Reincarnated as a ‘Useless’ Dark Flame User

Before his fist reached the bark of the tree, Mav hesitated. “Dark Yellow… what was it again?” he muttered, trying to recall the incantation. His fist landed before he could remember. “Ow!” he yelped, clutching his fist with his other hand. Luckily, he had lessened the force of the punch just in time, so he only got away with a few scratches.

“Alright, let’s get it right this time,” he whispered to himself. “Dark Yellow Transcendence.” He repeated the phrase out loud, committing it to memory. It was a long and unusual phrase, after all.

Taking a deep breath, Mav stood up and readied himself for another attempt. He twisted his body, clenched his fist, and swung it toward the tree. As fast as he could, he cast, “Dark Yellow Transcendence!” This time, it worked. In the middle of his attack, a dark yellow flame enveloped his entire body, like a warrior bathed in power. For a moment, he felt like a Saiyan, but without the spiky hair.

A surge of power coursed through him, and his feet sank slightly into the ground. His senses heightened to an almost overwhelming degree. He could hear the rustling of leaves, the faintest movement of insects, and the distant calls of birds. His eyes picked up the smallest details in the bark before him, every crack and crevice crystal clear. The air carried the scent of fruit from a nearby tree, its sweetness sharp and distinct. Even his skin felt alive, detecting the tiniest vibrations in the air, like he had developed some sort of heightened awareness.

Then his fist collided with the tree. The impact was immense, producing a thunderous boom that echoed through the forest. The bark where his fist had landed was obliterated, as if it had simply vanished into thin air. In the next instant, all the power drained from his body, signaling that only a second had passed.

But that second was all it took for the longer part of the tree to begin falling directly toward him. “Oh crap!” he exclaimed, panicking. With a quick roll, he narrowly avoided the falling tree, which crashed to the ground with another resounding thud, shaking the earth beneath him.

Mav sat there in stunned silence, staring at the fallen tree in disbelief. He opened and closed his fist, still feeling the lingering echoes of the power that had just surged through him. “Display status,” he said, and a translucent screen appeared before him. He scrolled to his skill, noting that it was now on cooldown—100 seconds left. His heart raced with anticipation as he waited for the cooldown to end, eager to experience that power again.

He checked the skill’s level, but to his disappointment, it hadn’t increased at all. “So just using it isn’t enough to level it up?” he wondered, contemplating what the conditions for leveling up might be.

When the cooldown finally ended, Mav stood up, determination renewed. He twisted his body, clenched his fist, and swung his arm, casting the skill just before his fist collided with the felled tree. The spot where his fist landed exploded into countless tiny pieces, disintegrating from the sheer force.

As the cooldown reset, Mav tried different approaches. He kicked the tree, then headbutted it, even rammed his entire body into it. He flicked it with his finger too, each time casting the skill just before impact. Again and again, he unleashed Dark Yellow Transcendence until the tree was reduced to nothing more than scattered splinters.

Mav’s heart raced not only from the physical exertion but from the exhilarating thrill of unlocking something new within himself. Each strike brought a rush of discovery, an intoxicating sense of power that left him craving more, eager to continue.

But Mav wasn’t satisfied. He moved on to another tree, then another, testing his limits with each strike. By the time he was done, the sun had dipped low in the sky, casting an orange tint over the forest. The cool evening air had begun to settle in, and Mav looked around, breathing heavily. He was surrounded by fallen trees and broken wood, the aftermath of his relentless practice looking as if a typhoon had swept through.

Wiping sweat from his brow, Mav picked up a piece of tree bark. “I’ll bring this back as firewood,” he decided, beginning his walk out of the forest. As he walked, he displayed his status box again, glancing at his mana—60/120.

“I used it more than 60 times, for over 60 seconds,” he muttered to himself, “and it still didn’t level up once.” His eyes scanned the mess of trees he’d left behind, evidence of the skill’s immense potential even at its lowest level. His heart raced with excitement at the thought of what it could become when he finally leveled it up.

Then his eyes fell on the last skill in his arsenal, the only one he hadn’t tried yet:

Skill Name: Green Protection (Basic) lvl. 1/5

Description: Envelops the user’s body in a green flame, protecting them from both magical and physical attacks. The flame can be expanded, but the strength of protection decreases the further it’s expanded.

Duration: 1 second

Mana Cost: 5 per second used

Cooldown: 120 seconds

“At this level, it probably couldn’t even protect me from a gust of wind,” Mav joked to himself. But as he spoke, a dark flame flickered to life in his palm. He closed his fist, extinguishing the flame with a determined expression.

“Well, we’ll see what it can do tomorrow. For now, I’ve got to get home. Can’t have Mom and Dad worrying again. They’ll probably ground me this time if I mess up,” he said with a smile.

As Mav walked home, his heart thumped with anticipation for tomorrow. The final rays of the setting sun bathed his skin in warmth, while the cold breeze of the approaching night began to brush against him, hinting at the adventures that awaited him in the days to come.