Skill Hunter -Kill Monsters, Acquire Skills, Ascend to the Highest Rank!

A shrill scream cut through the silence. The bandits whirled, taken by surprise. Wraiths rushed toward them. Black robes whirled as they closed in on Ike and the bandits.

The instant the bandits turned away, Ike activated Lightning Dash with every scrap of mana he had left. He leaped over the bandits and sprinted off. Over his shoulder, he shouted, "Enjoy the wraiths!"

Rob's face twisted in anger. "Get him!" he shouted.

The other bandits' bodies glowed as they activated skills. Ike smiled. Just as he'd hoped. The wraith's heads snapped from him to the bandits. Dark robes swooshed across the battlefield. In a few seconds, they closed in on the bandits. Cold, sharp-tipped hands closed around the bandits' necks. The wraiths wound sinuous limbs around them and drew long breaths. The bandits trembled. Some fell to their knees.

Rob backed away, barely avoiding the wraith after him. "What are these things? Get away!"

Ike sprinted on at top speed. Only when the bandits' screams faded behind him did he slow, deactivating Lightning Dash to run at a more reasonable pace. On and on, through the forest. He pulled away from the wall, wary of encountering any more monsters or bandits if he kept following the wall.

His feet pattered over the soft earth. The now-familiar paths appeared. Winding along them, he came to the gate at last. Ike crossed the boundary into the outpost and let out a long sigh. Exhausted, he braced himself on his knees and panted, just breathing. He hefted himself up at last and wiped his mouth, then set off for the monster shop.

One transaction later, he had all the gold he needed to pay off his debt, and then some. Hiding the latest bag in a new fold in his clothes, Ike twisted his lips. Those bandits would recognize his face, if they survived. They'd know he carried a hefty amount of gold. He took a slow breath, bracing himself. It's time.

For the first time since he'd told his uncle he was going to earn money, he turned his feet back toward the slums. For the last time? He couldn't be sure.

As he walked, he lowered his bandana back to his neck, letting his hair fall in front of his eyes again. He removed the Rank 1 badge from his belt and slipped it into his boot. The guards would still be looking for awakened people. Better to blend in, slip in, and vanish back to the outpost.

Ike nodded to himself. I won't be there long. Just for a moment, just for long enough to pay my uncle, and then I'm gone.

The familiar slums rose up again. His uncle's villa crowded the side of the hill. The monster plant stretched across the flats at the bottom of the hill. Ike hesitated, then set off for the villa. His uncle would be home. Probably drunk, too.

He walked in the main entrance this time, rather than leaping in a window. The hinges squealed. The sound rang through the silence like a cry for help. Ike moved slowly, wary of his uncle. As much stronger as he'd become, he was still only a Rank 1. A gulf of power stretched between Rank 1 and Rank 2. Now, he might stand a chance if his uncle was dead drunk and he had a knife, but that was the limit of it.

"Uncle?" he tried, hating how timid his voice sounded. He cleared his voice and tried again. "Jaco—"

"I'm right here. What do you need now?"

Ike turned, startled. His uncle stood in a double doorway, his bulk taking up most of the frame. Despite that, Ike hadn't heard the man approach. He swallowed, instinctively backing away.

His uncle took a swig from the bottle in his hand. Amber liquid sloshed. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, then laughed. "Don't tell me—you've come to give up. Good call. The earlier you take up work with The Family, the less quickly you'll need the money. Means you might survive the stint."

Ike shook his head. "I came to repay my debt."

Waving his hand, his uncle started to walk away. "Right, so let's get moving. The Family isn't—"

CLUNK.

His uncle froze, then slowly turned back.

Ike pulled bag after bag of gold out from his clothes, thumping them down on a table in front of him. One. Two. Three. Each one neatly portioned off to ten coins. All the way up to ten of them. One hundred gold. His debt. The one he'd owed since childhood, all laid out in front of him.

Looking at it, Ike staggered a little, barely able to comprehend what he'd done. All the money from the Salamander, more or less, right there in front of him. A lifetime at any other kind of work. And in a week, he'd been able to gather it as a hunter.

Hunters were different. Hunters weren't human. No—they were superior. Far more than the slum rat he'd been until today. Pressure bore down on him, though he couldn't put a voice to why. Now I become one of them. Now, I finally escape.

His uncle cleared his throat. "Interest."

Ike's lip twitched. He reached into his shirt and tossed one last bag on the table. "There. That should be enough to cover interest."

Stomping up to the table, his uncle weighed one of the bags in his hand, then undid the tie. He tipped the coins out into his palm and began to count.

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Ike walked away. "It's all there."

His uncle stared at him. "Wait."

Ike paused. He looked back.

"Where'd you get this money?" his uncle asked.

"Why do you care? You were going to send me to The Family. Shouldn't matter where I got the money," Ike returned.

His uncle's eyes narrowed. "When did you get a mouth on you?"

Ike closed his mouth. He turned to walk away again. Time to get out of here.

A meaty hand closed around Ike's upper arm. His uncle strode forward, dragging Ike with him. Ike tried to yank and twist free, but his uncle's grip was like steel. Out into the courtyard, all the way to the road.

"What are you doing? I paid you back. Let me go!" Ike snarled.

"Guards! Guards, I found one!" his uncle shouted.

Gray-suited guards came running, seemingly materializing from out of the streets all around them. Ike went still. It was futile to struggle. Even if he broke free, he couldn't use Lightning Dash in front of the guards. Not without admitting he'd used the skill orb.

He stared up at his uncle. How did he know?

Cold eyes stared back at him. His uncle's brows furrowed, a vicious, bitter expression on his face.

Ike blinked, startled. He's…jealous? Of me?

Still, the expression on his uncle's face confirmed it. He doesn't know. This was a shot in the dark. His uncle didn't care how he'd gotten the money. Didn't know Ike had awakened. He wanted to keep Ike under his thumb forever. The debt was meant to be that device. Now that it had failed…his uncle simply wanted revenge. Revenge on Ike, for daring to free himself.

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"You have evidence that he's awakened from a stolen skill orb?" The guard in purple strode up behind the other guards, a hand on her hip and a skeptical look on her face.

"Test him. You'll see," Ike's uncle grunted. He pushed Ike toward the guards.

Her nose wrinkled. "This had better not be another false alarm. We aren't here to clean up the slums or get revenge on your personal enemies."

His uncle gave her an earnest look, putting a hand on his heart. "I swear. Test him."

Ike staggered forward. He looked around them, taking a deep breath. Test me? How?

One of the guards reached to a square leather pouch on his hip. He drew out a crystal ball.

Instantly, Ike flashed back to the crystal ball he'd laid a hand on in the guild. The lightning that flashed through its center. Ike tensed. Shit. If they use that—

I have another skill. Salamander Healing. How do I make that one show up in the orb, instead of the lightning? Ike thought back. There was nothing to indicate how the orb worked in his memories. All he could do was take guesses.

The orb only showed one skill. Back then, it had shown one of his Lightning skills. Why?

Because it was the highest level? Nothing he could do about that.

A moment later, he rejected it. It couldn't be that. Then it would've shown one of his Common running skills. Instead, it showed lightning.

Is it the most recent skill used? As he thought it, he nodded to himself. It made sense. The crystal ball drew out some of his mana when he touched it. If he used a skill, his mana would be tinged with that skill's flavor for a while—color? Vibe? He wasn't sure what to call it, but his mana would take on the characteristics of the skills he used, especially if he used the skill excessively.

He bit down on the inside of his cheek. Pain rushed out, then faded. Over and over again, forcing Salamander Healing to activate repeatedly.

Taking the crystal ball from the lower-ranked guard, the purple guard approached Ike. She held it out to him. "Lay your hand on this crystal. If you aren't awakened, it won't activate at all."

"What if I awakened with a skill I acquired honestly?" Ike asked, holding his hand away.

His uncle narrowed his eyes. He harrumphed. "There's no way this boy could afford a skill. If he's awakened, it's because he stole one of your skills."

Ignoring Jaco, the guard shrugged. "Then we'll have to consult the list of stolen skills and check that your skill isn't on it. Go ahead."

Biting his cheek one last time, Ike put his hand on the orb. He held his breath. From the corner of his eyes, he eyed his escape routes.

The orb lit up. His uncle pitched forward, his eyes widening. He pointed at the orb. "He stole a skill! I told you!"

A warm red light appeared in the heart of the orb. Ike let out the breath he'd held. It worked.

The guard frowned. She reached into her coat, pulling out a scroll. "A healing skill…fire attribute…"

"Did you find one, Mirael?"

Pale pink light suffused the air. A delicate leg appeared, striding on the air. A rose appeared beneath a pink-clad shoe, and the girl in the rose dress descended to the ground—the same one Ike had seen on the day he'd found his skill. Two servants in purple robe uniforms flanked her at her shoulders, the same as they had before. Both of her servants stood atop small brooms, so delicate Ike struggled to identify them at first, their handles inlaid with gems, bristles picked from the finest grasses.

Up close, she was even more beautiful than she'd been in the sky. Skin like fresh milk, soft and creamy. Eyes like pink sapphires. Strawberry blond hair falling in waves around her face, smooth as silk. She looked at Ike, and he drew a short breath, pierced to the heart by those eyes. Her dress drifted on the wind, its layers as delicate as a true rose's petals. Rosy lips pursed, and a faint rosy blush appeared on her cheeks. She lifted her finger and pointed at Ike.

"Who is this?"

The guard glanced at her, then snorted quietly under her breath. In the next moment, she took a deep breath. Heaving her shoulders back and her chest out, she nodded, all formal business. "A suspect, young madame. I was about to consult the skill list to determine if he was, in fact, a culprit."

Taking their cue from the lead guard, all the other guards snapped into place, straightening up.

The girl frowned. She narrowed her eyes at Ike. "This awakened?"

"From a monster's skill," Ike explained himself, narrowing his eyes slightly at the distaste in her voice. This?

She paused. Her eyes flicked up and down his body, taking full measure of him, and though her eyes had landed on him before, Ike instantly knew that this was the first time she'd seen him. "I didn't know slumlings could survive awakening, with all the impurities in their bodies."

His uncle cleared his throat. Anger flickered in his eyes. "We can even reach Rank 2, young madame."

"Rank 2? Ah! That makes sense. Of course someone as soaked in filth as you could only reach Rank 2." Reassured, the girl nodded to herself.

Jaco, Ike, and even the guards stared at the girl, speechless. She fiddled with a bit of her dress, completely oblivious to their reactions. Her servants stepped forward, closing ranks around her. They shot vicious glares at everyone, warning them against attacking the girl.

The girl looked up. "So? Did he steal one of my skills?"

"One of your skills?" Ike asked, unable to keep the challenge out of his voice.

The girl looked down at him, her long pale lashes catching the sun. "They were my birthday gifts. Gutter rats like you should never have had the chance to look at them, let alone learn one."

Repressed rage boiled inside him, furious at this girl and her dismissal of his entire way of life. Not only that, her dismissal of his future. Can only reach Rank 2? Ha! It wasn't that hard to reach Rank 1. He'd reach Rank 2, and 3, and 4, and pass this girl's rank, and then push her down into the mud, and see how she felt about being soaked in filth.

But he could do nothing about those urges in the moment, so he pushed them down. Putting on his usual poker face, he waited quietly for the guard to consult her skill list.

Her eyes traveled down the paper. She unfurled it as she went, furling it up again behind her. At last, the guard scrolled it back away and shook her head. "No fire-attribute healing skills on your list, young madame. Actually…" Her eyes flicked to Ike. "That skill has to be at least Rare."

His uncle grabbed Ike's collar and hefted him forward. He grimaced. "This boy has to be guilty! How could he get his hands on a Rare skill? He's just a slum rat. Look at him! He's nothing but bones!"

Ike pulled himself away from his uncle. He nodded at the guard. "I was desperate for a skill, so I went into the forest by the wall. I found a nest of salamander-like monsters and—"

He cut off, choking back his words as if overcome by emotion. Lowering his eyelids slightly, Ike paused a few moments, then shook his head and looked up. "I don't know how I did it. They all swarmed me, and it was terrifying. I almost died a hundred times over. But when I finished—there it was. A skill orb."

The girl harrumphed. "Nearly dying to some Rank 0 monsters? Pathetic."

Ike's eyes flicked to her. Monsters are ranked on the same scale as humans? I'll keep that in mind for later.

The guard nodded. She passed the crystal ball back to its caretaker and slid the skill list back into her jacket. "That sounds like quite the ordeal. Fighting a single monster, regardless of Rank, and winning unawakened is impressive. If you ever take an interest in joining the city guard, stop by the local bastion. Ask for Mirael."

With that, she turned to go.

"Fuckin…bullshit, is what that is. Load of bullcrap. What if he has another skill?" Ike's uncle muttered under his breath. His eyes cut dangerously toward Ike, and the vein in his forehead throbbed, a sure sign he wanted to dish out a beating. With the guards right in front of him, all he could do was cross his arms.

"You're suggesting this boy has more than just the Rare skill? This boy, that you said couldn't have any skills without stealing one, is now supposed to have two skills?" the guard pointed out mockingly.

His uncle's nose wrinkled. He shook his head. "I'm calling it like I see it. I don't care how unlikely it sounds. Something about this stinks."

"Wait."

The guard paused. She looked over her shoulder.

The girl stepped forward approaching Ike. Moments ago, he would have quavered, barely able to stand having someone so beautiful so close. Now, he stared her in the eye, his gaze as immobile as his heart. He crossed his arms and tilted his head back, looking down at her as she looked down at him.

"A slumrat doesn't deserve a Rare skill. It's a waste. Hand it over," she demanded.

"A brat doesn't deserve any skills at all," Ike returned.

Behind the girl, her servants' eyes widened. The guard snorted, barely biting back a laugh.

The girl's eyes widened. "You dare? Do you know who I am?"

"No," Ike declared boldly.

"I'm Rosamund Brightbriar, and I will be the fourth-generation head of the—"

Ike scoffed. "Is your only value your family's name? How pathetic. At least I forged my worth with my own two hands. If I'm only worth the dirt on your boot, that's fine. I earned that. What about you? How much worth did you earn, yourself, with your own hands?"

Rosamund's mouth gaped. She opened it, then shut it, but no sound came out.

In the next second, Ike's survival instincts kicked in. Fear struck him to the core. I said that out loud? Shit! This girl might be a brat, but she's from the upper city. She's probably a thousand times more powerful than me. He peeked at Rosamund.

She frowned, staring at the floor.

She's distracted! Ike kicked off the floor and sprinted away at top speed.

Rosamund stood still behind him, still gazing at the ground. A dozen steps into Ike's flight, she finally looked up. Her nose wrinkled in disgust. She threw her hand out. "Guards! Catch that man!"

Mirael chuckled. She put her hands up. "Madame, you're still the future head. I need orders to legally detain a civilian. Official orders."

Rosamund clicked her tongue in anger. She stomped her foot and started after Ike, but her servants caught her shoulders.

"Patience, mistress!"

"Consider your actions! You're the future head. You can't be seen tussling with some nobody in the slums!"

Unaware of all that, Ike raced off. He headed back toward the outpost at full speed, leaving the slums behind for the last time. This time, he knew for sure: he'd never return. Not for anything.

Not until he was powerful enough to stand atop that hill.