Talent System: I Instantly Master My Opponents Skills
Chapter 155: Minor Breakout (2)

Chapter 155: Minor Breakout (2)

...

The guards passing by them were on high alert, their vigilance being on another level. Yet, they were unable to catch even a glimpse of the people slipping by their defenses.

Even when their camp had been passed by they were unable to find anything unusual.

They were looking for them, but were unable to find them.

That was the civilian awakeners predicament. The only thing they met when returning to camp were dead bodies.

Many dead bodies.

’This place...’

Jason thought, his eyes hovering on the wasteland in front of them.

Just as they entered this place they had entered a land covered in snow, to Jason, it was a nice contrast.

But then, the unexpected part came.

It was barren. There was no vegetation as the scenery around them changed; not even the occasional shrubbery or the tall tree that stretched on for 20 meters.

Nothing.

’Is weird.’

He finished.

"Is this the right place? This isn’t the description you gave me."

Jason questioned.

He found it bizarre that there was no hiding place.

"I gave you the description I got."

Kira answered.

Even he found the change unfamiliar.

It was like this place was purposefully cleared out of the vegetation, it enhanced their range of sight, but it also decreased the amount of hiding options they had to zero.

Not only that, but it seemed devoid of monsters.

Someone had ordered for this place to be cleared out, and stripped to the bone of both monsters and greenery.

"Maybe its information is different from what we got."

Asahi offered.

But even he found this uncomfortable.

There was no settlement like this, except the ones that were situated in desert areas.

’This could be bad.’

He thought.

"There are dead bodies."

Kira said solemnly, his eyes furrowed as he examined a good distance away from them.

Jason too, furrowed his brows as he checked the area in front of them.

Bodies.

Dead, blood-stained, some mutilated corpses sprawled around on the ground.

"A fight?"

Jason murmured to himself.

"It looks like a fight."

Kira asserted.

The way the corpses were dealt with suggested that it was something more than a fight though.

Subconsciously, he walked closer to get a better look.

"Don’t go too close."

Kira warned.

However, he ignored the warning, choosing to get a better look.

"It wasn’t a fight."

From his view that was supposed to be the first realization, it wasn’t only from the way the bodies were dealt with, it was also noticeable from the characteristics of the victims.

Open eyes and mutilated fingers.

It wasn’t clear from afar, but from this distance, he could notice another rather unsettling characteristic.

’Only clans.’

He realized, his eyes widening slightly at the sight before him.

’This place must be one serious with that.’

But then, the question arose.

How could so many clansmen be in this area, in the same place, in the same settlement. Something had to be at least different in this settlement to attract so many people.

Slowly, he turned around and retraced his steps backward.

"What did you see?"

Kira questioned.

"Bodies."

That was the reply he got, if he could, he would rather not talk about it.

His expression quickly shifted, and his gaze shifted from Jason.

He murmured some incoherent words to himself, sometimes stopping complete and staring into the distance, unblinking and un-moving.

Jason only stared at him for a few moments, his expression unreadable.

"Weird."

He murmured.

Little did he know his behavior when he was distracted was even more strange than Kira’s.

With nothing to do, Jason turned his attention towards his status screen.

’I still have a long way to go before I reach stage 6 of my physical stat.’

He mused.

That was the same thing he had told himself when he was about to reach stage 5 of the physical stat, every major breakthrough to a higher number granted his a lot of strength.

As well as speed, defense and other stats.

He stared into space, his hand hovering above the screen that had materialized before him.

To both Asahi and Sean, it seemed like both of them had begun seeing things, simultaneously.

’Crazy.’

Was the single thought that ran through both of their heads as they watched the people in front of them.

"A veil."

Kira murmured to himself.

"Can’t see."

"Too strong."

He repeated several words along those lines of that, however Jason didn’t pay any attention to him.

He was too focused in his own word.

"We should move carefully."

Kira finally said as he snapped out of his daze.

His words woke Jason up as well, prompting him to dismiss the status screen.

"What?"

Jason questioned.

"Move carefully, this place isn’t ordinary."

Kira advised, his tone serious.

’I already figured that out, and in much less time.’

He thought.

After seeing the corpses, the first thought that entered his mind was the thought that this place wasn’t the average settlement.

But then again, there were also civilians whom had been fighting in the forest with the clans.

"This veil is the toughest one yet, and when we enter we’ll be marked. So before we go, we need to make some precautions..."

Kira paused, letting his words sink in as he glanced as Asahi.

Instantly, the boy got on the defensive sensing something bad was about to happen.

’This again?’

Nevertheless, he still watched it, even though short it was a nice source of entertainment.

Even though it was short.

Kira motioned for Jason to head back into the forest, to which the boy begrudgingly did as told.

As soon as Jason was out of range, Kira finally took used his magic.

He raised his hand and waved it through the air in a cutting motion, and a scythe, comprised of wind magic.

Unlike the rest, it had been aimed at his stomach this time, it seemed like Kira was aiming to kill him.

Asahi moved at a blinding pace, leaping into the air and performing a backflip before landing on his foot, the wind scythe having gone far past him.

As he landed, he felt that he had lost a little weight, but from his position, he couldn’t tell how or why.

"Again."

Asahi said, looking at Kira with a grin plastered on his face.

"Why are you smiling?"

Kira asked, a grin too creeping into his otherwise cold features.

Asahi noticed this, and he frowned, his earlier grin gone.

"What?"

He asked as he ran a hand through his spiky black hair.

His expression froze, and a look of utter dread spread on his face.

"Why is my hair short?"

He questioned.

Without warning, Sean fell onto the ground laughing out loud.

In normal conditions, Kira would have warned him on making such noises, but even he was barely managing to stifle a laugh after seeing Asahi without his long spiky hair.

Even Lyra, the one out of all of them whom was expressionless had a slight smile on her face.

"What, is it bad?"

Asahi questioned.

But none of them answered him, leaving him to speculate on life without his hair.

At that moment, Jason came out of the forest.

Asahi stared at him, and in response he stared at the boy back.

For a slight moment, surprise managed to flicker in his face.

He vanished.

Asahi felt cold steel press against his neck, as if the metal itself was daring him to try anything funny.

"Who are you?"

Jason questioned, his words as cold as the blade he pressed against Asahi’s neck.

It wasn’t his dagger he was using, it was his katana, and that proved how much seriously he took this.

"Look at the ground."

Asahi said.

Jason was not in a hurry. But when he finally looked at the ground he was gone.

"My hair."

Asahi said solemnly, as if he was going through an existential crisis.

"I didn’t recognize you."

Jason admitted.

But even though he didn’t seem to be hiding the fact that Asahi’s hair was a major part of his look.

"You look different without your hair."

He admitted.

Then, Kira walked forward.

He went over to Sean, standing over him. And without a word, he used a wind cutter over his head.

In a moment, Sean’s hair was trimmed down.

"What?!"

His brother tried to argue, but Kira’s words shut him up.

"That guy that reported you to the civilians is still alive and he’ll recognize you, it would be best if you cut your head low."

He explained calmly.

Sean stopped talking.

’Why do I feel like I’m next?’

Jason wondered, trying to shake off that unease in him.

Even if his hair was cut, that would barely do anything to his appearance. His face was sketched masterfully in the pages of the bingo book, that much he could assure.

Even if he changed haircuts there wouldn’t be that much of a different.

Kira didn’t hesitate, in an instant he materialized a wind blade and sent it at him.

But Jason did nothing to dodge it, in fact, he even walked closer to it.

He wasn’t mocking it, he just knew that it wouldn’t come in range with him. It was made within range of his ability, it would definitely not hit, at least with that little mana in it.

The wind blade got smaller as it soared towards it, its size decreasing the closer it got.

Jason tilted his head to the side as the wind blade vanished, it was not enough to meet him.

"I’m not cutting my hair."