_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
[Shut-in Angel: "I remember Frieren saying even someone talented would need three or four years to learn Murder Magic. Average talent? Seven or eight. To master it? Forget it — you're looking at more than a decade."]
[Shut-in Angel: "But if you win it in the draw, you just… instantly learn it."]
[Bad Woman: "Skipping ten-plus years of training in one go… yeah, that's probably one of the best prizes in the free pool."]
[Shepherd: "If that's the best, then… feels kinda underwhelming."]
In Frieren's world, just being proficient in Murder Magic meant you could walk sideways through life.
Sure, it started out as a "basic attack," but it was actually the strongest magic there was. All the flashy, fancy spells were just branches growing from it.
[Shut-in Angel: "Oh? Big talk from you. By the way, you still haven't told me what's going on on your side."]
[Saeko: "If he doesn't even rate this magic, maybe Mr. Rosen's even stronger than Miss Frieren?"]
[Shepherd: "Just a little. Galaxy-on-my-fingertip.jpg"]
Ever since Rosen got the Tree of Life, it was like the power he'd been missing for sixteen years came rushing in to make up for lost time. He could now wipe out a county of half a million people in a single strike.
Not quite what he'd hoped for — like, say, erasing a mega-city of millions from the face of the earth in an instant — but considering that just hours ago he'd been a regular guy, this was already top-tier power in this world.
And with each new follower he took in, he'd only grow stronger. If he kept at it, reaching that "wipe out millions" level was just a matter of time.
He reined in the ego that came with sudden power.
It wasn't that he wouldn't go full "I-am-the-law."
First, his personality just wasn't that extreme. Second, while he might be the top dog in raw attack power, his defense was still lagging.
He knew for a fact he couldn't survive a direct hit at ground zero of a nuclear blast.
His vague self-introduction left the group with mixed reactions.
Since he didn't explain further, they didn't push. Privacy was a bit of an unspoken rule — they were all separated by an entire dimension wall. No meetups, no real friendships.
After an hour's soak in the bath, Rosen went to the living room, finished off the rest of a watermelon, and headed to bed.
At exactly midnight, the group chat suddenly lit up with system messages:
[Group Notice: Member "Shut-in Angel" checked in for the first time today. 2 points earned.]
[Group Notice: Member "Bad Woman" checked in. 3 points earned.]
[Group Notice: Member "Blizzard of Hell" checked in. 3 points earned.]
[Group Notice: Member "Saeko" checked in. 3 points earned.]
[Shut-in Angel: "What the heck?! Why did I only get two points? I always get three!"]
[Blizzard of Hell: "Two points, huh… maybe that means today's gonna be a bad-luck day for you, Gabriel."]
[Bad Woman: "Yeah, based on our past data, looks like your luck's in the gutter today."]
[Shut-in Angel: "But why?! I was even the first to check in!"]
[Saeko: "Maybe Heaven finally got sick of you gaming 24/7 and decided to punish you?"]
[Shut-in Angel: "I'm an angel! My luck should be amazing!"]
[Blizzard of Hell: "Maybe because you're an angel, Heaven couldn't stand to watch anymore."]
[Shepherd: "Honestly, I've never seen an angel who games all day."]
[Bad Woman: "Feels like you're possessed by a demon."]
[Shut-in Angel: "As if! I could swat a demon away no problem. And as for Heaven's 'boss,' I've never even seen them, so I doubt they care. Besides, I live alone — who's gonna know if I game forever?"]
[Shut-in Angel: "Even if I game till the end of time, it's fine!"]
[Bad Woman: "That sounded very demonic."]
[Shut-in Angel: "Enough talk! Even if I only got two points, the free draw's reset! Time to witness a miracle!"]
[Shut-in Angel: "Watch closely — here I go!"]
"..."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________