The Rise Of Calamity

Walking down to the Bar on the first floor, I could not help but grin at what I was seeing. There was no one in sight and at the same time, the whole place looked extremely clean. This was probably due to the late-night activity dying down after daybreak.

The reason I was happy was quite simple. I don't like people, I've always been a secluded introvert who would rather talk to people online than speak to human beings right in front of me. Since coming to this world I have not changed a single bit. but the only difference was that I would either be forced into a situation where I had to talk, or I was talking to beasts who I simply did not regard as people.

In my mind, regarding beasts as people would be an insult towards them due to how disgusting people can be. Yes, there might be a few assholes among the beasts, but the majority of them I had met were quite reasonable, to say the least. Humans on the other hand I am not very fond of. I always feel like they have a hidden agenda, or that they are plotting something against me. Yes, that might just be my distrust towards humans playing a part, but in conclusion, I don't trust them and I probably will never trust them.

Even Aroura {YES PEOPLE! I SPELLED AROURA WRONG AND FOR THE SAKE OF NOT HAVING TO GO BACK AND FIX EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER AGAIN, I WILL KEEP IT THIS WAY AND SAY IT WAS INTENTIONAL!} I did not trust completely. If I did truly trust her, she would have known how many elements I had, she would have known that I have divinity inside me in so many forms, and she would have known everything except the fact that I had reincarnated. That secret is one I am taking to the grave.

'Oh wait... I should probably tell Olivia when I get to know her a little more. She literally cannot betray me, even if she wanted to.' I snickered to myself while moving towards the bar counter.

"An old fashioned please!" I asked politely, making sure the waiter was aware of my presence.

The waiter was a man with long brown hair that reached down to his shoulders, He had a stubby beard, as well as beautiful brown eyes and a footballer {soccer to you americans}, build under his clothes that I could see right through with a bit of divine energy transferred to the eyes.

To any normal woman, he would be charming, or maybe handsome, but to me, he was just another bartender.

"The pretty lady wants an old fashioned?"

"Tryna charm me?" I asked with a smirk

"Oh I wouldn't dare~" He winked

"Good" I replied flatly while resting my head on the palm of my hand.

After around 30 seconds, the man came back with a glass of alcohol and asked "Is it not too early to drink?"

"Don't worry about it, I can't get drunk. Can I have a beer next too? Make sure it is a big cup. Maybea jug" I gestured how big with my hand.

"Oh? So you like it big?" He said lustfully

"I wasn't flirting with you" I narrowed my eyes at the man

"And I wasn't trying to get you to sleep with me" He chuckled back, thinking I was playing hard to get.

Summoning a flame bullet spinning behind me like a vortex sucking in all the heat in the area, the man paled and realized I was being serious. Seeing his reaction, my mood was worsened, and the need to drink only grew. Yet, even if I wanted to, apparently my liver was far too strong for the alcohol of this world.

'One day...' I prayed with closed eyes.

"Sorry about him" A feminine voice echoed in my ears as I savored the taste of the alcohol in my mouth.

"Don't worry about it" I still kept my eyes closed, yet I could still clearly see her. Focusing my visions on her, I watched as she walked in front of me and chuckled "The drinks are on the house. Think of it as reparations"

"Really?" I looked at her with doubt before asking "can I have a beer mug then?"

Seeing her eyes widen for a moment, I felt an urge to smash my cup over her head. She said 'on the house' so she should have expected this.

However the next moment she smiled warmly and brought out a large mug, almost as big as a jug, and poured a crap ton of beer in it.

"Thank you" I thanked while reciprocating a warm smile.

For the next hour, not a single person entered the bar. Taking advantage of this fact, I ordered beer after beer until the young lady was forced to make me pay for any more drinks. I did not shy away and ordered more drinks and started to speak to the bartender about different things, trying to keep my mind away from my anxiety and worries.

Eventually, Olivia, my father, and Jack came downstairs, Olivia coming long before the other two. As she came down the stairs, we locked eyes as she flashed me a smile. Immediately after, she walked towards me and ordered a whiskey for her to rink until the other two idiots awoke.

The other two idiots awoke only 30 minutes after she had started drinking, allowing us to get ready for the upcoming trip.

As we entered the Carriage, I could not help but ask Jack "Are you coming with us? To our home?"

"Of course I am" Jack laughed heartily and continued "My wife already knows since I sent her a message through the communication crystal, and I kind of want to see your family again. Maybe if Aroura is there I can maybe get an engagement between her and my older son"

The moment I heard those words, I could not help but think back to the last time someone had asked the had of my sister in front of me, causing me to flash a cold smile with a slither of killing intent mixed within it on instinct.

"Don't get me wrong, I won't force her into anything she does not want. It is all up to her and I know that she started her apprenticeship with one of the 7 Star Elite forgemasters and I don't want her to have anything else on her mind. I just want to tell her the option is always available." He smiled back sheepishly

Turning away with a humph, I just laid my head on my hand while watching the scenery blur by due to the speed of a horseless carriage. However, right now, everyone in the carriage could move faster than it, even Olivia who was technically the weakest at the Initial stages of the knight rank.

For the next 6 hours, we mostly stayed silent. No one was really in the mood to talk anymore. In the meantime, I just breathed in and out, taking all the elemental particles in and refining them into divine mana to store in my mana heart before expelling it into the rest of my body to strengthen it further. Yes, my mana heart might not be able to develop any further, but I could always develop my body instead. According to my estimations, I had around 1/5th of the physical strength of a peak ethereal beast while I was not even able to compare myself to the initial Gaseous stage beasts in physical strength alone. Yes, I might have a few spells on my side, a little bit of silent casting, and the brainpower to rival a computer in calculations with the help of analysis, but I still don't think I could beat one.

It would take approximately 5 Knight or Wizard ranked humans to defeat a beast of the same rank, and while I did not struggle against the oversized cat from back when I fought against him with the help of my tutor and Gen, back then I had just awakened, meaning I was at the peak of my strength.

From my estimates, the strength I showed that day was probably equivalent to a Grand Wizard, allowing me to completely dominate the battlefield. I could do things that I could not even do today, like teleporting and using divine energy with my will alone. It felt like I had infinite mana to use, and thinking back at it now, I feel like I had used it so ineffectively that it was comparable to basically throwing a pot of gold away.

If I had treasured that experience, maybe I would have had an easier time controlling my divine man-

*BOOM*

Hearing an earth-shaking explosion, I glanced outside with an expression filled with disinterest and annoyance. Why attack now? Why today, or this week at all? Do we look that week to you?

"That wasn't aimed at us" My father muttered while glancing outside. It was the same village we had 'saved' around 2 or 3 days ago. I don't even remember anymore how much shit I had to go through in the last few days.

"Ugh. I guess I'll go and teach them to keep the noise down." I sighed with annoyance.

"No need. All the people here are from a similar gang. No one alive is innocent, so let me take care of them." My father commanded with a non-negotiable tone of voice as he jumped out of the vehicle before we could even speak. Only then did I notice the spirit energy leaving and enveloping the entire village, explaining how he knew who they were with a single glance.

Walking to the cliff of the mountain, my father looked down at the town with an unwavering expression. His gaze flashed with anger before slowly becoming colder and colder. The shivering gaze could be felt by everyone in the village as if a god had finally opened his eyes to their sins and finally chosen to smite them.

A translucent illusionary pair of blue and green Aurora eyes appeared in the sky instantly sending a wave of pressure onto the shoulders of every sinner.

"Cardinal of sin..." My father muttered as his sword appeared in his hand before being risen to point the skies. It was simultaneously enveloped in a blue and green misty aura while the ground under his feet froze in an act of submission to his power. The skies roared while the winds howled. Everything seemed to have submitted to his power.

"Cold-hearted!"

As if there was a snapping sound, the misty hue around the sword popped and vanished, just for it to appear in the heart of everyone in the area excluding us, would envelop inside their chests, around their hearts. The next instant, a cold spike of varying sizes started to protrude through the front and back of their chests where their heart was supposed to be.

While some were the size of pencils, others had their entire bodies explode due to a 1-meter wide and 5-meter long spike shooting out of their hearts.

"You know, that skill of his is one of the best I've seen for a long time, but I guess that is expected from a Level 3 skill." Jack chuckled at the scene

"Skill?" I inquired

"Oh, yeah you don't know what a skill is. Most people don't until they reach the military or academies. It is a well-kept secret among the populous, but I'll tell you since you trusted me with your secret." He laughed heartily

'I wouldn't say 'trusted' ' I thought while remembering back to him spying on my fight against that Grand Knight.

"A skill is something fueled with one soul energy, and since you already know what soul energy is, so I won't have to explain that. It is usually either a blood inherited ability or one created from countless battles. In rare occurrences, one can go through soul moving occurrences that could also create a skill, and those are usually stronger than the normal skills developed through battles or inherited by blood, since the blood becomes more and more diluted after every single generation, unless the other party had a Skill too."

"They are split into Levels. The Paladin has a level 9 Skill while the Dracoria is theorized to have reached a new plane with her skill level. She might not be favored by the gods, but she sure as hell is strong" Jack chuckled before continuing his explanation. "Your father here was able to awaken his skill at Level 4, which was already way above average. For one to even have a skill is rare, but to have one awaken at Level 4 is beyond impressive" Jack praised with a puffed-up chest as if he was a proud father watching his son's achievements.

"So, how did her get it?" I inquired further as the topic had gained my curiosity.

"I cannot tell you if he does not want to tell you himself" Jack replied sternly and much more seriously than his prideful cheery self.

"Oh? Then, what about the Paladin and Darcoria? What skill do thy have?" I changed the question quickly.

"Confidential. Sorry"

'Bruh, if you aren't gonna tell me anything, why the hell did you tell me about skills?' I shouted inside my mind but I did not voice my complaints.

"Do you have a Skill?" I asked, seemingly annoyed

"No"

"Okay, do you think I can get my father's skill?"

"Uhh... Probably not. First off, it is rare to awaken a skill that can be passed down, secondly, you don't have the ice element in you so it is basically impossible." He shrugged

"I see..." I looked at my father with an air of curiosity before I saw golden letters appear in my vision

[Your understanding of -skills- has increased]

[Your understanding of power levels have increased]

[The analysis category -Power level- has been unlocked]

[The hidden analysis category -Skills- has been unlocked]

[Due to the mediocre understanding of power levels, it will be restricted to a certain extent]

[Self-inspection has been unlocked]