A Novel Concept - A death a day, MC will live anyway!

Chapter 82: The Second Dawn

Lvl Up: [Stealth] lvl 18

AGI +1

Lvl Up: [Moon Mist] lvl 31

PERC +4

CHAR +2

META (AFFI) +3

Lvl Up: [Tribulation Piercing Spear] lvl 5

STR +1

AGI +1

DEXT +1

Promesse struck the cyclops' eye before sliding across it. The weapon continued its trajectory, following the visual organ's curvature before striking the eyebrow's arch. Smashing through the bone, and the brain behind it, it burst the cyclops' head.

Priam raised an eyebrow at the result of his attack. He had been careful to strike from the cyclops' blind spot: his back. After all, his eye seemed capable of miracles, and Priam hadn't wanted to risk being detected despite being in his mist. However, at the last moment, the cyclops' eye had appeared at the back of his head, spotting Priam. Too late.

Had the cyclops been a little stronger, his one eye would not have been a weak point. It is the true power of a mythical race.

His thoughts were interrupted by a terrifying noise. The wyvern had finally succeeded. There was now a hole in the top of the dome, through which the monster struggled to get its head through, contorting itself.

WARNING:

New Earth's barrier has been breached.

Complete regeneration will take two hours.

Any additional damage will increase this time.

Gritting his teeth at the sight of the monster that would cause many casualties today, Priam turned to the cyclops' corpse. He still hadn't received a reward and had an idea why.

Leaning over the destroyed body of the former Lord, Priam searched the shredded flesh. Plucking the cyclops' eye from the bloody mass, he tried it out with the back of his hand. The eye was incredibly hard, spherical in shape and the size of a handball. [Tribulation Piercing Spear] hadn't left a trace on it. Priam injected his aether inside.

His aether penetrated the object for a moment before encountering resistance. Pursing his lips, Priam activated [There is no Heaven]. A fraction of his aether disappeared into the thing and then returned to him. Instinctively, Priam sensed that it would take a large part of his aether to damage the cyclops' soul. He accepted the price, and more than half his remaining aether penetrated the eye.

Lvl Up: [There is no Heaven] lvl 2

WILL +9

Instantly, a horrible scream was heard. Priam dropped the eye and plugged his ears to no avail. It's in my head!

Announcement to Humanity:

Priam Azura becomes the new Lord of New Earth.

Title Won!

[Land Owner - Silver] - You become a true Noble, owning Land. You receive certain benefits when you are on it. Your Title of Nobility is linked to it. Losing your Land will affect your Title. Increasing the size of your Land will improve your Title.

When you are on your Land:

Allows manipulation of specific specialized infrastructures.

Bonus (Baron): POT cost -10%

Bonus (Viscount): Aether regeneration x2

Bonus (Earl): Knowledge about your land

Instantly, Priam felt a flood of information and aether invade him. Millions of humans were currently in New Earth. Most were holed up in buildings, but some were still searching for their loved ones or homes. Priam shuddered as he felt first-hand how many lives were currently in danger. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. Except by committing suicide, he wouldn't be able to stop the Tribulations - and he cared too much about his life to do that.

Suddenly, Priam had an idea. Being a Count gave him access to information on the individuals currently present in the dome. Maybe I can do a manual search? He thought of his father. The next moment, the System informed him about him. He was in a beautiful house near the Market and not alone. With him were several people, including one of Priam's acquaintances.

Claire?!

An explosion forced Priam to focus again. The wyvern was tired of being blocked by the barrier and was making its discontent known. A laser beam had vaporized a building, wiping out its inhabitants. Twelve deaths, informed the System. Priam would have preferred to ignore this number. After all, it was he who had brought the Tribulation here.

Without wasting any more time, Priam retrieved the eye of the cyclops and connected himself to the dome barrier. The barrier was constantly losing energy, sapped by the various Tribulations. Priam intended to spare it by allowing the Damocles Tears to pass through. The wyvern attacked again, and Priam gritted his teeth.

Thousands of humans continued to roam New Earths streets, panicking as they heard the sound of explosions. Priam hesitated for a moment to let the Tribulation through. If he couldn't warn these men and women, carnage would ensue...

The System proposed a solution that Priam immediately accepted. With a bit of aether, the barrier could deliver sound announcements.

"Inhabitants of New Earth." Priam's voice thundered throughout the dome. "A deadly rain is coming. A single drop will be enough to kill you. Stay inside, and don't come out under any circumstances. You'll have time to find your loved ones later. I can only hold it for another ten seconds. Take shelter right now!"

It wasn't true. Now that the wyvern was attacking the city directly, the barrier still had several minutes ahead. However, most inhabitants would do no more in ten seconds than in ten minutes. Better to conserve the barrier's reserves to fight off the locusts. A deadly rain was one thing. Bugs actively searching for survivors was quite another.

I can only hold it for another ten seconds was a half-lie. Priam wasn't holding back the Tribulations; he was causing them. But even if he had no intention of remaining the Lord of New Earth, he had no interest in alienating humanity.

For a split second, Priam felt dirty. His actions were going to get a lot of people killed. The next moment, his anger rumbled. It wasn't he who had asked to invoke Tribulations. It was the System. It was also the System that had forced Priam to use the barrier to mitigate his Tribulations. The fault wasn't solely his, and if the System asked him to choose between his life and others'... Is it selfish to wish to live?

Priam closed his eyes and forced himself to breathe calmly. It was the moment of truth and he would have the opportunity to reflect on his responsibilities later. He had to create a Domain now. Or perish trying.

Ten seconds later, he opened his eyes again and concentrated his mist around him. Satisfied with his protection, he allowed the first Tribulation to enter with a thought. The barrier shook for a moment, becoming intangible to Damocles cloud.

The dome was several kilometers high, and the entire cloud pressed in, as if eager to punish whoever had tried to escape it. A rainbow appeared under the combined effect of the black cloud and the light from the dome. Outside, the furious locusts swarm redoubled its efforts to destroy the barrier.

Seconds later, the rain hit the ground. Priam mentally felt the lives of many humans disappear. Those who had not heeded his advice were no more. Sighing, he refocused on his own ordeal. Only the living could mourn the dead.

A flood was falling on New Earth and his mantle of mist. His aether reserves dispersed as he tried to connect more deeply to his mist. [Moon Mist] had become the skill he knew best. His Titles and Merits synergized to help him tame the fog. Every swirl was noted by Priam. Every foreign body was highlighted in his mind. The mist responded to his thoughts, eager to obey.

It wouldn't be enough to earn a Domain.

Domain... The Supremacy he was supposed to be able to unlock with his mind and mist. He'd first heard of it when he'd upgraded [Brainless]'s Merits. The System had then told him that he had taken his first step in the direction of the Domain.

After talking it over with Sphinx and Bchar, the explanation was clear. A Domain was a spatial zone dominated by the user's mind. According to Bechar, acquiring a Domain was a two-stage process. First, you had to perceive your environment - which Priam's mist did. Secondly, you had to influence that environment. It required the application of willpower. This was where Priam struggled.

Yet he had no choice but to succeed. Unlocking his Domain would allow Priam to control the Damocles cloud and perhaps

Shaking his head, Priam refocused. His aether reserves - even regenerated by his new Title - were not infinite. He had to get his Domain now.

With one last glimpse of his surroundings through the mist, Priam sighed. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't impose his will on the world. Something was missing. It was a different experience for everyone, but Bechar had confirmed that it was easier when his mind could invade the desired space. Geniuses like Sphinx could do it without help, but Priam needed a helping hand. He already knew what: [Brainless] had to be improved.

For this, there was only one possibility, which his clones had confirmed. He had to let his spirit bloom, freed from the prison that was his flesh.

"Here we go," he murmured, watching his Tribulation swell.

Using [Kinetic Control], Priam leaped toward the titanic cloud. Pulses of kinetic energy propelled him higher and higher as water drops trickled down his misty mantle. Priam would have liked to absorb their kinetic energy, but he could only absorb the energy of the objects in contact with him - or Promesse.

That would change with his Domain.

At a height of almost five hundred meters, Priam could only see the immense cloud above him. A black ocean of water vapor, crisscrossed by frightful waves. Yet there was no wind beneath the dome's barrier. Damocles cloud exuded a dangerous, implacable aura. An aura of steel.

Taking one last look at the city below him, Priam gritted his teeth. The continuation of his Tribulations depended on this moment. If there was ever a time to spend his resources, it was now. He reached for the small purse that accompanied him everywhere and pulled out one of the trophies he had stolen. Between his fingers was a leaf of a blue that Priam would have described as temporal, for want of a better adjective.

[Identification]

[Ethereal Oolong Leaf - 10 years] - A very special yet relatively young tea leaf. Produces exceptional mental clarity and permanently purifies the mind.

Best consumed by infusion but can also be swallowed directly.

Priam plunged his hand back into his purse and retrieved a fragile-looking case. Inside was a piece of cloud.

[Identification]

[Atlalis Circle Pearly Cloud] - A very rare polar cloud. These clouds have the property of stealing happy dreams. After a million years, these clouds become terrifying elementals.

This is a fragment of a defeated elemental.

Its consumption can transform a desire into reality.

Permanently increases your resistance to mental attacks.

Priam swallowed both resources.

Lvl Up: [Manipulation Resistance] lvl 9,...,13

WILL +15

After a second, he opened his eyes and laughed. The descriptions of the two treasures were brief, but their effect was incredible. His mental capacities seemed limitless, similar to those he obtained by connecting to his Potential - minus the divine inspiration.

To create a Domain, it was perfect. Bechar had told him that the Supremacies were somehow decorrelated from the System. Burning his Potential wouldn't help much.

A second later, Priam entered the cloud. Despite his misty cloak, the transition was rough.

If each drop was like a blade falling from the heavens, the inside of the cloud was like a mountain of metal pressing down on Priam. Without his cloak, every meter would have ripped through his skin, flesh and bones as effectively as a blender. Priam gritted his teeth and summoned his Potential to further strengthen [Moon Mist].

Lvl Up: [Moon Mist] lvl 32

PERC +4

CHAR +2

META (AFFI) +3

POT -5

His aether reserves were dwindling, and the amount of mist he was summoning was less than what he was losing to the cloud. Even so, Priam was making progress. He had only a few hundred meters to cross before reaching his destination.

[Focus]. In the meantime, the warrior tried to concentrate on his mind. For most humans, the seat of thought was the head. The sense of vision being the most developed, the head, housing the brain, was considered by many to be the home of the mind. Thanks to [Brainless], Priam had overcome this limitation.

His mind was in his entire body. Closing his eyes, Priam felt his body as a single, homogeneous entity. No part was more important than another. Sure, he'd rather stub his little toe on a bedside table than get the furniture in his eye; but it made no difference to his conscience.

It was part of what had enabled Priam to unlock Micro so quickly. Feeling his whole body was a huge advantage, a way to increase his proprioception. But to unlock the Domain, it wasn't enough.

Despite his best efforts, Priam's mind remained confined within his body. His skin acted as a protective membrane but also as a prison. His consciousness manipulated his mist, but his mind refused to truly possess it.

If my body is a prison... If it's blocking the acquisition of my Domain, then all I have to do is listen to my clones.

Set aside your flesh, absorb Damocles' cloud in your Domain.

The clones' response was a no-brainer. Besides, Priam was one of the few who could use this shortcut to unlock his Domain.

A second later, light triumphed over the darkness of the ocean. Priam had reached the top of the dome, the boundary between the cloud and the barrier. In front of him was the wyvern, looking incredibly angry. In the background, the sound of locusts was horrifying.

Priam burst out laughing. "This is your moment, lizard... Show me what you've got!"

Roaring, the furious wyvern opened its mouth and the world went dark. The surrounding photons seemed to be absorbed into the monster's maw. For several seconds, the fantastic creature prepared its attack.

Priam then grabbed his purse and threw it towards the barrier, where it disappeared. Apparently, it could confiscate some objects. Promesse could withstand a lot of punishment, but not the treasures he'd stolen. I'm going to get naked again, he sighed...

Shaking his head, Priam refocused on the spectacle before him. Few people could boast of receiving a wyvern's Breath with a smile. With his heart at peace, Priam simply levitated, placing himself between the empty Colosseum square and the enraged monster. In those strange moments, his heart calmed. A smile naturally came to his lips.

He, an almost ordinary young man just a few weeks ago, was now fighting a wyvern. Almost a dragon.

"I love this life..."

A second sun rose. Dawn broke, and the flesh disappeared.

Status: (Average value for a Homo sapiens male before integration: PHY 10 / MEN 10 / META 0)

PHYSICAL:

Strength 172 (+2)

Constitution 289

Agility 209 (+3)

Vitality 309

Perception 379 (+9)

MENTAL:

Vivacity 183

Dexterity 236 (+1)

Memory 50

Willpower 335 (+29)

Charisma 176 (+4)

META:

Meta-affinity 184 (+6)

Meta-focus 111

Meta-endurance 101

Meta-perception 51

Meta-chance 114

Potential: 3867 (+17)

Tier 0

[He Who Eludes Death] charge: PRIMED.