Episode 7
Another Transmutation (2)
A cramped studio apartment.
A suffocating silence filled the air.
‘Still no words.’
Though one might expect him to break the silence first by now, Si-mun said nothing. He simply gazed at the Philosopher's Stone maintaining its quiet vigil at the center of his chest.
‘Well, it must be conflicted.’
It had only been a day since the Philosopher's Stone merged with him. Yet in that short time, Si-mun had already discerned its considerable intelligence—which explained why he understood its prolonged silence.
‘Human transmutation is alchemy’s greatest taboo.’
The Emerald Tablet containing alchemical knowledge primarily focused on creating elixirs and the Philosopher's Stone. But it also held warnings about forbidden practices in its margins.
‘When I first obtained the Emerald Tablet, those warnings seemed laughable.’
Even after the world formally became an Arena, most players still treated Galaxy Arena as a game—only now with actual lives at stake. Si-mun had been no different. He’d skimmed past the Tablet’s cautions about human transmutation, and by the time nations began collapsing, he’d forgotten them entirely while obsessing over elixir production.
But now—
‘Not anymore.’
He knew chimeras were the iconic byproduct of human transmutation. They’d frequently appeared as Arena monsters. The Philosopher's Stone was likely keeping silent to avoid such outcomes.
Yet—
‘The same applies to modern science.’
Consider science purely as a murder tool—nothing matches its creative lethality. Human transmutation was no different. But if wielded for good? Just as science advanced 21st-century Earth, it could bring benefits here too.
Had the Stone read his mind?
Hmm.
After prolonged silence, the Philosopher's Stone finally resonated.
“Will you use this solely for good?”
Si-mun answered plainly:
“That’s the intention. I aim to strengthen myself. But—”
He could’ve offered a sweet lie. Instead:
“If cornered, I can’t make promises. I have obligations.”
He withheld nothing—not from guilt nor fear of the Stone’s mind-reading.
“Philosopher's Stone, you alone know of my regression.”
Regression wasn’t cheat-like bliss. Future knowledge and experience meant little without the will to act—a burden heavier than most realized.
“You’re my sole anchor in difficult times.”
Thus, he refused to deceive it.
“You understand. We endured that future together.”
Hmm.
The Stone’s resonance wavered uncertainly—hesitating. Si-mun waited without pressing.
‘If refused, so be it. Human transmutation isn’t the only path.’
Merely the fastest. He knew alternative training methods from his past life to compensate for physical weaknesses anyway.
After a brief silence—
Hmm.
The Stone pulsed clearly. Si-mun smiled at the pure resonance from his chest.
“Thank you for understanding.”
Hmm.
“I’m fully aware of human transmutation’s risks.”
He’d superficially acknowledged its ties to dark magic.
But—
“Wait—that’s not the issue?”
The Stone’s warning concerned something entirely different.
Hmm...
“An antithesis to the Emerald Tablet? Explain.”
Hmm.
“You mean there’s another artifact compiling that knowledge?”
Hmm.
At the Stone’s confirmation, Si-mun blinked dumbly before nodding.
‘Makes sense. The Emerald Tablet never covered human transmutation—only warned against it.’
He rested his chin on his hand, recalling his first encounter with the Tablet:
[Testing ownership qualifications for Emerald Tablet.]
How could he forget? High-tier items often tested users, but this was different.
[Ownership confirmed. Emerald Tablet recognizes you as its master.]
Only a static-like tingle followed. Afterwards, the Tablet simply displayed elixir and Philosopher's Stone recipes on its smooth surface—visible only to him.
‘Thanks to its anti-theft measures.’
As a Level 1, Si-mun retained ownership not through connections to top players like Kim Si-hyuk or Go Mal-suk, but through the Tablet’s binding and thief-incinerating protections.
‘Or more accurately, it kills unqualified holders.’
Chilling in hindsight. Had he failed the qualification test, he’d have burned black like those thieves. Sheer luck.
Realization struck.
“Philosopher's Stone—you’re worried I lack qualifications for this transmutation.”
Hmm.
The affirmative pulse made Si-mun bite his lip.
‘The Emerald Tablet judged qualifications despite only holding alchemical knowledge. A human transmutation artifact would certainly do the same.’
‘Sigh. Should I abandon this?’
No need to gamble stats. With efficient training methods, he could compensate through effort.
Then—
Hmm!
The Stone interrupted.
“What? You can mitigate qualification penalties?”
Since when did it have that function?
‘Though it minimized rebound before...’
After brief deliberation, Si-mun asked:
“Can you prevent death?”
Hmm.
“Good.”
He nodded.
“As an official player, I can recover from anything short of death.”
Having cleared the tutorial, he could access player-exclusive hospitals capable of healing post-tutorial injuries.
‘Worst case, I’ll ask Si-hyuk.’
Though now a Level 3 alchemist scraping by in this studio, his brother currently dominated the upper ranks. As the Kim family’s legitimate heir, his medical resources were unparalleled.
‘How I’ve changed.’
People transform after facing death. The him of old would never have considered his brother’s aid.
Si-mun glanced at the stained mirror by the wardrobe.
‘How foolish I was.’
Family should’ve been his support. Why had he stubbornly struggled alone?
For being a 21st-century illegitimate child?
For resenting his brother’s rising fortunes versus his own decline?
‘All of it, probably.’
Only in his past life’s final years had he gained perspective. Now, at 28, even recalling these memories pained him.
“That’s over now.”
Past is past. Common youthful anguish.
With a bitter smile, Si-mun opened his status window.
“Let’s allocate remaining stats to Transmutation Energy first...”
Higher energy meant better transmutation yields. He raised it from 11 to 13 before closing the window.
“Philosopher's Stone, can you show me the artifact’s rough form?”
Hmm.
“Just a color swap from the Emerald Tablet? Understood.”
He visualized the Emerald Tablet’s jade-green stele—its phone-like interface allowing convenient knowledge access. Maintaining that structure, he altered the color to dark purple as instructed.
Drawing transmutation energy from his chest, he flicked his fingers—
Snap.
[Insufficient Transmutation Energy for required equivalence.]
The expected message appeared. Unfazed, Si-mun waited.
[Philosopher's Stone demands 10,000 Achievement Points to compensate.]
[Accept? (Yes/No)]
Like during Astrape’s creation, the Stone naturally requested points. Confidently reaching for “Yes,” Si-mun froze.
“Wait—10,000?!”
He rubbed his eyes vigorously. The number remained.
“Ten thousand?! Stone, is this real?!”
Hmm.
“And this is ‘reasonable’?!”
Astrape cost 500! At the Stone’s confirmation, Si-mun laughed hollowly. After saving 12,300 points, this massive bleed hurt.
“Sigh. No choice.”
No gain without risk. Safety-first mindsets wouldn’t have led him to human transmutation.
Selecting “Yes”:
[10,000 Achievement Points deducted.]
Familiar energy pooled at his fingertips, compensating his lack. Flicking them—
Whoosh.
Dark-purple energy swirled around him like coiling serpents, chillingly wrapping his hand.
Crunch.
Flesh—or something akin to it—crushed audibly. The grotesque sound crescendoed until forming a square object.
“This...”
Identical to the Emerald Tablet except in color. No—one difference remained.
“It’s alive.”
The stele pulsed like veins or a heartbeat. Though shaped as stone, this creation might as well be living.
[Unregistered mythical artifact created.]
[+5,000 Achievement Points.]
[Title: Pioneer of Alchemy has grown.]
[New option added to title.]
‘The title leveled up?’
Despite 15 kills and 100% zone control previously failing to advance it, creating this artifact triggered growth.
Pioneer of Alchemy - Growth Type
Awarded to alchemists who create all mythical artifacts.
Slight bonus to all transmutations
5% reduced Transmutation Energy cost
“Impressive.”
A 5% reduction seemed modest, but percentage-based efficiency scaled powerfully at higher levels. Future growth could increase this—making it broken long-term.
‘Mal-suk wasn’t exaggerating about growth-type titles.’
As Si-mun smiled contentedly—
[The uncreated god-item’s birth enrages the Black Goat constellation beyond the veil.]
[The Black Goat’s gaze widens at your lingering traces.]
[Instead of wrath, the Black Goat expresses keen interest.]
‘Black Goat constellation? Never heard of it.’
Even in his past life during formal Arenas, this name hadn’t surfaced.
‘Beyond the veil... Could my title be why?’
Bearer of the Outer Gaze lacked stated effects but clearly attracted Olympian constellations before.
‘Regardless, better than anger.’
Though formal Arenas hadn’t begun, angering godlike beings remained dangerous.
[Galaxy Arena’s unregistered constellation, Black Goat, notices you.]
[Your consecutive unbelievable achievements prompt Galaxy Arena’s council to discuss Player Kim Si-mun.]
Si-mun’s eyes narrowed.
‘Consecutive... Meaning I’ve triggered this before?’
Not with Astrape—Olympus’s constellations showed interest then, but no system messages.
‘Must be from my final transmutation in the past life.’
The one that restored his mana and regression—using his life as equivalent exchange.
‘Now that I think, losing my senses then wasn’t backlash—it was my life itself being consumed.’
That transmutation must’ve earned him 1,000,000 Achievement Points.
But—
“Current priorities matter.”
Past mysteries solved were just that—past. Si-mun focused on the squirming dark-purple stele before him.
As its information surfaced, his eyes widened.
“This…”
