Chapter 56 - Fresh Blood

❖ ❖ ❖

Shortly after leaving Círdan's room, Rei begins to think hastily about the ring and the book he has just received. Lost in thought, the boy walks back and forth through the corridors of Svishtar, paying no attention to his surroundings or the people passing by.

"Speaking of the abilities of these items, I also need to find somewhere nearby to test the abilities I gained when I leveled up."

"I need to find a secluded place with no people… maybe that area near the cliff from yesterday, where that old lady was, might be a great spot."

With that thought in mind, Rei decides to head to the area he had been to before. As he passes by Kazuki, he lets him know about his plans and asks the beastman to wait until he returns later.

...

After leaving Svishtar, Rei begins to walk until he reaches a spot near the cliff. The student can see the magnificent view of the entire land and sky from afar and is surprised at how drastically the atmosphere of the landscape can change.

Although at night,the same nearby forest appeared to be a home to ghosts and spirits, with a dense and suffocating atmosphere surrounding it, as soon as night falls, all these characteristics disappear,and the place becomes unrecognizable.

With the sky turning reddish at the afternoon sunset, Rei approaches the forest beside the cliff.

"I didn't expect it to take so long to get here; this place really is a bit far from the refuge … but I guess it was worth it. Now that I'm looking around, I don't see anyone here, so I can probably start testing my new abilities… hehe."

With that in mind, the student slips the Amahabele ring on his finger.

[System]

Additional attributes when putting it on:

Intelligence: 42 [+10]

Wisdom: 61 [+15]

Strength: 45 [+2]

Vitality: 56 [+1]

Defense: 42 [+3]

Luck: 82 [+12]

Acquired ability: [Arcane Torrent]

After receiving the notification and realizing that his attributes had increased due to the ring, the boy flexes his hand and positions it in front of a few trees in the small forest.

"Those trees seem like perfect targets. I hope this Arcane Torrent ability works."

With his hand extended and pointing at the tree ahead, which is near others, he pronounces the name of the ability.

— [Arcane Torrent]

As soon as the name is spoken, a dense orb of ether energy begins to concentrate in the student's hands. This energy continues to take more shape as time passes,until it is rapidly launched toward the target ahead, causing an explosion in the entire area.

Splasshh ~~

The impact was so strong that even the sound of the explosion from the collision between the tree and the ability sounded like an entire ocean clashing against a small patch of land.

"Wow… What an insane ability, the area really disintegrated completely…"

"I cannot believe that such an ability actually exists. So… this is the power of a legendary item? That's badass."

He thinks to himself, as he approaches the remains of what was once a tree.

"Now that I think about it, this ability took a while to launch, almost like it was charging over time… That's something that's bothering me."

"Besides the target needing to stay in the region I selected, it also takes some time for the ability to be activated. I don't think this is an ability I'd use very often in combat, but it's great for surprise attacks or destruction."

"It depends on how I use it, but I'm not going to lie, for someone who didn't have any offensive abilities, this is really helpful."

"But… now what do I do with this thing? It's so dirty."

The student thinks, as he pulls the book he received from Terqueo from his waist. After wiping the dust accumulated over the years, or maybe even centuries, the book's cover becomes visible.

The notebook has a lock that prevents it from being opened. And as it is cleaned, the cover, which was previously just a blur of gray and black, becomes clear and visible.

An illustration of a purple fire, surrounded by white stars and small constellations, is displayed on the cover of the small book.

The moment he looks at it, Rei starts touching all the stars on the book in a systematic order. With each of these movements, the lock opens quickly.

"Is this for real? I was just touching everything I saw, didn't expect the book to open like this. I had no idea. It's like I moved instinctively, as soon as I saw it, I started touching it without even thinking…"

As the book opens and the student notices that all its pages are blank, a sense of déjà vu and familiarity begins to wash over him.

"I don't know why, but I feel like this holds great power."

With the book in hand, Rei moves to another nearby spot where there are more trees, intending to test if the book could do anything.

"All the pages are blank, but why are they numbered? From 0 to 39?"

After spending some time trying to figure out the book without getting any answers, the boy lets out a disappointed sigh.

Finally, he opens to a random page and tries to use the ether in the environment, moving it into the book, as if concentrating the ether in order to make it work or at least show some kind of sign.

But in the end, nothing happens.

"Dammit… maybe this is just a regular book…"

He mutters in anger.

"Nothing I do is working, what should I do now? Think, think, think…"

— Got it!

— Maybe that's it… I remember Terqueo mentioning a message near the book, something like... "Eterinium and blood."

— Perhaps the book needs something specific, such as blood, for example? But it wouldn't work with just that, I think Eterinium might be ether. So if I try using blood and manipulating the ether in the environment, moving it into the book, maybe that will work — he comments, excited by his little theory.

"Well, here goes. I'm already here anyway."

— [Creation]

[Small iron knife created]

[Item successfully created]

Once the knife has been created, Rei sits down on the floor and places the book on his legs. With the knife in his hand, he makes a small cut in his left hand with his right hand.

— Dammit… hope this works — he mutters, gritting his teeth, trying to endure the pain.

Unable to properly gauge his strength, the cut is deep. As the blood begins to flow down his arm, the boy brings it closer to the book.

A lot of blood splatters onto the book as Rei tries to manipulate the ether in the environment with the power of his mind. As a result, the book slowly begins to move, the pages absorb the blood on its surface, and a dark explosion occurs.

When he opens his eyes again, the first thing Rei sees in front of him is a figure about the size of his hand,with black wings and a small black dress.

— Thank you for the meal, it's been a while since I've tasted blood like this — it says deliberately, with a satisfied expression, its gaze fixed on the fresh blood dripping from the boy's arm.