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Chapter 47: Secret
Having successfully cured the Poison Worm venom, Tsuna was called into a private tent by Finn, Gareth, and Riveria.
"I truly cannot express my gratitude enough," Finn said, bowing his head deeply. "Please allow me to thank you once more. Thank you."
"N-No, really... it wasn't that big of a deal..." Tsuna stammered, holding his hands up defensively as Riveria and Gareth bowed alongside their captain.
"There's no need for humility," Finn smiled. "During this expedition, you shielded us from the enemy's magic."
Finn recalled how Tsuna had thrown himself into the line of fire to absorb the Demi-Spirit's Super Long Chant fire magic.
"And more importantly," Finn continued, "that skill of yours—the one that absorbs magic and converts it into your own power. Without it, who knows what would have happened to us, much less you."
"Yeah, you're right..." Tsuna rubbed the back of his neck. "If I hadn't realized I had that skill, things would've gotten really bad..."
"Hm!?"
"Huh!?"
Finn, Riveria, and Gareth all froze, their eyes wide with disbelief. Seeing their shocked reactions, Tsuna flinched, wondering if he had said something wrong.
"Wait... Are you saying you didn't know about your own skill!?" Finn asked, bewildered.
"U-Um, yeah... I noticed something was weird when I fought that guy Ottar, but I only realized it was an actual skill when I fought that Blue Crab..."
"Impossible..." Riveria muttered.
"Aye... I can hardly believe it..." Gareth groaned.
The fact that Tsuna had to discover his own skill through trial and error left the two veterans utterly baffled.
"Well, this actually ties into why we called you here," Finn said, regaining his composure. "We wanted to discuss your situation."
"My situation?"
"Yes. Returning to the topic at hand—normally, when a skill or magic manifests, an adventurer learns about it when their God updates their Status. Discovering it entirely on your own is practically unheard of. The fact that you didn't know means your patron God likely hid it from you. Probably because it wasn't just a normal skill, but an exceptionally rare one."
Finn deduced that Hestia had kept it a secret out of concern for Tsuna's safety.
"Is my skill really that rare?" Tsuna asked, tilting his head.
"For starters, Bete is the only adventurer I know capable of absorbing magic," Riveria explained to help Tsuna understand his own worth. "And even then, Bete relies on a specific pair of boots to do it. As far as I know, there isn't a single adventurer who can absorb magic using their own body. Let alone someone capable of converting that absorbed magic into their own power—that is simply unheard of."
"It's not just your magic-absorbing skill," Gareth chimed in. "You have flames capable of curing Poison Worm venom. Coupled with your overwhelming combat sense. If the rest of Orario learns of your existence, every Familia in the city will try to get their hands on you. And they won't care what methods they have to use."
Gareth knew the dark reality of their world. A rookie with a rare skill and Tsuna's level of raw power would never be left alone.
"What do you mean by 'any methods'?" Tsuna frowned. "I thought once you join a Familia, you can't transfer to another one for at least a year?"
"Normally, yes," Finn nodded. "But there are exceptions to that rule."
"Really?"
"The first exception is if the God of your current Familia is sent back to Heaven. The second is if you are won in a War Game."
"War Game?" Tsuna repeated, completely unfamiliar with the term.
"Simply put, it's an official proxy battle between Familias," Riveria explained. "The Gods decide the format of the match, and the winning God claims the agreed-upon prize. Since a War Game is a formal, Guild-sanctioned duel, it's a legitimate way to poach talent from another faction."
"However," Finn warned, his expression darkening, "there are Familias who will resort to brute force and violent coercion to steal the talent they want, fully prepared to accept any penalties. There have been countless cases like that in the past."
"They'd go that far...?" Tsuna swallowed hard.
"Capable talent brings in money, elevates prestige, and attracts even more personnel," Gareth added. "That grants them higher status within Orario and minimizes the risk of losing future War Games. Granted, only Familias with significant financial backing can afford to pull stunts like that."
Tsuna finally understood the gravity of his situation. There were dangerous factions out there willing to do anything to get what they wanted.
"That is why you shouldn't make your power public," Finn advised. "I'll instruct everyone on this expedition not to speak a word of your abilities to any third party."
"Thank you."
"And I know it's not exactly my place to say this, but... if you reach the requirements for a Rank Up, you shouldn't do it yet. When an adventurer ranks up, they have to report it to the Guild, which makes their name and the time it took them to level up public knowledge. If the entire city finds out a rookie who just arrived in Orario leveled up so quickly, you'll draw the attention of every major Familia."
"Got it."
Well, it's not like I can Rank Up anyway... Tsuna thought. Ouranos had already strictly forbidden him from updating his level, so he couldn't do it even if he wanted to. Still, he nodded earnestly to avoid raising any suspicions.
"Ah... but I fought some people from the Freya Familia a while ago. Maybe that's bad...?"
"You don't need to worry about them," Finn assured him. "They have a criminal record for attacking Ais. They won't go around spreading rumors about you and risking exposure."
"Oh, thank goodness..." Tsuna sighed in relief, glad that the Freya Familia wouldn't be plastering his face all over town.
"Finn," Gareth interjected, "shouldn't we tell the lad about the Status Thief?"
"Right... that was careless of me," Finn frowned.
"Status Thief?" Tsuna blinked.
"As you probably know, Statuses are locked by the God who bestowed the Falna so that others can't read them—" Finn began.
"Wait, really!?" Tsuna gasped.
"Huh!?" The three executives stared at him.
"Did your patron deity not explain this to you!?" Gareth demanded.
"N-No... she didn't mention anything like that... I could see Bell's Status perfectly fine on his back, so I thought that was just how it worked..."
"Are you telling me his patron deity doesn't even know...?" Riveria pressed a hand to her forehead, a massive headache forming. To think a deity was ignorant of basic Status locking procedures was beyond belief.
"Statuses are written in Hieroglyphs," Riveria explained with a weary sigh. "Generally, only Gods can read them, but there are some mortals who possess the ability to decipher them. You need to tell your Goddess to lock your Status the moment you return."
"Y-Yeah... I'll do that..."
If Finn hadn't brought this up, Tsuna's ridiculous stats and abilities would have been exposed the moment someone looked at his back. He made a mental note to tell Hestia immediately.
"Anyway, back to the topic," Finn said. "Normally, a locked Status is completely hidden. However, there is a drug capable of forcibly unlocking it and revealing the information. It's called a Status Thief."
"Though it's strictly an illegal item," Gareth added. "You won't find it sold through any official channels, so you won't see it out in the open."
"Phew... that's good..." Tsuna relaxed slightly, glad that such a terrifying item wasn't just sitting on a store shelf.
"No... that's exactly why you shouldn't relax," Finn corrected him.
"Huh?"
"The Status Thief is sold right here on the 18th Floor. In the Town of Rivira."
"Ehhhh!?" Tsuna shrieked. To think the item was being peddled in the exact same location they were currently resting in.
"Like I mentioned before, Rivira operates entirely outside the Guild's surveillance," Finn explained. "It's run by a man named Bors, but compared to the surface, it's practically lawless. That's why illegal goods that can't be traded in Orario flow freely down here."
"That's super bad!! What do I do!?" Tsuna panicked, grabbing his head in distress.
"Calm down. Like I said, goods in Rivira trade at several times their surface value. It's not something a normal person can just casually buy. As long as you don't cause a scene and draw attention to yourself, you'll be fine."
"Oh... thank goodness..." Tsuna slumped forward, completely drained of energy.
Is this really the same kid? The gap between Tsuna's hyper-competent combat persona and his current panicking self was so staggeringly wide that the three executives couldn't help but wonder if they were looking at two entirely different people.
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