Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Another Chance Given (7)
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Sching!
The sword wrapped in an aura blade swung through the air.
A long golden arc trailed in its wake, but the real surprise came next.
The space along that path split open, revealing a pitch-black rift.
All of it converged into one, piercing straight through the tenth-floor Monster Lord, the drake.
And with that, it was over.
Thud!
The drake, no longer able to breathe, collapsed to the floor.
Its body split clean in half from head to tail.
*It's been a while.*
A smile crept onto Martin's lips.
Even though it was his first time using his unique ability since regressing, it felt familiar.
The nostalgic sensation was most welcome.
"What the hell was that?!"
That was when Sien's sharp voice echoed through the Monster Lord's chamber.
Martin turned with a grin.
Sien stood there, trembling.
"Th-that... No way...? Is it real? You're not messing with me, right?"
"Come on, why would I joke about something like this? I've awakened my unique ability."
Tears streamed down Sien's cheeks.
Those who inherited noble bloodlines typically manifested their unique abilities around age ten.
But Martin was eighteen, a full adult, and still hadn't.
His status had plummeted as a result.
He'd already been subtly looked down on by the nobles due to his illness, but after reaching adulthood without a unique ability, the disdain became overt.
The fact that Martin possessed overwhelming swordsmanship talent meant nothing to them.
To them, only the unique ability mattered.
"...What is it? What's your unique ability?"
"Obviously, 'Space Dominion.' You saw it clearly, Sien. The space splitting open at my sword's command."
Thud.
At Martin's answer, Sien sank to the floor.
Space Dominion.
A unique ability that freely manipulated space, standing at the pinnacle of all spatial powers.
Only the direct descendants of the Adalbert family could manifest it, and it was what allowed them to reign supreme among the three great noble houses.
"...When did you even awaken it?"
"On the final day of Father's funeral."
It was an answer laced with truth and lies.
The mana core in one's head, where unique abilities took root, was closely tied to the soul.
Thus, once acquired, a unique ability never vanished. It was etched into the soul itself.
Martin knew this.
So on the last day of his father's funeral—the day he regressed—he checked immediately. He confirmed if the mana core was still in his head.
It had shrunk to almost nothing, barely there. The number of rings had dropped from three to one.
But the core itself existed unmistakably, and that was what mattered.
"Haa."
Slap!
Sien steadied her breathing and slapped her own cheek.
Then she stood and stared Martin straight in the eye.
"Why didn't you say anything at the conference? If you'd revealed it then, you'd have been named heir on the spot. You wouldn't have been exiled here under the pretext of training."
"Sure, I would've been appointed heir. But that's not the end of it, is it?"
The traitors had already bared their ambitions openly.
Would they just give up their schemes?
Simply because he'd awakened his unique ability?
Martin was certain they wouldn't.
He'd experienced it firsthand in his past life.
"Besides, the mana core in my head was too small to call it a proper awakening. I was embarrassed to even mention it."
"So that's why you took the dungeon assignment in stride. It bought you time to train your unique ability."
"Exactly. I figured it'd take some time, but then an unexpected event occurred."
"The Fist King's legacy, right?"
"Yeah."
The Fist King's energy had fortified his body, strengthening the mana core in his head as well.
It had perfectly completed its single ring, achieving one circle.
"Wait. So you could've used your unique ability way earlier? You've been training the Rotaer body arts for a while now."
"I could have. But I wanted to reveal it in a dramatic moment. Bigger impact that way, right?"
Grit.
No sooner had Martin finished than Sien ground her teeth. Her fists were clenched tight.
"...How does it feel to keep everyone in suspense like that? Was it fun? Did you enjoy toying with us?"
"N-no way! I'm really sorry! I just wanted to show you all something awesome!"
Overwhelmed by her fierce aura, Martin apologized frantically.
Sien watched him, clenching and unclenching her fists repeatedly.
She desperately wanted to punch him for real, but she held back this time.
It was a good day, after all.
"A lot of people are going to be shocked when you return to the family. It's completely out of left field."
"That's what I'm aiming for. The first person in decades to awaken a unique ability postnatally. All eyes will be on me."
"With a unique ability awakened, no one can deny you're the next family head."
"Exactly."
"Nice staging."
"Thanks for the compliment, Sien."
Martin smiled bitterly to himself as he watched her rejoice.
He hadn't told her the truth.
*I can't tell her yet.*
How could he?
That the unique ability he'd manifested wasn't the Adalbert family's hereditary 'Space Dominion.'
Not when everyone knew about it before his regression—but now, he had to hide it from all. His true unique ability: 'Distortion of All Things.'
Distortion of All Things.
Postnatally awakened unique abilities were random.
At age twenty, when his swordsmanship mana core reached four circles, Martin had coincidentally gained one unrelated to his family.
No one in history had ever obtained it. Its trait: twisting everything it touched.
*It has a lot of strengths.*
Distortion of All Things offered versatile applications in various forms.
In that regard, it resembled Space Dominion, often called omnipotent.
But it surpassed it in raw power: the ability to twist anything utterly. Mastered properly, it rivaled any unique ability.
And that wasn't all.
Combined with the Adalbert bloodline, it even let him manipulate space.
It paled compared to true Space Dominion, but it was enough to pass as a spatial ability user.
"Now I'm at five circles like you, Sien."
"Yep."
Martin had reached four circles in swordsmanship and one in his unique ability.
Sien was at three circles in swordsmanship and two in her unique ability.
Both totaled five circles, marking them as equals in the continent's eyes.
"Honestly, I bet you'll surpass me soon, Martin. You'll develop your unique ability crazy fast."
"I think so too. When I do, I'll tease you mercilessly, so brace yourself."
"Fine by me. I'll show you what an Egret family chestnut on the head really feels like."
"...My apologies. I've been too cocky."
"Good, you get it. Anyway, let's head back to the family now. No need to time it perfectly, right?"
"Wait, one more thing to do."
"You've killed the Monster Lord and awakened your unique ability—still more?"
"Yeah. Won't take long."
Martin walked over to the drake's corpse.
There was no metallic tang of blood.
Instead, he felt immense power.
He stripped off his upper shirt.
His exposed torso showed some muscle in places, but overall, it was gaunt, bones visible—like someone starved for years.
This was even after some improvement from the Rotaer body arts' breathing technique.
"Martin, you can't be thinking...?!"
Sien's expression sharpened.
She realized what he intended.
"Stop it right now! You've learned the Rotaer body arts—no need for dragon blood!"
Drakes, sea serpents, wyverns—dragonkin corpses brimmed with power.
All races, including humans, could absorb that power, but it came with a curse-like drawback.
Gain the strength, endure equivalent agony.
The pain was so excruciating that few could withstand it.
Many died attempting it each year.
Yet Martin craved the dragon blood.
Its effect: bodily reinforcement.
Essential for Martin, afflicted by the dragon's curse.
He understood Sien's concern, of course.
"The Rotaer breathing technique is definitely improving my body quickly."
"You know that and still risk your life? Sorry, but I can't watch! I'll break your limbs if I have to!"
Whoosh!
Sien aimed her zweihänder at him. She'd gladly fight to stop him.
She knew her odds of winning were slim.
But she could at least prevent him from taking the blood—by obliterating the corpse.
Groooar!
A massive aura surged around the resolute Sien.
Martin faced her without taking any stance.
Flinch!
Yet Sien shuddered involuntarily.
Martin's eyes blazed like roaring flames.
"Awakening my unique ability is great, but it's not enough. The moment I return, everything will shake. Branch family heads or elders might even rebel."
"That's just your assumption."
"True. But one thing's certain: we can't predict what'll happen. To handle it perfectly, I need overwhelming power."
"...You could die."
"Please. Even with my weak body, this low-purity blood won't kill me."
"You talk big. Without the Fist King's legacy, you couldn't survive it."
Sien snapped sharply.
Still, she stored her zweihänder back in her subspace.
She recognized the steel in his resolve.
No matter what she did, he wouldn't yield.
Sien shook her head.
"I swear, you're shaving years off my life, Martin."
"Thanks for understanding."
"I never said I understood. I just give up."
Grin.
Martin smiled at her sigh.
Then he moved to where the drake's blood pooled deepest.
*Dragon blood can be drunk straight.*
But not drake blood.
No sub-species blood, either.
Though same kin, sub-species blood was impure. Drinking it meant instant death.
It wasn't entirely unusable, though.
Applied to the skin, it absorbed the power.
Splash.
So Martin lay back against the floor, blood splattering and soaking his upper body.
Agony like his flesh tearing apart engulfed him instantly.
* * *
Much time had passed since defeating the Monster Lord, and Martin and Sien had made it back to the first floor.
Yet Martin remained vigilant.
He knew the "gift" prepared by Baldemar von Rustal—the most notoriously vile branch family head from his past life—awaited them.
"See? Told you. Anything could happen."
"...Do you have to rub it in, even now?"
"Of course."
Martin replied, eyes fixed ahead.
The dungeon's labyrinthine terrain was empty—no goblins or kobolds from the first floor in sight.
But he knew that wasn't the whole story.
Using spatial vibrations from Distortion of All Things, he'd detected the enemies.
*Thorough as always, the bastard.*
He'd prepared for assassins from the start, knowing his past life's attack.
He'd even considered they might not strike.
Last time, he'd returned exactly at the 100-day mark.
This time?
Nearly a month early—and still, assassins.
"Sigh. Shouldn't talk to you."
Sien shook her head at Martin's words.
But soon, she stared ahead too.
And mocked the assassins.
"Idiots never learn. Think stealth works against a spatial ability user?"
Rustle!
Red-clad, masked figures burst out as her words ended.
*Blood Sword Unit.*
Martin's eyes flashed.
An assassin group operating around Berehain City, infamous even in the Empire.
In his past life, they'd threatened him multiple times—not just in the dungeon.
*This time, I'll eradicate them for good.*
He'd raided their suspected base after repeated attacks.
But they'd fled, roots intact.
He vowed to correct that mistake now.
Then—
Grip.
Sien gripped her zweihänder's hilt tight and charged first.
Spitting venom all the while.
"Attacking a spatial user in this maze? Insane? Just kill yourselves. Don't waste my time."
"Nah, can't do that. Leave some alive, remember, Sien."
"Got it. I'm curious who ordered this crap too."
Sien advanced, battle lust blazing.
Her intent to wipe them solo was so fierce that Martin hung back.
Instead, he cheered brightly.
"Fight on!"