Time: 9 hours until his janitor shift.
Leo didn't have time for subtlety. He needed capital. Not money—skills.
The Seoul streets were a gallery of power. He saw a delivery man using [Swift Step] to jump between rooftops.
[Copy Condition: 'Arrive at the user's destination before them, without using a movement skill.']
Impossible. He filed it away.
A street vendor used [Preserve Freshness] on his fish.
[Copy Condition: 'Eat the oldest item the user is trying to preserve.']
Disgusting and pointless. No.
Then he saw it—a commotion outside a pawn shop called "Second Chance Vault." A hunter was trying to pawn a skill stone, yelling at the owner.
"It's B-rank [Skill Fusion]! It's worth ₩130조 원 ($100 billion)!"
The pawnbroker, an old man with augmented eyes, snorted. "It's worth what someone will pay. And no one pays for Fusion. It's a famous white elephant. You need fifty skills to make it sing. Who has fifty skills except the guild vaults? I'll give you ₩1.3조 원 ($1 billion) for the novelty."
"That's 1% of its value!"
"It's 100% of its usefulness to anyone but a dragon's hoard."
The hunter, named Dae, looked devastated. The crowd of low-rank hunters and hustlers laughed. "Fusion! Hah! My grandma has more use for her knitting!"
[Skill Detected: Skill Fusion (B-rank).]
[Copy Condition: 'Receive the skill as a genuine gift from someone who believes it is worthless.']
Leo's mind clicked. Not theft. A gift. From someone who saw zero value.
He watched Dae argue for twenty minutes, his hope crumbling. Finally, shoulders slumped, Dae took the measly ₩1.3조 원 ($1 billion) credit chit. As he turned to leave, the pawnbroker tossed the skill stone back to him. "Take your trash. I don't want it cluttering my shelf."
Dae caught it, staring at the glowing stone in his hand—now a symbol of his total failure. He looked like he might cry.
Leo moved. He stepped in front of Dae. "You should keep it."
Dae scowled. "Get lost, kid."
"It has sentimental value," Leo said, his tone utterly serious. "It represents your poor financial decision-making. A useful reminder."
"Are you trying to piss me off?"
"No. I'm acknowledging its true worth. To you, right now, it is worth less than nothing. It's shame. Embarrassment." Leo met his eyes. "Give it to me. Let me carry your shame for you. A gift."
Dae stared, bewildered. The strange, intense boy wasn't mocking him. He was offering... what? Absolution? To be the trash-can for his regret?
In that moment, Dae truly, deeply believed the stone was worthless. Worse than worthless—a burden. And this weird kid wanted it. A flicker of relief cut through his despair. He could be rid of it.
"Fine," Dae muttered, shoving the stone into Leo's hands. "Here. A 'gift.' Enjoy your legendary trash."
The stone was warm in Leo's palm.
[Condition: 'Receive the skill as a genuine gift from someone who believes it is worthless.' - MET.]
[Skill: Skill Fusion (B-rank) – Copied. Storage: Local.]
The knowledge didn't just download—it unfolded. A vast, hungry, celestial machine now lived in his soul. It demanded fuel. Skills.
He had one. He needed more. Now.
6 Hours Until Shift. Ironclad Academy.
Boss Hank assigned him to Sector 7-F. "Novice close-combat. Try not to faint from the mana-fumes, kid."
The hall was empty, scarred with elemental burns. Leo's eyes weren't scanning for objects. They were scanning for stories.
He found a patch of floor permanently darkened by shadow.
[Skill Echo Detected: Shadow Bind (D-rank).]
[Copy Condition: 'Bind the user within the very shadow they cast.']
A physical impossibility. But the echo wasn't the user. The "user" was the memory in the mana. Leo looked at the dark patch. It was cast by a broken light fixture. He took a roll of heavy-duty duct tape from his janitor cart. He meticulously taped over the dark patch on the floor, "binding" the shadow-stain itself. The absurdity was perfect. Copy Complete.
He found a wall dented by countless precise impacts.
[Skill Echo Detected: Pressure Point Strike (D-rank).]
[Copy Condition: 'Strike the exact point where the user's own strike failed to leave a mark.']
He studied the dented wall. Among hundreds of marks, one spot was pristine. He pressed his thumb against that exact spot. Copy Complete.
He was harvesting ghosts through literal-minded, ridiculous interpretations.
Library: 3 skills. Not enough.
Then the first student arrived. Chad, beefy and arrogant, began drilling his signature skill. Fists erupted in roaring flame.
[Skill Detected: Burning Fist (D-rank).]
[Copy Condition: 'Make the user use their own skill to cook their own meal.']
Leo almost blinked. That was… bizarrely specific. He watched Chad finish a set and pull out a protein bar from his bag.
Cook their own meal.
Leo walked over to the water fountain near Chad's bag. He "accidentally" knocked over Chad's expensive, pressurized energy-drink bottle. The bright blue liquid spilled across the floor.
"Hey! You idiot!" Chad yelled.
"My apologies," Leo said, monotone. He grabbed industrial floor-absorbent powder—a white, clay-like substance—and poured it on the spill. He then took Chad's protein bar, unwrapped it, and placed it on top of the now-damp, chemical-soaked powder mound.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"You require nutrients for recovery," Leo stated. "Your drink provided moisture. The absorbent provides mineral content. Your fist provides heat." He pointed at Chad's still-smoldering hand. "It is an efficient, on-site cooking method."
Chad stared at his protein bar sitting in a pile of wet chemical powder. He looked at his fiery fist. A strange, competitive grin spread across his face. "You know what? That's so stupid it's kinda hardcore."
He held his flaming fist under the bar. In seconds, the chemicals sizzled, the bar warmed and slightly melted. He picked it up and took a huge, defiant bite. "Ha! Cooked with my own Burning Fist! Hardcore!"
[Condition: 'Make the user use their own skill to cook their own meal.' - MET.]
[Skill: Burning Fist (D-rank) – Copied.]
Library: 4 skills.
The [Fusion] engine in his soul roared. It was time.
He retreated to a supply closet. He selected the two most incompatible skills he had: [Shadow Bind] (dark, control) and [Burning Fist] (fire, destruction).
[Initiating Fusion…]
[Fuel: 2 D-rank skills. Conceptual Conflict: High.]
[Mana Cost: Critical. Diverting Host Vital Energy.]
A searing, cold emptiness gripped his heart. He felt a piece of his lifespan tear away. The skills in his mind warred, then violently merged.
[Fusion Complete.]
[New Skill Forged: B-rank [Shadowfury Chain].]
Knowledge blossomed: he could now summon chains of solidified shadow that burned with cold, draining black fire. A B-rank. From two D-ranks. Market Value: ₩130조 원 ($100 billion).
He slumped, gasping, life-force depleted. But a savage, breathless triumph surged through him.
He had done it. He had created something impossible. Something the market had no price for, because it shouldn't exist.
The door to the training hall slammed open. Chad's voice boomed. "Janitor! Get out here! I've got a new idea—I'm gonna cook my entire lunch with my fists! You're gonna watch!"
Leo stood, wiping pale sweat from his brow. He looked at his hands—the hands of the Fragile God.
The first spark of the inferno had been lit.
[End of Chapter 2]