Becoming the Dark Lord

[Three Skills Available. Choose One]

Luke’s old skill options appeared.

[Thorn Mutation (Uncommon)]: The botanist can trigger thorn growth on friendly plants, enhancing their natural defenses or adapting them for offense.

[Botanical Purification (Uncommon)]: Using magic, the botanist can purify any natural water source, removing both physical and energetic impurities. Essential for crafting potions and mixtures that require an ultra-pure liquid base.

[Despair Aura I (Rare)]: The Witch carries an unsettling presence wherever she goes. Having learned that her enemies must fear her, she channels her bond with the dark arts to intensify this sensation. The Despair Aura releases a faint wave of terror around the Witch, making the air feel heavier and unstable. Those who meet her gaze feel an amplified sense of fear. While the fear inflicted is still minor, this is the first step toward a future where even the Witch’s strongest enemies may freeze under her stare. The skill gains a small bonus based on Perception, Willpower, and Intelligence.

Of all the abilities that could’ve shown up… it had to be these three?

Practically useless for offense. One needed another ability entirely just to function, one was a glorified water filter, and the last was… an aura. Great.

All I wanted was an Acid Blood Arrow or a Shadow Mana Explosion.

He made his choice.

[You have unlocked the skill: Botanical Purification]

At the very least, it guaranteed clean water without boiling. Water sources were an obvious target for poison, and if he’d thought of it, the island’s lunatics definitely had too.

Luke glanced at the beast he’d been hunting. I aimed for its heart and hit the leg. Fantastic.

A rustle broke through the underbrush. A man stepped out, spinning a wooden staff in one hand.

“Woman-killer,” the man muttered.

He lunged, thrusting the staff like a spear. Luke rolled aside and fired his crossbow, the bolt striking the man and forcing him back. Luke closed the distance, enduring a few wild swings, then tackled him and brought him down, ending the struggle quickly.

He stood again, wiping his hands on his clothes, breath steady.

“I’ll take down anyone who gets in my way,” he said quietly. “I’m winning this damn challenge.”

***

Luke had filled every canteen he owned, turning the water drinkable with [Botanical Purification]. Now he was inside a cave, peeling the hide off the bear he’d killed. He couldn’t focus. Not really.

My mother is alive.

The truth kept gnawing at him. He hadn’t had much time to think, but in quiet moments like this, it pushed its way back in. He should’ve been happy. He wasn’t.

Why did she disappear for fifteen years? Why did she leave me behind?

A sound cracked through the cave. Something hit him. Hard. He threw himself over the bear’s body as another shot buried into the ground beside him.

“Shit!” he hissed, yanking an arrow out of his back.

“I hope that hurt, you bastard!” someone shouted from outside.

“You’ve been causing a lot of trouble around here these last few days,” another voice called out.

“This territory belongs to the Five Street Youth Gang. And you’re about to get the finest treatment Bangkok has to offer!”

Peering toward the cave mouth, he spotted them. A full ring of silhouettes. He was surrounded.

***

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

Six days had passed since Cindy first fell onto the island. The initial hours had been hell, pure panic and disorientation. But after that, the fear faded. The place was still dangerous, yes, but once she joined Father Brandt’s group, she stopped feeling alone. People like her were there too… scared, lost, but willing to survive together.

“We got the last bracelet we needed,” Brad announced as he stepped into camp.

They had settled at the mouth of a cavern, complete with tents and a makeshift firepit. For something pulled together by castaways, it was surprisingly organized.

A small celebration broke out. Laughter, relieved sighs, a few weak cheers.

“This one is yours, Cindy,” Brad said, handing it over. “You were braver than you think, giving up your chances so many times for others.”

She slid the bracelet onto her arm. “I don’t really help as much as everyone else.”

“Nonsense. Having a healer with us is the only reason we’re not all dead.”

The bracelet was too big for her wrist at first, but it shrank instantly, molding itself to fit her.

[User recognized!]

[Awakening Island Point System!]

“So it’s true,” she whispered, staring at the interface floating before her eyes.

[Each action you take on the island grants (IP) Island Points! You may exchange these points for something special at the end of the island challenge.]

She scrolled down.

User Leaderboard! These are the participants with the highest point totals and therefore the greatest chance of winning the challenge!

1st Place: Ivor Aaberg: 4,387,236 IP (Bracelets Found: 1)

2nd Place: Yut Saeten: 2,128,936 IP (Bracelets Found: 1)

3rd Place: Luke Moon: 1,516,371 IP (Bracelets Found: 0)

4th Place: Austin Rawlins: 1,117,776 IP (Bracelets Found: 1)

5th Place: Duncan Brown: 900,387 IP (Bracelets Found: 1)

She closed the interface quickly, startled when Father Brandt emerged from the cave.

“Cindy, it’s time. We’re going to meet them.”

She joined him and five others as they moved through the forest. Their group wasn’t the only one forming alliances. Two of the people traveling with them were members of Duncan Brown’s faction. When they arrived at the meeting point, they found a bearded man waiting with five others at his side.

“Hello, Duncan,” Father Brandt greeted.

“Brandt,” Brown replied.

Cindy recognized him instantly. A dangerous criminal, infamous even before his arrest. She’d seen him on the news more times than she could count.

“Where are my children?” Brandt asked.

Duncan snapped his fingers at one of his men. The man brushed away a patch of leaves, revealing a false floor. A crossbowman aimed downward.

“Right here.”

“That the healer?” Duncan asked, glancing at Cindy.

“Yes,” Brandt answered. “She’s our healer.”

“Let’s go over this again,” Brown said. “She stays with us, as agreed. You get access to her when we say so. And every day, you bring us a share of whatever you hunt.”

Cindy swallowed hard as Brown’s men looked her over, their expressions sharp and hungry in a way that had nothing to do with food.

“Come here, sweetheart,” Duncan said, pulling up his sleeve to show a wound. “And heal this damn thing.”

Cindy obeyed, hands trembling as she knelt beside him and began to channel her magic.

“We want to make sure Cindy is treated well, Duncan,” Father Brandt said. “Can you guarantee she won’t be harmed?”

“You asking if a wolf’s going to turn vegetarian?” Duncan shot back. “Don’t test my patience, ‘Father.’ We came from the same prison, didn’t we?”

Laughter rose around him. “The guy’s just a nutcase. Doesn’t have all his screws.”

“And the two kids?” Brandt asked.

“They stay locked up. They’ll be released in a few hours,” the crossbowman replied.

There was nothing left to negotiate, nothing they could use to push back against Brown.

“You broke your word, Duncan,” Father Brandt said quietly. “The system’s justice will fall upon you.”

Cindy kept working, guiding her wand as she healed.

“You should shut your damn mouth and go back to your little flock. Otherwise only one of you walks away,” Duncan warned.

Brandt exhaled, slow and disappointed. “I warned you, Duncan.”

Then his body erupted in light, flooding the clearing and blinding everyone. A sharp noise cracked from the brush. Cindy heard screams. Pain tore into her leg and she collapsed with a gasp. Someone grabbed her and pulled her away.

“It’s over. You’re safe now. You can open your eyes,” Brandt’s voice told her.

She blinked the world back into focus. The men lay scattered across the ground, arrows punched clean through them, and Duncan was dragging himself across the dirt, leaving a dark trail behind.

“It’s all right, Cindy,” Brad said as he stepped out of the bushes with the others. “I’d never let you get hurt.”

She looked down. An arrow had torn into her leg.

“Good thing you’re a healer, Cindy,” Father Brandt said. “But I’m sorry for frightening you, and for the wound. I’ll answer for my sins.”

Duncan clawed his way toward a fallen crossbow, but Brandt stepped into his path.

“Y-you…!” Duncan sputtered, spitting blood. “You bastards played this smart.” He let out a wet laugh. “There’s no way… no way this should’ve happened. I had a spy in there.”

“I always know which of my children serve me, and which do not,” Brandt replied. He drove the spear he used as a walking staff straight into Brown’s face.

The leaderboard pulsed, Duncan Brown’s name blinking out of existence.

“That’s how we must act, children. Anyone who isn’t with us must die. And the highest-ranked names must be eliminated.”

“Yes, Father,” they answered.

“Only we can remain on this island until the end.”