Kenji stared at the glowing blue panel, then at his quivering hands.
Level 87. Dark Knight. Shadowbane. The words bounced in his head, a dizzy mix of disbelief and a scary, exciting thrill.
He felt like he'd swallowed a sun, a molten ball of power that threatened to burst from his skin.
"Okay, okay, deep breaths," he muttered, his voice barely a squeak.
He tried to think. If this was real, if he truly had Shadowbane's stats, then he wasn't just _not_ useless anymore. He was… incredible. Potentially lethal.
He focused on the **Skills (Tab)**icon. It glimmered, beckoning. He concentrated, trying to think it open, just like he'd seen players do in those old VR game streams.
Nothing.
He tried again, harder. He squeezed his eyes shut, imagining his finger pressing the invisible button. Still nothing.
"Come on, you stupid… hologram!" he growled, swiping at the air in frustration.
His hand passed right through it.
"Argh! How do you even… interact with this thing? Is there a mental command? 'Open skills! Open inventory!'" He tried different phrases, feeling ridiculous.
"Please open skills? Pretty please?"
A faint flicker, like a muscle twitching in his mind, made the **Skills (Tab)** expand.
It snapped into a full-screen display of countless abilities. Kenji gasped.
"Whoa! It worked! So, it's… thought command? Or intent?" He grinned, a wide, slightly unhinged smile.
"Okay, this is cool."
He scanned the list, his eyes widening with each new entry.
**[Dark Slash (Active) – Unleash a swift, shadow-infused attack. MP Cost: 50. Cooldown: 3s]** **[Shadow Step (Active) – Instantly teleport a short distance into shadows. MP Cost: 70. Cooldown: 5s]** **[Abyssal Shield (Active) – Form a temporary barrier of dark energy. MP Cost: 100. Cooldown: 10s]** **[Void Bolt (Active) – Fire a concentrated blast of void energy. MP Cost: 30. Cooldown: 2s]** **[Aura of Despair (Toggle) – Passive aura that debuffs nearby enemies. MP Drain: 5/s]** **[Death's Embrace (Ultimate) – ...]**
And then pages more. Hundreds of skills. Active, passive, buffs, debuffs and ultimates. His head swam.
"Right. Dark Slash," he mumbled, trying to make sense of it. "Sounds… simple enough." He raised his hand, trying to conjure the image of a shadow-infused attack. Nothing.
He concentrated more, picturing dark energy swirling around his fist. He copied the stance of the warrior avatar he had seen before.
His muscles tensed. He swung his arm out, aiming at a particularly grimy patch of the concrete wall.
**[Dark Slash activated!]**
A blast of wild violet energy shot from his arm. It tore through the basement with a powerful force. It didn't just hit the wall; it _shredded_ it.
Concrete crumbled, dust flew, and a jagged hole opened where the wall had just stood. Plaster dust rained down on him, gritty and stale.
Kenji stumbled back, coughing, his eyes wide as saucers. A searing pain flared in his stomach, a sudden, inexplicable emptiness.
His HP bar remained full, but his MP bar had dropped significantly.
**[MP: 6500/6500]** changed to **[MP: 6450/6500]**
"Holy _crap!_" he shrieked, staring at the destroyed wall, then at his trembling hand.
"I just… I just blew up my own wall! My new wall! I spent days patching that!" His heart raced against his ribs, a wild mix of fear and thrilling strength.
"And what was that feeling? It's like… like something just got sucked right out of me!"
He looked at the MP bar. "MP cost: 50. So that's what that is. Mana. It's real. All of it."
A few seconds later, his gaze fell on the [Inventory (Tab)]. Remembering his earlier success, he focused on it. The screen shifted again, revealing a neatly organized grid of item slots.
- Shadowfang (Legendary Greatsword)
- Void-Forged Plate Cuirass (Legendary)
- Gloves of Abyssal Grip (Legendary)
- Greaves of the Obsidian Stalker (Legendary)
- Helmet of the Nameless Knight (Legendary)
- Ring of Dark Communion (Unique)
- Amulet of Soul Harvest (Unique)
- Lesser Health Potion x50
- Greater Mana Potion x30
- Shadow-infused Ore x12
- Grima's Journal (Unread)
"No... way," Kenji gasped, scrolling through the endless list of legendary and unique items.
He reached out, attempting to drag an item. Nothing happened. He tried to mentally command it. "Equip Shadowfang!"
A massive, ornate greatsword appeared with a soft thump on the concrete floor next to him.
It was wreathed in faint tendrils of purple shadow. It was easily as tall as he was, its blade an impossibly dark obsidian. The air around it felt colder.
He tentatively reached out, his hand wrapping around the leather-bound hilt.
The moment his fingers closed around it, a jolt of raw power surged up his arm, settling deep in his chest. The blade felt like an extension of himself, terrifyingly heavy yet perfectly balanced.
"This… this is Shadowfang?" he whispered, his voice hoarse with awe.
He tried to lift it. It resisted, its weight immense. He strained, muscles screaming, and managed to just barely hoist the tip off the ground.
He felt a sinking feeling. He had the stats of a Dark Knight, but his body, now thirty years away from Aethelgard's world, was still just Kenji.
"Okay, so the stats are there, but the body… not quite caught up," he grunted, letting the sword clatter back to the ground. _This is going to be harder than I thought._
His eyes fell on **[Grima's Journal (Unread)]**. He focused on it. The journal appeared in his hand.
It was a worn, leather-bound book that felt old and heavy. He flipped it open. The pages had beautiful, flowing writing, but he didn't know the language.
"Oh, great," he muttered, swiping at the floating system window.
"A journal from a guy named Grima, probably Shadowbane's old in-game buddy, and it's in… Ancient Elvish or something. Fantastic."
He tossed the journal onto a nearby crate. _More mysteries. Just what I need._
He looked around the basement. It had been his sanctuary, his escape. Now, with a hole in the wall and a legendary greatsword resting on the floor.
"No one can know about this," he said aloud, the words a stark commitment.
Not Hana, not Dad, not anyone. They'd… they'd probably try to take it, or worse, control it."
The thought sent a cold shiver down his spine. He wasn't some weak, unpowered kid anymore, but he was still utterly inexperienced. He needed to learn.
He decided to try something less destructive. **Shadow Step**.
"Alright, Shadow Step," he whispered, imagining himself blending into the shadows beneath the stairs.
"Short distance. Into shadows."
He focused as an odd sensation built up in his core, like someone was compressing a spring. He felt a sudden, dizzying lurch.
THUD!
Then, he found himself sprawled on the floor, two feet left of where he meant to be. He had tripped over his own feet. His head hit the concrete with a dull thud.
**[MP: 6380/6500]**
"Ugh," he groaned, rubbing the back of his head.
"Definitely not as easy as it looks in the movies." He tried again, this time aiming for the darkness behind a rusted shelf.
Another lurch, another awkward landing, this time a few feet past the shelf.
He spent the next few hours in a grueling, frustrating cycle of trial and error. He tried Void Bolt. Tiny sparks of energy sputtered and barely reached the other side of the room.
He activated Abyssal Shield, but the barrier flickered and was weak. It disappeared after a second, leaving him breathless.
Each attempt used up his MP.
He had to wait for it to slowly come back, or he could try a Greater Mana Potion from his inventory. He uncorked one, the liquid tasting faintly of burnt sugar and ozone.
It sent a warm rush through him, and his MP bar instantly refilled.
"Alright, so the potions work," he muttered, a small victory.
As the sun set, it cast long shadows through the basement's grimy window. Kenji felt exhausted, covered in dust, and had a few minor bruises.
But he had made progress. He could often activate Dark Slash, though clumsily. It sent bursts of dark energy that left scorch marks instead of big holes.
He could **Shadow Step** to a designated shadow, even if his landings were still shaky.
He sat on an overturned crate, his muscles aching, sweat stinging his eyes. He glanced at the massive greatsword propped against the wall. Then, he looked at the glowing screen in his sight.
"This is it," he whispered, his voice filled with a quiet, fierce determination.
He thought of his family, their dismissive glances, their mocking words. He thought of the world outside, the Game Borns who flaunted their inherited strength.
He ran a hand over the faint **Shadow Brand** on his palm.
"They think I'm useless. They think I'm nothing."
His eyes hardened.
"But I'm Shadowbane now. Or… I will be. I just need to learn how to be."
He looked at the gaping hole in his wall, then at the powerful skills listed before him.
"This going to take a lot of time than I thought and I'm going to master every single terrifying, beautiful piece of it."
A chill ran down his spine, not from the damp basement air, but from the excitement from gave him a chances to shine.
"The world isn't ready for a Level 87 norm," he concluded, a faint, almost predatory smile touching his lips.
"And I'm going to make sure they learn it the hard way."