*Smack!*

Bzzzzt..

Vincent let out an irritated growl that reluctantly turned into a tired sigh as he killed the thousandth mosquito. The annoying bastards wanted his precious stats, he just knew.

Looking quickly left and then to the right a tick mark appeared on his forehead. For the better part of three hours now he had been unable to locate his quarry. He had been everywhere but the most dangerous depths of the jungle. So far all he had to show for his drudgery was countless bug bites making him look hideously deformed.

Scratching his face and then each of his arms, he narrowed his eyes. It seemed as if he was staring off into nothingness but in truth he was stretching out his senses, devouring an amount of information that would have given a regular human a stroke. He winced in discomfort and rubbed his brow.

It was only because of his ridiculous vitality and considerable intelligence that he only had a mild headache after three hours of such thorough examination. He grit his teeth and shook his head lightly. "He must not be in the jungle… Fine. I'll go to master's first then." He decided, turning sharply around and beginning to jump leisurely from tree to tree.

"I have a bone to pick with him, anyways."

And with that his speed multiplied, the unrecognizable man from Earth became a blur as he bounded through the air at almost the speed of sound.

5 minutes later…

Vincent broke through the tree line like a comet, striking the ground near the edge of Zar-Rah's lake and creating a sizable crater. Some of the water from the lake began to spill into the newly made bowl and Vincent rubbed the back of his head and shook his feet as water pooled around his ankles. He was sure he would be getting chewed out for that..

As he trudged his way up the lip of the crater he paused, cocking his head sideways in bemusement. Before him, Standing nearly 4 meters tall on its hind legs, stood a creature that appeared to resemble a mole. Only this 'mole' had razor sharp fangs with tusks protruding from its upper jaw and foot long claws that could probably tear through tungsten alloy like paper.

It's black, beady eyes stared hungrily at the man, deciding whether or not he would hold any nutritional value. Vincent snorted as he sensed the creature's intentions. It opened its maw wide and roared, spittle flying and ripples of force coursing through the air.

Vincent flinched. Not because he was scared in any way shape or form, but because a stray bit of phlegm smacked him square in the eye. He wiped the spit from his face with his gloved hand, looking down at it in disgust. He looked back up at the creature who eagerly took a step closer.

Earth Reaver

Lvl: 47

Class: Earth

Health: 25,000/25,000

Mana: 10,000/10 000

Stats:

Strength: 300

Endurance: 250

Vitality: 100

Intelligence: 100

Perception: 500

Agility: 300

Vincent's eyes narrowed, his brow furrowing. His eyes began to glow a blue so bright that they resembled stars. His hair pevitated as his Aura slowly flickered to life and the earth shook beneath him. The large, muscular creature froze, it's body becoming rigid. The Reaver's hair stood on end as it began to comprehend the truth of the moment. That it was the prey and this man.. no.. this monster was the predator.

Vincent sucked in a steady stream of energy filled air. His chest expanded and he opened his mouth slightly.

"ROAAAAAAR!"

The sound that tore its way from the man's throat was anything but human. Reverberations of force blasted outward, flattening the creature's fur and forcing it back on its hind legs. Its eyes were shut tightly, partly due to fear and partly due to the force of wind in its face. The sound was like a hurricane; a raw force of nature rather than any real scream.

It ended just as quickly as it began, Vincent slowly closing his mouth and leaning back to cross his arms. He huffed and glared at the monster, who appeared to be shaken to its core. Frozen in fear, it could only stare at the man, unable to even run away. At least until Vincent clicked his tongue and quickly jerked his chin over his shoulder.

The demand behind the gesture was clear and the large mole-like creature gladly obliged as it scurried off as fast as its massive body would allow. Just before reaching the tree line it dove a full meter into the air in an awkward dive. It hit the ground head first and practically sank right through the planet as it's deadly claws revealed their true purpose.

Congratulations! Title change available!

Title(s) available:

Vincent, The King in Black

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Rewards indeterminable.

Warning! This action is not recommended as the title is not recognized by the system archives!

Please seek the nearest system HUB or one of your homeworld's tavern owners.

Do you accept? (Y/N)

Eyes widening slightly he hesitated, finger hovering over the yes. On one hand this would have permanent and unknown repercussions.. On the other hand this was a path the system clearly did not want him to take. And that was all he needed to make his decision.

Congratulations!

You will henceforth be known throughout the Nexus as; Vincent, The King in Black!

Warning! Calculating effects.. error!..

Vincent clutched his chest as an intense burning feeling took residence there. It was far from the worst pain he had ever felt, even still he couldn't help but wince and pant slightly. It felt as if a molten ball of steel had settled in his chest beside his heart.

Congratulations! New skill: King in Black (Unique) lvl 0 has been achieved!

New feat achieved! The King in Black takes his first breath!

A path not walked by any other, The King in Black would seek to subdue and consume the truth, rather than understand it. The universe sneers in disgust at your existence.. A cold and lonely death will be your penance. Take what is yours.

All stats are slightly more potent than before!

+25 all stats! +25 vitality!

Vincent fell to his knees and coughed up a wad of blood, only.. it wasn't the blood of a human. Rather than being red and thin, this substance was thick and black. It looked more like runny tar than blood. Vincent's very soul pulsed and he went rigid for a moment.

Then he threw his head back and yelled, his arms shooting out wide to the sides as his body grew exponentially larger. His muscles bulged and he gained nearly a meter in height. His bones lengthened and became more dense, cracking and helaing under the pressure of his new body.

Vincent was standing, face contorted in strain and arms still at his sides as if he were nailed to a cross. He looked like a bodybuilding giant, possessing a height and physique that should not have been humanly possible. His armor was stretched so far it split in the chest, arms and legs areas.

He was sure he looked intimidating and powerful.. But this ugly, grotesque form was not him.. opening his eyes he grit his teeth and began to fight back against whatever transformation was overcoming him. He clenched his open palms into fists and began to pull himself in tight like a Cannonball.

He grunted with effort, not really trying to end the ritual so much as guide its processes. His muscles began to compact and steam wafted off of him as he shrunk slowly down, back to his original (system enhanced) height of 5'10. With a final scream of defiance he took a step forward, cracking the ground beneath him. There was a bright flash, and the end result was Vincent.

He scanned his body slowly from left to right, looking at his torso and arms. He appeared exactly as he had before the strange occurrence. At least on the outside. As he began to peer deeper into himself with his perception and abilities he garnered a deeper understanding of what had happened.

Essentially his body had kept all of the power for that monstrous form and tailored it to be as efficient as possible for combat, which for Vincent was this body he had built over the last five years. His muscles were insanely dense, yet he could tell they also possessed elasticity and flexibility.

His bones had shifted slightly. Especially in his abnormal chest plate area, but it wasn't immediately observable to most, he was sure. Mostly they were just dense and better suited for explosive speed and power. If he had to guess.. This was probably the result of each individual stat he possessed all becoming more powerful all at once.

The man shook his head tiredly. That had taken more put of him than he expected or he may have waited on accepting the new title. He began to make his way towards the mouth of the cave at the other end of the lake with unsteady legs, the strength of which he wasn't fully used to. His blood had turned a small ring of grass into a puddle of death and rot. Something he would have to address later.

Vincent stopped just a few feet away from the cave when a bulky, misshapen figure hobbled out of the cave and into the afternoon sun. His grizzled old master had clearly just woken up from a nap, his one visible eye unfocused and full of aggression.

His gray skin was ashy and dry, and Vincent idly wondered if the man was getting enough vitamins these days. His thin white hair was mostly covered by the hood of his cloak, but it was clear that the man was balding. It occurred to the human that his master was very old. Over a hundred years by his own admission. He wasn't sure how long Orcs lived, but even with the benefits of the system…

Somehow he was inclined to believe that his master was not long for this world anymore. And that was a thought that made him sick to his stomach.

"What in Garkan's name is going on out here!?" His master yelled with overly exaggerated ordination. He waved his arm and cane back and forth, pretending as if he were scanning the clearing and hadn't already seen his student giving him a deadpan expression.

Then the old man lowered his cane and focused on the human. "Ahh, Vincent. I didn't see you there. What brings you to my home?" He asked in a theatrical manner. Vincent internally rolled his eyes but on the outside his face remained stoic.

"Zar-Rhah. We need to talk."

Moments later..

The cave belonging to the self proclaimed Mythic arts master was well lit, a stark contrast to its usual dark and shadowy atmosphere. With his engraving skill higher than ever, Vincent instantly deduced the reason behind all the unusual luminescence.

Pouring two mugs of mead and sliding one to his student, the grizzled old master grunted. "Get on with it then." He ordered, slurping loudly from his drink. Vincent smirked in response. Straight to the point, the way he liked it. That was why he and his fellow Orcs got along so well.

"You told me the runic language was essentially a stand-in for skills. You taught me they behave like skills and channel our emotions and intentions.." He paused, taking a drink and looking sideways at his master. Zar-Rhah merely returned the gaze with a casual, stoney demeanor.

Wiping his face the man from earth continued, ".. and while that may be true in part, they do chennl our emotions and intentions.. They behave nothing like skills." He concluded. Still Zar-Rhah said nothing, so Vincent took this as a sign to provide evidence and support for his accusations.

Looking over his newly created script, there were several runes that were dangerously incompatible. Even with the other 93 stable runes bearing the brunt of the conflicting forces, the massive series of tomes he had created within his Soulspace should have shredded him to pieces… Yet they worked in harmony because he had willed them to do so.

At last Zar-Rhah responded, chewing his inner lip before speaking slowly. "Ahh so I see.. You have finally completed the script to house your engravings." He said with mild surprise. "To have completed a task of that magnitude in such a short amount of time.. I admit I had my doubts when I first took you on as a student two years ago. But it seems Gildarts was right, as he often is. You truly are special." He praised sincerely.

Vincent blushed slightly and scratched the back of his head. He coughed lightly. "Don't think that flattery will save you from my ire old man. Why did you lie to me?" He asked somberly

In response the aged Orc shrugged and said with what Vincent determined was a reckless audacity, "I had to. The Ancient tongues are more than just words. Long before skills were conceptualized, runes are what originally built and defined the Nexus. To this day they hold the system itself together, and shape reality as we know it." He revealed.

Vincent's mind whirled while listening to his master casually explanation behind the reasoning for his deception. The man spoke as if he had been doing him a favor, which originally annoyed the dakr haired man. But the more his mind continued putting the pieces together it occurred to Vincent that, that may have actually been the case.

"..That is the truth of the power you are tapping into. Runes hold great power and meaning, allowing you to reshape matter and energy in the Nexus. But only if your emotions are strong, and your desires firm." Zar-Rhah said with resolve. "You must truly believe with all of your soul in what you're saying. Since you already believe that water puts out fire, that is what I told you."

Finishing his drink, Zar-Rhah grabbed his cane and hobbled over to a stone area that was free of clutter. He turned over his shoulder to Vincent and sighed. "But now you know a different truth don't you? That the only real truth.. is the one you manifest. Your mind.. your will determines what is real and what isn't. In this reality. The water does not just put the fire out… It can make the flames burn brighter." He said quizzically.

Raising his cane and closing his eyes he methodically began drawing symbols in the air while chanting quietly. Even though his voice was low, it seemed to echo and reverberate throughout the spacious cave. The bottles of potions along the walls that Vincent had gifted his master over the years shook and clanged together.

The air before the gray Orc began to shimmer and wave before a ball of ferocious flame erupted to life in front of him. It was relatively modest, being no larger than a volleyball in size but it was stable and potent. The initial symbols used were easy enough to understand, even if he hadn't mastered some of them.

Words like 'ignite' and 'burn' shone the brightest as the engravings danced before his newly improved perception. But then as he watched, his master began to draw a second set of runes. These were relatively simple as well, but in terms of compatibility..

As if to orchestrate his line of thought a tightly compressed ball of swirling water bubbled into existence beside the ball of flame. Vincent watched in fascination as the two congruent forces of nature slowly drifted closer to one another until they began to converge.

Naturally, Vincent had expected the two opposing elements to obstruct one another or perhaps erupt in a violent disagreement. To his surprise however, the two spheres merged seamlessly. A second later the two spheres exploded, fusing and becoming one large ball for blue flame that was easily the size of Zar-Rah himself.

Vincent stared in shock and awe at the raw power and force that blasted outward from the newly created attack. Waves of force and energy shot forth in rings, and an intense wind was generated from the epicenter of the fire. And then just as quickly it was gone as Zar-Rah waved his cane through the air, ending the ritual and harmlessly dispersing the energy.

He was huffing slightly, wiping sweat from his forehead when he turned around and grinned. "Do you understand now, boy? We are tapping into the power of God."

End of chapter 42