Skill Forge: Broken Extra Character

[Notice… Notice… Skill Copy has been temporarily restricted.]

Jett's eyes widened in shock. 'What? Why?' He blinked a few times, trying to make sense of the message. Was it because he was inside this strange space?

He glanced at the man, who was still engrossed in the scroll, his fingers carefully tracing the lines of text. The man didn't seem to care about Jett's frustration, though after a moment, he looked up and gave Jett a long, piercing stare. The silence stretched, and the intensity of the man's gaze made Jett shift uncomfortably, a slight chill creeping down his spine.

Finally, the man broke the silence. "Before we start, I need you to tell me something…" He paused, his tone serious. "What level are you? Is your HP over 300?"

Jett blinked, unsure why the man was asking. Still, there didn't seem to be any harm in answering honestly. "Level 102, and yeah, my HP is over 300."

As he said this, Jett recalled spending some points on it during his last stat update. "570 to be precise," he thought. 'But why is he even asking?'

The man's eyes widened, and his mouth dropped slightly in astonishment. "102!?" he screeched, practically lunging toward Jett. "Seventy to eighty would be normal given the circumstances, but 102? That's just… abnormal! How are you gaining that many levels?"

Jett shrugged, scratching the back of his head. "Lucky, I guess. Plus, there's this trial thing that always gives me a level every time I pass it."

The man waved dismissively, clearly unimpressed by the explanation. "Yes, yes, I know about the trials."

Jett raised an eyebrow, intrigued now. "And how would you know that?"

The man smirked, glancing back at the scroll as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Why wouldn't I know? I helped create those trials," he said nonchalantly. "Now that I think about it… the levels idea was originally mine."

The man's words hit Jett like a rock, the weight of the revelation settling in. He was literally standing next to the very person who had created the trials, the stressful activities he had endured time and again. His fists clenched at the thought.

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"So you're the bastard that made this hellhole?" Jett sighed, his voice laced with frustration and anger.

"Yes," the man replied with a resigned sigh, his mood shifting to something more somber. "I and my siblings."

Jett fell silent, his mind spiraling into a whirlwind of thoughts. 'What kind of being could create something so insane? Trials that push you to the brink of your limits and still reward you with levels...' His train of thought paused as a realization struck him. "Wait… you have thirteen siblings?"

"Had," the man corrected, his tone shaded with an emotion Jett couldn't quite place. "I had siblings."

"Oh, damn…" Jett muttered awkwardly. "I gotta say, you don't really look…"

Before he could finish, he felt an invisible force grab him, yanking him off his feet and dragging him toward the man. Jett flailed wildly, trying to resist, but it was useless. "Hey! What the hell is the big idea?"

"Hold still, or this might actually hurt," the man warned, his tone cold and detached. He hoisted Jett upside down as if he weighed nothing, letting him dangle mid-air like a ragdoll. "But if it does hurt, then that only proves how useless you are to me."

The man seemed to catch himself, retracting his words with a dismissive wave. "Let's see if you're worth the time," he muttered, stretching a hand toward Jett with slow precision.

"Woah, woah! What the hell are you trying to do?" Jett squirmed desperately, trying to wiggle free, but the invisible grip held firm.

"I said hold still, you brat!" the man snapped, his patience wearing thin.

Before Jett could protest further, a brilliant flash of light erupted from the man's hand, slamming directly into Jett's head. His vision swirled as the force coursed through him like a tidal wave. It felt like hours, an agonizing eternity as streams of unfamiliar texts and symbols flashed through his mind, one after another, too fast to grasp but impossible to ignore.

His headache intensified, splitting his skull with each passing moment, but within the chaos, something shifted. The jumbled words began to align, forming a coherent structure. A spark of understanding bloomed in his mind, forcing him to absorb and process information he never knew existed. By the time it ended, Jett gasped, his body trembling from the overwhelming influx of knowledge.

Once the process was over, the invisible force that had been holding Jett aloft withdrew, leaving him suspended in the endless void. He drifted aimlessly, his body limp, as the remnants of the excruciating ordeal pulsed through him.

Jett groaned weakly as he began to regain consciousness, the ache in his head making every thought a struggle. His senses felt muddled, as if he were trapped in a thick fog.

"You're up already? That's a surprise," the man's voice echoed, breaking the silence. He was seated a short distance away, casually watching Jett. "I was certain you'd stay unconscious much longer than this."

Jett squinted, trying to focus on the man, but his vision blurred and doubled. His head buzzed incessantly, like a thousand bells ringing at once, making it almost impossible to process what was being said. "What… did you… do…" he stammered, his words slurred and broken.

"Don't move, kid," the man said, his tone strangely calm. "Give it time."

Jett barely heard him as his body, heavy with exhaustion, began to sink deeper into itself. His eyelids drooped, and the buzzing in his head dulled into an oddly soothing hum.

"There you go… just sleep," the man murmured, his voice fading into the background as Jett surrendered to the pull of unconsciousness.

*****

"Ahhh!" Jett bolted upright, gasping for air as though waking from a nightmare.

Across from him, the man sat cross-legged, his expression bemused. "What was that for?"

"I think I just had a bad dream…" Jett muttered, holding his head as he tried to steady his breathing.

The vertigo that had plagued him earlier had subsided, leaving only a dull ache in its wake. He glanced around, disoriented but far more grounded than before.

"A dream inside a dream. That's a new one," the man mocked, his lips curling into a smirk.

Jett shot him a glare but quickly sighed, his frustration giving way to curiosity. "I'd love to ask what you actually did to me, but…" He paused, frowning. "Strangely enough, I already get the gist of it."

The realization left him both annoyed and relieved. He wanted to be mad but had no grounds for it, which only added to his frustration. But then, another thought struck him.

"Hey, old man," Jett said, his tone sharper now.

"What is it?" the man replied, impatience creeping into his voice.

"Seems like I'll be seeing you more often, even though I'm not exactly looking forward to it. So…" Jett trailed off, exhaling heavily.

"Alright, Jett Grift," the man interrupted before he could finish. "Call me Void."

"Void, huh…" Jett repeated, narrowing his eyes. Something about the name felt ominous. But as he pondered it, another realization hit him. His brows furrowed in suspicion. "Wait a second…" His eyes widened. "I never told you my…"

Before Jett could finish his sentence, a sharp, whistling sound cut through the air.

CRACK!!!

A fast-moving projectile drilled through Jett's skull with precision, the force of it snapping his head back.

His thoughts came to an abrupt halt as his body went limp, falling backward into the void.

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A second time?

So rude ಠ﹏ಠ