“Everything you see possesses a potential for a True affinity. This little spark might be hidden deep inside an entity’s soul, but trust me, it is there, waiting to be awakened. Now I know, I know. You will ask me, ‘If everyone can awaken a True affinity, then why do some people pursue false ones?’ The answer is simple and can be summed up into two words. Incompetence and impatience.”
–Central Academy, Ger
Leo tightened his grip around the shadow blade, letting the soft texture flow over his skin. Despite being nothing more than a semi-transparent material and weighing almost nothing, the weapon fit perfectly in his hand.
No surprise there. It is my shadow, after all. Still, it does feel a bit weird. He mused, using the blade to cut the air in front of him. I doubt it is as powerful as a standard weapon, but maybe it will help against those damned cats.
As he dismissed the blade, he let the shadows flow down his body and once again settle on the floor. His affinity-filled Essence fizzled out like a flame before disappearing completely. Really easy to control. I wonder…
Leo glanced at the darkness that covered almost the entire room and reached out with his hand toward the nearest shadow. Essence sparked underneath his skin and slowly flowed out, mixing with the foreign shadow.
And now to connect with… FUCK! He snapped his hand away, almost collapsing as the air was knocked out of his lungs.
For a moment, Leo had seen it all. Every room, every monster inside the building—nothing was hidden. Truly, it was almost like every single shadow inside the warehouse was within his grasp, showing him their secrets. Yet… As fast as the limited omnipresence came, it went away just as quickly, stealing most of his Essence away.
Shit. He groaned, grabbing his head in hopes of stopping the constant pounding. That was dumb. Maybe it could have worked if I tried to focus my affinity onto one spot. Letting it spread everywhere just isn’t it. Not when my reserves are so small.
The ability to connect to a broader network of shadows held a lot of potential—that went without question. However, even though the link survived for no longer than a second, his insides felt like they would spill out at any moment. And the less said about his Essence disappearing within a blink, the better.
“Maybe in a month or two,” Leo murmured, gently dropping True Stealth. With his reserves almost dry, every bit of Essence counted now if he wanted to survive. He didn’t doubt for a second that Shadow Tails knew exactly where he was hiding. Especially with the little trick he had performed a moment ago.
If what I saw is right, then at least two or three dozen of them are inside the warehouse, he noted, eyes closed. If I can find a way to fight them in small groups, then clearing this place shouldn’t be too hard. But if they all come, I’m fucked.
He shook his head. His family and evolution were the priorities. After that, he could think about conquering this nest. Makes me wonder, though. What will I get for destroying the core or conquering places like this?
He didn’t get much from destroying the Rift passage, but this was an official nest that the System wanted gone if he didn’t misinterpret the initial notifications. There had to be some special rewards for getting rid of such a blight on the world, right?
Titles, Ether, maybe some items? It can be anything really. Leo hummed, tapping his fingers against the ground. And for conquering? Could this be how you get a safe zone? It for sure would be ironic if we had to hide in a nest.
Shrugging, he let his thoughts drift. There was so much to think about, so much to consider. Yet, those random subjects never remained at the forefront of his mind for too long. No, no matter what, images of his family took their place, reminding him of what was truly important.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I will find you.
—ke up. Wake up. Wake up!
Fuck! I fell asleep. A gasp escaped his lips as his eyes snapped open. He quickly rolled to the side, one of his knives instantly jumping into his hand.
He crouched and let his gaze wander over the dark room. Nothing seemed out of place, but with monsters that possessed the ability to jump out of every shadow, one could never be too sure.
“Come on, kitty,” Leo murmured as he circled the room. “Don’t be scared.”
A loud hiss was the only answer he got right before he had to jump to the side. A small black body sailed past him, never giving him a chance to react as it disappeared in the surrounding shadows.
All right then. Let’s kick it up a notch. Separate. Just like earlier this night, a bit of his shadow slithered up his body and settled down in his palm. He flipped the Bowie knife into his cursed hand and let a short blade form in the other.
A moment later, more hissing filled the room, and he quickly bathed the walls in the glow coming from his tainted arm. At once, two Shadow Tails jumped out of the darkness, their crimson glare trying to drill through his skull.
Not wasting a moment, he hurled the blade of shadows at the nearest beast.
The monster’s eyes widened just as its body twisted to the right. Another hiss escaped its throat, and Leo couldn’t hold his grin when the cat sprinted toward him, jumping over various fallen objects.
And back. Tugging on a thin string of shadow connected to the flying blade, he swung it back with more power than necessary. The weapon sailed true, cutting across the monster’s side, right through the mass of dark fur.
The cat released a wail, loud and angry, as it tumbled across the floor. Bingo. Can’t hide from one shadow with another. This just got a lot easier.
Smiling lightly, Leo caught the blade of shadows mid-air and leaned to the side when the second beast got tired of waiting.
His cursed hand, entirely covered in shadows, shot forward and grabbed the flying feline by its tail. The monster wiggled in his grasp, hissing and biting at the offending limb, yet it never burst into a cloud like those from yesterday.
Not from the lack of trying. He snorted. The beast’s body constantly convulsed, its shadowy fur trying to expand outward, only to be stopped by a single squeeze from his hand.
The Voidling hissed again, flailing its limbs. All right, that’s enough. One swing was all it took to embed the blade of shadows into the cat’s skull. Unsurprisingly, the beast went limp, and he quickly drained the corpse before doing the same to the half-dead Shadow Tail lying on the floor.
Thanks, by the way, he voiced internally. I’d probably be walking away with some nasty scratches if it hadn’t been for you.
Only silence answered his call, and his shoulders slumped just a bit. He really should have expected nothing else.
Well, I tried… Hopefully, you will talk soon, Nikra, or whoever the hell you are.
As the blanket of silence continued to encompass the room, Leo shook his head with a sigh. Whatever, I have other things to worry about…
You managed to survive the Night outside a safe zone. Three Voidlings killed. Congratulations!
End of Night bonus: Additional experience awarded. 4 Ether awarded.
Huh, the night has already ended. His gaze jumped to the empty walls, a frown spreading on his face. Maybe resting in a room without windows wasn’t the best of my ideas.
Shadow Tail x2 slain | Experience awarded | 4 Ether gained
Level 10 reached. Class attributes added. Please assign your 2 free attributes.
His eyebrow shut up at the notification. He expected a level to appear soon, but not this soon. Evidently, the Guarding Rock Eater netted him much more experience than he had initially thought.
All right then, add both to Soul. He commanded. If what happened during the night is anything to go by, I need as much Essence as possible. I have no doubt that the stronger I get, the more energy my abilities will cost.
Due to achieving the second milestone on your journey, your connection with the System has improved from “Average” to “Strong.” Ether menu unlocked.
Already? There is no way this was meant to happen this fast. He obtained the first milestone when he reached Level 5. It seemed strange—Easy?—for the connection to improve again after only another five levels.
Yeah, easy is definitely the right word here. I bet Nikra’s shard has something to do with this. Scratching his head, he dug through his memories for the correct information. Didn’t it say something about strengthening the standard connection? Yeah, that must be it.
With a shrug, Leo pushed the notification away. It wasn’t anything concerning, so there was no reason to worry about it. Hell, he just gained access to another menu.
But before that.
Assassin Level 10 skill granted: Decoy
Decoy (Uncommon):
Illusions, one of many tools available to an assassin. Deceive your enemies, lead them astray. And when you have them where you want, strike. Fast and deadly.
Effects:
Grants the ability to create an Essence decoy, a perfect illusion clone of your body. As the name implies, a decoy cannot interact with the real world but will follow basic commands given by the user.
The moment those words came out, he grimaced as a flow of knowledge rushed into his mind. It revealed everything about the new skill, leaving almost nothing hidden, from the formation of the illusion to giving the Essence construct simple commands. The System explained it all.
Although… Leo observed as he massaged his throbbing brow. It doesn’t really explain how my Essence is changed into an illusion. All I know is to focus on the image of the decoy and then push it out while feeding it enough Essence. Is the System responsible for the rest?
He shook his head. Doesn’t matter now. Decoy would have to wait for later anyway. The scale of this ability alone told him enough about its Essence requirements. I bet it would suck me half dry.
Warning! You have reached the raw potential of your current race. Experience will no longer be gained. Bonus Ether will be awarded instead. To disable the lock on your level, please evolve as soon as possible. Number of Evolutions unlocked: 3
Leo frowned as he read through the message. Here it is. I finally got locked. Shit. He glanced at the last sentence and his frown deepened. Wait. Three?
Recommended Requirements:
75 Ether (78/75), 50 Voidlings Killed (79/50), 24 hours of Sated Status (81/24), 2 Crystallized Essence
Evolution Unlocked: Fallen
Doesn’t sound ominous at all, but okay, let’s see it.
Fallen (Stage II)
You embraced the taint of the Void upon your soul and made it your own. This new path might have taken another part of your humanity away, but you know what is necessary to survive. Go forth and become one with your new way of life.
Effects:
Tainted trait changed into Void’s Child. Physical evolution involved. +5% to all attributes. +7 free attribute points per class level. Natural Mutations: Unlocked.
Not bad, but worse than my Void evolution. Leo quickly brought up the new trait and nodded. Void’s Child is pretty much a cleansed version of Tainted. Same bonuses but without the drawback. Oh, and it grants Consume. Once again, almost the same shit, but without the ability to get stronger.
As he sat down on a fallen shelf, he dismissed the window and brought up his Void evolution again. So this is really my path, hmm? It would be idiotic to evolve into Risen Human, and the Apex requirements are just way too high for me to wait.
Prime Void Walker (Stage II)
Leo glared at the single line of text, gritting his teeth as the evolution taunted him again and again. I might have accepted my fate, but I never really had a choice, did I? His gaze fell to his cursed arm.
The moment I became a Tainted Human, my fate was sealed. The Void is too ingrained in my soul for the System to offer me more normal choices. He shook his head lightly. Choosing Risen Human would be like taking one step forward and two steps back. An idiocy considering the world I now live in.
He jumped to his feet and rolled his shoulders. Okay then, System. You want me to become the Legacy of Nikra? The true walker of the Void? Well, that’s precisely what you are gonna get. Soon.
But first, Nick, Ava, and Adam. I’m almost there. Please, live.