I looked at the bear.
"Thank you, big guy. May your corrupted soul rest in peace."
With that, I turned and made my way back to my shelter. It was finally time to complete my Essence experiment. I had accumulated enough unused stats to push Psynapse past 20, and I was certain it would help me manipulate Essence, even if just a little.
Reaching my shelter, I gulped down some water and sat cross-legged on the ground. I distributed all my unused stats, increasing Psynapse to 21.2 and Strength to 23.5.
Closing my eyes, I calmed my thoughts and focused on my heart. This time, everything felt smoother and clearer, thanks to the increased Psynapse.
The green flames of Essence roiled at the center of my heart. I observed them in silence for a good ten to fifteen minutes, studying every flicker and swirl. Then, bringing my full attention to the flame, I gave it a nudge. It moved.
I nudged again, and it responded once more. A slow grin spread across my face as I realized I was finally getting somewhere.
I attempted something new, separating a tiny chunk of Essence from the main flame. I pulled out a fragment, smaller than even a single unit, and guided it toward my right hand.
I could feel it traveling through my arm, strengthening it as it passed—forearm, wrist, fingers. It spread like a controlled fire, fueling my muscles instead of overwhelming them.
Opening my eyes, I clenched my fist, feeling the raw power surging through it. No pain. No damage. Just strength.
By taking only a minuscule portion of Essence, I had finally found a way to control it without tearing myself apart.
On top of that, my increased Constitution helped mitigate the damage.
Suddenly, a System message flashed before my eyes.
[Innate Skill Acquired]
[Essence Manipulation – Level 1]
I focused on the message to read the details.
Innate Skill: A skill awakened through a person's unique Talent, directly tied to their Talent's abilities. These skills cannot be learned or taught, only unlocked through talent progression and mastery.
Essence Manipulation (Innate Skill): The ability to control, shape, and channel Essence.
"Now that's more like it."
I hadn't even known there was something like innate skills in the system. Nothing in our education had ever mentioned them.
"So, is this a secret only for those with talents?"
The chances of that seemed high. Since only a few people awakened talents and most of them kept their abilities under wraps, this kind of information probably wasn't public knowledge.
I pulled up my status.
----------------------------------------------
Name : Billion Ironhart
- Essence Manipulation (Innate) Level 1
----------------------------------------------
I noticed that my Essence store now showed 4.5, meaning I had successfully separated 0.5 from the total.
Wanting to test the effect of my new skill, I closed my eyes and manipulated the Essence again. This time, it moved even more smoothly, flowing into my other hand in a single, effortless motion.
A satisfied grin spread across my face. It felt good to see my efforts pay off.
After spending a few more minutes playing with the skill and testing its effects, I stood up, stretched, and made my decision—I was done here. It was time to move on.
I picked up my bag and stepped out of the cave.
Based on my exploration so far, I had two possible directions to go. One led to a vast mountain range, while the other stretched into a flat forest. A river flowed from the mountains and wound its way through the forest.
I chose the mountains. Caves were plentiful there, making them perfect shelters for my Essence training.
With that decision made, I started walking. My awareness of my surroundings had improved significantly compared to when I was first dropped here. The increase in Psynapse helped a lot.
I was already Level 8, and my goal was to hit Level 10 within next two days. If things went well, I wanted to push for Level 20 before the month was up. But that all depended on whether I could find strong enough Abominations to fight.
If there weren't any high-level Abominations around, then I'd grind my way up against weaker ones. I'd scour the entire forest if I had to.
And on top of that, I needed to gather as much energy as possible to level up Generator.
I strapped my bag tightly and set off toward my next destination.
I lay sprawled beside the rotting corpse of an Ashen Wolf. Four eyes, jagged teeth, and a stench so foul it forced my eyes open—an impressive feat, considering I prided myself on keeping a straight face, even while dragging around a friend who was basically a walking bomb.
Pushing myself up, I dusted off and made my way back to my shelter, a large tree with thick branches.
I had hoped this fight would push me to the next level, but it seemed I needed one more. I was already Level 6, even though I had a bad start.
Normally, I'd take a break after reaching the threshold, but that green-eyed menace just had to awaken a talent.
I exhaled, my shoulders slumping.
I still remembered the day I met that human disaster.
I used to be a lazy, introverted kid, content to daydream indoors and avoid people. My dad insisted I play outside for at least two hours, so I'd go to the playground, jog a little, rub some dirt on my clothes, and call it a day.
One afternoon, while sitting near the bars, blending into the background as usual, I noticed a boy arguing with a group of five or six kids. After a heated exchange, he walked away—straight toward me. He was my height, with brown hair, green eyes, and way too much energy for my liking.
He reached my spot, gave me a glance, smiled, and ignored me.
Perfect. I liked being ignored.
Then, without a word, he climbed the bars, dropped down, and started doing pull-ups, loudly counting each rep. He kept going for fifteen minutes before landing, panting.
Out of nowhere, he walked up to me, extended a hand, and said.
"Hi, my name's Billion. What's yours?"
And just like that, he walked me home. The next morning, he was ringing my doorbell. From then on, he showed up at the playground every single day, always talking, even when I stayed silent.
I never realized when I stopped being just an observer and became his friend, then somehow got promoted to best friend.
When I was around 10 or 11, I had asked him why he even liked being my friend.
His answer? I was a good listener and never shooed him away.
Well, he wasn't wrong. Shooing people away wasn't how introverts worked. Our main weapon was ignoring and moving on. But how do you deal with someone who refuses to be ignored? Someone always in your face, always talking?
And before I even realized it, I started changing.
I was still introverted and lazy, but not around him. I started training not to surpass him (that was impossible for someone like me with zero ambition) but to make sure I didn't fall too far behind. I found the perfect balance, working just hard enough to keep him in my sight, no matter how high he climbed.
And that's how I ended up in fourth place while he took first. But the gap between first and second was so massive that no one even mentioned it, just to avoid discouraging the others.
I never cared about fighting the Eternals. I believed resistance was pointless; in the end, we'd all be crushed, our souls captured.
But Billion? He believed he could break through their chains.
So, I made myself a promise.
If he ever stood at the edge of that cage, ready to shatter it, I'd be right behind him, watching him do it.