Starting With SSS-rank: I Get A New Skill Every Livestream

Chapter 271: New skill

"Commander? Commander."

"Ah, yes." Veronica snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of Timothy’s voice and turned toward him.

A pang of guilt rose in Timothy’s chest as he looked at her, even though he knew he had nothing to do with what had happened.

Still, he could imagine what she must have gone through.

The fact that she had survived an encounter with a Special Grade all by herself was nothing short of a miracle.

Whatever had happened during those few minutes before reinforcements arrived must have left her deeply shaken.

"It’s all over now, ma’am. The danger has been dealt with." Timothy said softly, struggling to find the right words to comfort her.

But the truth was far different from what he imagined.

Her disheveled appearance had nothing to do with fear of the battle itself. It was the result of the sudden appearance of the barrier, followed by being knocked to the ground and covered in dust.

Everyone assumed those marks were from a desperate battle.

If Veronica had truly fought the Special Grade head-on, dust would have been the least of the stains on her uniform.

"I am fine," she muttered. "I just need some time to sort out my thoughts."

Timothy nodded. "I’ll take care of the cleanup. You stay here and let the medical team examine you."

Veronica gave no reply.

She didn’t need to.

Leaving her alone with her thoughts, Timothy turned and began overseeing the cleanup operation.

Every Knull resident, whether weak or strong, left behind valuable resources after death.

The nails and skulls of Majins could be forged into powerful weapons. Ghoul skin was an exceptional material for armor, while their blood was highly combustible, making it an excellent source of fuel.

Those were merely the byproducts of ordinary monsters.

A Special Grade, however, was an entirely different matter.

Their blood, bones, and organs were far superior to anything harvested from lower-ranked creatures. More importantly, unlike lesser Knull residents whose bodies disintegrated after death, a Special Grade left behind its corpse intact.

At that moment, Timothy watched as the massive carcass was carefully loaded onto a transport truck.

His eyes drifted to the creature’s face.

The entire front of its skull had been brutally caved in, as though something unimaginably heavy had crushed it beneath overwhelming force.

One of its arms was also missing.

Fortunately, the recovery team had found the severed limb lying only a short distance away.

The battle occured within a pit that’s why, there wasn’t much destruction around. However, within the pit one could see what hell must have descended a few minutes ago.

"Looks suspicious, doesn’t it?" a voice called from his left.

Timothy turned and nodded politely. "Mr. Richard."

Richard was a member of Charlie Team, the squad stationed in this region. Like every other nearby unit, they had rushed to the scene the moment the emergency alert was issued.

The appearance of a Special Grade was nothing short of a catastrophe.

One creature alone was capable of reducing an entire city to ruins.

Every time humanity had caught a glimpse of the Aether World’s true horror, a Special Grade had been at the center of it.

They possessed enough strength to tear through every defensive measure the PSC had built to protect humanity.

The bitter truth was that mankind still had no technology capable of suppressing a Special Grade.

That was why their only option was simple.

Reach the location as quickly as possible... and pray they could contain the destruction before it spread any further.

"I mean, I know Commander Veronica is strong, but defeating a Special Grade alone, and doing it so... overwhelmingly? Doesn’t that strike you as suspicious?" Richard said, folding his arms. "Not to mention, it only took us seven minutes to arrive after she called for reinforcements. Even a squad of high-ranking officers would have needed more time than that."

Timothy frowned.

"What exactly are you suggesting?" he asked. "That the creature wasn’t a Special Grade? Or that the Commander didn’t kill it?"

Richard raised both hands in a placating gesture.

"Don’t get me wrong. I can still feel the lingering pressure from that thing. One look at the corpse is enough for even a rookie to recognize it as a Special Grade."

His eyes narrowed as he glanced toward the transport truck.

"I simply don’t believe the Commander accomplished this alone. Someone must have helped her."

Timothy nearly rolled his eyes.

"Oh, really? So you think the Commander is hiding that person’s identity just to claim all the credit?" His voice turned noticeably colder. "Even saying that out loud sounds ridiculous."

Richard remained completely unfazed.

"It sounds ridiculous to you because you’re emotionally attached to her." His gaze shifted toward Veronica in the distance. "But from where I’m standing, it’s obvious."

"Miss Veronica is hiding something."

.....

[Name: King’s Dominion]

[Rank: SS]

[Description: A skill that allows the host to completely suppress all emotions for a limited period, enabling perfectly rational decisions and the most efficient path toward any objective. While this state is active, all curses and poisons become completely ineffective against the host.]

[Usage: This skill can only be activated once every 24 hours. At its base level, it remains active for one minute. As the host grows stronger and gains mastery over the skill, both its duration and cooldown will improve.]

Kyle silently stared at the skill he had obtained after defeating the monster.

A state devoid of emotion.

No fear. No hesitation. No anger. No compassion.

Every trace of humanity would be pushed aside, leaving behind only absolute logic capable of making the coldest, most efficient decisions.

It was terrifying.

And yet... undeniably useful.

Situation where he needed to see the bigger picture rather than getting stuck in a moment of emotional conflict.

Yes, emotions were what makes human fearsome and sometimes help them push past their limits. However, at times, it was better to see what he could gain by losing something small.

Regardless of how he used it, Kyle knew it was useful.

"Haah...I wish to explore it a bit but..." Closing his eyes lay back down

And not so long after, he drifted into dream lands...exhausted beyond measures but that smile on