Chương 304: Second Bloom

To begin with, I already knew that Rose's 'gift' as an otherworlder was to have a special system that melded with her magical talent. Resulting in her having access to a large amount of pre-made spells, including some that behaved more like system skills… As far as I knew, so-called 'system skills' were the stuff of legends for system fundamentalists.

Typically, if one was able to even view them, a system skill was a fully passive thing that no one cared about, as it was basically unnoticeable and acted the exact same as just learning to do something normally. So even if someone couldn't view the system in any way, shape, or form… They would still 'benefit' from it. Even if they didn't know the system existed. Of course, when system skills were mentioned, it usually referred to actual good stuff…

I unfortunately knew zero examples of such a thing, but they apparently existed, and if one was able to acquire some, they would basically be a saint amongst system fundamentalists. Regardless, what Rose had access to were all considered spells… She also had what Williams had once loudly exclaimed to be an 'inventory'. Which was definitely a handy ability to have, as it allowed my Rosie to stash basically anything away in the blink of an eye, which was probably very useful for a thief.

Alongside the inventory, she also had access to what I called 'improvement slots'. By placing something inside of them, that something would be repaired, enhanced, and infused with Rose's very own inner energies. As per my recommendations, she was keeping her two weapons of choice in there at all times. Whatever was in the inventory or slots could be brought out with just a thought, which was definitely useful in a fight. Especially for Rose, as she wielded a club and crossbow.

Meaning that if she started a fight with either, and the opponent either tried to move away from her club, or to close the distance to stop her from firing her crossbow–They would be met with a nasty surprise as long as she was able to properly react and plan. I didn't have many doubts that Rosie could manage, but as her instructor, it was my duty to train her to handle any possible situations she might find herself in. … I knew all about what her abilities were, but only before the mask and pool came into play.

I needed an update on everything, now.

"Alright, let's start calmly. Check out your system and the spells inside of it. Did anything change–Huh…"

"Did something happen, Mi–I mean… Mara?" I stepped up to Rose and slightly leaned forward over her shoulder for my eyes to be at the exact same level as hers.

"I can see your system panel… It might be because the pool was made from my own negative energy" It is certainly because of the pool. Can you interact with it? I reached out with one finger and indeed found myself able to directly interact with a system that wasn't mine.

"How odd…" I straightened my back and put both hands on Rose's shoulders as I stood directly behind her.

"Let's see those spells of yours" We were soon met with a poorly arranged list of spells. Mmh… Since I can interact with the system, do you think that you have more control over it as well? If so… Do you think you could rearrange this mess into something more sensical? Ah, organisation. My favourite pastime!

At a speed only a system like Nara could achieve, she somehow read every description of every spell, created several folders–As she called them–To organise every spell according to their main characteristic, and somehow built a freaking search function from scratch to further narrow down details if Rose ever wanted to look for something specific. Furthermore, Nara arranged the lists so that everything was easy to read and sift through.

It would appear that you and Rose are closely linked now, and since her system has no mind of its own and is just an automated extension of the Universal System, I am able to take control of it with ease… Maybe I could convert into a system that fixes other systems, heheheh… I mean… If you were able to do this to anyone, and not just people linked to me… Do you think we could just waltz into whatever place the system fundamentalists stay, and completely take over their organisation?

I feel like the ability to do something like this is pretty much a proof of divinity in their eyes. … I like that idea! I'll be practising messing with people's systems! Rose and I looked around the list of spells, and quickly found new ones. There were a bunch that were similar to already existing ones, but used negative energy instead of mana. Some used a combination of both energies, and finally, there was a folder made by Nara called 'Mimic Spells', and the reason for this name quickly became apparent.

The spells here were spells that clearly took after some of my abilities, but also abilities of my little sisters, Xlown, and even Coco. There were also a lot of greyed-out portions, indicating that many more spells could still be unlocked. Interesting… These spells look quite strong, and most of them are also accompanied by a cooldown or other similar limitations on top of the cost in energy for casting them… Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

As for the inventory and slots–They appeared unchanged. This only left the additions that the mask and pool had caused.

"Alright, I'll turn around. Since it seems like your presence vanishes when you aren't wearing the mask, I want you to hide somewhere, and I'll try to do my best to sense you in any possible manner. Ready?"

"Yes, Mara!"

"Good" I turned around and gave a few minutes for Rose to find a place to hide, and immediately, it was obvious that she was way stealthier than normal, as I couldn't even hear her steps at all. The moment my eyes faced the other way, it was as if Rosie had never even been in the room with me. When I turned around, Rose was nowhere to be found.

The senses of my 'Gynoid Form' were unable to sense her, so I tried the 'Base Form', which had sharper senses, but I was still unable to even feel a trace of Rose, even though her smell should have been hanging in the air nearby. I also tried my knightess form, as I had very sharp senses with it, but it failed as well, leaving only one form, which I had discovered was excellent at finding hidden enemies after rigorous tests and training.

Eventually, I transformed into the 'Wire Mess Form', I suppressed the blast of lightning that wanted to manifest the moment I changed form, and expanded the effects of 'Interference', which had the effect of expanding the natural aura of electrification granted by 'Static Presence'. Normally, those two abilities were intended for shocking enemies I wasn't even touching directly, or to mess with the normal working of any device or construct.

But as I had found out, by simply controlling it precisely and really focusing on this pseudo-aura of mine, I could easily find the presence of pretty much any being in the surroundings. I could sense how the weak charges of lightning interacted with everything, and due to 'Static Presence', which made everything a great conductor, I could sense people, as they weren't included in terms of heightened conductibility. In short, I could sense pockets that struggled to conduct my lightning.

Usually indicative that the 'pocket' was actually a living being. Nonetheless, it took me an odd amount of time to finally find Rose. I returned to my 'Gynoid Form' after a while and went to find my protégé, who had merely been standing still behind a pillar this entire time.

"I hope the lightning didn't hurt too much""It only tickled a bit…" I had indeed weakened the electricity to the best of my capabilities, but even then, the previous test subjects I had tested this on had not appreciated it one bit. I assume this is a consequence of her being infused with my negative energy. She's more resistant to me in the same way that a caster is usually more resistant to their own spells.

I fixed her hair, which had turned frizzy due to the static electricity, and led her back to the center of the room.

"My instincts tell me that this heightened stealth isn't the only thing you have while not wearing the mask. Any ideas what it might be?"

"Not really, no… But I felt something when I realised that you had found me, Mara""Oh? Then go ahead, try to use it""Mmh… I think it only works when no one is looking. I'll try it from over there!" Rose ran off behind a pillar, and I patiently waited for more than five minutes, until I felt something undoubtedly ghostly, and then heard Rose fall forward on her face as she lost her footing, but the thing was that it happened nowhere near the pillar she hid behind, but a few meters behind my back.

"Ouch…" Rose touched her face, but was surprised to see that despite falling face-first against the stone, her nose was fine, and that she didn't even feel much pain at all. I helped her up, as she excitedly began explaining that she managed to use the ability, and that her vision seemed to expand as she disappeared and found herself moving around at a much faster speed, as though she had been gliding just above the ground.

"I went to you, but you couldn't see me, so I understood that I was also invisible whilst using this ability, so I thought that I would go to the opposite pillar for a surprise, but the ability ended and I fell on my face…"

"I see… It sounds a lot like a warp, only that you were in full control over where you went. Were you able to phase through walls?"

"Nope, but I could bump into them harmlessly… Mmh… I found that out by accident""Interesting! That's a very good ability to go right alongside your superior stealth!" I cleared my throat.

"Why don't we give a name to your maskless state? Something like… Stalker Mode" I came up with it on the spot, but Rose seemed to quite like it. What a cutie. My hand ended up on her head before I even realised it.

"Let's test with the mask on, now" My protégé nodded enthusiastically and manifested a mask quite different from the blank or wooden one. It was some sort of potato sack that covered her head entirely, and which was tucked into the collar of her red shirt. Its face was quite threatening, with an odd design in the spot of the mouth that made it look like the sack had sharp teeth. It also had eye holes made in a way that made the bag look angry.

"Interesting design""It comes from a horror movie that I like–I mean, I don't think the movie was that good, but the design of the killer was great! I was hesitating between this and a pillow case with just one eye hole""Mmh… I'm afraid that I don't get what you are referencing, Rosie" What the hell is a movie? It is like a video, but typically long-format instead of reality. It is fictional and played by actors Huh… So… A theatre piece but in video format?

Pretty much The differences the mask brought were significant and very noticeable. I quickly felt how Rose became much stronger in pretty much all aspects. The mask and pool had already empowered her, as evidenced by her fall just now, which would have previously hurt her way more, but right now, I feel like a senior knight would hurt their knuckles trying to punch her. Also, Rose didn't seem to realise it, but she gained an aura. I was completely unaffected, but I could taste the terror in the air.

She emitted an impressively large aura of terror. Clearly, putting on the mask meant forgoing stealth entirely. Mmh… She can surely control it to some extent.

"Rosie. Let's start our first real training session now that you've been reborn"