More than ten minutes later, after confirming that he had truly encountered a fortuitous opportunity, Ezra left the inn and appeared in a deserted, dark alley.
After making sure no one was passing by, he gently placed a hand over his chest, feeling the mark of a silver-white girl's silhouette, and began to pray devoutly.
As he did, the mark began to grow slightly hot, as though tiny currents were darting through it. Then, an unprecedented power burst forth from that spot.
It was not a gentle warm current, but explosive thunder.
When Ezra raised his hand, he could even see a silver-white arc flicker across his fingertips, letting out a faint crackle.
"This is the power of Gift..." he murmured, his voice excited and hoarse.
As he activated the mark's power, vague images surfaced in his mind: racing lightning and thunderbolts tearing through darkness. It seemed to be a power defined by lightning and speed, and it was immensely powerful.
He was certain that with such strength, he might truly be able to return to Root Village and take revenge on those cultists!
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Over the next two days, Ezra left Aina at the inn and made excuses to go out for "odd jobs." In reality, he secretly hid in the woods outside the city and tried to master this Gift power.
At first, he had no experience whatsoever. His lightning-fast speed often sent him crashing into tree trunks in the forest. He also had no foundation in swordsmanship, so his fierce speed and haphazard stances frequently caused him to injure himself while swinging his sword. If not for the Lightning Barrier protecting him, he might have been battered black and blue by his own hand before his revenge even began.
Fortunately, days of suffering had changed his character.