Chapter 54: Neo Clinton
"Hehehe…
"You must be shoc- shocked, right?"
He scratched his cheek.
"I'm the same as you. My world was destroyed b- by ■ and I suddenly woke up in this body."
…
Neo paused the video.
It glitched when Neo Clinton revealed the name of those who destroyed his world.
"I couldn't hear it."
He replayed the video from ten seconds ago and listened carefully.
…
"I'm the same as you.
"My world was destroyed b- by ■■ and I suddenly woke up in this body."
…
"Again?"
The video glitched and he couldn't hear the identity.
Neo bit his lips.
His world could have been destroyed by the zombie apocalypse.
Was it done by someone intentionally?
He had to know the answer.
No matter how many times he replayed the video, it would glitch weirdly.
Neo sighed and decided to watch the complete video.
…
"I- It must been hard, right?
"Trying to survive in a dying world only to die and wake up in a world with a horrible family."
Neo Clinton smiled.
"I... I don't know who you are. But run away and hide.
"You can't d- defeat them.
"No one can defeat them. "
He gulped.
"It really do-doesn't matter though. I will die, you will die, eve- everyone will die.
"S- still, I h- hope you will survive.
"This message is to warn you of something else.
"S-someone is after Neo H-Hargraves' life.
"The original Neo Hargraves and my predecessor were killed by that per- person.
"I don't know who it is.
"But.
"That pe- person will definitely come after you."
Neo Clinton took a deep breath.
"Please, survive for as long as possible.
"I d- don't want to be forgotten, so, please, live for me."
…
The video ended.
Neo put down his phone and massaged his brows.
"Someone murdered the original Neo and the other two people who possessed the body of original Neo?"
Despite receiving the shocking news, Neo kept his calm.
"I can't trust this video. It's too weird.
"It's entirely possible the original Neo found out about someone aiming for him life.
"Coupled with his weak personality, the shock might've made him insane.
"He started to think the story of two non-existent people possessing his body, and left the video behind not knowing someone would actually possess his body."
It sounded like a far-stretched theory to Neo.
However, it had a high chance of being correct.
After all, wouldn't Henry notice if his brother's personality changed three times?
And, if Neo Clinton was afraid of people forgetting him, he could've revealed he wasn't Neo Hargraves.
He didn't do that.
There were too many strange points in the video.
"Sigh…"
Neo burned the slip of paper on the kitchen's stove.
"I can't do anything either way.
"It's not like I can confirm the truth about the video."
He clicked his tongue and decided to focus on the task at hand.
The library was far from the Seraphim Hall.
Neo used the Akashic Record (Internet) app for the navigation.
It took him time to reach his destination.
The campus was horrendously large.
Neo smiled.
He didn't tire out after walking!
The breakthrough gave a nice boost to his physical condition!
He felt like tearing up.
The day, where he could run without feeling like dying, wasn't far off.
On the way, Neo checked his status.
[Neo Hargraves]
[Rank: Grade 4 Awakened]
[Divine Energy Purity: Grade 5 Mythic]
[Stats]
﹂Strength: 23
﹂Speed: 24
﹂Dexterity: 18
﹂Constitution: 16
﹂Luck: 0
[Affinity: Death, Shadow, Darkness, Void, Water]
﹂Magic Spell: Necrotic Touch, Ocean's Embrace, Essence Breath
[Bloodline: Monarch of Death]
﹂Unique Skill: Death, Immortal
[Quest: Barbatos' Training (Part 1)]
His stats increased by 7.
It was, as expected, a big jump.
When one's Rank increases, their stats receive a boost, but it is only a side effect.
Divine Energy pool and Unique skills are the ones that get a huge amplifications.
Neo could tell his Divine Energy reserves doubled after the breakthrough.
"I bet my skill got a huge—"
[Immortal]
[Exp: 0/150]
[Effect: You gain an extra life every 24 hours (Max Stack: 4).]
"What?"
"The stack increased by one."
"…"
"That's it…?"
Neo really wanted to cry.
He expected something like this to happen and it still made his heart break.
Unique skills upgraded in a linear fashion.
It is only when they evolve, that they change drastically. Like how 'Death' became 'Immortal'.
Neo reached the library with a heavy heart.
"Today is a holiday. The library is closed…."
The guard was about to tell him off until he saw Neo's clothes.
Ruler of the first years.
He bowed and opened the door.
"Welcome, Sir Ruler."
The library, while closed, could be used by special students like top 10 students or student council members.
"Now where are the books on Water element and Shadow element."
The reception was empty.
While Neo was trying to find a solution to his predicament, he noticed Percival and Amelia coming down from the second floor.
"Neo?"
Amelia noticed him first.
"Hmm?" Percival followed her gaze. "Oh my, if it isn't the suicide-loving first year."
They came up to Neo.
"What are you doing here?" Percival asked.
"Looking for books on Water element and Shadow element."
Percival smiled, half-shocked, half-surprised.
"You can already use Death and Darkness, and you are trying to use more elements?
"Wow, maybe I should call you the crazy suicide-loving first year."
"You'll confuse him if you explain it like that."
Amelia shook her head.
She turned to Neo.
"Sorry, he doesn't mean bad. He is just annoyed his tournament victor predictions were wrong."
"They weren't wrong, just slightly off.
"No one could've expected his defence Spell to be strong enough to survive the fall," Percival retorted. "Not even the great me."
Amelia ignored him like the air and checked Neo.
"Why are you outside? Your injuries shouldn't be healed already."
"They did." Neo released a bit of his Divine Energy. "I had a breakthrough."
Amelia and Percival understood he healed after the rank up.
However, they couldn't help but be surprised at Neo's attitude.