Chapter 42: The Front-Page Headline: [Ogran City]

[Star-Trace·Brawler] (30th Anniversary Exclusive Collector's Edition) (Untradable)
Level: Level 2 (0%)
[Talent]
Aura Intent·Iron Bone (SS-Rank): You possess the will and physique of steel.
[Skills]
Basic·Skull-Cracking Fist: Level 1 (0%)
Aura Mastery (Passive): Level 0.
……

"Acquired a passive combat mastery."
After carefully reviewing his character sheet, he discovered he had advanced to Level 2.
The [Brawler] class only granted a passive "Aura Mastery".
The [Evil Spirit Warlock] gained nothing at all.
Instead, Zorn simply smiled.
"It might feel like a disadvantage in the short term, but in the long run, it's an absolute landslide profit."
Within the world of [Holy Traces·Eternal Codex].
If no skill is acquired upon leveling up,
then the next time a level is gained, the acquisition of a powerful skill—or even a forbidden technique—is completely guaranteed.
The fact that the [Evil Spirit Warlock] acquired no skills upon advancing to Level 2 meant that when Zorn reached Level 3,
he was bound to obtain an extremely formidable "transcendent spell", or perhaps even a mighty forbidden art akin to the "Scythe of the End".
Furthermore, coupled with the power of the calamity black mist at that time, Zorn would be fully capable of prying open and mastering a powerful spell of his choosing.
Such opportunities were exceedingly rare even for the [Evil Spirit Warlock].
As for the [Brawler],
this passive skill was far more valuable than any active skill.
The passive skill "Aura Mastery" would allow Zorn's aura to grow at an accelerated rate, grant greater flexibility in its usage, and simultaneously enhance the might of his "Aura".
The sheer strength of a brawler lay entirely within this aura.
With this "Aura Mastery", the brawler's close-quarters combat capability was boosted by leaps and bounds.
The [Brawler] grew rapidly in power at lower levels by strengthening its aura.
Meanwhile, the [Evil Spirit Warlock] bided its time, precipitating even more potent evil spirit sorceries.
This could be considered one of the finest combinations for early-stage leveling.

Inside the carriage, Zorn examined his character sheet, immersing himself in the joy of leveling up.
While outside in the city of Ogran,
amidst the turmoil of the rat plague, people were dancing with the calamity of death!
……

June 6th.
The [Rat Plague] in the city of Ogran officially erupted on a massive scale.
Tragic rat-tide catastrophes unfolded in multiple locations across Ogran.
In the Old District, tens of thousands of gray rats and calamity rats surged through the streets, leaving pedestrians with nowhere to escape.
In the wake of the rat tide, only bleached skeletons remained.
In the New District,
led by night-fiend rat-men, they shattered doors and windows, dragging residents down into the sewers.
At the noble academy, a tragic and bloody graduation ceremony played out, with thirty to forty students and teachers dragged underground by the rat tide, their fates unknown.
The most horrific scene occurred at the Holy Sun Cathedral, where tens of thousands of calamity rats climbed the high tower to sever the ropes, causing the cathedral's holy bell to crash down.
Arrogant as they were, that horde of calamity rats even attempted to assault the Holy Sun Church.
Yet, countless calamity rats were ignited by mysterious flames during their charge.
Tens of thousands of calamity rats at the gates of the Holy Sun Church burned fiercely against the depths of the night sky.
Although only the holy bell had crashed down,
the impact it created was unprecedentedly severe.

That very night, the [Rat Plague] incident in Ogran was transmitted to every corner of the continent via steam telegraphs and other communication methods.
In the early hours of the morning, the Steam Daily printing press worked overtime to print the news of the [Rat Plague] in Ogran.
The next day, as the sun rose,
amidst the cries of newsboys waving copies of the Steam Daily,
the [Rat Plague Incident] of Ogran officially made the front page headlines of the Holy Trace Continent.
It was also on this day that calamity-type transcendent events began to emerge prominently across the continent.
A new era roared into existence amidst the tide of steam.
……

Early morning.
In the backyard of the manor, beneath the dense forest,
Zorn channeled his aura, practicing the Basic·Skull-Cracking Fist, which had already reached Level 1.
Star-trace aura was blended within it, and every explosion of his fists contained astonishing destructive power.
Complemented by "Aura Mastery", Zorn felt his aura surging and flowing through his body like a raging torrent.
As he adapted to the all-around transformative effects of his advancement to Level 2, Zorn also took stock of his consumption.
"The sacrifices previously offered to the hidden domain have been depleted by about two-thirds."
"The remaining third will be able to help me push my level progression by another twenty to thirty percent."
"Fortunately..."
Zorn withdrew his concluding punch of the Skull-Cracking Fist and gazed toward the south.
Woo-woo-woo...
Faintly, he could hear the roaring tide of steam.
Mingled with the steam roar were the bustling noises of workers communicating amongst themselves inside the steam factories.
"Fortunately, the steam factory is already operational."
"It provides a habitat for my evil spirit traits."
"At the same time, relying on the bug-like characteristics of the dual-pathway system, my leveling speed is quite astonishing."
The layouts that had previously consumed a significant amount of time and financial cost had now transformed into a powerful engine for Zorn's steady development.

Breakfast time.
Zorn picked up the freshly printed Steam Daily of Ogran.
Sure enough, numerous pages were densely packed with reports about yesterday's outbreak of the rat plague in Ogran.
The newspaper illustrations depicted the scene of rat hordes engulfing the tower of the Holy Sun Church and biting off the holy bell.
There were images of tens of thousands of rats marching through the streets and dragging pedestrians away.
There were scenes of rats swarming over glass windows and breaking through.
Of course, the bloody ceremony at the Ogran Noble Academy, with grounds littered with gore and remains, was also reported.
Panic and anxiety were shrouding the city of Ogran.
As the frontline landing zone for the cataclysmic forces,
Ogran was facing the first major trial of the transcendent era's tide.
Residing within Ogran, Zorn knew very well that the city had now drawn the attention of the entire continent, and the vortex storm of transcendence and calamity was intensifying by the day.

"Hmm?"
After finishing the newspaper, his gaze swept over the small classified ads section in the middle of the page.
Certain peculiar combinations of text caught Zorn's attention.
After a brief decoding process using different arrangements and combinations,
Zorn's mind stirred slightly.
"A transcendent gathering... is it finally going to happen?"
"The time is tomorrow."
"It seems... the rat plague has also catalyzed actions among transcendents."

After finishing breakfast, Zorn had roughly perused the entire newspaper.
"Has the situation in the basement improved?"
Zorn looked toward old butler Granke.
"For now, the basic door frames have been sealed quite tightly. That hazy green miasma shouldn't be able to drift up anymore."
"Besides, I check on it every day."
The old butler Granke replied in this manner.

"Mhm!"
Zorn nodded; Granke always handled matters reliably.
Yesterday, the [Rat Plague] had erupted.
Upon returning, Zorn had inspected both the sewers and the basement.
The polluted and cursed toxic miasma had already permeated the sewers.
Although the rat holes in the manor's basement had been sealed, the toxic miasma still continuously seeped through.
Zorn had no choice but to instruct Granke to completely seal off the entrance door to the basement.
Once ordinary people were infected by the polluted and cursed toxic miasma, the mild cases would suffer from severe illnesses, while the severe cases would undergo pollution and mutation—their heads, limbs, or arms mutating into rat-like forms, ultimately transforming them into distorted rat-men.
A cataclysm!
To ordinary people, it was a life-threatening disaster!

"Tomorrow... is the transcendent gathering in Ogran."
"It can be considered a rather important gathering among transcendents for the month of June."
"Not only will quite a few special transcendents with formidable means participate,"
"but some special, wonderful items will also appear."
"And these special, wonderful items happen to be things no one here recognizes."
"This is an absolute prime opportunity to pick up treasures at a bargain."

With such thoughts in mind, Zorn looked at butler Granke and said.
"Uncle Granke, I need a sum of gold pounds, roughly 5,000 gold pounds."
Granke did not ask what Zorn intended to do with it, and immediately nodded.
"I will go to the bank this afternoon and retrieve them for you."
Zorn currently possessed roughly 1,800 gold pounds on hand.
Combined with the 5,000 gold pounds to be withdrawn, a total of 6,800 gold pounds would be more than enough for Zorn to reap substantial rewards at the transcendent exchange meeting.
Although the probability of needing that much was low,
being prepared for eventualities had always been Zorn's guiding principle.
When the Goddess of Fortune was not standing by Zorn's side, Zorn would use gold pounds as his weights to secure an overwhelming win rate.
Although Zorn no longer needed to pursue further academic studies after graduation,
he had begun studying geography and steam navigation on his own.
Knowledge in these areas would undoubtedly play a significant role in the future.

After enjoying a lavish lunch, Zorn originally intended to take a short nap while better digesting the sacrifices he had previously plundered.
"Master Zorn, a lady has come to visit you, and she is waiting outside the manor."
Vanessa walked in carrying the message.

"Oh?"
Hearing this, Zorn rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"She's... here so soon? That shouldn't be right!"
"Did something go wrong at some link in the chain?"
Through the window, Zorn spotted a tall middle-aged lady wearing a tailored, concise black dress and a veil, currently using a match to light a ladies' cigarette outside the gate.
She was looking toward the window, and deep within her silver pupils, the reflection of Zorn inside the room seemed to be mirrored.