The Useless Skill Became The Most Powerful

003

Confusion flooded every single part of Ronan's body at the voice that had just resounded in his mind. He stared at the golden screen floating before his eyes, unable to understand what had happened or where the voice had come from.

[Reverse Transfer Successful!]

[Hidden Ability Awakened!]

When he looked up, the Mother Worm was struggling to support its enormous body. Blood was pouring from a deep wound along its side, and every attempt it made to move seemed to worsen the injury.

Ronan recognized the wound almost immediately.

Three months ago, a Hunter from the Ironclad Guild had returned from an expedition with a terrible injury that had nearly split his body open. Darius had ordered Ronan to absorb it despite his protests, and although the Hunter recovered immediately, Ronan had spent almost three months in bed before he could move without pain.

The wound on the creature's body looked exactly the same.

Ronan glanced at his hand, remembering the strange force that had shot out of his body moments earlier. He didn't know how it had happened, but he was certain that whatever had injured the beast was connected to the golden screen.

Before he could examine it further, another notification appeared.

[SCAR VAULT UNLOCKED]

[Stored Injuries]

S-rank: 10

A-rank: 18

B-rank: 47

C-rank: 126

D-rank: 284

E-rank: 391

F-rank: 613

[Reverse Transfer Damage Multiplier: Up to 10×]

Ronan stared at the numbers, his brows drawing together. He had absorbed hundreds of injuries since joining the guild, but he had never kept count of them.

A painful groan escaped his lips as he attempted to straighten his back. His chest was still bleeding, and the burns on his shoulder had begun to sting again. Whatever had happened to the Mother Worm hadn't healed the injuries he was currently carrying.

The creature released another shriek, drawing his attention away from the screen.

Despite the terrible wound across its body, it was still alive. It dragged itself towards Ronan, leaving a thick trail of blood behind it, while its mouth opened and closed as though it was preparing to release another stream of acid.

Ronan looked towards the entrance. Even in its injured condition, the beast was close enough to reach him before he could escape.

He needed to finish it.

His eyes moved across the chamber until he noticed a sword lying among the crystals the guild members had abandoned. It belonged to one of the Hunters who had dropped his weapon while fleeing from the Mother Worm.

Ronan reached for it, gripping the handle firmly as he forced himself to his feet. He had never received the combat training given to the higher-ranked Hunters, but three years of accompanying the guild on expeditions had taught him enough to recognize an opening.

The Mother Worm's injured side was exposed, and it could barely turn its enormous body without dragging the wound against the ground.

Ronan waited until the creature moved closer, then stepped away from its open mouth and drove the sword into the wound.

The blade sank deep into its flesh.

A terrible shriek escaped the Mother Worm as it twisted violently, almost pulling the weapon from Ronan's hands. He tightened his grip and pushed the blade farther, using the last of his strength to tear through the already damaged flesh.

The creature struck the rocky wall, causing several loose stones to fall from the ceiling. Ronan stumbled backwards and released the sword, narrowly avoiding its collapsing body.

A moment later, the Mother Worm fell heavily to the ground.

Ronan remained where he was, watching its enormous body. The creature struggled to move once more, but its strength appeared to have deserted it. Its head dropped against the rocks, and the movement stopped.

He waited a little longer before approaching, careful not to get too close to its mouth.

When the beast showed no sign of life, Ronan finally lowered himself against the wall.

He had survived.

For a while, he sat there trying to steady his breathing, his hands resting against his injured chest. The pain had become difficult to bear, but his attention kept returning to the golden screen floating before him.

Then the voice resounded in his mind again.

[A-rank Mother Worm Ground Beast Eliminated.]

[Scar Vault successfully awakened.]

[The host's injury-absorption ability has unlocked its hidden function: Reverse Transfer.]

Ronan raised his head.

[Scar Vault retains a record of injuries absorbed by the host. These injuries can be transferred to a selected target, with damage amplification of up to ten times.]

[Injuries currently sustained by the host can also be transferred. Successful transfer removes those injuries from the host's body.]

He read the messages carefully, trying to understand what they meant.

His ability had always worked in one direction. Whenever he touched an injured person, their wound disappeared and appeared on his body instead. He had never been able to reverse the process, no matter how badly he needed to recover.

But the Mother Worm had received the same injury he had absorbed three months ago, even though that wound had already healed.

Ronan looked at the list of stored injuries again. If the explanation was correct, the suffering he had endured during those three years hadn't simply disappeared after his body recovered.

It had remained inside this Scar Vault.

He pressed his hand against his chest, where the injury he had taken from the B-rank Hunter was still causing him pain. The explanation suggested that he could transfer it as well, but he wasn't certain how to activate the ability deliberately.

He was still considering this when a scraping sound came from the other side of the chamber.

Ronan turned towards the entrance and noticed a smaller Ground Beast emerging from a narrow opening between the rocks. It stopped when it saw the dead Mother Worm, then lowered its head towards him.

He reached for the sword beside him, but the movement sent another sharp pain through his chest.

The smaller beast began approaching.

Ronan looked at his injured hand, remembering what the screen had said about transferring wounds. He had already seen the effect on the Mother Worm, but that had happened without him knowing what he was doing.

If he could make it happen again, he wouldn't need to fight the approaching creature with a sword.

He placed his hand against his chest and concentrated on the injuries he was carrying, trying to recall the strange sensation that had passed through his body earlier.

"Reverse Transfer," he muttered.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then he felt a sudden pull from within his chest. The pain in his shoulder began to disappear, followed by the wound across his chest and the cuts on his legs. A powerful force rushed towards his outstretched hand before shooting straight into the approaching beast.

The creature stopped abruptly.

Several terrible wounds appeared across its body at once, tearing through its flesh before it could even release a cry. It collapsed against the rocky ground, blood spreading beneath it.

Ronan stared at the dead beast before slowly lowering his hand.

The pain was gone.

He looked down at his chest and pulled aside the torn fabric of his clothes. The deep wound he had absorbed from the B-rank Hunter had disappeared completely, leaving only the blood that had already stained his skin.

He examined his shoulder next. The acid burns were gone, and when he stood, his injured leg supported his weight without difficulty.

[Reverse Transfer Successful!]

[All currently sustained injuries transferred.]

[Host's physical condition restored.]

Ronan remained standing for a moment, looking between the two dead beasts and the golden screen before him.

He had killed an A-rank Mother Worm with an injury that had once left him bedridden for months. And now, the wounds that had nearly cost him his life had killed another beast while leaving his own body completely healed.

For three years, the guild members had treated him as a useless F-rank Hunter whose only purpose was to suffer in their place. Ronan had eventually come to believe them, accepting that his ability would never amount to anything more.

But they had been wrong.

He looked at the hundreds of injuries stored inside his vault, finally understanding what he had possessed all along.

He had been sitting on a gold mine for three years without even knowing it.