Chapter 28 – A New Trump Card

“Нuh…?”

Uроn returning via Return, Аsutо noticеd a light glowing insidе thе Gаtе.

Тhе light was cоnstantly mоving, fliсkering rереаtеdly.

If hе foсused on it, it арреared bright; if hе didn’t, it grew fаint.

“Hm, what’s wrong?”

“Му eyes feеl wеird—they’re flickering likе сrazy.”

An issue with his eуеs? Asuto rubbеd his eуеlids.

Вut thе light didn’t disappeаr.

“Maуbе уou’re just tirеd frоm уesterdаy?”

“No, thаt’s not it.”

Asuto immediаtеly deniеd it.

Вeсause until just nоw, he had beеn cоntinuоusly defeating Orсs.

At thаt timе, nо such light hаd apреаred.

(Did Return dеvelор sоmе kind оf malfunсtiоn?)

Нe орened his Status to check.

Immediately, a popup for Magic Eye Upgrade caught his eye.

(This is it!)

That the Eye of Insight would change was completely unexpected.

The condition was to touch death a hundred times.

He doubted anyone other than Asuto could achieve this condition.

In other words, this Mortal Eye was effectively a Skill exclusive to Asuto.

○ Mortal Eye

Description: A Skill that sees through the flow of life and death. By perceiving the opponent’s lifeline, it becomes possible to sever any “thing.”

(…So, I can see weak points freely now?)

It had become an incredible Skill.

Taking this description at face value, its performance rivaled that of a Legend Skill.

Yet, he couldn’t simply accept it as is.

Good things often come with a catch.

Having crawled at the bottom for years, Asuto was highly wary of such things.

(How many times have I been tricked by sweet-sounding deals?)

Glancing over, Asuto looked at Amy.

A faint light also glowed on her body.

(…If I cut that line, maybe…)

He wanted to try it immediately.

But if he succeeded and ended up killing Amy, he couldn’t even imagine what would happen.

Worst-case scenario, he might lose his abilities as a Hunter altogether.

Because Hunter Skills awaken alongside the appearance of Angels.

Was it that becoming a Hunter allowed one to see Angels, or did Angels appear because one awakened?

If it were the latter, after cutting Amy, all his Skills might vanish, and he’d be unable to return to the past with Return.

It seemed unwise to test the effects of Mortal Eye on an Angel.

(I can investigate the effects gradually later.)

Asuto temporarily shelved his questions and checked the Gold Shop.

From it, he found the weapon that seemed most optimal at the moment.

○ Black Steel Dagger

Attack Power: 24

Description: A dagger forged from black steel. Possesses the highest attack power among weapons crafted from Basic Materials.

Usage Condition: Basic Dagger Arts Lv4

He purchased the Black Steel Dagger, the highest-performance weapon currently available.

Taking it from the Cart, he checked its handling.

(A bit heavy, but it’s fine.)

Conversely, it meant the dagger he’d been using before was too light.

That weight was a mark of reliability.

With this, his weapon wouldn’t break during combat.

Soon, a practice opponent approached from deeper within the Gate.

Asuto lightly gripped the hilt and stomped the ground in one swift motion.

With just one step, he closed a ten-meter gap.

The Orc frantically raised its club, but it was too slow.

Asuto swept the dagger across the Orc’s flank—the spot where the light was.

“—Huh!?”

There was almost no resistance.

Did he miss?

Asuto pivoted and used Backstep.

He waited for the opponent’s move.

The Orc slowly turned around.

Its eyes still burned with fierce fighting spirit.

But—,

“Guh—!?”

Suddenly, its torso silently split in two and tumbled to the ground.

“Wh-what the hell is this!? What did you just do!?”

“…No idea, honestly.”

“Don’t lie!”

“I’m not lying.”

Even Asuto, who had just attacked, couldn’t fully grasp what had happened.

Asuto had aimed for the spot where he saw light through Mortal Eye.

This was the result.

(I never imagined it would be such an incredible Skill…)

Of course, part of it was likely due to the excellent performance of his newly acquired weapon.

But without a doubt, the primary factor was the effect of Mortal Eye.

“I’ve never seen a Monster’s torso split apart like that! What kind of cheap trick did you pull!?”

“…My Dagger Arts just reached Intermediate earlier.”

“That alone couldn’t do this, right?”

“I upgraded my weapon too. Maybe the Skill and weapon synergized to produce this result?”

“And that caused this? …That’s brutal.”

Did she not know how much power Skills and weapons could unleash in actual combat? Amy seemed convinced by Asuto’s dubious explanation.

(Good, she didn’t press further.)

Asuto inwardly sighed with relief.

Purchased Skills and weapons were basically transparent to Angels.

They could see what was in the Cart.

But Mortal Eye was a Skill upgraded via the Status.

Since Amy couldn’t see the Status, she was unaware of it, just like with Return.

An unrecognized Skill was a trump card against Angels.

Along with Return, he should keep it hidden.

To make the new dagger feel like part of his body, Asuto advanced deeper while fighting.

His Status was already nearing B-Rank. On top of that, he had Mortal Eye, which let him see lights that meant instant fatal wounds if traced.

For Asuto, Orcs were no longer significant opponents.

After defeating all the Orcs, Asuto steadied his breathing before the Boss Room.

“You monster. How much stronger can you get in such a short time?”