The room was dim, the only light emanating from the system panels that danced before Tyler’s eyes. The night held no particular temperature. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, and the system panel adjusted its position accordingly. Tyler touched his chin, lost in thought, rereading the words: *My soul… what does it an?* He pondered, *Like a lost limb? Or sothing more? What does it an, a piece of my soul?*
That wasn't the part that truly terrified him. What truly chilled him to the bone was what the missing pieces of his soul had beco: void entities. He read the words again, a third ti: *void entities*. So, if he continued to use the armor, he risked being possessed by these creatures. Pieces of his soul… taken from him… and corrupted within the void.
He fell silent, the implications of the curse washing over him. *But how many pieces? Did I lose one? How much of my soul is actually missing? Is it a large piece? And if a piece is gone… then how is that even possible? Does it shorten my life span?*
Tyler's mind swirled with questions, each one deepening his unease. The idea sent a chill down his spine, but the worst part was that it had already happened. He didn't know what to make of this revelation, but he finally ca to a conclusion. He thought of the way the armor already affected him, even before he knew about these other, far more terrifying, effects.
He knew the Void Armor suppressed all emotion: no feelings, no fear, no regret, no remorse, no anger, no pity. It was the strangest… or, in a way, the most alienating experience he'd ever had. He only spoke the words he believed he should, or the words he *knew* he would have said, based on how he *would have felt* if he wasn't wearing the armor. Now, with his feelings returning, he felt a hollow, crushing weight. He had buried Rebecca, yet he couldn't truly mourn her. His words, then, felt empty and aningless, devoid of the emotions they should have held.
*I don’t think I would have continued using the armor again, even before I knew about this… the way it was, back then.* He balled his fist, staring at his hand.
At first, when he first equipped the armor, he had felt… powerful. Incredible. There was so much power at his fingertips, more than he had ever imagined. In that mont, he felt like he could do anything. That was, of course, before the armor fully enveloped him, before he truly began to use it.
Tyler sighed, placing his hands behind his head to create a makeshift pillow. He leaned back on the bed, his body bouncing slightly as the strings of the fra groaned under his weight.
He thought again, *I leveled up after killing the captain… I leveled up more than twenty tis… I gained new skills and a lot of stats… but right now… I don’t feel happy about it.*
Tyler managed a small, humorless smile, almost a chuckle. He muttered under his breath, "I shouldn’t be… after all, I lost her… "
The words died in his throat, the mory of the battle, of his failure, a fresh wound. He felt like a hypocrite. He had condemned a man for killing an entire family, for ending Rebecca’s parents’ lives, yet… wasn’t he now guilty of the sa? He had killed the vice-captain’s family, from Jason to Gary, the entire lot, wiped out. He knew Grone had told him that he would have to make difficult choices, that his survival might require him to kill others, to defend himself. But even knowing all that, he still felt… wrong. The feeling was a bitter taste, a constant ache.
He sighed, closing his eyes, attempting to push the thoughts away. He opened them again, a flicker of determination hardening his gaze. Grone had also told him that dwelling on the past was a poison. Despite everything Grone had endured, being cut off from his family, his inability to level up like the others, a curse he didn't understand, he could still smile. Grone was a remarkable person to be around. Thinking of him only intensified Tyler's sense of loss.
"That’s right." He sat up abruptly, a new purpose filling him. *I need to go to Lyria. Yes. When morning cos… I’m going to Lyria. I'm going to et up with Grone and see Serena.*
The system panel, which had vanished monts before, reappeared, displaying Tyler's stats.
SPECIES: Human
NA: Tyler Evans
RANK: A
LVL: 120
CLASS: Craftsman
HP: 554/554 MP: 487/487
STR: 491 AGI: 609
DEF: 596 STM: 458
STATUS: Healthy
Skills: Armour Craft Lv2, Weapon Craft Lv2, Weapon Mastery, Alchemy, Accessory Craft, Acid Blood, Room Level 2 -CD: 8hrs, Combine- CD: 10hrs, Equipnt's Tale-CD: 3hrs, Transference-CD: 1 month, Undying
Equipped Skills:
He had seen them before. He knew he'd leveled up. He was now level 120. He'd seen that his stats had increased substantially, the numbers growing with each level. He'd also gained new skills, but he'd never bothered to read the descriptions. He knew one of the skills had a cooldown of a full month after each use, but his curiosity had been a casualty of his despair, his overwhelming feeling of loss.
Tyler focused on the system, and read one of the skill nas, muttering, "Undying."
Another system panel materialized, hovering over the others, displaying the description of the skill he had acquired upon reaching A-Rank.
Undying: When the user's HP drops to 1, they instantly beco completely invulnerable to all damage and status effects for 30 seconds. During this ti, no attacks can harm him, allowing them to withstand even the deadliest of onslaughts, fueled by an unyielding will to survive.
*Woah... That’s a pretty cool skill. So when my HP reaches 1… I beco invulnerable to everything?* He paused, considering the implications. *But… it’s only for thirty seconds…* He quickly countered, adding *though.* *But thirty seconds… with my agility… feels like more than enough to take out or escape an opponent. After all… there are still people way, way stronger than . I’ve only reached A-rank.*
He stroked his chin, lost in thought. *But I wonder… what if I fought the captain again, even without the Void Armor?* He considered. *I think things could have end differently… even if he was level 150…*
He shrugged, dismissing the thought. *Well… I can’t be sure.*
His gaze drifted to the next skill, and he muttered, "Transference."
The Undying panel vanished, replaced by the description of *Transference*. The panel read:
This skill allows the user to replicate one skill from any armor they have encountered. Once per month, the user can activate Transference to copy and independently use a chosen skill from the selected armor, without needing to equip it. This ability exemplifies the user's capacity to adapt and harness diverse powers.
Tyler’s eyes widened. He was genuinely surprised by the skill's potential. He thought, *I can replicate any skill from any armor… and use it without wearing the armor? So… that ans I won’t need the armor after replicating the skill? I’ll have the skill… with … always… just like the other hunters?*
A genuine chuckle escaped him, a sound of pure happiness. He started to consider the possibilities, a cascade of potential skills flooding his mind. *Rush… Charge… Shine…* He thought about all the skills he could acquire. *This… this is truly incredible! To think that I have a skill like this… I won’t always have to rely on my armor anymore… I can actually have skills of my own…*
The system panel disappeared. Tyler paused, considering the implications. *Wait a minute… the skill just said ‘armor’… it didn’t ntion anything about copying skills from weapons…* He sighed, recognizing the limitation. *That must be it… but still… it’s a pretty good skill. Most of the skills I actually need… are always in armor, anyway.*
He settled back against the bed, using his hands as a makeshift pillow. He closed his eyes, a plan forming in his mind. *Tomorrow… the first thing I must do is go to the Hunter Assessnt building… and get my rank promoted.*
Sleep was elusive, his excitent making it difficult to settle. He tossed and turned until the encroaching light of dawn finally overwheld the stars, the inky blackness giving way to a pale, sky blue. The nights in this world always felt longer, as did the days. Tyler had grown accustod to it. He knew the days were longer than the standard twenty-four hours he was used to, and it was part of why he could accomplish so much in a single day.
He awoke. The mont his eyes opened, he sprang from the bed, landing lightly on his feet, and took a deep breath of the fresh morning air. Pushing all negative thoughts from his mind, he muttered, "It’s ti to head out."
His clothes shimred as the Hexhorn Armor, a bit worse for wear after the battle with the captain, materialized around him. He paid little mind to the damage as he opened the door.
He descended the stairs, heading toward the main floor. The innkeepers were already awake, engaged in a hushed conversation behind the counter. The topic, predictably, was the tragedy in Aria, the hottest rumor sweeping through the region. None of them knew the truth.
Tyler sighed as he reached the bottom of the stairs. The woman behind the counter stopped talking, her gaze lifting to et his. "Good morning," she greeted. "Up so early?"
"Yeah," Tyler replied.
The man raised an eyebrow. "Going hunting? It's been a while since you've been out."
Tyler smiled slightly. "Yeah… well, not really. I’m going to get my rank assessed.”
The man’s eyebrow arched even higher. "Really? But… you haven't been hunting for a while..."
The woman interjected, "Just let him be. Don't pester him.” She then looked at Tyler. “Sir, go get your rank assessed if you wish.”
"I'm heading out," Tyler said.
Adam
The woman then added, "Have a great day."
As he exited, the man rested his finger on his chin, his brow furrowed in suspicion.
"Co on," the woman chided, "why do you always bombard our custors with questions?"
The man replied, "Hey… doesn't that man look similar to… the man in those wanted posters?"
The woman peered at the door, then shook her head. "What do you an? He doesn’t look anything like the person in those posters."
"Yeah, you’re right," the man conceded. "It’s just… his hair looks similar."
The woman nodded. "Just his hair."
His eyes looked different… even his armor.”
The woman added, "Of course, I an, hunters do change armors once in a while, right?"
The man countered, "Yeah… his eyes aren’t crimson like the one in the wanted poster.”
With a sigh, the woman closed her eyes. "There are no similarities at all. What are you going to do? Think anyone with black hair is that man now? Plus… he’s just a C-rank. He’s not even capable of doing whatever happened in Aria.”
The man relented, "Okay, all right, I heard you. I’ll stop talking about it.”
The woman tapped her chin, deep in thought. Then she mused, "Then again… how old do you think the hunter on the poster is?"
The man sighed, and their conversation continued.
anwhile, Tyler arrived at the Hunter Assessnt building. He looked at it, and a thought entered his mind, *Man… this is so weird. It feels like it’s been three months since I first got here… but it’s only been a month.* He sighed. *It’s probably because of these longer days.*
Nerves fluttered in his stomach as he entered the building. He found Charles, as always, behind the counter.
"Ah, good morning," Charles greeted. "Back so soon?"
"Yeah," Tyler replied, a small smile gracing his lips.
"Are you here to see what your level is?"
Tyler laughed. "I'm here to promote my rank."
Charles’ eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Wait… so suddenly"
"Yeah," Tyler confird, resting his hands on the counter.
Charles chuckled. “It’s been… not even two full weeks… and you’re here to see if you’ve beco a B-rank? Listen, kid… there’s no way you’ve leveled up thirty tis in the last two weeks… but… if you say so… Co on, let’s go. See what your current level is.” He moved from behind the counter, leading Tyler up the stairs.
As they climbed, Tyler asked, “Don’t C-ranks know when they’ve leveled up?”
Charles replied, "Yes, they do, but most of them… stop counting. They just rely on the hunter assessnts to tell their current level.” He paused, then added as they reached the door, “You know… it’s pretty rare for us to get C-rank hunters coming here to get assessed. Why are you still hunting here?”
Tyler stamred, "I, um… I wasn’t sure if I was ready to go hunting at a higher tier monster zone yet.”
Charles frowned, clearly seeing through the lie. *All right.” He opened the door, the hinges groaning in protest.
A bead of sweat trickled down Tyler’s forehead. *He’s surprised I’m here to assess if I’m a B-rank… How the hell are they going to react once they find out I’m an A-rank? I basically skipped an entire rank… I didn’t have ti to co here and assess that I was a B-rank…*
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