SSS Ranked Awakening: Starting With My Limitless Cosmic Shadow System-Chapter 137: Enamored

Amon, like a normal teenager from his past life, had dreams of riding atop the skies on a flying creature.

Since he was unable to realise that dream in his previous life, finally having it fulfilled here filled him with a quiet sense of accomplishment and excitement.

He stared at the distant, endless skies drifting by, a calm smile plastered across his face.

Aegon's eyes were filled with seriousness as he flapped his wings repeatedly, his intense golden gaze locked forward as they moved.

Atop the dragon, Amon stabilised himself before slowly calming his breathing.

It was time to create the seventh gift.

Amon knew it was the only way he could track down Helena.

Almost instantly, his thoughts began to churn, fragments of memory and knowledge colliding until the outline of a gift took shape in his mind.

A line of runes materialised in his vision.

[Detected a new gift: Divination. Rank is set to D by default.]

[Warning: This gift violates restricted laws. Usage has been severely limited. It may only be activated once per day. The information obtained will be vague, and its accuracy will degrade rapidly with distance.]

[Creation of this gift costs 500 creation points.]

[Unable to proceed with creation. Insufficient creation points.]

As Amon read through the runes, shock flickered across his face.

He read them again, slower this time, as if hoping the meaning would change.

It didn't.

After several seconds of silence, he patted the dragon's side, his hand tapping lightly against the rough, scaly surface beneath his palm.

"Change of plans, Aegon. The new mission is to search for another floating cloud like the one we came from."

"Okay, dad." Aegon agreed without hesitation, maintaining his pace as his eyes swept across the skies with focused attention.

Amon followed his gaze, watching as the bluish scenery shifted rapidly around them, the speed now obvious even without focusing on it.

The Divination gift was too important to ignore.

It was meant to divine Helena's location, and more importantly, help him understand why she had gone there in the first place.

If possible, it could even offer a glimpse of a way to successfully leave the star gate.

In terms of long-term value, it might surpass every gift he had created so far, aside from the healing gift that had saved his life more than once.

Amon's expression grew heavier as he continued scanning the surroundings.

With no further words exchanged, he and the dragon drifted onward in silence.

Amon didn't truly understand star gates…

Back then, he had compared them to dungeon instances from the games and novels he read in his previous life. Now, that comparison felt shallow.

The first star gate he entered was already abnormal, forcing participants to hunt star beasts.

Those same star beasts were trapped in a grotesque cycle of death and resurrection, endlessly repeating.

And now there was this star gate.

A completely different world, unfamiliar bodies, and secrets that felt deliberately buried beneath layers of false normalcy.

'So much…'

A dull ache formed behind Amon's temples as the scale of it all began to press down on him.

The Bermuda world was no longer hiding itself.

He could only hope he wouldn't drown before understanding it.

'Dad! I sense something…' Aegon's voice cut through his thoughts, snapping Amon back to the present.

He turned, scanning the distance until he spotted a floating cloud island over ten kilometres away.

At first glance it seemed narrow and fragile, but as they drew closer, its size steadily expanded within his vision.

Amon stared at it for a moment before gently rubbing the dragon's side.

"Good job, big guy." With that, his hand tightened around the axe he carried.

Without his universe ring, he couldn't summon his sword.

Or even—

…his artifact.

Letting out a controlled breath, Amon adjusted his grip on the axe, a thin edge of killing intent slipping into his gaze.

As they approached, faint murmurs reached his ears, growing clearer by the second.

Aegon flapped his wings once more, accelerating, and within minutes they arrived.

Shouts erupted instantly.

"Woah… mom! What's that? It looks soo biggg!" a child cried out, pointing excitedly at the massive dragon hovering above.

The woman beside him, likely in her forties, slowly lifted her head. The moment her eyes met the dragon, all colour drained from her face.

She froze completely.

Around her, the other villagers stared in stunned silence, their expressions caught somewhere between awe and terror, as if reality itself had cracked.

From above, Amon looked down at them like a distant god and realised the cloud was home to a group of villagers.

Most of them were clad in crude clothing, and some were thin and frail, clear signs that they hadn't eaten much.

The axe trembled slightly in Amon's grip.

A surge of killing intent flooded his chest, raw and sudden, his bloodlust spiking without warning.

For a split second, his mind supplied a terrible, effortless solution.

'Dad, they look so pitiful…' Aegon's voice broke through the darkness forming in his thoughts.

Amon's eyes widened.

'…When did that thought come so easily?'

His gaze dropped to his arm, to the Mark of the Sinner etched into his skin.

The mark had deepened, no longer a simple symbol but something closer to a void, pitch-black and consuming.

From his elbow to his fingertips, dark mist clung to his arm, as if his flesh itself had been condemned.

'When did it grow this far…'

Amon forced his breathing to steady and looked back at the villagers, who still stared at him with reverence and fear, mistaking silence for divinity.

He clenched his fist hard, nails digging into his palm, grounding himself against the thrill still whispering in his veins.

The excitement of battle.

The urge to kill.

The temptation to take lives simply because he could.

…Interacting with the system, Amon swiftly created several items, the cost shaving roughly 100 creation points from his reserves.

"Aegon, let's go…" As the runes faded from his vision, he spoke quietly.

Aegon nodded and beat his wings. As they departed, the skies above the villagers darkened briefly before something began to fall.

Food.

Grains scattered across the cloud, followed by sacks of rice and preserved meat.

The impact snapped several villagers out of their stupor.

"Rice… so much rice…"

"This—is this meat? It's been ages since I ate meat… I feel like crying. Huhu."

"Grains…" One man collapsed to his knees, sobbing openly. "This will last us… this will last us a long time…"

Only after taking in the mountain of food did they finally look up.

The dragon was gone.

So was the man who rode it.

"A god! Praise be to the god!!!"

"Praise be to the god!"

"Praise be to the god!!!"

Believing a god had descended to deliver them from starvation, the villagers bowed deeply, their voices echoing across the clouds.

From several metres away, Amon could still hear them faintly…

A melancholic, calculating look settled over his face.

Perhaps they were star beasts.

Perhaps they were humans trapped in this world, just like him.

Either way, Amon refused to surrender his morality in exchange for power.

At least, not yet.

Exhaling slowly, he spread his arms and let the wind rush past him.

"Walking the primordial path is truly too difficult."

The cab drove them for a few kilometers, which lasted roughly an hour, before slowing to a stop.

Sunless and the other two girls alighted from the car after thanking the driver.

Then, they shifted their attention to the building in front of them.

It wasn't too big, but at the same time, it wasn't too small.

Towering a few meters high, it seemed to be a three-storeyed building made of transparent glass that revealed the view inside.

Youths were shopping, some lovers while some friends, and so were adults, including couples and families.

The place was a little lively.

"Let's head to the section for unisex clothes." Although he was a little surprised that his sister knew about this, Sunless nodded and gestured for Jane to lead the way.

As soon as they entered, they were greeted warmly by the guards outside.

Despite looking not too well-off, the guards treated them with the same polite respect they had shown everyone else.

They walked to the counter ahead and noticed a lady tapping rhythmically on the stand while glancing through a few things on her phone.

Only when Jane cleared her throat did the lady look up and glance at them, wrinkling her brows slightly.

"What are you here for?" Her tone didn't carry a hint of the politeness of the other guards.

Jane frowned slightly before stating with an obvious expression, "We're here to purchase clothes, just like everyone else."

"Do you even have the money?" the lady blurted out, then realised what she had said might be a little impolite.

She gave them a cold, professional smile before gesturing towards the location they were headed.

There, Sunless and Jane encountered all kinds of clothes.

There were some luxury materials, and there were also clothes that didn't seem to contain much in them.

Picking up a black jumpsuit, Jane said to Sunless with a smile.

"Brother, what do you think of this? Would it look good on Sonia?"

Sunless, who was just casually glancing around at the clothes rack, turned around and noticed the slender, tight-fitting jumpsuit.

He turned to Sonia, whose eyes went wide and whose face turned slightly rosy.

Assessing her body slightly and taking in her curves and perfect figure, Sunless nodded, then smiled and turned to Jane.

"It'll fit her perfectly."

Sonia froze and felt her heart beating loudly…

Sunless had just… scrutinized her. And quite thoroughly at that. Her face turned beet red instantly, and shyness clouded her heart.

"I—I'll try it on," she said shyly before collecting the dress from Jane and heading over to the changing room.

Sunless glanced at her departing back quizzically.

Jane just shrugged and grinned before shifting her attention to other jumpsuits that caught her eye.

Soon, she had shown Sunless more than three that she particularly liked.

Sunless also came across one that suited his style perfectly.

It was dark training gear, and with a mask included in the set, he felt it fitted perfectly with the 'hero's act' they were about to play.

Just as he was about to head to the changing room, he saw Sonia coming from not too far away, and he fell briefly into an involuntary daze.

The Sonia he knew was completely gone…

Changed into someone… different. In a good way.

Sonia's curves were now perfectly accentuated by the tight-fitting dress hugging her waistline.

And with the light training gear that fitted perfectly on her upper body, she instantly resembled a high schooler heading for some kind of sports activity.

Sunless watched her approach, her eyes filled with nervousness as she laughed awkwardly.

"So… how does it look?" Her words snapped Sunless back to reality, and glancing at her, he gave her the warmest smile he could muster.

"Stunning."

Sonia now looked completely different from the rigid nurse he had thought her to be.

With the change in clothes, it was as though her personality had shifted as well, and for a moment, something flickered in Sunless' heart.

Sonia blushed at Sunless' remark and kept her head low before muttering.

"Thank you." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Jane watched the two and shook her head before handing her a mask she had picked out.

"Here, to cover your appearance."

Finally, Sonia's gaze landed on Jane, and she noticed her change…

She was stunned…

Although Jane still looked frail, it only made her beauty more prominent.

Her silver hair was tied into a ponytail that blended perfectly with her pale, flawless face.

Subconsciously, Sonia felt a little inferior to her in beauty.

Still, she offered her a warm smile and complimented her.

"The training gear suits you perfectly!"

"Wait till you see what my brother picked…" Jane quipped with a grin.

Sunless coughed lightly and chuckled.

"Let's pay for this… I'll change when we leave…"

He paused, then added, "You should take off your mask, so they won't… misunderstand."

Jane laughed and complied with her brother's words.

With that, the three left the place, and Sonia proceeded to pay for everything.

Although Sunless felt a little unsettled letting a woman pay for him, with nothing he could do, he could only remember this gratitude in his heart.

The three left, and Sunless entered an alleyway to get changed.

A few minutes later, he emerged from the alleyway, and his aura seemed to have subtly changed instantly.

Although he looked a little slim, Sunless had a few toned muscles underneath his clothes.

His jumpsuit was a little baggy, and with the mask to complement it, although his face wasn't visible, Sonia couldn't help blushing slightly.

Sunless shrugged and turned to Jane.

"Where do we start from?"

Jane rubbed her chin slightly and seemed to be thinking before her eyes lit up as she spoke.

"On Gordon Street, there's an old man known for committing certain evil deeds at night, while hiding under the guise of a feeble old man."

"I see…" Sunless muttered thoughtfully, understanding what his sister meant.

He glanced at Jane intently for barely an instant, but the information had already been passed across.

Because Sonia was here, he didn't want to ask how she knew this information.

At the same time, Sonia turned to Jane. "Do you know his level of strength? And are you certain of it?"

Jane laughed. "He doesn't have much talent as a martial warrior and is stuck at the second stage of the martial apprentice rank. I can blow him up with a single punch!"

Jane thrust her fist into the air to gesture.

Sonia stared at her, unimpressed, and let out a sigh before turning to Sunless.

"I'll trust you to handle this…"

She still recalled the pressure Sunless had exuded before, which was akin to a martial warrior…

If that was the case, she could be at ease having Sunless watch over them.

Still, a faint thought tugged at the corner of her mind as she glanced at Sunless.

'Didn't he fail to awaken as a martial warrior? How is he already a martial warrior???'