Kaiser's breath hitched as he saw the colossal creature looming before him. Its gaping maw dripped acidic saliva onto the ground. Deep green fur intertwined with a black mane, and its claws, nearly as long as an arm, raked relentlessly against the wall.
Even its hunched posture radiated raw power, but what nearly froze Kai in place was the sheer ferocity in its red eyes locked onto him.
"Hahaha…" he struggled to laugh awkwardly. "Just my damn luck," he muttered, planting his feet firmly on the cold cave floor. His legs trembled, but he refused to step back. Running wasn't an option. If he truly planned on surviving in this world, he had to confront it.
According to the original plot he wrote, there wasn't anything like a giant green-furred bear in the cave. So what had changed? Was it the timing of his arrival?
Before he could react further, a long talon slashed in his direction, grazing his shoulder with a wet scrape that sent searing pain through his arm.
Kaiser's eyes widened before he could even cry out. The massive drifter wasn't planning to wait for his screams. It charged toward him, growling like a foul beast gone berserk.
The entire cave trembled with each of its movements. Kai found himself frozen for a moment. Just mere hours ago, he had been a normal guy from Earth who got terrified of huge dogs and jumpscares on VidTok. Now he was meant to face a freaking bear?
A forced grin formed on his face as he finally moved, just a little.
Yes, he was a normal guy from Earth, but he was also the son of one of the greatest otakus to exist. He would rather die at the hands of a Tier Nine Drifter than shake in fear before a mere four-legged beast.
He coated his entire body with what little mana he could squeeze out and raised his clenched fist in a standard boxing stance.
The bear rushed forward with even greater speed as the trembling in his eyes completely vanished. Yet before it could make contact, the system chimed in his ear.
Ding!
[The Goddess of Stories stretches her divine hand to help you.]
A sudden bolt of pure light tore through the cave, striking the raging drifter squarely and reducing its massive form to nothing more than a smoldering silhouette.
Kaiser's jaw went slack. "What?..." he whispered, baffled. "What the hell happened?"
The drifter, just inches from ending his life, had been obliterated by a force radiating authority and power far beyond anything mortal.
"The Goddess of Stories?" he muttered as the afterwind from the strike sent his hair flying back, his eyes still wide.
His mind raced with possibilities as to why such an overpowered being would even look at him. Suddenly, the memory of the system's initial message surfaced:
"The Goddess of Stories is on your side."
Kai couldn't help but sigh.
There was no point pondering why a divine being who had transmigrated him chose to intervene. Maybe she wanted him alive, or perhaps she truly wanted him to complete the story of this world for her. Besides, asking the system was out of the question since that goddess simp wouldn't answer a thing.
However, it wasn't all bad. The fact that a god wished for his survival meant he had a trump card no one else in this world possessed.
Before he could think further, the system rang loudly in his mind.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
[YOU HAVE SLAIN A SEQUENCE EIGHT DRIFTER—]
[YOU HAVE EARNED 10 STAT POINTS—]
[CONDITION: OVERPOWER TARGET HAS BEEN ACHIEVED—]
[DOES USER WISH TO EXTRACT SAINT—YES/NO.]
"What? How is that even possible? I didn't do anything." He tried to shoo the status panel away, but each time he did, it flickered back into existence.
[Attention: Her Highness, the Goddess of Stories herself, intervened on your behalf, so it is counted as your kill.]
"I see… and since she literally one-shotted it, the system automatically credited it as me overpowering it."
He rubbed his temples, slightly confused. What was happening now hadn't crossed his mind when he first saw the conditions for Threads of Dominion. However, it did open up many other possible ways of gaining Shadow Saints.
"Well, since she's so generous, I'll take the gift." He paused, eyeing the window hovering in front of him. "Yes."
[Correct choice, mortal.]
[....]
[EXTRACTING SAINT—]
Mana surged through the cave, pushing him back a few steps. A dim light glowed from the drifter's ashes, casting eerie shadows throughout the cavern.
The dripping sounds once made by the raging bear had vanished, making the cave feel even more ominous.
The dim light from the ashes, resembling a glowing dark shadow, finally faded, and the system rang out again.
[USER HAS EXTRACTED SAINT. PLEASE SELECT A NAME TO MAKE THINGS OFFICIAL.]
Kaiser's gaze shifted to the drifter's corpse, which remained intact, then to its shadow, which was still present but slightly dimmed.
"System, how did you make a Shadow Saint since there's no corpse?"
[Mortal, your ability uses neither the body nor the main shadow to make saints. All that is needed is a part of their thread of existence, which is obtained when either condition is fulfilled. This means the original lifeform can still exist even when the Shadow Saint exists. And yes, unlike Shadow Devils, Shadow Saints look nothing like the original being if it is human, but more like their spiritual beast form.]
Kaiser pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's a lot of information. But I get the gist of it."
For him, it was more convenient than regular necromancy or soul extraction. This way, no one would mistake it for a demonic art or even know he possessed their Shadow Saint.
'Enough amazement.' He turned back to the system notification and whispered softly, "Shiki."
[Congratulations! Shadow Saint: Shiki has been born.]
The shadows within the cave seemed to dance with joy as a large bear figure materialized. Its former green fur was replaced by black, energy-like strands with glowing blue runic markings, and its mane glowed a soft lilac.
Its crimson eyes turned crystalline blue, gleaming in the dim cave before it fell onto all fours and bowed its head before Kaiser.
Kai felt oddly ecstatic at the reaction. "Arise," he muttered before bursting into laughter and rolling on the ground.
"Hahaha, it actually worked. I feel like Sung Peak-woo right now." He smirked widely, then asked with a hint of pride, even though he had put in zero effort to obtain the saint, "So, Shiki, what can you do?"
[Please, user, you are currently too weak to communicate with your Shadow Saints.]
"Okay, okay. So what's next?"
Ding!
[Pick one of your shadow's two abilities—]
[Option 1: Clairvoyance: You can see beyond the normal range of perception.]
[Option 2: Rage: Your stats increase by 20 percent each time your negative emotions exceed your positive ones.]
Kaiser studied the window carefully, absorbing every detail. Raising his hand, he selected the first option.
Ding!
[You have earned the sub-talent: Clairvoyance.]
"System, show me my talent stats."
Ding!
[Current Shadow Devils: 0...]
[Current Shadow Saints: 2...]
---
[Sub-talents]
Alabaster Ice [Gobo]: A talent acquired from a Lower Sequence Nine Drifter, Goblin. Enables the user to reduce surrounding thermal heat. This ability grows stronger as you grow.
Clairvoyance [Shiki]: A talent acquired from a Higher Sequence Nine Drifter, Raging Bear. You can see beyond the normal perception range. With enhanced vision, heightened senses, and a sixth sense, you can perceive events or information beyond ordinary senses.
—
"Hihihi," Kaiser laughed softly.
The main reason he chose the first talent wasn't because he could control his emotions like some genius, or because the second option wasn't appealing, but because he planned on starting as a support class.
In novels centered around reincarnation or transmigration, the main character always enters a weak body and then chooses a sword, even though his body clearly isn't built for that workload.
There's nothing inherently wrong with that, at least in fiction. But for Kaiser, who now lived in such a reality, he knew the truth. Only the smart ones survive. It didn't matter how strong-minded, courageous, or kind a person was. Only talent prevailed in the end. That was the terrifying truth, and until he bloomed his talent to the fullest, he would choose survival.
In Magic Academy's Genius Swordsmaster, their world, Aether, teemed with various forms of superpowers categorized under three archetypes: Augmentors, Manipulators, and Enchanters.
These archetypes gave rise to five classes that every awakened individual, whether hero or villain, played in a team: Arbiter, Tank, Wave Controller, Healer, and Scout, each with a specific niche.
Since Kaiser was a Manipulator, his class options were more flexible. He could potentially fit into any of them. But that didn't mean he could choose at random.
"Haah, why didn't I give myself some ultra-rare cheat skill to carry me to the top?" he sighed, collapsing onto the cave floor.
Even the elixir wasn't an overpowered item, just something that would help him keep up with the other cadets at the academy.
"Reaching the main character's level is a whole different thing."
Since Noctis' entrance ceremony didn't just serve as a welcome but also as the venue for class selection, it was the perfect chance to check out the main cast and gauge the gap between them at this stage.
Plus, now that he was certain which class he wanted, the selection would be easy.
The Arbiter class was ideal for charismatic people, those who could lead from the front and make strategic decisions, essentially a main-character-worthy role.
Healers operated in the rear as support units. Tank was a complete no-go for him since he lacked both the strength and stamina for such a role.
That left two options: Scout and Wave Controller.
Scouts were the shadows of the team, gathering intel, offering backup, and performing reconnaissance. Truthfully, it wasn't a bad class, but he disliked the feeling of doing others' dirty work.
And the final option—
"Wave Controller."
The most versatile of the remaining classes. They could engage directly or provide support. As the name suggested, Wave Controllers were typically mages or snipers who dealt large-scale or long-range damage using mana.
This was why Kai made his choice. With his new talent, he could become a decent sniper or marksman until he grew strong enough to change roles and weapons.
Pushing himself to his feet, he entered the section of the cave from which Shiki had emerged, his massive Shadow Saint standing behind him.
He didn't know what other horrors might appear, but having someone to protect him was reassuring.
"System, how do I summon or dismiss my Saints?"
[User must assign a name for summoning. For dismissal, simply think it.]
"I'll do that later. First, summon Gobo and dismiss Shiki."
A shadowy light manifested before him, though it was dim as Shiki transformed into a smaller shadow and slid into his own. Kai felt his shadow swirl as the massive bear dissolved into it, and a goblin figure wielding a dagger appeared before him.
Like Shiki, it was composed of dark energy and radiated a faint blue and lilac glow.
"Okay, let's go get the elixir before another unknown horror shows up."
With that, Kaiser vanished into the depths of the cave.