[Scanning attributes...]
The familiar glowing notification flickered into existence before Riley's eyes. He exhaled a sharp breath, shoulders dropping in resignation.
"This again," He muttered under his breath, clicking his tongue.
He knew what was coming. Or rather, he knew the result he got in his past life.
In his previous life, this part had been burned into his mory with pain and disappointnt.
The dreadful talent awakening, which crushed almost all his hopes of ever succeeding in the ga.
He'd been helpless then, a clueless fool dropped into the jaws of a world that had no rcy for the weak.
But now?
Now, he had knowledge. No matter what cursed talent he received, he wouldn't squander his second chance.
He'd wring every drop of potential out of it, fight tooth and nail for every scrap of power. He'd survive. He had to survive.
[Attributes Scan Complete!]
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
Riley's eyes narrowed, a sharp frown spreading across his face.
"What the...?"
Normally, the awakening process only triggered the notification once.
A single [Beginning Talent Awakening...] followed by the display of the awakened talent's na and rank.
It was standard for every player, regardless of their attribute scores or class affinity.
So why was it repeating? Again and again, the sa line flashing in front of his eyes, layered over itself like so bugged-out hologram.
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
Riley clenched his fists.
He knew what talent he had awakened in his past life. A miserable, worthless ability that did nothing but remind him of how cruel the system could be.
D-rank Strength Boost.
The so-called "boost" only gave him a ten percent increase to his strength.
In exchange, it devoured a staggering eighty percent of his mana reserves—mana he needed for skills, movent techniques, anything.
Worse, it had a twelve-hour cooldown, which made it useless in nearly every battle that mattered.
He could count the number of tis it had helped him on one hand... and the number of tis it had nearly gotten him killed on the other.
He'd cursed that talent every day of his life. Every ti a monster tore through his shield, or a teammate was too slow to save him, or a more gifted player surpassed him with ease.
He had hated that talent with every fiber of his being.
Now, the glitching notifications made him wonder if history was repeating again... or if sothing new was happening.
The flickering stopped.
Then, three large, glaring red notifications burst into existence.
[ERROR!]
[ERROR!]
[ERROR!]
Riley's eyes widened.
"What...?" He whispered.
His heart thudded in his chest. He took a step back, breath quickening. This was not normal. Not by a long shot.
He heard the news of how dozens of others went through the awakening process in his past life, and none of them—not one—had ever triggered an error during the talent scan.
The notifications vanished as quickly as they appeared.
[Beginning Talent Awakening...]
A cold lump ford in Riley's throat. His eyes locked onto the next string of words.
[Talent Awakening Complete]
[Unique SSS-Rank Talent Gluttony Awakened!]
Riley's jaw dropped. His lips parted, but no words ca out.
He blinked once. Then again. Then rubbed his eyes with both hands, hard enough to sting.
"What...?" He mumbled.
He stared at the notification, then leaned in closer, squinting like his vision had failed him.
Perhaps this was an hallucination, maybe this was a trick, or a prank, or so hidden tutorial trap designed to bait foolish players into false hope.
But the letters didn't change. They glowed with that sa radiant hue, unwavering and firm.
"Gluttony... SSS-Rank..." He whispered, voice barely above a breath.
He counted the letters on instinct.
"One... two... three... SSS-Rank... an SSS-Rank talent?!"
His voice rose to a yell, echoing off the empty white walls of the space he stood in.
In his past life, only a handful of people in the entire world had awakened SS-level talents.
They were considered gods among n—walking legends who shaped the future of humanity with their re presence.
Most of them were chosen by nations, courted by elite guilds, surrounded by fa, fortune, and endless resources.
They were practically untouchable.
However, he had never heard about anyone having an SSS-rank talent, not even Terry, the strongest hero of humanity.
And now... he had one?
He staggered back a step, heart pounding.
'Gluttony talent...' He mumbled inwardly.
He didn't recognize the na.
Due to the terrible talent he awakened in his past life, he had spent quite so ti studying talents.
He did this to sowhat console himself and always imagined himself awakening a more useful talent.
However, he had never heard anything about a talent of gluttony.
His mind buzzed with a thousand questions, but there was no ti to answer them.
[Talent Details: Gluttony (Unique SSS)]
[Description: You have awakened the embodint of consumption. Through Gluttony, you may consu skills, abilities, attributes and even the talents of others. Absorb what you devour. Beco what you consu.]
[Effect 1: Absorption — By consuming a creature, you can gain 10% of attributes. You also have a 20% chance of absorbing one of the creature's skill or trait.]
[Effect 2: Hunger — Your hunger will never be satiated.]
[Warning: Gluttony will grow stronger the more you use it, but so too will the hunger.]
[Warning: Hunger must be managed. Failing to control it may result in... consequences.]
[Effect 3: Evolution — Whenever you consu a creature, you gain evolution points. Evolution points can be used to evolve the talent when it reaches a certain amount.]
Riley couldn't breathe.
He skimd over the lines again, eyes scanning furiously for anything he might have misunderstood.
But no.
It was all real.
He wasn't dreaming.
This wasn't so cruel trick of the gods or bug in the system. This was real. This was his.
His fingers trembled as he raised them to his face, barely able to believe what he was seeing.
He had a talent that let him devour and absorb the powers of others.
That ant he could quickly rise to power, and might even be able to grow stronger infinitely.
It sounded absurd, as the talent was overpowered beyond belief.
And yet... it was his.
Riley let out a shaky breath, still stunned. "What... the hell?"
Another notification chid.
[Please confirm your starting class.]
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