《Need More Points!》 0.1 - The Awakened Hey there, this is myfirst story. I''m using it to train my writing. I know this and next chapter are awfully small, but please, bear with me.
0.1 - The Awakened ¡°The reports come from all over the world, actually. People with abilities that goes beyond current science, doing what was thought impossible as of last month. And today we have one of them here, with us. Welcome Jonas.¡± A beautiful black-haired lady was talking on stage, she was very focused and had this seriousness air around. Just as she finished talking, the camera changed and started filming a blonde Russian-looking man walking to the stage. Before sitting in the guest chair, though, he stopped and started talking. ¡°The Awakened. That¡¯s what we¡¯re calling ourselves.¡± He, then, proceeded to sit on the chair. The lady smiled awkwardly, as this obviously wasn¡¯t in the script. But as the professional she was, she continued acting as if nothing happened. ¡°That¡¯s quite interesting, Jonas. We asked our audience earlier, and they have several exciting questions for you.¡± She paused a bit, as if giving him some leeway to talk. He caught it and immediately started his prepared speech.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°I understand people may be confused and lost with all that is happening. But fear not for this is the wish of the world itself. For millennia humanity searched for an answer, a reason to exist, someone, or something, to be responsible. Maybe, we all, The Awakened, is his or her answer.¡± ¡°That is indeed a very fascinating view, Jonas. It¡¯s certainly a very reassuring interpretation of all these events. Now, for the first question¡­¡± She made a small pause to build up drama. ¡°What is your special ability?¡± He smiled and started talking. ¡°Going straight to the point, huh. That¡­¡± As he started talking, his body started to grow and his voice grew eerily. ¡°Is¡­¡± Little protrusions started growing in his forehead. ¡°A¡­¡± The protrusions got bigger, and his whole skin started to darken. ¡°Very¡­¡± The horns in his forehead finished forming, and fur was growing in his whole body. ¡°Interesting¡­¡± He got up, breaking the chair and creaking the ground. His size was around three and a half meters. ¡°Question¡­¡± His voice was so eerie, that you could hear audible gulps from the audience and the beautiful interviewer. *Drip* If you paid attention to the interviewer, you would see a light green liquid running down her exposed legs to the ground. He slowly got closer to her and looked down. He picked her with his massive han- no, his massive claws, and applied a bit of strength. *CREAAAK* Only the disgusting sound of bones breaking and flesh being torn could be heard, as no one even breathed. After tasting the blood in his hands with his massive snake-like tongue, he looked straight at the camera with his vibrant eyes. Before all hell broke loose, the television stopped airing, only static remaining. 1.1 - The First Ability ¡°Welcome to Long Academy! In here you¡¯ll not only learn how to control your powers better, but also, you¡¯ll learn how to live! Learn how to be a pillar of hope for those outside, for the Normals! For we, as humanity, must stand together! Together we¡¯re invincible! We should see this as an honor! To be the pioneers in changing the world for the better.¡± Such bullshit. Was his first thought. Why must we sacrifice ourselves for the wellbeing of others? Just because we happened to wake up with powers one day? We¡¯re still people, damn it! Was his second thought. A green haired, tanned youth was in the middle of the auditory, hearing the principal talk with such passion. With a bored face, he looked away and saw many people paying attention diligently, as if they were hearing some miracle. Figures. They were born and grew hearing they had to protect the ¡®Normals¡¯ if they ever awaken. Having someone say it¡¯s an honor to do so, only makes their biased view grow stronger. His hair was not normally green. One day, he woke up with green hair and mysterious powers. Oh, there seems to be a similar soul in this place, though. She is right!? A similar soul! He saw a yellow-eyed girl with a look of disdain in her face only a few seats away from him. She acted as if the principal was insulting her very being by saying those words. Ops, she caught me looking. Stupid power, making me look for this ¡®similar soul¡¯ or some bullshit. She immediately changed her face from disdain to ¡®interested¡¯ the moment she realized he was looking. Erik¡¯s face, though, was pure bliss, betraying his thoughts and showing his true feelings. He was looking in front of his face, as if reading something. Something invisible for everyone else. [Quest {Find a Similar Soul} Completed!] [Congratulations, you gained 3 points!] [Total Points: 198 + 3 = 201] Fuck yeah! I can finally buy my first ability! It took Erik two whole months of doing quests to finally have enough points. But he endured and did it! He finally had sufficient points to buy a useful ability. He recited his morning ritual with a muffled voice. ¡°Open Universal Shop¡± Differently from his morning ritual, though, this time he didn¡¯t search or mused over all the different options. He went straight for the one he chose long ago. If fifteen days can be considered as long, that is. [Defunct Physiology] [The ability to lack any physical weakness.]Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. [Cost: 200 points] He immediately ¡®mentally-touched¡¯ the [BUY] button. And¡­ Nothing happened. His points disappeared, alright, he wasn¡¯t breathing, alright, but where were all the cool effects? Like, he didn¡¯t even shine or something? This ability not only granted him a physically strong body. It granted him endless stamina, bloodlessness, brainlessness, immunity to any kind of disease, supernaturally great endurance/durability, injury immunity, medium pain nullification, thermal resistance and self-sustenance, meaning he doesn¡¯t need sleep, food or oxygen. Erik dozed for the rest of the speech, lost in thoughts about all the cool things he could do with his new ability. ¡°Ok, everyone. I hope that speech got you in the right mood. Now, as this is your first day, you¡¯ll be tested and tomorrow your first classes will be available at our website.¡± And with that, he left the podium through the curtains at the left side. Finally! I couldn¡¯t even think much with his awfully hoarse voice so high. Erik smiled and, as soon as he got up, a new screen appeared before his face. A new quest so soon? [Quest {Find Out The Secrets of the Similar Soul} is available!] [Completion Reward: 28 points] [Failure Penalty: -21 points] [Accept?] [YES] [NO] WHA!? How come you¡¯ll give me so many points for a simple investigation mission on another student!? There¡¯s gotta be a catch. And there was. A catch, I mean. But let¡¯s leave it for later¡­ Erik never received such a big reward before. He was itching to click [YES], but at the same time, he was cautious and dreaded about the possible failure. The bad thing about these quests, was that they only remained ¡®open¡¯ for a few minutes. Then, they disappeared. He thought about the good and the bad for a while, reaching a conclusion. He went for [YES]. All these quests always have a purpose. It always leads him to something. The first time it led him to what he wanted, which was lose weight. This time, though, he didn¡¯t really know what he wanted. Was it just a coincidence at the start, then? It couldn¡¯t have been. For a whole month, the quests were exactly aligned with what he inherently wanted. This time, he just didn¡¯t know it consciously what he wanted. It must be that, then. I just need to find out what I want before this gets me into trouble. He turned around in search of the ¡®similar soul¡¯, to follow her a bit, but ended up jumping two meters off the ground. Shiiiiiiiiit! ¡°*Crack*¡± But, when he fell to the ground, he felt¡­ nothing. Despite the thud from his shoes hitting the ground, he didn¡¯t feel anything. He got a few annoyed looks, though. However, when he looked at the ground¡­ It was a cracked mess. Apparently, his power also made him made entirely of bones, besides the skin. He had no organs anymore, only bones and muscle. N-Never saw it more cracked¡­ When he reached the testing destination, he grinned. What¡¯s best for figuring out his capabilities than a good ol¡¯ fight to the death? Well, probably not to the death, but still, a good fight nonetheless. When he was registering, though, he was informed of some concerning things. The fight was going to happen at the Conservatory. The Conservatory was a special place developed for fighting. It ¡®saved¡¯ the body of the fighters before the fight, and ¡®saved¡¯ the mind of the fighters at the end of the fight. Putting the two together when the fight was over. Meaning, they were quite literally, but not really, fighting to the death. The conditions for winning were that your opponent either goes unconscious, dead, or gives up. You had a few options at the registration, though. Fighter, Support, Reconnaissance or Other. Erik chose Fighter, which suited him the best, to be honest. The next question was his specialization. As you could only choose two adjectives to describe yourself, he chose ¡®durable¡¯ and ¡®strong¡¯. Then, his specialty in fighting. It was just blank, didn¡¯t have options to choose like before. So, he just went for ¡®long fights¡¯, since he was basically ¡®immune to stamina¡¯. An obvious weakness, though, would be regeneration. He couldn¡¯t be regenerated by healers nor by himself. Which was pretty bad. But he was only a few points away from a regenerating ability. If ¡®only¡¯ could be described as doing quests like crazy for two months, that is. Yosh! I¡¯m ready! Let¡¯s fight! 1.2 - Anticlimactic Fights and Weird Senior Erik entered the Conservatory, and waited for his opponent. All he was told was that he¡¯s called Jacob. Nothing more. But that was expected. The Conservatory was a big round spherical structure. It looked more like a giant half egg with doors. His opponent, Jacob, was not what he expected. He was thin and short, effeminate and looked away as soon as they made eye contact. The skin at his hands were darker than normal, though. This indicates that his power centers on his hands. When they both heard the sound signaling the start of the battle, they tensed and just stared at each other. They weren¡¯t fighters, they weren¡¯t soldiers. They didn¡¯t even know how to fight. Both just joined because they were told so. But Erik would do what he came here to do. For the points! Yeah, he received a quest to win every battle no matter what. Four points for a win, minus nine for a loss. Besides the big point-loss if he lost a fight, the odds were in his favor. You can only lose two times, then you¡¯re out of the ¡®tournament¡¯. But you can win more than twenty times. So, if he won ten fights, and lost the two times, he would still end up gaining 22 points. He started running, and realized he was way faster than expected, reaching his target sooner than predicted. Jacob reacted by putting his hands forward and launching a jet of some liquid at Erik. Erik just put his arm in front of his body, protecting his face, and kicked strongly at the meek boy. ¡°*CRUNCH*¡± ¡°URGH!¡± Erik looked as his foot entered the boy¡¯s body and left completely bloody. The boy flew for a few meters before falling to the ground with a wet thud. The boy died with his eyes open, incredulous of what happened. Wow¡­ Killing a person is¡­ surprisingly easy. Erik was always the rational one of his family. He wouldn¡¯t pity the boy and philosophy at the death of a human being. The boy isn¡¯t even dead ¡®dead¡¯ yet. He is dead, alright, but he¡¯ll soon be alive again. He didn¡¯t even suffer much at his death, only a little kick at the guts. [Quest {Win the Tournament (1/27)} Partially Completed!] [Congratulations, you gained 4 points!] [Total Points: 1 + 4 = 5] Fuck yeah! ¡°*Splash*¡± He looked at the ground, and saw a disgusting blob of skin right at his feet. Then, he realized his left arm was a bit different. He looked at the fleshy mess and almost barfed. Holy FUC- At that moment, the weirdest feeling came to him. For a second, he saw his body in 3rd person. Then, he briefly blacked out and appeared at the entrance of the Conservatory again. ¡°Huh¡­¡± That must be the Conservatory doing its job, huh. Erik started to think about the fight, now that he finished it. It was extremely easy to finish someone without any experience in fighting or a physical ability. However, he also saw the dangers of fighting. If the Conservatory didn¡¯t bring him back to his former body, he would have a nasty arm for a long while. Besides the looks, the smell was the worst. But when he decided to buy this ability, he already knew that. He knew that he would have this big weakness, no regeneration of any kind. But he also knew a quick fix¡­ [Minor Health Potion] [The heavenly syrup that heals the wounds.] [Cost: 10 points] Even if normal, scientific ways, couldn¡¯t fix his body, any kind of magical method could. Also, his ability guaranteed he would most likely survive long enough to drink a health potion. Despite having supernatural physical endurance, he was immune to any kind of harm, meaning he could lose an arm or a head, and continue living just fine. He had no weak points, his body wasn¡¯t mere flesh and bones anymore, it was controlled by his very soul. But right now, he would benefit more from a different kind of item. [Mixed Martial Arts V] [The fifth edition of the masterful Mixed Martial Arts. More detailed, defensive and destructive than all the other editions together. Observation: this skill is immediately ingrained in the mind after acquisition.] [Cost: 5 points] Ridiculous, right? Such a useful skill, and it only costs 5 points. Everything in this ¡®Universal Store¡¯ is like this. Anything ¡®common¡¯ such as any man-made item or skill, is extremely cheap. While anything barely magical is very expensive.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Erik didn¡¯t even need to consider anything to buy this ability. It would make his fighting ability grow by leaps and bounds. Just that alone was enough for such low cost. The moment he mentally-touched the [BUY] button, his mind was assaulted with moves of all kinds. Even his muscles adjusted themselves to create muscle memory. He looked around and saw some annoyed guys waiting for their turn to fight. He laughed a bit and walked out of their way, into the waiting area. Wow, it¡¯s even easier to walk with martial arts turned on. My posture also feels so much better¡­ ¡­ Erik waited until his name was called by the beautiful assistant again, and got up to fight once again. But this time, way more prepared. Are all the assistant ladies from the other waiting rooms this beautiful? Well, I¡¯m happy to be put in this one. He couldn¡¯t help but notice her long jet-black hair and well-placed features as she led him to his fighting hub in the Conservatory. This opponent was called Kyle. I guess they tell us each other¡¯s name to create proximity, maybe test our mentality. You know, see if we show mercy or something. Who knows. Kyle was a big muscular guy with one red and one purple eye. ¡°You look way too confident, Erik. I bet you fought a weakling who didn¡¯t know what they were doing. How about you fight someone your own size, huh?¡± Indeed, I¡¯m over-confident. I need to remember that there are people from all over the world with all kinds of powers here. Heh, thank you for reminding me, Kyle. ¡°Not one to talk, huh.¡± The big man continued talking. ¡°Let¡¯s see if you¡¯ll continue mute while taking a beating.¡± Sigh, this guy looks more like a retard than anything, else. I need to be careful, though. If he is this confident, he¡¯s probably strong. Those eyes of his seem dangerous. As soon as the fight sound was heard, Kyle disappeared. ¡°Huh?¡± Shit! He has some kind of invisibility. I hope that¡¯s all he has¡­ As if answering Erik¡¯s hope, a few seconds later, Kyle appeared right in front of him. But he was different. His red eye was bigger and had bulging veins all over and around it. Erik immediately tried to dodge using his martial arts, but Kyle didn¡¯t give him even a split second, the moment he appeared, a laser left his red right eye and pierced Erik¡¯s heart. Actually, it pierced where his heart was supposed to be. If pierce can be considered as a small skin burn, that is. Erik¡¯s skin only burned a bit, nothing more happening. After a moment stunned, Erik woke up from his surprise and punched Kyle¡¯s guts out. He was thrown await or a few meters, but his guts stayed in the same place. ¡°Oho¡­ You¡¯re quite strong. I thought you had a mental power because of your hair. You dyed it, asshole? Or is your power one of the weird ones?¡± He¡¯s¡­ strong. Very strong. And oy! You¡¯re the weird one here! Then, Kyle disappeared again. But this time, Erik didn¡¯t wait for Kyle to appear, he started running in circles. Eventually, Kyle appeared a few meters away from him. Hm, so it¡¯s time-based? It felt like the time he stayed invisible was the same as before. And randomly running away from him really works, huh. However, when Erik looked at Kyle, his eye was redder than before. His iris and pupil were completely red, and bigger than before, even making some of the whites in his eyes red. The veins around his eye were bigger, too. ¡°*ZEEEEEEEE*¡± The laser was visibly stronger than before, this time, though, Erik barely managed to dodge it. The laser nicked at his left arm, though. Damn, this time only a nick and my arm got burned hard. If I had working nostrils, I¡¯m sure I would smell burned flesh. Erik didn¡¯t lose time, though. He immediately jumped with all his might at Kyle, only to grasp at the air. ¡­ This continued for a while, Kyle¡¯s laser growing stronger and stronger, until they outright blow everything to pieces. At the fifth disappearance, his laser touched Erik¡¯s right hand, exploding it to bits. Of course, Erik still had his hand and fingers, they even still worked and all, but they were only bones now. Erick started to get pissed at all this cat and rat fight. And Kyle disappearing all the time obviously didn¡¯t help. Until he couldn¡¯t take it anymore and decided to change strategies. I¡¯ll end up in bones if I don¡¯t end this fight right now. As soon as Kyle appeared, instead of dodging, Erik shot in his direction. Fuck you and your lasers! He jumped with such strength, that the ground broke in several places. Then, the laser came. Stronger than ever. ¡°*ZEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE*¡± It hit Erik straight in the chest. But it didn¡¯t slow him down in the slightest. It still hurt like a bitch, though. Fuck! Its hurts! Erik¡¯s chest, belly, and right arm got completely blown away. But the moment Kyle¡¯s ray of death finished, Erik was right in front of him. His skin is too hard to be damaged enough. But even a man of iron has a weakness. One every human being has. His fucking weapon of choice!! The eye! Erik¡¯s bone hands looked more like claws than actual hands. ¡°Haaaaaa!¡± Erik screamed as he unleashed all his strength. ¡°*FLESH*¡± A disgusting sound emanated through the air as a hole appeared in Kyle¡¯s face, his right eye gone. For a moment, it seemed like everything was frozen, even time. Then, a drop of Kyle¡¯s blood fell to the ground. Instead of the scream that Erik was expecting, Kyle fell to the ground and started twitching, convulsing. He went into shock from the sudden pain of having his nerves ripped off. The weird feeling came to Erik once more, and he was at the entrance again. [Quest {Win the Tournament (2/27)} Partially Completed!] [Congratulations, you gained 4 points!] [Total Points: 0 + 4 = 4] I¡­ won. ¡­ After such a mentally exhausting fight, Erik needed a break, so he asked when his next fight would be, and he found out he had more than twenty minutes to spare. So, he went to the cafeteria and got something to eat. ¡°It¡¯s tough, huh?¡± Erik heard this voice come from his side, surprised, he immediately looked at his left. There was a person sitting in the same bench as him, with a smile in his face, he looked at Erik with peering eyes. [Quest {Make Your First Friend} is available!] [Time limit: 2 days] [Completion Reward: 10 points & friendship with a senior] [Failure Penalty: -1 point] [Accept?] [YES] [NO] ¡°!?¡± The heck is happening to the quest system since I came to this crazy school? Ten points for making a friend? That¡¯s way too high. It might not seem like much, but ten points is equal to three normal quests! He mentally tapped [YES] and gave another look at the supposed ¡®senior¡¯. I hope he doesn¡¯t swing to other way¡­ He was a tall and thin guy, black hair and blue eyes. He had no apparent transformation from awakening. He seemed just like a normal guy. Erik realized he was looking for too long and decided to start speaking. ¡°Tough? What do you mean?¡± ¡°I mean tough, as in, mentally taxing. I remember my first fights, they were a bloody mess. Nobody knew what they were doing and no one wanted to mess it up. The lucky ones were finished quickly, while the less fortunate ones suffered enough to develop traumas. ¡°Even if the Conservatory reduces pain to a great degree, you just can¡¯t imagine how it feels to have your heart gouged out until it actually happens.¡± Erik looked down. Even if he won the last two fights, they felt bad. This wasn¡¯t what he was expecting for his adulthood. Nobody expects this of their life. Sigh. Tis weird guy is right, it¡¯s tougher than I imagined. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s kind of overwhelming, I think.¡± Was all that Erik managed to get out. ¡°Indeed. Very overwhelming. My name is Kay, by the way. What¡¯s yours?¡± ¡°Erik¡­¡± ¡°Ok, Erik, I wish you good luck on this little tournament. Bye bye.¡± Erik blinked, and he wasn¡¯t there anymore. What the heck? That talk was so fucking awkward. And so, Erik went to his next fight. As he walked, he realized his bad feelings and mentally exhaustion were gone. Who was that guy¡­? Shit! I forgot I had to make him my friend! And so, our hero enters his next fight. 1.3 - Roommates & New Discovery Eventually, the mini tournament ended. Erik managed to win 19 fights before losing his first time, then, two more before losing his second time. Only this first day in the academy already gave him several points. Just this tournament alone gave him 66 points. The first time he lost, was against a brown-haired girl called Brenna. The fight started, and he suddenly was at the entrance again, as if nothing had happened. Asking around, he found out she is called Brenna Scarlet, the daughter of a famous Hero. Great things are probably expected of her. The second fight that he lost lasted a bit longer, though. A little guy called Pietro. Even Erik¡¯s supernatural endurance couldn¡¯t take many hits from the guy. The heck is up with these monsters¡­ Erik was genuinely surprised. To think so many monsters would appear on his year¡­ Or is it like this every year? ¡­ Erik walked around the giant school grounds, almost getting lost. But eventually, he found his designated room, in the male dormitory. The only problem was that he was supposed to have two roommates. Two people he didn¡¯t know and was supposed to get along with. Erik wasn¡¯t very good with people. Rather, he was awful with people. But he tried. He approached the door and put his card near the knob, unlocking the door. This was a special card that contained all your student information. Even your power category. Which, in Erik¡¯s case, it was Fighter. ¡°I fucking told you this is my bed, asshole!¡± ¡°Bla, bla, bla. I got here first, so I obviously get to choose first.¡± ¡°The fuck? We got here together, you just entered first, loser! Now, get your stuff off my bed!¡± Sight¡­ Looks like I got paired with a pair of clowns. The one that supposedly entered first was a tall and thin, but fit, guy. He had shoulder length black hair and was wearing dark clothes. His eyes were glowing slightly. The one that wanted ¡®oh, so bad¡¯ to choose a bed, was large and muscular, but short. Brown hair and tight clothes. He looked like some martial arts guy. His skin was full beautifully arranged white spots. ¡°If you two don¡¯t want to solve this like intellectual beings, why don¡¯t you do it like primates and solve it in the Conservatory?¡± Erik entered, the door closing behind him. The thin guy looked at Erik and started talking. ¡°No can do, funny guy.¡± He fished his student card and threw it at Erik. For a moment, Erik thought he was being attacked, then realized the guy was most likely just showing him his card. He was puzzled for a bit, but then found out why they couldn¡¯t solve it in the Conservatory. Power Category: Reconnaissance. Well, shit, at least I tried to make a cool entrance... Erik tossed the card back to its owner and sighed once again. ¡°I don¡¯t care if you can¡¯t solve it in the Conservatory, if you keep bickering like little kids I¡¯ll have to solve it for you.¡± This time, it was the short one that started talking. ¡°You talk like some big shit, yet, all I see is a green haired nerd trying to act all cool and stuff.¡± Erik wasn¡¯t even bothered by the remarks of shorty, he just sighed once more and started talking. ¡°Look. I know we¡¯re all drained from the fights. I¡¯m mentally exhausted, so I¡¯m not thinking very well. Let¡¯s just all go to sleep and talk about it tomorrow, right?¡± He then, pointed at the tall guy ¡°You. You don¡¯t look like someone that cares for which bed you get so much. They¡¯re all the same, after all. Why don¡¯t you let hot-head over there stay in this bed?¡± The tall and the short guy shared a look for a moment, and the tall guy ended up ceding the bed. They both apologized for their behavior earlier and everyone calmed down. The tall guy was the first to start talking. ¡°Hey, sorry for before, I¡¯m also tired and wasn¡¯t thinking straight. My name is Cole, by the way. Nice to meet you.¡± Looking up close, his eyes were really eerie, having this green timbre to them, shining and all. ¡°Same here, I don¡¯t know what got me. I¡¯m Isaac. Nice to meet you guys.¡±Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°Glad it¡¯s all solved. I¡¯m Erik. Shall we sleep and get to know more about each other tomorrow, then?¡± ¡­ Shit. I forgot I don¡¯t need to sleep anymore. Rather, I can¡¯t sleep anymore. But eating earlier felt like normal? Oh, well, I¡¯ll take a walk, then. Erik slowly got up from his bed and did his best not to wake his roommates up. When he got out of his room, he walked randomly through the school grounds, eventually getting lost. After a while, he found a big car-sized rock. He hopped up at it and sat at the stone. After a few minutes, he laid his back at it and just stared at the beautiful sky. He looked at the two halves of the moon floating up there. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful¡­¡± Even if no one heard him, he still felt like muttering his thoughts out loud. He had never stopped and just stared at the seamless sky, appreciating it. Life is really a mystery. Before, he would always say he never had the time. But now, it felt like he had all the time in the world to just enjoy this amazing experience. ¡°Indeed. It¡¯s quite a beautiful sky.¡± ¡°!?¡± Erik suddenly looked at his left and found a girl sitting there, her black hair floating with the wind and her red clothes beautifully outstanding in the light of the moon. Her yellow eyes peering at him. Fuck! Why does everyone keep appearing out of thin air!? Uh? Wait¡­ Red clothes, yellow eyes¡­ Erik took a closer look at her face, and almost jumped in happiness. It¡¯s her! The ¡®Similar soul¡¯. The one he received a quest to find out more about. The girl looked at him with those peering eyes and smiled. ¡°My name is Celeste. Nice to meet you, hm¡­?¡± ¡°Erik. The name¡¯s Erik. Celeste, huh. That¡¯s quite a cool name you have there.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it, my parents¡­ Well, they weren¡¯t exactly sane when they named me. As different as it may be, I like the name.¡± It¡¯s not that different, though. Maybe she¡¯s over conscious about it. A bad former experience, perhaps? Erik didn¡¯t really know what to say, so they both just stared at the sky for a few seconds. Then, Erik tried to make some small talk, you know, get this quest over with. ¡°Hm, also couldn¡¯t sleep?¡± ¡°¡­Yeah. This is all quite overwhelming. Having to learn how to fight out of nowhere. Being forced to defend people that ostracize us just because we¡¯re different. The worst part is having no saying at all in this.¡± She looked at him expectantly, as if waiting for an answer. He didn¡¯t let her wait too much. ¡°My thoughts exactly. As soon as I awakened, people started to distance themselves from me. I mean, just because there are a few bad apples in the basket, you don¡¯t need to burn the whole thing up. Be careful to whom you say those things, though. Not everyone has the same mentality, it could get you into trouble.¡± She smiled at his answer, as if expecting it. ¡°Thank you for the warning. So, which one is your category? I take it you have a mental power?¡± Going straight to the point, huh. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ complicated. You could say I have a physical power. Let¡¯s say I¡¯m strong and durable.¡± Said Erik. ¡°Ah, so you¡¯re one of those, huh. A misleading transformation. Mine is quite boring, compared to yours. I can see a person¡¯s essence. I can visualize what they are really like, their true self. Their strong and weak aspects.¡± Uh¡­ Weren¡¯t abilities supposed to be secretive¡­? She was quite detailed in her description. Oh well, if we¡¯re going to be partners in battle, I guess I¡¯d eventually find out the others¡¯ abilities. Wait! Is she using it right now?... Ah, whatever, I have nothing to hide anyway. ¡°The way I see it, mine is the boring one. You can see everyone¡¯s ¡®essence¡¯ and they know nothing about you. Also, in the future, I¡¯ll be the one in the front lines, fighting directly with them. While you¡¯ll be gathering information and the likes, doing all the cool scouting missions.¡± ¡­ And so, time passed, the two ended up talking for more than an hour. But Celeste eventually had to go back to her room and take some sleep. They both did promise to come to the same place tomorrow, though. With nothing to do for the rest of the night, Erik browsed through his Universal Shop. This¡­! After a while searching, he decided to test something. If this system was made to make him stronger, something like an enchanted ring would be cheaper, no? Turning the ability into an actual item, made it so that it could be stolen, broken and even lose charge. [Ring of Defunct Physiology] [This ring contains the ability to lack any physical weakness. Charge: one year] [Cost: 67 points] Around three times cheaper and it lasts for a whole year, huh. If someone gets their hands in one of these, though¡­ If it¡¯s someone powerful enough, I might become a slave, being made to make enchanted items for the rest of my life. Anyway, I should get an ability that originally costs less than 200 points. The first obvious choice would be to sane his weaknesses. Specifically, his lack of regeneration. [Ring of Limitless Healing] [This ring contains limitless healing magic. The magic works just by thinking about activating it. It is touch based. Charge: one year] [Cost: 50 points] Magic? Interesting. He hesitated a bit before buying this one. There were several other healing/regeneration types of rings. But he chose this one for its flexibility. Besides himself, he could also heal his teammates. He bought it. ¡­ In the middle of the night, a light could be seen descending from the skies. The light descended in the form of a ring, in the hands of a green-haired youth. He immediately put it on and looked around, searching for any living soul nearby. ¡­ Ok, that was very flashy. I hope no one saw it¡­ He found a sharp rock on the ground and tried making a little slit in his hand. With a lot of strength, he managed to succeed. As pain was considered a physical weakness, he barely felt anything. He didn¡¯t have complete nullification from pain, though. The nerves were still there only dulled. Uh¡­ Heal? The cut visibly started to close, finishing in a second. It was a shallow cut, still it healed way faster than he expected. Erik was also a bit curious if it would work at all. He wasn¡¯t even human anymore Having nearly only bones and muscles in his new body, he was a bit sceptic if it would really work. But it did nonetheless. Perfect. Now I¡¯m way stronger than before. I can fight outside of the Conservatory and come out without visible signs of it. ¡­ Erik spent the rest of the night searching through his Universal Shop, seeing if he could find another ¡®loop¡¯ in the system, such as the enchanted items (which weren¡¯t really a loop, tough). And as the sun started rising, he returned to his room.
Spoiler: His powers, items and points. Powers: [Defunct Physiology] - No physical weaknesses. Items: [Ring of Limitless Healing] - Touch based limitless healing. Points: 16