Not A No-talent!

Ever since he and his father went to the public Talent Stone to check his talent, he had been humiliated for being different.

The fact that the Talent Stone couldn't detect his talent was interpreted the only way the world understood it:

He had no talent.

It sounded logical—yes. If he had talent, then why couldn't the Stone sense it?

And since no one could come up with another reason, it became a truth. A damning, irreversible truth.

From that day onward, Leon dreaded stepping out in public… the way a cat dreads being dropped in water. He would only go out when there was absolutely no other option.

The feeling of wanting the ground to split open and swallow him whole… that wasn't just a metaphor. That was exactly how he felt each time the jeers started, each time mocking laughter erupted at his expense.

What made things worse, far worse, was that he was the first person in recorded history to have no talent rank at all.

"Everyone has a talent." That phrase wasn't just a belief—it was practically a universal law. The only thing people ever worried about when checking their talents was the rank—was it E? D? B? A? Maybe even S or SS? The most they ever feared was being stuck with a rank too low.

But Leon?

Leon's case shattered that comfort. His 'No-Talent' incident rippled across cities, villages, counties, and even into neighboring empires. It became a spectacle, a topic of discussion for nobles and commoners alike.

A child with no talent.

A walking myth.

A living joke.

His name became a reference. A caricature.

But despite all that, Leon never showed weakness in front of them. He never cried where they could see. He bore every insult, every sneer, every cold glance with his head held high.

And over time?

He got used to it.

The mockery no longer cut as deeply. It no longer stung like it once did. All that was left was… numbness. A hollow detachment. Mockery became background noise.

But that didn't mean it had no effect.

It changed him. It made him withdrawn. It made him wary of others. And it made finding odd jobs nearly impossible—who wants to hire the laughingstock of the continent?

Still, despite all the odds stacked against him, he never gave up.

He accepted the burden of being a 'No-Talent'. He accepted the mockery. The loneliness. The cruelty. He carved his resolve in stone. If this was his fate, then so be it.

And then... everything changed.

The day he met the System—the Crystal—everything took a different path.

It changed his fate.

It rewrote his destiny.

He was no longer that powerless, nameless boy. He was walking a path that the 'No-Talent' Leon could never have even dreamed of.

But little did he know… all of this had been preordained millions of years ago.

When he was a god.

Little did he know… he had planned all of this himself. Every tragedy, every betrayal, every moment of despair—it was all a piece of a grander puzzle.

He was not the Leon everyone knew. He was not just some random talentless boy. He had transmigrated—from a primitive world called Earth.

And in the moment of his transmigration, he made a choice.

A strange choice.

He discarded his Earth memories, choosing instead to inherit the memories of the real owner of this body.

Why?

Because he didn't want to remember Earth.

But deep inside, the day would come when curiosity would bloom—when the Crystal would reveal to him truths he had long since locked away… about his past, his origins, and the terrifying secrets buried beneath both.

As a result of losing those Earth memories, his emotions had become linked with the old Leon. He now bore that boy's feelings, his dreams, his vendettas… his promises.

And Leon would see them fulfilled.

Even if it cost him his life.

No one knew exactly when the transmigration took place. It wasn't a single day. It had blended with his other memories like raindrops into the sea.

But now, one thing was certain:

With the System by his side, the world would soon kneel.

Though… so too would greater enemies rise. Enemies far beyond what the former Leon had ever imagined.

After being mocked and degraded for so long… the realization that he wasn't talentless at all?

It made Leon's soul burn with joy.

---

N/A:

The Crystal is the physical form of the System.

---

Back to the present.

"System… if I'm the only one in this world who uses Mana… does that mean this world isn't meant for it?"

Leon asked the question the moment it came to mind.

"Yes, you're right," the Crystal replied immediately. "But you're unique. You're a thief—and not just any thief. You are the bearer of the SSS-Ranked Thief Physique. That means you can adapt to any energy, any system. You steal it and convert it into Mana automatically."

"You can absorb affinities, talents, abilities, skills—everything. Without backlash. That's what makes you terrifying. If you take this seriously… you'll rise to the top of this world in just a few years."

Leon rolled his eyes.

Here we go again.

This was, what, the twentieth time he'd heard this exact speech?

It was like the Crystal was constantly waiting for any tiny gap in conversation just to boast about its capabilities.

Still… as much as it annoyed him, he couldn't deny that its benefits were real.

And he'd noticed something else too—the System took pride in its abilities.

Deep pride.

That, more than anything, made him cautious about pushing it too far.

And the fact that it kept calling him Master? There was a deeper connection there—he could feel it.

"Alright then… what should I do?" Leon asked, trying to bring the Crystal back from whatever deep thought it had wandered into.

"..."

The Crystal had drifted into another vision—of the future.

A future where Leon ruled the battlefield, gods falling before him, divine names erased like dust. A future where the title SSS-Ranked Thief shook the universe.

But it snapped back.

It was time.

"First… calm your mind," the Crystal instructed, tone suddenly serious. "Think of nothing. Feel your body. Sense the energy that flows within you."

Leon nodded quietly.

He sat down slowly, cross-legged, and let out a long breath.

He let go of everything. All thoughts.

All fears. All emotion. He let them drift.

His mind… went still.

And only then… did he begin to feel something stir within.

A faint whisper.

A pulse. A current unlike anything he had ever known.

And it wasn't Qi.

It wasn't Qi. It wasn't Divine Essence.

It wasn't anything he'd touched before. It was… Mana.

---

A/N

I need motivation!

Reviews. Votes. Comments. Anything is welcome and appreciated.

Let's keep the fire alive.