"Damn it! That's not fair, Liv!" Arthur huffed, his claws retracting as they trudged through the snowy trail. "If you didn't steal that last kill from me, I would've won!"
Olivia glanced at him with a smug grin, her pink eyes gleaming. "We never made any rules, Art. We only said whoever had the most kills would win. And guess what? I won. So stop complaining."
Arthur grumbled under his breath but didn't argue further. They had just survived a small wave of feral beasts—low-level creatures, barely sentient, likely scouts for something stronger nearby.
"We need to find somewhere to rest," Olivia said, sliding her eerie black sword back into the void of her shadow. "If those were scouts, the real threat's probably not far behind."
"Yeah, good idea," Arthur muttered, kicking at the snow. "But what is that sword, anyway? Why does it look like smoke and shadow? How did you even make it? And… what exactly did it do to those wolves?"
Olivia walked beside him in silence for a moment, her eyes scanning the snowy horizon. "With my darkness affinity, I learned how to shape shadows into solid forms. As long as I have mana, I can turn darkness into anything. I chose a sword. Simple and clean."
Arthur raised an eyebrow. "Okay, that explains the shape, I guess. But it didn't just cut them—it was like it poisoned them."
"Exactly." She smiled faintly. "I mixed my darkness with my poison affinity. When I cut them, the tainted mana seeps into their veins. It shuts down their organs from the inside. Think of it like venom in the dark."
Arthur blinked, absorbing her explanation. "Alright… that's kind of terrifying."
They walked a little farther in silence before he asked, "So, could you explain what affinities actually are? Like, in simple terms."
Olivia froze mid-step and turned toward him with a look of disbelief. "Wait… are you serious? You don't know what an affinity is?"
Arthur sighed, crossing his arms. "Of course I don't. I've spent half my life running from slave hunters and the other half in chains. No one exactly handed me a magic 101 book. And if I did know, why would I ask?"
Her expression softened immediately. "Sorry, I didn't mean to judge. It's just… most people have to know a little about affinities before they can pass the innate stage of development. The fact that you're at your level and don't even know what they are… you're more of a genius than I thought."
Arthur scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "I mean, I am amazing."
She chuckled. "Okay, listen up. An affinity is a magical connection or resonance to a specific element or concept. It's like having a natural tuning fork inside you that vibrates best with certain kinds of mana. Mine are darkness and poison. So I can control, shape, and even merge those types of mana."
"So," Arthur said, processing it all, "it's like being naturally talented in certain types of magic?"
"Exactly," Olivia nodded. "But you don't have to have an affinity to use a certain type. It just makes it way easier. Someone without a fire affinity can use fire spells—it'll just cost more mana, take more effort, and be less powerful. Affinities are like a shortcut."
Arthur nodded slowly. "Got it… I wonder what my affinities are."
He focused, reaching out mentally to the system that had awakened when he began this journey. A blue screen flickered into existence before him.
[Status]
Name: Arthur Morningstar
Age: 19
Race: Demi-Human
Bloodline: Kitsune / Lycanthrope
Titles: Solomon's Successor, Brightest Light, ••••
Affinities: Sun, Moon, Gravity, Dream, Illusions
HP: 100/100
MP: 100/100
Strength: 25
Intelligence: 40
Agility: 20
Stamina: 30/30
Skill Points: 3
Stat Points: 3
[Quest] [Skills] [Inventory] [Shop Locked] [Soulmates] [Clan]
Arthur stared at the screen, mouth slightly open. "Six…"
"Hey, Olivia," he said, turning to her, "you said having more than one affinity is rare, right?"
"Yeah," she replied without looking, still scanning the landscape. "Why?"
Arthur exhaled. "So… how rare is it for someone to have six?"
Olivia whipped around, stunned. "Wait—six?!"
He nodded, showing her the screen.
"Art… that's impossible. Most people have one, maybe two if they're blessed. Three is extremely rare. Four is borderline mythical. Six? That's—no one has that. Ever."
"Well, guess I'm one of a kind," Arthur said with a grin. "I'll start learning one at a time. Let's try gravity first."
Just then, Olivia pointed ahead. "There! A cave!"
They rushed toward the dark opening, the snow crunching beneath their feet. Inside, the temperature dropped even further, and the stench of rot greeted them like a slap. The air was thick, the ground slick with something dark.
The cave walls were jagged and damp. A faint shaft of moonlight filtered through a crack above, casting eerie shadows.
Arthur stepped inside first—and froze.
A dozen snow wolves stood in a semicircle, their glowing red eyes fixated on the newcomers. Their fur was thick and white, blending perfectly with the snow outside. But their growls made it clear—they weren't welcoming guests.
"Left side's mine," Olivia whispered, her shadow sword already in hand. "You get the right."
Arthur's claws extended instinctively. But this time, he focused. Gravity…
The mana shifted around him. The air thickened. The ground beneath his boots grew heavier. The wolves stumbled, confused by the sudden pressure.
Arthur raised his hand, channeling gravity toward the closest beast.
The wolf collapsed with a sickening crunch. Its ribs buckled inward, its eyes bulging before its body was flattened entirely. Blood pooled beneath it as its bones shattered under the invisible force.
The pack howled and lunged.
But Arthur moved with precision—each step a test of his newfound power. He concentrated his mana, manipulating gravity in bursts. Wolves rose from the ground only to be slammed down like broken dolls. Each one that charged found itself crushed by sheer force.
The air in the cave grew heavy with death. Blood splattered the walls. Bones cracked like kindling. Olivia danced through her side, her sword poisoning and slicing with elegance, but her eyes kept flicking toward Arthur.
When the last wolf fell, a silence overtook the cave. Olivia stood panting, her sword dissolving back into her shadow.
"You…" she breathed, staring at Arthur. "You actually have a gravity affinity."
Arthur, his chest heaving, wiped a smear of blood from his cheek. "Yeah," he said with a slow grin. "Just found out, too."