In a world with magical abilities called Makai, every Makai ability is different.
In this world, there are adventurers and guilds. In one of the S-rank parties in the world, named Silver Wing, there was a boy named Ed.
The other members were Mina (the healer), Alt (the tank), Iris (the mage), and the captain, Hiro (the hero).
Ed was a member of the Silver Wing, but in the party, he was treated more like a chore boy because he had no Makai. The members of the party used to beat him when they had a bad day, were bored, or if he made a minor mistake. He didn't like the way they treated him, but there was nothing he could do—they were the only ones who had ever let him join a party.
However, the leader Hiro was the only one who helped him, was kind to him, and protected Ed from the others whenever he was around.
Ed admired him and wanted to be like him.
But the others mocked Ed, saying:
"The weak always stay weak, and he will never reach the power that Hiro has."
After hearing this, he ran out. At midnight, when he came back, he saw a strange purple glow for a second. He ran inside to see what had happened and found that they all, including Hiro, were performing a ritual.
Hiro saw him and shouted, "What are you doing here?!?"
Then he sighed and said:
"I know you're confused about what we're doing. Let me explain. Did you ever wonder how we became an S-rank party? We drain energy from villages every now and then. When people die, we spread stories about demons or make other excuses. I didn't tell you this because of your kind heart—you would've told the king. That's why I treated you well so you wouldn't suspect us. But now, after you've seen everything, we have to kill you."
Ed ran for his life, but they chased him and beat him to the verge of death, leaving him in the forest.
The realization of being lied to and betrayed by the person he admired the most filled him with a thirst for revenge. But now, he could do nothing but wait for death.
As he was dying, a dark, reddish light appeared and entered him.
Suddenly, he woke up, completely healed, and holding a black-and-red sword in his hand. A window popped up saying, "Makai: Ability Stealer."
After seeing the pop-up screen and the word Makai on it, Ed understood that this was the "Status Screen," which displayed a person's Makai ability and information. However, no one other than the individual could see their own Status Screen.
Ed was shocked and surprised to see that he finally had a Makai ability. He started reading the description of his Makai: Ability Stealer.
THE MAKAI: ABILITY STEALER
This Makai allows the user to steal the ability or Makai of another person. To do this, the user must stab the target with the black-and-red sword linked to the Makai. After the first three stabs, the sword will level up, unlocking new features and abilities.
After reading all of this and frying his brain, Ed began his journey to take revenge on the Silver Wing party. He started walking toward the nearest city for temporary shelter.
Suddenly, he heard a scream:
"HELLLLLLLPPPP!?!?"
He ran toward the direction of the sound. From the trees, he saw a man who looked like a butler protecting a caravan from thieves. One of the thieves was vanishing into thin air for about 30 seconds at a time.
Ed wanted to help but realized he didn't have any skills yet. Then he remembered that to steal someone's Makai, he needed to stab them—but it hadn't specified how deep the stab needed to be.
After analyzing the thief, Ed understood that the man was using a Makai ability to turn invisible for a few seconds. Realizing this, he jumped from the tree, caught the thief off guard, and lightly stabbed him in the hand.
Screaming in pain after the unexpected attack, the thief shouted:
"Hey, kid, don't try to be a hero by saving some people. You can't win a 1v2 with that lame sword of yours!"
Smirking, the thief tried to activate his Makai, but it didn't work. Shocked, he said:
"Wh...why the F** can't I use my ability??!!"*
Ed, smiling, said, "INVISIBILITY."
After turning invisible, Ed went behind the other thief and stabbed him too, but this time he accidentally stabbed too hard, and the man fell unconscious.
When Ed became visible, he said:
"Ahh... I think I stabbed him too deep."
He remembered how he used to train in secret to get a little stronger. Then he turned invisible, tied up the first thief with ropes, and called the guild to report the event.
The first thief asked:
"How did you use my Mak...?"
But before he could finish his sentence, the capital guards arrived and took him to prison.
After everything was resolved, the butler thanked Ed. From the caravan emerged a girl who looked about the same age as Ed. She bowed her head to thank him, but Ed said:
"No... no, I didn't do much."
The butler said:
"No, it's our honor because you saved the second princess of the kingdom."
Hearing this, Ed first looked at the butler, then at the girl. Shocked, he knelt down, bowing his head in apology for speaking so informally to royalty.
The girl said:
"No, no, you don't need to apologize. You saved my life."
She then introduced herself as Olivia. Before leaving, Olivia said:
"We will meet again~," which made Ed blush a little.
After this awkward interaction, Ed went to the nearest city and entered the adventurers' guild. A faint glow surrounded his face for a second.
"Can I sign up as an adventurer?" he asked.
But, his face doesn't look the same and changed completely.