Author Of Worlds: I Reincarnated Into My Novel As A Random Character
Chapter 25: Fusing With The Natal Artifact!

Chapter 25: Fusing With The Natal Artifact!

With a loud crash, the metal barrier shattered on impact.

However, instead of seeing Sylvia behind the fragments, Desmond only spotted a rapidly disintegrating pool of liquid.

His eyes widened in surprise. He turned toward a specific direction, but all he saw were faint traces of moisture steaming off the floor.

A few seconds later, he turned his sharp gaze back toward Matthew and the others.

That was when his eyes locked onto Axel, who had just placed his hand on Matthew’s shoulder.

Realizing Sylvia was now occupied and could no longer restrict them with her ability, Axel had quickly rushed over.

Without hesitation, he activated his spatial teleportation, sending both of them back to the dormitory.

Desmond’s expression darkened as his eyes gleamed with anger. "Damn it!" he cursed, his voice filled with frustration.

He hadn’t expected Matthew, the one who first appeared to surrender, to escape so suddenly.

Not a single intruder had been caught. That fact alone sent a wave of irritation crashing through his chest.

His eyes landed on Leo, who was sprawled on the ground. Desmond’s gaze turned vicious.

"In that case, you’ll do," he muttered coldly.

Leo felt that look pierce into him like the eyes of a beast scanning its prey.

A chill crept down his spine and without a second thought, he activated the system in his mind.

"System, use Fixed Immortal Travel. Teleport me to my dorm room immediately," he whispered swiftly.

The system flickered to life.

Just as Desmond extended his hand to seize him, Leo’s surroundings distorted.

Then, in a sudden flash, a thick bolt of deep purple lightning struck the ground where Leo had just been.

Desmond’s eyes caught a glimpse of Leo’s final expression before disappearing—an expression of false despair.

"What just happened?" Desmond was stunned. His voice trembled slightly with disbelief.

All four intruders had escaped. Right under his nose.

His jaw clenched as his expression grew stormy under the night sky.

"How the hell did they all get away?" His voice dripped with incredulity.

He felt a rising urge to punch himself. "Now how do I explain this to the academy?"

Desmond was at a complete loss for words. With no choice, he turned and began making his way toward the academy’s administrative wing to report the incident.

Convinced that the academy had been invaded, it never even crossed his mind that these intrusions could have been carried out by students.

As such, he didn’t think to check the dormitory where two figures had just reappeared...

...

Inside Matthew’s dorm room, Axel exhaled deeply.

He glanced at his origin energy and groaned internally. He barely had enough left for three more spatial jumps.

Still, his face beamed with excitement as he turned to Matthew.

"That was wild! Probably the most exciting thing we’ve done all year!" His eyes sparkled with thrill. "We should do that again sometime!"

Matthew only gave a tired shrug.

There was no way he would ever return to the academy treasury.

’By now they’ve probably sent an instructor at rank 6 or higher. Fighting one of those monsters would be suicide,’ Matthew thought as he turned toward Axel.

He stretched out his hand. "Please give me the adamantium."

Axel nodded and retrieved a chunk of shimmering metal from his origin ring.

"Are you sure this will work?" he asked, eyeing Matthew curiously.

Matthew smiled faintly, then bit his thumb until a trickle of blood appeared.

He pressed the bleeding thumb onto the surface of the adamantium.

Almost immediately, the metal began to ripple, twist, and reshape. Its surface shimmered as it responded to the blood’s imprint.

’Good, the fusion with the natal artifact is proceeding smoothly,’ Matthew thought.

In the world of his novel, there were many types of artifacts. This was one of them—rare, high-grade, and perfectly suited to his needs.

The adamantium finished reshaping and hovered in the air.

Matthew gave a mental command, visualizing the desired form.

This was the reason he had chosen adamantium specifically. It could take on any form with perfect mimicry.

If someone didn’t inspect closely, it would be impossible to tell it apart from his real hand.

The metal split into two pieces and began twisting again, gradually forming into gloves that mirrored the exact size and shape of his hands.

Matthew remained still as he watched the transformation.

Axel stood frozen in awe.

"Is there really such a miraculous treasure?" he muttered under his breath, completely captivated by what he was seeing.

The gloves completed their formation and gently latched onto Matthew’s hands.

A cool sensation flowed across his fingers. The gloves fit snugly, as though they had always belonged there.

He flexed his fingers slowly, opening and closing his fists.

’It’s a bit denser than normal skin, but I can still move everything with ease,’ Matthew noted silently.

He walked over to the wall and picked up a book. To his relief, the book showed no signs of damage from his touch.

Still, a wave of fatigue swept over him. He hadn’t solved the core problem yet.

’Now that my ability is always inactive, my origin energy will constantly be at a hundred...’ he sighed.

His head throbbed with frustration. His ability was simply too difficult to manage.

’After completing a few more sleeper trials and strengthening both my ability and rank, I should gain better control.’

That hope was the only reason he hadn’t lost his mind trying to keep his powers in check.

Once everything settled, he turned to Axel.

"So, what do you think? Pretty cool, right?" Matthew smirked.

Axel nodded, still inspecting the gloves. "Honestly, if I didn’t know what you had done, I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference at all."

Satisfied, Matthew sighed, then gave a sincere nod.

"Thanks for tonight. If it weren’t for you, I would’ve been caught..." His expression turned dark at the thought.

Getting captured would have ruined everything, shattering his carefully laid plans.

Axel simply waved it off. He pulled the upgrade crystal from his origin ring and tossed it to Matthew.

"This is yours. Make good use of it. I wonder how terrifying your ability will become after using this."

He stared at Matthew with genuine curiosity.

Matthew caught the crystal and held it up, watching it sparkle.

Thoughts churned in his mind. He nodded in thanks.

"There’s no need to thank me. Anyway, I’m heading back. I’m a bit exhausted. I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Good luck with your own upgrade."

Matthew could feel the sincerity in Axel’s words. He was genuinely surprised. Most people would have been jealous in his shoes.

’He probably doesn’t know the crystal’s true value. If he did, would he still act the same way?’ Matthew wondered.

On the outside, though, he just waved Axel goodbye.

Axel gave a nod, then used his teleportation ability to vanish.

Now alone, Matthew exhaled a breath of relief.

He glanced at the moon hanging above in the origin sky. A faint smile tugged at his lips.

’Well, it’s time to upgrade my ability...’