Quinn smiled, and kept going, absorbing more and more of the Skill Books. Eventually, after Quinn had absorbed the eighteenth Level 3 Earth Element Skill book, he received his final System message.
[500 Exp received. Exp: 6995/6400. Level Up. You are now Level 8. Exp: 595/12800. You have received a Stat Point.]
Seeing this, Quinn smiled, and brought up his Status Screen.
[Name Quinn Talen
Race Halfling
Level 8
XP 595/12800
Title —
__________________
HP 45/45
__________________
Strength 15 [+2]
Stamina 11
Agility 16
[Stat Points: 2] ]
No new Skills had been unlocked. But Quinn did have the two Stat Points from the two Level Ups he had received from absorbing the Ability Books and Skill Books. As Quinn thought what to use them on, a memory flashed in his head. He thought back to his fight with Nate in the game. How after using a barrage of Blood Swipes, multiple Flash Steps, as well as the Hammer Strike, he had become completely exhausted. He had become completely unable to move. Allowing Nate to easily walk up to him, and end the fight. He did not want that happening here.
Quinn gulped, and put his two available Stat Points into his Stamina, bumping it up from "11" to "13".Quinn stared at the screen for a minute. The Exp he needed to Level Up was getting further and further away. It made Quinn wonder if there was even a cap to his Leveling. Or if the Exp requirement would just keep doubling, until it got to the point where it was no longer possible for him to reach it. Quinn had now checked just about every book in the storage container.
Unfortunately, it seemed like the highest-Level Ability and Skill Books that the military had stored here were Level 3.
Quinn let out a sigh, and looked around. The container was still full of books.
"Man, it's a shame having all of these Ability Books and Skill Books just collecting dust." He muttered.
Quinn glanced back.
'I bet if Tsukuru was here, he could clear this place out in an INSTANT.' He thought.
It wouldn't surprise him. After all, unlike his System, Tsukuru's Inventory didn't have…restrictions. Quinn then shook his head. 'What am I thinking? Tsukuru isn't even here!' Quinn thought. 'I'm all on my own here, stranded on some random planet!'
Quinn walked back a few feet, and picked up one of the duplicate Level 3 Ability Books he had haphazardly thrown over his shoulders as he was searching for new Skill Books. As he held it in his hand, no System message appeared. Quinn looked down at it.
'I wonder if maybe Peter could use this?' Quinn thought.
It was only one book, Quinn was sure he could easily carry it with him. But as soon as he thought about Peter, the memory of him pushing Quinn backwards and through the Portal flashed in his head. Peter was the reason why he was stuck here in the first place. And he had no idea how long he'd have to survive on his own.
As Quinn thought about Peter, anger stirred in his mind. His hand's grip tightened around the book, and he began to rip it apart. His superhuman strength letting him tear the book apart as if it were a mere notebook. He had come to a decision.If he ever got back to the base, he would be willing to hear him out. But Quinn would never help him ever again. If someone betrayed you once, for whatever reason, they could do it again.
As Quinn continued looking around the container, he came across another bookshelf in the very back of the room. However, this one was different from the others. While the rest were actual bookshelves, this one was more like a shelf mounted to the wall at chest level. Additionally, while the rest of the bookshelves appeared to be made out of polished wood. This one appeared to be carved out of white marble. It also had an aesthetic that Quinn could only describe as an "ornate, angelic" design. And, the most peculiar part was, this shelf…looked recent.
While the rest of the shelves, and thus the books in them, were covered in dust, this shelf looked pristine. It was as if it had just recently been placed here. On top of the shelf, there were two books, spaced out, with their covers facing out. The books pushed all the way back against the wall.
The book on the right appeared to be the only ordinary book in this place. Its cover showed an image with two individuals.The first was a teenage boy with short, spiky green hair and red eyes with his right hand down by his side, and his right outstretched up. As if reaching for the viewer. His chest was bare, but he wore a pair of black pants and sneakers, and wore a long-sleeved, black jacket with a gold trim.
On the left side of his head, there was a fragment of a mask. The mask appeared to be modeled after the face of a wolf, and it had the same black with a gold color scheme as the jacket. However, the strangest part about the figure was that he had brown fur growing all over his body. The fur fully covered the top of both of his arms, with his hands looking like the claws of a furry beast. He also had brown fur growing along the outside of his chest under his jacket.
Behind him, another boy could be seen. The second boy had short, blonde hair and brown eyes. He wore a white hoodie with a green shirt underneath, as well as a pair of grey sweatpants and sneakers. Like the first boy, his arms were covered in fur, and his hands looked like the claws of a beast. However, the fur covering him was a light, gray color. Tufts of the fur could be seen growing up his neck from the inside of his clothes. Towards the bottom of the cover, slightly obscuring the image were the words "From Courier to King: The Rise of the Howlers".
Quinn raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"What the hell is an ordinary book doing here in a storage container?!" He muttered. He narrowed his eyes, and read the small line below the title, where the author's name was listed. It read "Written by Kyle Hamper and Tom Green".
Seeing this Quinn's face scrunched up into a puzzled look.
"Wait…Green?!" He asked. "Didn't Tsukuru say that he was takenin by them?!"
Quinn reached out his hand to grab the book. As he did, the whole book became enveloped in a strange, white energy. A System screen popped up in front of Quinn.
[Celestial Energy has been detected.]
Quinn's eyes narrowed.
'Celestial Energy?' He thought. 'What the hell is THAT?'
Quinn tried to remove the book from the shelf, but it had suddenly become locked in place. It was as if the book was a part of the shelf. Quinn let out a grunt.
"What…the hell?!" He muttered. He grit his teeth, and pulled harder. Nothing happened. Quinn gave the book a few more sharp yanks, but the only thing that happened. Quinn then let out a sigh. He turned his attention to the other book, the one on the left. The book was pitch-black in color, and had words written near the bottom of the cover. However, the words were written in a large, bold font that were reminiscent of the font used by "heavy metal" bands in the old world.
It read "Shadow Element". Underneath, in a smaller font, it read "Level 6 Ability Book".
Seeing the label, Quinn's eyes lit up.
'A Level 6 Ability Book!' He thought. 'Imagine how much Exp I could get from absorbing that!' Maybe it would finally shoot him up to Level 10, and he could finally unlock the use of his System's Shop.
Quinn reached out, and grabbed the book. As he brought it closer to his face, a System screen did appear, but it was not the one he was expecting.
[You have found a Level 6 Shadow Element Ability Book. Ability is compatible with the System. Would you like to learn the Level 6 Shadow Element Ability?
[Yes] [No] ]
Seeing the message, Quinn dropped the book out of shock. He then took a step back. Out of all of the books in the room, this had been the first time he had received a message like this. Quinn was starting to think that he would never find an Ability he could learn. Then, Quinn thought back to the name of the Ability.
"Shadow Element".
That meant that it was an elemental Ability. Like Erin's Ice Ability and the military's Earth Ability. But Quinn had never even heard of a Shadow Ability. And Quinn had become quite knowledgeable about Abilities over the years.