Jack awoke with a start, sprawled on his doorstep.
"No!"
He bolted upright as if snapping out of a terrible nightmare, his eyes darting around in frantic confusion, only to find himself exactly where he feared.
"Phew… just a dream?"
Jack sighed in relief, then wrinkled his nose. "Ugh… what's that stink?"
Memory flooded back, and he turned, dread weighing him down. Looming before him was the monstrous, emerald vine!
"Not a dream…"
His face paled, and fear gnawed at him that the giant would descend. Jack scrambled inside to grab an ax, determined to hack the vine to pieces.
By the time he'd finished his exhausting task, the sun was nearly gone.
"What's wrong with me lately? Why am I so unlucky?"
Defeated, Jack trudged home, only to run into his mother returning from the fields.
"Jack, there's something sprouting in our best patch, the one where nothing grows. It's black, sticky, and smells awful. Go clean it up."
With that, she brushed past him into the house.
"Huh?"
Confused, Jack eventually wandered toward the troublesome patch.
...
Meanwhile, back at Hogwarts, Tom Riddle sat in his office.
"Oh, finally back!"
Draco Malfoy looked utterly drained.
Harry Potter, however, was amused, teasing Draco for what he perceived as doing next to nothing.
Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, Harry exclaimed, "Almost forgot—Quidditch practice!"
"Sir… we…"
Harry hesitated, but Tom Riddle had no further tasks for them at the moment, so he waved them away.
Ignoring Draco's protests, Harry seized his arm and dragged him from the office.
"Professor Tom, we'll be leaving now."
Hermione Granger, eager to record everything she'd seen in the "Dark Fairy Tales" world, hurried Cassandra Volle off to the library to discuss her observations.
Though Cassandra seemed reluctant to leave, she saw Tom Riddle's silent dismissal and followed obediently.
Now, only Tom Riddle and Nagini remained in the room.
After glancing at the letters piled on the desk, Nagini busied herself with other tasks.
After all, if Tom Riddle didn't enjoy managing the Death Eaters, she would simply have to work harder to assist him.
"..."
Tom Riddle settled into his chair, glancing around at the suddenly empty office. Quite deserted… Heh, am I actually a little unaccustomed to it?
He wouldn't have entertained such a thought before.
But he swiftly dismissed it; more pressing matters awaited.
"System, mission rewards."
[Ding! Mission: Dark Fairy Tale completed, 100% completion! Mission rewards issued!]
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining the spell: Tops Field!]
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining the special talent: Nine Lives!]
"..."
[Name: Tom Marvolo Riddle]
[Gender: Male]
[Age: 21]
[Occupation: Wizard, Professor, Dark Lord]
[Magic Power: SS (Legendary Wizard, those who have reached this level include: Dumbledore, Gellert Grindelwald, etc.)]
[Talent (Max level 10)]: (as follows)
Charms: 10 (Charms? Aren't those something you can learn with a glance?)
Transfiguration: 9 (Powerful enough to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary)
Defense Against the Dark Arts: 10 (The greatest white wizard of this century)
Dark Magic: ??? (Compared to you, even a socket is as obedient as a baby)
Potions: 8 (You could cook potions like soup)
Alchemy: 6 (Extremely excellent)
Prophecy: 9 (Can briefly see the future)
Special Talents: (as follows)
Basilisk Eyes: (Controllable; anyone with magic power one level below your own will die if you stare at them.)
Serpent's Bloodline: (Descendant of Salazar Slytherin, naturally able to communicate with and even control snakes.)
Fireborn: (A natural-born darling of fire, immune to all fire damage, and permanently increases fire spell proficiency by 1.)
Nine Lives: (Literally, you have nine lives.)
[Mastered Spells: Avada Kedavra (Killing Curse) (Level 10, Max), Imperius Curse (Level 10), Fiendfyre (Level 10), Exorcismus (Level 10)... Ancient Magic - Attack (Level 9), Ancient Magic - Defense (Level 9), Ancient Magic - Cast (Level 7), Tops Field (Level 1)]
[Ancient Magic Rune: Thanatos' Gaze]
[Item: Elder Wand (Thestral Feather) "Quality: Mythical"...]
This was Tom Riddle's current attribute panel. His magic power had already surpassed the SS-level (Legendary Wizard) cap, and yet, he remained at SS-level, one step shy of SSS-level (God of Magic).
But that single step was a chasm wider than the gulf between Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore; it was not a boundary easily crossed.
Other spells, like Expelliarmus being maxed out, were hardly worth mentioning.
The most notable changes were that "Ancient Magic - Attack" and "Ancient Magic - Defense" were nearing their maximum potential.
Ancient Magic - Attack allowed for massive damage in a variety of forms, channeling lightning and blasts of raw energy.
Ancient Magic - Defense offered a similar range of defensive capabilities and proficiency.
However, the remaining Ancient Magic - Cast was rather useless to Tom Riddle, and he neglected training it; thus, its proficiency remained at only "Level 7".
Even so, combined with Tom Riddle's vast magical power, he could potentially use Ancient Magic - Cast to hurl people from the grounds of Hogwarts and smash them into the earth.
But more than these impressive stats, Tom Riddle was far more interested in the implications of his new "Special Talent: Nine Lives".
The description of "Nine Lives" was succinct, but the implications were staggering.
Nine lives. A cat has nine lives. It's a talent from 'Puss in Boots.' Whether you're killed or your lifespan expires, it only costs you one life… Heh heh, what do you think of that, Tom Riddle? A pretty great reward, eh?
The system's voice, practically begging for praise, echoed in his mind. Tom Riddle offered no verbal reply, but the subtle upturn of his lips belied his thoughts.
Just as the system claimed, this talent was "great."
It wasn't simply nine blood vessels.
If Tom Riddle so desired, he could expend a life as a "magazine" and wield "Thanatos's Gaze" like a bloody Gatling gun.
Even considering only the lifespan extension granted by nine lives—a "legendary wizard" such as Tom Riddle already possessed an extraordinarily long lifespan; to multiply that by nine was incomprehensible.
While not true immortality, his lifespan was already so vast that even he could not fathom its end.
---