Frustration

"Who the heck are you?"

The atmosphere became tense.

George coldly looked at Emma, who was almost his height, directly in the eyes.

"I'm George Foster, your guide to Frozen Lake 52."

"Don't play dumb. You know that's not what I'm asking about."

"Then what are you talking about?"

"Earlier that day, when I went into the interference barrier to escape the landslides, I saw your [Aura] escaping the top of the castle."

"Yes, I had to use it to intimidate my enemy since they were much stronger." George did not lie.

"That [Aura] is way stronger than a low-grade skill and it was full of demonic energy. I want you to answer me truthfully. Are you a demon in disguise?"

"You've used [Clairvoyance] on me several times, so you should know the answer."

Emma narrowed her eyes as she released some of her magical aura.

The atmosphere quickly became volatile.

"So you even know that huh?"

"It's easy for me to feel if someone is scanning me when my skill is at max." George ignored her aura.

"Even if that's the case, how do I know you're not using some kind of item or skill to conceal your real stats? What are you hiding?"

"I'm not really hiding anything. What you see are my real stats. I'm about as physically strong as it says. I'll demonstrate as an example."

*Thump!*

George punched the tree next to him and it did not even shake. His knocked had turned blood red and there was even some scrapping. The pain did not seem to bother him though.

"If you are human, then what the heck is that demonic energy? Why is your [Aura] so powerful?"

"Do you really want to know?" George stepped forward and his iris' began to glow a demonic red. "Are you willing to drag yourself and your members into my own personal matters?"

Emma gulped and retracted her magical aura. For some reason, he felt incredibly intimidating.

"T-That's not what I'm saying. I just wanted you to tell me a little more about yourself so we can trust each other a little better. A party operates better when the members know each other."

"I hate to break it to you, but I'm not a part of your party. I'm a guide. My job is to bring you to Frozen Lake 52. I was paid to do so. That's all there is to it."

"I mean group, if we are to help each other. Look, I just want to know about your skill and that demonic energy." Emma felt a little sad the way he put it but did not express her opinion.

"I can tell you a little, but only if you promise to stop prying into my life and not tell anybody."

"I promise!"

"Swear on it."

"I, Emma Alston, swear to stop prying into George's life."

"*sigh* Fine, where to start?" He muttered to himself.

"Well, I can I can tell you a little about the demonic energy. It's the remnants of Diabolus. I ate so much demonic fruits and meats that it's impossible to remove from my body. It merges with my [Aura] whenever I release it and means I can't eat foods with magical energy or my body rejects it."

"Doesn't demonic energy corrupt your mind and body? How are you sane and your body not falling apart?" Emma curiously asked.

"One of my only friends made this ring for me." George held up the ring on his ring index finger before continuing:

"The ring is why I have [Mental Clarity] as a buff and [Coldness] and [Indifference] as debuffs. It suppresses the passive effects of demonic energy contamination. However, because the contamination has corrupted my soul, the ring has to suppress a large portion of my emotions and impulses. Otherwise they trigger the suppressed energy and cause a positive feedback loop."

'So that's why he's always so cold and indifferent? It also makes sense why his [Magus Node] in his stats is [0/0] and he has no [Magus Types]. They were destroyed by the demonic magus.'

Emma's face turned slightly grim upon listening to this. It turns out George has way more problems then she imagined.

"So you go insane if you take off the ring?"

"I have too much demonic energy within me, so I would instantly go crazy." George took off the ring, causing Emma to tense up.

"The ring is luckily bound to my soul, so it's effects will continue even at a far distance. It'll teleport to me if necessary, but only I can take the ring off willfully."

George put the ring on and continued:

"My [Aura] skill is so powerful because I upgraded the skill. Have you heard of an [Upgrade Stone] before?"

"[Upgrade Stone]?!" Emma shouted in shock, almost blowing George's hair back.

"Judging from your reaction, I guess you know about it."

"Why wouldn't I?! They're among the list of the rarest items in the world!"

...

An [Upgrade Stone] is a round stone-like object which has the ability to upgrade any skill in the world. The number of times a skill can be upgraded depends on the grade of the stone. A mystical-grade stone, for example, can upgrade a skill five times in a row.

However, even the lowest grade stones are extremely rare and priceless treasures.

The highest grade stone the empire supposedly possesses is a high-grade [Upgrade Stone] and a few lower grade stones. A divine-grade stone or above are unheard of and historical records of them appearing cannot be verified.

The highest ranked dungeons can produce them, but they are still extremely rare and highly likely to be rare. The other method are through the Summoned, who play a lottery system upon arrival which grants them a random skill and item to help in their survival. But getting a stone through that method is also just as rare and most would not reveal if they had one.

...

"Y-You upgraded [Aura] with an [Upgrade Stone]?!" Emma's composure collapsed as explosions rocked her mind. She almost collapsed and vomited blood as her jaw fell to the ground.

If word got out that someone used a precious [Upgrade Stone] on a low-grade skill like [Aura], chaos would descend upon the empire. Adventurers would be screaming in agony and guild elders would cough blood. Noble families would cry money out of their eyes. The ancestors of everyone would be turning over in their graves.

Everyone would hunt down such a person for wasting an [Upgrade Stone] like that.

"I-Impossible... y-you wasted an [Upgrade Stone] like that..." Emma was shaking like she had a seizure as foam came out of her mouth. Bernice would probably die of laughter if she saw her friend in this state.

"Are they that rare?" George tilted his head in bemusement while also amused at her reaction.

"P-Please don't talk anymore! I'm going to die!" Emma felt like knives were being stabbed into her stomach every time he casually spoke as if they were as common as trees.

"Well, how else was I to survive in Diabolus? It's the only skill I have. The buffed stats I got from the skill prevented my body from exploding with all that demonic energy in me."

George waited for Emma to calm down and get up. Even after all that, she looked at him like it was crazy. She tried to regain her composure but the attempt was pathetic.

"*Ahem!* S-Sorry, I lost my composure. You were saying?"

"Again, how could I have survived there? I would have died if I didn't upgrade it."

"That's not even the important part! Where did you even get an [Upgrade Stone]?!"

"That... I can't tell you."

"Why didn't you invest attribute points into your stats?!"

"Are you even listening? I was in Diabolus. There's no guilds there."

"But still... an [Upgrade Stone]. At least tell me the grade." Sorrow filled her face.

Having an [Upgrade Stone] is something wars would be fought over, a priceless treasure which can make weak skills powerful and powerful skills even more powerful. Even a justice-filled person like Emma would almost die for one.

"It's gone now, so there's no point in knowing its grade. Moving on now, is there anything else you'd like to know about me?"

"Fine! What about your level one! Why are you at that level still?!"

"I told you already. It's atonement."

"Oh... yeah."

"Anything else?"

"Why do you have no class?!"

"I cannot say. Anything else?"

"Why don't you have a citizen identification?!"

"I cannot say. Anything else?"

Emma was about to pull her hair out in frustration.

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