Skill Forge: Broken Extra Character

Clarence sauntered into the office, a smirk playing on his lips. "I hear all your friends have successfully hatched their pets. What about you? Just the unlucky one?"

Jett forced a grin, trying to mask his irritation. "Mine's on its way."

Clarence's eyes narrowed with curiosity. "I've been meaning to ask: what's your connection with Verena's Divine Lords? Besides the fact that you all come from the same kingdom, that is."

Jett blinked, caught off guard by the question. "What do you mean?"

Clarence leaned in, his tone growing more serious. "There's something about you. You seem more than qualified to earn the title of Divine Lord, yet you're clearly holding back."

Jett frowned. "Holding back? What do you mean?"

Clarence chuckled, "Well, considering you almost came in dead last in the school's ranking, it's kind of obvious. Don't you think?"

Jett's confusion deepened. "I still don't get it."

Clarence's eyes gleamed with a hint of mischief. "I noticed something odd during the entrance ceremony. With your refined mana and swordsmanship, how could you lose? We saw through it but chose not to interfere."

Jett's eyes widened. "You knew all this time?"

Clarence's smirk widened. "That's my secret to keep."

"Killjoy," Jett mused with a faint smirk. "I don't really know, but yeah, I guess you could consider me one of them, given our similar circumstances."

"Circumstances? What circumstances? I want to know," Clarence pressed.

Jett sighed, a faint smile touching his lips. 'He feels surprisingly comfortable to be around for a Ranker. Just like in the book, he really is someone I can trust. But I still feel a pang of guilt.' He shrugged and said, "That's my secret to keep."

Clarence chuckled. "Using my move against me, huh? That's a dirty play."

"Anything goes on the battlefield," Jett retorted with a smirk.

Clarence's eyes suddenly widened as he remembered something. "Oh, I almost forgot. I have something I need to take care of. I'll leave you to it, Jett." He quickly exited the office, leaving Jett alone.

Jett immediately set to work, his focus shifting to finding any clues about how to free Mystra. He began sifting through the library's shelves, scanning through books and scrolls, hoping for any hint that might help. Despite his efforts, nothing stood out.

'I need to get Mystra out of there before those bastards show up,' Jett thought anxiously, continuing his search.

As he rummaged through the library, a thought struck him. 'I never checked what kind of chains they used to bind her. I got caught up in the moment, but if those chains were cursed or imbued with dark magic, would I still need to go through all this trouble?'

At first, he dismissed the idea, but something deep within urged him to consider it. It might be a simpler solution than he had anticipated.

Instead of finding a way to help Mystra, Jett decided to delve deeper into Lumix.

He meticulously made copies of most of the relevant books and translated them into a more accessible language. His goal was to teach the others about Lumix as quickly as possible.

'I need to get this information to the others, and quickly. It'll be more challenging for them than it was for me since I was practically a baby when I learned,' Jett thought as he finished his work.

Realizing it was already time to leave, Jett hurried to Mystra's location, eager to confirm his suspicions. This time, he expertly navigated past the traps without triggering any.

Since his initial visit, Jett had been making secret trips to see Mystra, bringing her food each time. Her eyes lit up with excitement whenever he arrived, and though she wanted to leap for joy, the chains kept her firmly in place.

"It's okay, girl. You don't need to worry. I'll get you out soon," Jett reassured his Dream Hound friend, his voice gentle and soothing.

Determined to find out more about the chains binding Mystra, Jett descended closer for a detailed inspection.

He activated his [All Seeing] skill, a powerful ability formed from combining all sight and visual-related skills he had previously copied.

With this skill, he could discern the material used in the chains and detect any special attributes, such as curses. True to his suspicions, he found that the chains were indeed cursed.

Jett activated [Purge], a skill he had received from Freya. While it was generally known as a healing skill, it had an unspoken property: it was highly effective against anything that opposed the holy attribute. In this case, it would neutralize the curse on the chains.

As Jett channeled the skill, a soft, radiant light enveloped the chains. To his amazement, they began to crack and break apart on their own, falling away from Mystra and freeing her.

With a joyful yelp, Mystra leaped toward Jett, her excitement palpable. She licked his face with unrestrained happiness, her behavior akin to a normal dog's exuberant greeting.

Now that Mystra was free, Jett faced the problem of what to do with her. He couldn't leave her behind, but he also needed a practical solution for her safety.

'A Dream Hound uses illusions, so it should be able to deceive others who see it,' Jett pondered. 'But someone like Clarence or Drago would see right through it. Not to mention, I need to keep her hidden from Freya as well.'

'And I can't put her in the Storage space; that could send her into a frenzy,' he thought, weighing his options.

At that moment, Mystra shimmered and transformed into a much smaller form, resembling a small dog that could easily fit into a bag.

'Perfect,' Jett thought with a smile. 'We're sharing her thoughts.' An idea began to form in his mind.

As Jett considered his plan, Mystra's demeanor shifted. She appeared to be against a certain idea, her small form visibly bristling as if she had her own opinion on the matter.

Jett glanced at Mystra with a sympathetic smile. "It seems like you really don't like the idea, but it's for the best right now. You just have to wait a bit longer." He stroked her head gently, trying to calm her down.

Given that the area was not heavily monitored or patrolled, Jett felt confident that no one would discover Mystra's presence down there anytime soon.

'Don't worry,' he thought, 'if things get too rough, I still have a backup plan.' He smiled reassuringly at Mystra before leaving, making sure to exit without encountering any problems.

*****

Rey and Matthew were venting their frustrations in the dinning hall.

"Lately, it seems like we're getting fewer and fewer duels," Rey complained. "Ever since we started leveling up and climbing the ranks, it's been hard to find good opponents."

At the moment, Rey was ranked 400,000th out of 1,050,000 students at the academy, a position that placed him comfortably above the halfway mark.

Matthew nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it's tough. You're really a bully, you know? Why don't you focus on the higher ranks? I'd love to, but it's not like I'm overpowered. I faced off against someone from the first year, and he mopped the floor with me.

The battle was over before it even started."

Evelina, who had been listening intently, raised an eyebrow. "How's that even possible?"

Rey shrugged, looking equally puzzled. "I don't know myself."

Elora listened to Rey's complaints with little sympathy. "What level are you right now?" she asked bluntly.

"Umm, 40. Why?" Rey replied, puzzled.

"And what level do you think someone from the third year would be?" Elora pressed.

"45, maybe 50, give or take," Rey answered.

Elora raised an eyebrow. "And you thought you could overpower them just because you took on a boss of over 50?"

Rey's confusion deepened. "Well, yeah, that's why I challenged them."

The group collectively shook their heads in disappointment.

"What?" Rey asked, feeling targeted by their reactions.

"You do realize that people who graduate from this school are among the best of the best, right?" Elora continued, her tone incredulous.

"And you didn't consider that maybe they had ways to beat you based on their extensive combat experience?" Rosa added.

"I did think about that but…" Rey trailed off, running his fingers through his hair.

Seraphina burst into laughter. "You were hoping some kind of plot armor would save you!"

The others joined in, their giggles growing louder and more annoying to Rey.

"Not funny, you guys," Rey said, trying to quell their amusement, but their laughter continued.

"It is if you're the one in this predicament," Finn laughed heartily.

"Wherever Aurelia is, I hope he's listening to the idiot he sent to this world as the Hero," Morrigan said with a sigh as she finally stopped laughing.

As the group continued to amuse themselves, Asher suddenly decided to check the rankings. He stared at the screen in disbelief, and before he could contain his shock, he spat out the water he had been drinking.

The others immediately noticed his reaction and crowded around him, demanding to know what had happened.

"Rey, there's a problem," Asher said, still staring at the rankings in disbelief.

"Yeah? What is it?" Rey pressed, his impatience evident.

"You're ranked 6th, and the rest of us also got deranked," Asher announced, prompting everyone to check their own rankings.

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