Multiversal Livestreaming System : I Can Copy My Viewers Skills

"You're still out here?"

Evelyn's voice was calm, but her gaze flicked to the trail of orc corpses littering the path behind him.

"You've been busy..."

Adam exhaled through his nose, leaning back against the log.

"Didn't know you were the type to follow people..."

"I wasn't."

Evelyn stepped closer, her boots crunching softly against the dirt.

"I was passing through when I noticed the mess, you're quite diligent at leveling up..."

Adam arched a brow.

"Is there something you want to say?"

"Yes."

Evelyn said.

"It's about the investigation... regarding that guide you knocked unconscious. Follow me."

...

The walk back to the Judgment Room was quiet.

The streets were dim, only the faint glow of torchlights lining the walls guiding their way.

Adam had been here once before, but the atmosphere tonight felt colder... like the air itself was holding its breath.

When they arrived, Evelyn pushed open the heavy wooden door.

The scent hit Adam first.

The sharp, coppery tang of blood.

His gaze shifted immediately to the figure on the floor.

The guide's lifeless body lay sprawled against the wall.

His eyes were wide and hollow, his expression frozen in a silent scream.

A gaping hole was torn open in the center of his chest, jagged and unnatural, like something had forced its way out from within.

The floor beneath him was soaked with dark, dried blood.

"What... happened here?"

Adam muttered, his voice low.

"I was hoping you could tell me."

Evelyn said, her tone sharp.

"Since you were the one who captured him."

Adam stared at the body, his mind racing.

The man had been alive when Adam left him... weak and beaten, but he had still been breathing.

"I have no clue." Adam said carefully.

"Also, if you're doubting whether it was me who killed him, I'm not."

"I figured."

Evelyn said, confirming that he wasn't lying through her [Oathkeeper] skill.

"But there's something else you need to know."

She knelt beside the body and held up a thin folder.

"His name is Levi Cello."

"From his records, he seemed like an ordinary guy outside the Tower. Used to work at a small restaurant, earning just enough to care for his sick mother."

She tapped the folder with her knuckle.

"Eventually, he awakened as a Stream Hunter. D-tier ability called [Fierce Orb]. He's been stuck on the first floor for about a month and a half. Pretty average, right?"

"Yeah..."

Adam murmured.

"Doesn't sound like someone who'd be dangerous."

"Exactly."

Evelyn's gaze darkened.

"But here's the thing. There's one major turning point... when he became a guide."

"What about it?"

"Well, as you know..." Evelyn explained.

"The government offers free armor, a basic weapon, and a weekly payment of twenty gold for anyone who signs up to be a guide."

Adam nodded.

"I know the incentives."

"Right." Evelyn continued.

"But something changed after he accepted that role, which makes me doubt if whether or not someone within the governmental body here in the 1st floor had done this to him..."

Her tone grew colder.

"And I think it's connected to his ability."

"His skill?" Adam frowned.

"It seemed like a basic attack spell to me. Stronger than I expected, but nothing insane."

"That's what I wanted to ask," Evelyn said.

"In the video you showed me through your livestream... when he cast [Fierce Orb] on you, did it actually harm you?"

"I blocked it with a Barrier Scroll."

Adam recalled.

"But... yeah. I won't lie, I felt a lot of pressure from that thing. It didn't seem normal."

Evelyn's expression tightened.

"So it truly did mutate..."

"Mutate?" Adam repeated.

"It seemed like an ordinary d-tier ability to me, just one with more fire power."

"You're misunderstanding something."

Evelyn said grimly.

"[Fierce Orb] isn't an attack skill."

She paused, her gaze locked on Adam's.

"It's a healing ability."

The air seemed to drop in temperature.

"...What?"

Adam said slowly, as if he'd misheard her.

"His ability, [Fierce Orb], was never designed to harm people."

Evelyn said.

"It's supposed to generate a sphere of light that rapidly accelerates tissue regeneration. For a D-tier ability, it's effective, but nothing special. But what you showed me through the video you sent didn't seem like healing at all..."

Adam frowned.

"So what exactly happened?"

Evelyn crossed her arms.

"During the investigation, I tried to ask him indirect questions...

"Things like, 'Who recommended you to be a guide?' or 'Who did you meet before you became a guide?'"

"And?"

"He kept saying he wasn't allowed to say anything."

Evelyn's expression darkened.

"No matter how I worded my questions, he'd dodge them... like he was afraid."

"I'm guessing you don't know who he's afraid of yet?"

Adam asked.

"Yes, I don't know."

Evelyn sighed.

"Eventually, I gave up for the night. Before I left, I posted a reward for anyone willing to share information about him. But when I came back this morning... he was like this."

She gestured to the body on the table.

Adam stepped closer, his eyes narrowing as he examined the corpse.

The man's eyes were hollow, frozen in a glassy stare.

His mouth gaped wide open, and his fingers were curled as though he'd died mid-scream.

But most disturbing of all was the gaping hole in his chest... a wide, hollow cavity where his heart should have been.

"There were guards stationed outside."

Evelyn added.

"I questioned every single one of them. None of them heard anything... no sounds, no intruder, nothing."

"...Then what do you think happened?"

"I was hoping you'd have an answer."

Evelyn muttered.

"You were the one who captured him."

The notification feed from Adam's livestream flickered to life.

[5th Style Sword Master] : Perhaps it's the work of a curse...

[Arken_knight has donated 15 coins]

[Arken_knight]: Why are you so sure it's not an assassination meant to silence him?

[Fatedragoon has donated 15 ccoins]

[Fatedragoon] : An assassination is supposed to be a quick kill without leaving too many clues to figure out... what kind of an assassin leaves so many marks on a body? That's like leaving numerous clues for investigators to find out!

[NLE_immortal says that it might be because of the assassin's personalized ability]

[Fatedragoon] : Then that would narrow the suspect list even further, investigate people within the first floor who can leave attack marks like that!

[Frog Eater applauds the new weird usernamed viewer]

[Experienced Old Knight approves of Fatedragoon's intelligence]

[Bird Hunter asks if there's a difference between dragon and dragoon]

Adam barely registered the chat as his mind raced through the possibilities.

'It could be a curse... but assassins with unusual skills aren't impossible either. Either way, someone capable of something like this isn't ordinary.'

He narrowed his eyes in deep thought.

'The only curse users I've known are demon-kins... but they don't show up until after the tenth floor...'

"My viewers suggest we investigate anyone with attack-based skills that can leave similar marks."

Adam said.

"I've already started that."

Evelyn replied.

"Some of my team are reading through records as we speak."

"Good..."

Adam said before turning his gaze back to the corpse.

Something about it still felt... wrong.

Stepping closer, Adam examined the body in detail.

The position of its limbs, sprawled out with fingers twisted like claws.

The gaping mouth, wide open as if caught in a final, silent scream.

And then the chest... torn wide open where the heart should have been.

His breath caught.

'Celestia...?'

The memories rushed back.

That pose... the wide mouth... the clawed fingers... it was just like the victims he'd once seen in his past life!

This was the authority power of an S-tier personalized ability!

His thoughts were cut off by sudden movement.

The corpse's pupils twitched, then shrank into narrow slits.

Adam barely had time to react before the dead man's head twisted toward him— eyes locking directly onto his own.

It was alive!