Chapter 82: The Name That Should Not Exist (1)

After drinking with Asterion throughout the entire day and listening to his old stories—stories about Ashvarn that had burned many years ago and eventually ended up buried beneath the earth—

Ethan stayed for a while afterward, practicing swordsmanship with Moon, who had arrived later.

At his current level, he no longer suffered injuries the way he had in the beginning. He was now capable of giving Moon a genuine challenge… even though he lost to her every single time.

Still, he could feel it.

He could feel his familiarity with the sword growing… as if it were a game he was finally beginning to master.

He left early after that without saying a word, his mind far too occupied.

Today, he had obtained a historical glimpse of that grim city—the one that had sent chills down his spine the moment he stood before it.

As he walked alone through the streets of Ashvarn at night, Ethan realized that Old Ashvarn might be a far greater problem than he had expected.

“A city where the Hearts were burned alive… and perhaps turned into monsters that may still be wandering there to this day…”

The mere thought gave him a headache.

When a Heart turned into a monster, it was never an ordinary one.

They possessed strength far greater than that of other creatures.

“So there’s no choice but to drag the entire clan into this… I can’t conquer a Legacy Dungeon of that scale on my own…”

Staring up at the dark sky, his human hands tucked inside the pockets of his long black coat, Ethan remained lost in thought for a while.

The discovery of Old Ashvarn was only a matter of time.

He had wanted to become strong enough to face its horrors himself.

But with time running short—and with the scarcity of resources available to raise his level—he had come to accept that he would need the other hunters if he hoped to conquer that city.

“Ah, damn it… I’m not good with teamwork. I prefer playing solo.”

He muttered as he stood before the gates of the Hunters’ Haven, where most of the people who would eventually fight beside him resided.

“I guess I don’t have a choice this time…”

Pushing the gate open, he headed toward his room, intending to spend the night alone reorganizing his thoughts and plans.

Since arriving in the world of Ordeal, the number of hours he spent alone had steadily increased… reflecting his true nature—one he could not abandon despite inhabiting a different body.

Sitting down while browsing the Player System interface, he stared at his stats and the level he had failed to increase.

…

Name: Ethan Heart

Class: Classless

Level: 28

Current Souls: 1200 Souls

Souls Required for Next Level: 4900 Souls

…

Vigor: 11 (Increases HP)

MP: 10 (Increases Mana)

Endurance: 10 (Increases Stamina)

Strength: 24 (Increases heavy weapon damage)

Dexterity: 10 (Increases speed-based weapon damage)

Intelligence: 10 (Increases magic power)

Faith: 10 (Increases sacred incantation power)

Arcane: 23 (Increases luck, bleed)

…

“Instead of trying to reach the advanced rank before entering the city… I probably have no choice but to achieve it during the fighting inside.”

Old Ashvarn most likely contained numerous powerful monsters that would allow him to break through.

That was the gamble he was making.

The bigger problem would be surviving long enough to reach that point.

On the other hand, he had decided that the time had come to use a certain Blessing.

The Blessing that allowed him to change his class at will.

[Change Class at Will]

“After defeating James Heart… I suppose it’s finally time to change my first class.”

After postponing the matter for a long time, it was finally time to test the Blessing that forced him to pay twice the amount of Souls compared to others.

He was curious about the cooldown between each change—something that would be a decisive factor in his future plans.

…

…

Blessing Activated: Class Change at Will

You may now redistribute your stats once again in any way you desire.

(Warning: There is a cooldown period before this Blessing can be used again. Choose carefully.)

…

He accepted immediately.

A golden radiance suddenly surged through his body.

Ethan gasped, startled by the intensity of the strange aura.

Then—without any warning—

His body began losing its strength and level.

His power dropped entirely… from Level 28 all the way back to Level 1.

The moment it happened, he leaned against the simple desk in his room, breathing heavily.

“Damn it… I had gotten so used to that strength that I forgot how disgusting this weakness feels.”

Forcing a smile, he reached toward the system interface.

The interface revealed that all of his stats had returned to their starting values, giving him the option to redistribute them once more.

But what caught his attention the most… was the cooldown attached to the ability.

…

[Class Change at Will]

Time remaining until next use: 7:59:31

…

“Eight hours… that’s better than I expected.”

Resting his hand beneath his chin, he began contemplating the implications of this ability.

“I won’t be able to change classes more than once during a fight like this… but the cooldown isn’t bad. Raids sometimes last for days—or even weeks…”

He nodded in satisfaction before redistributing his stats.

This time, the choice fell on the class he had wanted since his very first day in Ordeal.

…

MP: 24

Intelligence: 24

…

He poured every single point into intelligence and mana.

Those were the requirements of the Mage class.

The moment he confirmed the allocation, a strange sense of refreshment spread through him … like a cool breeze gently brushing against his mind.

Turning toward the corners of his room, he was surprised to find that his perception had sharpened. His focus had grown clearer.

Yet the Mage class did not carry the explosive physical power of a knight, and the lingering sense of weakness remained.

“I don’t feel a dramatic change… but there’s no doubt about it. I’ve become a Skilled mage instead of a knight.”

It was truly a unique ability.

With the press of a button, he could jump from one class to another at will.

Magic was extremely powerful. It allowed its user to deal devastating damage without needing to engage in physical combat.

But Ethan quickly found himself facing two problems.

“I don’t have any spells… and my mana…”

He frowned as he looked at the blue mana bar in his interface.

Although he had raised it to 24 from 10, the increase was far from impressive.

It was minor.

The reason lay in the restriction imposed by his other Blessing—Eventual Greatness.

“This is going to make it difficult for me to make proper use of the Mage class…”

Since he had no intention of removing Eventual Greatness yet wanting to maximize its long-term effect … Ethan spent the next hour trying to figure out the best way to utilize what he currently had.

Eventually, his train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a soft knock on his door.

Turning toward it, he frowned slightly.

“Who would come at this hour?”

It was nearly midnight.

No one had ever visited him this late before.

“Raiden?”

He assumed it might be his usual companion dropping by.

But he quickly dismissed the idea.

The knock was too gentle—nothing like that giant who nearly broke the door every time he came over.

As he wondered about the identity of his guest, the knocking came again … stronger this time, as if growing impatient with how long he was taking.

Realizing that, he hurried over and opened the door cautiously.

At that moment, his visitor was revealed.

A visitor he had never expected.

Ethan froze when he saw a girl standing at his door.

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