Chapter 10: Loot

  As the mist around him shifted, parting like a curtain, Killian found himself facing a narrow, winding path leading deeper into the canyon. The walls loomed high on either side, jagged and ancient, their surfaces worn smooth by time and unseen forces.

  At the end of the path, a crack in the canyon wall caught his attention. It was narrow, but just wide enough for him to slip through. A faint, pulsing glow flickered from within.

  His feelings of curiosity gnawed at him. Carefully, he peered inside.

  Within the crevice, nestled atop a weathered stone podium, rested a single rock. It was unremarkable at first glance, it was dull, smooth, and about the size of his palm. And yet, there was something wrong about how it sat there, as though reality itself bent ever so slightly around it.

  His breath slowed.

  Killian reached forward, fingers brushing against the cool surface. The moment he grasped it, the world tilted.

  A sharp, invisible force rushed through him, like a great current with no pain—only weightlessness. His vision blurred, darkness swallowing his senses in an instant.

  Then—nothing.

  Killian woke up flat on his back, staring up at the sky. His limbs felt heavy, his mind fogged. Above him, a familiar face came into view. Jenny.

  She peered down at him, arms resting on her knees, swinging her legs idly from where she sat, perched on a ledge above him like a cat observing a struggling mouse. A mischievous smile tugged at her lips.

  "Rise and shine, rock collector," she teased, nudging his shoulder with the toe of her boot.

  Killian groaned. His head throbbed, his memory still piecing itself back together. He felt wrong, strangely taxed by the active. He sat up slowly, the rock still clenched in his hand. It felt... different.

  Jenny tilted her head. “So? What did you find?”

  Killian looked down, opening his hand.

  The moment his fingers unfurled, the rock crumbled into fine dust, slipping through his grasp like sand in the wind.

  He stared at his empty palm, a flicker of frustration rising in his chest. This was his prize. Dust.

  Jenny let out a dramatic sigh from her perch above him. “Boo. You suck at getting cool stuff.”

  Killian shot her a glare. “Whatever.”

  Jenny smirked, unfazed. “Anyway, you might want to look at your weapon.”

  Killian frowned. His hand instinctively tightened around his rapier. Something felt different.

  He raised the blade, and the moment he did—he saw it.

  The edge gleamed sharper, the once simple wooden hilt now bore intricate carvings, like vines twisting in an unseen breeze. And as he turned it in his grip, faint traces of dark mist curled off the blade, fading into the air.

  A notification flashed before his eyes.

  [Rosewood Rapier → Wraithwood Rapier (Uncommon, Well Crafted)]

  A rapier whose beauty matches it’s deadliness. Having been tempered by the touch of the unseen. Its edge carries whispers of what was lost.+10 Agility

  +5 Endurance

  Effect: Phantom Cut – Attacks leave behind a delayed afterimage strike (5% chance).

  Killian’s eyes widened.

  Jenny grinned. “Now that’s more like it. Time to take things up a notch then.”

  Killian groaned, still flexing his sore fingers. “What do you mean? I just had the toughest fight I’ve ever had. Can I get a minute, please?”

  Jenny hopped down from her perch, landing lightly beside him. She gave him a quick once-over, unimpressed.

  “Nope,” she said cheerfully.

  Killian let his head fall back with a dramatic sigh. “You’re evil.”

  Jenny smirked. “You’re slow.”

  Before Killian could argue, she lunged.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Her fist shot toward his stomach as quick and precise as all her movements were. Instinct kicked in, and he barely twisted aside in time, the wind from her strike brushing against his ribs.

  His eyes widened. “What the hell, Jenny!?”

  She was already stepping forward, no hesitation. “Lesson one—you don’t get to relax just because you survived.”

  Killian cursed under his breath, raising his rapier. If she wanted a fight, she was about to get one.

  Killian's blade cut through empty air. Strike after strike missed.

  Jenny dodged effortlessly, shifting just enough to let his attacks pass by a hair’s width before moving, making sure he saw just how close he was, but never close enough.

  She smirked. “This is what I’m talking about. How are you supposed to protect yourself if you can’t even touch a defenseless girl?”

  Killian gritted his teeth, adjusting his stance. “You’re not defenseless.”

  Jenny winked. “Exactly.”

  Before he could respond, she raised a hand and a ball of flame ignited just inches from his face.

  Killian staggered back, barely stopping himself from stepping straight into the flames path. His heart pounded. “Since when do you have a fireball skill!?”

  Jenny twirled the flame between her fingers before casually snuffing it out. “No skill. Just some effort.”

  Killian blinked. “What?”

  “You can do everything a skill does with practice.” She crossed her arms. “I got a tip in the introduction about it. Most people don’t bother because skills are easier.”

  She saw the flicker of curiosity cross Killian’s face and sighed. “And before you get distracted—yes, you have a Skill Selection option. But don’t open it yet.”

  Killian frowned. “Why not?”

  Jenny tapped her temple. “Because once you look, you’ll limit yourself.”

  Killian raised an eyebrow. “That makes no sense.”

  Jenny rolled her eyes. “Think about it. You open up the system, see a list of skills, and suddenly, that’s all you think you can do. You stop experimenting. You stop trying to figure things out on your own.”

  Killian hesitated. That... actually made some sense.

  He glanced at his interface, and sure enough—[Skill Selection Available] blinked at the corner of his vision.

  He stared at it, debating if he should take her advice.

  Jenny smirked. “See? Tempting, isn’t it?”

  Killian exhaled. “Fine. I’ll wait.”

  Jenny clapped her hands together. “Good choice. Now. Let’s train.”

  Killian sighed. “I hate you.”

  Jenny grinned. “No, you don’t.”

  As the pair made their way through the winding canyon, an eerie silence surrounded them. No beasts stirred, no distant roars echoed through the cliffs. It was as if the land itself was holding its breath.

  Killian barely noticed. His mind was racing, turning over possibilities. Magic. Skills. Training. There was so much he could do—but where should he start?

  He glanced at Jenny. “So, are you actually going to teach me anything, or are you just going to keep dodging my questions?”

  Jenny shot him a side glance, smirking. “I’ll help after you figure out your own direction.”

  Killian scowled. “You can’t give me one suggestion?”

  She shrugged. “It’s your path, not mine. If I tell you what to learn, you’ll just follow orders. Where’s the fun in that?”

  Killian muttered something under his breath but fell silent. She had a point, as annoying as it was.

  His thoughts drifted back to his fight in the mist. He had been hunted. Outmaneuvered. Struck from angles he couldn’t predict. That Mistfang had moved like a ghost, slipping between forms, blending with its surroundings.

  That kind of freedom, that ability to move unseen was exciting. He decided that’s what he wanted. His grip tightened around his rapier. He would learn to disappear.

  He exhaled, focusing on the fight. The mist had been more than just fog it had been an extension of the creature itself. It had bent to its will, allowing it to strike unseen.

  Could he do the same?

  Jenny must have noticed the change in his expression because she raised an eyebrow. “You figured something out?”

  Killian nodded. “Yeah.”

  Jenny grinned. “Good. Now show me.”

  Killian already had what he thought was a good level of mana control by practicing making weapons. He had no idea how to go about creating mists, so he went over the fight over and over again focusing on how the mist felt to him.

  It took an hour of sitting cross-legged in the canyon, turning the memory over in his head, before he finally stopped overthinking. He decided to just give it a shot.

  First, he released his mana into the air aiming to pull the water particles together indivually. It didn’t take long for him to realize it wasn’t working. The effort drained him too fast, his mana dispersing before it could form anything useful.

  The process was too inefficient.

  His stats had improved through his efforts over the past months, but he wasn’t at a level where he could manipulate the environment that precisely.

  So, he tried something different.

  Instead of forcing the moisture to gather, he created a ring of mana around himself at waist level.

  It rotated slowly, but steady. Forming a subtle pull.

  It was not forcing, but attracting.

  Like a net catching drifting embers, his mana worked like a funnel, drawing water in instead of commanding it.

  Killian watched carefully.For a moment, nothing happened.

  Then—a shimmer.

  A faint silver-gray haze began to gather around him, the moisture in the air responding, bending toward his influence.

  His pulse quickened. It was working.

  Jenny watched, arms crossed, a grin creeping onto her face.

  “Took you long enough,” she teased. “The next time you run into that misty fellow, you better be better than him.”

  Killian barely had time to smirk before a crackle of energy split the air.

  A small bolt of lightning streaked from Jenny’s fingertips, arcing straight into the mist swirling around him.

  The result was instant.

  The moisture conducted the shock perfectly, sending a sharp jolt coursing through Killian’s body. His muscles locked, and for a split second, his vision flashed white.

  Then—he collapsed.

  Sputtering, he pushed himself up, blinking rapidly as static danced across his skin. The mist had amplified the shock, making it far worse than a normal strike.

  Jenny, still smiling, perched on a nearby rock, kicking her feet idly.

  “See?” she said cheerfully. “That’s called learning.”

  Killian groaned, rubbing his arms. “You could’ve warned me!”

  Jenny shrugged. “And miss that reaction? Nah.”

  Killian took a deep breath, trying to shake off the lingering tingle of electricity. His mist was an advantage, but clearly, it had weaknesses too.

  Jenny smirked. “Now. What are you gonna do about it?”

  Killian clenched his fists. He’d figure it out.