New Skill

Zen felt the ever-so-familiar weightless feeling that he dearly missed.

He opened his eyes and was surprised to find himself in the white space with grids on it. 'Huh, did it fail? But the gaming device scans our DNA so it's possible to use other devices.'

'Isn't this the place where I created my character?' Zen looked around in confusion.

[Ding!]

Soon after, a mechanical voice sounded, startling Zen.

[Detected that the player's body had undergone some changes.]

[The system will now scan the player for new real-life achievements and convert it to skills.]

"Oh, will I be able to receive new skills!?" Zen exclaimed happily.

[Scanning, 10%]

[Scanning, 15%]

[Scanning, 20%]

…

[Scanning, 98%]

[Scanning, 99%]

[Scanning, 100%]

[Ding! Scanning complete.]

"Ugh, it's finally done." Zen said impatiently. Although it had only been a minute or two, to him, it had been years!

[Now presenting the skills derived from the player's real-life achievements.]

Hearing this, Zen waited in anticipation.

[Heart of Stone

Grade: Legendary

Tier: High

Passive Effects:

The user will have high resistance against mental attacks and illusions.

Active Effects:

When the Heart of Stone is activated, the user will be able to enter the [Apathetic State].

Absolute Apathy: Activating the [Heart of Stone] to the limit, the user will enter a state of absolute apathy. In this state, the user's emotion will be suppressed in exchange for drastic enhancements to their senses, instinct, and brain activity.

Description:

The player has been tempered by a life that is full of despair, leading to a heart of stone that is not easily affected by emotions.

Note: Only a person that has experienced absolute despair is able to gain this skill.

Warning: Activating this skill has consequences! Be careful!]

Looking at his new skill, Zen was dumbfounded.

'This skill came from my suffering again, right? Well, at least I gained some benefits from my 10 years of being bedridden.'

"I thought it would be my water-walking skill…"

[Ding! The player's water-walking skill is too shabby and is not worthy of the system's recognition.] Rebuked the system.

Zen felt a bit embarrassed when he heard this. "You don't have to be so mean, okay? But this skill is something that I should have obtained when I first entered the game, why is it only being given to me now?"

[Ding! The system sincerely asks for the player's forgiveness. Because of the player's [Immortal Cells], the system experienced an error and wasn't able to detect the player's other life achievements in one go.]

Zen nodded in understanding. He indeed heard the system saying that there were errors during that time.

Then, he proceeded to read the details of the skills presented to him.

Seeing that it was a Legendary Skill, Zen was very happy. What made him happier was the fact that it could even be activated!

However, when Zen read the note and warning, he felt a bit uneasy. On second thought, he felt that it was normal. 'Isn't it normal for some skills to have their consequences? I just need to be careful.'

He shook his head and put it in the back of his mind. He was quite confident that as long as he was careful, then the so-called consequences could be avoided.

"Is this all? Can I go to the Free World now?" Zen asked.

[Ding! Request accepted.]

[The player will now be transported to the Free World.]

Another feeling of weightlessness assaulted Zen's senses as he closed his eyes.

***

When Zen opened his eyes, he saw that he was still sitting at the dining table.

'Oh, this was where I logged off last time, right?'

He looked at the table and saw that there was hot bread and milk placed on it.

'How did teacher know that I'm coming back today?' Zen felt touched. 'Oh well, I better eat first before it gets cold, then I'll look for teacher."

Zen picked up the bread and took a bite of it. "Mhm! How could bread taste like this!?" He exclaimed out loud. He also drank a sip of milk and praised its taste too.

Even thought this wasn't his first time eating the bread and milk made by Arthur, he couldn't help but praise it time and time again.

'I wonder exactly how long I was gone?' Zen wondered.

He looked around, lost in his thoughts.

'Nothing much changed during the time I was away.' Although it had not been that long, Zen still missed the atmosphere of the dilapidated building inside the game.

Thinking back to the gaming device, Zen thought, 'I wonder why there is a gaming helmet in the bedroom. Maybe, it's especially prepared for us or something?'

'Also, it was a pity that the [Heart of Stone] skill wasn't given to me back then. If it is, then I think I'll be able to defeat the ghoul that attacked me without needing teacher's help.'

However, Zen also knew that if it was not for the fact that he was nearly killed by the ghoul, then he wouldn't even have the chance to meet Arthur.

'Oh well, it is what it is, I guess~' Zen stopped thinking about it and just enjoyed eating his meal.

'Oh right! I wonder where teacher is at this time?' He wondered.

Burp~

After a while, Zen finished eating the bread and drank all the milk on the table, letting out a loud burp.

He took a deep breath and said to himself, "Hah~ What a satisfying meal. I should ask teacher for the recipe if I have the time in the future."

Creak!

The sound of the door opening caught Zen's attention.

Plop!

However, this was followed by the sound of something hitting the floor.

Feeling a hint of danger, Zen carefully turned around and saw Arthur who had just dropped the books in his hand.

"My bread… My milk…"

Zen heard some whispers from his teacher as the hint of danger became more obvious.

"U-ummm, teacher are you oka—"

Woosh!

Something flew and made a sound as it quickly cut through the air.

Zen wasn't able to finish his sentence. The only thing that he felt before blacking out was a fist that seemed to be sinking in his face.