Chapter 12 - A Shop That Sold Curses
Her name was Auntie Rook.
Nobody called her that to her face unless invited.
I was invited after I accidentally bought three curses.
"You said these were enhancement seals."
"They enhance suffering."
Mira laughed for an unreasonable amount of time.
Rook showed us the tournament bracket.
My first opponent was Brant Vale, Body Tempering 8, undefeated in thirty matches.
I was Body Tempering 3.
The system estimated my win probability at twelve percent.
Better than the Bone Pit.
Rook tapped the cracked sword.
"Feed it something it has never tasted."
"Blood?"
"Everyone says blood. Boring."
The system showed a hidden panel.
[Broken Sword hunger: LOSS]
I understood.
The blade had been broken in battle and discarded.
It did not want victory.
It wanted the thing that created it.
I entered a back-alley challenge ring that night and deliberately lost six fights.
Mira called me an idiot after each one.
The sword absorbed every defeat.
By midnight:
[Broken Sword → Grief Edge]
[Rank: Uncommon]
[Skill unlocked: Borrowed Failure]
[Effect: Recreate one mistake observed in an opponent.]
I smiled through a swollen lip.
Mira stared at the blade.
"Your system rewards losing now?"
"Only if I do it professionally."
A runner arrived from the tournament office.
He handed me a sealed challenge notice.
Brant Vale had withdrawn.
My new first opponent was Jace Thorn.
Iron Lotus had entered him in the tournament under guard.
May you like
Execution postponed until after he killed me.
