In August's view, [Wight Heart] was basically a talent that burned through lifespan.
At a rate of five days of life per minute, one hour of fighting would cost him three hundred days.
That meant the little over one thousand days he currently had left would only let him go all out for a few hours.
And what could a few hours even do?
It would not even be enough time for the kind of legendary battles in this world that lasted for days and nights on end.
Even if he bought all ninety-nine [Red Hearts] from the system shop, it still would not be enough to sustain this talent's consumption.
So at its current stage, [Wight Heart] really was not all that practical.
Still, it was only a Blue-grade talent. It was not the absolute lowest rank, but it was close enough, so there was no point expecting too much from it.
In Wight form, his defense, speed, and strength all increased by fifty percent, and even his sense of pain was reduced by half.
On paper, that sounded decent. If not for the lifespan-burning side effect, August would have found it entirely acceptable.
Then again, it was just a low-grade Blue talent. What more could he really ask for?
The only truly promising part was probably its potential for growth. Maybe once it evolved, some of those flaws would be improved as well.
"No wonder it's only a Blue-grade talent. For most people, this is probably the kind of thing they'd never dare to use."
"But I'm different. Since the system shop has an item like [Red Heart] that increases lifespan, that means there will definitely be similar life-extending items in the future."
"So as long as I don't waste it casually and only use it when it really matters, then I can still accept it."
"And this [Wight Heart] is an upgradeable talent. The growth conditions are way too dangerous, but if I can guarantee my own safety later, maybe I can try it."
At that thought, August's expression finally improved a little.
Originally, he had planned that once either he or Law obtained the Op-Op Fruit someday, he would immediately have the White Lead toxins removed from his body.
But plans never changed faster than reality.
Now the White Lead Disease had mutated into his talent and become part of him. It seemed he would never have the chance to remove it again.
Still, blessing and disaster were never easy to judge.
Even August himself could not say whether this change was ultimately good or bad.
Considering that there would definitely be times in the future when he would have to risk everything and use this talent, August hardened his resolve and decided to activate it right away. He wanted to experience for himself what it felt like to use it, so he could be mentally prepared. Otherwise, when the time came to fight for real, no enemy would give him the chance to test things out. One mistake, one opening, and the price he paid could very well be his life.
"Ugh..."
As he activated [Wight Heart], August could not help letting out a muffled groan of pain.
His heart suddenly began beating at a violent pace, while terrifying toxins started spreading through his bloodstream to every part of his body.
In the blink of an eye, the skin over his entire body turned a sickly pale white, as if the white patches from before had spread to cover him completely.
His pupils became bloodshot as well, glowing with a strange crimson hue even in the dim light.
Even his originally short, choppy black hair began growing wildly until it reached his waist, and every strand turned pure white.
This was his true Wight form.
A pale and eerie fiend.
In this state, even Law would probably have a hard time recognizing him.
Or rather, he might not even dare to.
"Haa..."
After the transformation was complete, August let out a long breath. He had never expected activating this talent to be that painful.
Fortunately, once he fully became this ghostly version of himself, the pain was immediately cut in half. What had been unbearable torture instantly dropped to something more like a constant, grinding ache.
"So testing it in advance really was the right choice."
That was what August thought, because the pain he was currently enduring had not been mentioned anywhere in the system's description.
If he had gone into battle without being mentally prepared for it, he definitely would have been caught off guard.
August looked down at his now-pale hands, then slowly clenched them, feeling the changes in his body.
The difference was not incredibly obvious, but he could tell that he really had grown stronger.
Of course, he was still far too weak right now to feel the full effect in any dramatic way.
If he wanted to bring out this talent's true power, then the first thing he needed to do was build up his foundation. A single leap to the heavens was impossible.
So after spending a little time getting used to it, August quickly deactivated his Wight form.
The toxins that had spread throughout his body rapidly retreated back into his heart. The white patches disappeared, and his long white hair instantly reverted to its original short black form, with the extra length crumbling away into ash.
It had not even been a full minute, and yet he had already burned through five days of lifespan. At that point, whether it hurt or not was no longer the main issue.
But then he tried something else.
He attempted to release just a tiny bit of the toxin stored in his heart.
In the next second, the familiar white patches reappeared in scattered spots across his body, accompanied by a faint throbbing pain.
"So I really can control it."
Suppressing the discomfort, August checked [Wight Heart] and, after confirming that this did not count as fully activating the talent, finally let out a sigh of relief. Then he maintained that partial state.
Otherwise, the obvious changes he had gone through would have been impossible to explain to Law. And if he could not explain them clearly, then a crack would immediately form between them.
So for now, it was better to maintain the current appearance.
At that moment, his character panel had already changed to:
[Host: August]
[Beginner Trading Qualification]
[Gender: Male]
[Age: 10]
[Height: 140 cm]
[Weight: 25.5 kg]
[Lifespan: 4 years, 355 days]
[Talent: Wight Heart (Blue)]
[Abilities: None]
[Trade Points: 825]
...
Looking at the fact that his lifespan had already dropped below five years, August suddenly had the urge to spend all his Trade Points on buying [Red Hearts].
But in the end, he restrained himself.
By now, he had already realized how precious Trade Points really were.
And besides, to him right now, what difference did it make whether the number in his lifespan field said five years or ten years?
In the short term, that was basically an ineffective investment.
It would be far better to keep those points in hand and use them flexibly on things that were actually useful for his current situation.
Once he thought it through, August stopped dwelling on it.
Only...
"Law's been gone for quite a while now. Why hasn't he come back yet?"
A slight frown appeared on his face, and he suddenly had a bad feeling.
So after leaving behind a mark, he immediately got up and went off to look for Law.
Fortunately, now that he could control the release and withdrawal of the White Lead toxins, he looked, from the outside, like nothing more than a somewhat battered ordinary child whenever he wanted to.
(End of Chapter)
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