"What the hell?" Isaac muttered, frustration bleeding into his voice. "I thought this book was supposed to show me something. Where's my damn reward?"
He tapped the corner of the book with his knuckle. The sound was dull and hollow against the blackened leather.
Did I screw it up? Was it not enough to register as a sin?
Doubt started creeping in. His brow furrowed as he scanned the page he'd just written on but there was nothing new. Just his own words staring back at him. Then something told him to turn to the next page. He wasn't sure why but he did it anyway.
What he saw left him speechless.
The page was changing right before his eyes. What was once pale and empty began darkening, the white fibers swallowed by black until the whole page matched the rest of the book. Then crimson letters started crawling across it in handwriting that wasn't his own.
Isaac's eyes went wide. His heart slammed against his ribs so hard he could feel it in his throat.
"Holy shit," he whispered. The words came out barely louder than a breath. "It's happening."
════════════════════════════════
ADJUDICATION OF THY FIRST DEED (WRITTEN IN CRIMSON)
Auto-scribed Entry "The Bearer committed Greed of Grade A against Harper Clark (before the Classe); Risk: Moderate; Witness: Many; Impact: Scandall, Strife, and Reproach. Reward: +40 Global Experience (GX); Sin-Point (SP): 50. BONUS EXTRA → +20 SP (for first sin without getting caught)."
Why the Grade thus standeth
• Risk: Thou didst hazard discovery and revenge of knaves and their mates — Moderate.
• Transgression: Theft of secrets and breach of privacie — fitly Greed.
• Witness: The shame was made publick and many beheld.
• Impact: Tumult, accusation, and punishment followed.
• Weight: The offend'd were students of bruit and backers of violence, yet not princes nor magistrates.
Therefore the Leafe adjudgeth GREED, Grade A (not B), for craft, effect, and publique spectacle.
Thy Present Estate
• Level: 1 — 40/100 GX (GX serveth only for levelling).
• Sin-Point (SP): 70.
• Conversion rate: 10 SP = +1 base Stat.
• All new Sin Abilities available for 3 dayes; thereafter the price riseth beyond reach or vanisheth outright, and also if bearer leveleth up, current sin abilities on sale stayeth up to 24 houres before vanishing.
First Fruit bestow'd upon the Bearer Because thou hast committed and written thy first Sin, the Book openeth and bestoweth a Book-Unique Skill: SEVENFOLD INQUEST Once in a naturall day mayst thou beseech the Book to search a Person or a Thing. Set down in the margin seven true tokens thereof (features, habits, deeds, markes, or properties); then shall the Book return unto thee these particulars:
• Name
• Age
• Race
• Stats (as the Bearer's page reckoneth them) Note: One subject only per day. If thy seven tokens be false or too few, the leafe refuseth and the day is forfeit.
Remembrancer of the Rules
• GX lifteth only thy Level.
• SP may be spent to buy Abilities of their proper Leafe, or to raise a Stat at 10 SP → +1 base Stat.
• Each deed must be writ within foure-and-twentie houres, else thy due is halved; unwrit within seven dayes is lost entire.
Thus speaketh the Book.
════════════════════════════════
A wild laugh tore from Isaac's throat. Raw and unhinged, echoing off the walls of his small room.
"It's real!" he shouted, his voice cracking with manic glee. "It's fucking real!"
His mind raced. His eyes darted over the crawling text, piecing together the book's archaic language word by word. He pushed his cracked glasses up the bridge of his nose and leaned in closer. The spider webbed lens made it harder to read but he wasn't about to let that stop him.
"Okay… Early Modern English is a pain in the ass," he muttered, words tumbling over each other, "but I get it. The sin I committed counts as Grade A. Greed and I got 40 GX which is like EXP for leveling up and 50 Sin Points total. Plus a 20 SP bonus since I didn't get caught."
He let that sink in for a second. A bonus for not getting caught. The book rewarded him for being smart about it.
He barked another laugh which sounded triumphant and reckless. "Ha! So Harper didn't know it was me after all. The book even confirmed it. This is hilarious!"
Relief flooded through him and then his thoughts snagged on something important.
"Right… the hallway cameras burnt out last month. Even if they checked the footage they wouldn't see a thing. That definitely helped."
He flipped back to the new lines that had appeared, his lips curling into a slow grin.
"And this… this is the book's unique skill?" He read the words out loud. "SEVENFOLD INQUEST."
His eyes gleamed with hunger.
"So I can basically scan someone. Get their name, age, stats, all of it. But I have to write seven descriptions first and I can only use it once a day?" He sucked his teeth. "Stingy as hell. It's like those RPGs where you check people's status except this one makes me work for it."
He thumbed through the pages quickly and his breath caught as fresh lines etched themselves across the parchment. His grin faltered.
"Each sin has new abilities available for only three days?" he muttered, reading the text over again to make sure he wasn't misunderstanding it. "Like a temporary shop window that closes?"
The mechanic behind it confused him. What he really didn't understand was the part about abilities only staying for twenty four hours after leveling up then vanishing before new ones appeared.
"So I get stronger but lose my chance to buy things?" He shook his head. "This book sure is designed to force quick decisions."
His heartbeat pounded in his ears as he turned to the next page, his fingers trembling slightly.
════════════════════════════════
PRIDE (Violet) AVAILABLE 72 HOURS
I. Minor Gravitas — Thy bearing overaweth the timorous for a brief while. (Cost: 5 PSP)
II. Tongue of Command — A single charge of voice that maketh the wavering obey once. (Cost: 7 PSP)
III. Lion's Gaze — For ten heartbeats, lesser wills quail before thine eyes. (Cost: 9 PSP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
GREED (Gold) AVAILABLE 72 HOURS
I. Thief's Sense — Feelest where value lieth within short kenning. (Cost: 4 GSP)
II. Lightfinger's Boon — Thy touch groweth subtle; checks for pilfering be eased. (Cost: 6 GSP)
III. Golden Clutch — Objects seized resist being taken back briefly. (Cost: 8 GSP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
LUST (Crimson)
I. Honeyed Whisper — Brief sweetening of speech that inclineth the willing heart. (Cost: 3 LSP)
II. Serpent Gift — Body modification. (Cost: 2 LSP)
III. Elixir of Eros [Unique Lust Skill]. (Cost: 3 LSP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
WRATH (Dark Scarlet) AVAILABLE 72 HOURS
I. Kindling of the Blood — Surge unto Strength and Endurance, with after-weariness. (Cost: 5 WSP)
II. Hunter's Focus — Fix upon one foe; thy first stroke biteth deeper. (Cost: 7 WSP)
III. Fury Unbound — Strikes hasten and harden briefly, yet thou suffer recoil. (Cost: 9 WSP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
ENVY (Emerald) AVAILABLE 72 HOURS
I. Mirror's Touch — Briefly copy a trivial knack just witnessed. (Cost: 6 ESP)
II. Borrow'd Step — Take the gait or poise of another to pass unmarked. (Cost: 7 ESP)
III. Stolen Shadow — Mimic a lesser skill at half strength. (Cost: 9 ESP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
GLUTTONY (Orange) AVAILABLE 72 HOURS
I. Sip of Vitalitie — Draw vigour on contact to mend thy wear. (Cost: 5 GLSP)
II. Stowage — Hold stolen essence for later use. (Cost: 7 GLSP)
III. Devourer's Hunger — Absorb essence fragments from fallen prey. (Cost: 9 GLSP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
SLOTH (Ice Blue) AVAILABLE 72 HOURS
I. Moment's Languor — Lay heaviness upon a space or target briefly. (Cost: 6 SSP)
II. Restorative Pause — Weariness abates swifter whilst still. (Cost: 7 SSP)
III. Frozen Drowse — A foe's limbs slacken as if caught in sleep. (Cost: 9 SSP)
{FULL DESCRIPTION AFTER PURCHASE}
════════════════════════════════
"I get it now," Isaac muttered, his finger tracing the lines carefully. "Every sin has its own set of abilities and I've got three days to buy from each page. If I don't the price goes up."
His jaw tightened. "But I need SP to buy them. I've got 70 SP right now and I still have to exchange it into the right currency first." He scowled at the page. "This book is something else. It won't even show me the full descriptions until after I purchase them? That's messed up."
Silence stretched through the room. Isaac sat motionless for a good ten minutes, weighing his options like a gambler studying his final hand. Every path had a cost. Every choice locked him out of another. Finally he let out a long breath.
"I'll buy the cheapest set first." He scanned the pages again. "Which is Lust. If I play it right I can get two sets of abilities out of what I've got."
He marked the Lust page with the quill. Nothing happened.
"Oh right. Exchange first."
He flipped to the margin of the page and scrawled out the words: Exchange 30 Sin-Points (SP) for Lust-Points (LSP).
Immediately, figures shifted.
══════
• SP: 40
• LSP: 6
══════
A satisfied grin tugged at his lips. He wasted no time marking two Lust skills. Fresh script unfurled across the page like ink spilling from unseen hands:
══════
At Present (Isaac Wilson)
• Abilities:
= Serpent Gift — Stage 1 (body modification) {see full description}
= Elixir of Eros [Unique Lust Skill] {see full description}
• Lust-Experience Point: 1
══════
"Nothing's happening," Isaac muttered, frowning at himself. "Shouldn't I feel different or something?"
Curiosity got the better of him. He took a sharp breath and pressed the quill against the words that read {see full description.}
══════
SERPENT GIFT — Stage 1
Edict of Use: The Bearer shall rend a small strip from the Lust-leaf and consume it.
Effect (Stage 1):
• Male: Manhood augmented by +3 inches.
• Female: Vessel tightens as the untouched, regardless of experience.
Advancement:To ascend the Stage, pay 3 LSP; new description revealed.
ELIXIR OF EROS — Unique Lust Skill
This skill layeth upon whom the Bearer chooseth.
Mode of Application: The Bearer tears a slip from the Lust-leaf and feeds it unto the chosen, willing thrice the desire to rouse or to still.
Outcomes:
• Rouse: The chosen grows sexually active; any touch from the Bearer crackles with pleasure.
• Still: The chosen grows sexually inactive; arousal fails whilst the Bearer holds intent.
Limits:
• If the chosen's Intelligence exceeds the Bearer's greatly, the art fails; if by 1–2, rousing delays 1 hour; if less, 30 minutes.
• No more than thrice daily may one be fed; else mind withers to single thought.
• Note: This art may be used upon the Bearer.
═══════
"Crazy," Isaac breathed. "So I have to eat the page. And Serpent Gift can be upgraded…"
He pushed more SP across: Exchange to LSP, trimming SP to 30, raising LSP to 3. He marked Advance Stage.
Fresh lines etched:
═══════
SERPENT GIFT — Stage 2
The seed-mark of the Bearer is set. If the Bearer's essence enters any being, memory of the Bearer rises first when desire awakens; if they have lain with the Bearer before, longing multiplies, the itch abiding.
══════
"Holy fuck," Isaac breathed, awe and disbelief twisting his voice. He read over the lines again just to make sure he wasn't imagining it.
"Can't tell if whoever wrote this book is a genius or a pervert." He let out a short laugh. "Because it says I have to cum and after that they can't stop thinking about me?" His lip curled. "Hold on. It doesn't say she. It just says the target. So this works on anyone?" He blinked. "I was thinking this was strictly a woman thing but it doesn't specify at all. Man or woman it doesn't matter. This is twisted."
He sat with that for a moment. The room was quiet. Then a low chuckle slipped out of him.
"Doesn't sound like a bad idea though."
Exhaling sharply, Isaac rubbed his temple and counted dwindling points. "Down to 30 SP. Fine. I'll pump my stats +2 Charisma, +1 Agility. They're the lowest. Should see some changes, right?"
He flipped to the Bearer's Page and wrote in the numbers next to the stats he wanted to upgrade. Once he was done the page updated itself and showed him a clear breakdown of the changes and how to apply them. He noticed that for stat upgrades he didn't need to exchange his SP into anything. It cost 10 SP per stat point and just marking the page was enough to deduct it straight from his balance.
══════
Name: Isaac Wilson
Race: Human
Age: 19
Level: 1
Stats:
• Strength: 8
• Agility: 8 - (+1) - 9
• Stamina: 12
• Endurance: 10
• Intelligence: 14
• Charisma: 4 - (+2) - 6
Mode of Application: The Bearer teareth a slip from the Bearer's page and consumeth it whilst thinking upon what to increase.
══════
He grimaced. "Do I really have to eat this page?" he muttered. "Ugh. Whatever."
With a reluctant sigh Isaac tore a thin sliver from the Bearer's Page. He focused his thoughts on Agility and Charisma as he put it in his mouth and chewed. The fragment dissolved instantly. Tasteless. And before his eyes the torn part of the parchment grew back whole like nothing had happened.
Not wasting any time he turned to the Lust Page and did the same. This time he fixed his thoughts entirely on Serpent's Gift. A faint sweetness bloomed across his tongue like watered down strawberry. Subtle but strangely addictive. He had to wrestle with himself to keep from tearing off more.
At first nothing happened.
Isaac frowned and hurried to the bathroom. He checked the mirror. His reflection was the same. Gaunt face. Torn lip. His cheek was still slightly swollen from Derek's punch yesterday. It wasn't as visible anymore but anyone who looked close enough could tell he'd been hit there.
"Guess it didn't wor—"
The words caught in his throat.
Sharp pain exploded through his calves and thighs. His muscles clenched and locked with each pounding heartbeat. Veins stood out beneath his skin like dark cords. Heat surged up his neck and across his face until it felt like his head was boiling from the inside.
Then came a raw brutal pain low in his body. Sudden and unforgiving. His spine arched and his whole body stiffened so violently he nearly toppled over. A ragged breath tore out of him. He bit down on his lip hard enough to taste copper.
Click. The front door echoed from downstairs. Someone had come home.
Isaac gritted his teeth and endured. His body felt like it was tearing itself apart from the inside out. Then just as quickly as it started the storm ebbed. His muscles released and left him trembling with every nerve in his body humming.
He staggered away from the mirror, both hands gripping the sides of his head. The pain was blinding. His glasses slipped off his face and hit the floor but he didn't stop. He couldn't. His foot came down right on top of them and he heard the crack but he didn't care. All he could think about was making it to the bed. The room pitched and tilted around him. His chest heaved. His body was wrung out like he'd just sprinted a marathon on an empty stomach.
Then the dizziness hit. Thick and crushing like his skull was spinning while the floor rolled beneath him.
He collapsed onto the mattress. Darkness swallowed him whole.