It would be a lie to say that he wasn't affected by the slaughter.

He was not in the mood to do anything significant in the last couple of days.

All he wanted to do was make the preparations for his departure as fast as possible, and breaking through to the bronze rank sounded like a hassle. It's not like there's an imminent threat in the area. And even if there was, he has Sasaki to help him.

But that mindset ended today.

"I'm going to leave the hamlet and venture on my own. At the very least, I should be at the bronze rank, right?" Deklan rubbed his chin in contemplation, noting that it would probably be more dangerous out there than in the forest. "Some said people can be the scariest, and they aren't wrong."

Recalling what Zayne did, Deklan shook his head.

People can really be the scariest.

Deklan wiped the sweat drizzling down his face and sat under the Ward's canopy.

He then raised his hand and summoned a Lv. 3 Mana Apple from the inventory.

Since the mana inside his flesh and organs is already brimming to full—suspending at the very end of the iron rank, he only needed a little bit more to reach the bronze rank. He kept it there in the hope that he could amass all traits first.

Now that he did, it was time to break through to the next rank.

Deklan placed the Lv. 3 Mana Apple before him and opened his inventory again.

In there, his eyes fixated on all the traits.

According to the book about Ghosts that he purchased from the system, the defining part that made a bronze-rank Ghost different than those at the lower rank was its Paranormal Heart. This core change is the reason they are able to use Minor Presence.

So, naturally, all traits he gathered had to be absorbed and assimilated directly into his own heart first.

Only then can he turn his normal heart into a Paranormal Heart.

Deklan sat in a meditative position and closed his eyes, starting to assimilate the first trait.

It was the Hearing Trait.

Deklan cradled the Hearing Trait—that took the shape of a shimmering orb of captured sound between his palms. He closed his eyes, narrowing his focus to the orb, willing its essence into his being. Energy seeped from the orb into his skin, dissolving from sight as it vanished into his flesh.

Inside, it moved.

A current of foreign sensation traced through flesh, coiling like a luminous serpent upward.

Such a straightforward path made it easy for him to realize that it was climbing towards his skull.

It settled around the canals of his ears, and for a moment, it stayed there.

Just then, a searing pain ignited deep within his ears; precisely, the sensation came from his eardrums.

It was hot, precise, like symbols were being carved into the delicate membranes forcefully.

Deklan gritted his teeth, breath held, knowing that this was most likely to happen.

After a painful minute, the pain receded—Deklan might not be able to see it, but his eardrums now have a glowing symbol etched onto them that was shaped like a listening ear that was created with no more than a few strokes.

From those fresh symbols, twin threads of energy pulsed.

Swish—!

They slithered down through sinew and bone until at last, they reached their destination.

It settled deep inside Deklan's heart.

[Congratulations, host, the Hearing Trait has been assimilated into your heart!!]

Deklan didn't stop there and kept absorbing the remainder of the traits.

Sight, Smell, Taste, Touch, and lastly… the Sixth Sense Trait.

Each one followed the same pattern as the first one—the energy settled down on the targeted organ that produced what they represented, and then a pulse of energy went to the heart and settled there. Only the Sixth Sense Trait caught him off guard.

It went and settled on his brain, causing immense pain that exceeded the others.

Deklan's entire body was trembling uncontrollably as he endured the pain.

But the moment the process finished, the pulse of air that followed was stronger—a wave of profound release. The relief was incredible, too. Deklan felt like an inmate who had endured years of slow, precise torture, only to finally feel his shackles shatter.

For the first time in an eternity, he could step outside and breathe the air of the world.

"Phew…" Deklan opened his eyes and found his entire body was drenched in sweat. "How much time has passed since I absorbed the traits? The sun is already right above me. It felt like taking a nap, but it was accompanied by a nightmare. Regardless, I should be ready now."

Deklan pressed a hand to his chest, feeling the new, startling rhythm of his heart.

It was not beating faster out of fear—or sheer excitement. It was beating harder. Each percussive thump was a deep, resonant blow against his ribcage—a powerful, insistent cadence that felt less like a pulse and more like a demand for release.

Nodding his head, feeling that he was ready, he took the Lv. 3 Mana Apple.

And without hesitation, he devoured it until the last bite.

Swooh—!

As soon as he did, Deklan immediately leaned forward; his forehead almost touching the ground.

Inside, he felt a sudden surge of mana that swept across his entire body like an endless torrent.

He became breathless, like something was keeping his lungs from expanding properly.

Deklan gritted his teeth and straightened his back again, sitting in a perfect meditative position, focusing hard since this was a pivotal moment. He flexed his muscles, guiding the mana inside his flesh to only seep into his strong heart.

A sharp sting made him flinch when the mana touched his beating heart.

Boom—!

Just then, a blast of mana followed, sweeping across the entire area and rustling the bushes and trees.

For a fraction of a second, Deklan lost his focus as the sensation was overwhelming, but he snapped back to reality and continued siphoning the mana into his heart. And slowly, deliberately, his beating heart grew slightly bigger.

But what's more bizarre is that its flesh color began to be corrupted by an imperial blue color.

Each trait inside glowed with a lighter color one by one.

It took about a full hour to completely infuse a single trait with mana. As he worked, Deklan realized the mana from the Lv. 3 Mana Apple is dwindling fast. It couldn't sustain the sheer number of traits he has inside his heart.

Traits that he needed to empower to successfully reach the bronze rank.

Normal Exorcist would be in a pinch at this predicament, but that doesn't apply to Deklan.

He siphoned the mana from his Mana Veins and used it to keep supplying the transforming heart.

Moreover, he also retrieved a handful of Major Mana Candies he got from completing quests.

He tore off their wrappers, not being picky with the flavor, and tossed them into his mouth.

Bit by bit, his heart began to transform into something else entirely.

Night had fully fallen by the time his heart solidified. It first deepened to an abyssal blue, then lightened, shifting through shades of azure and cerulean until it settled into a radiant, pristine white. Now, with each pulse, it radiated such dense mana that the air above his skin visibly quivered.

A low, resonant frequency that shook the air around him.

Swoosh—!

Deklan's body detonated with a small shockwave of mana and then sizzled with a pure white aura.

He opened his eyes and looked down at his chest, sensing the changes to his body clearly.

[Notice: the host's heart has transformed into a Paranormal Heart!]

Before he could grasp this newfound power properly, another surge of energy that came out of nowhere seeped into his Paranormal Heart. It was excruciatingly painful, forcing him to let out a scream like he was being burned alive.

Veins bulged across his body and neck, throbbing in a grotesque manner.

And when it finally receded, Deklan was sprawled on the muddy ground, sweating bullets from head to toe. He clutched his throbbing chest as he sat up, totally confused as to what had happened. "Fuck was that? I thought I was successful in transforming my heart into a Paranormal Heart."

[Notice: the Four Forbidden Kings have bestowed a blessing!]

[Your Paranormal Heart has transformed into a Paranormal King Heart!]

[Congratulations, host, you have reached the bronze rank!]

[All physical stats are increased appropriately!]

[Intelligence stat is increased appropriately!]

"It's those kings again," Deklan leaned back on the Ward.

He stared at the notifications with a troubled gaze, feeling uneasy about these Four Forbidden Kings.

"I accidentally used their method to awaken my Mana Veins, but the Paranormal Heart is not tied to the Mana Veins. One is the path of Ghosts while the other is the path for Exorcists," Deklan thought aloud; his brows dipped into a concerned frown. "Don't tell me… those kings are watching me, now?'

Deklan didn't know what kind of entities these Four Forbidden Kings were.

But from their name alone, they didn't sound like the good guys.

[Host, you of all people shouldn't judge others through their appearances alone. Cut it out.]

"Huh…? How am I supposed to not judge?! Besides, who are they? I know you know."

[…]

"Yeah, fuck you!" Deklan clicked his tongue in displeasure.

He knew that it wouldn't be that easy to find out more about these Four Forbidden Kings.

Regardless, since they weren't making a move against him, sabotaging his growth to power, he decided not to think about them—for now. Dismissing them is the best thing he could do right now. No need for him to stress over an invisible threat, which would be a waste of energy.

Energy he needed for the challenges he could actually face.

…

Name: Deklan Tiernan

Persona: Agna the Red Scarecrow (Active)

Rank: 1-star Bronze

Exorcist Rank: Apprentice

——

STAT(S) [Night]

Strength: C-

Agility: C+

Endurance: D+

Intelligence: C

Perception: C

Mental: C

Sanity: 20%

——

SKILL(S)

[Ghost Conqueror] [Dual Existence] [Eerie Smile] [Astral Strike] [Elementary Phasing]

——

TRAIT(S)

[Iron Spine] [Breeze Affinity] [Mini Ghost] [Ember Affinity] [Fire Skin]

…

Deklan checked his stats and realized that the increase wasn't as high as he thought it was going to be.

His agility and intelligence stats rose the most, while the others barely increased.

"Seems like the gap between a D and a C grade stat is vast," Deklan mused, rubbing his chin. "Breaking through a major rank barely pushed me into the C-grade tier across the board. From now on, I should really scrutinize an enemy's stats before engaging.

If he encountered anyone with even a single stat at C+ or B-, he would need to reconsider the fight.

A jump from D to C was difficult enough; the leap from C to B must be monumental.

Facing an opponent with even one B-grade attribute would almost certainly mean defeat.

"My sanity is very low, too," Deklan's eyes narrowed, not expecting it to be that low. "How do I increase it again?"

Just as he thought of that, he turned to the side, hearing the bushes rustle.

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