CHAPTER 10: NEW SKILLS

Ignoring the laughter around me, I took a steadying breath and opened the small pouch of bullets the old man had included with the shotgun. These weren’t cheap by commoner standards, but ten copper coins per round wasn’t going to bankrupt me... yet. I had bought a decent amount earlier, thinking ahead.

After seeing how the System allowed skill leveling, I had one goal today:

unlock some kind of firearm-related skill.

Anything — gunslinger, marksman, firearm control — whatever existed in this world.

Archery skills were out of the question. With my pathetic Strength stat, drawing a bowstring properly would probably dislocate my shoulder.

But getting a new skill wasn’t guaranteed.

You had to repeatedly perform the same task until the System recognized it.

For some, that took hours.

Others? Days.

And the really unlucky ones... months.

I really hoped I wouldn’t fall into the last category.

"Well then, let’s begin."

And so began my hour-long showcase of embarrassment.

The first few attempts were disasters.

The recoil punched harder than I expected, and I ended up flat on my back multiple times. The shotgun wasn’t a toy; it demanded strength even to fire properly.

Snickers echoed each time I fell.

I clenched my teeth and kept shooting.

After about ten wasted shots, I managed to stay on my feet.

A small victory. But...

The bullets still never touched the target.

In fact, they weren’t even landing near it. My aim was so off that even the archery dummies seemed to pity me.

Eventually, the laughter died down — replaced by irritated glares.

Right.

Because the shotgun wasn’t just embarrassing.

It was loud.

Every. Single. Shot.

"BANG!"

Heads snapped my way each time. Archers lost focus. Mages nearly miscast spells. The noise shook the area, and the complaining soon followed.

Finally, an instructor marched over with a strained expression.

"Cadet Lucien, please refrain from using that weapon during active training hours. You may return when no one else is present."

Was he serious?

Come when no one is around?

This was the Imperial Academy training ground. Someone was always here.

Was he telling me not to come back at all?

"This is discrimination..." I muttered, mostly to myself.

But complaining wouldn’t do anything.

I swallowed down every insult that tried crawling up my throat and nodded politely instead.

"Yes, instructor."

I packed up and left without further comment.

As I walked, I glanced at the private training facilities — beautifully maintained, soundproofed structures where the academy’s elites trained. Kael and his group probably used them like personal gyms. Meanwhile, I was being kicked out for making noise in a shooting range.

Of course.

I let out a tired sigh and made my way toward the exit.

"Looks like I’ll have to find a private training spot in the city..."

Great. Another expense.

Because apparently, being a villain came with a price tag.

*****

"BANG."

"BANG."

"BANG."

"THUD!"

My arms finally gave out and I collapsed onto the padded floor, shotgun dropping beside me. My hands were numb and trembling from the recoil. Sweat soaked through my uniform jacket.

Three hours.

One hundred and twenty bullets fired here.

Forty fired earlier at the academy.

A grand total of one hundred and sixty rounds today.

The math was depressing.

One gold coin equaled ten silver coins, which equaled a thousand coppers.

Bullets were ten coppers each.

One hundred and sixty bullets... that was 1 gold and 6 silver.

Add the rental of this private training room — two silver coins per hour for three hours.

Total: two gold and two silver coins spent.

Two gold coins.

Vanished.

In a single afternoon.

Money flowed out of my hands like sand through clenched fingers.

And yet, despite the soreness, the ringing in my ears, and the financial pain stabbing my heart... a grin spread across my face as I opened my status window.

*****

Name: Lucien Ashborne

Age: 16

Gender: Male

Race: Human

Affiliation: Imperial Academy / House Ashborne

Strength: 5 (+1)

Agility: 4 (+1)

Endurance: 5 (+2)

Intelligence: 12 (+6)

Mana: 4

Charm: 63

Skills:

Mana Control Lv. 5 ↑

Horse Riding Lv. 3

Basic Etiquette Lv. 4

Intimidation Lv. 3

Cooking Lv. 7

Marksmanship Lv. 1 — Grants improved aiming stability when using firearms.

Detection Lv. 1 — Allows enhanced focus on and tracking of distant targets up to 200 meters.

Points: 250

System Shop: Locked

****

Two new skills directly related to guns.

This alone made everything worth it.

And there was one more detail I had overlooked. Earlier, the System Shop showed only "Currently Unavailable." Now it displayed "Locked."

It meant unlocking was possible.

I tapped it.

[ Unlock System Shop ]

[ Cost: 50 Points ]

[ Confirm ] | [ Cancel ]

Whoever designed this system was a black-hearted capitalist.

Charging the user to even unlock the shop menu?

But... it could upgrade my skills and improve me faster than any training. I couldn’t even bring myself to complain anymore.

I hit confirm.

The shop interface opened slowly, and I waited with cautious excitement for the list of items to appear.

One item appeared.

Just one.

A single icon, shaped like a bullet.

Not disappointed.

Actually, this was perfect.

I tapped it.

The menu expanded into a list of ammunition types.

[Mana Bullet]

A bullet enhanced with mana to increase destructive force. Can break through magical barriers and penetrate tough materials.

Cost: 5 points each

There were different variations too — exploding rounds, armor-piercers, elemental-tuned bullets, even ones that claimed to pierce dragon scales. Those were grayed out for now — locked behind high requirements.

But even the cheapest option was far stronger than any ordinary bullet in this world.

I exhaled deeply.

Finally... a clear path.