Chapter 81: Afterimage

Julian genuinely despised the horror genre. He didn’t mind much else, he could tolerate a genuinely evil person far more easily.

But horror was different for Julian. Call it a phobia, this world, one overflowing with Aliens and hidden dangers, felt exactly like living surrounded by ghosts.

He’d tried his absolute best to push past that fear, to keep his mind steady enough to think rationally.

And with the fact that Julian was still, at heart, a coward on top of all that, everything only got worse from there.

But here he stood now.

At first, he’d been willing to be patient, to wait for humanity to rise up and drive off whatever these so-called Invaders were. Julian had originally believed humanity might still have a fighting chance, even if a slim one.

But after everything Aveela had said... Julian realized he’d been placing far too much hope in humanity, relying on them too heavily, and ultimately, Aveela’s other words had made Julian understand that this world was already leaning toward collapse.

Those horror-tier creatures, Aliens with faces so unnatural they defied everything Julian understood, would keep emerging one after another, tearing this world apart.

Just thinking about it was enough to leave Julian feeling genuinely bleak. It felt like the entire world around him had suddenly turned dark and colorless.

At this point, when Aveela asked once more whether Julian wanted to keep living exactly as he was, quietly, right up until the true apocalypse finally arrived, Julian’s actual answer was remarkably simple.

’...There’s no way I could just sit back and do nothing.’

’I mean... I genuinely need to do something about this.’

Julian thought about the system he possessed, wondering whether he could find something to help him beyond simply growing stronger.

Because Julian only needed one thing to completely transform himself, just one single thing.

’Anything that could help erase this phobia I have toward the horror genre. That alone would be more than enough.’

Or, was there something in this world that worked through a similar mechanism?

Something capable of suppressing Julian’s fear enough to let his mind stay clear and rational?

Because, up until now, Julian had genuinely struggled to think straight whenever his mind became overwhelmed by fear controlling everything.

’Well... I guess I’ll try asking my manager about this.’

Julian let out a small sigh, then glanced at the two Serum vials Aveela had given him.

Then, his gaze shifted upward, looking at the translucent blue screen that appeared before his face.

[STATUS]

Name: [Julian Clair]

Rank: [E] — [89.0%]

Talent: [Unbroken Mask] — [SSS-Grade]

Skills:

• [Unshaken Facade]

• [One Slash] — [D] — [33.7%]

• [Flash Step] — [D] — [44.7%]

• [Unbidden Prophecy] — [C] — [6.1%]

• [Fate’s Blind Spot] — [E] — [40.8%]

• [Frost Edge] — [B] — [9.1%]

• [Hunter’s Hearing] — [D] — [9.0%]

• [Sky Mirror] — [E] — [0.0%]

Unique Authority:

MASTER

Disciple Slots: [2/5]

Two Serum vials, each containing fifteen percent Mana concentration. With those, Julian would surely be able to climb to Rank-D and possibly unlock another innate skill tied to his own Talent.

Based on what Aveela had told him, as Julian’s Rank rose, and the higher his Talent’s Grade climbed, the greater the likelihood that Julian actually still had innate skills locked away within him.

Especially since Julian carried an SSS-Grade Talent, there was no way he only had one skill of that caliber.

So, Julian figured he should push to raise his Rank as soon as possible. He also needed to help Ilunia with her training, because unlike Kina, who already had a clear path forward on what to do, Ilunia’s situation was different.

The girl could see into the future, but what she witnessed came only as fragmented, disjointed pieces.

That was something Julian understood well, since he’d experienced that exact same prophetic vision himself once before.

Poorly timed, constantly shifting locations, it genuinely felt like assembling a puzzle scattered across time.

Then, back to the Serum he now possessed, Julian had no intention of absorbing it himself. He’d only gain a fraction that way, but if he handed this Serum over to Ilunia and Kina instead, whatever result he received would be multiplied a hundredfold.

The yield would be far greater that way. Julian just needed to be patient, since both of them first needed to reach Rank-E before they could even absorb the concentrated Rank-E Mana contained within that Serum.

Julian let out a small sigh. He’d already returned home that evening and decided to organize his thoughts, sorting through everything he needed to keep in mind.

Throughout his calm conversation with Aveela, Julian hadn’t just spent his time on ordinary small talk, occasionally, Aveela would also slip in a few pieces of information likely to prove useful down the line.

Thanks to that, Julian now had a great deal to think through.

Back to Kina. Her transfer to the Elite Academy would take place roughly next week, so before that, Julian had asked Kina to immediately start studying the skill book he’d retrieved from the Academy’s skill archive.

Which was exactly why Kina’s progress on her other skills might end up delayed for the time being. Still, Julian was confident Kina would pull it off soon enough.

Meanwhile, the media had been moving fast too, the fact that the Mivelo family, widely known publicly as one of the seven great families protecting humanity, had done something genuinely inhumane had already spread across the Elite Region, Central, and even the Slums.

It had become a casually viral piece of news lately. Spotlighting Cessel, Kina, Lurker, and even Julian himself, whose rumors kept spreading wider and getting misinterpreted in increasingly bizarre ways as time went on.

The worst part of it all was, after everything that had happened, Julian had no way whatsoever to correct that misunderstanding, to the point where Aveela herself had eventually advised him to just roll with it and try to find some way to turn that misunderstanding into something beneficial.

For now, the Mivelo family had yet to issue any response at all, though it was understandable enough that they were probably in complete chaos, given how the public had gradually started criticizing them more and more.

Two more days passed like that, and finally, amid all the turmoil swirling through Julian’s head, Kina had successfully finished mastering that skill book.

[System]

New Skill acquired.

Skill: [Afterimage]

Initial Grade: [E]

Progress: [0.0%]

Skill successfully registered.

[Status Update]

Skills:

• [Afterimage] — [E] — [0.0%]