At the end of the day, while his friends headed off to the arcade like usual, Ryosuke dragged his feet toward the deserted courtyard behind the school.
His heart was pounding at the thought of what he was about to do: use his new powers.
Ever since he received Overhaul—this incredible ability—he had been itching to test what he could really do.
Which was perfectly natural. What otaku wouldn't be tempted?
He found a quiet corner, hidden from view behind the gymnasium.
Ryosuke took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment to focus. Excitement, mixed with a hint of apprehension, made his hands sweaty. This was something entirely new for him.
Sure, the theory was clear in his mind, but he knew nothing beat real practice. He needed to test this new ability—understand its limits and its implications in a world where battles could break out at any moment.
"All right… let's start slow."
He bent down and plucked a handful of grass.
Standing back up, he held the green blades between his fingers.
It felt strange to attempt something so supernatural with just a piece of vegetation. But he knew now—magic was real here, powered by the cursed energy that saturated this world.
He focused on the grass, letting that energy—new and still raw inside him—manifest.
First, a faint vibration in the air, barely noticeable, which quickly grew stronger.
Ryosuke felt his veins pulse with the force of that energy, a familiar heat settling in his fingers.
A light crackle echoed, and the blades of grass in his hand began to change. Slowly, they disintegrated into green dust, every cell breaking apart. It was as if he were erasing the very existence of the matter.
"It actually works…" he whispered, fascinated.
But that was only the beginning.
Concentrating more cursed energy, he attempted to reconstruct the matter. The reverse process—more complex in theory—required greater precision.
He closed his eyes, visualizing the shape of the grass blades, their texture, their chemical composition. Then, carefully, he channeled his cursed energy into his hands, imagining the particles coming back together, reconnecting to reform the matter.
He opened his eyes and was stunned.
Where there had been nothing but dust seconds earlier, the blades of grass had returned.
But there was a difference. The bright green they once held had faded, replaced by a duller, almost sickly hue.
"Interesting…"
Ryosuke studied the faded grass in his hand, his thoughts spinning. What he had just done wasn't just an impressive feat—it was more than that.
Something had changed within him. He had felt cursed energy flow through him naturally, like it was part of him.
It was different.
Not like in My Hero Academia, where Chisaki needed to touch something to decompose or restore it.
No. He didn't need his hands. All he had to do was let his energy spread—into the air, into matter.
That's what rewritten meant.
His Overhaul was an enhanced version of the original, adapted to the power system of this world.
"I don't need to learn how to control it…" he whispered in disbelief. "I… I already do."
He closed his eyes again, trying to remember the sensations. That energy flowing through his veins felt like it had always been there. There was no learning curve. Everything came naturally—almost too easily.
He decided to push further.
How far could he extend his power?
He focused, letting his cursed energy spread around him. Like an invisible wave, it rippled through the air, enveloping everything in its path. Soon, he reached a limit. Around 100 meters. Beyond that, he could feel the energy weaken, like it was too thin to stay cohesive.
"Interesting… I wonder if I could extend it further by using a domain. But how do they do it in the manga again?" He scratched his head, puzzled. Activating a territory? It still felt too vague to him, but he stored the idea away for later.
Then his eyes returned to the grass in his hand.
Something was off.
Why hadn't it regained its original color?
It was physically restored—but that vivid green was still missing.
Thinking it through, he had a feeling his power went far beyond just controlling matter. He focused again, channeling cursed energy into the grass.
And then he saw them.
Three subtle glows radiating from the grass.
They weren't visible to the naked eye, but with his power, he could clearly perceive them.
The first glow shimmered faintly, giving him information about the grass's physical composition—its fibers, its structure, everything that made up its "body." That part was simple; it was what he had reconstructed.
The second glow, however, was different. It pulsed softly, like an emotional vibration.
It wasn't physical matter, but something deeper.
The soul.
That was what carried the life, the identity of the plant. It was the glow he hadn't touched when rebuilding it, which explained its sickly appearance.
The third glow, on the other hand, was mysterious. It seemed dormant, hidden beneath the others.
Ryosuke could barely sense it, but it was there, lurking in the shadows. He felt it—like a primal force waiting to be awakened.
"Body, soul… and mind," he murmured, staring thoughtfully at the grass.
This knowledge came to him effortlessly, unprompted. He now understood that his power could interact with all three aspects.
By rebuilding only the "body" of the grass, he hadn't restored its soul—hence why it no longer seemed truly alive.
"If I really want to use this power to its fullest…" He clenched the grass between his fingers. "I'll have to learn to affect all three."
The very idea of such a capability sent chills down his spine.
With this power, he could alter far more than just matter.
He could touch the soul of things—maybe even their mind.
But how far could that power go?
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