[news]
Happy new Year everyone!
I've mentioned this to a few people on the discord server, but I actually signed a deal with a publisher back in the summer.
After the wedding, I tried to juggle editing the first book while simultaneously releasing new chapters here. You may have noticed it's been a while since I posted anything new.
I'm really sorry about that. The truth is, I just couldn't do both.
I don't know if you've heard this from other authors, but rewriting and editing is a nightmare. It is boring, tedious, and incredibly draining. Every time I finished an editing session, I was too wiped out to write anything fresh. I got stuck in a loop for days, telling myself, "I'll write in a few days, this isn't a hiatus. No need to announce it."
After a few weeks of that, I was nearing a breakdown, so I made the call to stop writing and focus entirely on the edits. I had a deadline, and I needed to get through all chapters.
Honestly, going back to the start was brutal. It felt like correcting essays I wrote as a child. I found major plot holes that absolutely killed my motivation to write new content until they were fixed.
I can't say the reworked chapters are perfect, but even I feel they are miles better than before. If you want to see the difference, I've uploaded the first 20-25 chapters on Royal Road. The rest hasn't been updated and will be released in a few months once the formatting is good enough (and up to my taste).
Thank you for sticking around.
[/news]
"Just absorb it so we can move on to the next phase of our experiments." Triple-Seven said, showing his annoyance at the time they have wasted condensing elemental affinity fruits.
Before Shade could answer, Twelve spoke, "I'll let you two have fun in this gloomy dungeon."
He looked at Triple-Seven, materialized a spare [Shadow Fruit] from his inventory and tossed it his way.
"If you're planning on creating more, here's a B-Tier [Shadow Fruit] to get you started. No need to begin from the bottom."
With a nod to the duo, he vanished from the dungeon. After his departure, Shade smiled and raised the SS-Tier fruit in hand, reading the notification that appeared before his eyes.
[Would you like to absorb this Shadow Fruit (SS-Tier)?]
He pressed [Yes] without hesitation. The fruit dissolved in his palm, transforming into a thick, dark gas that floated around his body. Familiar with the process, he didn't resist as it entered through his nose and mouth. His entire body shuddered as the energy traveled down his spine, moving through his muscles and bones, reshaping everything in harmony with the [Shadow] element.
[You have reached SS-tier affinity with the [Shadow] element.]
Ignoring the system prompt, he stretched slowly.
'This isn't painful, but it's not pleasant either,' he thought, starting to examine the changes in his body.
'Almost no level 1 player even has access to mana, and here I am… nearly maxing out my elemental affinity.'
He glanced at his hand. With a single thought, it morphed into a translucid, intangible shape. He reached toward a tree and watched in amusement as his hand passed through the trunk. Then, applying the effect to his whole body, he disappeared into the ground and reappeared several hundred meters away.
'Lots of elements give similar mobility, but [Shadow] is my favorite because it leaves no trace.'
"Let's head out of the dungeon. You need to kill a few beasts to see what class options you'll get upon reaching level ten," Triple-Seven said, interrupting Shade's testing.
They exited the dungeon and reappeared near a level 110 hunting ground, deep in the Black Forest, southwest of what used to be Germany.
"Go wild. Push your limits," Triple-Seven instructed.
Shade didn't waste a second. Moving forward at extreme speed, he surveyed the area. Wolves roamed in every direction, clearly the dominant species in the region.
Drawing on the [Shadow] element, Shade melted into nearby shadows and burst from beneath the feet of a massive wolves, cutting them down in an instant.
He tested different styles of attack, growing more satisfied with his increased control over the element.
Effortlessly changing his body's shape, he moved from one patch of darkness to another, thinking, 'The only issue is how weak [Shadow] becomes in daylight or lit areas. I still need [Darkness] to create a battlefield where my element can shine.'
He began drawing in ambient mana, creating dark spaces across the area, then moved between them using his [Shadow] form.
After testing hundreds of techniques, and even creating new ones, Shade stopped the massacre and returned to Triple-Seven.
"My current power is slightly above Omega 16, thanks to my talent level and a few ultimate skills. But I'm still inefficient during the day. The gap between my [Darkness] and [Shadow] affinities is too wide… I need to balance them out and boost my [Darkness] if I want to become stronger."
Triple-Seven, who was busy copying the B-Tier [Shadow Fruit], looked up, smiled, and said, "It doesn't matter for now. Let's focus on [Shadow] first. I will write down all the class choices available to you at level 10."
Shade nodded and began condensing a drop of [Blood Essence]. A moment later, a drop of blood hovered above his palm.
[Human Blood Essence – Bloodline Quality: S. Level 10]
Without hesitation, he absorbed it. Instantly, a few identical notifications appeared.
[Level Up!] x9
He ignored more notification and immediately opened his class selection panel.
[Class Options Available]
[Class Options]:
– Assassin (Common)
– (...)
– Elite Assassin (Rare)
– (...)
– Great Assassin (Epic)
– Shadow Dancer (Epic)
– (...)
– Void Whisperer (Unique)
– Silent Reaper (Unique)
– (...)
– King of the Night (Legendary)
– Shadow Slave (Legendary)
– Eternal Night Harbinger (Mythic)
Shade skipped past the lower-tier classes, his attention locking on the final three.
Turning to Triple-Seven, he said, "Two legendary options: King of the Night and Shadow Slave. The first one sounds promising, the second… kind of pathetic."
He paused, then added, "And the mythic class I had before disappeared. There's a new one now."
Triple-Seven nodded. "Makes sense. You haven't touched a sword in this life."
Shade summoned his short sword and appeared in front of a level 110 wolf that had just respawned. He condensed a dense, sharp [Sword Intent] and struck the beast's heart with his strongest skill.
The creature exploded into a mist of blood.
'Sorry, little wolf. I need strong results today. The better the techniques I use, the higher the chance I'll unlock higher tier classes.'
Waving his hand, he dispersed the blood mist with a gust of wind. Then, ignoring the notifications, he reopened the class selection panel.
[Eternal Night Harbinger (Mythic)]
[Shadow Blade (Mythic)]
His eyes lit up. "It's back. Shadow Blade is available again."
Triple-Seven nodded. "Want to pick it and see if anything's changed? Or try the new one and see if it suits you better?"
Shade shook his head. "Shadow Blade is excellent, but with my current [Shadow] affinity, I doubt it's evolved enough to justify spending an SS-Tier fruit to verify. Only a quarter of the class focuses on the [Shadow] element after all. The rest is focused on the Short sword, assassination and [Darkness]."
Dismissing his blade and sending it back to his [Soul Palace], he made his choice.
He selected Eternal Night Harbinger.
[Mythic Class Unlocked: Eternal Night Harbinger (Stage 1)]
'Mythic classes are different,' Shade thought, watching the system notifications fade. 'No amount of grinding or farming pushes these classes forward.'
'They evolve through stages… and to move from one to another, I need to understand what the class needs. Not just use it blindly.'
He opened the class description and read it slowly.
[Mythic Class: Eternal Night Harbinger]
Class Description:
You are a believer, a harbinger of the Eternal Night. Your path transcends stealth and shadows—it is the promise of the end, inevitable.
Where others use shadows as tools, you are the shadow. Light erases you, but night obeys your will. The deeper you walk this path, the more of yourself you must abandon. To become something no longer human. Something that exists beyond fear, beyond reality, beyond light. Something Absolute.
Stage 1 Skills:
[Shadow Absorption](Passive / Active)
Description: Absorb shadows from your surroundings and enemies. Fuels all shadow-based abilities and passively strengthens your affinity with the [Shadow] element. In areas of complete darkness, you cannot be harmed.
[Umbral Realm](Passive / Active)
Description: Tear open a rift in space and drag enemies into your [Umbral Realm], a dimension born from your own shadow. No element or energy other than [Shadow] can be used within the realm.
[Radiant Curse](Passive)
Description: [Light] does not fear you—it erases you. All [Light]-based damage is multiplied by 100. When struck by [Light], your [Shadow] form is forcibly undone.
Stage 2 Skills:(Locked)
Stage 3 Skills:(Locked)
Stage 4 Skills:(Locked)
Stage 5 Skills:(Locked)
'What is this... A class that relies solely on [Shadows]? Its basic skill is just... absorption? The [Umbral Realm] seems even more terrifying than the [Shadow Realm] from the other Mythic class—but that [Radiant Curse]?! One of my three core skills is a damn curse?!'
Noticing Shade's expression, Triple-Seven raised an eyebrow. "Hey, stop grimacing like that and share the class description already. You look like you just stepped in poop."
Shade sighed and shared the class info. "This class is way different from the [Shadow Blade] I used before. The description's creepy. It feels like I've been recruited into some cult worshipping an evil god or something."
To his surprise, Triple-Seven wasn't disappointed. In fact, his expression lit up with interest.
"Can't you read between the lines? If a class comes with a penalty that insane, it means it's probably way more powerful than you think. Look here! It says 'Absolute.' That word is highlighted! It's a hint. And it says you can absorb shadows from enemies. What happens when someone loses their shadow? Test it! I want to see the effect!"
He glanced around at the now-empty battlefield and clicked his tongue. "Damn it, you killed everything. Test it on me, then! And tell me! What's the growth method of your class? How do you reach the next stage?!"
Shade let out a small laugh as he watched the excitement in his brother's eyes.
"What if you die upon losing your shadow?" he asked, not thrilled at the idea of testing his new skill on Triple-Seven.
"You really think you can kill me while being level 10? I'm two hundred levels above you. There's no way you can hurt me."
Shade shook his head and opened his class panel again, navigating to a tab labeled [Class Upgrade]. But as his eyes fell on the upgrade requirements, he froze.