LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 54
‘What?’ Raciel furrowed his brow in disbelief as Spleen revealed something astonishing.
‘A Phantom Beast with the ability to consume poison for ingredient analysis? Like a lab guinea pig?’
[Spleen: Yep.]
Spleen continued nonchalantly, as if it were a trivial matter.
[Spleen: I saw it in the system waiting room. It’s true. There’s a Phantom Beast whose primary skill is consuming anything—be it poison or medicine—for ingredient analysis.]
‘You saw it in the system waiting room?’
[Spleen: Yeah.]
‘What’s the system waiting room?’ Raciel grew even more puzzled. The concept of a waiting room was foreign to him. Spleen’s forthcoming explanation held the answer.
[Spleen: It’s exactly what it sounds like—a waiting room. Kind of like a locker room, but a place where you wait before being chosen. That’s the best way to put it. I was sleeping there before you woke me up. Heart bro, Lung, and Large Intestine were all there too.]
‘So, the remaining five organs that haven’t woken up yet?’
[Spleen: Exactly. The Phantom Beasts awaiting summoning are there as well.]
“…”
Raciel fell silent for a moment.
What exactly is this system? There were so many peculiar aspects to it.
‘It’s strange that only I can see and hear this. It’s as if it was all set up for me. What is it?’
Curiosity surged within him, but there was no way to satisfy it at the moment.
[Spleen: Anyway, don’t ask any more. I don’t know either. Even if I did, I wouldn’t be able to tell you.]
‘You can’t tell me?’
[Spleen: It’s against the rules. There’s a prohibition on it.]
‘What about the Phantom Beasts? Can you tell me about the ingredient analysis-specialized Phantom Beast you saw? What it looked like, its characteristics?’
[Spleen: No, absolutely not.]
‘That’s harsh.’
[Spleen: If you don’t like it, why don’t you handle everything yourself, hahaha]
“Tch.”
It seemed Spleen genuinely couldn’t provide him with the information. Raciel ceased his inquiries. Nonetheless, he found solace in the unexpected gain.
‘So, choosing a Phantom Beast is the solution, right?’
If Spleen’s recent hint held true, all he had to do was choose a Phantom Beast. Then he could analyze the paralysis-inducing venom of Kusman. With that analysis, he could determine the dosage of poison for Botox injections.
“Let’s give it a try.”
A glimmer of hope pierced through the overwhelming situation. Raciel made up his mind to pursue it. He opened the system window and selected the ‘Choose Phantom Beast’ option. The friendly notification he had seen before reappeared.
Ding dong!
[You have selected the option for “Phantom Beasts Selection Draw.”]
[You can invest a certain amount of HP to draw a Phantom Beast.]
[Strong and unique Phantom Beasts will exhibit unwavering loyalty to their summoner and provide various abilities.]
[Cost for the 2nd Draw = 1,500 HP]
[Current HP: 1,400]
[You have insufficient HP.]
[You cannot proceed with the 2nd draw of choosing a Phantom Beast.]
“…What?”
Raciel frowned.
He hadn’t anticipated this obstacle. He was precisely 100 HP short. Moreover, he could even hear the laughter of the five organs in his ears.
[The Five Viscera and the Six Bowels are thoroughly enjoying the current situation.]
[Heart: Lololol, did you guys see this?]
[Lung: Haha… I can’t even… lol]
[Liver: What were you doing all this time without saving any HP, human? Lol]
[Large Intestine: Lol, I bet he was just flexing his quadriceps.]
“…”
Why did he feel so flustered and oddly irritated? It was as if he had confidently boarded a bus, only to be met with the humiliating announcement of ‘insufficient balance.’
But Raciel didn’t display those emotions. His HP was running low, and the first order of business was to replenish it. He suppressed his inexplicably bothersome feelings.
‘Hold on. Listen up, guys.’
He spoke with tightly shut eyes.
‘Look, I’m in a bit of a hurry. Can you lend me around 100 HP?’
…
No one responded.
Raciel tried again.
‘Hey. I know you’re all listening. Just lend me 100 HP, okay?’
Finally, there was a response.
Ding-dong!
[The Five Viscera and the Six Bowels are astonished by your request.]
[Heart: Woah. Did you hear what he just asked?]
[Lung: Haha… Unbelievable… lol]
[Large Intestine: Did he seriously ask for some HP? Lol, that’s crazy.]
[Liver: He might as well ask for a loan.]
“…”
The response was far from what he had hoped for. Actually, it was quite infuriating.
‘How dare they laugh at a human’s request?’
His blood pressure surged, and he felt the need to assert his dominance. He had to remind them who was in charge, who held the power. He was determined to make them understand.
‘Alright, fine.’
And so, it began.
He took a deep breath.
‘So, you’re not going to give me any HP, huh?’
He held his breath, waiting for their response. Soon, their reactions came.
Ding-dong!
[The Five Viscera and the Six Bowels are taken aback by your actions.]
[Heart: What the… What is he doing? Lol]
[Lung: Huh… Hah…?]
[Large Intestine: Is he… threatening us?]
[Liver: Seems like it. Lol]
Despite their initial reactions, Raciel continued to hold his breath. Gradually, their responses started to change.
Ding-dong!
[The Five Viscera and the Six Bowels are confused by your actions.]
[Heart: Uh? Uhm? Are we running out of oxygen?]
[Lung: …Hu… Hah… Huh…]
[Large Intestine: Is he… turning red? Lol]
[Liver: Well, he must be in pain too. Lol]
Of course, it was becoming increasingly difficult for him to continue holding his breath.
But he persisted.
Ding-dong!
[The Five Viscera and the Six Bowels are utterly dumbfounded by your actions.]
[Heart: Hey? Hey, hey? Why are you doing this?]
[Lung: …Huh… Ha… H…]
[Large Intestine: He seems to be losing color, doesn’t he? Lol]
[Liver: Wow, is this a real threat? Damn.]
But this was a game of chicken that Raciel had initiated. He kept holding his breath until his face turned red. And finally…
Ding-dong!
[Lung: …Hu! Ha… Ha… Ha… Ha!]
[The Lung, succumbing to your threat, has granted you 100 HP.]
[Current HP: 1,500]
…The threat had worked.
“Huff! Ha! Phew!”
Raciel finally exhaled, feeling a sense of relief. The HP extraction and the threat were successful. As he fought off dizziness, he chuckled in satisfaction. In his mind, the protests of his five internal organs, who seemed to have surrendered, rang out.
[Your organs are grumbling.]
[Heart: Hey! The liver is dying, you idiot!]
[Lung: He…heh… ㅠㅠ]
[Large Intestine: Wow, that gastric muscle gave me goosebumps.]
[Liver: Let’s just laugh it off, guys.]
But Raciel ignored their complaints. After all, they would still provide HP if he did something they deemed worthy. Besides, there was an urgent matter at hand. He reopened the Phantom Beasts Draw system window.
Ding dong.
[Cost for the 2nd Draw: 1,500 HP]
[Current HP: 1,500]
[Would you like to proceed with the Phantom Beasts Draw?]
[YES / NO]
Finally, the selection window for the Draw was active. Without hesitation, he chose ‘YES’.
[Proceeding with the Phantom Beast Selection Draw.]
Along with a familiar notification, his 1,500 HP was completely depleted. A dazzling holographic instruction floated in the air.
Paah-!
[Please specify the desired function for the Phantom Beast before the selection draw.]
[The Phantom Beast candidates presented in the draw will be tailored to the desired function.]
The desired function was clear. Raciel remembered the tip he received from Spleen earlier and spoke.
‘A Phantom Beast with the specialty of a lab guinea pig, capable of consuming and analyzing the components of poison or medicine.’
[Your requirements have been registered.]
Whoosh-!
The instructions were enveloped in a radiant light. The light spun and transformed into three separate cards. Soon, a brief introduction appeared on each card.
<Candidate 1: Sometimes… I… shed blood tears…>
<Candidate 2: Aah, dying again ㅠㅠ>
<Candidate 3: A drinking H.M>
“…”
What’s with these options now? He glared at the introductions written on each card. Meanwhile, an additional message appeared.
[You have been presented with three candidates from the Phantom Beast Selection Draw system.]
[The three candidates reflect 100%, 50%, and 0% of your requirements respectively.]
[The choice is yours.]
[Once a Phantom Beast is chosen, it cannot be exchanged, returned, or refunded. Please choose carefully.]
“As expected.”
The rules were the same as the previous Draw. It was clear what they meant.
‘This time, the three cards represent jackpot, middle, and miss.’
Raciel carefully examined the three cards. He only had one chance to choose. If he made a careless decision, it could result in a significant loss of his hard-earned HP.
He suppressed the rising tension and pushed his cerebral cortex’s reasoning ability to its limits.
‘Let’s go through them one by one. The first card says… ‘Sometimes I shed blood tears?”
He tilted his head in confusion at first.
‘What could that mean? Is it a metaphor or analogy?’ Then suddenly, a piece of knowledge resurfaced in his mind.
‘Ah, could it be the Horned lizard?’
He remembered seeing it in a documentary once. It was a small lizard that lived in the desert. Its unique defensive behavior when facing predators came to mind.
‘It shoots blood from its eyes, like a squirt gun. It startles or confuses its predators and then makes a quick escape. That’s its survival strategy.’
So, could the first card’s statement of ‘Sometimes I shed tears’ refer to a Phantom Beast? Perhaps it was something based on the Horned lizard.
‘I might be wrong with my inference, but it seems plausible for now.’
Then the conclusion was simple. The one that spouted blood from its eyes had nothing to do with analyzing poison or medicinal ingredients. In other words, it completely disregarded his requirements.
‘So, the first card is disqualified.’
Raciel confidently dismissed the first card and shifted his attention to the second one.
‘Aah, dying again?’
…What could this mean?
He took a moment to think.
But he couldn’t figure it out.
‘Sigh, it’s too vague. Let’s move on to the next card.’
When you don’t know the answer, move boldly to the next question. He recalled the strategy he used during his college entrance exams. He shifted his focus to the third card.
‘A water-drinking hm. Fortunately, this one is easy. It clearly refers to a water-drinking hippo.’
It was a relatively straightforward question. He could make some guesses about the water-drinking hippo’s abilities.
‘It probably likes water and drinks a lot. So it might have an excellent ability to analyze the components of water.’
As he thought about it, he found himself slightly drawn to it.
‘Should I choose this one? Most poisons or medicines use water as a solvent. It might have the ability to analyze the ingredients of poisons or medicines dissolved in water.’
What if that were true?
It would be a jackpot.
A creature capable of analyzing all substances dissolved in water. The more he thought about it, the more useful and appealing it seemed. However, Raciel didn’t rush to a conclusion.
‘But what if it only analyzes ‘water’?’
What if it was fixated on water or had an extreme water-related obsession? That would be troublesome. What he needed now was the ability to analyze “all poisons and medicines,” not just the ability of a water enthusiast to analyze water alone.
‘If that’s the case, choosing it would ruin the Draw. When I think about it, it makes sense. Dissolving the substances I want to analyze in water and feeding them to it? There’s no guarantee that it would be possible.’
That’s why.
The identity of the second card, which he hadn’t figured out yet, continued to bother him.
‘Two cards remain. One fulfills 50% of my requirements, and the other fulfills 100%. Which one should I choose?’
It felt like facing an unknown question on an important test. Was this what it felt like to gamble one’s life on a guess? Raciel tried to maintain his composure as he thought hard.
Then the answer came to him.
‘Right. I asked for the ability to analyze poisons or medicines, not a water-specific ability.’
So, in a way, it was a probability problem.
When viewed from that perspective, it became simple.
‘The water-drinking hippo probably fulfills only 50% of my requirements.’
Raciel reached out for the second card. His heart raced as if he were gambling. He touched the card.
Ding dong!
[You have chosen Candidate 2: <Aah, dying again ㅠㅠ>]
A message popped up.
The selected card began to radiate with a bright glow.
Whoa!
Then the card flipped over.
On the back, a black silhouette was etched. It appeared flat and round, with something fluttering, like wings. The silhouette started shining brightly.
Fizzle! Fzzt!
Sparks erupted from the card as a magic circle activated, and a new creature emerged. In that moment, something burst out of the card.
Pzzt!
A baseball-sized lump flew out with a shockwave.
“Boop!”
“What?”
Raciel instinctively caught it with both hands. It was a new Phantom Beast that had come into existence through his choice. First, he examined its appearance.
“This is… Phoenix… Sunfish?”
Raciel murmured, almost unconsciously.
(To be Continued)
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