16 - Offerings

“I hate men,” stated the kneeling golden-eyed blond in the silky undergarment. “They always rob and take whatever they want as long as they can get away with it. And they usually do get away with it.”

Despite his inner protest, he could understand what she meant if he considered the world he was currently living in. In such a world, a naive tasty beauty like her was a terrible burden without a proper deterrent.

The strong rule and only personal might would do you true justice.

The girl didn’t just want a formidable ability, she needed one.

The overbearing armor she chose to don could only work as a temporary solution. It helped a lot, well, until people figured out what was hidden under them.

The silky inner hung around her long slender neck. Its thin fabric stuck on her flawless snow-white skin as it crossed under and around her tiny waist. The exposed sexy navel slit and the low-hanging skirt were doing more harm than good.

And despite what she said, the girl was sitting on her knees beside the bed with her back straight showing off the ripe, oversized melons. They were dangled in front of him whilst every breath she took was simply mesmerizing.

The pair jingled alluringly in place with the slightest move.

What else could a man think other than to fondle those large round perky tits of hers? If he didn’t know any better, he would think she was asking for it.

However, she had begun with such a declaration for a reason. Perhaps the girl was trying to prove her words were the absolute truth by a mere display of herself.

She would be dangerous if this was her intention. If that was her intention then her only mistake was to think that every man was the same. Sure, she was a sight of sore eyes but it didn’t mean she didn’t come with any baggage.

A beauty like her would prove to be difficult to manage. She would always attract people and that was the last thing he needed in his life. Ruthless people would move to remove him first before trying anything else, so no, thank you.

And more importantly, there was a tiny grey crystal growth in between those bulging milk jugs of hers. The shard she had absorbed should probably have helped her in hiding in plain sight. Was it some kind of stealth shard?

No, it must be some sort of optical illusion which enabled her to hide in plain sight. Ake nodded a few times while he tried his best not to ogle at her.

“My father is shardless as I’m born from a sharded womb,” Sila continued when he took a seat on the bedside. “Papa has always said that I’ve inherited mama’s high-level looks and it has always troubled the poor old man. He might be the richest shardless person around but he could do nothing when the inevitable happened. This was when Liara stepped into my life and we’ve been together ever since. I’ve always thought that the Lover had its hand on our faithful meeting, as such-” the girl bit her lips, and stopped herself before spelling it out.

Her unwavering eyes and ragged breaths told him that she truly believed that a higher power had brought and revealed this ability of his to her. The girl might even think the ability was her only hope, that’s why she was breathing so hard.

She didn’t like the source one bit, of course, but her belief was firm.

“That’s a lot to take in,” Ake replied and Sila nodded.

It was a lot when she had suggested that sharded people could only procreate with the shardless, or in other words, normal human beings. Female offspring most likely would inherit the mother’s levelled-up looks which also pointed towards another unbelievable fact.

Leveling up would or could improve your looks other than whatever else it does. This should be why Liara said all the effort would be worth it. The fact was very interesting and good news for anyone, well, other than the disturbing fact that there was no procreation among the sharded.

Simply said, humans would have no new generation to replace the old if every single human had chosen to be magical. Birth rate must have been at the very minimum as who in the world wouldn't want to wield magic or become strong enough to fight monsters?

‘No wonder I couldn’t see as many kids running around,’ Ake realized.

There must be so few of them that there were none left on the street.

And if somehow the unthinkable happened, then humanity’s future would be doomed. Not to mention the unique social dynamic between the two kinds of people humanity had.

But he had to confirm something.

“Are you saying that two sharded people can’t have kids?”

Sila tilted her head cutely before she nodded, confirming his suspicion. Perhaps he should have used children instead of kids but he couldn’t care less.

“You also mentioned that any worthy ability would become a family heirloom, but can’t more powerful people just force the knowledge out of the person’s mouth?”

“They can,” Sila said with a small sad sigh, “but everyone knows that even the most basic has its unique nuances. This is why there is a good amount of variety for a single [Ability]. There is no real guarantee for the ability to crystallize or not backfire when it is taken by force. Such action has a huge and real risk. A simple lie or minor crucial fact left unspoken could cripple or even kill them, and it has happened in the past. Anyone would think twice before making such a decision as the ones who could do such a thing usually had a lot to lose. For example, even a simple rumor will already tarnish their reputation and no one would risk having any association with them.”

Ake nodded. That did make a lot of sense. She was not saying it hadn’t or couldn’t be done but it was one of the unspoken rules or taboos in current society.

“But how would a person pass down his ability to someone else?” he asked. “What if his only family member is just a kid who knows nothing? What if a tiny but crucial mistake is made while trying to pass down the ability?”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Sila breathed in relief for some reason. “This is why most people prefer to use the [Astral Transfer]. Only the one who truly understands the ability can use this function, and before you ask, no one could force a transfer as it will fail.”

“Well that is mighty convenient,” Aku chuckled. “But my guess is that people still can trick someone to transfer an ability to them?”

“Yes, the Astral adapts for its user’s sake, but what do you mean by tricking?”

“Well, a beauty like you could seduce a man like me and trick him to transfer his ability to you? Aren’t you doing it right now?”

Sila was taken aback, “No, I’m not doing any-,” she looked down at herself and blushed hard until her ears were red.

“Don’t worry, it should be the same if the roles are reversed,” Ake chuckled.

He couldn’t believe it. She seriously had never thought of taking advantage of her beauty at all. Was this even real? And she was hell-bent on hating all men because some had used their advantage for their own good. How naive the girl could be?

But then again, the girl foolishly believed in something like fate and the illusion of safety that the town’s towering walls offered. Even a simple man like him could think of many ways to compromise the town while the skyscraper walls were still standing, let alone a super-smart and super-crazy villain.

Whoever was behind the otherworld soul kidnapping could never be a simple person. Especially when the ritual had actually succeeded.

The two went into a lapse of silence as both had nothing to add to the subject. Sila was staring at the floor after being smacked twice with reality.

“If you must know, I stripped my weapons and armor off so you’ll believe that I truly mean you no harm, that was all. But is there anything else you are curious about?” The girl asked after she regained her composure.

Well, that was disappointing even if it was already expected. It took her a while but she was pretty good at returning to the topic.

“Tell me about the common [Class] you’ve heard and what you know about them, and of course, their benefits.”

Sila nodded, “The most common [Class] is those simple crafting like the [Glassmaker], [Digger], or [Blacksmith]. The most well-sought combat [Class] is of course the flexible but simple [Warrior]. It becomes available after the person is able to crystallize an ability that is well-guarded among the warring clans. The most known ability that the Kingdom army offered is [Shield Charge] which unlocks the basic class variety the [Fighter]. The [Mage] class is among the rarest, and likewise, is available when a [Spell] or a mana-costly ability is crystallized. The [Firebolt] is the most popular among the few [Spell] which is offered to be taught its details by the Magic Academy.”

“Let me guess, all of the offers are not free?”

“Yes, the Aurine Kingdom’s army requires a ten-year service contract while the Magic Academy has its own unique requirements to enter. The Family Clans, of course, required complete loyalty and secrecy [Oath] before they parted with any kind of ability.”

“How about the Guild?”

“The Guild doesn't directly offer anything, but many of its accomplished members can offer an ability in exchange for an [Oath]. The [Oath] bound person could be compelled to do anything from a very simple deal or to becoming the honorable member’s personal whore until he was bored with her,” said Sila with her voice dripping venom.

‘That is probably a very personal experience,’ Ake mused. ‘Even the esteemed Guild is no good, no wonder she hated men that much,’ he thought as he shook his head.

It wasn’t really a surprise when a beauty like her was offered such a thing. No one would do it for free, and in those men’s eyes, there was nothing else she could have offered in return but her beauty and warmth.

Those big golden eyes could easily pull a man to stare at them and those thick lips were simply delicious. She also embodied an unblemished snow-white skin which when combined with her hourglass figure would present her as the perfect bed warmer.

“I guess you haven’t taken such an offer because the offered ability is not worth it?”

“Why would you say that?” Sila’s head tilted.

“Well, the person who offered can’t be ugly while being high-level, right?” Ake chuckled at the obviousness that flew over her head.

“He is very pleasant to look at,” Sila sighed as she admitted, “but he is hideous inside, like any other man.”

Ake sighed out loud and closed his eyes.

‘She said this while trying to make me, a man, give up my precious ability to her? That is not very clever. What a naive pampered lady.’

“Those men had offered something they luckily discovered during their adventures and most of them were brutish,” Sila continued to explain when he didn’t say anything back. “I never want to be a [Warrior] or anything similar. I don’t want to grow bulging muscles like men do, and no [Mage] had ever visited this small insignificant border town. Before you ask, the Guildmaster had enough beautiful young girls and women rotating around the [Spellblade] loose belt. His family has made sure of this.”

“Right,” Ake replied and nodded as if he already knew the Guildmaster’s unique and probably scary [Class] all along. “But what do these [Class] provide and how do I check what [Class] is open for the ability I have?”

“Each [Class] shaped and honed the body with the gathered [Life] essence in the form of matching attributes, inspirations, and ability slots. Just ask the System for what [Class] is available and select the most promising one, well, in your case, after your first level up.”

“Obviously, of course,” Ake muttered.

He was not far from it and it probably would be offered without a prompt during his level up, whenever that happened. Of course, he could have concluded this himself but it was better to hear it from someone who already knew it for a fact.

Without the dangled meat in the form of ability, he wondered what kind of payment he had to make in order to ask someone for all of these revelations. What he was getting from her was probably biassed but it was still many years worth of experience. It was invaluable if anyone had asked him, but was it valuable enough?

A screen popped up when he prompted the question inside his head.

[Warning, [Class] selection unavailable at level 0]

[Basic class options are listed below]

[-]

[Mage]-[EtherSage] class unlocked by [Ethereal Arms]

[-]

[Mage]-[SpellBreaker] class unlocked by [Arcane Flesh]

[Error: No elemental affinity detected, advanced class selection disabled]

[-]

[Artificer]-[?] class partly unlocked by [Ethereal Sense]

“Interesting,” Ake mumbled and Sila perked up from what he muttered.

This meant everyone would start with a basic [Class] like the [Mage], but the advanced [Class] selection would be based on what other ability they had or would learn later on. If he had to guess the [EtherSage] should be unheard of because of the current foolish stigma around a colorless mana.

“Have you ever heard anything about the [SpellBreaker]?”

“A what?” Sila gasped and clasped her mouth.

Well, that reaction answered his question better than any word could. The advanced [Class] sounded like it had something to do with countering the [Mage]. The person with it would break things or people using a spell, or perhaps, used an ability to break a spell.

“I’ve heard of it,” Liara’s voice came from the other side of the door.

Ake sighed. He was wondering how long she was going to stand out there.

The little lady probably already figured out that the quest was bogus from the very beginning. He might be able to demand unreasonable things from Sila but he could never do the same to Liara.