"W... What did you do to me?" I gasped, pain ripping through me like a thousand knives stabbing all at once.
It was overwhelming. And for some damn reason, my system wasn't kicking in. Not a single assist.
"I didn't really do anything. You wanted my servant's power. True to my word, I gave it to you."
"But I left out one little detail." Her smile stretched wider
"Unlike the breadcrumbs other mortals get, you've swallowed the whole essence."
"Since I destroyed my servant myself, most of its power stayed intact. So you're getting way more than if you'd beaten it alone. Consider yourself very fortunate."
"Fortunate?" I grunted, every breath was a battle of endurance.
I kept calling the system in my mind, begging for it to pull me out.
[Scanning for anomalies...]
The familiar notification sparked hope. Now, I just need to hold it together.
[Detected Power: SSS+ Rank—exceeds host capacity. ]
[Temporarily downgraded to S Rank.]
[Failed]
[Temporarily downgraded to A Rank]
[Failed]
[Temporarily downgraded to B Rank]
[Failed]
[Temporarily downgraded to C Rank]
[Success]
A blinding light flashed before my eyes, and my avatar began to dissolve into particles, drifting away slowly like dust.
"Remember our contract," she uttered.
I looked up at her and nodded.
Before I knew it, I was back in my hospital bed, breathing heavily. Sweat soaked through the blanket, making it damp and uncomfortable.
The excruciating pain was gone, but my hands still trembled uncontrollably.
As I tried to steady my breaths, another system notification pop up.
[Shadow Emperor Skills]
Shadow Manipulation [ C ] : Granted the user control over shadows and darkness within their immediate vicinity. These could be solidified into physical constructs like blades, shields, or tendrils, capable of both offense and defense.
Shadow Kill [C]: Any enemy defeated by a shadow weapon allowed the user to absorb their essence.
Shadow Unleashed [C]: By releasing all stored shadows, the user gained a temporary boost to overall stats, proportional to the amount accumulated.
Shadow Blend [C]: Depending on the user's rank, this ability allowed near-complete undetectability when hiding in dark places.
Shadow Aura [C]: Enveloped the user in a dark aura that boosted intimidation and enhanced stealth capabilities. The aura's strength increased proportionally with the user's Shadow Kill ability.
[Additional abilities would become available in the future.]
"Sweet!"
Usually, only seekers who reached A Rank got five skills tied to their abilities—but there I was, wielding them all at C Rank.
Sure, they were nerfed, but their effects still blew the rest out of the water. No wonder she called the normal awakening abilities 'bread crumbs.'
Time to put these badass skills to the test.
Taking a deep breath, I focused on my shadow and pictured a sword.
After about five seconds, it took shape, and I was surprised by how solid it was.
Then I tried shaping it into a shield, but it took too long—about ten seconds to fully form.
I tried out a bunch of weapons, but for some reason, none of them really clicked.
Finally, I tried a dagger.
It was way faster to summon, and the details were better. Maybe it was because the original user wielded the same weapon.
I swung it through the air. It cut clean and left a soft trail of darkness behind, pretty cool effect, not gonna lie.
Following a few swings, it became clear that my technique was sloppy at best. To get the most out of this skill, serious training would be necessary.
Then an idea came to mind.
I remembered seeing weapon mastery cards before.
A quick look through the store revealed it without any trouble—just 20 PP for the basic variant.
Training how to use daggers from scratch would take forever, but this card skip all that hassle. It was a no-brainer to grab it as soon as I had the points.
I moved on to try Shadow Aura.
Just like the description said, a black mist surrounded me—though it was much thinner than the original , and I could still see most of my body. I figured that would improve once I leveled up this skill.
With some time to spare, I focused into testing the other skills.
Before I knew it, time slipped away, and I didn't stop until my energy hit rock bottom. That was when dizziness and exhaustion finally caught up with me.
Enough practice for today. Time to rest, because tomorrow's going to be a big day.
'I can finally leave this place'
Just thinking about it brought a smile to my face.