The crackling of the firewood served as the backdrop for their conversation. The night was silent, and a sense of calm settled over Jenkins. He nodded gently, ready to accept this legacy. It wasn't that he yearned to be a hero; he simply wanted more power to protect the ones he loved.
"Black Divine abilities are the most unique among all categories. This is evident in how one obtains them; they can typically only be passed down, not actively learned. That's why, after I die, the world will preserve the mory of my image to prepare for the next inheritance. Of course, this could also be an arrangent made by the gods for the sake of destiny.
If you don't complete the grand task of a Savior and ascend to a higher plane, then you, too, will have the chance to beco a mory, sitting by a campfire just like this, talking to the next successor."
As he spoke, the man reached out and pointed a finger at Jenkins. A black radiance shot from his fingertip, flying straight into Jenkins's forehead.
An icy sensation shot through his body, and for a terrifying mont, he thought his heart had stopped. But when he ca to, he was still sitting by the fire, as if the deathly illusion had never occurred. The chaotic-colored bubble representing the Misfortune Poem pulsed into view. Its jumbled colors swirled together, finally settling into a deep black. This new point of light managed to squeeze its way into the core of his other abilities, becoming a new Savior's Emblem.
The emblem took the form of a sword driven into the ground at an angle, perhaps symbolizing that first great deed.
"What I'm passing on to you is more than just [Hero]. As a gift to my successor, I will grant you another ability as well."
"Thank you for your generosity, but I don't have enough bubbles to accommodate a new power."
Jenkins admitted, a touch of embarrassnt in his voice.
"That's simple enough."
With that, the armored man pointed at Jenkins again. Instantly, a vast amount of spirit surged into his body from the surrounding space.
He had already accumulated enough spirit since reaching level 5, so now, after two long months, he was finally leveling up again. He reached level 6—a height most Enchanters could never hope to achieve in their entire lives.
It had been nearly a year since he arrived in this world at the end of last July, becoming the ordinary Jenkins. Now, he was about to reach the limits of a mortal.
Reaching level six gave him four new empty bubbles, more than enough to accommodate four new abilities.
"I possess a great many abilities and know countless rituals for learning them, but my greatest expertise lies in Red Martial abilities. Tell what you need, and I will find sothing suitable for you."
the ancient hero said.
"If it's not too greedy of to ask, do you know of any ability that would let communicate with animals?"
Jenkins wasn't asking for much. Though his abilities were a jumbled, unsystematic collection, their sheer number ant he had most of his bases covered.
An ability to communicate with animals, however, was sothing he had always needed—not just to understand what his pet cat was thinking, but also to better grasp his own Green Life abilities.
"That's a simple enough request, but it's completely unrealistic to expect a single ability to let you communicate with every kind of animal. Before the Enchanter system was created, the extraordinary were classified by profession, and rangers possessed many such abilities. After the system was established, those powers were reinterpreted and reclassified. I happen to have one that would be perfect for you; it helped overco countless hardships. But rember, rangers often spent a great deal of ti just to communicate with a single species they were familiar with. A eting of minds is never instantaneous. You must learn to experience the world with your heart..."
As the firelight danced, his figure grew increasingly faint. The helt and sword beside him had already vanished; the mory itself was fading.
"You must rember the aning of the word [Hero]. Rember that it signifies a bond, not a license to do as you please. Young Savior, I am counting on you to succeed. The future of this world... rests on your shoulders..."
A brilliant light shot from the hero's body and into Jenkins. And then, he was alone by the campfire.
He silently contemplated his abilities. In addition to the new [Hero (Black Divine)], a new ability symbolizing Green Life had appeared on the outer ring:
[Spiritual Communion].
"What does this an? Can I talk to Chocolate now?"
He remained seated, his eyes scanning the surroundings. When he noticed a barely perceptible indentation in the grass nearby, an image imdiately ca to mind: a cat, padding silently across the lawn, heading in another direction.
He beckoned to Chocolate, who was lurking in the darkness nearby. Once the cat returned, Jenkins gently lifted it, his hands under its forelegs, and stared intently into its beautiful amber eyes. With the cat's back to the fire, the color of its eyes was especially striking.
"Chocolate, can you hear ?"
"ow~"
It was still just a ow; Jenkins couldn't discern any aning in the sound. A little disappointed, he set the cat down. His gaze drifted unconsciously to a sparrow loitering in the grass nearby. On an impulse, he spoke to the tiny creature.
"How's the weather today?"
The sparrow, of course, didn't suddenly reply in the common tongue with a Norland accent. It didn't even make a sound. It simply tilted its small head, glanced at Jenkins, and then took flight into the night sky.
It was just a look—he couldn't even make out the sparrow's eyes in the darkness—but Jenkins had clearly heard the small creature's voice. It was ethereal and fragile, yet perfectly clear:
"There's a dampness in the air. It's going to rain. I should be heading back."
He took a deep breath and turned his gaze back to the fire, beginning to understand what "Spiritual Communion" truly ant. He had sensed the "voices" of trees many tis before; this was likely a similar phenonon.
It seed that understanding Chocolate's ows would take more ti. The cat was a creature of incredibly complex thoughts, and it possessed its own spirit. Glimpsing its mind through empathy would not be as simple as he had hoped.
Having co to terms with this new gift, Jenkins remained seated by the fire for a long while before finally rising to his feet. His mind replayed the information the hero had shared—about the Black Divine ability, and about the End of the Era.
Receiving this ability filled him with a sudden sense of urgency. After all, the appearance of every Savior ability heralded the arrival of the final day. Now, only the last few—Purple Fate, Yellow Spell, and Green Life—had yet to manifest.
Judging by the frequency with which he had encountered Savior abilities over the past six months, the final day would very likely arrive before the end of 1866 of the 18th Epoch's Universal Calendar. That day was not far off at all.
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