Gathering Information: Part 1

Thursday, 9:30 pm, Browne Park, Queens,

Strong winds blew past the trees of the empty park as Adam walked through its gates with a nervous expression.

'I got too excited and arrived earlier than I should have... ' He thought before sitting on the same bench they both sat on yesterday. 'James will probably take a while to get here. '

'Unveil. ' He chanted.

[Name: Adam King]

[Sex: Male]

[Age: 17]

[Height: 190 cm]

[Class: Void Master]

[Akashic connection: Low (medium)]

[Level: 15]

Stats:

[HP: 300/300] [MP: 350/350]

[STR: 44] [AGI: 39]

[INT: 35] [VIT: 30]

[END: 25] [DEX: 33]

[ASP: 0]

Skills:

[Basic Sword Mastery] Lv.4

[Mana Vision] Lv.1

Class Skills:

[Ayin] Lv.1

[Gravity Manipulation] Lv.1

'I still didn't try using any of my skills yet. ' Adam thought while looking at his record. 'How do I activate them? ' He asked the system.

[Thinking about the skill's name will automatically activate it.]

'What about designating the target? ' Adam asked another question with a curious expression.

[The target designated will accord with the user's wishes.]

'Hmm... ' Adam's hand supported his chin as he started thinking about ways to test his skills. 'Inventory. ' He looked around him and confirmed that no one was around before pulling his sword out.

'Gravity Manipulation. ' Adam activated his skill and designated the sword as the target.

[MP: 250/350]

"Ugh! " Adam let out a slight groan as he felt the magic power being drained out of him.

*Vwoom! *

A deep ringing sound invaded his ears before his sword got heavier.

'Woah! This is amazing! ' He rejoiced with a satisfied expression. 'I can also make it lighter without spending more MP! '

*Vwoom! *

The sword got lighter than its original weight after the ring.

Adam kept altering the sword's gravity for a full minute before the time ran out.

'I have to use more MP to reactivate the skill. Besides, I can't change the target mid-use, so I'll have to be careful when I use it in battle... ' He thought before glancing at his next skill, 'this one might be tricky... '

Adam took a couple of deep breaths and clenched his fists.

'Ayin. ' He chanted.

[MP: 100/350]

Suddenly, everything turned into deep darkness.

'So this is the effect of this skill... ' Adam could no longer see anything in his surroundings, although he could normally hear everything and feel his body. The skill completely erased his sight.

'I can't change which sense I can erase, nor the target once it activates, but this skill is much more useful than I expected... ' Adam thought with a content smile.

After 30 seconds, his sight returned to normal, and he immediately fell into deep thought.

'Both skills are superb, but the problem is the MP consumption... ' His eyebrows knit into a slight frown, 'increasing my MP will take too long at my current pace, too... '

'If only I had a quick way to replenish my MP... ' He thought while looking at the record plate hovering in front of him, hoping the system would grant him an answer.

But to no avail...

"Haah, if it was only that easy... " He said with a disappointed expression.

"Who are you talking to, man? " A sudden question startled Adam. He looked up and found out that it was James.

"Oh! James, how long have you been there? " Adam asked in a slightly embarrassed tone. His thoughts distracted him from noticing James's mana approaching him.

"I just got here. " James answered with a confused expression. "I hope I didn't interrupt your conversation. " He continued in a sarcastic tone

"N-no, I was just talking to myself. " Adam said while scratching the side of his head. "Anyway, shouldn't we move? "

"Yeah, are you ready? " James spoke with a slight smirk.

"Let's go. " Adam stood up and started walking.

"Do you even know where we're going? " James asked while looking at Adam with an amused expression.

"Where are we going? " Adam stopped in his tracks before turning to look at James mechanically and asking with an embarrassed expression.

"We need to gather as much information as we can before going into the underworld, and there's only one place where we can do that. " James spoke while crossing his arms.

"Where is that? " Adam asked.

"It's a place in Manhattan. " James said before walking in the opposite direction of Adam, "follow me. "

Adam followed James while holding back the urge to kick his *ss with a frustrated expression.

_____________

After a subway train ride and a short walk, the two young men arrived at a small coffee shop near the 32nd precinct.

"This is... " Adam spoke with a gaping mouth. This was the same place he agreed to meet Hazel and the others at, which made him quite surprised at this turn of events.

"Do you know this place? " James noticed Adam's surprised expression and asked.

"Y-yeah, I've been here before, but I never knew that it connected to the underworld... " Adam replied in a confused tone.

"It's not. " James refuted Adam's doubts. "The owner of the cafe is a good man, but he gets to hear a lot of information about the underworld from the police officers who frequently visit this place because it's close to the precinct. "

"He seemed like a good person to me, too. " Adam let out a sigh of relief and spoke with a smile.

"Let's go. " James said before walking through the cafe's door.

*Ding! *

*Ding! *

Inside the classy cafe, the old man, Gary, stood in the same spot while cleaning some cups with a smile.

"Welcome. " Gary looked up and said with a smile. "Oh, it's James! It's been a while since your last visit. "

"Hey, old man. " James spoke while waving his hand with a nostalgic smile.

"That's also the young man from before. " Gary noticed Adam and said with a warm expression. "I hope you got to meet up with your friend. " He continued before giving him a quick wink.

"Y-yeah, they're fine. " Adam said with a forced smile.

James's gaze alternated between the two with a confused expression.

"Please, have a seat. " Gary offered the young men a seat before turning to the table behind him. "I'll brew some coffee, on the house. Consider it a reunion gift, James. "

"Although your coffee is the best, unfortunately, we're here for a separate matter. " James said in a serious tone.