The Hero System - Chapter 54

As the twilight seeped through every building of Cosan City, the mood became festive celebrating the spring. As a tradition for many years, everyone would gather at the Central Market as a form of local gathering. Right across the market, the Old District was much quieter by comparison.

Mia searched through her keys to get in. Turning the lights on, she put her bag on the worn-out table and headed to the kitchen.

Taking a few bites of her meal, she couldn’t help but find it tasteless. She wondered what her child was doing right now, hoping he wasn’t facing any troubles.

‘Mm Having a camp this time of the year, things are surely different from the time I used to be in school.’ Mia stood up and placed her plate on the sink before heading out.

Making her way through the deserted alley, she headed in the direction of the Central Market. However, suddenly, her blurry gaze sharpened as her body stiffened. Turning her head around, she was greeted with the empty alley.

“You’ve lost your skills, Mia.” A voice came from the direction ahead. Turning her head back, her body slightly shivered when she saw the man in front of her.

Dashing in a jade-colored robe, a blond man stood straight while letting the dim light illuminate his melancholic face. Even though a majestic aura enveloped his straight posture and sharp gaze, one couldn’t help but feel a sense of grief from his eyes.

“What are you here for?” Mia’s hands involuntarily tightened into a fist as she stuttered. Even though she tried to calm herself, a bead of sweat couldn’t but roll over her forehead.

“For you.” The man took a step forward but Mia took on backward. Seeing this, he halted his step and looked at her questioningly and asked, “Why did you run away? What happened at that time?”

Moments of silence followed as the pair continued to stand in the poorly lit alley. Mia had her eyes fixed on the ground while biting her lip in frustration. Countless memories flashed through her mind as her eyes began to slightly redden. She didn’t expect that such a normal day would end up being the one she would confront her past again. Seeing this, the man simply sighed and moved his gaze away. He already knew there are a lot of things he was kept in the dark of but was helpless against.

“How did you find me?” After a long pause, Mia asked again.

“Jonah has gone to Terra. I figured that you wouldn’t have known. It seems fate has played its tricks and the cub is back to its den.” The man laughed bitterly and shook his head.

Hearing this, Mia’s lips parted to say something. However, she couldn’t find the words to express how ironic she found her situation to be. Bitterly throwing everything away, she had sought to prevent her son from living in such a dangerous world. But in the end, without her knowing, things were the same. Tears brimmed in her eyes before disappearing and being replaced with a look of resolve.

“Even then, I won’t allow you to take him back to that house! Living there with those schemes and plots is not the life I want my son to have!” Mia’s body was still as fragile looking as it was, but the aura she exuded changed to one of overbearing.

Contrary to expectations, the man didn’t get angry. Rather, a nostalgic light flashed through his eyes as he remembered the woman he fell in love with. He was reassured that this shell couldn’t contain the Phoenix within, and would someday dissolve to release that dazzling being again.

“I understand. I came here to meet you because I’ve missed you and to warn you. According to my sources, Jonah has already met them. They should have also taken a note of his existence” The man’s face turned solemn as he stated.

Hearing this, Mia went into deep thought before slowly nodding. “Thank you.”

After a long pause, the man sighed again and turned around. “I shall always wait for your return. In the meanwhile, I’ll look after him. However, you can’t expect things to always be the same. After all, I still haven’t forgotten about you.” And like that, he disappeared.

Hearing his words, Mia’s heart stirred into a mix of emotions. All the past years couldn’t bury those feelings

“A storm is slowly brewing, and all of us will be engulfed in it. I have no choice but to start moving again.”

Throwing himself on his bed, Jonah couldn’t help but moan in comfort. After two days of bitter training, he was finally able to convince that old man to stop it. Truth be told, he didn’t mind picking up another profession. However, Calligraphy was an art and not that much profitable. Nonetheless, he wouldn’t mind picking it up as a second or third side-profession.

After stretching his body, he flung himself up and opened his profession menu. It was located right below his Skills and Techniques menu which made him quite expectant of it. He still hasn’t gotten a clear understanding of what difference it would make.

Taping ‘Professions’, a list appeared with two items on it. They were Calligraphy and Talismans’ Crafting. Clicking on Calligraphy, a list of the skills and techniques he learned appeared and each had a different mastery to it.

[Single-Handed Calligraphy (Beginner)]

[Beginner Calligraphy (Intermediate)]

[Petal Strokes Calligraphy (Apprentice)]

After seeing how quickly he picked up the Beginner Calligraphy, Mr. Ebro started teaching him the Petal Strokes Technique. Although Jonah was ‘gifted’, he still couldn’t pick it up that fast. Nonetheless, Mr. Ebro was still shocked by his progress. Judging by this standard, it seems the system would label the techniques he’s trying to learn but has yet to show a certain degree of proficiency in at ‘Apprentice’ level.

However, that wasn’t what caught Jonah’s attention. What left him stunned was the Upgrade button next to every skill and technique!

‘System, does that mean I can upgrade them?’ Hastily, Jonah inquired.

[Correct. The user can use Upgrade points to raise his professions proficiency.]

Even though he could only upgrade his professions skills, for now, Jonah was ecstatic nonetheless! With this, being literally a money making machine wouldn’t be an exaggeration! With this, Jonah opened his Talismans’ Crafting profession!