CLEAVER OF SIN - Chapter 258

Chapter 258: Never Run Out
Asher continued laughing as he clutched his stomach slightly, his shoulders shaking with amusement. After a brief moment, he swiped away a small tear that had slipped from the corner of his eye. Regaining his composure, he turned toward William and Finch, his lips still curled in mock amusement. “Even if I swung that way,” he said dryly, “you two would still be the last names on my list.”

William sat there stunned into silence, while Finch remained rooted before Asher, holding the teleportation ring in his palm with an equally stunned expression. The reality of their misunderstanding finally dawned on both of them, causing a wave of embarrassment so strong that they instinctively wanted to hide. They had completely overthought the situation, all because of a single misplaced assumption.

“But isn’t this still your fault, Asher?” William finally spoke with a resigned sigh. “You should have just told us it was a teleportation ring. We wouldn’t have ended up in this awkward situation in the first place.”

Finch, who had been on edge just moments ago, released a deep breath and returned to his seat. The cold sweat clinging to his skin gradually dried as relief washed over him. The horrifying thought of having to share a bed with the Tenth Sun, something he believed would be his inevitable fate due to Asher’s earlier vague wording, was finally erased. His heart, which had been beating erratically out of nervous tension, slowly returned to a calmer rhythm.

Asher’s tone remained light yet composed as he spoke, “I genuinely thought you would recognize the ring on sight, William. You’ve seen it before, so I didn’t think it necessary to explain. As for Finch, his misunderstanding is understandable since he knows nothing about it.”

Finch, still seated, kept his gaze fixed on the golden ring glinting faintly under the room’s ambient light. He couldn’t help but silently thank his Good Luck ability once again. That peculiar ability had brought him yet another unexpected fortune. The teleportation ring had originally been meant for William, yet somehow it had ended up in his possession instead.

Without even a hint of hesitation, Finch slipped the ring onto his finger as though he feared it might vanish at any moment. His dark eyes remained glued to it, full of quiet disbelief and joy. Though he was technically a noble, he was only the heir of a Baron, not among the higher ranks of nobility. Where would he have ever gathered the money or gained the connections required to obtain such a rare and valuable artifact?

Asher’s purple gaze shifted toward Finch, who was practically devoured by fascination for the ring. “Just channel the lowest wisp of Astra into it,” Asher explained calmly. “Once you do, you’ll be able to teleport to any location, regardless of the distance, so long as you can picture it clearly in your mind. But keep this in mind, if you try teleporting into a restricted area or a place protected by spatial seals, the teleportation will simply fail.”

Finch slowly lifted his eyes from the ring and looked at Asher with a new sense of respect. “Thank you, Tenth Sun,” he said sincerely, his voice steady but filled with restrained excitement and gratitude.

Asher gave a small nod accompanied by a faint smile as he watched Finch fiddle with the ring like it was the most precious treasure in existence. He felt no anger nor regret about Finch receiving the artifact. There was no reason to be angry, after all, he had intended to give it away anyway. The only reason William had been his initial choice was because William was simply the closest person to him within the Star Academy.

Still, it felt somewhat ironic that a ring originally meant for the highest ranked student had now ended up in the hands of the very last ranked student.

Finch, having understood the explanation, wasted no time. He channeled a thread of Astra into the ring, and in an instant, his figure vanished completely from Asher’s room.

Finch opened his dark eyes and found himself standing in his own room. A bright, uncontrollable smile broke across his face. His room was modest, consisting of a single bed, a small table, a wooden chair, and a bathroom. Still, despite its simplicity, it held an air of quiet luxury, far more refined than what most Barons could afford. Yet even then, compared to Asher’s personal quarters, his room still paled drastically.

Unable to resist testing his new treasure further, Finch channeled Astra again, and just like before, he vanished and reappeared, this time standing atop his own table. A rush of exhilaration coursed through him. He spent the next several seconds teleporting back and forth across different parts of his room, appearing and disappearing with increasing ease and confidence. Then, suddenly, he halted mid-teleport, remembering the Tenth Sun’s room. Without hesitation, he activated the ring once more.

Asher sat calmly when he suddenly sensed Finch’s presence reappear within his room, ironically, on the very same spot he had been seated on previously.

Finch immediately stood upright and then dropped into a deep ninety-degree bow, his voice filled with sincere emotion. “Thank you, Tenth Sun. I will cherish this treasure with my life.”

“There’s no need to thank me,” Asher replied casually. “As you know, the teleportation ring wasn’t meant for you originally, it was meant for William.”

He didn’t bother telling Finch about the ring’s combat potential or how it could change the tide of battle in the Separate Dimension if used creatively. It was something Finch would either discover on his own or remain ignorant of. If Finch limited his thinking to only using the ring for short-distance convenience, then that would simply be his own failure of imagination.

Finch opened his mouth as if he wanted to speak more, but sensing that pushing his gratitude any further might make the atmosphere feel awkward, he closed his lips and merely nodded instead.

‘I wonder what expression Cindralis will make when she spies and realizes her teleportation ring has ended up in the hands of the very last ranked student in the entire class,’ Asher mused silently. To others, the teleportation ring might be considered an unbelievable treasure, but to Cindralis, someone of her standing and background, it might be no more than a handful of pebbles, easily discarded and reproduced at will.

William glanced at Finch, clicked his tongue lightly in envy, and exhaled. It wasn’t a negative, bitter envy, but more of a self-directed frustration. ‘Asher was right,’ he thought to himself, ‘I really do tend to overthink things.’

“Your luck never seems to run out, huh?” William commented aloud as he met Finch’s gaze.

William had known Finch for years, and even so, he couldn’t help but remark on the bizarre consistency of Finch’s fortunate encounters. Though William possessed a powerful copying talent, there was one thing he could never replicate, luck. And unknowingly, Finch intended to keep it that way.

‘You have no idea,’ Finch mused inwardly, though outwardly he smirked and replied, “It’s not my fault you messed up.”

Though William had copied talents from Finch before, never once during those copies had he experienced a single stroke of luck. That alone led Finch to conclude that William’s copy ability, no matter how overpowered it seemed, could not replicate everything.

Asher observed the two of them, one wearing a defeated expression and the other smiling in triumph. He didn’t linger on their emotions for long and rose to his feet. “We should be leaving for that conference event. I’m sure the Star Academy won’t hesitate to use any excuse, like lateness, to deduct points from us.”

With that said, he walked away from the living area, heading toward his room to retrieve his boots. After putting them on, he returned, only to find William and Finch moving toward the door.

“Where exactly are you two going?” Asher asked, arching a brow without moving from his position.

“To the conference hall,” Finch replied with a slightly confused expression.

“Why walk,” Asher said with mild amusement, “when you can just teleport us there?”

The realization struck Finch like a bolt of lightning, and his eyes lit up immediately. “I can teleport with other people?”

“You just need to maintain physical contact with them,” Asher replied smoothly. “Touch them and direct your teleportation intent toward including that person or group.”

“Why didn’t I think of that earlier…” Finch murmured in slight embarrassment.

‘There are many things you haven’t thought of,’ Asher mused internally, though he didn’t voice it.

Finch and William walked toward him. Finch placed one hand on Asher’s shoulder and the other on William’s, then channeled Astra into the teleportation ring. With focused intent, the three of them vanished from Asher’s room in a blink, teleporting toward their destination.

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