SCCP CH 03

Chapter 3 – Hidden Trait

‘Kranol Wizard always brings disaster wherever he goes.’

‘Wherever he is, he causes massive fear and catastrophe.’

‘Because of that, he is always hated, everywhere.’

Disaster Kranol.

Hated Kranol.

Kranol, loathed by all.

These were the grand titles given to Kranol by the end of the story.

The reason humanity isolated him in such a depressing way was simple:
His character was written as a person who was indiscriminate everywhere.

It was also why he later wiped out millions of innocent people on the continent.

“I’m doomed.”

The moment Kranol read his status window, he felt dizzy.

Originally, his hidden trait wasn’t supposed to awaken until the end of the story.
But because of that baby dragon’s interference, the timing got pushed forward.
Now, Kranol had become a walking, living nuclear bomb.

“No. I have to die quickly.”
The current protagonist couldn’t stop a fully awakened Kranol.
If he lost control due to worsening madness, a catastrophe would follow.

Kranol quickly looked around.

He saw the poisonous herb he had just vomited.

“I already threw it up, but if I swallow it again…”
It might be enough to stop his heart.

Just as he was reaching for it—

“Kyaa!”
The baby dragon hurriedly breathed out fire.

Its white flame burned the herb to ashes.

Kranol frowned.
“What the hell are you doing…?”

Now, even his last chance at suicide was gone.

Why was that baby dragon so obsessed with stopping his death?

He looked around—
No one was nearby. The street was deserted.

“Baby dragon.”

He had no choice.
With bloodshot eyes, Kranol growled:

“Kill me.”

“Kyaaa!”

But the golden baby dragon shook its head hard.
Tears welled up in its eyes.
As if to say, “I’ll never let you die!”

Kranol was irritated.

“If I don’t die now, millions of people will die. So hurry up and—”

Just then, the baby dragon spread its wings.

Kranol thought it was just trying to threaten him again, like back in the decayed forest.
But then—
A crack opened in the air, and something dropped out.

“Ah.”
Even in his dazed state, Kranol’s eyes widened.

That was the dimensional storage that only gold emperor dragons could use.

A magical subspace that could store or retrieve anything.

And what came out of it was shocking—

A sturdy, clear bottle filled with a golden liquid.

“That’s… no way. A Golden Elixir?”

But this wasn’t any ordinary potion.

It was a unique-grade legendary elixir, one of the rarest in the entire continent.

“You can only get this after defeating the volume 1 final boss…”

Yet here it was. The baby dragon had one.

And it didn’t stop there.

It picked up the elixir with its tiny paws… and handed it to Kranol.

“Kyaaa!”

“…You’re giving this to me?”

The baby dragon nodded energetically.

Kranol was stunned.
Was this tiny creature out of its mind?

Didn’t it understand the value of a unique-grade item?

But—

“Gulp.”
Now wasn’t the time to think about that.

Without hesitation, Kranol took the elixir and drank it all.

[You drank the Golden Elixir.]
[You’ve acquired the trait: Heavenly Martial Body (天武肢体).]
[All diseases and curses in your body are healed.]

Kranol felt a flicker of hope…

But—

[Failure!]
[This madness cannot be cured with this alone.]
However, the severe symptoms have been significantly reduced.

…It didn’t work.

The Golden Elixir was amazing, but it wasn’t a cure for all diseases.

Diseases like “corpse sickness” or “madness” were too unique and serious.

Maybe the baby dragon knew this, and that’s why it gave it to Kranol instead of drinking it itself.

“Haa… haa…”

Still, color returned to Kranol’s face.
His thirst for blood eased, and the intense headaches and nosebleeds calmed down.

“It’s not a full cure… but this is manageable.”

He got up, his body much lighter now.

“So this is the power of a Unique-grade potion…”

The headache was still there, but his body felt under control again.

“Still… why did this creature save me?”

Could it really be just gratitude for saving it in the forest?

“But dragons don’t repay kindness… right?”

In the original story, they were arrogant and aloof beings.

Maybe it hadn’t developed that personality yet since it was still a baby.

“Kyaa?”
The baby dragon approached carefully, sniffed him, and gently tapped the blood on his clothes.

Kranol opened his mouth to reassure it.

“Thanks. You saved my life.”

He had nearly caused mass death in a city.
So he felt genuine gratitude.

He even reached out to pat its head.

But then—

“Kyaaaang!”

Suddenly, the baby dragon angrily smacked his hand away.
As if scolding him for not valuing his life.

Kranol paused—
Then smirked a little.

It was funny seeing the little thing get mad after rushing over to help him.

“What are you, a chubby kitten?”

He muttered to himself.

“Kyaaa?!”

The baby dragon gasped in shock, eyes filling with tears again.

“Oh, you don’t like being called fat?”

“Kyaa!”

Now it was pouting with puffed-up cheeks and turned away, flying off angrily.

Kranol watched it fly away…
And let out a soft chuckle.

“Ah.”
He just realized something.

That was the first time he had smiled—
Since being reincarnated into this body.

***

Later, even after nearly dying, Kranol felt something was off.

Like something invisible had been following him the whole time.

Lying in the inn after washing his blood-soaked body, he muttered:

“I heard baby dragon meat is really tasty.
would be a perfect dessert when I’m this hungry…”

“Kyaaaayaaaang!!”

“Hmm, so you really were following me.”

The baby dragon let out a frightened squeal, then quickly shut its mouth.
Maybe it saw Kranol as its savior.
It looked like it planned to keep following him around.

‘Surprisingly shy, huh.’
Maybe it didn’t want to draw attention.
The baby dragon usually stayed invisible while following him.
Well, as long as it wasn’t trying to attack or harm him, that was fine.

Kranol returned to the inn, changed into clean clothes,
and immediately headed out to report to the lord’s castle about the A-rank quest.

Birshi Territory.
Located near the central part of the continent, this place was no small countryside.
It was as big as a small city and had many active guilds.
Naturally, the lord of Birshi had many problems to deal with.

“So, you’re saying there wasn’t a decayed dragon after all?”
“Yes. It was caused by miasma seeping from the land. I survived by spraying holy water.”
“…That’s all?”
“Yes.”

The Lord of Birshi leaned on the armrest, silent for a while.
Eventually, he couldn’t hold back and shouted:

“Stop making excuses! Aren’t you the Mad Dog Kranol?!
You’re the one who finishes any quest, no matter how crazy they are, perfectly!”

“I don’t think my nickname really has much to do with that.”
Kranol rubbed his temples, clearly annoyed.

Whenever someone raised their voice, his headaches got worse.

Luckily, the lord soon calmed down and started thinking.

‘Eliminating the Decayed Dragon…
Even the capital rejected my requests to send investigation teams.’

The subordinates he sent all died, and even veteran mercenaries failed.

The rumors caused fewer travelers to visit the territory.
The decayed western zone had become a literal land of death.

‘If I could just open a route through the west,
Our territory could finally grow into a major trade hub.’

As someone invested in new trade routes, the lord was desperate.

So he decided to use Kranol however he could.

He spoke in a tempting voice:

“Kranol. Aren’t you tempted by the Sky Boots?
They’re unique-grade gear! Even if there’s no dragon,
I’ll reward you if you just purify the western area!”

It was the reward for completing the A-rank quest.
But Kranol’s expression didn’t change one bit.

“I’ve been wondering… Do you even have those boots?”

“……!”

The lord’s face twitched briefly but quickly returned to normal.

“What are you implying?
The mercenary guild wouldn’t post the quest without checking first!”

“Still, there are always tricks.
Like fake items that look real, or ones with usage limits.”

A unique-grade item? Yeah, right.
Even a golden elixir was something you’d be lucky to see once in your life.

There was no way he’d be rewarded with something that valuable
just for purifying a corrupted forest.

‘But still…’

Kranol looked at the lord quietly.

Birshi wasn’t a poor region.
Even if it wasn’t a real Unique-grade item,
He could still get something good out of this rich noble.

So Kranol licked his lips and said the following:

“If you’re worried about opening a trade route,
I might have a different solution.”

“Oh? What is it?”
The lord looked very interested.

But when Kranol explained, the lord was visibly disappointed.

“The Swirling Cavern?
You mean that dungeon way out in the wastelands?”

“Yes. If I go there, I can get an item to purify the western area.”

The lord laughed in disbelief.

“You must not know. That place is hit by disasters year-round.
The wastelands themselves are dangerous.
Even adventurers from around here avoid it.”

Kranol didn’t react.
He already knew everything.

The lord frowned and continued:

“Even for you, Mad Dog or not, it’s too dangerous.
That dungeon’s difficulty is far beyond anything around here.
And yet, you think you can conquer a disaster zone like that?”

Kranol nodded without hesitation.

Of course, he would go.
No one could stop him.

‘Because now he has Kranol Wizard’s hidden trait—Disaster Affinity.’

Disasters no longer threatened him.
Now, they were cash-making opportunities he had to chase.