I’ll Give You the Freedom You Desire!
Alex, seething with anger as his would-be assassin dies without offering any recompense, grips his [Sword of Pluto]. He never even got the chance to use it against Mustrano in battle. He plunges the blade directly into Mustrano's heart, rage fueling his words. "You want freedom? You want to leave? AT LEAST GIVE ME A SKILL! YOU OWE ME THAT MUCH! YOU HEAR ME?!" he shouts, driving the sword in deeper.
You have dealt 40 x 3 = 120 damage to Mustrano
You have killed Mustrano
You received Chest (Blue)
Genius Conjurer's subskill: Arcane Medieval Armory activating…
Analyzing battle, enemy, and host. Generating unique skill
[ERROR - REMNANT SOUL DETECTED]
[WARNING: LEARNING THIS SKILL COULD LEAD TO UNEXPECTED RESULTS]
[DOES PLAYER STILL WANT TO LEARN THE SKILL?]
"Yes!" Alex snarls, unphased by the ominous warnings. "Remnant Soul? Come along, then, and I'll give you the freedom you desire! You nearly killed me; now you're going to protect me and slaughter my enemies!"
Suddenly, Alex feels something foreign searing into his left wrist, settling directly over his arteries. A new skill is taking shape, but it's more than that, something has permanently invaded him. A tiny, black claw manifests just under his skin like a tattoo, dark and sinister with faint green lines threading through it. He realizes that this skill isn't one he can simply "unlearn." Curious, he reads the description.
Mustrano's Malice Mauler (Level 0 Base):
Effect: Conjures Mustrano's Malice Mauler—a demonic, black claw capable of tearing opponents apart with an extremely high chance to cause bleeding that inflicts increased damage. Additionally, it can empower its next attack with a corroding poison that deals heavy damage over time, bypassing poison resistance.
Level Cap: Genius Conjurer. Requires 1000 Paradise Coins + 500 per level to upgrade.
MP Cost: 5 MP to conjure; consumes 1 MP per minute to maintain manifestation.
Duration: Unlimited
Damage: 30 + 5 per level
Durability: 5 + 1 per level, restores 1 durability per minute synchronized with MP cost.
Increased Bleeding Chance: 100% + 10% per level
Increased Bleeding Damage: 50% + 5% per level
Subskill: Toxic Breakthrough
Poison Activation Cost: 5 MP
Poison Damage: 20 damage per minute + 2 per level
Poison Duration: 5 minutes + 1 per level
Poison Penetration: Ignores 20% of enemy's poison resistance + 2% per level
Max Poison Stacks: 3 + 1 for every 2 levels
Note: This ability conjures a claw unique to the Tribaio Tribe. This claw in particular contains a terrifying malice belonging to its former owner Mustrano.
Note 2: [ERROR] HUMAN! You are taking me with you to travel to different worldssss? HEEEE HEEEE HEEEE I WILL KILL ANYONE YOU WANT ME TO!!! I AM FINALLY FREE!!! I WILL FEASSST, I WILL CONSSSUME. I WILL GET SSSTRONGER!
Breathing heavily, Alex examines the claw mark on his wrist, feeling its power and Mustrano's lingering malice coursing through him. The last traces of Mustrano's dark essence are etched into this new ability.
Still severely injured, Alex decides to use his [Gotcha Pork Roast] to recover his HP, not wanting to risk encountering more enemies in his current state. As he makes his way to the bottom of the mountain, he spots a large boulder and decides to sit behind it, leaning back to recover in relative safety.
With his health draining, he devours the pork roast, savoring the surprising taste as it melts in his mouth, rich and savory. The meal bolsters his strength, restoring his HP to near full.
[Gotcha Pork Roast]
World: Shokugeki No Soma
Quality: Light Green
Effect: Heals 100 HP over 50 minutes. Must be eaten outside of combat. The effect vanishes if the player engages in battle during the healing duration.
Note: This only contains mashed potatoes, onions, mushrooms, and bacon. Don't be fooled into thinking it's an actual roast.
Recovering 2 HP per minute for 50 Minutes
"Not bad," he mutters, still processing the intense encounter. "I don't know if this counts as lucky or not. I got a Blue chest and a new ability for my innate skill… but honestly, I almost died. It was my LUK stat that saved me. Mustrano was a terrifying enemy." He shakes his head, half complaining, "This mission is completely unfair. How can they even allow something like this? I bet 99% of players would have died if they'd faced him."
After an hour of rest, Alex's HP is nearly fully restored, and his MP has mostly recovered as well. The sky is dimming, so he decides to head back before nightfall. On his way, he passes Mustrano's body, and after a moment of contemplation, he decides to haul it into one of the craters left by his Annihilation Grenades. He covers it with dust, dirt, and debris. "Guess he deserves that much, at least," he murmurs, giving his defeated enemy a hasty burial.
As he works, Alex's mind is busy evaluating his new skill. "I can't believe my luck. This ability is cheap to cast, and it means I'll always have a weapon on hand. Plus, it can easily cause bleeding and poison my enemies! But… I just hope Mustrano is okay with his new 'role' and won't cause issues down the line. I can't just go killing everyone on sight." Alex wonders if he'll need to "feed" the claw to keep Mustrano's spirit sated. "Well, if that's the case, I'm sure I'll have enough battles to keep him busy."
After finishing the burial, Alex starts heading back to the village. About fifteen minutes later, he can already make out the village lights between the trees, but he's startled by the appearance of a lone, emaciated wolf. Its crazed eyes and bony frame show it's starving, and with nothing but desperation in its gaze, the wolf charges at him.
Not willing to take any chances, Alex casts "Blizzard" to slow the beast down. "A desperate enemy is the most dangerous one," he mutters as he prepares for the encounter.
You have dealt 25 damage to Sinerva Wolf
You have slowed Wolf
Nimbus Cloak effect activates – Increasing Evasion by 5%, and Movement speed by 40%
With his speed boosted, Alex decides it's the perfect chance to try out his new skill. Focusing on Mustrano's Malice Mauler lvl 0, he feels a pulse of energy from the tattoo under his left wrist, and in less than half a second, an ominous, pitch-black claw materializes over his left hand and lower arm, extending up to his elbow. The claw integrates seamlessly with his [Gauntlets of Pluto], creating an intimidating, monstrous weapon.
"Alright, let's see what you can do," he says, dashing forward and raking the claw across the slowed wolf. His new weapon feels swift and deadly, inflicting two brutal injuries in rapid succession.
You have dealt 28 damage to Sinerva Wolf
You have dealt 26 damage to Sinerva Wolf
You have caused bleeding to Sinerva Wolf
Alex grins and decides to test out the claw's active subskill, Toxic Breakthrough. The claw begins to pulse with green veins, like poison flowing through its structure. He strikes the wolf again, injecting the venom directly into its body.
You have dealt 27 damage to Sinerva Wolf
You have poisoned Sinerva Wolf – Dealing 20 damage per minute for 5 minutes!
You have killed Sinerva Wolf
The wolf collapses, and Alex quickly halves the carcass to store it in his inventory. To his surprise, the items now read [Poisoned Sinerva Wolf Corpse (Upper Half)] and [Poisoned Sinerva Wolf Corpse (Lower Half)]. Unfortunately, the poison experiment has lowered the items' quality from White to Gray, making him slightly regret testing the ability on valuable loot. "Still… this is insane!" he marvels, staring at his left arm, now resembling a massive, wicked-looking claw.
The claw's upkeep is just 1 MP per minute, which Alex realizes is sustainable with his current MP regeneration. With 11 points in MNA, he regains 1.1 MP per minute, enough to keep the claw active indefinitely. "I could keep this thing summoned forever," he thinks, a grin spreading across his face. "Mustrano… looks like you'll be seeing a lot of action."
Testing the claw's grip, he feels a surge of power running through it. The weapon may have once been his opponent, but now it's a powerful extension of his own will.
Though Alex is thrilled by the new ability, he knows better than to reveal it to the other players. Sporting a demonic claw might provoke too many questions, especially since he just killed a Tribaio villager, albeit in self-defense. Quickly deactivating Mustrano's Malice Mauler, he reenters the village.
It's dark now, and as Alex approaches the gates, the guards stiffen, alarm spreading across their faces. After identifying him, however, they relax, albeit cautiously. One guard leans in, sniffing the air. "Human… you sssmell of Mussstrano," he hisses, his eyes wide in shock. "You actually sssurvived that insssane devil sssspawn'sss assault? Go to our leader now!"
Alex sighs, already tired, but obeys. Barely inside the village, a swarm of desperate players rushes at him, peppering him with questions.
"How much did you get? Come on, you have to give us something!"
"Please, I can't take this pressure anymore. Hand over whatever you've got!"
"I'll pay you back… with my body!"
Exasperated, Alex raises his voice, forcing his way past them. "Tomorrow! I nearly died out there. I need to rest, so just leave me alone! LET GO" he screams at the crazy woman hanging desperately onto him.
With the other players finally backing off, he heads toward the village's central hall, where he's led in to meet the Tribaio leader, the navigator himself.
The village elder eyes him with an unreadable expression, seeming to assess him. "Human…" he begins, his voice thick and ominous. "We could sssmell Mussstrano on you the moment you returned…"
Alex, feeling a bit uneasy, cuts in quickly, "I hope you understand—I had no choice in the matter!"
The elder studies him, his gaze sharp. "Mussstrano wasss one of our ssstrongessst warriors, yet you ssstand here alive. Impresssive." He takes a slow breath, continuing. "We are merely sssservantssss of the sssystem… a part of thisss world, yet asslso not. Musssstrano did not accept thisss, and ssso, he dessserved hisss fate. But there isss more to thisss." He narrows his eyes, nodding at Alex's left hand. "I sssmell him on you…"
Alex's heart races slightly at this, but the elder shows no hostility. Instead, he surprises Alex by saying, "The ssssyssstem demandsss fairnessss, and Mussstrano acted outssside of that. Here, as compensssation, human. Mossst playersss would not have ssssurvived."
You received 500 Tribaio Village Tokens
Alex nearly cheers on the spot. Not only did he avoid punishment, but he's been rewarded for his trouble! "500 tokens? This is perfect!" he thinks, unable to hide his excitement. Now he has enough tokens to buy the skill book and a lot of expensive items. This outcome couldn't have been better, and Alex feels relief wash over him as the elder continues.
"As for Mussstrano…" the elder begins, a trace of regret in his voice. "He wasss an outsssider even among usss. You will not be hunted, human. It isss clear you have freed hissss sssoul."
Taking this as a sign to go, Alex nods. "Thank you. I swear, Mustrano is… let's just say, he's doing what he wants now." He bows slightly, then turns to leave, suppressing a grin.
"I sssseee, human," the elder replies with an approving nod. "I'll ssssee you on the 4th. Don't be late!"
As Alex exits, he notices the sales stall is still open, though this time it's not the elderly shopkeeper but one of her sons behind the counter. Feeling flush with tokens and fortune, Alex heads over to make his next move.
Alex doesn't even hesitate and uses his 500 points to buy the [Skillbook: Poison Resistance], deciding not to buy the [Tribaio Sacred Poison] since he can't learn the skillbook and won't survive the poison without it.
"Here you go, human," the villager says, handing Alex the [Skillbook: Poison Resistance].
Alex nods, intending to sell this item as soon as he returns to the Realm. Still thinking of what to buy with his remaining 300 tokens, he suddenly feels something strange from the tattoo under his left wrist.
Alex immediately conjures his strange Claw, Mustrano's Malice Mauler, and sees an eye and a small mouth form on it.
"What the fuck? Mustrano? Is that you?" he asks, both alarmed and curious.
"HUMAN, I LIKE THISSS FORM! I FEEL POWER. I CAN GROW SSSSTRONGER! THE THING YOU JUSSST BOUGHT! I DEMAND IT. FEED IT TO ME. I CAN GROW!" Mustrano's voice resonates from the claw, hissing with a twisted eagerness.
The young villager behind the stall looks at Alex with a shocked expression and warns, "Human, Mussstrano is a vile outcassst of our village. He is sssick and a true devil. I don't know what trick you usssed to bind him, but you sssshould think long and hard if you want him to grow in power."
Alex is confused, but since the Skillbook isn't that expensive, he decides to risk it. Besides, why would Mustrano—or rather, his skill—grow in power from a Poison Resistance skill? Alex sees real utility and usefulness in it, so he takes it out of his inventory and places it into his claw hand. He feels it being absorbed into the claw. "What the hell is happening?!" Alex wonders, as he sees a notification flash before him:
[WARNING: Mustrano's Malice Mauler, evolving, effects unknown]
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