Chapter 25: New Abilities
"Come on, let’s go," Amelia declared, reaching out and taking his hand, a gentle smile appearing on her face.
Minato blinked in mild surprise on his face before nodding twice. As they started walking, he glanced at her hand holding his and thought to himself; She’s gotten more expressive, affectionate... warmer and kinder. Ever since we reunited.
Together, they both walked through the middle of the mind-controlled crowd of people, passing in between them as they all stood perfectly still... their eyes were completely blank, faces emotionless.
To Amelia, it felt like nothing...just a simple display of her ability, another display of dominance. She walked with confidence, her boots grinding lightly against the pavement.
But to Minato, it was different. As they moved through the silent crowd, a strange heaviness crept into his chest. Watching so many people...helpless, unaware, completely defenseless...made something inside him twist.
He felt a small sense of dread.
How weak... how vulnerable the human species truly was. Compared to the Titans, the succubus, and the beings he had yet to face...humans were nothing.
At any given moment, they could be wiped out without even realizing it.
That thought lingered in his mind, slowly planting a quiet seed of doubt...
Can I really protect them when the time comes?
Can I save Earth... as a whole?
"No... don’t think like that, he scolded himself. You have the system... and Amelia."
But then another thought struck him...one that hurt more than he expected.
But when the time comes... who would she fight for? Me... or her own people?
Lost in thought, Minato didn’t even realize he’d stopped walking.
"Minato," Amelia called softly, noticing his distant look.
No response.
"Minato!" she called again, louder this time, her brows furrowing.
Still nothing from him.
With an annoyed sigh, she stepped closer and flicked his forehead...hard.
Stop it! You’re doing that face again."
"Ouch... what the hell, Amelia?" he flinched, snapping back to reality, rubbing his forehead multiple times.
She sighed, "Don’t make that face, it’s creepy."
Ohh... sorry..." Minato muttered under his breath.
Amelia turned to face him, looking him in the eyes. "Also," she said with a little smirk, "don’t apologize for nothing... It’s kind of a turn-off when a man does it."
Minato froze, blinking twice. "Wait, what?"
Before he could say anything else, Amelia stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him. The sudden gesture of her embrace caught him off guard.
"I..." she hesitated for a moment, her voice softening, "I understand how you’re feeling."
Her grip tightened slightly. "But at the end of the day, it’s just feelings. They change. So don’t let them get to your head... and cloud your judgment."
Minato stayed still, the world suddenly quiet around them.
"...Yeah," he said quietly, a small smile visible at his lips. "I’ll try."
Amelia slowly pulled back, her red eyes locking onto his. "Good," she said, a little blush coloring her cheeks pink. Then, almost instinctively, she reached out and brushed a bit of invisible dust from his hair.
"Because the last thing I need," she added softly, her tone halfway between teasing and sincere, "is my partner drowning in self-pity."
Minato chuckled briefly, rubbing the spot where she’d flicked his forehead earlier. "Partner, huh? That’s new... it has a nice ring to it."
Amelia looked away quickly, her face still a little pink. "Don’t get the wrong idea," she muttered. "I only said that because you’re still useful to me."
"Okay..." Minato replied with a teasing grin.
"Jeez... you’re annoying..." she said, folding her arms and refusing to look at him.
"What did you want me to say?" he asked, still smiling.
Before she could respond, an audible noise echoed in Minato’s ears as the red highlight of the system windows appeared in front of his eyes.
============================
[DING]
[THE ETERNITY SYSTEM HAS COMPLETED CALCULATING HOST REWARDS...]
Amelia tilted her head slightly, arms still crossed. "You went quiet again."
"System stuff," Minato muttered, rubbing his jawline.
"Oh...okay," she sighed.
==========================
[DING]
[CONGRATULATIONS HOST! YOU HAVE EARNED THE TITLE: BERSERKER
REASON: FOR FIGHTING AND DEFEATING A BEING TWICE YOUR CURRENT RANK!]
________________________________________
↓↓
[THE ETERNITY SYSTEM]
[NAME]: MINATO KATANA
[RACE]: HUMAN/VAMPIRE
[RANK]: E – D → [D]
[CLASS]: SUMMONER → TRUE SUMMONER
[TITLE]: VAMPIRE MASTER/ BERSERKER.
============================
↓↓
[ABILITY REPORT]
YOU HAVE UNLOCKED A TOTAL OF 6 NEW VAMPIRE ABILITIES
ACTIVATING ABILITY LIST...
==============================
[BLOOD CONTROL] [E] → [D]
→ Host can now create Blood Puppets (Lvl. F–E) (NEW)
→ Precision and manipulation range also increased.
(Upgradable by ranking up.)
__________________________________
↓
[BLOOD BOMB] [D] (NEW)
→ Host can infuse volatile energy into condensed blood for explosion-based attacks.
(Upgradable by ranking up.)
_________________________________
↓
[NIGHT VISION] [E] → [D]
→ Sight adapted to complete darkness.
→ X-RAY VISION unlocked (NEW)
(Upgradable by ranking up.)
_________________________________
[REGENERATION] [E] → [D]
→ Healing time significantly decreased.
→ Host’s skin density increased; minor projectiles no longer pierce easily. (NEW)
(Upgradable by ranking up.)
______________________________________
[VAMPIRIC WINGS] [NEW]
→ Manifest spectral bat-like wings capable of short-distance flight.
→ Energy cost: Moderate.
(Upgradable by ranking up.)
_______________________________________
↓
[VAMPIRIC BERSERKER] [C] (NEW)
→ When host HP falls below 10%, all attributes multiply by 5x.
→ Duration: 5 minutes.
→ Aftereffect: Exhaustion debuff (–50% stamina recovery for 50 mins).
______________________________________
====================================
"Wow..." Minato suddenly shouted as his eyes darted over the new ability list.
He scrolled back up once...then again...just to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating.
"This is OP... as fuck!" he shouted, grinning weirdly. "I don’t know who gives these rewards, but I love them."
"Congratulations..." Amelia said softly, reaching out to ruffle his hair. Her fingers brushed lightly through it, her tone more feminine and warm. "You’ve earned it."
Minato blinked, caught off guard. "Thanks," he muttered, scratching the back of his neck.
Amelia’s lips curved into a teasing smile. "So... why don’t you show me what you’ve got?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Here? With all these people around?" He gestured to the motionless crowd still frozen under her mind control.
Amelia chuckled softly, stepping closer until her red eyes met his. "Don’t worry," she said, her voice smooth and filled with confidence. "They won’t wake up. Not while I’m here."
Minato sighed, glancing around before looking back at her.
She added, crossing her arms with a smirk. "Now quit stalling, asian. Show me the power that made you scream earlier."
"Fine," Minato exhaled deeply, his eyes started glowing bright red as his blood aura started to rise. "Stand back!"