Bab 83: Breaking the Shackles

Unsurprisingly, with such words coming out of Jekyll's mouth, Valyr could not help but raise his eyebrow in curiosity. In response, only one question came to mind, prompting him to open his mouth as he asked, "What do I get in exchange if I agree?"

Though, just as he finished asking this question, a sense of realization hit him, making his pupils shrink as he lightly shuddered in fear. After all, the man he had just responded to was too strong for the system to identify, his status screen being shrouded in question marks to Valyr.

Only beings with a 25 level disparity and above to the user would warrant that kind of treatment from the system.

Fortunately, although he was expecting the man before him to become furious due to the disrespect he had given, Jekyll instead let out a hearty laugh in response to the question. Looking at Valyr with a light grin, he opened his mouth. "Being wary may seem cowardly, but in situations like these, it's definitely the right attitude to have."

"Anyways, what do you get in exchange if you agree?" Saying these words, the grin on Jekyll's face grew wider.

"Well… how about a shot at inheriting my legacy?"

Not expecting to hear such words to come from Jekyll at all, Valyr's mind went blank for a moment, only to snap back in reality a few seconds later as he looked at the man in front of him in disbelief. As he looked at him, he could not help but think about what he had done to garner such attention from Jekyll, which only ensued more confusion to arise in his mind.

Noticing the confusion blatantly written all over Valyr's face, Jekyll went ahead and explained the entire situation. "Here's the thing. The cup guessing game you've gone through is actually the test I give to those who I think could inherit the legacy I have. However, out of all the people who have gone through the test, only a few have gotten past the second round, only to fail at the third round."

"And then, there's you." Pointing at Valyr, he continued. "Not only did you go past the second round, you even noticed the telltale sign I had given away during the third round and correctly guessed the cup that had the ball."

Listening to Jekyll's explanation, Valyr's eyes could not help but widen in slight shock. After all, from how he explained it, it seemed that Jekyll's limits was far beyond what he could fathom. "Wait… you're telling me the thing I noticed during the third round was intentional?"

"Yep." With a light smile on his face, Jekyll nodded before shuffling the cups between the two around. In an instant, the speed at which he shuffled the cups was far greater than the speed he had shuffled the cups during the third round.

Aside from that, Valyr could not find any telltale signs whatsoever during the shuffling, which only further worsened his chances of guessing the cup with the ball as the cups in front of him seemed to form a blurry blob.

With that, it was no surprise that Valyr had guessed the wrong cup after Jekyll was finished shuffling, making him look at the man in front of him with a renewed impression.

"So, wanna try your hand and see if you can inherit my legacy?" Jekyll asked once more, to which Valyr pondered over the question for a bit.

'Since I've already gotten the skills I needed, I could go ahead and just decline,' Valyr thought. 'But then again, I'm also quite curious to see and find out how it plays out, even though I don't know what might happen in the end.'

For the greater portion of his previous life, Valyr was one of those players who relied a lot on guides posted by other players in order to progress. In fact, it was only at the final version of Greater Beyond did Valyr rely less on the guides, eventually forgoing guides altogether as he became one of the scant few that fought at the frontlines during the final battle.

Thinking about it for a bit more, it was only then did Valyr realize that he had already been adapting to the situations thrown at him so far, doing incredibly well at adapting to the point he had become a legend in Astarto Village. If that's the case, then why the need to fear the unknown?

With that realization, a great portion of the shackles that had unknowingly formed ever since he entered the Silver Gambling Den quickly broke off, the same shackles that reminded him of his previous ways. Within seconds, the aura Valyr exuded had subtly changed, containing a bit more confidence than before, which did not go unnoticed under Jekyll's senses.

In fact, this subtle change made Jekyll smirk for a brief moment as Valyr let out a light sigh, his expression a bit more relaxed than before as he opened his mouth.

"Well, it would be rude for me to decline an offer like that, no?" Hearing the words that came out of Valyr's mouth, Jekyll could not help but laugh before nodding in agreement. "Though, it'd be great if you could give me the skills first. After all, I did succeed in passing your test."

"Cautious and confident at the same time. A good attitude to have." As an interested smile adorned Jekyll's face, a screen appeared before him, prompting him to interact with it for a bit as a string of notification sounds soon resounded in Valyr's mind.

Ding!

[You have completed the quest 'Jekyll's Test.']

[Your affinity with Jekyll has increased by 100 points. Current relationship: Acquaintance.]

[You have gained the active skill 'Astute Eyes'.]

[You have gained the active skill 'Astute Mind'.]

With the last two skills he needed for his Rank 1 class finally obtained, the slight anxiety Valyr felt wondering whether he would be able to ascend to the class he wanted had finally disappeared, his mind now as relaxed as it could be.

While a relaxed smile crept up Valyr's face while taking a look at the notifications he had received, Jekyll went ahead and moved the items he had brought out for the cup guessing game to the side, ducking under the counter once more to grab something else. After a couple minutes, a small box appeared on the counter between the two, which instantly caught Valyr's curiosity, making him wonder what was inside.

In response, Jekyll opened up the box, revealing an intricate set of cards that seemed incredibly out of place for a gambling den like the Silver Gambling Den to have. Seeing that he had caught Valyr's attention with the set of cards, Jekyll went ahead and posed a question to Valyr.

"Now, Valyr."

"Care for a game of blackjack?"