Is it Wrong to Copy Abilities in Apocalypse?

Ridha wasn't aware that she was being judged. She was just speaking her mind, not knowing that a single lie could cost her life.

"Hm, no. I didn't give her a chance to."

So, she was a bit surprised when she saw Alex lowering his bow right after she gave him the answer. It was as if he was more worried about something Sonam knew than the fact that there was a strong person capable of harming him standing right in front of her.

What she didn't know was that Alex, with his Thunderveil step, could kill her even before she could tell what had happened. He was way too strong compared to what other people knew.

"Why are you here?"

Alex's questions, however, didn't end there as he went on, finally inquiring about Ridha's objective, causing a weird silence to envelope the area.

Ridha knew that this question would come, but she wasn't expecting it so soon. She had yet to prepare a perfect answer to that question.

But as she saw Alex's brows creasing, she knew that she didn't have a choice. She had to answer right now, or things might not go the way she wanted them to.

Well, she should've expected this, as the one in front of her was Alex; how could he entertain her with some ideal chitchat?

"I-I have a proposal."

She began, shuttering in uncertainty. This was the first step, and she wished that Alex would at least listen to her, or everything would be for naught.

Alex, on the other hand, squinted his eyes, frowning a bit. He wasn't someone who would just accept whatever one told him to, but he saw the messages of the gods, urging him to at least give her a chance.

'Why is she silent?'

What he didn't understand was that the certain god had once again gone silent. She spoke nothing on the topic related to Ridha, as if she were avoiding those topics, which confused him more than why the gods wanted him to give Ridha a chance.

"What is it?"

However, looking at the atmosphere, which was turning awkward as the moments passed, and the way Ridha was fidgeting, Alex questioned, intending to extend the conversation.

Ridha's eyes widened in elation as she heard Alex's answer, but she hurriedly composed herself as she needed to think of what to say now. In the hurry, she failed to notice the silver glint that flashed past Alex's golden eyes.

[[Name: Ridha Negi.

Race: Human.

Title: Goblin Slayer (Uncommon), Determined Hardworker (Uncommon).

Coins: 24,086.

Sponsor: The Flame of Wars.

Stats:

→ Strength – Level 30 (Tier 1)

→ Defense – Level 33 (Tier 1)

→ Agility – Level 32 (Tier 1)

→ Stamina – Level 30 (Tier 1)

→ Mana – Level 33 (Tier 1)

Skills:

→

Wildfire Abyss

(Mythical) (Level 5—Tier 1) – The Wildfire Abyss is a primal force of nature, a flame born from the untamed core of the world. It is said to thrive on chaos, disorder, and destruction.

– Scorching Rejuvenation - An ability to heal your wounds with the help of the flames, but the more severe the wound is, the more pain one would feel when healing it as it burns wildly, even over the wound.

– Infernal Frenzy - A cloak of fire covers the user, sending them into a frenzied state where their physical prowess is boosted while making them a bit wilder, along with the power of a ferocious fire covering them.

– Crimson Maelstrom - A storm of fire that only grows stronger the more it burns, and with every passing 10 seconds, it would explode once, sending a wave of flames over those who are close by.

– Beasts of Flames - An ability that lets you summon beasts made of undying fire, capable of many things that are developed depending on the user. (Locked)

→

Berserk Art

(Epic+) (Level 2—Tier 1) – A battle art created for the sole purpose of mass slaughter, with the user's blade not looking for any friends in battle.

– Mad Slaughter - Your weapon becomes your only focus as you kill anything and everything in your surroundings, increasing your power with every kill, but once a certain threshold is crossed, you start losing your sanity, so be aware.

– Vitality Hunger - This can only be activated once every 100 minutes, enabling the user to take away a huge chunk of their enemies' powers, which depends on the number of hits they could land on their enemies in the span of 10 seconds. But be aware: Although this ability strengthens the user physically, it drains them magically.

→

Dagger Art

(Uncommon) (Level 1—Tier 1) – You are learning the way of a dagger, and although your path is a bit unique, it is still the way of a dagger.

]]

'That was... unexpected.'

This was all Alex could say after he saw Ridha's status screen.

She looked so ladylike, serene, and calm, yet her abilities said the opposite, making it hard to guess what her true nature was. Maybe it was like she had developed a second personality to go by in the apocalypse, or it was just within her since the start, and she had kept it hidden quite well.

The AI had told him that the abilities one gains are most of the time related to one's past actions.

As for her abilities, well, in all honesty, if one were to ask which skill he had found to be the most dangerous, it also implied that it was the most useful ability for his opponent, Wildfire Abyss.

This ability had healing powers, ranged attack protection, physical augmentation, and destruction capable of destroying everything in its path.

Alex had yet to see an ability with so many uses other than this one. It was as if this ability was made for cases when the user is forced into a long fight with a lot of opponents.

But Alex didn't have much interest in that ability with how he was right now.

As of now, Alex had a healing ability, which, unlike the pain Wildfire Abyss promised, was way calmer, and the destruction of that ability was not something Alex would want as he already had an ability for mass destruction.

What interested him was the second ability of Ridha.

The berserker art.

It was an ability ranked as Epic+, as powerful as a legendary ability. It had its downside as it sapped away the sanity of the user, but Alex didn't have much interest in the first ability of this ability.

He was interested in the Vitality Hunger ability.

Its ability to take chunks of the enemy's power was what made it so good in Alex's eyes. And the fact that the amount of power he could take away, although temporary, was still directly proportional to the number of hits he could land in the next 10 seconds of the skill being used.

10 seconds. That was a long period for Alex, who could land more strikes than anyone else with his power with a single use of his Thunderviel Steps.

That was why this ability was best for Alex, especially when Alex was fighting against opponents with a huge power difference. He could take them by surprise, taking away a lot of their powers just as the fight starts.

It was true that he couldn't use the Thunderviel Steps often, but he didn't need to use it many times; all he needed was one use to take down an opponent with a much higher level.

'I want that ability.'

That was why Alex asserted that he needed it, and his words, which were directed at the AI, caused it to start analyzing the condition.

<...>

"I want to hire you."

As Alex waited for the AI's response, which for some reason seemed intentionally staled to Alex, Ridha finally spoke.

She had been thinking of the best way to get this done, and she couldn't help but get this same conclusion every time.

This was the best approach she could think of after observing Alex's moves until now.

Alex, on the other hand, although a bit surprised by her words, was bewildered by the copy condition he had just received.

He finally understood why it seemed like the AI was intentionally staling the response as it really was. The copy condition, although simple, was absurd at the same time.

<Copy Condition: -

Help her fulfill the only wish she has.>

It was simple if one wanted to know the meaning of it, but if one looked at what it could mean in an apocalyptic world, then it was an entirely different thing.

Her wish could be that she wanted to live—she wanted to survive the apocalypse. Would Alex have to keep on protecting her till the apocalypse was over just so that he could gain that one ability of hers?

What would it matter even if the copy condition was fulfilled after the apocalypse was over? What would he need the ability for when the apocalypse had passed?

In the end, Alex decided to not look at the copy condition for now. He would rather focus on what Ridha wanted.

"Hire for what?"

That was the question he asked Ridha, as his eyes squinted and the bow in his hands clenched, waiting patiently for Ridha's reply.