Chapter 17 New Skill (1)
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I don't know how much time has passed, but I slowly opened my eyes. The image of the same white room once again entered my vision.
"Is it done?" A deep voice rang out beside me.
Turning my head, I saw Andrea staring at me with eyes full of anticipation.
"Yeah, it's done."
Hearing my reply, Andrea was happy. But not long after, he returned to his previous calm appearance, looking straight at me seriously.
"Alright, you must have felt this after successfully inheriting it. The Andrea sword technique is a sword technique that requires perseverance, persistence, and an iron will to master. You can't easily become strong just by inheriting my sword technique. You have to train it from scratch with all your determination. I guarantee that the effort you put in will not be wasted. Can you do it?"
He looked at me with a sharp gaze, waiting for my answer.
"I can do it!" I replied with a firm, unwavering tone.
I knew that from the beginning. I was ready from the moment I decided to search for this place.
A few sword techniques? A mere trifle. With diligent training, I shall overcome. Nothing shall deter me from my path. A little hardship is but a grain of sand in the desert of my journey.
"Good! I like your spirit." Andrea said and smiled with satisfaction.
"Alright, it's getting late. You've been here inheriting that sword technique for two whole days."
"What?!". I replied to Andrea in a panic.
"Then I have to go. Thank you very much for the sword technique." After saying that, I turned around and was about to leave.
Andrea's voice rang out behind me.
"Go straight ahead, there's a door there. Open it and you'll see the small path you used to come here. This time you only need to go a short distance to return, don't worry."
"Alright! Thank you...for everything!". Then I hurriedly left without turning back.
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Andrea stood watching the young man's figure leave. His calm gaze from just now could no longer be maintained. A trace of loneliness appeared in his eyes. His face relaxed, he didn't look like a middle-aged gentleman at this moment. His current demeanor made him look like he had aged ten years.
"It's a pity that I can only meet you when I'm already dead..." He smiled, a bitter smile filled with regret.
Shaking his head, he erased his old appearance, once again standing straight like a sword about to leave its sheath.
"I'll give you a small gift. Consider it a thank you for chatting with me... and satisfying my wishes."
After that, his figure began to blur. He turned into a white dot of light and disappeared. The white room began to shake violently and quickly collapsed.
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"Haaaaa... finally out of there!"
As soon as I got out of the tunnel, I sat down on the ground. I took deep breaths of the fresh air of nature.
While I was relishing the moment, I was struck by a sudden and overwhelming feeling of hunger, thirst, and agony.
'Does that room have the function of blocking hunger, thirst and part of the pain?'
Other than that, I couldn't find any suitable answer to the current situation.
When I was in that room, I still felt pain but it wasn't too intense. I didn't feel hunger or thirst at all. As soon as I exited, everything returned to its previous state, my state when I was in the trial space.
'I need water'
A normal person can survive over a month without food. But without water for more than five days, they're as good as dead. As an F- rank Awakener, I'm not that different from a non-Awakener. Plus, I've been constantly draining my energy during this trial.
I turned to the bag I had placed under the tree, which I couldn't carry because it was larger than the tunnel entrance. I quickly rummaged through the bag to find a water bottle. Very quickly, I realized my fatal flaw. I forgot my water bottle in my room.
I cursed my terrible memory. Now that there was no water, I didn't have the strength to drag myself along.
'Am I going to die of thirst in this life?'. I desperately screamed in my heart.
As I was slowly dying from lack of water, a slight shaking and collapsing sound came from the tunnel under the tree. Immediately after, a white light appeared and quickly rushed towards me.
"What?...". Before I could finish my sentence, the light entered my body, making me extremely scared.
"Huh?"
Contrary to my worries, the light was like a medicine. It immediately healed all my wounds and hunger, thirst, returning my body to its best condition.
While I was still in shock about what had just happened, a voice rang out in my head.
"This is my gift to you for talking to me. I have healed you and given you a small surprise. Remember to check your Status Board."
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"Thank you, sir Andrea. I don't know what to do to repay your kindness. I can only promise that I will seriously train your sword technique, make your name and Andrea's sword technique shine once again."
I placed my right hand on my left chest, facing my heart. I sincerely thanked Andrea with all my respect.
After that, I stood up and brushed off the dirt on my body. I started moving towards the station, I still had something I needed to obtain if I wanted to increase my abilities faster. Fortunately, this item wasn't difficult to obtain, it just required me to spend some money...
"Ugh. Just thinking about it makes my wallet hurt." I muttered.
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On the way, I suddenly remembered Andrea's words from earlier. I quickly opened my Status Board.
'Status Board'. I thought to myself.
-x-x-x-
[Status Board]
Name: Danz Grayson
Age: 16
Race: Human
Rank: F- / C
Talent: Swordsmanship
Occupation: Undetermined
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Strength: F
Agility: F+
Endurance: F- => F
Spirit: F => F+
Mana: F+
Luck: E
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Special Skills:
§ Andrea Sword Technique [Diamond] {New}
- Mastery: Unranked
- Description: Click to View Details
===
Skills:
§ Sharp Gaze [E] {New}
- Description: Click to View Details
-x-x-x-
"Holy cow?!"
My Endurance and Spirit stats just went up! In my previous life, I had to train really hard to get my Endurance to even slightly increase. As for my Spirit stats, they were super low. Out of all the stats in my previous life, Spirit was the hardest to increase.
'Is it related to my will or determination?'
Well, that's probably it. If I had to say that this life is different from my previous life, it would be that I have a clearer goal and determination. My will must be strong for me to move forward.
I nodded in agreement with that thought of mine. And then I continued to look down.
My eyes widened, staring at what I saw. My hand trembled as I pointed at that line of information. My mouth kept moving, stuttering.
"Ah-Sharp Gaze...!"
Oh my god! That skill has a similar effect to the thing I was planning to collect! And it's even better!
The early stage of Andrea's Sword Skill is very weak if not used properly, and the skill "Sharp Gaze" is the best thing I can find right now to supplement my strength. And Andrea gave it to me?
I touched the description of the Sharp Gaze skill, another window of the Status Board opened up.
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§ Sharp Gaze [E] {New}
- Description: A skill that enhances eyesight, helping the user easily grasp small details and movements. Has a small chance of finding the enemy's fatal weakness (10%).
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This skill is perfect for my current situation. Well, not exactly. It's one level higher than me, so the mana consumption might be a bit of a headache... but it's not a big deal tho. With this skill, some of the weaknesses of the Andrea Sword Technique will be compensated. Also, don't underestimate the 10%, it's more than enough. Remember, this skill is originally designed to enhance vision. If I study the enemy's weaknesses more deeply, I don't need to use that percentage. I can still discover their vulnerabilities myself.
"Andrea... are you a living angel? Ah, you're dead..." I muttered, admiring Andrea's generosity.
"This is my gift to you for talking to me"
This must be the reason why the person who discovered the Andrea Sword Technique in the novel didn't have any information about the "Sharp Gaze" skill.
He came to the tomb out of curiosity, so it wasn't necessarily a bad intention. There's nothing wrong with being determined to prove something true. So Andrea let him go and he successfully obtained the Sword Technique. On top of that, he took the skill book instead of inheriting it directly, which must have made Andrea unhappy. But if he wasn't happy, there was nothing else he could do, overcoming the trial and not having any bad intentions was the condition he had set himself before. A remnant of his soul couldn't change anything, the Sword Technique would be given to the one who passed the trial.
I guess the condition to get the extra reward is the approval of the remnant of Andrea's soul.
Oh, by the way, I've been walking and looking at the Status Board, so I've already come down the mountain. I'm currently heading to the bus station. My plan has changed, so I can go back to my room and rest now.
I should have gone to the Black Market to look for support skills, but Andrea helped me cut that step short with the "Sharp Gaze" skill. I can save some money and also don't need to step into the Black Market too early.
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After checking the Status Board for a while, I didn't discover anything new.
And finally, it was time for me to take a closer look at my loot. I let out a strange smile and reached out to touch the description of Andrea's Sword Technique.
But before my hand could touch it, I had to stop for a moment. The scrutinizing, contemptuous gazes of everyone around were directed towards me.
My smile froze as I realized what was wrong. Well, my current state. I looked extremely ragged and dirty.
"Fuck..." The corners of my lips and eyes couldn't help but twitch. I quickly searched for the nearest public bathhouse to wash up and change my clothes.
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