rezoica, the gray-robed girl quickly got off.
"Let's do it quickly..."
I quickly separated and headed for the airship dock after thanking the mages for their assistance.