My SSS-Rank Innate skill: Infinite Adaptation core

A black mask and hood concealed her head, clearly an attempt to hide her identity from everyone around her. Yet Nova recognized her in a single glance. He muttered under his breath,

”What the hell is she doing here?”

There she stood—Asia Frost—concealed within the crowd, carefully hiding her identity. She must have snuck out without her father’s permission. It was obvious; no noble would ever allow their precious daughter to venture into such dangerous battle.

Even though her rank was S, her level was still quite low. Nova wouldn’t have recognized her without his All Appraisal Eyes.

====================

Name: Asia Frost

Age : 15

Race : Human

Rank: S

Affinity: Ice

Level: 10

Stats:

Strength: 25

Agility: 27

Stamina: 24

Intelligence: 30

=====================

Hmm... she’s already Level 10. She must have worked hard, Nova thought. Most of the youngsters around him were below Level 5, with only a few at 6 or 7.

Of course, that was expected—they had all awakened recently. One couldn’t expect them to level up as absurdly fast as he did, which completely broke all common sense.

{You know most noble children don’t level up inside dungeons.}

”Hmm... then how do they level up?” Nova asked, curiosity piqued.

{They order high-level adventurers and mercenaries to bring half-dead high-level beasts to them. The children then deliver the final blow, gaining the experience and leveling up quickly. Think of it like this—the higher the level of the enemy you kill, the more experience you gain.}

”Well... that sure is handy. But this Asia doesn’t seem like that kind of person, since she has decided to come here herself,” Nova mused.

{Well, of course... Making the final blow may give you experience to level up, but it won’t grant you any real fighting experience. Your techniques would remain sloppy, and in an actual battle, you’d be practically useless.}

”Hmm... that makes sense,” Nova murmured. He decided to approach her, slipping through the crowd until he stood right beside her. Leaning in slightly, he spoke in a low tone that only she could hear.

”You know you shouldn’t be out here.”

Asia had been staring straight ahead, paying no attention to her surroundings, until Nova’s deep voice reached her. She turned sharply toward him and saw a tall, muscular young man grinning at her. She shot him a cold glare. ”What’s it to you? Mind your own business.”

After saying that, she turned her head away—until his next words stopped her cold.

”Hmm... I didn’t know the pretty girl I saw back then was so rude. Duke Frost would be sad knowing his precious daughter is here planning to fight in the beast tide.”

Asia’s face turned deathly pale beneath her mask. She jolted toward Nova, who had been expecting exactly this reaction. Without a word, she grabbed his arm and dragged him forcefully out of the line until they were standing in the narrow alley between two buildings.

Nova let her handle him, curious to see what she would do next. He could have easily overpowered her if he wanted. Surprisingly, she quickly drew a sharp dagger and pressed it against his neck.

”Who are you? How did you recognise me?”

”Whoa, whoa, calm down.” Nova raised both hands in a surrendering gesture, trying to soothe Asia.

”You might not recognize me since I’ve changed quite a bit from the last time we met. It’s me—Nova Valencrest, son of Knight Captain Edward Valencrest, who works for your father,” Nova explained in one breath.

Asia focused intently on him, searching his features. She trusted her sharp memory; even if she had only glimpsed his face briefly before, she remembered everything clearly.

”You’re lying... He looked skinny and weak. On the other hand, you look like this...” Asia said, her glare still threatening.

”Ouch... Yeah, I didn’t look like this before, but something happened that I can’t really explain logically, so—” Nova was cut off mid-sentence by Asia.

”Fine... I believe you.” She studied him for a moment longer. ”I have confidence in my memory, and you do resemble him quite alot .” With that, she pulled the dagger away from his neck.

”Now tell me, how did you recognize me? I was clearly hiding my full face and even my hair.”

”I recognized you from your beautiful blue eyes,” Nova said with a warm smile.

His words made Asia blush beneath her mask. She quickly turned her face away. Of course, Nova was lying—he had actually recognized her through his Appraisal skill—but he couldn’t tell her the truth though he was telling truth about her eyes.

Although Nova’s face hadn’t changed much, he had become remarkably handsome after his first Evolution.

So, hearing such a comment from him caught her off guard. Of course, she had many questions—how had he changed so much?—but she decided to save them for later. After all, they were still strangers, and Nova was clearly trying to hide it .

”Anyway, why are you here? Are you really planning to participate in the battle?” Nova asked, genuinely curious.

”Why do you want to know? Are you planning to tell my father about it?” Asia replied after composing herself, though her face remained hidden.

”Oh no, no... I was just joking with you. What would I even gain by exposing you to your father?” Nova said, denying her accusation.

”Since I can tell you’re not lying, I’ll tell you the truth,” Asia said. ”I’m here because my father won’t allow me to come. He says it would be far too dangerous.”

”But don’t you see? Other people our age are here too, and they’re all weaker than me. I want to participate in defending our city as well,” Asia complained, finally letting out everything she had been holding in her heart.

”Hmm... your father is right, though. It will be very dangerous, you know. And we still don’t know who is behind this or what they’re truly planning,” Nova replied.

”Hmph! Then why are you here? Aren’t you the same age as me?” Asia shot back, her rage clearly visible even through her masked expression.

”Well, my case is different... Let’s not talk about that,” Nova answered carefully, hiding his true reasons. ”If you want to fight, so be it. I’m no one to stop you. Besides, you’re already here—might as well fight alongside the others.”

Suddenly, a loud voice shattered their conversation. ”ALL MEMBERS OF FROSTHOLME HUNTERS, PAY ATTENTION! THE GUILD LEADER IS HERE!”

Nova instantly felt a powerful aura surging from the direction where the adventurers were gathered. He turned to Asia and said urgently, ”Let’s go.”

Asia nodded, and the two of them quickly made their way back to the line, slipping into their places among the Copper-ranks and standing side by side.

At that moment, Nova saw a man approaching the gathered guild members. He was tall and broad-shouldered, his body packed with powerful muscles.

A prominent scar marked his eye, and he had tousled brown hair. He wore a rugged leather jacket over black pants, with nothing underneath, leaving his muscular bare chest exposed.

An overwhelming, oppressive aura radiated from him. After emerging from the dungeon, this was the strongest man Nova had encountered so far.

Without hesitation, Nova activated his Appraisal Eyes to their fullest, eager to examine the guild leader’s stats.

=======================

Name: William Ashwood

Age : 45

Race : Human

Rank: A

Level: 190

Affinity: Fire

Stats:

Strength: 270

Agility: 271

Endurance: 269

Intelligence: 265

=======================

Damn... would you look at those stats? He’s Level 190... Do you think I’ll be able to beat him? Nova asked internally to Liya.

{You can. Your strength is already on par with his, and you still have free stat points left to allocate. Yes, you could even defeat him despite being significantly lower in level. That’s why you’re such an anomaly here.}

”Hah... that sounds cool,” Nova thought with a faint smirk. Anyway, do you think he’ll be able to recognize my real strength, even with my Monarch Mask skill?

{As I mentioned before, Monarch Mask is a special skill that can completely hide your true strength and aura, even in the presence of higher-level individuals. Though it won’t work against people whose levels are significantly higher than yours.}

Before Nova could ask Liya any further questions, William’s voice—amplified by mana—resounded across the plaza. ”Alright... everyone, pay attention to what I’m about to say.”

”The battle is going to start sooner than we expected. We had estimated that the mana barrier would hold until reinforcements arrived from the capital, but we’re out of luck.”

”As of now, the beasts keep increasing in number, as if they are being attracted to something within our city. Among them are several high A-rank beasts, and their total numbers are already in few thousands—and they continue to grow.”

”We have around 900 to 1000 fighters here, including all of you, with only a few people at my level.”

”I’m not trying to scare you. I’m simply being honest. This will be your last chance to back away from the battle. You may be able to survive until the reinforcements from the capital arrive tomorrow. You are not obligated to fight.”

The plaza fell into a heavy, tense silence. For a few long seconds, no one dared to speak, the weight of William’s words hanging thick in the air. Then, a single defiant voice shattered the quiet like a thunderclap.

”NO! WE WON’T BACK AWAY FROM THE BATTLE!”

Another voice immediately joined in, fierce and unwavering.

”YES! WE ARE FROSTHALL HUNTERS!

WE DON’T COWER FROM BATTLE!”

”EVEN IF WE DIE, WE WILL FIGHT!”

The chant ignited like wildfire. From the seasoned Gold-rank veterans to the youngest Copper-rank adventurers standing shoulder to shoulder with Nova, every voice rose in unison, echoing powerfully across the plaza.

”YES! WE WILL FIGHT!”

”WE WILL FIGHT!”

”WE WILL FIGHT!”

The roar grew louder and more unified, vibrating through the very ground. Their determination was palpable — raw, unyielding courage in the face of overwhelming odds. They would not run. They would not cower. Even if death awaited them, they would stand and fight.

Nova watched as a broad, proud smile spread across William’s face. It was clear the guild leader had anticipated this very reaction. He knew his people well — they were no cowards, and they had the heart to stare death in the eyes if the moment demanded it.

Thanks for reading...