“Hmm.”
Khan felt like it had been a while since he had returned to the sanctuary as he “opened” his eyes.
The S-rank skill, Karyan’s Eye.
In the world of Midland Quest, a skill bearing a God’s name is like a guarantee of exceptional performance, and this skill’s effect is the ability to see the “will” of the target. Based on Khan’s observations, this target isn’t limited to humans.
‘The proof lies right here.’
As he looked around the world through Karyan’s Eye, Khan noticed a palm-sized figure floating around him.
The green luminous being, shaped like a tiny fairy, was the wind spirit residing in the “Brooch of the Wind Spirit”.
“……?”
It seemed surprised that Khan could see it.
The wind spirit opened its mouth as if to say something but only mimed its speech while pointing at itself. Although Khan couldn’t hear a sound, he laughed at its gestures and lightly flicked his finger in its direction.
“……!”
The wind spirit flinched back at the harmless motion, only to realize it was unharmed. It then retaliated by stomping on Khan’s forehead with no real impact.
“I’ll let you out again later.”
Ignoring the spirit’s gentle stomps, Khan, murmuring to himself, stuffed the brooch and other magical items into one of Aecharis’s pouch.
‘I didn’t expect to be able to see spirits too.’
Indeed.
Being able to see spirits, normally invisible to anyone but elves, was entirely due to the effect of “Karyan’s Eye.”
While this skill was activated, it allowed Khan to visualize something indescribable—thoughts, intentions, and will—into a comprehensible visual form.
And the effectiveness of the eye wasn’t limited to humans; as long as the entity possessed intelligence or a sense of self, it was subject to this skill.
Furthermore, Khan had discerned three facts through experimentation.
Firstly, the interpretation of intent varies based on body parts and color.
The visualization at the center of the target’s chest indicates their current emotions. Through the forehead and eyes, Khan could perceive the intent they harbored towards him, with the intent’s nature varying by color.
For example, the red hue that colored Leniyar’s sword and body could be interpreted as anger or murderous intent. Meanwhile, the green that formed the wind spirit was likely indicative of goodwill or affection.
Secondly, even if the target couldn’t be seen with normal vision, their intent can be seen.
This means that even if a target is hidden in deep darkness, behind invisibility spells, or cloaking curses that obscure vision, as long as they are within the ‘eye’s’ range, their intent will be visible.
Going forward, assassins lurking in the shadows or mages hiding while preparing a surprise attack could be detected in advance through their intentions.
The third and final point is that the “scenery” viewed through these “eyes” varies from person to person. Although Khan had only Tarak as a point of comparison, the difference was evident.
Tarak, who had already awakened his senses through the Proof of Valor, said he couldn’t distinguish someone else’s emotions by color.
‘Whether it’s because the skill Tarak obtained is the A-rank Insight or due to individual differences… I’ll have to hear directly from the owner of this skill.’
With this thought, Khan directed his attention to the sanctuary…
Inspecting the entrance to the demonic realm with “Karyan’s Eye”, he stepped inside.
Wooowoooong.
By now, Khan was quite accustomed to the sensation of dimensional travel, and he quickly regained his normal senses, gazing up at the void. Even with Karyan’s Eye, he couldn’t see any colors.
‘As expected, there’s nothing visible here. Perhaps it’s a matter of mastering the skill better.’
Inspired by the phrase, “saw the will of the world” in the skill description, Khan had attempted to perceive any emotional hue in the void, but to no avail.
“You’ve gained the eyes!”
“So it appears.”
“Ha ha! As my son, this is only natural! Still, let’s test them out─!”
The man, who could easily be mistaken for a giant’s descendant rather than a barbarian, was the Great Warrior Gordi. His form distorted in place. Despite moving with an incredible speed that seemed incongruous with his size, Khan remained unperturbed.
Bang!
He simply waited for the Great Warrior’s fist to reach him and then took a step back. He moved just beyond the range outlined by the lines of intent.
The Great Warrior’s fist stopped right in front of his face. While the force displaced the air enough to sting his eyes slightly, Khan successfully reacted to what would have been an unstoppable blow with minimal movement.
“Hmm…? Your adaptation is faster than I expected! To use it this accurately from the start! Both I and Tarak took years to get used to these senses!”
The admiration in the Great Warrior’s large eyes was genuine, not just the biased praise of a father for his son.
‘They probably started with the A-rank Insight. I don’t know about now, though.’
In contrast, Khan had a racial bonus courtesy of the game system, which upgraded the skill by one tier, granting him Karyan’s Eye at S-rank right from the start.
The difference between the Great Warrior, Tarak, and Khan stemmed from this. Furthermore, the ability to control the skill via the game system also played a role.
“So, can you see these colors too? For me, emotions are revealed in colors. But Uncle Tarak said he doesn’t see that.”
“Colors? Hmm… No, I don’t see anything of the sort!”
Khan narrowed down the possibilities through the Great Warrior’s response. It seemed that A-rank Insight didn’t provide the ability to see emotional colors. The A-rank Insight is likely focused purely on combat applications.
“Well, just one piece of advice! Don’t believe these eyes are absolute!”
“Are there beings immune to it?”
“You’ll understand better by seeing it for yourself. Now, watch!”
Just then, the Great Warrior’s green intent expanded from lines to a plane, growing larger and larger. The size grew until it enveloped not just the Great Warrior but threatened to fill the entire sanctuary.
This was happening only within the conscious realm observed with “Karyan’s Eye,” but it sent shivers down Khan’s spine.
“This is…!”
“A transcendent’s will possesses real power! But even at a lower level, it’s still possible to wield it! For someone like me, it’s certainly achievable!”
The Great Warrior’s intent, now a massive hemisphere, covered the sanctuary, becoming so huge that it was hard to take in all at once. Only then did Khan begin to grasp the true monstrous power of the Great Warrior.
Not as an apostle of a God, but as a warrior who had achieved an unrivaled level of strength. It was perplexing why such a monster was tucked away in a remote place like Hoarfrost Gorge, seemingly wasting his time.
“In such a state, seeing and exploiting weaknesses or dodging isn’t possible!”
“It appears the fight wouldn’t even be feasible to begin with…”
“The strength of one’s power and the vastness of one’s consciousness might not align! Always train yourself to fight even without relying on these eyes!”
Even if the words didn’t immediately resonate, Khan understood what the Great Warrior was trying to demonstrate.
‘Don’t become overconfident.’
Khan realized that becoming too dependent on these eyes, which revealed the opponent’s intent, would eventually lead to a moment when he couldn’t fight effectively. This was the Great Warrior’s warning.
Khan expressed his gratitude sincerely, and the Great Warrior laughed heartily, giving him several hearty slaps on the back.
‘Damn, if this were a game, my HP would have taken a hit….’
Khan left the Great Warrior behind.
“When you go inside, Karyan will be waiting for you!”
Perhaps Karyan was allowing father and son to spend time together separately, as he hadn’t possessed the Great Warrior in this instance. If that were the case, Khan would have called it unnecessary consideration, but it didn’t seem to be the case.
‘… What is this?’
As Khan moved deeper into the sanctuary, something hummed in his mind. It was a sensation both familiar and inexplicably strange. Different from the malicious thoughts used by vengeful spirits.
『Come inside, young warrior.』
Before Khan could delve deeper into the peculiar sensation, the voice of Warrior God Karyan echoed, and his vision momentarily blurred.
Wooowoooong.
Once again, Khan felt the sensation of dimensional travel.
“This is the first time you’re seeing me like this, isn’t it?”
The non-echoing voice, characteristic of a transcendent, reached his ears. And as soon as Khan escaped the aftermath of dimensional travel, he turned to the direction of the voice and, astonished, opened his mouth.
“That appearance….”
There stood an ordinary human. No, calling him ordinary would be a misstatement.
“Are you… Karyan…?”
“Of course, it’s me. Who else would it be?”
“But your appearance… you’re not a barbarian?”
Standing there was an extremely handsome man.
With jet-black hair and confident, gray eyes that glimmered like ash, this man’s fair, unblemished skin and refined features resembled those of an imperial nobleman. A well-defined, masculine figure.
Unbelievably, the man with the identical voice of Warrior God Karyan burst into a hearty laugh.
“Surprised, are you? Well, my descendants didn’t inherit this magnificent appearance, unfortunately. Didn’t I tell you? Back in the day, I was quite the looker.”
Even his casual, cheeky tone was unmistakably Karyan’s. Yet, Khan struggled to accept him as Karyan, knowing him as a barbarian warrior.
No wonder.
‘Damn it, how did that pristine face devolve into looking like a gray orc!’
This was more of a devolution than an evolution. From the viewpoint of wild animals, growing larger and stronger might be seen as evolutionary adaptations for survival, but from a human perspective, it was nothing short of devolution.
It’s no wonder gamers often jest about looks determining performance.
Giving it some leeway. If one considers that a rugged appearance is the default for a barbarian warrior, it might just be accepted as such. However, if the ancestor of the clan, Karyan, looked like this, it was puzzling.
Yet, the shocking news didn’t end there.
“Of course, it’s only natural. The distinction of ‘barbarian’ was created by the modern humans of the continent. Originally, calling the descendants of an ancient imperial crown prince ‘barbarian’ doesn’t make any sense, does it?”
TL’s Corner:
Changed God of Warriors to Warrior God to better fit the context.