Cleaver Of Sin

Chapter 461: Yearbound

"The name of my ability is Yearbound," the Emovira began to speak. "Just like its name implies, it allows me to awaken a single ability every year." A faint smile appeared at the edge of the Emovira’s lips as it spoke of its ability, pride subtly woven into its tone.

Hearing the details of the ability, Finch’s eyes widened in pure shock. Awakening an ability every single year sounded outrageous to him, borderline absurd. It was, without exaggeration, an overwhelmingly powerful ability. Finch’s thoughts immediately spiraled out of control as his imagination ran wild, already envisioning the countless powerful abilities he could gain in the future. The sheer potential was enough to make his heart race.

"Quick, tell me what abilities you have now," he asked eagerly, unable to hide his excitement as the words spilled from his mouth. He already wanted to try them out, to feel what it was like to wield such power.

"Ehh... I only have two abilities at the moment," the Emovira replied, raising a hand slightly as though trying to temper Finch’s enthusiasm.

Finch froze. He stared at the Emovira in front of him, disbelief written clearly across his face. "What do you mean you only have two abilities?" he asked slowly. "Aren’t you a Rank 5 being? You’ve certainly been alive for at least a decade." His gaze sharpened, suspicion creeping into his eyes.

The Emovira let out a long sigh. "When Emovirae are born, we aren’t like humans who start from nothing and must awaken their power over time," it began patiently. "We are born strong from the very beginning. Some of us are born at Rank 2, some at Rank 7, some even at Rank 1. It’s completely random." It paused briefly before continuing, as though choosing its words carefully. "Though I suppose our birth rank is determined by how strong the emotions were that gave birth to us."

The Emovira stopped for a moment, allowing Finch time to process the explanation and follow its reasoning.

"I was born as a Rank 4 being," it continued calmly. "And within two years, I advanced to Rank 5. That is why I only have two abilities at the moment." With that, it concluded its explanation.

Finch nodded slowly. The explanation made perfect sense, even if it was something he had never considered before. He had never known that Emovirae possessed a birth rank. In truth, nobody really cared. An Emovira was an Emovira, if you saw one, you killed it. Their origins, growth, or circumstances were of no interest to anyone. Their birth rank had never mattered to him before.

"So... what is your first ability?" Finch asked, his excitement returning as quickly as it had faded. The thought of acquiring two new abilities still made his blood boil with anticipation.

"Before you start overthinking," the Emovira said evenly, "you should know that the ability I awaken every year is completely random. It could even be something utterly useless, like an ability that lets you learn how to walk, for example. Something you can already do." Its expression remained calm as it spoke. "So don’t get your hopes up every year. There’s always the possibility of awakening the most useless ability in existence."

Finch didn’t respond. He simply stared at the Emovira, silently urging it to continue. He was not foolish enough to believe that Yearbound granted world-shaking or life-altering abilities every year. If that were the case, the Emovira would never have ended up in its current situation.

"Well, my first ability is Shape Shifting," it said at last. "I can essentially transform into anything or anyone I have seen in my life."

As it spoke, Astra energy surged through its body. Its facial features began to distort, the horn on its forehead dissolving as if it had never existed. The scales along its skin vanished one by one, replaced by smooth flesh. Within seconds, the Emovira had completely transformed.

Standing before Finch was... Finch.

Finch stared, utterly dumbfounded. The resemblance was flawless. He slowly began to circle the Emovira, inspecting it from every possible angle, searching desperately for even the smallest inconsistency. He found none. The Emovira had transformed into him perfectly, down to the smallest detail, even replicating his clothes and attire.

"What do you think?" it asked, its voice identical to Finch’s own. Pride was unmistakable in its tone. "Useful, right? I escaped those adventurers by shape shifting. After that, getting away was easy."

Finch didn’t even hesitate. Ignoring the Emovira’s boasting entirely, he activated the Shape Shifting ability himself. In the next instant, his form twisted and changed, and he transformed into William. A wide grin spread across his lips as realization dawned on him. The possibilities this ability offered were endless.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. His Astra energy surged once more as he shape shifted again, but this time into a woman, a flowing gown draping elegantly over his transformed body.

"It seems you have a strange fetish," the Emovira remarked dryly as it watched him. "Even I, who possesses this ability, have never turned into a woman."

Finch coughed awkwardly and immediately reverted to his original form, his face flushing slightly with embarrassment.

"Are there any drawbacks or limitations I should know about?" Finch asked quickly, eager to move past the moment as he focused on the practical side of the ability.

"None worth mentioning," the Emovira replied. "If you run out of Astra energy, you’ll automatically revert to your normal form. Also, you must have seen whatever you want to transform into with your own eyes. Aside from that, there are no restrictions."

Finch nodded thoughtfully, then murmured, "Too bad we can’t gain the abilities of those we transform into." His gaze darkened slightly as his imagination wandered. If that were possible, he could simply turn into the Emperor, or even the Space Goddess, Cindralis herself.

"I had the same thought when I first awakened this ability," the Emovira said with a quiet sigh. "But it seems we can only imitate appearances. Nothing more."

Without wasting any more time, it moved on. "My second and final ability is called After Damage," the Emovira explained. "Its effect is simple. When you land an attack on an enemy, a second attack automatically lands. If you kick someone, a second blow follows. If you punch, another strike lands immediately after." Its eyes gleamed faintly as it continued. "As long as the initial attack connects, the damage is doubled. And even if your opponent becomes aware of this ability, it makes no difference. The second hit is unblockable and undodgeable."

Finch let out a low whistle. Who wouldn’t love such an ability? One attack dealing double damage, it was nothing short of divine. For him, it was practically a gift from the heavens.