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Chapter 103: Handling the Orb of Death | The Realism of Class Mechanics in Another World
🕑 Added 2025-05-16 15:50:03 +0000 UTCThe class information for [Cursed Knight] was so impressive that Lyle couldn't help but read it several times over.
This is powerful. Insanely powerful!
Just from reading the description, Lyle could tell how strong the class was.
He had known that even among classes of the same tier, there were differences in power. But he hadn't expected the gap to be this wide. Up until now, he'd thought his [Magic Swordsman] class was pretty decent—especially with that Mana Infusion passive, which had been quite handy for alchemy and scroll crafting.
But compared to passives like "Complete Curse Immunity" and "Dark Attribute Resistance I"…
Now that's what a real passive looks like!
And let's not even talk about the class skills, which came preloaded with negative status effects.
As for the one drawback—"Restless Soul"—Lyle didn't think it was much of a problem. It wasn't like he had a lot of gear to begin with. Not even a halfway decent set of armor.
Lounging on the soft bed, Lyle sat cross-legged and, with a mere thought, conjured a dark mist-like energy from the center of his palm.
"So this is the power of a curse, huh?"
He studied the shadowy energy swirling in his palm. It had that same eerie, hair-raising sensation he'd felt when Leinas had used her curse powers. The energy was unmistakably the same.
Only, his version felt… deeper. Richer, somehow.
And no trouble controlling it either.
Lyle could feel the cursed energy moving in perfect sync with his will. It was smooth, effortless, like moving a finger.
With a flicker of thought, the black mist dispersed, vanishing like it had never existed.
"Completely controllable. Easy to summon, easy to retract."
He absently reached up to touch his cheek, frowning. "And no skin rot either…"
Unlike Leinas, whose half-decayed face could send people fleeing faster than a plague warning, Lyle's complexion remained perfectly normal.
That meant Leinas's rotting face wasn't just a side effect of being a [Cursed Knight].
Lyle narrowed his eyes in thought. From what he recalled, Leinas had only become a [Cursed Knight] after getting hit by a dying curse from some special monster during a territory purge.
The curse had disfigured her face—and somehow triggered the class change.
A special monster, huh?
Now that got his attention.
Was it really possible to gain a high-tier class just by being cursed by some random dying beast?
And judging from the records, that monster couldn't have been that strong. Leinas had killed it, after all—and even now, her strength was only around the Bronze Mountain tier at best.
There had to be more to the story. Some unknown trigger. A hidden mechanic he hadn't uncovered yet.
He took a deep breath, filing the mystery away for later. Definitely worth investigating. Could be a major clue.
But for now—time to deal with the cursed artifact.
Lyle's eyes gleamed as he softly chanted:
"Undying Will!"
A faint shimmer of magical light enveloped him as he boosted his mental resistance.
Then, with a casual gesture, he reached into the void and summoned the Orb of Death into his hand.
And then—
"Human! What have you done?!"
"Where is the great will of Death?!"
"This is not a graveyard! What kind of place is this?!"
"Death is eternal! Only the dead know life's final peace!"
"Embrace death!"
"…"
"Do you seek power? Do you wish to become strong?!"
An instant cacophony of voices exploded in his mind. It was like a thousand bees were having an argument in his skull. A headache-inducing mess of whispers, shouts, and ominous declarations about death.
Lyle didn't flinch. His expression remained blank as he stared down at the orb.
He waited.
And waited.
But the racket in his head didn't stop. In fact, it only got louder.
No effect? His brow furrowed deeper.
By all rights, the [Cursed Knight]'s passives should have suppressed the artifact's effects—or at least muted the orb a bit.
But nothing had changed.
Wait a second…
Lyle's gaze sharpened. He opened up the class info again and studied the "Restless Soul" passive more closely.
His eyes lit up.
Woosh!
Dark, cursed energy erupted from his body, swirling around him like a storm. The moment the aura made contact with the Orb of Death, the artifact pulsed with a cold, metallic glow, like blackened steel.
"AAAHH! What is this?!"
The orb shrieked in pain—or at least its sentient voice did.
The artifact flared with magical light, desperately trying to resist.
But the cursed energy was relentless. The cold glow on the orb's surface began melting away like snow under a summer sun.
Then, with a single thought, Lyle withdrew the cursed energy.
The screaming stopped. The orb fell silent once more.
Just like with [Magic Swordsman], the new class came with a few… interesting quirks.
His theory had been right. The "Restless Soul" passive only activated while using cursed abilities.
No curse power? No side effects.
That kind of flexibility didn't exist back in the game. This world… was playing by different rules.
He suddenly remembered one of the 41 Supreme Beings from the Great Tomb—Ulbert—the one with the [World Disaster] class. That class had a passive that doubled mana cost, no way around it in the game.
But when Ainz crossed over to this world, he found that even that kind of passive could be toggled off.
So I can do the same? Lyle grinned.
"Mana Infusion—Curse!"
Lyle focused his dual-class synergy, channeling curse energy into the Orb of Death the same way he used to infuse magic into gear.
"Human!!"
"Who are you…?"
"How can this world contain… a power greater than death…?!"
The orb screeched in agony, its voice cracking under the strain.
The Next Morning
Lyle carefully withdrew the cursed energy and inspected the now inert black stone in his hand. He exhaled in relief.
"Done."
———
Item: Magical Artifact · Special Craft · Orb of Death
Rank: High (Lv 30–40)
Effect: Energy Core (0/280)
—Passive:
Negative Energy Drain: Absorbs negative-type energy to refill the energy core.
—Active:
Summon Bone Dragon: Consumes 100 energy.
———
The reappraisal of the Orb of Death revealed drastic changes. Its energy capacity had dropped from 300 to 280, and its formerly intimidating array of four passive traits and four active skills had been reduced to a single one of each.
Still listed as "High Tier," but Lyle guessed its true value had taken a nosedive—at least two full grades.
"It used to be a top-tier artifact for necromancers. Now it's basically a cursed paperweight."
"But for me? It's just right."
He hadn't slept a wink all night, yet he felt more energized than ever.
Morning already?
He turned toward the window, pocketed the orb, and got up. It was time to head downstairs.
Someone else had probably been losing sleep over this too.
Sure enough, when Lyle stepped into the first-floor lounge, he saw them.
Leinas and Imina. Already there. Waiting.
They sat on opposite couches. Leinas wore a pleasant smile, but her eyes were unfocused, clearly distracted.
Imina had her arms crossed, leaning against the sofa, shooting occasional dagger-like glances at Leinas. Her amber eyes radiated suspicion.
The moment Lyle appeared on the stairs, both women turned toward him.
Leinas stood up immediately, anticipation flickering in her gaze—hopeful, but clearly afraid to be disappointed.
Before she could speak—
"Two options," Lyle said plainly, continuing his descent without missing a beat.
