"Hmm... an ascendant?"
He still could not believe this was all happening. What now? Shall he become a proper talent? An official ascendant?
His skin shivered just from the thought. Not that the killing and blood-shedding thing bothered him (though it really did), but being a hero of some sort is not really what his shallow mind had been conditioned to.
He'd rather use his newly found ability to reach greater heights as a thief!
Just imagine what he could do. He'd travel around the world. He would start with shops, then banks, and then transition to top-secret areas, freely running around in high spirits because even with his back hunching from the goods he had collected, not a soul would be able to keep up with his fast, treacherous hands and feet. He'd be living the life in no time!
"The hell, Cly?"
Levi's face contorted, seeing a daydreaming fool in the middle of the dump site.
He had come here in hopes of scavenging some things. Instead, he found his friend, smiling slyly, fingers rubbing his chin and head, and bobbing up and down in agreement with whatever.
"What?" Clythar reduced his smile to a thin line and stood with his chest puffed out.
"I thought you came back to Lottie," Levi commented.
"I did! I was simply... taking a stroll and trying to breathe some fresh air. See?"
Clythar even made an effort to inhale deeply as an act but immediately regretted it.
"Have you grown so acclimated to garbage that your standards of freshness include the smell of onion, sour cheese, rotten egg, and... rat's piss?"
An unknown man from nowhere showed up literally out of the blue. They did not even notice where he came from. He covered his nose with his hand, and his face turned sour.
Whoever he was, he looked fancy, but he surely did not come here in peace. If he is some fancy man from the capital, why would he come here?
Well, maybe he just wanted to reunite with his likes. Clythar could sniff out the stench of his pride grounded on status.
"I guess we are not so opposite, seeing as how you recognize such a scent," Clythar blurted back.
It always feels so euphoric whenever people are slapped back to the ground.
However, Levi seemed to have a different thought process. He shoved whatever he was holding to Cly. Clythar watched as he wiped his sweaty hands against his shirt and offered his hand to the man.
"Hi, sir. I am Levi. You must be the scout from the capital! Nice to meet you!"
The man, Igby Friars, simply sneered. He had three minions alongside him whose difference from him was quite indescribable. They were smirking, murmuring to themselves about the two.
"At least you have learned some manners, unlike your friend."
"He's got a filthy tongue," Clythar thought.
Unlucky for him, Clythar has quite a bit of pettiness in himself. He has no manners? Then he will show you no manners!
One more thing about him: his hands always move ten steps ahead of his brain.
Clythar's skills kicked in, and his right fist met Igby's chin in an instant. It may not have had much force, but it must have hurt.
A triumphant smile escaped his lips.
"That's for you, dumbass!"
"Cly, why would you—" Levi's head turned side-to-side, from Cly to Igby. "That's an ascendant, bro! You cannot do that!"
"Levi," Clythar tapped Levi's shoulder. "I just did."
Levi should really know how to pick his idols.
Igby may not have lost a tooth or cracked a bone, but he surely got an ignition spark that flamed on the top of his head.
His breathing was ragged. His eyes shoot daggers at Clythar, but the latter was even more amused.
The three minions slowly retreated, fearing that they would be collateral damage to their boss' wrath.
"What now, huh? Dumbass, arrogant sucker!" Clythar provoked even more.
As Cly and Levi wrestled against each other, resisting each other's intents, the air around Igby began to stir. A gust spiraled upward, tugging at his coat and tousling his hair.
The wind thickened, gaining force and madness, until a miniature tornado engulfed him, coiling with malicious purpose.
The breeze turned savage. Debris erupted from the site— scraps of metal, loose trash, and even chunks of wood were sucked into the vortex. Objects tore occasionally from the spiral, slamming back to where they belong with malevolent force.
An iron sheet was yanked out, screeching and spinning end over end, slicing the air as it approached the two. Instinctively, Clythar tackled Levi, dragging him to the ground as the metal passed overhead and crashed nearby with a metallic shriek.
In the midst of the windstorm, Igby was high up in the air, floating with a smile of satisfaction with the destruction he had done. Even his minions were not spared.
Levi slapped Clythar at the back of his head.
"You should not have angered him! Look what's happening now," Levi roared.
Levi pinned Clythar down, completely relinquishing his body onto him. In the battle of the wind versus Levi, Levi won.
Clythar had his eyes firmly shut, calling his newfound friend for help.
"Wendy? Wendy! Are you there? I need a little help here! Yoohoo!"
Not even a second after he asked, he fainted. Levi's face screamed panic, but he could not really do anything with the storm against them.
Meanwhile, Clythar was back in that place. Oh, how he hated it.
Wendy was right at the top of the flower. Just how strong are those petals?
"What now?" Wendy pouted, still not over Cly's ungratefulness.
"I need your powers!" Clythar shouted. "It's a raging storm out there!"
"Hmph! Like I would help you! After you got mad at me earlier when I just helped you clean up!"
Wendy turned her back on him. Her lips extended into a huff.
Clythar sighed. "Thank you, Wendy, and I am sorry for how I acted earlier. You were of great help to me."
Wendy glanced sideways, feeling the sincerity of Cly's words. Her lips curved into a slight smile before she dashed right in front of him.
"I can unleash your full potential. I mean, you will certainly need experience and training but I can certainly do something to ease your journey," Wendy revealed.
Clythar was definitely in awe and unconsciously happy with her news. However, Wendy could just not grasp her mind in one thing.
She had not told Cly, but she felt it the very first moment they met. He harbors an enormous amount of power. His connection to that place was so great. An indescribable disappointment came over her when she realized it was stuck just right there.
Talent like that could never be dormant. The only reasonable explanation for that is because Clythar's talent has been sealed.
"B-But how?" Clythar probed.
"Fool! Your talent is right inside you. I just have to give it a good kick to start."
Luckily for both of them, the seal already had cracks. As she thought, talent like that could never be dormant. Just a surge of Wendy's demonic essence and Clythar's power will run rampant, breaking off the seal on their own.
"Ready?" Wendy asked.
Clythar nodded hastily. Right after his answer, Clythar was sent back to reality. He felt Levi still pressing him against the ground, shielding him from the wind.
Then, a throbbing pain reverberated from his chest. His world spiraled around him, and his heart galloped in uneven beats.
"Cly, you're awake! You scared me for a good minute!"
Levi's voice was drowned out by Cly's persistent pain. Yet, it was deliciously painful. Apart from the excruciating physical symptoms, his insides felt refreshed. A surge of power coursed through his veins, something ineffable.
The stream of talent escalated with every passing second. After being locked up for such a long time, it was no wonder it went on a stampede.
The flow was so great that his body could not contain it. Amidst the chaos of the windstorm, Clythar slowly stood up, in disbelief of the power coursing through him. The talent flowed abruptly, sending Levi flying in a nearby distance.
Igby's evil smirk was erased from his lips, along with the wind current he had generated. He fell to the ground, breaking one knee in the impact. And yet, it was just Clythar's flow of talent.
The windstorm finally stopped, but Clythar was still occupied with his power. He could feel it. He could see it. Sparkles of dust as black as ebony played around him. They were beautiful.
Suddenly, this dust came into one motion, circling around in front of him. They grew in numbers, forming a black hole.
His hand reached out for it, entranced by its mystery. Yet, it immediately shrunk and vanished. The book he appearead out of thin air and revealed new information.
SPELLS
[Uncast]
Rank: B
Mastery: Novice
Description: Interrupts and nullifies a spell at the moment of casting.
Clythar's brows furrowed.
What spell? Have I casted a spell?" He thought.
He looked around, his brain buffered at the sight of everyone collapsed on the ground. He quickly caught Levi and helped him up.
"Man, since when have you been so strong? You literally sent me flying!" Levi exclaimed, more amazed than hurt.
"It's cool, huh?" Clythar playfully nudged Levi's arm.
Igby stared at the scrawny guy who hurt him with so many daggers. With the help of his minions, he got up and left the scene, bowing to extract revenge.
Meanwhile, atop one of the mountains of garbage, distant from the fight, a man sat leisurely, puffed out smoke from his cigarette, and smiled.
He had only aimed to tail Igby Friars because that man had been shady ever since, and he needs evidence to convict him. Now, he may have found something, or rather someone, much more valuable.
"Nullification. One of the rarest types of power." He sighed. "This guy would undoubtedly become an enemy of this world."