"STOP."
The man who shouted came close to Alvin.
The man's name was Edward Thorne. His hair was the color of ash, white and thin, brushed back neatly. Lines carved by age traced his face like old parchment. His eyes glowed a pale green, calm yet piercing, the kind of gaze that seemed to look through one's soul rather than at it.
He was an Appraiser.
"The rabbit has the special skill. If you kill the rabbit, Rivera will die," Edward Thorne said.
Alvin's eyes widened. "What? What do you mean, Edward?"
Relief flooded through Ethan's trembling body. Thanks, Edward. I owe you one.
"Let me show you." Edward Thorne replied, placing a hand on Alvin's shoulder.
Edward turned to the rabbit -Ethan - his expression unreadable. The air shimmered faintly as Edward's green eyes began to glow brighter. The Appraisal Skill had been activated.
The Dalmenton Family had invited him to appraise the magical beast. Normally, in every summoning, an Appraiser should be present. That was why the Dalmenton Family had summoned Edward Thorne - to appraise the magical beast after Rivera's summoning.
In the Kingdom of Primacia, there was only one Appraiser, and that was Edward Thorne. Appraisers were very rare.
Edward could also share his sight with whomever he touched, letting them see whatever he could see.
The glow intensified. Streams of faint green light danced between Edward and the rabbit.
Then, suddenly - Alvin flinched. His entire body jerked backward as if struck by lightning. His eyes went wide as if he had seen a ghost.
"No... impossible. This can't be happening," Alvin said in shock.
Everyone around him stared in confusion. After all, what could have made Alvin Dalmenton - the great beast tamer - so terrified?
Rose tightened her grip on Rivera.
"Alvin, what's wrong? What happened? What did you see?"
Her anxiety spiked; she had never seen her husband this shaken before.
And then came the truth.
Exactly as Edward had said.
"It's... it's that skill," Alvin stammered, his voice cracking. "It's All for One."
As soon as Rose heard those words, her strength drained from her body. She nearly fell, but because she was holding Rivera, she managed to stay upright.
"No... this can't be," Rose whispered, completely shocked.
Everyone present widened their eyes when they heard All for One.
*********
In the world of Blizzard, skills were ranked as follows:
Bronze Tier
Silver Tier
Gold Tier
Diamond Tier
Platinum Tier
Titanium Tier
Epic Tier
Legendary Tier
There were two skills that were Legendary Tier - One for All and All for One.
One was seen as a blessing. The other was seen as both a blessing and a curse.
They were truly legendary, terrifying skills. One for All and All for One granted unimaginable power to the beast and its tamer. These skills were incredibly rare - one in a million.
With these skills, even a Titanium Tier beast could surpass a Legendary Tier beast. The summoner even gained a special skill once the beast leveled up to a certain point.
But the terrifying part was All for One, because when the beast died, the tamer also died.
With One for All, when the beast died, the tamer didn't.
When a beast possessed any of these skills, it was called The One.
Normally, beast tamers could summon ten beasts. But when someone summoned their first beast and it had One for All or All for One, that tamer could never summon another beast again.
All of them were powerful, but in the case where a prey beast - like a rabbit - had it, the skill became a horrifying curse.
Prey beasts were not combat-type magical beasts. They were renowned for their uselessness, their low base stats, and their poor potential growth. Even with these skills, their power barely improved.
The power was immense... but the risk was fatal.
And in Rivera's case, the truth was cruel beyond words.
As a result of the skill, Rivera's life was forever tied to this single, fragile prey beast.
And it had crippled her as a beast tamer.