Impractical

Jay's walk back to his apartment was what one could describe as boring. Mostly because he was tired, and also because his system wouldn't shut up.

[I can't believe you.]

Case in point: the lectures Jay had been on the receiving end of since he left Voxx.

[That was Dagon Brago. Talking to him the way you did was beyond foolish. And acting so... so flippant! Do you know how much power he has?]

"No, but I'm sure you'll tell me." Jay yawned, walking through the dimly lit streets as he passed nearby strangers. He kept his hat over his face, but his broken arm still drew some glances. Still, it was a lot better than before. Jay glanced around at the passing faces and hummed, "I mean, I'm assuming it's a lot. You said he was S- class, right?"

[Yes, but you don't seem to understand what that means.]

"I mean, I know 'she's' one." Jay grumbled as he looked around the busy streets. He was walking through central city right now to get back to his apartment, and it really was a strange sight. The lights, the people, the restaurants, and the food. Everything was similar, yet different.

He heard it in their conversations and saw it when he glanced at his phone. Where all he'd see on the internet revolved around fantastical stories.

He'd hear gossip of whether or not 'The Warden' was ever going to be leaving Gigalith. Or if 'The Panzer' was really the strongest B class hero.

He'd see news reports on monster sightings, guild rankings, and recent dungeon raids like 'Golden Koi cements status as fourth ranking guild after Dragon Eye's recent backlash.' Or 'Silver Jackals fall to 8th place after recent losses in A rank raid.'

But the most jarring thing he'd see, were heroes faces plastered everywhere. He'd see advertisements using slogans like 'New mace approved by B+ Rank Hero Fleck Turner.' Or 'Need help getting in shape? Try new monster based diet pills! Hero Sai Grieves says it's been instrumental in his climb to C- rank.'

Those were the types of ads Jay saw, between the popular bands, artists, and models it seemed like heroes had taken the forefront for celebrities in this world. They were praised, watched, talked about and scrutinized everywhere he looked, with none being more prevalent than someone called Amelie De La Serra. He saw her picture front and center on one of the tallest billboards, straight blond hair and blue eyes. The headlines talking about how her team cleared an A rank dungeon with zero casualties.

Again.

Apparently it was an expected outcome whenever she was involved.

Who is she. Jay wondered as he glanced past her picture to another building, the tallest one. Almost dead center in the middle of the city. He assumed that was Hero Association Headquarters was, and when he passed it he could see a crowd gathering in front of the entrance. Circling around a white limo. Jay couldn't see who was coming out of it, but he could hear the explosive murmurs in the crowd.

'He's here! Babe, look!'

'I heard he had to go to Braken Ridge earlier...'

'Think I can get a picture?'

'Let me see...'

'The strongest man in the world...'

'There! I see him!'

It didn't take long to connect the dots.

'Christian Regalia!' Jay heard a reporter shout, the name bouncing off every bystander until central square became flooded with noise. Jay glanced at the crowd, unable to see past them, before he put his head down and kept walking. Ignoring the shutter of flashing cameras and gossip of adoring fans.

[Do you see now?] the system said, and Jay frowned.

[Dagon Brago is not 'just' an S- class hero. He's one of 8. You don't understand how important that is. Out of the millions of humans in the world, only 8 have managed to reach S- rank. And only 3 have managed to reach the rank beyond it.] The system said, and Jay couldn't help but glance at a nearby store. Selling hero posters, hats, and t-shirts.

[They aren't just powerful in the physical sense, they're powerful in the political sense. They're seen as humanity's greatest assets.] the system warned. [It is very likely Dagon could've killed you and no one would've batted an eye. He's that important.]

"Yeah, I don't know if I'd go that far." Jay murmured as he glanced at another billboard. His eyes lingering on that woman, Amelie De La Serra, before asking, "It looks like all these high ranking heroes are held to a certain standard. Pretty sure people would be upset if Voxx's headmaster murdered a student."

[...Perhaps. But still. It was dangerous.] the system said. [You need to be more careful when you talk to people so blatantly above you in power and status.]

"Why?" Jay rolled his eyes, growing tired of the endless lectures his system seemed to have.

"You said it yourself." Jay said with a hint of boredom. "Worst they'll do is kill me."

[That's the... Talking to you is pointless.]

"Then don't. Save your energy till we get home. That's what I'm doing." Jay shrugged, a slight smirk crawling on his face as he made it past the central city buzz and started making his way towards his apartment. He had to save his energy.

[...I still think you're too reckless.]

That skill wasn't gonna learn itself.

...

When Jay finally made it home it was dark. Night had long since fallen and he had to rely on street lights to guide him home.

By the time he got to his room, all he wanted to do was collapse on his bed and fall asleep.

But he forced himself to sit, crossed legs on the floor of his room. Pulling out the skill scroll, he asked. "Hey system. You have any tips?"

[Why would I? Jay Haze never had a skill manual before. Or any type of manual for that matter.] the system said, and Jay raised an eyebrow. "Any type of manual? So there's multiple types?"

[One of his classes described the existence of martial manuals. For passing on martial techniques.] the system said. [Although they are much rarer since only masters of a technique can create one and it takes years to do so. And only those with a corresponding profession for it even have a chance of learning it. So most of the time martial manuals reserved for four or five star techniques.]

"Hm. So rare and complicated. But worth the trouble for bigger stuff." Jay said as he looked over the skill. A slight huff escaping his lips. "Unlike this, which is apparently common and extra complicated for no good reason other than inconvenience."

Skill: Illusions

Rank: Unranked (Will match the intelligence rank of the user)

Description: Create intangible figments of imagination made of unfiltered mana. But be careful! Tricking the senses comes with its own set of challenges. Good luck future magicians!

Details: Those with higher intelligence rank will be able to tell your illusions are made of mana.

Estimated learning time: 8 hours

"I get what that girl meant about only working on things weaker than you." Jay sighed as he looked over the rest of the scroll. Even going as far as to look up some articles online to see more about it. The more he read the more he could start to see why this was considered a useless skill.

"It's too hard to use for too little benefit." He said as he finished watching a video of a retired E rank hero, Jin Houdini, now doing street magic somewhere in Peridot, and his explanation on the illusion skill and how he uses it for his tricks. There seemed to be rules, and Jay read them all before he started.

1. Illusions must be something you can create from memory, as in you must know them extremely well. Otherwise they'll come with obvious incongruities. First time I tried making a hat it was lopsided.

2. Illusions can't make physical contact. They're made of a mana infused smoke. So if a volunteer tried to touch one their hand will go right through it.

3. People with higher intelligence stat will be able to tell it's made of mana, so keep your magic tricks suited for non awakened or weaker heroes.

4. Illusions almost never work on animals, because their senses are too good. And for those wondering, this goes double for monsters. Because even if something looks like a carrot, they'll be able to tell it's not real because it doesn't smell like a carrot. I learned that the hard way back in my hero days.

5. Illusions require a firm grasp on both visualization and internal structures. If you want to create non-living, my vanishing coin trick is a prime example, I suggest taking drawing classes and touching a coin. Get used to its weight, density and properties. For living things, I suggest drawing and anatomy. I can make a convincing rabbit, but it took me years.

6. Have fun. Illusions should feel like dreams come to life. Don't get frustrated if it takes a while.

Jay read the article, liking the post since it was helpful and the man who did it was obviously well informed and passionate. Then he glanced at the paper once more and grumbled. "It's gonna take longer than I thought to get this down."

[Yes.] the system agreed. [From what I see there is a reason it is unpopular. It has a high difficulty curve, and compared to outright damaging skills, it isn't worth the years of effort. As it doesn't work reliably against stronger opponents or monsters and even if it did, the hero would still have to use a different weapons or skill to kill them. It is impractical.]

"You really seem to dislike it, huh."

[Yes. As from what I can tell Illusions have very little practical applications in combat. It has zero applications against stronger opponents.] the system said. [At best all it can do is add an extra step when it comes to fighting opponents you would have beaten anyways. There is no point in tricking an enemy and then using a 'fireball', when you could just use fireball initially and save yourself the trouble.]

"Yeah, yeah I get all that. It's not that great for fighting." Jay shrugged. "But I'm not planning to use it for combat for combat. So what's the deal?"

[For now.] the system said. [But eventually when these rebellious years will pass, you will need an actual skill. In which case I'd suggest-]

"No thanks. I've already decided I'm going to learn this skill. It looks pretty fun," Jay said, glancing at the skill before setting it on his lap. He didn't need it for much anyways, just to hide his broken arm, and maybe his face if he could manage it. And if his arm healed before he could do it correctly, he still wanted to learn it. He worked hard to get this skill.

[..Don't say I didn't warn you.]

It felt like a waste not to use it.