Skill Forge: Broken Extra Character

'I won't be able to fool him, huh? Maybe I should just come clean,' Jett thought. He hesitated before finally saying, "Well... umm, yeah, I can use Lumix."

Clarence's eyes widened with curiosity. "We're you born with it? How did you get it? You have to tell me. I saw a lot of it on you the other day. You have to reveal your secret.

How do you have so much Lumix?"

"Huh?" Jett blinked, slightly confused. "Wait, you can see it?"

"Of course I can," Clarence replied confidently. "I developed a skill that lets me see Mana, Aura, and even Lumix."

"That's quite an annoying skill. I really wanted to keep it hidden," Jett said with a sigh. "So, what now?"

Clarence stretched out his hand, and a golden, liquid-like substance materialized in the air. "Lumix is an energy born from one's understanding of the world around them and the synergy of Mana and Aura.

To those who hear about it for the first time, it's just another source of power. But to those who truly grasp its essence, it represents the perfect union of Aura and Mana."

He paused, letting the golden substance swirl before their eyes. "Mastering Lumix takes an incredibly long time, yet I've never heard of a child possessing it. Naturally, I'm eager to learn more."

"And that's why I kept it hidden," Jett admitted, his voice tinged with frustration. "I don't need the unnecessary attention."

"Well, you really don't have a choice now, do you? You're my personal assistant," Clarence said, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"You planned this from the start, didn't you?" Jett said, annoyance clear in his voice. 'It's irritating, but I can work with this.'

"What do you say, kid? Help me with my research, and I promise to keep it a secret. You'll also get special privileges," Clarence offered, a glint of enthusiasm in his eyes.

'It's not like I have a better option,' Jett thought, glancing at Clarence. 'Besides, I might benefit from this.'

*****

A week later, the time for the next trial finally arrived. On their stats screen, a new message appeared:

[Continue the Trial? Y/N]

This time, they were fully prepared. Each of them had a teleportation scroll, and their levels had increased significantly. They were ready.

With a flash of light, they were teleported back to the dungeon where Alok awaited them with a patient expression.

"You've returned," Alok said, his voice echoing in the dark space. Instantly, a new notification appeared:

[Trial Completion 1/14]

[Would you like to continue? Y/N]

Rey took a deep breath, his finger hovering over the screen. With a decisive tap on "Yes," the team was teleported once more.

*****

"Where am I now?" Jett wondered as he surveyed his new surroundings, a mix of curiosity and determination in his eyes.

Jett found himself in a small room, barely wide enough for him to stretch his arms. Each member of the team had been sent to a similar room, but each room contained only one person.

"We've been isolated this time," Jett muttered to himself, surveying the cramped space.

"What kind of trial is this? The last one was about teamwork, so what could…" Rey began to speculate, but his thoughts were cut off by a new notification.

[Trial 2]

[Objective: Reach x20 Gravity]

[Side: Endure the longest]

[Quit whenever you like.]

[Duration: Last Man Standing]

As Rey was still processing the objective, a message from his ring popped up.

-Rosa- "This seems more like a competition than a trial to me."

'Right, they did mention the message function for our rings at the entrance ceremony. I don't even think I've tried it yet,' Rey thought, glancing at the message. 'I guess it works here too.'

-Rey- "Yeah, I don't plan on losing to you though."

-Rosa- "Get real."

Rey pondered whether he should contact Jett but quickly decided there was no point. The message from Rosa was enough for now.

Just then, the gravity in the room began to increase.

[x2 Gravity]

"Gravity? That's the trial?" Rey questioned aloud, but then he remembered he was alone.

The gravity in the room became denser, pressing down on him with increasing force. His body felt the weight of it, and the air seemed to grow thicker as the pressure mounted.

As the gravity in each room increased, everyone immediately felt the oppressive force. Despite the discomfort, no one complained outwardly.

Rey grinned, "This is nothing."

Morrigan, struggling to adjust, said, "Easy for you to say. This isn't fun at all."

Marcella added, "She's right. I don't know how much of this I can take."

Evelina, trying to stay positive, encouraged them, "Just try a bit more."

They all used their rings as a medium for communication.

-Rey- "Hey Jett, you doing alright over there?"

Jett, on the other hand, didn't feel much of the gravity's effect.

Thanks to his series of skill combinations, he had acquired a passive skill, [Gravity Resistance], which reduced the impact of gravity-based attacks by 25%. Combined with his current stats, the challenge posed little to no him.

-Jett- "Umm, yeah, I'm fine. It's not that hard for me. At this rate, I might come out victorious." *It's been a while since I tried to be competitive. Time to show them up a bit.*

-Matthew- "Sorry, but victory will be mine, you guys."

-Aiden- "I don't plan on losing to you either."

-Finn- "Whatever, just make it till the end."

Finn was the first to forfeit, having had no intention of enduring the trial from the start. He was promptly teleported back to where Alok was.

"Good grief. Thank goodness leaving doesn't have a penalty," Finn said with a relieved sigh.

-Elora- "Just wait till I get my hands on you, Finn."

[x4 Gravity]

This time, everyone felt the increased gravity, except for Jett, who remained unaffected.

"This is getting a bit boring. I wish it could go faster," Jett remarked, a hint of dissatisfaction in his voice.

-Matthew- "This doesn't feel too bad."

-Morrigan- "Maybe because you're a freaking bodybuilder."

-Cedric- "It's really not that bad if you coat yourself in Aura."

-Marcella- "And how does that help someone who only uses Mana, huh? I give up."

Marcella was the next to quit, her frustration evident as she was instantly teleported back.

"This trial definitely has it out for magic users," Marcella said before disappearing.

*

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This might get a bit confusing but basically

having it in this format shows that their communicating with their academy rings

eg. -Rey- "---------"

Just think of it as their version of texting or group chats