SSS Ranked Beast Tamer: My EP increases with girls-Chapter 177: CH : Obtaining a fire affinity (part 2)

Dave’s fingers tightened around the man’s throat, holding him suspended against the cracked wall like a ragdoll. His voice dropped, deep and glacial, with every syllable carrying a weight that made the air feel heavier.

"You think fire makes you powerful," Dave muttered, his gaze boring into the man’s hidden eyes. "But fire burns both ways, friend. And I’m about to show you what it’s like... to be on the receiving end of your own flame."

The masked man wheezed, writhing in Dave’s grasp, his fingers clawing weakly at the hand choking the air from his lungs. But it was useless. Dave was immovable; like iron, like death itself.

A flicker of light danced above Dave’s vision.

[To absorb the Fire Affinity from target, place your palm against their chest.]

Dave raised his free hand slowly, deliberately, and pressed his palm flat against the attacker’s chest, right over the heart. The masked man’s eyes widened behind the fabric, as if realizing too late that this was no ordinary grip, that something else was happening.

Then it began. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

A sudden heat surged through Dave’s palm like molten iron funneling into his veins. It wasn’t the gentle kind of warmth. No, it was blistering. Agonizing. The kind of fire that scalded muscle and seared marrow.

He clenched his teeth as his body convulsed with the burning shock. It tore through his arm, scorching nerve endings, igniting every inch of his bones with white-hot energy. For a moment, he swore he could feel flames crawling beneath his skin, licking up his forearm like living snakes.

But he didn’t let go.

The pain, as intense as it was, began to subside. It cooled gradually, like embers after a storm, turning into something smoother. Almost pleasant. As if his body was learning, adapting, syncing with the fire now flowing into him.

The masked man began to twitch. His resistance faded. His struggles weakened. The glow in his chest dimmed.

Until finally, there was nothing.

Dave slowly lowered his arm as the last trace of warmth drained from the man’s body. The masked attacker went limp, his head slumping forward weakened, smoke curling faintly from beneath his mouth like the last breath of a burnt wick.

The system pinged again.

[You have obtained 50 points of Fire Affinity.]

[Total Fire Affinity: 50]

[New Skill Unlocked: Fireball (Lv. 1)]

[You can now cast ball-sized fireballs at your opponents. This skill consumes a small, nearly negligible amount of energy. Lost energy regenerates within minutes]

Dave flexed his fingers, and in an instant, a small orb of flame burst into life in his palm. It hovered just above his skin, swirling gently like a miniature sun, casting flickering shadows across his face.

A slow grin spread across his lips.

"It’s quite fun to watch," he muttered, watching the fire twist and dance in his palm.

Dave stood over the collapsed figure, his chest rising and falling slowly, the adrenaline still humming quietly beneath his skin.

He had done it.

The third power; elemental affinity, he was now able to utilize them. He has the fire ability, so, sooner or later, he’ll be able to obtain the rest of the abilities, or so he thought.

Although he had manage to obtain a fire ability, he still wasn’t as skilled as Exus, who probably has a lot of fire skills that he could use to take him out. And apart from the fire ability, he also has some other elemental abilities that he could use to take anyone out. So, Dave knew he was clearly outmatched.

Exus had centuries, lots of centuries, to master all of these elements, to sharpen them like blades, to bend them to his will. While Dave, on the other hand, had only just unlocked a little part of it.

The flames that danced in his hand were sparks compared to the infernos Exus could unleash. It will take time before he could eventually face Exus in a fight.

Still, it was a step forward. A piece of the puzzle he needed to stand a chance against the one who brought ruin in his wake. But not yet... not now.

Not until he was ready.

He released the masked man from his grip, letting the weakened, broken figure slump to the floor like a marionette with its strings cut. As the man hit the ground, his mask slipped off his face, tumbling with a hollow clatter against the floorboards.

Underneath, sweat poured down his cheeks like rain on scorched earth. His face was pale and drawn, and every breath came in shallow, desperate gasps. His skin glistened as if he’d been trapped inside an oven, cooked from within by the energy Dave had absorbed.

The man trembled on his knees, unable to lift his head fully. "W-What... what did you... do to me...?" he rasped, his voice barely audible above the crackling tension in the air.

Dave took a slow step forward, shadows flickering across his face from the fireball that materialized again in his hand; now more stable, more alive than before. "I told you," he said, his tone sharp, carved with cold resolve. "To show you that fire burns both ways."

He glanced at the smoldering ruin of the house, at the charred bodies still lying motionless in the other room. The anger in his chest flared hotter than the flame in his palm.

"For what you did to those innocent people... You’ll pay by being burned to death."

The fireball pulsed larger, now the size of a football. Its glow painted the walls with dancing hues of orange and red, bathing Dave in its eerie light. He didn’t hesitate.

The masked man’s eyes widened in panic. "N-No—how? How are you using fire? That’s im—" His voice broke into a hoarse wheeze as fear overtook him.

In desperation, he thrust his hand forward, fingers clawed as he summoned his strength to cast his own fireball; to defend himself from the man before him.

Nothing came.

Not even a spark.

He looked down at his trembling hand in horror, as though it had betrayed him.

And then, Dave hurled the fireball from his hands.

The sphere of heat streaked through the air like a comet, crackling with power as it shot toward him. The masked man flinched, turning away with a cry of terror, but it was too late to move.

Luckily, the fireball didn’t hit him directly, it crashed into the wall just beside him, erupting in a violent explosion of flame and sound. The entire side of the room shook from the blast, dust and smoke spiraling into the air.

But the heat... oh, the heat...

It licked across the man’s skin like invisible whips. His eyes bulged in agony as the searing burn swept across his exposed flesh. "Aghhh!" he screamed, clutching his arm, which had already started to blister from the proximity alone.

His knees gave way, and he crumpled to the floor, gasping like a fish out of water.

Dave stood above him, his expression dark, calm, and merciless. "That’s just a taste," he said flatly, his eyes glowing faintly with the reflection of his new power. "Next time... it won’t miss."

The masked man lay hunched on the floor, his chest heaving with shallow, ragged breaths. His entire body trembled, not from exhaustion alone, but from fear. Sweat streamed down his face, mixing with ash and the bitter sting of defeat. The faint orange glow from Dave’s fire bathed his features, casting long, flickering shadows that danced along the ruined walls.

Dave crouched slightly, bringing himself eye-level with the man while keeping his tone cold and unrelenting. "Now," he began, his voice cutting through the thick, smoky air like a blade, "you’re going to tell me everything I want to know."

The man’s eyes darted around as though he was looking for an escape, but there was none, only the silent corpses in the other room, the scent of smoke, and the monster of a man kneeling before him.

"Why are you here?" Dave continued, his voice gaining weight with each word. "Why was this place burned to the ground? And why did you attack me?"

The man blinked rapidly, his throat bobbing as he swallowed hard. Words fumbled at the edge of his lips, but his mind seemed caught in a whirlpool of panic. "I... I..." he stammered, his voice no stronger than a whisper.

Dave’s brow furrowed, not in anger, but in disappointment, as though he were giving the man one last chance before unleashing hell again.

Without warning, he lifted his hand, and with a soft whoosh, a fireball flickered into life, small, controlled, yet radiating with an intense heat. The flames danced around his palm like a warning beacon, casting an ominous light that made Dave’s shadow loom even larger across the broken floor.

The masked man’s eyes locked onto the fireball, his pupils shrinking as sheer dread took over him. He instinctively recoiled, with his mouth quivering. A loud gulp sounded from his throat, the sound of a man teetering on the edge of confession... or combustion.