"That turned out rather fun, don't you think? Although I never liked novels that only have punches and kicks as their main theme, it was pretty satisfying watching all that," said Kilian.
Haruo looked at the man next to him; his face still had the same mysterious expression. No matter how much he looked at his contractor, the uncanny feeling that swelled up beneath his heart could never wash away, no matter how much he tried to cast it away.
He sighed subconsciously at the figure beside him. 'There's no need to solve a colorless Rubik's cube.'
Suspicion or no, it wasn't his place to meddle with the unknown. As long as he received his support, he was more than happy to obey the man beside him.
'That aside, she's improved quite a lot, except for her personality, I guess—there was no reason to divide her points into one just to be petty. Anyways, controlling his body like that was a bold move…'
Ena always had the potential to control a person's body. However, many implications stopped her from doing so.
'One is the fact that a person's strength depended on how well she could control another person's body.'
Her power might be blessed as an SS-rank, but her own current body is far too immature to contain that much power. 'At best, she is at D-rank equilibrium.'
If her opponent happened to be any stronger than herself, the idea of healing that person or even controlling them was a distant fantasy. This is also the reason she can't directly control the internal injuries of her opponents. It needs too much control and precision for that to happen.
'The next reason is her stamina. Full body control is an exhausting concept, which would only leave a person like her at a disadvantage.'
Seeming to read his mind, Kilian's smile stretched to his ear before saying:
"Like trying to ride a bike as a newbie, with the pedals as heavy as a person. The only reason she managed to do something like this is that her opponent was weakened, and she had stamina to spare. Even then, it was a miracle that she could control him."
Haruo rolled his eyes as he listened to his explanation, which was no different from listening to his own thoughts.
"Alright, enough of that. How about we watch her next performance?"
Haruo felt rather confused by that sentence. "She hasn't even entered her next test yet?"
Snap!
The scene within the screen changed to a different scenario from the last, and in the middle of it all was Ena, sprawled on the floor with her eyes darting forward yet with no visible path to glare.
"…?"
"This test is not a 'simulation' but a dimension created by that old man. Of course, we can look to the next test. Didn't I tell you that he can control both time and space in there?"
Haruo didn't question any further and darted his attention back to the screen.
Inside this new test differed from all the rest. Unlike having a room, there was only a blank, dark space with a tint of light that originated from who knows where.
The distorted audio was dull, but it was good enough for him to understand each sentence and sound that came through.
Haruo glanced at Ena's state; her eyes seemed to have dulled as she looked at the silhouette of the man in front of her. Haruo had a solid guess on who it was, because it was a person he had also met before.
Ena's father, who was covered in injuries everywhere on his body, was standing still within the space.
"This test has no advisor. Only that old man can see her current state right now—Hmm, but I guess it includes us, too."
"… What exactly is this test supposed to be?" Haruo said, his voice calm as he kept his eyes glued to the screen.
"It's a mental test. That's it, there's no need for me to overexplain. That much is enough for you to understand, right?" Swirling his tea with pure satisfaction etched only on his face, not a single ounce of sympathy or pity radiated from his expression.
"For people like you, you don't need one of these. But for someone as reactive as that brat, that's a different story."
{…}
The corpse of the deceased semi-pure vanished from her sight, but her eyes still showed no glint as they had before, and remained empty as they had after setting their gaze on it.
Soon, a new silhouette appeared from behind her. Although she couldn't see it, its presence was enough for her to know.
She turned her head to the side to look at the silhouette. There, from that angle, the two audiences saw the colorless pupils of the semi-pure.
"Oh…?" muttered Kilian. "It looks exactly like you, down to every atom. It's a sight that makes you wonder if you had a twin."
It was Haruo's figure.
It wasn't his because the real him was watching the test with an expressionless look at the screen.
{It doesn't matter if you're just a clone… if you're his figure, at least tell me it's not my fault…}
She stared at the silent figure with her hair messily covering most of her face.
{Or better yet, at least say something unlike that day.}
Of course, he knew what she meant.
Because on the same day her father died, Haruo didn't think twice about leaving her in that desolate place where his former boss's corpse was.
Not a single word of comfort for her, only quiet footsteps that slowly distanced Haruo from the father and daughter. If it weren't for Ena following him that day, then without a doubt, he would have abandoned her with no guilt in mind.
Even now, he could not feel a trace of guilt for that day.
"It's so chilly in here." He said, mimicking tremors. "Never thought you'd be this cold toward your companion. You're more unhinged than I was when I was your age, and so on, most likely."
He giggled slightly, "Seiji was the most sensitive out of all of us. I wonder how you two got along."
With one last glance at Haruo, she snapped his fingers and ended the presentation.
"There's no reason for us to delve into someone's privacy—that test and the test after it are something too personal for us to watch. Besides, the second half is about to start."
"… You probably already know what happened in the last, don't you? It's probably getting boring for you now that there's nothing more you can get from me. After all, these types of things are ones you would die for."
By his words, Kilian's complexion became more amused than it already was.
"So, did you get what you came here for?" Haruo said.
Snap!
"…!"
With no warning, the chair Haruo sat on disappeared entirely, and dropped him to the ground mildly.
"Well, if you want to know… I guess I received just enough to make me satisfied, even if I didn't get what I came for." He leaned closer to look down at Haruo. "Try for first place in the second half. The rewards are decent."
A chuckle escaped his lips before finally fading from Haruo's sight.
Alone in the field, Haruo let himself fall into the grass once more and embraced the peace.
In the silent field, he muttered: "Scoreboard."
[Haruo Chiharu]
[Performance Evaluation]
Test one: 13,000 / 13,000
Test two: 21,500 / 21,500
Test three: 100,000 / ???
.
Overall: 134,500
Test Ranking: 2nd place.
'Second place… With how I ended up first, I thought I'd be first.' He thought, staring deeply into the last three tests, and, as he expected, all three were blank.
'Well, I've got my money's worth, now it's time for me to use them.'\
Blue particles manifested from thin air around the pale boy. Soon after gathering enough of its particles, it swirled into a single point before expanding into something similar to a portal.
Given how fatigued Haruo was, the opening of his storage was rather slower than he had intended. But he paid no mind to it, as there was time on his hands.
In that same thought process, he reached his hand through the visible entrance. And not a minute later, he felt a familiar shape caress his hand. There, with the object in hand, he pulled it out with haste, revealing the artifact he had meticulously raided a tomb for.
[Sacred blessings.]
'Unlike that other artifact, this one isn't dormant. It wouldn't hurt to experiment a bit while I wait.'
A muffled voice escaped his lips. "Oscar."
Beep!
New particles that resembled the opening of mana storage appeared; although they appeared the same, they couldn't be any more different from it.
"How do I use this thing?" He muttered.
[Scanning library… Found 1 file.]
[Sacred blessings.
Descriptions: …
Rank: Z / Ultimate.]
He scrolled away from the already familiar details and expectantly saw the functionalities tab.
[Functionalities:]
[Core attribute: Simple exchange.
An artifact that consumes the spoils of gold and diamonds in return for an equal being. By exchanging an item of value, you will receive an object that corresponds to that value.
Suggested item for exchange: Money…]
"…" Not knowing what to make of the last word, he continued to the subsidiary attribute.
[Subsidiary attribute: Ouroboros blessings.
For every exchange, a bonus enchantment will be added to the object.]
'I never thought I'd see the day when I would start gambling—especially when I'm tight on money right now.'
"Oscar, are there any more minor or major details I should know?"
[Yes, sire. Translated from Calysma Vertas, that once someone claims all three myths, the artifact will return to mana.]
'The term "return to mana" only meant one thing in this world, and that was to return to the world's original force. By all means, it meant self-destruction for an artifact like this.'
Quietly disappointed at the outcome for the artifact, he sat up from his lying position and took out a large sum of cash from his mana storage.
Hovering his hand over the entrance to the jar, he pried out his fingers and let the paper cash fall into the dark abyss within it. He felt slightly annoyed that the artifact required expenditure for an outcome. However, in a world where artifacts are a scarce resource, it was a worthy sacrifice he could pay.
'I used up my entire savings for that one draw.'
Although he hated the idea of using his life support, as long as he had the sponsor of Kilian, both he and his brother would have no worries for survival.
'Spending 5,000 dollars away in a single sitting doesn't feel right, without knowing what I'll get.'
He sighed internally as he waited for a reaction from the artifact in front of him.
Then, slowly but surely, a subtle tremor shook the ground he sat on. Despite the abnormal event, Haruo stayed calm. While the tremors were obvious—for another 20 meters—it wasn't to where it was a threat.
Instead, his focus remained on the jar-like artifact.
Strange black energy swirled around the artifact, with the Ouroboros design embedded on the surface, spinning in rapid motion.
That energy quickly gathered at the entrance of the jar until an object within it shot up to the energy and fell into Haruo's hands.
It was a skill scroll.
Oscar, sensing the new object in his master's hand, hurriedly scanned the scroll without a word.
[Analysis complete!]
[Name: Sleeve of Knives.
Skill type: Unnatural.
Description: An extension within the Mana storage that's exclusively for short knives. Once learnt, it allows for active summoning of the knives.
Rank: D / Mediocre.]
Estimated time to learn: 8 months ~ 2 years
'Pity, this is more suitable for someone like Ena. I'll give this to her when she finishes the first half.'
"Oscar, what's the estimated time for Ena to learn this scroll?"
[Lacking information. Please provide the details needed to continue the command.]
Haruo sighed, 'Right, she isn't in the database yet… well, since this is her specialty, it'll probably take her a few months to learn.'
Click!
"…!"
The sound of a door entered Haruo's ears. Immediately, he hid the artifact back in his mana storage and diverted his gaze to the origin of the sound.
If Haruo's assumption was right, the person who comes through that door,
is the person who took the number one ranking.