The Aethelburg City Advancement Hall was a massive, dome-like structure of white marble and glass. It was where Awakeners went to officially shed their "rookie" status. I walked in, my EXP bar frozen at Level 30, and was immediately directed to a row of glowing crystal orbs.
"Place your hand on the orb, Awakener," a stern-looking attendant said. "It will assess your class and level and assign your official Advancement Quest."
I did as I was told. The second my palm touched the crystal, it didn't just glow; it screamed with light, flashing a deep, violent purple that made the attendant stumble back.
My system, and only my system, gave me the result.
[Ding! Advancement Quest assigned!] [Quest Rank: SSS] [Quest: Solo Subjugation] [Objective: Enter and clear the [Abyssal Gate (SSS-Rank Dungeon)] ALONE.]
I stared at the quest in my log. And I was, for the first time, completely dumfounded.
An SSS-Rank dungeon. The Abyssal Gate was a national-level threat, a place where even parties of Level 200 Awakeners had been wiped out. And the system was asking me, a Level 30, to solo it.
It wasn't that I was scared. I had three Level 500 summons and two Level 120 golems on call. I was reasonably sure I could win.
The problem was bureaucracy.
"How the hell am I supposed to do this?" I muttered as I walked out of the hall, bewildered. "I won't be allowed to enter an SSS-Rank dungeon. They'd laugh at my Level 30 status and kick me out. I can't even get past the front gate, let alone clear the dungeon!"
I was so lost in thought, I almost didn't notice the panic in the streets. VWOOSH! A man in silver plate armor, glowing with mana, rocketed past me, flying toward the Dark Forest. VWOOSH! VWOOSH! Two more followed, this time in the uniforms of the City Guard's elite Mage division. They were all high-level, all moving with a desperate urgency.
"What's going on?" someone in the crowd asked. "They're saying it's a double Beast Tide! From both the Dark Forest and the Luminous Forest!" "That's impossible! Something must be... wait, is that...? That's Guild Master Ivan! The Guild Master!"
I watched as a man who looked like a mountain with a beard, a genuine Level 300+ Awakener, shot into the sky.
"Oh... crap." It finally hit me. This was my fault. My Level 500 summons weren't just "hunting." They were causing a city-wide panic, forcing all the real monsters (the Awakeners) to come out and investigate.
"System, command!" I hissed under my breath, ducking into an alley. "Sköll, Hati, Primal Spirit. Return to the summon dimension. Now." The moment I gave the command, the glorious, non-stop waterfall of [+EXP] in my mind abruptly... stopped. My level bar was once again frozen solid.
"Well," I sighed. "So much for automating the grind." My "SSS" quest was on hold, and my EXP farming was on hold. I needed a new plan.
It was then I overheard a conversation from a party of Awakeners walking past my alley. "...total waste of time. The [Origin Skill Set] has been in the VIP lounge for a year. It's a curiosity, nothing more." "Still, you have to wonder. An 'Origin-level' elemental skill... what does that even mean?" "It means nothing if you can't learn it, genius. They say the scrolls actively reject you. They just burn your hand and your money. They choose their user, and apparently, they're very, very picky."
My feet started moving before my brain had even processed the decision. My [Transcendor] title, my ???mage??? occupation... what if the skills weren't waiting for a strong user, but the right one?
I arrived back at the Trade Hall's VIP lounge. The manager, the one who had seen me buy the 48,000c basic scrolls, was there. And so was the party I had just overheard—a group of five Awakeners in imposing, matching black-and-gold armor. They were clearly a high-level team, and they were all staring at a glass case in the center of the room.
Inside, on velvet cushions, were five skill scrolls, each glowing with an internal, primal light. [Origin Skill: Primal Fire] [Origin Skill: Primal Water] [Origin Skill: Primal Wind] [Origin Skill: Primal Earth] [Origin Skill: Primal Lightning]
"We'll make a bid on the Fire one," the party's leader said to the manager. "50 million credits. Just for the chance to try."
The manager smiled politely. "A generous offer, sir. However, the price is not for 'trying.' The price is for buying. And the set is 100 million credits. Each."
The party leader scoffed. "500 million for a set of scrolls no one can even learn? Don't be ridiculous."
I ignored them. I walked straight up to the manager, past the party, and took out my black VIP card. "Mr. Arkwright. Welcome back... again." The manager looked mildly surprised.
"I'll take the whole set," I said.
The lounge went dead silent. The party of five stared at me. The manager's polite smile froze. "Sir... the whole set? That is 500 million credits. And I must remind you, they are... famously difficult. They do not... function."
"That's fine," I said. "I'll take all five." I just needed to own them. My system would do the rest.
"Kid," the leader of the other party said, his voice a low growl. "Are you just trying to waste our time? Or are you stupid?"
"I have the money," I said, looking at the manager. "Is it for sale or not?"
"It is... but sir, your balance is 11.8 million," the manager said, checking his console. "The price is firm."
"Oh," I said. I looked at the party. I looked at the scrolls. This was a problem. I was just about to turn and leave, to go grind out another 490 million, when...
A heavy hand grabbed my shoulder.
I tensed, my [Stone Skin (T1)] and [Magma Armor (T1)] ready to activate in an instant. "Who do you think you are, boy," a low, dangerous voice growled from behind me, "making a scene in my lounge?"
I turned to look. It was the other party leader. He was a tall man, scarred, with a burning [Level 185] floating over his head.
"Let go of me," I said, my voice quiet.
"Or what?" he sneered. "You'll buy your way out? You Level 30 rookies are all the same. No respect." He squeezed, his grip like a steel vice.
But he didn't know about my [Colossal Strength (Passive)]. To me, his steel-vice grip felt like nothing.
I simply looked at his hand on my shoulder, then back at his eyes. "I asked you to let go."
"And I said-"
Before he could finish, I activated the new skill I'd learned from the monster pack. The one I hadn't even tested. "Skill: [Void-Ripper (T1)]." A sliver of nothingness, a tiny, one-inch rift in space, appeared in the air. It zipped forward and sliced cleanly through the man's gauntlet. SHLK. Four of his armored fingers, and the real ones inside, dropped to the floor with a wet, metallic clink.
He didn't even scream. He just stared at his hand. Then he looked at me. His eyes were no longer sneering. They were wide with pure, unadulterated terror. The entire lounge was silent, save for the drip, drip, drip from his hand.
I turned back to the stunned Trade Manager. "I'll be back for those."
A/N: Thanks for reading, and if you like it, plzz add it in your collection.