Black Market (3)
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BOOM—!
The deafening explosion shattered the stillness of the Black Market, sending a violent tremor through the ground beneath Lyrium's feet.
The sound echoed down the narrow alleyways, and for a moment, everything around him seemed to freeze.
Panic spread like wildfire among the market-goers as the shockwave rippled through the street.
Lyrium's heart raced, but his mind was focused—there was only one thing he could do.
He pushed forward, darting through the bustling crowds of the Black Market, every fiber of his being screaming for him to reach the source of the explosion.
The skill store.
The shop where he had just acquired his new skill, Ruler's Loathing, was under threat, and he had to be sure that Victor, the middle-aged man who had helped him, was safe.
'Should I use this crystal right now?' Lyrium thought, his grip tightening around the red crystal in his left hand as he continued to sprint. 'Just in case, should I activate it now?'
His body moved almost instinctively, his feet pounding the cobblestone road as the image of Victor flashed in his mind.
Despite the shock of the explosion and the chaos surrounding him, Lyrium kept his focus. He glanced at the crystal in his hand, feeling the weight of the decision.
It wasn't the right time to test a new skill in the heat of battle, but the situation was quickly becoming more dangerous.
He had no choice.
As his thoughts raced, Lyrium began pouring his mana into the red crystal.
The crystal's surface began to glow faintly at first, its light pulsing slowly as the energy from his body flowed into it.
Within moments, the glow intensified, lighting up the street with an eerie red hue.
Then, with a sudden flare of brilliance, the crystal disintegrated, its particles flowing toward his belly button like a stream of liquid light.
["Congratulations, new skill obtained"]
["New Skill: Ruler's Loathing has been added"]
The words flashed before his eyes, but Lyrium barely had time to process them before a new notification popped up, outlining the details of his newly acquired skill.
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[Status Window]
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[Name: Lyrium Blackwood]
[Age: 16]
[Race: Human]
[Rank: D-]
[Talent Limit: Error]
[Skill Passive: Unknown Lock§]
[Skill: Ruler's Loathing]
[Skill Detail: ⟩Name: Ruler's Loathing⟨]
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• Upon using the skill, the user will temporarily be in a state where their instincts are heightened, causing their body to move without conscious control.
• The user will be fixated on a single task, completely ignoring everything else in their surroundings.
• Emotions, feelings, and nervousness are suppressed, while intelligence is boosted, allowing the user to think carefully and logically before acting.
• When the skill ends, the user will undergo mana fluctuations, which occur due to the overreliance on instinct during the skill's activation.
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⟩Duration: 15 Minutes
⟩Mana Fluctuations/After Effects: 3 Minutes
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[Sword Art: None]
[Elements: None]
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⟩Strength: C+
⟩Speed: D-
⟩Agility: D
⟩Stamina: E+
⟩Durability: D+
⟩Intelligence: B+
⟩Instincts: D+
⟩Charm: D
⟩Mana Points: E+
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[Status Window End]
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Lyrium's eyes briefly scanned the window before he tucked it away in his mind.
As the information settled in, he felt the first stirrings of the skill's power awakening within him.
The sudden surge of confidence was overwhelming, and yet there was a nagging sense of unease.
The aftereffects of the skill—those painful three minutes of temporary paralysis—loomed large in his mind.
Still, he had no time to waste.
He was closer to the skill store now, and Victor's safety was his primary concern.
Lyrium had no way of knowing what he was walking into, but he knew one thing for sure: it wasn't going to be easy.
Suddenly, a loud clank! echoed above him, followed by a shower of glass particles falling from the ceiling.
Lyrium's gaze snapped upward as the door to the skill shop burst open.
Black smoke billowed out, obscuring his vision and choking the air around him.
He coughed, the acrid scent of burning material filling his nostrils as he barreled into the building.
"Cough! Mr… cough! Victor! Cough! Cough!"
He shouted into the smoke, but his voice was lost in the thick clouds.
Despite the darkness, Lyrium's eyes adjusted quickly, and he could just make out figures moving within.
He spotted Victor, the middle-aged man, engaged in a frantic battle with a group of attackers.
They wore black masks and matching cloaks, each of them bearing a symbol of a chameleon on their chest.
Lyrium's heart sank.
He could tell immediately that Victor was struggling.
The masked figures had already taken several of his higher-ranked skills, and the man was clearly on the back foot.
Lyrium didn't hesitate for a second.
He rushed forward, heart hammering in his chest, and drew his sword from its sheath.
He couldn't let Victor fall.
Not now.
'Focus.' Lyrium thought, his mind clearing as he prepared to engage. 'I've got to help him, no matter what.'
As he approached, he saw a shadow flicker behind Victor, a black-masked figure raising their blade to strike. Without thinking, Lyrium charged forward, positioning himself between the masked figure and Victor.
'Clang!'
The sharp sound of metal clashing filled the room as Lyrium intercepted the blow, his sword meeting the masked figure's katana with a force that vibrated through his bones.
The masked figure was powerful, but Lyrium had trained for years in his world's Kendo tournaments.
Despite the unfamiliarity of the sword style, he was more than capable of holding his own in a fight.
He had been a world champion of Kendo in his previous world after all.
But he knows that it was a piece of cake for the people in this world.
Victor looked over his shoulder, his eyes wide with surprise.
"What are you doing here, kid?" he exclaimed, his voice filled with both disbelief and gratitude.
"I heard the explosion. Had to check on you," Lyrium replied, his voice steady despite the tension in the air.
Before he could continue, a vicious swing from another masked figure came at him from the side.
'Swish!'
Lyrium barely had time to react as the sword came at him. It was aimed directly at his abdomen, and there was no time to dodge.
The blade cut through the air with terrifying speed.
Instinctively, Lyrium pushed his body to the left, feeling the blade graze past him, the cold steel barely missing his torso.
'Too close…' Lyrium thought, gritting his teeth.
He tightened his grip on the sword and prepared for the next attack, but the black-masked figure was relentless.
The masked swordsman was using a sophisticated sword style, something that Lyrium couldn't quite recognize.
Despite his experience, he was pushed onto the defensive.
Victor was still fighting off multiple attackers of his own, and there was no way for him to assist Lyrium.
In that moment, the thought of his new skill crossed Lyrium's mind.
'Damn, it's not enough…'
His grip on the sword tightened, frustration building within him.
He had trained for years, and yet it wasn't enough.
He was still being pushed back.
He could feel the pressure mounting.
The sweat on his forehead, the fear gnawing at the back of his mind.
He knew that if he didn't act soon, he would be overwhelmed.
'I have no choice,' Lyrium thought, clenching his teeth. 'I'll use it.'
Without another thought, he activated the skill in his mind.
'Skill: Ruler's Loathing. Activate!'
A screen popped up in front of him, confirming that the skill had been activated.
[Skill: Ruler's Loathing has been Activated]
[Duration: 14:59]
The transformation was immediate.
Lyrium's eyes became colder, his body moving without hesitation.
The world around him seemed to slow as the skill took hold.
His breathing deepened, and all his emotions faded away. The panic, the fear, the uncertainty—they were all gone.
In their place was pure focus, a razor-sharp concentration on the task at hand.
He could feel the instinct inside him surge to the forefront of his mind, his body moving before he even realized what he was doing.
The black-masked figure, who had been preparing to strike, suddenly froze.
A chill ran down their spine as they realized they were no longer in control of the fight.
Lyrium's presence alone seemed to instill fear in them.
"Death…" Lyrium murmured in a cold, detached voice, his gaze locked on the masked figure.
There was no emotion in his voice, no hesitation, only a singular focus on the task ahead.
The masked figure charged, but Lyrium was already a step ahead.
His body moved without thinking, his sword flashing in the dim light.
'Click—!'
In an instant, the black maskman's head slid clean off his shoulders, his body collapsing to the floor with a sickening
'Thud—!'
Lyrium stood over him, his sword still trembling slightly from the force of the blow.
The room was silent except for the sound of Lyrium's steady breathing.
'Ha…' He exhaled, his chest rising and falling slowly. He had done it.
He had won.
Victor was still battling outside the shop, unaware of what had just transpired.
Lyrium stood motionless for a moment, staring down at the lifeless body on the floor.
His mind felt detached from the violence, as if he were watching someone else's actions.
He blinked, his vision briefly flickering as the aftermath of the skill's effects began to take hold.
[Task Completed, Skill, Ruler's Loathing has been deactivated]
[Mana fluctuation will start in 3]
[2]
[1]
[0]
Lyrium's body stiffened, his legs suddenly growing weak as the effects of the skill wore off.
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