School was skipped once again today.
I was restless with thoughts of needing to grow stronger soon, and it also felt odd being stuck here with kids at this age.
Besides, the original owner of this body, Shinnoda, wasn’t exactly known for attending classes diligently, so it wasn’t much of an issue.
I walked through the city streets.
It was early in the morning, so the streets were quiet.
The spring breeze was gentle, making it pleasant to walk.
I have one year until entering the Academy.
To pass the admission exam and survive the main storyline, I need to gain more power.
[Start by killing F-class Awakened Ones weaker than you. Take their power. Time is short. Hunt as much as you can.]
Laura’s harsh words.
“That doesn’t mean I can become stronger by killing innocent people.”
I couldn’t agree with such an extreme method.
[This is frustrating.]
To use the ‘Succession’ skill, I have to kill either monsters or Awakened Ones. It doesn’t work on ordinary people because they lack a source of magic.
Dungeons are strictly managed by guilds and management groups, so I can’t enter as an individual. Even when they hire day laborers due to shortages, they prefer Academy graduates.
So, hunting monsters is out of the question.
‘To kill people…’
Putting aside the question of whether I, an E-class Awakened, have the ability to kill another Awakened, there’s the matter of whether I’m mentally capable of doing so. As a modern person, I’ve never even slaughtered a chicken.
There’s no way I could finish someone off if I saw them in pain.
Laura growled in exasperation.
[Then kill someone who deserves to die.]
“Where am I supposed to find someone like that? And how am I supposed to judge who ‘deserves’ death?”
At that moment, the sound of sirens reached us.
Looking closer, there were several police cars gathered in the nearby middle school’s playground.
Wait.
‘That’s the middle school I used to attend.’
I quietly slipped into the field and eavesdropped on the police’s conversation. In the chaos caused by teachers and students fleeing the school, no one paid attention to me.
“When will the hero arrive?”
“We’ve been told that they’re heading here now. The nearest one is ‘Iron Fist,’ but it will take at least 20 minutes.”
“Damn! Didn’t the kidnapper say they would kill one every five minutes!?”
A female officer ran up to report to the middle-aged officer.
“Confirmed. The kidnapper is ‘Fire Man.’ A wanted criminal with abilities for arson and murder! Ranked C!”
“Damn. Isn’t ‘Iron Fist’ also C-class? This hostage situation might drag on.”
It seems there was an ongoing kidnapping.
It’s none of my business to meddle.
I quietly slipped away, but as I was about to step back onto the street, Laura intervened.
[What are you doing! Isn’t this the perfect chance for you humans to shine? Go there and kill the guy known as Fire Man immediately.]
“I’m sorry, but I’m E-class. How am I supposed to take on an opponent two ranks above me? Plus, there are hostages. That’s a no-go.”
[Don’t worry. I’m not some fairy who only chatters on the sidelines. I’ll dispel any magic he uses, so go out there and be a hero.]
‘Did she just say…?’
Dispel.
An upper-level magic that suppresses the activation of spells.
Could Laura be able to use such magic while parasiting in someone else’s body?
I needed to be even more cautious around Laura.
She was much more dangerous than I’d initially thought.
“But what if he uses a skill instead of magic?”
[You idiot. What you call ‘skills’ are just variations of magic. As long as it’s an activation-type, it doesn’t matter if it’s magic or a skill—I’ll block it. Go.]
I took a deep breath.
“Alright. Let’s try.”
I pulled out a robe from my bag and put it on.
Of course, it’s not just any ordinary robe.
It’s one of the rare treasures that can be obtained at this point.
Leather of the Sage.
To get it, you just have to give some money to a homeless man who sleeps in the subway station and help fulfill his wish.
It wasn’t difficult.
<<Long story short, my son who I'm estranged from is in the national Olympic team. I really want to know if he won a medal in this year's Olympics. Can you let me know?>>
I checked it on my smartphone and showed him.
His son had won a gold medal in the Olympics.
He was deeply moved and rewarded me with what he claimed was ‘Leather of the Sage’ from his younger days.
—————-<< Item >>—————-
◈ Name
Leather of the Sage
◈ Rank
— S
◈ Stats
Agility 200
◈ Description
A robe made from the skin of the Sage. It holds special power.
◈ Effects
Cannot determine any information about the wearer.
——————————–
Ironically, when this existed in the game, there was no real reason to use it.
The playable protagonist didn’t need to use this item to infiltrate anywhere, making it just an Easter egg.
Now that reality has become this game, it’s one of the best items for someone like me who doesn’t want to reveal my identity.
Laura suddenly interjected in a hurried voice.
[Why are you hiding your identity? Just declare yourself and slay the villain. Be the hero.]
“Why are you so obsessed with the hero thing?”
[T, That’s because… heroes are praised no matter how many hundreds or thousands they kill, aren’t they? To elevate your status, there’s no quicker way than becoming a hero.]
“First off, heroes in this world follow the principle of never dying. Secondly, I don’t particularly like being the center of attention. This is non-negotiable.”
I pulled out a kitchen knife from my bag.
Looking at the knife, it seemed so pitiful.
Can I possibly win with this?
Using Shinnoda’s memory, I recalled a back entrance to the school and used it to sneak in.
Given his nickname ‘Fire Man,’ it was likely that he was an Awakened focusing on intelligence and a wizard-type awakening.
With Laura’s help, I can seal his abilities, giving me a substantial advantage in stats.
Of course, even with that, he’s still a C-class opponent.
With the rank difference, it’s quite likely his strength and agility are similar to mine.
The best course of action is a surprise attack to quickly end things.
Locating ‘Fire Man’ wasn’t difficult.
Just follow the screams and shouting.
3rd year, Class 2.
From there, I could hear an excited voice.
Hunching down, I focused on the sound to infer the situation inside.
“Hahaha. Is this kid Jongak? You look like a delinquent.”
“Well, um…”
“Don’t know? Then I’ll just kill everyone.”
“Ah, that’s him! The other students…”
“Looks like it’s been 5 minutes already. Let’s kill.”
Apparently, ‘Fire Man’ was about to kill one of the students.
Opening the sliding door in front of the classroom carefully, I quietly tiptoed inside.
The scene inside was slightly unexpected.
All the desks had been pushed to the back, and every student except for one was kneeling on the ground.
‘Fire Man’ looked like a disheveled middle-aged man.
He was about to shoot fire at a blonde student who was kneeling in front of him.
Upon closer observation, the blonde… I recognized him as Shinnoda’s friend.
I didn’t actually know him, but for some reason, I felt my anger rising.
My tense, trembling body.
My heart was racing wildly.
I surged forward with the knife in hand.
‘Fire Man’ must have noticed my presence and turned around to use his ability.
Of course, nothing happened.
“Wh-What…?”
Thud.
The kitchen knife pierced the ribs just below his armpit.
I twisted the blade inside his body with one hand while pressing down on his neck with the other.
As my heightened adrenaline started to subside, I realized that I was staring at a life struggling to survive.
‘What have I done…’
A brief moment of hesitation.
‘Fire Man’ seized the opportunity and kicked my belly, sending me flying.
In the commotion, I dropped the knife, which remained lodged in his side.
‘Damn.’
I lost my weapon.
“What the hell are you doing?!“
He pressed his hand against the blood flowing from his side and reached out to me with the other. His power still wasn’t working.
His face contorted in confusion.
Seems like Laura was doing her job well.
“Why, why! My power won’t activate! Damn!”
I raised my fists in a boxing posture and moved toward him.
I had studied boxing for a year in the past.
As I closed the distance, ‘Fire Man’ started retreating.
He must not have noticed I was only E-class.
Good.
“Hey, wait. There’s something I need to talk about. I’m not a hero, but I was told by a chubby friend of yours named Jongak. He said he wanted to escape because of bullying. He needs help, and I’m here to save him. You know…”
Nonsense.
You, who wanted to kill my friend, didn’t even have such a mission.
That was pure madness.
“Just attaching a reason to kill someone, huh?”
My voice was cracked and hoarse to the point it startled even me.
Apparently, the ‘Leather of the Sage’ was altering my voice as well.
“Please save me. I haven’t killed anyone yet! I’ll just leave, okay? Let’s part on good terms. Come on, I don’t think you’re even a hero, right? I’ll forget you stabbed me.”
I kept closing in on him.
I was almost in range.
He was backed into a corner behind the desk at the back of the classroom.
Just like how a rat will bite when cornered by a cat, with no way out, ‘Fire Man’ pulled out the kitchen knife stuck in his side.
“Gaaaah!”
He panted heavily, aiming the knife at me.
Clearly unstable.
I hesitated to move any closer.
‘Fire Man,’ already wounded with severe bleeding, wouldn’t last long this way.
If I just bought time, I’d win.
Boom.
Suddenly, a dull blow to the head.
My legs gave way, and I collapsed.
Through a blurred vision, I saw that the overweight student named Jongak was holding a chair.
‘Damn, he hit me from behind.’
Dizzy and confused.
“Hahaha. Nice job, Jongak. Want to debut as a villain while you’re at it?”
“Uh, I…”
‘Fire Man’ approached me, kitchen knife in hand.
“What are you doing? Thinking you’re something special just because you’re here? Aren’t you?”
The desperate cry from Laura inside my head.
[Shinnoda! Get a hold of yourself! You’ll die if you don’t do something!]
With the knife reversed, ‘Fire Man’ plunged it down toward me.
[How did a weakling like you become the successor…! Is this the end of the Dragon Race…!]
‘Just C-class and I’m dying like this?’
I, who cleared this game perfectly for the first time in the world, couldn’t die here!
Summoning superhuman willpower, I rolled to the side, dodging the blade.
Next, I used my telekinetic power—directed at his eyeballs.
“Gaaaaaah!”
‘Fire Man’ screamed, clutching his eyes.
Even though I didn’t use any significant physical strength, the backlash from using telekinesis with an F-class intelligence stat made my head pound.
I stood up immediately.
My trembling legs.
I gritted my teeth, knowing I’d die if I fell here, and observed ‘Fire Man.’
He was hunched over in pain.
I grabbed the back of his neck and smashed his ribs with a punch.
He convulsed in pain from his wound and dropped the knife.
“Gaaaah! Jongak, help me!”
Instantly, I grabbed the fallen knife and pointed it at Jongak.
“Ugh…”
He shrank back in fear.
“Stay still. If you cross the line, there’s no going back.”
When I confirmed that Jongak’s will was completely broken, I decapitated the struggling ‘Fire Man.’
A pool of blood formed on the classroom floor.
From his chest, a red gem appeared.
[That’s it. Touch the gem.]
I did as Laura instructed.
A stream of red energy flowed into me from the gem.
A translucent message appeared before my eyes.
————-<< Succession >>————-
[Strength increased permanently to 024]
[Agility increased permanently to 008]
[Intelligence increased permanently to 047]
[Luck increased permanently to 032]
———————————–
My previously foggy mind cleared up.
My tired body felt renewed, as if infused with fresh strength.
After about five seconds, the red energy faded, and the gem turned transparent. It shattered into pieces, and blue flames erupted across ‘Fire Man’s’ body, consuming him instantly. Only the pile of ashes remained.
[‘Fire Man.’ A death fitting for the name.]
I let out a small sigh and looked around.
Jongak screamed and cowered.
I killed a person.
Surprisingly, I didn’t feel as weighed down by guilt as I thought I would— after all, it was a kill or be killed situation.
But now, with the deed done, I started worrying about the police and heroes. Vigilantism is still illegal, even against a villain.
I’d become a target for arrest.
Soon, a hero named ‘Iron Fist’ and the police will arrive.
I needed to confuse the investigation.
I picked up a post-it from the desk and wrote “Kidnapper” with a pen. I placed the note on top of the ashes.
I declared with a tone filled with fabricated hatred.
“To those who wield abilities recklessly, the only answer is death.”
A stance meant to make it seem like someone took drastic measures out of hatred for Awakened.
I had to play the role convincingly to look like someone taking justice into their own hands with firm beliefs.
The students’ attention turned toward me.
“Ugh. Embarrassing.”
While it wasn’t my original intention to save them, their gratitude made me feel oddly fulfilled.
It was my first hunt.
A female student stepped forward and bowed.
“Th, thank you.”
Other students followed suit, expressing their gratitude.
It wasn’t exactly an act done to save them, but their appreciation made me feel strange.
One of my first steps into this world—success.
