Despite the Bookwarm's peculiar appearance—a caterpillar-shaped stone with a tiny, book-like structure attached to its back—Esdeath knew it held immense value. For someone like her, who lacked the foundational experience in refining and merging essence stones, it was a priceless find.
"Knowledge is power," she murmured to herself, holding the stone delicately as if it were the most precious treasure. Without hesitation, she activated it.
The moment she did, an overwhelming surge of memories flowed into her mind. These weren't her own but belonged to someone else
The memories belonged to a man named Arith Apro, a seasoned expert in essence stone refinement and merging. He was around sixty years old and had devoted most of his life to the art of essence stone manipulation.
Esdeath's brows furrowed as fragments of his life began to take root in her mind. It was as if she could see glimpses of his work, his thoughts, and his struggles. This was the unique ability of the Bookwarm essence stone. It wasn't just a memory archive; it was a vessel capable of transferring knowledge directly into the user's mind.
The memories weren't complete. She only gained snippets: his name, his chosen paths of sound and soul, and the tragic fate he met. Arith Apro had once been the owner of two powerful essence stones—"Soulpiercer" and "Forcebreaker"—before his life was cut short by none other than Trynne Transylvania.
The Bookwarm essence stone likely contained only a fraction of Arith's lifelong knowledge, but even that was valuable. Esdeath now understood the basics of refining and merging essence stones. This wasn't just written or verbal knowledge; it was as though the techniques had been etched directly into her brain. The sensation was indescribable—a sudden clarity, like pieces of a puzzle falling into place.
Of course, the Bookwarm was only a Rank E essence stone. Its capacity was limited, and it couldn't hold the full depth of Arith's expertise.
But basics were the foundation of mastery. Even the most advanced techniques started with simple principles.
It wasn't hard to imagine Trynne refining hundreds of Bookwarms like this, spreading knowledge among her fellow vampires who lacked experience. It was an efficient and clever technique, one that had now worked to Esdeath's advantage.
With all her work in the treasure room finally complete, Esdeath sighed in relief. But now came the exciting part—using her SP points. She closed her eyes and willed her system to open.
A sudden chime echoed in her mind, followed by a notification that appeared in front of her.
Esdeath's eyes widened slightly, her lips curling into a small, surprised smile. "Fifteen thousand? That's... unexpected," she murmured. But deep down, she already knew the reason behind this surge.
All the chaos esdeath caused in the Vanara tribe... it actually paid off.
After winning the competition, her reputation had soared. She'd earned a solid 5,000 SP just for that victory, raising her total to 5,030 SP at the time. She had used 500 SP to boost her strength, which left her with 4,530 SP. But now, thanks to the scandal she stirred in the Vanara tribe, she was reaping the rewards.
The tribe was abuzz with her name. Hundreds of people had witnessed her battle against Ujjain, and word had spread like wildfire. Rowan now saw her as a serious threat, a true enemy to watch out for. Meanwhile, Mourya—well, Mourya's perspective was complicated. Part of him seemed to view her as daughter-in-law.
*Whatever the case, they all know who esdeath is...Recognition equaled power, and in her system's terms, that power translated into SP points.
The best part? None of this disrupted the main storyline. Esdeath had been careful. In the original timeline, Ethan Rothslayer never even visited the Vanara tribe. And while she had taken a few essence stones from Mourya's treasure room, It was only Level One treasure room, rest of them were untouched, keeping things mostly as they were supposed to be.
The only real deviation was the brewing tension between Rowan and Mourya. Their eventual battle might play out differently, but since her system awarded her SP points, it was clear the main story hadn't been significantly altered.
With so many SP points at her disposal, Esdeath's mind raced with possibilities. The first thought that came to her was clear—healing.
In her battle with Ujjain, she had realized just how much she lacked in this area. Relying on healers wasn't always practical, especially in critical moments where every second counted. It wasn't just her; every awakened warrior dreamed of having their own healing abilities, something they could rely on without depending on healers.
Her gaze turned thoughtful as she considered her options. "If I'm right about my star constellation, it's aligned with the time path. ."
But there was a problem. Esdeath only knew about high-level time path healing techniques. They were immensely powerful, capable of reversing even fatal injuries, but they were expensive and required massive SP points she didn't have. Worse, low-level time path healing techniques were practically useless, offering minimal benefits for significant effort.
Esdeath frowned. Back when she played as Ethan Rothslayer, she hadn't explored the time path much. Ethan wasn't someone who used it, so she didn't have a wealth of options to draw from.
"I'll leave it to the system,"she decided with a sigh. "Find a random time-path healing skill," she willed.
After a moment, a notification appeared.
"
"
<10,000 SP deducted>
Esdeath stared at the notification, her eyes twitching slightly. "Ten thousand SP… just like that?" she muttered. Annoyance flickered across her face for a moment. She had worked so hard to accumulate those points, and now half of them were gone in an instant.
But as she reread the description of the skill, her irritation faded. Echo of Restoration wasn't just a healing skill—it was a lifesaver. The ability to gradually restore her body to a previous uninjured state was exactly what she needed.
A small smile tugged at her lips. For once, she didn't yell at her constellation. "Not bad...not bad," she admitted quietly.
With 9,530 SP remaining, Esdeath quickly turned her attention to her other skills. She decided to upgrade her "Sharpshooter" skill, thinking it would be a good investment. But as soon as she made the selection, another notification popped up.
A large red cross appeared in front of her, mocking her attempt. Esdeath's forehead twitched in frustration. "Nine thousand SP isn't enough? Seriously?"
She groaned, crossing her arms. Fine, then. I'll work on something else.
Her gaze landed on Eagle Eyes (E), a skill that had served her well in the past. "Let's see if I can improve you," she said, activating the system once more.
This time, the notification was much more satisfying.
Esdeath's eyes lit up as she read the description.
Human eyes can see at thirty to sixty frame rate per second but here, this skill can help her seeing in 250 FPS? It was simply incredible.
Multiple times more than normal humans, It was really a good deal, while how much points got deducted?
<2500 SP deducted>
It was a kind of large but esdeath didn't mind it.
But she still had remaining SP that she decided to not use all of it and just used a part of it on her Strength, Speed and stamina accordingly.
Esdeath had strengthened endurance of her body, So she could use more SP to increase her stats.
"Let's keep them for now! ", She thought.
For now her stats looked like this.
Current skills in possession
- Sharpshooter (E)Upgradable: When used, time will slow down for five seconds. Can only be used once every 50 minutes.
- Iron Gaze (D) Upgradable: Can see over great distances with precision + Can see the flow of mana + Can see at 250 FPS rate.>
- Skill: Paralyze Bullet (E) Upgradable –After using this skill, the first bullet fired by you will have a paralyzing effect that can immobilize both monsters and awakened individuals up to D-rank for around 10 minutes.
-Skill (C) Upgradable: Echo of Restoration : Heals injuries gradually by "echoing" moments in time when the user was uninjured, slowly mending wounds to mirror their former state.
(Reminder : I have changed the Sword mode to Scythe mode, Although I told about it in past but just in case if someone forgot)
Esdeath let out a sigh of relief. Everything she had worked for so far was finally paying off. All the battles, the risks, and the chaos—it felt worth it in this moment.
But her moment of peace didn't last long.
"Fable, do you know any essence stone that can turn me back into a man?" Maruti's voice cut through the silence, her tone filled with curiosity.
Esdeath blinked and shook her head. "How would I know?" she replied plainly.
Maruti snorted, crossing her arms with an annoyed look. "Hmph. You said you've played this game, and now you're saying you don't know this? What's the point of your so-called knowledge then?"
Esdeath shook her head again, this time with a hint of exasperation. "I know about temporary ones, like the Yin-Yang Rotation Essence Stone. It can turn you into a man for about six months, but that's about it. I didn't play this game to mess with gender mechanics. I played it to fight. Combat is what I focused on!"
She wasn't lying; she genuinely had no idea about permanent solutions.
"Six months, huh?" Maruti's eyes lit up with excitement. "Well, that's good enough for me! Just tell me all the details later, and I'll refine a hundred of them. Problem solved—easy peasy!"
Esdeath stared blankly at her, her face unreadable. Her mind wasn't on Maruti's excitement anymore. Instead, she was focused on something else—something strange.
When she narrowed her eyes slightly to focus, her instincts sharpened, and suddenly, everything around her seemed to slow down. It was surreal. Esdeath realized she was seeing the world in extreme detail, almost frame by frame.
Her Iron Gaze skill had activated without her realizing it. At 250 FPS, she could see every flicker of Maruti's expression, the subtle movement of her lips, and even the smallest twitch of her fingers.
Esdeath blinked several times, and the effect faded, returning her vision to normal. She sighed inwardly. "It's like switching between two different lenses. This could be incredibly useful."
"Hello? Did you fall asleep with your eyes open or something?" Maruti waved a hand in front of Esdeath's face, snapping her out of her thoughts.
Esdeath's expression turned serious as she remembered something important. She straightened up, her tone firm. "Predictor, I need you to take things seriously from now on."
Maruti blinked in confusion. "Huh? What's with the sudden mood change?"
Esdeath shook her head, her face solemn. "I've been meaning to talk to you about this for a while now, but we kept getting caught up in the mess, Like with the Vanara tribe." She paused for a moment before continuing.
"You've been treating everything like a joke, like it's all fun and games. But this isn't our world anymore. We almost died back there" Her voice was calm but carried a weight that couldn't be ignored.
Maruti's playful expression faltered slightly. "I mean… I know that, but—"
Esdeath cut her off. "No buts. You need to switch into your serious personality, just like you used to back in our world when things got tough. I'm not gonna save you, if you fall in danger. "
For a moment, there was silence.
Maruti's usual cheerful and carefree expression vanished, replaced by a blank stare. For the first time, her face turned completely serious. Her gaze carried an intense pressure, like a towering monolith that could crush anyone beneath it. Her eyes appeared hollow, devoid of light, and her expression was filled with an infinite pride that seemed to look down on all living things.
Her tone was ice-cold when she spoke. "Let me ask you something. Are you serious?"
Esdeath blinked, confused by the sudden shift in mood. "What do you mean by that? I'm always serious—"
But before she could finish, Maruti interrupted sharply, her words cutting through like a blade. "Of course you're not. Not anymore. You used to be so much more serious back then. You never trusted anyone, not even in me. You lived to kill. That's why the hitman life suited you so well."
Maruti's voice grew heavier, filled with unshakable certainty as she continued. "I was with you for decades, remember? Killing for money, torture, scandals, scams, massacres—we committed countless crimes together. Even high table was wary of us.
Only until you fought with "him" And the very next day, You said you want retirement.
She took a step closer to Esdeath, her voice lowering but gaining even more weight. "If I were to sum it up in one sentence, you were the biggest shameless bitch before. But now…" She paused, placing her hand lightly over Esdeath's chest, her gaze unyielding.
"It feels like your heart has started beating again. Do you think I wouldn't notice?"
Esdeath remained silent, her expression unreadable.
"You've gotten a little soft," Maruti continued, her tone sharp. "Now, you fight to survive and defeat, not to kill, It feels like you are now afraid of dying. And if you're not fighting to kill, then why should I? "
The heavy words hung in the air, but they didn't faze Esdeath. Her face stayed calm, completely emotionless, as she replied with a quiet but firm voice. "Are you disappointed?"
Maruti blinked, then let out a small, amused chuckle. Slowly, her lips curled into a smile. "Disappointed? No. I'm actually glad." Her tone softened, and for a moment, the tension in the room eased. "It's kind of nice seeing you like this for a change."
But before Esdeath could react, Maruti's expression shifted again. Her smile turned wicked, her eyes gleaming with mischief. She leaned in close, her lips almost brushing against Esdeath's ear as she whispered, "But I do have one question."
Esdeath stayed still, her face like a blank canvas.
"The change," Maruti murmured, her voice dripping with curiosity. "Is it because of a girl?"
No reaction. Esdeath didn't even blink.
"Or… a boy?" Maruti added, her voice teasing and soft.
Still, Esdeath's expression didn't waver. She gave absolutely nothing away.
Maruti smirked and stepped back, her playful demeanor returning as quickly as it had left. "Ah, I see. You're not going to admit it, huh? Let me predict—it's a girl, right? Never thought someone who hated romance would fall in love." She laughed lightly as she turned away, her usual carefree grin plastered back on her face.
Esdeath finally let out a small snort, folding her arms.
"Think whatever you want, "
"Think whatever you want," Both said in unison.
"I knew you were going to say that! ",Maruti waved her hand dismissively as she moved toward the pile of armors and resources in the room. "Whatever, whatever. Anyway, I'm going to store all Armours, Spears, Sword and other resources in my storage essence stone." She threw a quick glance over her shoulder. "The competition starts tomorrow, and we've got to get moving. Let's go."