Legacy Machine

Rin had grown up in the slums since the age of six, never having had the opportunity to see the inside of the bastion where the great families, large corporations, and awakened ones lived normally. So, once he saw the immensity of the library, it came as a shock to him.

The shelves towered to a dizzying height, reaching nearly 20 meters, and they were filled with an incalculable number of books. The room was as vast as an entire slum district.

"How is it possible to have such a vast space for a simple library in our time, when the majority of people live in the slums?" Rin asked after being amazed, without necessarily expecting an answer.

Commander Rengoku smiled at this question and replied without stopping as he walked through the library: "Just because the situation is catastrophic doesn't mean we should abandon humanity's knowledge and not teach it to future generations. This place is the second most important for our survival, where we compile all human knowledge. Every bastion has its library."

Shen Yi chimed in: "Most of us studied here. There are three different schools in this place."

Alliong, Shin, Yuuki, and Shaana nodded in agreement.

Rin understood but felt strange. Why hadn't he, the child of two awakened ones, been entitled to this? Why was the offspring of people who had given their lives for the bastion rejected?

With a heart full of doubts, he arrived in a fairly large room with a human-sized cylinder and a screen on the side.

"Hello, commander. Young people, we meet again," announced a middle-aged man with gray curly hair, a mustache styled upwards, and round glasses, dressed in a purple robe, coming from the adjacent room.

"I'll leave them to you, Astros. Advise them well," said the commander before leaving without looking back, undoubtedly busy with other matters.

"All right, young people, I'm going to explain to you how this machine works. And for those who already know, a little reminder never hurts," Astros explained as he approached the machine and began to configure it while speaking.

"In this bastion, we record data from the awakened ones to know what's going on in case of trouble. That means that if someone decides to commit a murder or something of the sort, it's easier to track down the clues with everyone's data... Oh, darn, I pressed the wrong button," he sighed before continuing.

Apologies for the interruption. Let's continue.

"It is all the more important to be able to send the best elements to the best place in case of a crisis for the bastion. This machine will compile your data and display it on the screen, that's the first point."

He turned his head to observe the expressions of the young people. Seeing that nobody seemed lost, he nodded and continued: "The second point concerns the allocation of mana exercises. Here, after your energy analysis, you will be offered exercises of the first rank, White, which are the most compatible with you. It's up to you to choose... Finished! Who wants to go first?"

Yuuki stepped forward and headed toward the machine. "I'll start, please," he said.

Astros activated the machine and the cylinder opened. Once Yuuki was inside, the machine began to emit light and the screen lit up.

{Energy calculation: ... 1%}

{Energy calculation: ... 28%}

{Energy calculation: ... 93%}

{Energy calculation complete}

{Calculation of the most compatible legacies}

{Double Headed Snake}

2 tiers 

- Increases reflex capacity 

- Can split its attention in 2 

{Chameleon Snake}

1 tier

- Camouflage

In front of Rin and the others, the screen displayed the proposed legacies. There were about ten of them, all related to the snake, which gave them an indication that Yuuki's stigma was linked to the snake.

Yuuki selected the chameleon snake legacy and exited the machine.

It was Alliong's turn next.

{Calculation of the most compatible legacies}

....

{6.Gorilla Crusher}

2 Tiers

- Increases the strength of blows against very solid surfaces 

- Drastically increases arm strength but reduces the ability to think 

{7.Stargazing Gecko}

2 Tiers 

- Allows to absorb energy from stars to increase physical and mental regeneration

- Allows to concentrate all physical strength into one blow that will exhaust 80% of energy

Alliong exited after selecting the Gecko. He saw Rin shake his head in disappointment and show him 6 fingers. The veins on Alliong's temples swelled for a moment, but he refrained from making a scene with that idiot there.

Ebina chose among the 6 propositions the Sonic Falcon with 2 stages, which allowed them to reach maximum speed from the start by giving a sharp blow with a particular muscle, then to increase the efficiency of sight during high speed or rapid objects in the field of vision.

Hayashi only had 2 proposals but quickly chose the Spiritual Peacock with 2 tiers. This allowed him, with his mana, to create eyes in a defined area with the same properties as his own, and then to temporarily increase the strength of his ocular powers.

Million had the most proposals with no less than 23 different legacies of all kinds, but he chose an unexpected one: the Bloody Tiger. This stigma, at the first tier, indicated that the more Million killed, the stronger he became but proportionally lost his sanity, and at the second tier, after reaching a certain threshold of injury, he temporarily became stronger and insensitive to pain, but lost a lot of endurance and was practically unable to fight.

Nikito had 5 proposals, but Astros said they were the rarest legacies he had seen so far. After a long deliberation, Nikito chose the Raven Patriarch with 1 tier, allowing him to take as "family" 2 small ravens still in the egg state, who would level up -1 compared to Nikito. He could share their vision and communicate with them.

Shaana had about ten proposals, and her choice fell on the Parasitic Fungus, which contrasted sharply with her appearance and character, but whose abilities gave everyone chills. At the first tier, if mana interacted with a target's wound, it would be parasitized, thus stealing its mana; the more damaged the enemy and the greater the level difference, the longer and stronger the effect. At the second tier, if mana interacted with a target's wound, it would be parasitized, and small mushrooms would appear on the wound, releasing a paralyzing spore.

Shin had 22 proposals, just behind Million in terms of number, and if Million's choice had surprised with its boldness and Shaana's was totally opposed to her appearance and character, Shin's choice caused a shock. Shin chose the Kamikaze Beetle, which, at the first tier, allowed him to explode his mana and cause damage in an area; the stronger and more concentrated the mana, the stronger the explosion, but in return, he inflicted himself with significant damage. At the second tier, he could have an auxiliary mana pouch in his body.

Next, Shen Yi had 2 proposals and chose without much hesitation the Eternal Icy Rose with 3 tiers. First, it greatly increased the chances of freezing if touched by the ice attribute, then it allowed them to grow ice thorns from his mana, and finally to prolong the duration of the freezing.

When Rin's turn came, he lifted his head and walked determinedly. He heard Alliong mocking him, saying that a panda shouldn't behave like a rooster, but he pretended not to hear; after all, he was the one with the record of the bastion.

Entering the cabin, he positioned himself in the center and, after it closed, he began to scan his body: "I'm afraid of being indecisive and wasting everyone's time, I have to read quickly and think about all the possibilities even if there are 50 of them! You can do it, Rin!"

As he motivated himself, a screen suddenly appeared before him, shocking him.

Rin waited a few seconds but nothing.

"Wait, don't tell me I only have 1 proposal ????"

{Calculation of the most compatible legacy}

{Unique - Nightingale Sniper}

....