Chapter 21

The Game Difficulty
Is Crazy

Chapter 5

The day after returning from the northern forest.

After finishing a short rest, Glen organized the results of this outdoor training.

‘Status window.’

As he lightly wished for it, blue particles gathered in his vision and formed letters.

《Glen Wordsworth》

《Race》: Human / 17 years old

《Stats》

§ Strength: 13 Agility: 30
§ Vitality: 25 Charisma: -2
§ Holy Power: 20 Magic Power: 14

《Unique Latent Abilities》

§ Magic Power User
§ Favor of Blades
§ Ringless Knight

《Condition》

§ Normal

“Ha……”

A sigh of deep emotion leaked out through his lips.

It wasn’t a cheating level, but now he finally felt like he had reached the same starting line as an average playable character.

‘Real combat really is good.’

If he listed what he gained from this outdoor training, it was this:

Strength +3, Agility +2, Vitality +2.

On top of that, the proficiency of his only skill, Piercing Madness, also increased by 1.

‘Thank you, Teacher Gnolls.’

What would normally take more than ten days to gain, he obtained in just half a day.

Glen stroked his chin.

‘If I convert this roughly into actual combat power, I think I could handle a 1-star opponent at about 1 versus 10.’

Except for a few outstanding trainees, he could probably defeat all the trainee knights at once.

‘I’m looking forward to it. I should suggest it to them next time.’

A fully filled 1-star, on a completely different level from ordinary 1-stars.

That was Glen’s current realm.

Of course, even if Glen were the strongest among all 1-stars in the world, he was still only a 1-star.

If he failed to move on to the next stage, he would never survive.

‘This is Gray Eden, after all.’

There were humans who slaughtered ten 7-star holy knights without even a single ring.

And there were beings who turned an entire village into wasteland with just one spell.

To face—no, to overwhelm such beings in the near future, he needed to become dozens of times stronger than he was now.

‘Looks like it’s about time to weave the second holy ring.’

The basic foundation built over about forty days was now complete.

Now that he had reached a level similar to other playable characters’ starting point, it was time for more serious high-speed growth.

‘And I just happened to get something good.’

Glen took out his backpack and poured its contents onto the desk. Soon, several handfuls of grass emitting a strange white light fell out.

Girmo Grass.

It was grass he gathered during the outdoor training, using the evening hours.

This time, he planned to use this grass, said to drive away evil spirits, to weave the second holy ring.

‘Time is tight, so let’s move quickly.’

About eighty days remained until the demon race’s assault.

Today as well, Glen’s uniquely sharp eyes were still full of cunning.

The family head was sitting in his office, receiving a report from the butler, Fred.

“…That concludes the report on this outdoor training.”

“Better results than I expected.”

“Yes. If things continue like this, they will become quite usable forces in the coming war.”

Seemingly satisfied with the more positive-than-expected outcome, the family head nodded.

“Tris’s abilities really are outstanding.”

“She’s better than those two sons who just compete with each other at the training grounds in broad daylight.”

Recalling the sparring match from ten days ago, the family head shook his head.

“So. Did you notice anything suspicious about the second son over the past ten days?”

After the spar with Sir Robert.

The family head had ordered Fred to secretly keep an eye on Glen.

“There were no unusual signs, my lord. During the day, he holds a sword and spars with the young lady, and at night, he seems to read the Holy Scriptures in his room.”

“…And during this training?”

“He trained while moving together with the trainee knights, but showed no other unusual behavior.”

“Hm.”

The family head stroked his chin.

Fred was the head butler who oversaw all the servants of the mansion.

If Fred, whose eyes were practically the family head’s own eyes, saw nothing unusual, then there was nothing.

“Is the power the second son used to defeat Sir Robert truly just luck?”

A brief silence followed, and Fred carefully spoke.

“It seems you may be overly conscious of the second young master, my lord.”

“I was conscious of the second son?”

The family head raised an eyebrow.

“You are the head of the Wordsworth family. Glen is merely your child.”

“So?”

“Is there truly a need to dig this deeply into the details?”

Interest flickered in the family head’s eyes, signaling him to continue.

Fred spoke again.

“Looking only at the results, the second young master is changing in a positive direction.”

As he said, since taking up the sword, Glen’s reckless behavior had noticeably decreased.

Of course, he still wore prisoner handcuffs on his wrists as a form of atonement.

But compared to the time he set the mansion warehouse on fire, it could almost be called a complete turnaround.

On top of that, he recently achieved the feat of defeating a 4-star holy knight, even if by luck.

Regardless of the details, he had finally begun to fulfill his role as a member of the family.

For the family head, the positive change of a once-reckless son was nothing but a benefit.

“There’s no need to worry about what kind of power the second young master has, is there?”

“Yes. It’s a trivial matter.”

What mattered was only whether it helped the family’s prosperity or not.

If it helped the family, use it. If not, discard it.

If Glen grew stronger, all the family head needed to do was make good use of him.

That was all he needed to think about for now.

A smile appeared on the family head’s lips.

“I must have been worrying over nothing.”

“It is only natural to be curious about a child’s change.”

It just didn’t suit the cold and rational Henry Wordsworth.

“Hmph. In any case, I hope he grows into something useful.”

“He will. He performed well in this outdoor training too.”

“That’s enough. Let’s stop with the trivial talk and move on to something important.”

The family head waved his hand, then changed his expression and looked at Fred.

“A mobilization order has been issued?”

“Yes. It arrived from the capital this morning.”

The family head’s expression turned serious.

As if what was inevitable had finally come, his ash-gray eyes filled with gravity.

“It seems the Holy War is about to begin.”

Meanwhile, late in the evening, Glen left the mansion and walked through the territory’s city.

His destination was the monastery within the territory.

Today, as planned, he intended to raise his Holy Power stat there.

Holy Power.

It referred to the powerful force granted to humans by Minith, the god of light and the sun.

Through this Holy Power, humans established strong forces in the world of Gray Eden, filled with different races and monsters.

The stronger one’s Holy Power, the more powerful they were considered.

In the Papal State, such people were regarded as sacred figures close to Minith.

If one gained even more Holy Power, nobles could rise in rank, and commoners could gain a chance to become nobles.

In human society, Holy Power was strength, status, and authority.

That was why everyone in the Papal State—men and women, nobles and commoners alike—worked to increase their Holy Power.

They performed good deeds for the unfortunate, cultivated their minds, and offered prayers and worship to Minith.

‘That’s the general method, but it’s a bit inefficient.’

In the game as well, performing good deeds for NPCs or attending worship at a monastery did increase Holy Power.

But to increase Holy Power by just 1 at a monastery, one had to attend worship ten times.

‘Considering worship is held twice a week, that’s five weeks just to gain 1 Holy Power.’

The efficiency was terrible.

In other words, unless someone had an abundance of free time, there was no reason to raise Holy Power at a monastery.

So why was Glen heading there now?

‘Because I have another method.’

Veterans had methods known only to veterans.

There was a way to raise Holy Power without attending worship, and Glen knew it.

‘It’s an exploit, though.’

Glancing at the backpack on his back, Glen continued walking through the darkened streets of the territory.

After walking through the chilly night for over ten minutes, Glen finally arrived at the front gate of the monastery.

Creeeak—

The monastery gate opened.

Glen stepped inside.

At that moment, an old priest with a familiar face came out, holding a candlestick.

“At this hour, what— hmm?”

“Good evening, filled with the grace of God, Priest Jonas.”

Priest Jonas.

He was the one who had served as medical staff during the spar with Robert a few days ago.

Recognizing Glen, Jonas raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“Isn’t this Young Master Glen? What brings you to the monastery at this hour?”

“I’d like to use the prayer room.”

“The prayer room?”

Jonas tilted his head, puzzled.

Glen replied with his usual polite smile.

“Yes. Recently, I had something to be grateful to God for, so I wanted to offer some prayers.”

“I see. Prayer is a meeting with God. There is no priest who would forbid such a sacred encounter. Please, come inside.”

With his gentle smile, Jonas led Glen in.

The light from wall-mounted candles softly illuminated the corridor.

Glen and Jonas walked side by side, chatting casually.

“I apologize for visiting so late.”

“It’s fine. When offering prayers to God, there is no distinction between day and night. It’s good that the prayer room is being used.”

“You are truly an example for all priests.”

“Haha, you flatter me.”

Jonas stopped as they walked.

“Here we are, young master.”

As Jonas stepped aside, stairs leading underground came into view.

“If you go down these stairs, you’ll find the prayer rooms.”

Jonas rummaged through his robes, then took out an old key and handed it to Glen.

“You may use the first prayer room on the left. Please use it comfortably. Just return the key before you leave.”

“Yes, understood. Thank you.”

“Oh, and you must not go down to the second basement level.”

“The second basement?”

A glint appeared in Glen’s eyes.

“Yes. That area is restricted.”

“Is there a problem?”

Jonas lowered his voice.

“Well… beneath the prayer rooms is an underground crypt, and an evil wraith is sealed there.”

“A wraith sealed in an underground crypt beneath a monastery?”

“Strangely enough, yes.”

Jonas showed discomfort.

Glen did not ask further.

“I see. So as long as I don’t go down, it’s fine, right?”

“That’s correct.”

“Understood. I only came to use the prayer room anyway.”

“Thank you for understanding. If you’re curious, I can explain when you return the key.”

“Let’s do that. I’ll see you later, Priest Jonas.”

“Yes. May God’s grace be with you.”

After making the sign of the cross, Jonas slowly left.

Left alone, Glen immediately moved and went down the stairs.

‘A wraith sealed in an underground crypt.’

A wraith beneath a monastery.

At first glance, it sounded ironic and contradictory.

But there was a reason.

‘In the world of Gray Eden, wraiths are different from ordinary monsters.’

A wraith is born when a powerful lingering will settles into a dead body.

Because of that, only high-ranking priests with deep faith could handle them.

‘But most high-ranking priests are in the capital of the Papal State.’

So local monasteries sealed wraiths in underground crypts.

Later, high-ranking priests dispatched from the capital would deal with them.

‘Of course, that’s just the original setting.’

Glen chuckled.

No matter the background lore, Gray Eden was still an RPG.

There was always an answer for players.

There was a way to deal with wraiths without relying on troublesome high-ranking priests.

Step—

After reaching the underground level, Glen entered the prayer room and lit the lights.

Then he took the holy water from the shelf and his backpack, and left the prayer room.

His gaze settled on the stairs leading to the underground crypt.

Ssssh—

A chilling cold air rose from below.

As if warning that horrible curses awaited anyone who went there.

Endless darkness that made him uneasy the more he looked.

But Glen’s movements were relaxed.

After all, the reason he came here was to go to that very place.

‘A nuisance of a local monastery?’

Without hesitation, Glen stepped onto the stairs and headed down toward the underground crypt.

‘But it’s my experience points.’

In the silent underground of the monastery, only Glen’s footsteps echoed.