"You feel like visiting the tomb, don't you?" the troubled boy reluctantly looked at the man planning to teach him a lesson.
In Neo Tyran, it is common to find people like that; people with very good blessings who take advantage of others who don't have that power.
"I'll have to stop you now. Take it as a favor I'm doing you; you don't have what it takes to be a hunter anyway."
The exchange of words was rather quick. With that last statement from the man, the white-haired boy was on top of him.
"Speed? I trained hunting sea beasts on the frontier; this is nothing to me." The big man threw a punch at the boy who, in response, used his hands to glide.
Water beasts are known for their incredible speed. If you can fight in their area, which is the sea, it could be said that you are quite fast.
(The white-haired boy is still faster, but the man uses his strength to his advantage. They haven't used their blessings yet.)
Martyn watched the fight, analyzing every point. Now that he was going to be a hunter, he needed to gain some experience in fighting. Watching would be the best option.
(Could I use my new skill on them?) Martyn thought as he activated his new ability.
[Skills:]
[Analysis]
[Error]
[The power difference is too great; you cannot analyze.]
(Damn, I feared something like this...) Feeling disappointed, Martyn turned his attention back to the fight.
"You're just a braggart. While you were fighting silly beasts, I..." The boy changed the shape of his hand to a black one.
"I killed people."
The sharp nails were entering the man's skin. He decided not to be intimidated and threw the boy to the ground.
"Claws? That's a blessing I've never seen around here before. What god chose you as a child?" the man asked.
"That information shouldn't interest you. You'll be dead in a few seconds anyway." According to his words, the boy pounced on the man, changing his legs and arms as well.
(Wow, he's gotten faster. My gaze is lost trying to follow him.) Martyn thought as he took a break from the fight.
"Hahahaha, what's the matter, big guy? Can't keep up with me?" The big man was taking several cuts but decided to stand still in the center.
Crack!
Minutes later, what sounded like metal breaking could be heard. Following the source of the sound, Martyn watched the fight again.
Focusing his gaze, he managed to see the troubled boy with a completely broken fingernail, while his opponent's body looked beefy and hard.
"Turning your body to steel, are you serious?" the boy complained as he returned his hand to normal.
"Vulcan gave me this ability. According to him, I have a noble heart. You should learn." Replied the man whose body was made of steel.
(Vulcan, eh? If I'm not misinformed, he is a god of the Roman pantheon. That would explain what that man is doing in the test.) Martyn was analyzing everything from a distance.
"Shit, this is a clear disadvantage. I could still kill you, but I don't want to waste energy. There should be between 13 to 15 hours left then..."
The boy moved into a runner's stance and gave a simple but powerful start that allowed him to pass by the man, who did nothing in response.
"See you next time." With words that already seemed to echo, the white-haired boy disappeared.
"You can come out now. I know you're there."
To Martyn's surprise, the man looked in his direction. He already knew Martyn was hiding there but didn't want to say anything.
"Sorry, I really didn't mean to look." Coming out of hiding, Martyn accepted his defeat.
"Relax, you wouldn't have been able to do anything against that monster. I could stand up to him thanks to my defensive blessing." The big man accepted Martyn's apology.
"I see. If what the boy said was true, there shouldn't be much time left before the end of the test. Do you think we should cooperate?" Martyn asked.
Martyn didn't trust blessed people at all, but on this occasion, he thought it was for the best. He had already had two encounters with monsters; it was better to be accompanied for now.
"Yes, it's surely been several hours since the message from the representative, but I can't settle for this..." The man started walking.
"Ah, what do you mean? I thought just surviving was enough." Martyn followed the man.
"You heard the message too. The representative of the Roman pantheon left a celestial grade weapon in the center of the map. I'll go get it, I think I'm batsnate close." William would say confidently, if he hurried he would have no competition in taking the weapon.
Celestial-grade weapons are some of the most complicated to obtain. They can only be obtained in hunting expeditions that fight against high-grade monsters.
They are considered among the strongest weapons of mankind, second only to omnipresent and divine-grade weapons.
"Now that you mention it, I am also interested in it." Martyn's face showed reluctance to share.
If someone who is an impure like Martyn managed to get a celestial-grade weapon, combined with his increasing strength, he could have a huge advantage.
"I don't plan on sharing the weapon with you. Let's make a deal: whoever gets to it first keeps it." The man extended his hand to Martyn.
"Deal. By the way, what's your name?" Martyn shook the man's hand and then asked.
"Hahahaha, of course, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is William. And you?" With a beaming smile, William introduced himself to Martyn.
"I see. It's a pleasure, William. My name is Martyn. I hope we can work together." Martyn replied.
After that little exchange of information, the duo continued walking around the map. They were in an area quite close to the center of the map, so it was easy to get there.
"Well, I think we're getting there," said William as he saw what was supposed to be the center of the map.
It wasn't very striking. It was simply a part that could be said to be there by mistake, as if a fragment of space had descended from the sky and fallen in front of them.
"Is this what they call a break? This is the first time I've ever seen one," Martyn asked in amazement.
Ruptures are created by the gods. When humans must seek resources or become stronger, they create ruptures so that they enter a totally different dimension than the one they know.
It is as if the world of the gods is combined with the world of humans temporarily.
"If as you see things can be dangerous now, then be careful." After saying those words, William walked a few steps forward, disappearing from Martyn's sight in an instant.
(Well, it's time to look for my celestial weapon.) Martyn thought as he slowly approached the gap.
As if by magic, it only took Martyn a blink of an eye to change everything his eyes perceived. In front of him were golden-colored columns, each with a dragon on top.
"Well, we're here now, but it looks like someone got here before us." William pointed ahead where a figure could be seen fighting a large glowing snake.
Focusing his gaze, Martyn noticed that it was Boris, whom he met before entering the trial. Boris was using a katana while fighting the monster.
"It looks like the snake is guarding the weapon. We have two options: either we help the guy to kill it, or we wait."
Both options given by William had their merits. If Martyn and William helped Boris hunt the monster, it would be easier, but it would be problematic deciding who would keep the weapon.
[Test Five: Celestial Serpent]
[Defeat the snake guarding the celestial weapon]
[Reward: 30 stat points, Skill: Stealing, Skill: Flow].
A system message given by the gods appeared in front of Martyn, so he knew what to do.
"Let's hunt it down."
With predatory eyes, Martyn looked at the snake. He wanted to test his impure strength.