"What?"
Mariana murmured, her brow furrowed in confusion.
"What are you saying, Granny?" she asked again, her voice a little louder this time.
The old woman sighed, her gaze shifting to Kyle. "You can't let such an innocent girl join this war, will you?"
'Innocent?'
Lucy was taken aback.
"That only makes me want to keep her here..." Kyle said, his eyes thoughtful. "You said Mariana was abandoned by her parents. Do you have any proof? Maybe a heirloom, or something?"
"Well..." The old woman paused, a flicker of memory in her eyes. She nodded slowly. "We saw a golden wolf necklace around her neck. The Chief had it, but now that he's gone... I'm guessing the second leader of the demon has it."
"Second leader?" Kyle raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
"Yes, a vicious lady..." the woman confirmed, her voice grim.
"She took the necklace, and the last place we heard she was going was Oakhavan. She said there was something important she had to take care of there."
"Hmm... Do you know her strength?" Kyle directed the question to Lucy.
"Yes, she is a Rank 20 assassin Hunter."
'That is good, too bad I am not a Rank 25 All attributes Awekener... Saying the truth, the systems are really good cheat codes.' He thought, a small smirk playing on his lips.
"Young man, it is not time to be smiling. You need to hand her over to us," the old woman insisted, her voice firm.
"Sorry, I can't do that," Kyle stated flatly, his smile vanishing.
Mariana stared at them for a long moment before turning and walking out of the room.
"Mariana!" Lucy called out, concern etched on her face.
Before Lucy could follow, the old woman spoke again, her tone sharp. "What are you doing, Lucy?! Rather than follow us into the Portal, she chose to leave the room... That only means she made her decision... And it's your turn to make yours."
Lucy hesitated, her gaze shifting from the old woman to Kyle, then finally to the closed door. "I made my choice. Keep everyone safe, Elder, and none of you should go to the king, or let anyone know you're from the village... Leave the demons to us!"
"What are you saying?! Are you planning on staying with him?!" the old woman asked, her voice a mixture of surprise and disbelief as she pointed at Kyle, who remained seated on the sofa, his legs crossed casually.
Lucy turned to Kyle, her expression resolute. "I can't leave Mariana, and Mariana chose him, so I can only stay back."
"Why do you care for that girl so much?!" the old woman asked, utterly bewildered.
The other villagers exchanged confused glances, some already viewing Lucy as foolish. How could a small kingdom, with barely a thousand soldiers, help her exact revenge on three powerful kingdoms?
"We love Mariana because she saved us!" Lucy declared, her voice filled with conviction.
"....."
The old woman and Kyle were both stunned into silence.
"What.... What do you mean by 'saved you two'?" the old woman finally asked, her voice barely a whisper.
"Mariana is a rare awakener. She saved my brother and me from a terrifying bear! If it wasn't for her, we both wouldn't be standing here... On that day, we vowed to always stand with her, in good times and bad," Lucy explained, her eyes shining with gratitude.
'Hmm... It seems there is more to Mariana's powers than meets the eye,' Kyle mused, his interest piqued.
"So you two also made your decision?" the old woman asked, still struggling to comprehend that a child of fourteen could defeat a bear capable of challenging even a Rank 10 Awakener.
With one last, lingering look at Kyle, she muttered, "Keep them safe."
With that, she turned sadly and walked into the shimmering portal, disappearing from the hall. To her, only death and destruction awaited the whole of Celestia.
The other villagers quickly followed, stepping through the portal and vanishing. Out of the entire group, only two remained behind... with Mariana, making three.
Kyle wasn't at all bothered by the reduced numbers. Less people meant fewer mouths to feed and easier resource management. With this thought in mind, a genuine smile spread across his face. "Now tell me," he began, his gaze fixed on Lucian, "how exactly did Mariana take down the bear?"
"King Nemesis," Lucy interjected quickly, "my brother will answer all your questions. I'll have to check up on Mariana!" With that, she hurried out of the room, closing the door gently behind her.
Lucian swallowed hard, feeling uneasy being left alone with Kyle, especially after their recent tense encounter.
"So tell me," Kyle prompted, his voice calm but firm.
"I... I don't know exactly," Lucian stammered. "But she used a water spell and killed the bear in one strike."
'I don't get it. Two Rank 3 awakeners can't defeat a single bear, and a Rank 1 suddenly appears and kills it with one move... If I wasn't using my skill to sense his emotion, I would have thought he was lying.'
Kyle pondered this for a moment.
'The necklace she mentioned... it might be the key to understanding Mariana's lineage. Her surname is Blade, but she can't be directly from my family. I am 100% certain I am the only child. Or did one of my relatives marry without our knowledge and have her?'
Kyle sighed deeply, leaning back against the cushions of the throne-like sofa.
'The Blade lineage was wiped out ten years ago... when I was just fifteen. Anyone with the name Blade was executed, hunted by the monstrous being the Demon King himself summoned. Even my father was powerless against it. Was her family threatened by this monster and forced to abandon her in the forest? Is she a distant relative of mine?'
Countless thoughts raced through his mind in a matter of seconds.
"You... what's your attribute?" Kyle asked, his gaze sweeping around the modest hospital room.
"I am a rare awakener, I am an Archer!" Lucian declared, a hint of pride in his voice.
"Hahahaha!!"
Kyle let out a sharp, sarcastic laugh. He stared at the stunned Lucian and said, his tone dismissive, "Archers are below Martial Arts. You awakened, but your body was too weak to bear the Martial Arts attribute, so your powers had to compensate and bestowed upon you the Archer attribute. Let me tell you... a Knight can be substituted with a Swordsman, a Mage with a Rune Master, an Assassin with a Rogue, a Healer with a Priest or Alchemist... and lastly, Martial Arts with an Archer. Calling yourself a rare talent is nothing but a joke, because Archer is the most common attribute. The three races have thousands of them."
"Uh?!"
Lucian was utterly dumbfounded, his pride instantly deflated.
Kyle stood up and walked towards Lucian, placing a hand firmly on his shoulder. "Stick with me, and I'll transform this common attribute into a powerful one."
Kyle opened his palm, and an arrow made of swirling flames materialized above it. With a swift flick of his wrist, the fiery arrow shot forward and embedded itself in the wall, the surrounding plaster instantly charring and bursting into flame.
"You? You are a Mage?!" Lucian exclaimed, his surprise evident.
"I am more than a mage," Kyle stated simply, his gaze unwavering. He then turned and walked towards the door, closing the portal with a wave of his hand.
"As I said, stick with me, and I'll give you an elemental stone."
"Elemental stone?!" Lucian's eyes widened in disbelief. "Do you mean the elemental stone that grants Awakeners elemental powers?" he asked, his voice filled with a mixture of hope and skepticism.
"Are there other elemental stones?" Kyle countered, reaching for the door handle. "Prove yourself to me, and you'll gain any element you desire."
With that enigmatic promise, he opened the door and stepped out of the hospital room.
"An elemental stone? I heard absorbing one can increase your rank by twenty stages! Such a valuable treasure..." Lucian stared at the closed door, his mind racing. "But... how did he...?" He shook his head, completely bewildered.
Outside the building, Kyle glanced at his internal system screen.
{Storage: Elemental Stone: Eight: Water X2. Wind X2. Earth X2. Fire X2.}
'If the world knew I possessed eight of these, what lengths would they go to?' he mused with a smirk.
'Upgrading the castle to Lv10 and activating all buildings and markets rewards me with twelve elemental stones.'
Kyle opened his palm, and miniature representations of the four elements appeared, swirling around each other in a vibrant circle.
'Let them believe I am merely a Rank 25 Awakener...' he thought, a hint of amusement in his eyes. 'While in reality, I am a Rank 105 Awakener... I am technically one of the strongest humans in the world!'
As he walked towards the imposing castle gates, he mentally commanded, 'BS... Show me all skills gained from these elements. Oh! And their descriptions.'
{BS: Ok Host, these are the skills gained from the fire element.}
{[Hell Fire] Description: Unleashes a torrent of flames from the ground beneath the target. Deals significant damage within a certain radius and instantly eliminates any being below the Host's rank. [Active Skill].}
{[Furious Flames] Description: Surrounds the Host in a vortex of protective flames, increasing the Host's defense by 50%. [Active Skill].}
{BS: These are the skills you gain from the water elemental stone.}
{[Formless] Description: Permanently increases the Host's health by 50%. [Passive Skill].}
{[Storm of the Sea] Description: Summons a concentrated storm of ice projectiles upon a designated target. Instantly eliminates any being below the Host's rank. [Active Skill].}
{BS: These are the skills you gain from the Earth elemental stone.}
{[Trace of Source] Description: Allows the Host to track any target as long as the target is in contact with the ground. [Active Skill.]}
{[Dance of the Shadow] Description: Enhances the Host's attack and defense capabilities by 50% while the Host is in contact with the ground. [Passive Skill.]}
{BS: These are the skills you gain from the wind elemental stone.}
{[Wind of Slaughter] Description: Generates a barrage of razor-sharp wind blades that inflict significant damage to a group of enemies. Can instantly eliminate any target below the Host's rank. [Active Skill.]}
{[Tailwind] Description: Greatly enhances the Host's agility, increasing speed by 100%, and boosting damage, dodge chance, and stamina regeneration by 50%. [Active Skill.]}
Kyle came to an abrupt halt at the castle gate entrance, his eyes wide with a mixture of awe and satisfaction.
'With [Fire Lord] and [Heartwave], I am practically a god...' he muttered under his breath, a confident smile spreading across his face as he walked through the towering gates.
'Systems, you guys just made my job a whole lot easier.'