"Ding! Your Talent level has increased."
Arya, who had already resigned herself to whatever outcome fate decided to throw at her, froze the moment the voice of the world will echoed in her mind.
…What?
For a split second, her thoughts completely stalled.
No way.
She had already mentally prepared herself for disappointment. She had even gone so far as to comfort herself in advance, telling herself that nothing would happen this time. So why—why did it suddenly upgrade?
Was this really the charm of a single pull?
Still somewhat dazed, Arya raised her hand, casually wiped the grease from the corner of her mouth, and summoned her personal information panel.
Talent: Light Object Art (D)
Can reduce one's own body weight to achieve a floating effect.
Can reduce the weight of objects to achieve a floating effect.
Object weight must not exceed the user's standard weight.
Consumes 1 point of magic per minute.
Arya stared at the panel for a long moment before tapping her Talent description again to confirm she wasn't imagining things.
Aside from the added ability to affect external objects, there were no major changes.
"…So that's it?"
At first glance, the upgrade didn't seem particularly dramatic. Still, curiosity quickly won out over caution. Arya decided to test it immediately.
She activated Light Object Art, stepped forward, and slapped the Magic Desk in front of her.
The moment her palm made contact, the desk shuddered slightly—then, incredibly, lifted off the ground.
Barely.
It rose no more than a centimeter, wobbling weakly in the air before stabilizing.
Even then, Arya knew that tiny bit of lift had more to do with the force of her slap than the Talent itself.
"…Without external force, this is all it can do?"
She deactivated the skill, and the desk gently settled back into place.
Arya felt a faint sense of disappointment. In theory, Light Object Art sounded incredibly useful. In practice, however, its current power was clearly limited.
Still, as her mind began to wander, a particularly interesting idea surfaced.
Her eyes lit up.
"Wait… what if—"
Before she could overthink it, Arya activated the Talent again and floated out of her shelter. The skill reduced her body weight to almost nothing, allowing her to drift lightly across the ground until she reached a massive boulder beside the nearby stream.
The stone was enormous—easily several times heavier than her.
Perfect.
If her theory worked, this would be an incredible loophole.
She reached out and slapped the boulder.
Pain exploded through her palm.
"…Ow."
Arya hissed, shaking her hand. The boulder, meanwhile, remained stubbornly grounded, showing not the slightest hint of movement.
Not even a tremor.
"…Yeah, I figured."
She sighed.
The third restriction had clearly anticipated her clever little scheme.
Object weight must not exceed the user's standard weight.
Even if her own weight was reduced to zero, the Talent still referenced her original, "standard" weight as the upper limit.
In other words, she could only use Light Object Art on objects lighter than herself.
"So much for exploiting a bug."
Floating back toward the shelter, Arya couldn't help but feel a trace of regret. If the Talent had worked the way she'd hoped, it would have been absurdly powerful—perfect for combat, transportation, or even large-scale construction.
But the world will was never that generous.
Still, an upgrade was an upgrade.
Arya wasn't the type to dwell excessively on missed opportunities. Compared to most people, she was already absurdly lucky.
Back inside the shelter, she glanced toward the storage room. Over a hundred unfinished Talent Potions sat neatly packed away.
She didn't throw them out.
They might be incomplete, but materials were materials. Someday, they could still prove useful.
After tidying up, Arya casually fed Gang Emima a few slices of cooked chicken.
The creature happily accepted the food, making soft sounds as it ate.
Watching it, Arya finally felt the exhaustion she had been suppressing for days catch up with her.
The last stretch had been brutal—constant potion brewing, mana fluctuations, and nonstop tension.
"I need a break…"
For once, she allowed herself to rest.
That didn't mean she planned to stop working entirely. After all, the Mana Tide that had swept through Kalim was almost certainly a natural phenomenon, and there was no guarantee it wouldn't happen again.
Magic potions needed to be stockpiled.
But she had no intention of continuing to make the +30 or +50 variants.
If possible, she wanted to aim higher.
Grade D primary potions.
Even though her Basic Potionology didn't include formulas at that level, it didn't matter. She still had her appraisal glasses.
With both Potionology and Alchemy now at Grade D, she could appraise Grade D materials—including herbs.
That alone was more than enough.
Knowledge only mattered if it could be used.
She remembered the Volcanic Worm from before.
In the wrong hands, it was nothing more than a grotesque lump of flesh. In the right hands, it was a miracle ingredient capable of instantly elevating one's strength.
Thinking about that, Arya smiled.
Compared to the Talent upgrade, the title she had received earlier was far more appealing.
After all, that reward came directly from the world will itself.
In a sense, it could even be called… world-class.
"Heh."
She chuckled softly at her own joke.
The rest of the day passed peacefully.
Arya either played with Gang Emima or lay on the lounge chair on the second floor, reading while basking in the afternoon light.
She wasn't alone in her rest.
After three days of relentless pressure, most survivors chose to do nothing that day. Relaxation, indulgence, or simple idleness—anything was better than constant mental strain.
As evening approached, the sky burned with a rainbow-hued sunset.
Arya sat at the Magic Desk, waiting for Rogers to finish preparing her takeout, when the world will spoke again without warning.
"The one-month period has ended. Monthly grading is now commencing."
Arya stiffened.
"…Grading?"
She looked down at the Magic Desk.
As expected, countless messages were already flooding in. Confusion spread rapidly among the survivors.
But unlike the Mana Tide, this confusion carried a strange sense of anticipation.
They had already endured a massive disaster. Compared to that, an evaluation almost felt reassuring.
"…Grading complete."
"Grade E: 6,837,219,421 people. Reward: 100 obsidian."
"Grade D: 854,044,518 people. Reward: 10 D-grade monster crystal cores."
"Grade C: 84,852,249 people. Reward: 1 magic crystal."
"Grade B: 284,625 people. Reward: 1 Grade D self-selected tool, 1 self-selected book."
"Grade A: 25,684 people. Reward: 1 Grade D self-selected magic, 1 self-selected book."
"Grade S: 58 people. Reward: 1 Grade C self-selected magic, 1 Grade C self-selected tool, 1 self-selected book."
"Rewards have been distributed. Please choose carefully."
The world erupted.
"What?! There are rewards?!"
"I didn't expect this at all!"
"Hahaha! I'm Grade B! A Grade D tool is mine!"
"Selling books—who even reads those?"
"Only 58 S-ranks… Grade C rewards are insane."
"What are you jealous of? I'm Grade E. I don't even get a choice!"
"Differentiation already? It's only been one month!"
"Another one snapped. Drag him away."
"I wonder what Grade C magic looks like…"
"No need to wonder. It's definitely better than D-grade."
Arya leaned back in her chair, expression calm.
The rankings had begun.
And this was only the start.
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