The market felt different this time, though nothing about it had actually changed.
The same stalls lined the uneven paths, the same low voices carried through the air, and the same mix of buyers and sellers moved without drawing attention to themselves. Riven walked through it at a steady pace, but his focus had narrowed compared to before. He wasn't scanning everything anymore. He was filtering.
Movement. Stamina. Perception.
Daris's words stayed with him, not as instructions, but as direction.
He stopped at the first stall that displayed a cluster of lower-tier stones. The seller barely glanced at him as he picked one up.
[Skill: Quick Step]
[Tier: F]
[Status: Stored]
A common movement skill. Simple, consistent demand, nothing unusual about it. Riven turned it once in his hand before setting it aside, his attention shifting to the rest of the table.
There was no stamina skill among them.
He moved on.
The next stall offered a similar spread, but again, nothing that fit both requirements. By the third, it became clear why Daris had mentioned demand the way he did. The useful ones didn't stay out long enough to be found easily. Anything that matched those categories was either already sold or never reached the open stalls to begin with.
Riven didn't slow down, but he adjusted his expectations.
By the time he circled back toward the inner section, the stalls had changed. The layout was tighter, the conversations more guarded, and the stones on display fewer but more deliberate.
He stopped again.
This time, the selection was smaller, but the quality was noticeably better.
He picked up a stone.
[Skill: Minor Endurance]
[Tier: F]
[Status: Stored]
A stamina-type skill. Exactly the kind that didn't usually remain unsold for long.
Riven held it for a moment, then set it back down in the same position.
Buying both would work, but the outcome didn't justify the cost.
He didn't need the entire skill.
Just a part of it.
His hand moved back over the stone, slower this time. The system display remained stable, unchanged to anyone watching. To him, the structure beneath it was already visible.
Thin strands, layered and interwoven, forming the framework that held the skill together.
Riven focused on one of them.
Not the core. Not enough to disrupt the base entirely.
Just enough to take.
The strand separated cleanly, slipping free without resistance. He held it there for a brief moment, then let the rest settle back into place.
The stone dimmed slightly. But in the rushing of crowd of an alley market, no one had time to notice such things.
Riven withdrew his hand and moved on without looking back.
By the time he returned to his apartment, the noise of the market had faded into the background.
The room was the same as before. Nothing had changed there either.
Riven placed the stone he had purchased on the table.
[Skill: Quick Step]
[Tier: F]
[Status: Stored]
The strand he had taken remained with him, held in place by focus alone.
He didn't rush.
The first time had been instinct.
This time, he knew what he was doing.
Riven reached into the structure of the Quick Step skill, isolating its core. The strands that defined its function were familiar now—movement efficiency, short bursts of acceleration, limited duration tied directly to stamina output.
He brought the stolen strand closer.
It resisted at first.
Not rejection, but incompatibility.
Different origin. Different function. Unlike his first creation.
Riven adjusted, shifting its placement, aligning it alongside the existing structure rather than forcing it into the center. The interaction changed immediately. The strain lessened, the structure stabilizing instead of pushing back.
He held it there, watching the pattern settle.
The modification took longer this time, not because it was harder, but because he wasn't guessing anymore. Every adjustment had a purpose, and every misalignment showed itself clearly before it could cause instability.
When it was done, the structure held. He let the stone rest on the table pulsing gently as it settled.
[Skill: Sustained Step]
[Tier: E]
[Status: Stored]
The difference was clear, the bursts extended further, the transitions between them smoother, and the strain on stamina reduced enough to matter over time.
The result held at the same rank as before, but the difference was clearer this time. The structure felt less stable, unlike last time when the merging was smoother, as if the parts belonged together instead of being forced into place. Riven hypothesized it to be the compatibility of the two skills. Same type of skills went well together as far as his ability was concerned.
Riven picked up the stone and turned it once in his hand before setting it back down.
This time, the result had been intentional.
Daris didn't hide his reaction as well as he usually did.
He looked at the stone for a moment before shifting his gaze back to Riven.
"That was quick," he said.
Riven didn't respond immediately.
"You asked about movement and stamina last time," Daris continued, picking up the stone again. "And now you've got this."
Riven met his gaze. "I happen to have a reliable source."
Daris held his stare for a moment, then let out a quiet breath.
"Fair enough," he said, though the look he gave the stone suggested he was thinking a step further than his words implied. He let his suspicions rest for now and got his usual game face back on.
"I can obviously move this skill," he added. "Same range, maybe higher depending on who's looking."
Riven nodded once. That was enough.
Daris leaned back slightly. "I know the nature of the business we are in. But I have to ask, who's your source?"
"Does it matter?" Riven asked.
Daris considered that for a moment, then shook his head.
"Not if it keeps working like this."
The exchange ended there.
Riven left without staying longer than necessary.
The street outside carried the same steady movement as before, but his attention wasn't on it.
Daris had noticed. He had been in that business for a long time and he knew an anomaly when he saw one. But he wasn't planning on killing the goose by getting too greedy.
Riven walked without slowing, his thoughts already shifting past the immediate result. Repeating the process was possible. Scaling it without drawing attention was the problem.
Buying full skills just to take a part of them wasn't sustainable.
Selling modified ones in isolation would eventually stand out.
He needed a way to move within the system without being seen as the source of change.
Something structured.
Something that didn't rely on coincidence or limited supply.
By the time he reached the edge of the district, the direction had already settled in his mind.
This wasn't just about finding value anymore.
It was about controlling how and where that value moved, before the system started noticing him.