Marc, now thirteen, was practicing alone in an open space when he was interrupted by Diablo's constant griping.
"When are you going to finish? This is going to take forever!" Diablo complained, sounding like a spoiled brat. His attitude shifted a bit after he caught glimpses of some of Marc's old life memories. Fortunately, not everything in this world was a game, and Diablo was influenced by the comics Marc used to read.
Initially, Marc planned to become a mage because it seemed cool to create fireballs out of nowhere, but he ultimately decided to go with the sword. He intended to later advance to a magic swordsman class after obtaining the swordsman class.
After his last swing, Marc felt pure mana entering his body as he realized he was stepping into a new rank. The mana strengthened his bones and toned his muscles. Although the process was painful, it was bearable. As the pure mana altered his body, Diablo secretly infused a small amount of demonic energy into it—an amount so minute it was hardly traceable.
During this transformation, Marc noticed something that felt different. He experienced a brief stinging sensation but shrugged it off.
As this was happening, Marc received system notifications:
- [Mana manipulation (lv10) has evolved]
- [Mana manipulation (lv10) has fused with mana sense (lv9)]
- [New skill: Mana mastery (lv1)]
- [Gained passive skill: Devil eyes (lv1)]
The entire process took Marc four hours, and in the end, a black sticky substance was left on the ground. He recognized it as impurities and noted that its stench was terrible. After some time, he finally cleaned up the mess.
Excitedly, Marc checked his status and shouted, "Status!"
**//———————[ STATUS]——————//**
Name: Marc / Marc William
Class: Swordsman
HP: 13/13 MP: 16/16
Strength: 15
Agility: 15
Defense: 14
Intelligence: 18
Skills: Mana mastery (lv1), Demonic nature (lv1), Devil eyes (lv1)
Title(s): Transmigrated, Cheated Death
**//————————[STATUS]—————//**
Although his class was ordinary, Marc was thrilled; it was proof of his growth. As he looked at his status, he noticed the Devil's eyes skill. Confused, he checked its info:
**[Devil eyes: Better eyesight, prediction, and the ability to discern the truth.]**
"Well, isn't this like dragon eyes?" Marc thought aloud.
"Dragon eyes! How dare you compare this to a f*cking lizard's eye! This is an insult to the devil community!" Diablo roared.
"Alright, alright, I won't compare them again," Marc replied, trying to calm Diablo down.
Now that he noticed it, Marc realized his vision had improved. He didn't need to squint to see something two miles away, and he could sense mana signatures with just his eyes. At first, he was curious about how he obtained this ability, but not anymore.
Marc went to the association for a promotional test. All he had to do was duel and win against another e-adventurer. This was easier said than done, as they might have more combat experience than he did. Nevertheless, he headed to the association's arena to face his opponent.
He wasn't alone; a crowd of spectators had gathered to watch the fight. The staff in charge asked if both of them were ready before starting the duel.
As the duel began, sparks flew and the clash of swords echoed. It might have appeared that Marc and his opponent were evenly matched, but Marc was actually getting overwhelmed. His eyes could match his opponent's speed, but his body couldn't keep up. He was only managing to defend himself by predicting the trajectory of his opponent's attacks.
Without his Devil's eyes, he would have lost. The fight intensified as adventurers of lower ranks struggled to keep up, and even those of rank e- found it challenging.
With neither Marc nor his opponent seeing a way to win, they decided to go all out, charging at each other with defiant expressions.
Marc gambled on his next move, channeling mana to strengthen his body and sword before throwing his weapon at his opponent. His opponent narrowly dodged, thinking Marc was foolish for throwing away his sword.
Suddenly, as his opponent regained balance, Marc appeared in his line of sight, charging towards him with a fist aimed straight for his face.
BAM!
The opponent was knocked out cold. Marc had gathered a lot of mana for his rash stunt and acknowledged his opponent as the strongest person he had ever faced. The spectators were momentarily speechless before erupting into cheers, chanting Marc's name in the arena.
"Marc! Marc! Marc! Marc!"