With a heavy thud, Jin's body collapsed to the ground, blood seeping from his wounds and forming a small crimson pond around him.
"W-What!?... He's dead!"
Luke remained paralyzed. Though Noah and the others saw him, none made a move to assist.
"That's it? This is what passes for strength? You sure about this, Noah?"
Roma's voice was thick with disappointment. He had expected more from Jin—especially someone who had emerged from the Forbidden Land.
He had always heard the stories about that cursed land. They described the place as vile and uninhabitable by life. Only death lived there. But the stories also called it a land painted with unchained history and forbidden knowledge.
No wonder he had expected more. For someone who lived in that damned place, full of unknowns.
He glanced at Noah again, frowning in disappointment.
Noah said nothing. His eyes remained fixed on Jin's body—cold and devoid of emotion.
"Hey! Mission complete. Great."
Maya, the girl who had accompanied them, beamed with satisfaction. The mission had ended quickly—and that meant she could finally unwind.
Her fair skin contrasted with her soft, rose-colored lips. Her large, expressive eyes fit perfectly on her elegant face, framed by golden hair neatly tied into a bun.
Judging by her attire and demeanor, it was safe to assume she hailed from noble blood. Which explained her disdain for her current duties. Money was never a concern—her family's wealth ran deep. If not for the damned regulations, she wouldn't even be here.
That—and her heart, of course. Which was fixed on Noah's handsome face. Not even his fearsome reputation could make her give up.
"So... umm... Sir Noa—"
"So boring. I thought someone from the Forbidden Land would be stronger,"
Roma's irritating voice cut into her sentence, followed by an even more annoying sigh.
'Why this lowlife...' she cursed inwardly.
[Skill: Life Essence Detection]
Noah activated Life Essence Detection, a skill allowing him to sense the life force of all beings nearby.
Jin's entire body was filled with wounds. Just by looking, Noah was sure he wasn't a spiritual being. Anyone could guess Jin was dead.
But even so, he double-checked. He always did. Not just out of caution or habit, but because it was in his nature.
He scanned Jin's body. No trace of life could be found. Jin was, without a doubt, dead.
'I suppose the Lord Elder was wrong this time,' Noah thought.
"Bring the body," he ordered to no one in particular, turning his back and walking away. But Roma understood.
'These damn nobles are nothing but pain in the butt,' he sighed, but said nothing.
***
[Mathematician: Auto Counter – Life +1]
"Hey now! Who are you calling dead?"
A voice rang out—familiar, unexpected—from where Jin had fallen.
'What!? Impossible! I confirmed it—he was dead!' Roma spun around.
Jin was rising to his feet, his body riddled with gaping wounds, blood still pouring from each one. And yet—despite injuries that should have killed him instantly—he stood.
[Skill: Life Essence Detection]
Noah cast the detection skill again—and this time, the result changed. Life. Jin was alive.
'No... I'm certain he was dead. A skill? An artifact? Something that brings one back from death?'
Noah's thoughts raced. He had heard of such powers before. The royal Azrael bloodline was said to possess a resurrection ability—one that let its bearer defy death itself. Artifacts existed too, though rare and usually single-use.
"Oh man! Those bastards ruined your clothes," the voice groaned.
Jin poked a finger through the hole in his chest.
Though outwardly unbothered, the voice was throwing a tantrum inside his head. The clothes were new, after all. Jin hadn't worn anything this clean or humane in two decades. Finally, he had escaped those years of filthy, smelly, tattered rags barely worthy of covering his naked body.
Not to mention, stealing them took effort. Only the voice knew how hard it was to find something sweatible for Jin. And now they were gone.
"What the hell!? You're still alive?!" Roma exclaimed, both shocked and oddly impressed.
"Of course I am. For me, death is just a lie," Jin replied with a hollowed smirk.
"Could it be... the Art of Rebirth?" Maya wondered aloud.
"Art of Rebirth? Oh no, I don't know any high-level arts," Jin said, shaking his head. "I just lowered my death probability to zero and raised survival to a hundred."
"So, you're manipulating probability?" she asked, intrigued.
"Not exactly," Jin replied cryptically. "But something close."
He wasn't going to explain it further. A half-truth was often more useful than a full one. Or so the voice told him.
'That actually makes sense', Maya thought. 'He didn't use any Art—I sensed no spiritual energy. And it's not regeneration either. His wounds aren't healed.'
Jin looked down at the holes in his chest, grimacing.
"Ugh... This looks gross. And right in front of a cute girl too," the voice frowned.
'What?' Jin questioned.
"A cute girl, of course. Hey, tell me—when was the last time you saw a girl who was actually... a girl?" the voice asked.
Jin searched his memories and found nothing.
Indeed, it had been two decades since he saw someone like her. Her skin was firm, like a human's should be. Not rotting, not melting. Not saggy. She was, undeniably, the embodiment of perfection.
He had seen some girls in that irritating and noisy place they called a school—but never this close. Never clearly enough for the voice to properly stare.
"Look at her boobs too... they must be soft."
'That's perverted,' Jin commented.
"Oh, come on. You'll die a virgin at this rate," the voice groaned in disappointment. "Hey, you should talk to her."
'What? Talk... how?'
"Say, 'You are so beautiful'—that always works. Oh, and don't forget to act shy. They love that stuff."
Jin stared at the sky. If the voice had a face, he'd be glaring at it. But unfortunately, it didn't. So, he did as he was told. Like always. The voice spoke—and Jin followed. And somehow, it always worked out for the better.
His cheeks flushed slightly. Embarrassed, he stole a glance at her. Or at least, that's what he was told to do.
"Maybe... you should just ask her name," the voice sighed.
After a moment of hesitation, Jin cleared his throat.
"M-May I... ask your name?"
Jin's hollow crimson eyes looked at her face—and her chest. As instructed, of course.
"You want my name?" Maya raised an eyebrow.
"W-Well... if you don't mind."
"Hmm... it's Maya."
"Maya... such a beautiful name." The voice would have blushed—if only it had a face.
"You came from the Forbidden Land, right? Mind if I ask—what kind of place is it really?"
"Oh, she's talking to you. You're one lucky bastard." said the voice.
Jin answered without hesitation.
"Hmm... let's see. Hell. Yeah, that's probably the best word for it."
"Enough with the chit-chat!"
Roma cut in, gripping his blood-soaked spear tightly. His tone was sharp. "Did you forget? We're still in a battle."
His words yanked the voice back to the present, dragging it out of whatever bizarre daydream it had slipped into. It quickly composed itself, shoved aside the awkward fluster, and began advertising Jin like a prized warrior.
"A battle, huh...? Hehehe..." Jin chuckled darkly. "Against you?"
"Did that hole in your head make you lose your memory, punk?" Roma taunted.
Jin touched the gaping wound where his right eye used to be—a hole clean through to the back of his skull.
"Oh... you mean this?"
[Mystical Art: Low Heal]
[Mathematician: Healing strength × 1,000,000]
He activated Low Heal, a basic mystical art using the Symbol of Life—typically only good for treating minor scrapes. But this time, an emerald glow surrounded him, and every one of his wounds—no matter how devastating—began to mend.
Within seconds, his body was entirely restored. Only his torn and bloodied clothes remained as evidence of the damage he had endured.
Thankfully, the parts of his body that needed covering were covered. Though just barely. Only then did the voice let out a sigh of relief—after sneaking a few glances back at the normal-looking human girl, of course.
"What!?" Maya gasped. "That was just a basic healing art! How did he recover from such fatal injuries!?"
"That's what you're thinking?" The voice sounded disappointed.
"Khu-khu-kuku... He's not bad," Roma laughed, his curiosity clearly piqued.
Noah stayed silent, his eyes calm and unreadable.
'Wh-What is going on!?'
Luke's mind reeled. He couldn't comprehend it anymore—how was Jin still alive?
Roma tightened his grip on the spear, readying himself.
[Battle Art: Beast Strength]
Using his Battle Art, Roma flooded his body with power.
"What a nuisance," Jin muttered, clicking his tongue.
[Mathematician: Information Calculation]
'They're strong. Especially that quiet one in the back—he's likely the leader. The spear guy's formidable too, though not on their level. The girl... she might actually be the strongest of them. Under the right circumstances, at least.'
[Mathematician: All Attributes (Strength, Durability, Speed, reaction speed, Spiritual Awareness) × 1,000,000]
Roma dashed forward, spear gripped tightly, empowered by his Art. His speed and force were monstrous.
But this time, it wasn't enough.
Jin raised one hand—and calmly caught the tip of the charging spear between two fingers.
'W-What!? He stopped it!? But last time, he couldn't even react!'
[Battle Art: Serpent Spear]
Roma tore the weapon free. It twisted and slithered through the air like a living snake, striking from every direction—swift, deadly, unpredictable. Yet Jin dodged every attack with lazy, elegant precision.
"Hahahaha! Now this is the kind of battle I was hoping for!" Roma shouted with excitement.
"How childish," Jin sighed, clearly unimpressed.
[Mathematician: Evasion Probability +100%]
Jin leapt back as Roma came at him again, spear aimed straight at his chest.
[Battle Art: Single Point Thrust]
The spear gleamed as it launched forward—a deadly missile aiming directly at Jin's heart. But Jin didn't flinch. He stood there, unmoving, as the lethal point raced closer.
'You're not dodging? Do you really think you can survive this? Are you mocking me, you bastard?' Roma thought, gritting his teeth.
But then, impossibly—the spear missed.
'W-What!? How?! I was sure that—'
Roma grunted and launched into a rapid flurry. Thrust after thrust, a storm of spear strikes raged—yet every single attack missed, even though Jin barely moved at all.
"Roma!" Maya called. "He's using probability manipulation—to lower your chances of landing a hit!"
"Ah... so that's what this is!" Roma growled, finally stepping back.
"Keen intuition," Jin said calmly. "But that's only half correct."
"Tch, doesn't matter," Roma snapped. "Because I'm about to nullify that little trick of yours."
"Oh, really?" Jin tilted his head with a smirk.
Maya stepped forward. Her hands moved into a fluid, practiced formation—right palm vertical at chest height, left palm horizontal beneath it, the wrist of her right hand aligned with the tip of her left.
[Mystical Art: Playground]
A radiant blast of spiritual energy erupted from her form, flooding the space with overwhelming light. The entire barrier shimmered under the pressure of her Art.
'Another Art,' Jin observed inwardly.
[Mathematician: Information Calculation]
"What...!? Such a powerful technique... I'd love to play along, but this might be dangerous. Let's finish it, Jin," the voice whispered.
[Mathematician: All Zero]
Jin snapped his finger.
Before the Art could stabilize, it collapsed in on itself—instantly, violently, completely neutralized.
"Wha...!? He destroyed my Art!? How!?" Maya gasped, stunned.
"I didn't mean to—" she began.
Her words died in her throat as a burst of blood exploded into the air like a crimson geyser. Her eyes snapped toward Jin—his severed head spiraled into the sky, cleanly sliced, before it landed and rolled along the ground.
Noah stood behind Jin's headless body.
And yet, Maya wasn't shocked.
'He's as fast as ever. We're on the same level... and I can barely follow his movements.'
[Mathematician: Numerical Manipulation – Absolute Regeneration]
The broken bones mended. The severed spine reconnected. Slowly, a new skull began to form, followed by sinew, veins, and skin. Jin's crimson eyes reappeared. Then came his raven-black hair, falling back into place.
'Disgusting!'
Luke stared in horror.
"Now that really pissed me off," the voice growled.
Jin turned his newly restored gaze toward Noah, his crimson eyes burning with fury.
[Mathematician: Numerical Manipulation – Inperfect Spirit, Half Harmony]
The air inside the barrier shifted. Instinctively, Roma, Maya, and even Noah leapt back.
'What... is this sensation!?'
Maya's heart pounded. 'For a second... I felt death!'
'No... it can't be... This presence—'
Noah narrowed his eyes. 'It's that of a Saint.'
Yet even in the face of rising dread, Noah remained composed.
The ground trembled violently as fissures split open beneath their feet, each quake growing more intense. Cracks surged outward like veins in stone, the rumble deafening. An overwhelming aura erupted from Jin, warping the very air around him. Space twisted and bent under the immense pressure—like an invisible mountain bearing down on all sides.
"Hey! What the hell is going on!?" Roma shouted, sweat dripping from his brow. "Shouldn't h—"
Before he could finish, a figure materialized in front of him like a ghostly mirage.
A single punch landed in Roma's gut—devastating, unstoppable.
He was launched skyward, smashing through building after building inside the barrier like a cannonball. Only the indestructible boundary halted his flight, leaving him buried in rubble at the base of the final wall.
'W... Wh... What just... happe—'
Even with his High-Speed Thinking Skill and Battle Instincts, Roma hadn't seen it coming.
Then—slam!—a hand seized Roma's head mid-air and slammed him straight into the earth.
The resulting impact left a crater so vast, it shook the battlefield. At its center, Roma lay still, motionless.
'Aghhh... M-My ribs are crushed... I-I—!!'
He coughed up blood, struggling to breathe.
Pain overwhelmed every nerve in his body—so intense he could barely open his eyes. But somehow, he managed to look up.
There, standing over him, was a figure cloaked in absolute blackness—like a god sculpted from shadow itself. Within that black abyss, two crimson lights burned with unnatural brilliance.
It was death that stood before him.