Shadow Monarch: Heroines Could Hear My Thoughts?!

Chapter 26- Lava Mansion (Part 3)

Rin quickly checked his stats to see what changes occurred there after all the hunting that he did and the quest he completed. He was sure that he had enough Action Points to at least get one of his stats to the next rank.

[System Profile]

[Name: Rin Silvereye.]

[Class: Shadow Bringer (First Phase)]

[Race: Human/ ???]

[Stats]

[Strength: G-]

[Agility: G-]

[Dexterity: G]

[Intelligence: G+]

[Charm: A-]

[Magic: C-]

[Action Points: 700]

[Skills: Shadow manipulation, Appraisal, Plot Detector, Berserker]

'I expected more points to be honest but this is good enough for now. Let's see, which stat should I upgrade?' He scratched his chin thoughtfully.

The two obvious choices he had now were agility and strength. He was a close-combat fighter so he needs these two very much. But, at the same time, he can't ignore intelligence and dexterity since they can affect his mana and skill usage greatly.

'Increasing my dexterity will affect shadow manipulation too.'

His skill 'shadow manipulation' required dexterity mana and strength to work so if he levels up magic, dexterity, or even intelligence, he would be able to see an instant change.

'Ah! For now, let's just upgrade strength. I can't afford to gamble with these points for some kind of unknown outcome.'

After much thought, he decided to use it on strength being the most obvious choice since the start. He was not fully sure whether it was the right decision or not but he can't cry over spilled milk now.

'Use points to upgrade strength from G- to G.'

[Would you like to use 500 Action Points to upgrade strength?]

'Yes.'

Instantly, the stat window flashed in his eyes with a faint light. After that, he could see the change that happened. The strength stat became G.

As he was about to close the window, he felt something weird happening inside of his body. Even though he felt tired, there was a weird energy that was welling up inside of him out of nowhere.

Looking at himself with a surprised look, Rin tightened his fist a few times in a daze.

'I can feel myself… getting stronger?'

[Duh. What did you expect, host?]

'I mean, I thought it would just be not that noticeable until I actually fight something. Yet, I already feel it now.'

[Our services are very authentic and legitimate, host.]

'I want a refund.'

[Refused.]

Rin chuckled slightly before looking at the second thing he wanted to check. It was obviously the skills. Now that he had some time, he wanted to check the others skills 'Plot detector' and 'Appraisal' since he didn't have the time to do so before.

[Appraisal]

[Rank: E]

[Level: 2]

[Nothing can hide from your eyes. None could try to stop you from seeing the truth no matter what. It's you who decides whether secrets stay secrets or not.

*This skill allows the host to appraise items, skills, and living creatures. The higher the difference between the host and the target, the less information will be available. It depends on your intelligence stat.]

'So, I've been using this without even being aware of it?'

[Yes.]

'...' Sighing, Rin didn't try to think about it anymore and looked at the other skill that he didn't check the first time he came here.

[Plot Detector]

[Rank: ???]

[Level: Max]

[Every story is like a thread. Each thread twists and turns around other threads to create this world. You have the power to seek each story and twist it however you want.

*This skill allows you to detect the main story of the world and follow it through. It can be in all kinds of forms like quests, abilities, or even items. This skill can't be manipulated or controlled by the host.]

What he understood from this skill is that it keeps him stuck to the main plot that revolves around the main character of this world. It was actually very useful as he didn't have any idea when or how the story of this world will happen. His only fear is that he might at some point be forced to do something he didn't want to do just because a quest has been given to him.

[Fear not, host. The quests given won't try to force you to do anything. It's your choices that determine the outcome.]

'Oh, that's good then.' He nodded with a satisfied look.

'Now, the last skill.' His eye shifted to the newest skill that he acquired, the 'Berserk' skill. He had a rough idea about it but he was still not sure of the details.

[Berserk]

[Rank: G-Rank]

[Level: 1]

[Anger is a double-edged weapon. It can be the downfall of a human into craziness or the reason for his rise to the peak. The Berserker is a warrior who dances on that thread of insanity and omnipotence for the sake of beating his opponent.

*Activating this skill will increase all the hosts' stats by 1 rank-up. But, in return, the host will lose 40% of his sanity and drown in anger. The skill can stay activated as long as the host has mana.]

'Damn. That's a very powerful skill but the backlash is equally hard. I can't even imagine what losing 40% of your mind means. I can use it as a last resort or a trump card of some sort.'

A skill that was that strong obviously will affect its host as much as it affects the enemy. Gaining more power instantly isn't a good thing at all.

Finally, after finishing these matters, he closed the window and started walking to the door to exit. Luckily, even though he was basically surrounded by monsters, nothing tried to get inside the room to attack him.

It was a good and a bad thing at the same time. Rin wanted to know what kind of creatures roam this mansion before fighting them.

The map didn't indicate if there were any enemies outside so he had to get out to see for himself.

'Ok, let's hope for the best.' He prayed in his heart and twisted the doorknob ever-so-slightly, just enough for him to take a peek outside.

The outside was as dark as the inside but he could somehow see clearly around him. He noticed that this room was on the second floor. He also noticed that there was a hallway in front of him that extended to both directions.

There was no sound and nothing that seemed weird to him. All seemed eerily calm which he knew was merely an illusion to trick him into relaxing.

'Sigh, I hate this. Why it had to be a dark, scary haunted house? Can't I die without being scared?'

[You are stronger than your fear, host. Your fear can't control you.]

Rin unconsciously started repeating the words that the system said in his head like some kind of mantra. It helped him to calm down.

After that, he opened the door and walked outside. Luckily, the door didn't make any sounds at all when he opened it so he was able to stay stealthy and silent.

Looking in each direction of the hallway, he decided to go left first. He could see stairs at the end of the right direction which meant that they would lead him to the first floor. Rin decided to check the second floor first before going down.

*Bak* *Bak* *Bak*

Each step he took on the hard wooden floor made a slight screech and made him feel even more on the edge. His eyes looked around frantically and his heart was beating at a high rate.

The first room he stumbled upon was one with a similar door to the one he was in. On the map, he could see what this room was.

'The lounge' it said on the map. He didn't know what kind of 'lounge' it was but he decided to take a look inside anyway.

Opening the door, he took a look inside. There, he found a small room with two big sofas and a table in the middle. There were also two tables to the side.

'No one is inside' He thought as he walked inside after making sure nothing is there.

'I feel really uncomfortable inside.' Rin's face turned slightly grim when he felt the shudder that ran down his spine the moment he went inside.

[It's normal, host. I can give you a hug if you want to cry like a baby. Taking care of cowar-... my host is also one of my tasks.]

'Fuck you.'

The sofas and the tables didn't have anything on them. However, the two tables to the other side of the room actually had something. There are two pieces of paper put on top of them. However, in contrast to the piece of paper he saw in the bedroom, these had something written on them.

(A//N: I will finally reveal the style I created for the dungeons in my book. It won't just be 'go around, kill creatures and get stronger'. I hope you enjoy what I have in mind.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for reading. Any support you give me is always appreciated no matter how small it was. Let's all keep it up :)