Refine!

Zayn stepped out of his room feeling significantly better.

The horrifying purification tea had done its job, and now he no longer felt like a corpse that had been left out in the sun for three days.

His hair was still damp from washing up, but at least he was fresh.

Dressed in some casual wear, he descended the stairs, his boots making a soft thud against the wood.

The moment he reached the bottom floor, the smell of food hit him — warm bread, sizzling meat, and a faint hint of something sweet.

Everyone was already seated at the dining table in a circle.

Even Kara — who had been just as drunk as him the night before — looked perfectly sober, sitting upright like she hadn't been slurring her words and throwing her arms around people just hours ago.

Zayn took a seat and greeted them. "Morning."

Bran, already stuffing his face with a large drumstick, waved lazily.

Kara smirked, obviously amused by his state, while Elisse simply nodded with her usual serene smile. Tobias, on the other hand —

Schiiing!

— adjusted his glasses.

Zayn fought the urge to snort.

'Every single time. '

It was like if Tobias didn't adjust his glasses at least once every conversation, he'd spontaneously combust.

Tobias cleared his throat, sitting up straighter. "Now that we're all here, let's go over the loot."

The moment he said that, a portal opened on the table.

Zayn immediately recognized it. Inventory magic.

It was almost too convenient.

Like every main character in an anime or game system novel had some infinite storage function. And Tobias had one built into his class.

Slowly, loot began pouring out of the portal, stacking onto the wooden table.

Weapons. Armor pieces. Trinkets. Even a few odd goblin trinkets that looked questionably unhygienic.

Zayn raised a brow. "...Not bad."

Then he took a closer look at the weapons.

Rust. Everywhere.

Half of the blades looked like they'd break if you so much as breathed on them wrong.

Kara, clearly unimpressed, poked a dented helmet with her fork. "These look like they've been sitting in a swamp for a century."

"That's because they're goblin loot," Tobias replied, completely unfazed. "But that's fine."

With a snap of his fingers, the portal disappeared.

Then — glasses adjustment number two.

His eyes glowed slightly as he uttered a single word.

"Refine."

Crimson light warped around the loot, swirling like embers caught in the wind.

The rust and decay vanished instantly, as if years of wear had been rewound in seconds.

The weapons gleamed, sharper than before. The armor, once cracked and broken, became sturdy and polished.

Even the low-tier accessories looked like something that had just been freshly crafted.

The others stared, stunned.

Except Zayn.

Because he knew.

He had read about this in the novel.

Each Hero had their own specific ability — something completely unique to them, something that no one else in this world could replicate.

Tobias was the Hero of Knowledge. His specialty?

Refining Magic.

A skill that should have been impossible in this world.

Even master blacksmiths had to go through hours of work to refine equipment, but Tobias could do it in seconds.

Kara leaned forward, eyes wide. "Wait, wait, wait — you can refine gear?"

Tobias simply nodded, as if this weren't a ridiculously broken ability.

Bran whistled. "Damn, we really got a Hero in the party, huh?"

Tobias ignored the comment and began evenly distributing the loot.

Zayn received a Goblin Sword.

As soon as he touched it, his system interface popped up over the blade, analyzing it instantly.

[Black Goblin Sword]

[Description: A sword wielded by (Goblin Warriors)]

[ATK +3]

[45% chance to hit a fast opponent]

[10% chance for a critical hit ]

Zayn blinked.

'Not bad for E-rank loot.'

The blade itself was sleek, black as night, and surprisingly light.

The hilt fit comfortably in his grip, and the sharp edge practically begged to be tested.

He swung it lightly. Smooth.

"Fits you," Kara commented, watching him test the balance.

Zayn shrugged. "Better than some rusty piece of junk."

Kara grinned, leaning back in her seat.

Meanwhile, Bran examined his new battle axe, nodding approvingly. "Gotta say, this whole refining thing is pretty damn useful."

Elisse, who had received a pair of enchanted gloves, simply smiled. "It certainly is. Thank you, Tobias."

Tobias — glasses adjustment number three — nodded. "It's only natural that we prepare properly."

With their new gear secured, breakfast was the next order of business. Zayn wasn't about to turn down food, especially after last night's disastrous drinking experience.

His stomach, now completely settled thanks to the cursed purification tea, practically sang in joy as he dug into the meal laid out before them.

Tobias, always the responsible one, reminded everyone, "We'll be heading to the Guild this afternoon."

That meant they had more than enough time to do whatever they wanted beforehand.

Bran was already talking about checking out the local weapon shops, Kara seemed interested in looking around the town, and Elisse had mentioned something about helping at a small church nearby.

As for Zayn?

He had something very specific he wanted to research.

After finishing his meal, he excused himself and headed upstairs.

His new Goblin Sword was strapped to his waist, but he barely paid it any attention as he entered his room, shutting the door behind him.

There was something else he was more interested in.

Something far more important.

Sitting down on his bed, he pulled up his System Screen.

His fingers tapped the interface, scrolling through the various options until he found what he was looking for.

[Skill Tab]

The screen shifted, and there it was.

[Devour]

The very skill he had used inside the dungeon.

Zayn tapped on it, and immediately, a description popped up beneath the name.

[Devour – A unique ability that allows the user to seize the souls of monsters they have slain. These souls are stored within the Soulforge.]

His eyes flickered over the next prompt.

[Soulforge]

Without hesitation, he tapped it.

In an instant, the screen before him turned gold, radiating a soft glow.

Lines of text appeared.

[Soulforge – A sacred system that stores the souls of those claimed by the user. The more souls accumulated, the stronger the forge becomes. Souls can be converted into raw energy, granting temporary boosts to strength, speed, or even soul power.]

Zayn's brow rose.

That... was even better than he had expected.

Not only could he store souls, but he could actually use them as a resource?

That was —

Ridiculously overpowered.