Ren woke up three days later outside the dungeon entrance. The System had apparently piloted his unconscious body out before shutting down for repairs.
He felt different. He looked down at himself in a puddle of rainwater.
The sickly, scrawny six-year-old was gone. He still looked young, perhaps seven or eight now, but the malnutrition was gone. His limbs, though slim, were defined with lean muscle. His face, once ugly and bruised, was now adorably handsome, with skin like porcelain.
But the biggest change was his hair. It was no longer just dull reddish-brown. It was a vibrant, shining ruby red, gleaming like spun silk even under the cloudy sky.
He looked like a noble’s porcelain doll that could snap a steel bar in half.
"System," he tested his voice. It was smoother now, less raspy.
[System online. Repairs complete. Host body stabilized at Tier 1. Seals re-engaged at 99.998%. Current usable mana capacity: Low E-Rank. Warning: Do not attempt dual activation again until Tier 3.]
Ren nodded. He had power now. Not much, but enough.
He couldn't go back to the village. Not looking like this. The "Crystal Breaker" returning as a beautiful, capable child would raise too many questions, perhaps even attract the attention of the Church or the Kingdom's mage hunters. They hated anomalies.
Ren turned his back on his home village. He felt a twinge of regret for his parents, but he knew he could help them better from the shadows once he established himself.
I need money. I need connections. And I need a new name.
He began walking toward the nearest trade city, Oakhaven, three days' travel away. He walked with the confident stride of a man who had stared down gods and negotiated with corporate sharks.
When he arrived at the bustling gates of Oakhaven, he pulled the hood of a cloak he'd looted from a dead adventurer in the dungeon low over his face, hiding his striking red hair.
The guard at the gate looked down at the small hooded figure. "Where are your parents, kid? Entry toll is two copper coins."
Ren looked up from under the hood. He didn't use his powers. He just used the gaze of Kaito Tanaka.
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"I am traveling alone to enroll in the junior academy," Ren said calmly, flicking two gold coins—found in the Goblin King's treasure pile—at the guard. A gold coin was worth a thousand coppers.
The guard fumbled and caught the gold, his eyes bulging. He immediately straightened up. "R-right this way, young master! Apologies!"
Ren walked into the city, the noise and smell of civilization washing over him. He smiled under his hood.
The board was set. The pieces were moving. The negotiator was back in business.
Five Years Later.
The annual Oakhaven Junior Combat Tournament was a noisy affair. It was established for commoners and low-ranking merchant children under twelve to showoff their skills, hoping to get sponsored by a noble house.
The arena was dusty, the crowd drunk and loud.
"And in this corner," the announcer bellowed, "The reigning champion for two years running, the Steel Boar, GASTON!"
A massive, twelve-year-old boy, built like a barrel and wielding a heavy axe, stomped into the ring, roaring to the cheers of the crowd.
"And his challenger..." The announcer paused, looking at the slip of paper in confusion. "An unknown registrant... entering under the name 'Zero'."
A silence fell over the crowd as a figure walked calmly into the center of the dusty ring.
He wore simple black leather armor that hugged a slim, deceptively delicate frame. A deep hood completely obscured his face, casting everything above his chin in shadow. He carried no weapon. He just stood there, hands relaxed at his sides, radiating an unsettling stillness amidst the screaming crowd.
Gaston laughed, swinging his axe. "Hey, little man! Got lost on the way to the nursery? I'll try not to chop you in half!"
'Zero' didn't respond. He just raised one hand and beckoned slowly with a single finger.
Gaston roared in fury at the disrespect and charged, the heavy axe swinging for a decapitating blow.
The hooded figure didn't shift his stance. He didn't even seem to tense up. Just as the axe blade was about to make contact, 'Zero' raised his index finger.
Ting.
A sound like tapping a crystal glass echoed through the arena.
Gaston’s massive axe stopped dead in mid-air, blocked by the tip of Zero’s index finger.
Gaston’s eyes almost popped out of his skull. He strained, pushing with all his might, veins bulging in his neck, but the axe wouldn't move a millimeter past that delicate finger.
Under the hood, Shinra Ren smiled. He wasn't using demonic force or angelic shielding. He was just using pure, condensed mana to reinforce his skin, a trick he’d spent five years perfecting in the deepest dungeons of the frontier.
"Your stance is terrible," Ren said, his voice smooth, calm, and heard clearly across the silent arena.
He flicked his finger forward.
The impact sounded like a cannon shot. The steel axe head shattered into shrapnel. The force traveled down the handle into Gaston, lifting the massive boy off his feet and launching him backward twenty feet out of the ring. He crashed into the stands, unconscious before he landed.
Ren lowered his hand and turned to the stunned announcer.
"Do I win?"
As the crowd erupted into shocked mayhem, a cool breeze blew through the arena, momentarily lifting the edge of Zero’s hood.
For just a second, a flash of brilliant, silky ruby-red hair caught the sunlight, shining like blood and jewels.
Question for the readers: What do you think of Ren's new persona, 'Zero'? Should he keep the hood on for a while, or is it time for the "Villainous Saint" to show his face to the nobility?
Reminder: If you enjoyed the time skip, please hit that Follow button and drop a Rating! It helps the story climb the rankings.
"I've just added a poll below! Ren is at a crossroads - should he stay in the shadows or step into the light? Your vote will decide the direction of the next arc!"
