"Lord Vega!"
As Vega stepped out of the interrogation room, the guards waiting at the door immediately saluted with respect.
"I'm fine. Go back to your posts," Vega said casually, noticing that almost the entire villa staff had gathered. He gave a couple of quick orders and waved them off.
"Yes, Lord Vega," they replied, still uncertain whether the massive disturbance earlier had truly come from him. But since he said nothing more, they held back their questions and quietly returned to their stations, guarding the villa gates.
Vega, now carrying the transformed Phantom Severance, made his way back to the main hall.
As soon as he sat down on the sofa, the twin maids arrived with snacks and tea. Both looked worried and curious, clearly shaken by the earlier explosion of energy—but as maids, they didn't dare ask anything. They simply waited on standby.
"You two can go now," Vega said, waving them away.
Now alone, Vega finally turned his attention to the upgraded weapon. The enormous aura released during its transformation had shaken the entire villa. To reassure his subordinates, he had quickly left the interrogation room with the sword in hand—but now it was time to examine it closely.
The blade, once a silver-white color, had turned pitch black. Intricate runes covered its entire surface. At the hilt, a purple orb had cracked slightly, a reddish line splitting its center like an unopened eye.
The system had also updated the weapon's description:
Phantom Severance – [First Order] After strengthening, this weapon becomes transcendent. Its blade is forged from the corpse of a black dragon.When released, it summons the black dragon for possession.
Abilities:
Increases user's power by over tenfold
Grants nearly impenetrable defense
Comes with an auxiliary weapon: Red Shrike
"Ten times…?" Vega muttered. "Does that apply to everything?"
He immediately called out, "Phantom Severance."
In that instant, a massive dragon's phantom appeared behind him. It roared as its form merged into Vega's body, and a surge of overwhelming power rushed through him.
Every cell in his body felt charged. Strength, speed, senses—everything skyrocketed by over tenfold. But what shocked Vega the most was his Nen—his aura exploded upward as well, almost instantly increasing tenfold.
"Incredible…" Vega whispered. "Even Nen is boosted."
He could feel the sheer abundance of energy coursing through him. And if the defense was as strong as the system claimed, then this weapon was terrifyingly powerful.
No wonder it had cost so much experience to upgrade—it was practically breaking the balance of the world.
Just imagining someone like Chairman Netero wielding this weapon made Vega chuckle.
"If Netero had this… Meruem wouldn't have faced a Hundred-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva—it would've been Thousand Palms of Judgment."
He pictured a ridiculous scene: Netero calmly meditating in front of his Buddha statue while a thousand glowing hands slammed Meruem into the ground.
But Vega quickly sobered up. Despite this tenfold boost, his base Nen level was still quite low. Even now, he was just reaching the threshold of an average Nen user. Still, it was a start.
Just then, tires screeched outside.
Hurried footsteps approached, and the door was thrown open.
"Master, are you alright?!" Kevin burst in, sweat dripping down his face. Seeing Vega sitting safely on the sofa, he let out a long sigh of relief.
On his way back from arranging the airship to Sky Arena, he had received a report about a strange shockwave coming from the villa. Fearing something had gone terribly wrong, he rushed back immediately.
Now that he saw Vega unharmed, he could finally relax. After all, the Pengellet family now rested entirely on Vega's shoulders.
Vega looked at Kevin and felt a rare warmth. Loyal. Hardworking. Always reliable.
And suddenly, an idea struck him.
"If we're going to be the true Pengellet family, then it's time to give my people true power," he thought.
He looked straight at Kevin and said seriously, "Kevin, your loyalty hasn't gone unnoticed. I believe you've earned a reward."
Kevin bowed humbly. "I've only done what I should. Everything the family has achieved is because of your leadership."
Vega smiled. "No. You deserve this."
"I will give you the Pengellet family's signature power. A gift of strength."
Kevin's eyes widened in shock. "Master… do you mean… you'll teach me Nen?"
Vega shook his head with a mysterious grin. "Not Nen."
"This is something else—another kind of power. One that belongs to the true Pengellet bloodline."
"Kneel."
Without hesitation, Kevin dropped to one knee, fist to chest in salute.
Vega raised a hand.
His Nen surged. Images formed in his mind—a worn pair of gloves with the Roman numeral "I" engraved in flame.
As Vega poured energy into the gloves, they began to glow. The tattered leather burned away, transforming into a brilliant pair of flaming gauntlets marked with the letter I.
He handed them over.
"Kevin. From this moment on, your name is Kevin Pengellet. These gloves are your weapon."
"With them, you will burn down anyone who dares stand in our way."