Chapter 232: Chapter 232 - Water Body?
Theo arrived at the address a short while later.
Standing before him was a luxurious estate hidden behind tall iron gates and thick hedges.
The moment he stepped inside, he couldn’t help but whistle.
’This is... insane.’
The mansion was enormous.
While it wasn’t quite on the same level as Elise’s estate, it wasn’t far off either.
There was a spacious courtyard outside, even having mana inscriptions written into the stones, allowing him to train at home now.
Inside, everything had been prepared perfectly too.
Every room was fully furnished, expensive decorations lined the halls, and there was even another private training room in the basement!
After taking a quick walk through the mansion, Theo couldn’t help but feel a warmth spread through his chest.
’She’d prepared all of this for me,’ he thought, clenching his fists. ’Thank you, Alia. I will make good use of it.’
Only a few hours later, all his belongings had been moved from the dorms to the mansion.
As night came, Theo sat on the edge of his new bed.
His eyes darted through the room, staring at the many inscriptions protecting it.
’It’s all set and done,’ he thought.
His gaze slowly shifted to the familiar system screen floating beside him.
[Cooldown: 00:01:12]
’Now I just need to wait another minute.’
As the room fell silent around him, Theo couldn’t help but smile.
It was the first time he truly had a place completely of his own.
And that alone was an amazing feeling.
’Owen might want to move in too,’ he thought, smiling. ’That’d make it perfect.’
He fell silent for a moment. ’I’ll go talk to him about that tomorrow.’
As the seconds ticked away, his thoughts no longer drifted around.
Instead, his full attention began to focus on the system screen.
[Cooldown: 00:00:32]
Theo subconsciously straightened his back.
Even after experiencing the system so many times, he still couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.
[Cooldown: 00:00:03]
Theo slowly inhaled.
’Let’s see what you’ve got for me this time,’ he thought.
Ding!
A familiar blue screen immediately expanded in front of him.
[Would you rather—]
Option A: Spatial Ring
Holds fifty cubic meters of space inside.
Option B: Echo Ring
Stores one of the user’s spells for instant release later.
Option C: Deep Ocean Umbrella — First Seal Release
Unlocks the first hidden ability sealed within the umbrella.
Option D: Clone Pendant
Creates a powerless clone of the wearer for ten minutes.
...
[Host may choose two options]
Theo’s eyes slowly moved from one option to the next.
’The rewards really have been getting significantly better,’ he thought, nodding slowly.
His gaze lingered on two options practically right away.
’A spatial ring with fifty cubic meters of space?’
That was practically as large as an ordinary house!
It’d definitely be a total game-changer since he could store tons of supplies alongside his non-system-obtained weapons.
’I could store the cores, equipment, and other valuables without having to fear break-ins...’ he thought slowly. ’Now that’s a tempting item.’
His gaze dropped to the next option he had his eyes on.
Only this time, he couldn’t help but frown.
’There was a seal on my umbrella?’
Theo reached out to the air in front of him.
The system space opened up right away and released his blue umbrella.
’I never noticed anything...’ he thought, observing it closely.
As he stared at it, another ripple of what appeared to be water swirled over its canopy.
Theo fell completely silent for a moment.
Looking back on it, he should’ve known there were abilities hidden inside.
’It’s a Diamond Core-grade weapon for crying out loud,’ he thought, twirling it in his hands. ’All of those have special abilities!’
Theo didn’t hesitate any longer.
Between all four rewards, only those two truly stood out to the point where the others simply couldn’t compete.
Without another thought, he reached out to the screen.
Tap! Tap!
Ding!
[Selection confirmed.]
[Materializing first reward now...]
Seconds later, a metallic object wrapped itself around Theo’s finger.
’That’s one,’ he thought, glancing back at the system.
[Unsealing first ability now...]
A bright blue glow shone through the room in an instant.
The light was so clear and beautiful, Theo almost felt like an ocean surrounded him.
Suddenly, the umbrella began trembling violently.
The water rippling across its canopy accelerated, spinning faster and faster until it resembled a miniature whirlpool.
Theo instinctively tightened his grip.
’Something’s happening...’ he thought, his eyes fixed on the weapon.
A faint cracking noise echoed from deep within the umbrella, as though invisible chains had snapped.
The light intensified for a second before slowly vanishing.
Just then, a system window popped up in front of him.
[Deep Ocean Umbrella has unlocked ’Water Body’ ability.]
[All rewards have been granted.]
Zap!
All the system windows vanished once more, leaving Theo completely alone with a glowing umbrella.
’Water Body?’ he thought, raising an eyebrow.
He jumped up from his bed and cracked his neck.
Filled with curiosity, his gaze landed on the umbrella.
’Let’s see what you really are,’ he thought, picking it up.
Unfolding the canopy, Theo closed his eyes for a moment.
As he thought about the ability, he began pouring mana into it, just like with his Shadow Cloak.
WHOOSH!
A watery noise filled his ears as over a third of his mana was sucked away.
Opening his eyes again, Theo instinctively looked at his hands.
Or rather...
Where his hands had been a moment earlier.
His arms had become streams of flowing water, constantly shifting, yet somehow still maintaining their shape.
And it wasn’t just his arms.
His entire body had completely changed into water.
Large gaps occasionally opened where his organs used to be, only to close up a moment later.
Not to mention, every droplet that fell to the ground somehow allowed him to see from another angle, as if it were still connected to his body.
’Oh fuck no!’ he thought, dropping the umbrella.
In an instant, his entire body shifted back to that of a regular human.
Only the disgusting and strange feeling hadn’t left his stomach.
’Who in their right mind enjoys something like this?!’
Even so, as the initial shock gradually faded away, another thought entered his mind.
His eyes slowly shifted back to the umbrella.
’If I can get used to it...’ he thought. ’Wouldn’t I be invulnerable to normal weapons?’
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