My Skill Creation System

In the control room.

"Absolutely worthy of recognition." Bastien smiled to hold back his annoyance and clapped his hands lightly. "May I be one of his fans too, young master Leon?"

"Thank you," Leon said with an arrogant smile. He was so full of joy; his cheeks seemed ready to burst from all the excitement and pride swirling inside him like some kind of weird cocktail. "I can't help but feel happy watching my beloved brother grow up to be someone as gentle and romantic as he is." He clapped his hands softly.

"I'm afraid that I can't continue this game, young master. With humility, I still love my men. I haven't let them be finished in your brother's hand." Bastian sighed. "However, the truth remains that I have lost... I've fallen into a mess set by my hand. That means..." Bastian paused for a while and looked around.

Bastien put both of his hands on the table and slowly leaned forward. He turned his head slightly and started talking quietly and confidently toward Leon.

"I will quit the game immediately, without any objections or resistance." The coldness on Bastian's face was hard to notice when he spoke calmly. He kept staring at Leon with eyes filled with determination. "I don't comprehend your scheme, young master, yet I fear that if this game continues I shall experience a tremendous loss. Hence, it is advisable that I make an exit before that occurs."

Leon remained silent, looking down at the floor with an awkward expression.

"I understand that I have to bring out the actual fight soon. Let me give you the benefit of the doubt and say it won't take long before the battle starts." Bastien lowered his voice further before continuing, "...but if there is no hope left for my side even after the first round... then I shall end everything in a few moments." His tone became more stern than ever before.

Leon abruptly rose to his feet and slammed his hands onto the table. He stood tall and proud, his head held high as he opened his mouth to speak. "I'm so disappointed, Bastian. You ended the show far too soon, even though I still wanted to have fun." He snapped his mouth shut, then just stared at Bastian with a blank expression.

Bastian chuckled lightly and said softly, "I am not lying about that." He gave a smile that seemed like it had been practiced many times before and returned to his usual calm demeanor. "If this goes poorly on my side, don't blame yourself. I would rather die myself than see my men get killed because of my cowardice," he finished in a low whisper so only Leon could hear.

The room fell silent for a moment.

"What are your conditions?" Leon asked simply.

"For the time being," Bastian replied seriously, "let's stop all the killing... In exchange for stopping all the killing, I'll allow him to be able to leave peacefully." He smiled gently while looking at Leon with clear eyes filled with sincerity.

Bastien kept staring at Leon with his head held high; he didn't flinch or move an inch from where he was standing. It almost felt like his head was floating on his shoulders.

Leon nodded slightly without saying anything. Then his lips curled up into a gentle smile.

Bastian lowered himself down slowly onto the table again. His feet were planted firmly against the floor. "This is my confession of defeat. Please take your token of victory, young master."

Leon stood up slowly, turned around, looked directly ahead, and started walking toward the exit door.

He stopped in front of Bastian, grabbed him by the neck, lifted him off the ground, and threw him back to hit the wall hard behind him. "What about the second bet? You deliberately made me lose at that. You have broken my heart, Bastien." Leon spat as he spoke angrily, but his face still had a faint smile on it as well.

Bastien stood up and adjusted the collar on his shirt. "I think we have other guests to welcome outside." He chuckled quietly as he walked away calmly with a light step.

Bastien opened the large iron doors of the control room with great force. He stepped into the hall beyond, heading towards the mansion's front gate without hesitation.

When he reached the entrance, he saw several figures waiting for him there, dressed completely in military clothing from top to bottom. All wore helmets and carried spears, shields, swords, knives, daggers... Each one of them seemed prepared for battle. There were women among them too. And each one's gaze was fixed on Bastian's direction as if ready to charge forward the moment their leader gave a signal.

"It seems I have arrived a little late," one military man said coldly before smiling softly. He was the Leader of them.

"May I know who is involved here, Mr. Bastien?"

He was Commander Roger, a man with a beard and a deep voice.

Leon walked slowly and stopped between them.

"Oh, look, who is this? It is an honor to meet you in this place, young master." Roger said and bowed.

"Who are you all?!" Leon asked lazily.

"Young master, pardon my impoliteness. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Roger, and I'm the 3rd Commander of the Military of the 7th Nation. We're part of the troops that protect our homeland. I apologize that we can't do more to help you."

"Oh, I see, the military. Your dress looks cute, I thought, you guys are... ah never mind." Leon said and waved his hand forward.

He turned to Bastien. "Thanks for the show tonight, my friend Bastien." He said, turned, and walked away.

After Leon left, Roger turned back to Bastien. "So, are there civilians who are victims tonight?" He looked straight at Bastien.

"That would be me. I'm the victim." Bastien answered without flinching.

Roger nodded and then returned his gaze toward his subordinates. Then he called out loud enough so everyone could hear. "Please, our friend, Mr. Bastien needs some help. Bring on the rescue team."

Everyone immediately stood up as they rushed in a line toward where Bastien was standing in silence. They had weapons hanging off their bodies; each one was carrying a heavy bag or a weapon that appeared to be very precious to them. Each one wore a helmet over their head, their face covered by a cloth, and their eyes hidden under goggles. Each one of them looked ready to attack at any time. Their breathing was getting louder than normal, probably due to excitement.

"How many of you are there?" Roger asked calmly.

"I'm not sure. I'm not good at counting."

"And your number of casualties?"

Bastien sighed before replying. "None."

Roger raised his eyebrows in surprise before whispering quietly, "Really? Are you really telling the truth? You don't have even a single casualty? Don't lie!"

"There's no reason for me to hide it from you. After all, it's a complete loss for me."

Roger patted Bastien's shoulder gently. "I'm sorry about what happened, Mr. Bastien."

***

Nathan, still panting, turned his head and looked at Linda. The girl smiled and ran towards him.

"My Prince, you managed to behead him. I am very happy." Linda noticed the corpses scattered around her. She smiled sweetly, "Beautiful, I like it when people are killed beautifully..."

She went near Nathan, grabbed the collar of his shirt, kissed the top of his chest lightly, then placed her forehead against him.

"You can count on my love forever," she whispered into his ear, then stepped away slowly with a smile while looking back at him several times.

"She is cute, right, Nathan?" Marco whispered.

Nathan looked the other way at the floor where Polly had been standing earlier. But the girl was replaced by an animal lying stiff on the floor, with blood all over its body.

"A fox?" He murmured.

It was a fox with white and some green fur. It was dead too... Or so he thought until he heard a groan from it. And soon after, he realized that it wasn't just any ordinary fox either. This one possessed two tails! Two long ones that moved unnaturally as if they were trying to hide under a black dress.

It seemed that it must have suffered great wounds to be in that state; the wounds on its torso and the bloody trails running down its fur proved that.

Nathan walked over and knelt beside the little Fox.

The beast looked at him with wide eyes. "Master Nathan, I'm happy." A low whisper came from its mouth.

Nathan nodded. "Yeah, you did really well. Thanks."

He looked at the two long ears poking out of each side of its head. They almost resembled those of a rabbit, but not quite. The tips twitched slightly as if the fox were hearing something far away.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, master. You saved me..." The creature started crying softly before suddenly nodding.

Nathan watched the fox for a moment, thinking, then asked, "...Would you come with me?"

"Yes, master!" The little thing raised itself up to stand with effort, using both arms for support. Then it rushed toward Nathan with its tail held behind its back to hold itself in place.

"Thank you very much!" The fox said again, showing its gratitude with an open heart. It quickly sat at Nathan's feet.

Nathan took the fox and held it in his arms.

"Marco?"

"Yes, mission success, Nathan. You better leave soon. Military troops are approaching."