A New Skill

With his back against the old man, Ray faced two opponents ahead of him. The situation was bad. The old man was unarmed, and the only thing Ray held was a wooden training sword.

Meanwhile, their enemies wielded real weapons.

The old man glanced at Ray's sword, then smirked.

"Judging by the weapon you're holding, you must be a student from Avrion Academy. I'm sorry for dragging you into this mess. Just delay them for as long as you can—I'll handle the rest."

Without hesitation, the old man lunged toward his two attackers.

Ray didn't have time to see how he was doing, as the two Dark Guild members in front of him were already on the move.

He did have one advantage—it was nighttime, and the alley was filled with shadows. This was the perfect setting to use the Black Sash skills he had learned.

Moving stealthily, he disappeared from their line of sight, using the darkness to maneuver. He reappeared behind one of the men, his blade aimed at the man's neck. But just before his strike landed, he sensed a presence from his left.

He leaped back—just in time to avoid a blade aimed at his head.

If he had been a second slower, his head would have been rolling on the ground.

This was going to be a lot tougher than he expected. One-on-one, he might have had a chance. But two-on-one was a different story.

The men charged at him together. Ray couldn't block their weapons—his wooden sword would break on impact. He needed speed and unpredictability.

Without a second thought, Ray stuck the wooden sword in his mouth, dropped to all fours, and used his beast form.

Using the walls of the alleyway, he jumped side to side, his clawed fingers digging into the stone for grip.

Then, he pounced.

His blade swung toward one of the men, striking him right in the stomach. But instead of cutting through, the weapon stopped cold—as if he had hit a boulder.

Ray pushed harder, using all his strength—

Then, his wooden sword snapped into pieces.

His eyes widened. What just happened?

Before he could react, he jumped back onto the opposite wall, hanging down to get a better look. The man stood there, completely unharmed, as if he hadn't been hit at all.

"Looks like the kid doesn't know how to use Ki," the man said, turning to his partner.

"We were worried for nothing. He'll never be able to hurt us."

Ray clenched his fists. The situation was worse than he thought. He was now unarmed, and his attacks had no effect.

One of the men lunged toward him with his sword. Ray dodged, landing on the ground—

Only for the second man to thrust his blade forward in a piercing attack.

There was no way he could win this fight now.

He had no choice but to run.

Just as he was about to disappear into the shadows, the old man's voice rang out.

"Grab his arm and pull him toward you!"

Ray's eyes widened.

If he could hear the old man's voice, then that meant he had already won his fight.

A new hope surged through him. Maybe—just maybe—they could still win this.

Following the old man's instruction, Ray grabbed the attacker's wrist and yanked him forward, off balance.

"Now barge into him and use your hip to throw him!"

Ray executed the move without hesitation. The man was flung into the air, soaring over Ray's shoulder.

Before Ray could even turn around, the old man had already jumped into the air, his fist pulled back.

The moment the enemy hit the ground, the old man's fist struck his stomach—

Sending him flying against the wall with incredible force.

The impact created a small crater, the man completely motionless.

Ray stood there, stunned.

To defeat three opponents without weapons—the old man had definitely been using Ki in his strikes. The sheer power of that last punch confirmed it.

When Ray turned back to face the last enemy, he was already gone.

Then, suddenly—

A notification appeared.

Now?

Ray's mind raced.

He still hadn't figured out how to unlock his skills, and the system choosing this moment only confused him further.

Before he could dwell on it, the city knights arrived, drawn by the commotion. They quickly secured the three unconscious men, escorting them away.

But then—something strange happened.

The moment the knights saw the old man, they all bowed deeply, showing him great respect.

Ray's brows furrowed.

Who exactly was this man?

The old man turned toward him, smiling. "Thank you for your help. You're quite the talented student."

Ray folded his arms. "Why were they after you?"

His original plan had been to capture one of the guild members and get answers from them. But now that they were in the hands of the knights, that was impossible.

And the fourth man had already escaped.

The old man studied him for a moment before speaking. "Judging by the fact that you don't know how to use Ki, I assume you're a first-year?"

Ray nodded.

"Then when you become a second-year, join the Martial Arts Club. I promise to reward you then."

With that, the old man turned and walked away, leaving Ray standing there.

Ray didn't stick around. He fled the scene, avoiding any unwanted interrogation.

Since he had hidden his identity, neither the knights nor the Dark Guild members knew who he was.

When he finally made it back to his room, he collapsed onto his bed, exhausted.

The others noticed his tired state and, out of respect, didn't question him.

But even as he lay there, trying to rest, one thought weighed on his mind.

How did he unlock another skill?

So far, he had only unlocked two skills.

The first time was when he defeated the intermediate wolf in the Black Forest. The second time was just now, after the fight with the Dark Guild members.

Originally, he thought it had something to do with defeating magical beasts—but when he killed the Intermediate Fang Boar, nothing happened.

This event had nothing to do with magical beasts, yet the system still rewarded him.

The message he received was .

Was it because he defeated a Dark Guild member? But that didn't make sense either—the old man had delivered the final blow.

There had to be a connection between these two events.

If he could figure it out—

Then maybe, just maybe—

He could get all of his powers back.