Chương 211: Reborn as the Dragon — Chapter 211 - Optimizing the Cannon

Kayal's head throbbed like something was splitting it in two. Ten thousand flies, doing a deranged waltz inside his skull. Every cell in his body was screaming. He felt wrung out, hollowed, like a pump had sucked him dry. And his skills were gone.

"You — what did you do to me?"

"Damn it!"

"Give them back!" He grabbed the iron bars with both hands and roared until his voice tore. His eyes bulged, veined red, burning with hatred and venom. He wanted to use Degrade to rip the cage apart. Too bad he'd already lost it. Su Nian, meanwhile, was having the time of his life. Big kid, new toy. He studied the plundered skills with visible glee. The natives of this world had no way to understand their own abilities, they could only stumble through trial and error. But Su Nian had the System.

The information panel laid out every skill's conditions and effects in clean, readable text. [Degrade] Requires a resistance check. On success: inflict negative statuses such as paralysis and accelerated aging. When used on non-living matter, steel will rust and food will rot. [Plunder] Requires a willpower check. On success: strip one of the target's skills. Can be applied partially, e. g., stripping facial features to achieve an imitation or disguise effect.

(Note: Maximum of three plundered skills can be active at once. Exceeding three requires manually replacing one.) Worthy of the Healer Hero. These skills were incredible. Su Nian could barely contain himself. Sure, both skills required checks. But so what? A failed check just meant it didn't work. No penalty. No downside. And in this world, he was probably the only being alive with something as broken as the Devouring Art. The odds were firmly in his favor.

Besides, if he remembered right, Kayal still had two more abilities on him. He'd noticed back when he was watching Kayal and Freya. Kayal had used some ability to change Freya's appearance. On the surface, at least. Her originally sharp, slightly severe features had softened. Like someone had turned on a beauty filter, smoothing over the rougher edges, making her more polished and appealing. Su Nian wanted that skill.

Specifically, he wanted to see if he could slip past the System's tax: make his Francis Cannon's caliber a touch smaller, remove the barbs, and optimize the whole setup for cleaner range. That would be ideal.

"Hohohoho~" A certain Black Dragon's laughter boomed through the dim dungeon like a thunderclap. Anna had no idea what he was laughing about. But she and Su Nian were close enough that she could feel it, he was thinking about something shameless. Heat crept up her face. Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators! They were in a dungeon. There were monsters everywhere, and prisoners. Surely her brother wouldn't just...

do something embarrassing to her right here.... Right? Su Nian didn't wait. He extended a dragon claw, wrenched the metal bars apart with raw force, and dragged Kayal out by the scruff despite his thrashing. Crack. Crack. Bolikri went to work. Kayal's limbs dislocated, one by one. Bolikri had gotten good at this. It didn't even need instructions anymore, it already knew exactly what its master wanted. Kayal collapsed on the floor, screaming and flailing, his expression unhinged.

He'd even forgotten he still had Healing Magic. He'd endured for so long. So many people had humiliated him. His revenge was finally within reach, his happy life, finally beginning, and then this Black Dragon had to shoulder his way in and ruin everything. And then strip his abilities on top of it. The hatred. If he ever got another chance, this Black Dragon would,"Plunder!" A dragon claw tapped lightly on Kayal's skull. Consciousness blurred. Nerves misfired. Kayal's pupils rolled back as his whole body convulsed.

Something precious was dissolving inside him, memories unraveling at the seams. The sensation was worse than having his blood drawn out drop by drop. Crueler. More intimate.

"Furious Throw? What kind of garbage is this — why would a healing priest learn a warrior's trash skill? Hard pass." The Black Dragon's picky voice echoed down the corridor.

"Plunder!"

"Tsk. Tidal Slash... What does a Black Dragon need Tidal Slash for? No. Next."

"Plunder!"

"Iron Hand Splits Mountain? No."

"Plunder!"...

"Plunder!" [Congratulations! You have obtained the spell skill "Optimize."]" Finally. That took forever." Su Nian's dragon face was alight with satisfaction. The delay probably came down to constitution. Kayal was the real Hero, which meant his skill pool was enormous, far more than the usual three-skill limit that applied to plundered abilities. This little gacha session had gone on far longer than anticipated. But he got what he came for.

As for the Kayal-brand gacha machine: foaming at the mouth, passed out cold. Every Plunder had sent his limbs into violent spasms. The agony was not hard to imagine.

"He's still got a healing-type ability. I'll wait for him to come around before pulling again." Su Nian rested his chin in his claw, thinking it over. Actually, why bother healing himself when he had the Healer Hero right here? Far better to have the specialist do the work. Like the difference between driving yourself and having a chauffeur. The experience was entirely different. A dragon's life was meant to be enjoyed. Why do everything yourself? Decision made.

Su Nian scooped Anna up, carried her to a dim corner of the dungeon, and then, with a heart full of anticipation, used Optimize on himself. On his Francis Cannon, specifically. The sensation was strange. Like taking a rust-eaten blade and polishing it back to a mirror edge, buffing out every imperfection until the dull steel could cut again.

"How is this possible!" Su Nian's roar shook the dungeon walls. The caliber hadn't shrunk. It had grown. A full size larger. The entire cannon's rough matte surface was now smooth and luminous, traced with intricate winding engravings that wound along the barrel in elaborate loops. Even the barbs caught the dim light and glittered, crystalline, flawless, like a work of art. He had wanted smaller. Longer range. Precision. Not a crystal cannon. What was he supposed to do with this? Use Degrade on it? He hesitated.

If he did, would the Francis Cannon end up ruined permanently, taken out of commission entirely? Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth. He'd leave it for now. Once the prisoner interrogations were done, he'd track down Medraco and run some experiments. If Medraco walked away fine, then he had nothing to worry about. The last prisoner was a lightning mage. Su Nian approached the cell and studied her. He had the nagging feeling he'd seen her somewhere before.

He turned it over in his mind, but nothing surfaced.

"Respected dragon." The voice came from inside the cell, quiet, unhurried.

"Have you... seen my sister?" The lightning archmage Sarisette had been sitting in silence since the start. She spoke now without preamble, without fear. Her eyes were steady, almost unnervingly calm, as though she weren't a prisoner at all, but a visitor who had simply chosen an unconventional place to sit.

"Your sister?" Su Nian raised an eyebrow.

"How would your sister end up in my dungeon, overrun as it is with monsters?" He paused.

"That said — if you join my ranks and serve me, I can put monsters on the search. Whether they find her, I can't promise."

"My sister was a mage apprentice." Sarisette continued as if she hadn't heard him.

"She came to Silver Moon Forest roughly half a month ago. A warrior was traveling with her. After that, nothing. I haven't seen her since." Her expression dimmed. The steadiness in her eyes gave way to something older, heavier. Memory. Longing.

"It's my fault." Her voice dropped.

"I shouldn't have gotten between her and that warrior. I thought I was protecting her..." A quiet beat.

"It doesn't matter now. My sister looks like me. If you've seen her, tell me where she is. I'll pay whatever compensation you ask." ➤ Next: System, Exchange This, Hurry Up