{HERE LIES STORM OF SHADOWS}

"I think that's someone's tomb…" Ruby squinted her eyes, rubbing her chin thoughtfully as she read the runes.

Jin scratched his head: "So, is it just an inheritance? Was that Storm person looking for someone with the same aspects as him?"

"Maybe."

In the wooden corridor, Dante listened to Jin and Ruby from a distance.

As expected, a few minutes after revealing the door, Jin and Ruby arrived. They really weren't able to enter this place.

Now, they were discussing the true identity of this place after reading the runes.

'It's likely an inheritance. I didn't expect to see one at all.'

In this world, age mostly depended on the Vitality stat. Unfortunately, it was significantly difficult for anyone to increase their stats even by a single point.

Unlike Dante, they didn't have the Dragon Bloodline. They were also unable to obtain any valuable potions or herbs to increase their vitality.

Because of that, dying of old age was inevitable. No matter how strong they were, they couldn't escape death, and all their belongings would eventually belong to their families or friends.

However, not everyone had close people who could take their belongings. And even if they did, some things needed the inheritor to meet specific requirements.

Thus, a lot of people who didn't want to be forgotten decided to let their inheritance belong to the most worthy individuals, hiding them in places that weren't too easy or too difficult to find and using some tests to decide whether an individual was worthy or not.

Apparently, Dante was in such a place, and the deceased wanted the inheritor to use the Shadow Aspect and the Lightning Aspect to earn the inheritance.

And judging by the name "Storm of Shadows", Dante easily guessed why these two were required.

The shadow was obvious, and one of the sources of the Lightning Aspect was the Storm Domain.

"Who should go first this time?" Jin asked suddenly, moving his gaze between Ruby and Dante.

"Well, you opened the first path, and I opened the second…" Dante's gaze fell on Ruby as he smiled: "I wonder whose turn it should be now."

Ruby gulped nervously, taking a step backward.

Jin smirked: "Bury! I think it's your turn now." As he said that, he gave her a thumbs up: "Don't worry, I'll take care of your share if something happens to you."

Ruby looked at the door awkwardly before looking at Dante in fear: "But I don't have your aspects! What if it blinds me the moment I step into that room?" Her gaze shifted to Jin: What if the next room struck me with lightning?! It's safer for one of you to go first… I don't have anything to protect me."

Jin rolled his eyes: "Coward! But fine, I'll go first!"

Jin walked toward the door, stomping on the floor with every step in his anger.

CLEEENK!

The door opened smoothly. But as Jin looked ahead of him, he froze in his place and his jaw dropped in shock.

Dante exchanged glances with Ruby before asking: "Did it truly blind you? Are you okay?"

Jin ignored him and blinked several times before rubbing his eyes. The next moment, he closed his mouth, his lips curling into a wide grin, and shouted: "I'm rich! Hahaha!"

Enhancing his body with lightning, he immediately rushed toward the room.

"You drunk bastard, wait!" Dante used Shadowstep and emerged by the door. Once he stood at the doorstep, his eyes widened as he saw the sight before him.

'...Damn, I'm rich!'

The door led to a small room made of that strange black wood. The room wasn't decorated in any way, but there were a few things that got his attention.

The first was two wooden chests placed next to each other. The first was filled with small blue crystals, and the second was filled with some circle-shaped and some deltoid-shaped gem-like cores. Jin was sitting at the crystals chest, hugging the crystals while smiling like an idiot.

The next was a pair of black high boots with golden runes engraved on the inner surface. They seemed to be made from the skin of a beast with thick skin.

After that was a giant golden sword with inky-black runes engraved across its blade and hilt. The size reminded Dante of the giant hammer that the giant skeleton from the ancient ruins had wielded, which wasn't really a good memory.

And seeing the inky-black runes, Dante couldn't help but see the difference between the boots and the sword. The golden one had inky-black runes and the inky-black one had golden runes.

'They're probably related to lightning and shadow.'

Afterwards, he noticed the coffin at the far side of the room. It didn't look fancy, just a simple coffin for a dead person.

Lastly, resting on a stand at the centre of the room was a small book with a golden cover.

Before he could make a move, Ruby passed behind him and began doing her best to pull Jin away from the crystal's chest.

"Stop that! We will divide them!"

"Leave me alone, all the mana crystals are mine!"

Dante ignored them and squinted his eyes, examining the room thoughtfully.

'Is that it?'

It was strange.

Jin placed his hand on a mark that opened the tree entrance.

Dante placed his hand on a mark that opened this room's entrance.

He didn't fight, he didn't face traps, he didn't struggle, and he didn't die.

His hand suddenly twitched as an obsidian-black coin materialized it.

Ting! Ting! Ting!

Crown, crown, crown.

It didn't detect any misfortune.

'How could it be safe?'

Dante looked at the treasures once again and enhanced his eyes. Were these things fake? Or were they actually dangerous?

As his eyes landed on the book, he immediately rushed toward it and read the cover.

{PATH OF LIGHTNING: YOUR GUIDE TO ACHIEVING PLASMA!}

"Hmm?"

He flipped the first page and started reading.

``My name is Alfred, a gold Rank 2 mercenary, and the one with the title Storm of Shadows.

I was lucky to be born with two domains. The Moon Domain gave me the Shadow Aspect, and the Storm Domain gave me the Lightning Aspect. I achieved many feats and made a small fortune after years of fighting.

Yesterday was my 158th birthday. I can feel the shadow of death looming around me, and I lost hope in advancing to Rank 3.

I have no friends, my wife cheated on me with a noble when I was young, and my family is dead. There is no one I know who can continue my legacy.

I'm merely a Rank 2 mercenary, so I don't know how to make a proper inheritance. So long as you have my aspects and your rank is below 2, you can inherit me.

Unfortunately, I don't know how to keep my relics after my death. But I left you my father's precious sword, a pair of boots that I made myself, some mana crystals, and rank 1 and 2 Cores of Existence.

As for this book, it contains my experience and progression in understanding lightning, which I hope it gives you a small enlightenment. I tried my best to get the Advanced Aspect: Plasma — but my talent didn't allow me. And my talent for the Moon Domain was even worse.

Hopefully, you don't face the same wall that I faced. Hopefully, you become a real Master!

My regards — Alfred.``

Dante: "..."

"Why aren't you happy?"

All of a sudden, Greed's voice resounded through Dante's mind, but Dante didn't respond.

Just then, his eyes widened as a small version of the onyx-black centipede appeared in the real world, coiling around Dante's body.

Dante's eyes widened in fear and shock as he started channeling his silver Ether instantly: 'How—!'

"Relax, hehehe." The centipede's tail pointed to its own head: "I'm still using the same trick of appearing in your mind. This body isn't real, can you feel me physically?"

Hearing Greed's words, Dante finally realized that he couldn't sense the centipede, even though it was coiling around his body.

The centipede crawled forward and said: "Do you know why you don't feel that much happiness?" It went directly toward Ruby: "You are confused! Why was it so easy? That's not something you're used to. You had go kill and be killed for every treasure you gained. After all that, you feel strange for gaining something without suffering."

The Sin of Greed reached behind Ruby, he stared at her for a moment. She was collecting the mana crystals with Jin carefully and counting them one by one.

"But now, you gained the biggest share of all this just by following this little girl, right?"

He coiled around her body gently, the centipede's head touching Ruby's forehead: "She truly has a heavenly ability! Even your stupid misfortune wasn't enough to ruin this opportunity! Can you comprehend this?"

Ruby seemed to sense Dante's gaze as she looked at him with her round red eyes and tilted her head, a blush forming over her face: "Is there something wrong? Oh, don't worry about your share, I'll count everything first and we can divide them!"

"Haha…" The Sin of Greed chuckled: "She's also adorable, don't you think? She is beautiful, has a heavenly ability, and she is an alchemist! She has some skills regarding business and the alchemy requires resources and experience rather than physical strength. Don't you think she's perfect?"

'Don't even think of it!' Dante spat inwardly as he gritted his teeth.

The Sin of Greed shook his head and sighed: "Don't pretend that you didn't consider it already. You can already imagine her as a slave, don't you? This is only one opportunity and you earned that much, so imagine how your life with her would be!"

"All you have to do is just say the word and I'll fill your mind with knowledge about the required Ether sigil to turn her into a slave. After that, you'll only have to travel with her until she shows you another opportunity. Maybe after you solve your stupid trauma you'll use her as a sex slave, and maybe the next one will be able to fix your misfortune, don't you think?"

"...."

Dante didn't respond immediately.

He kept staring at Ruby with an intense gaze that was hidden under his blindfold. Ruby was looking at him with confusion, starting to feel that something was wrong, but Dante didn't focus on that.

He hesitated.

As Greed said, accepting that offer would only benefit him. Ruby didn't have friends or remaining family as far as he knew, no one would come looking for her if he turned her into a slave.

'No…' Dante turned his head away and began reading the book: 'Nice try, but I won't fall for that.'

"You won't…? Hehehehe!" Finally, the centipede disappeared.

'Your hesitation is enough to show that you are considering it.'

'You can't ignore your true nature forever.'

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