Zororo walked through the darkening streets of Kazekami City, his mind churning with strategies and calculations. Seven days to prepare for a duel against an opponent eight levels higher with a fully matured A-Rank system. The odds were absurdly against him.
But the villain system had forced him to accept, which meant it believed victory or at least survival was possible. The system wouldn't set him up for guaranteed failure. There had to be a path forward.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[EMERGENCY TRAINING PROTOCOL ACTIVATED]
[ACCELERATED GROWTH MODE AVAILABLE]
Y[WARNING: HIGH RISK, HIGH REWARD TRAINING OPTIONS UNLOCKED]
[RECOMMENDATION: BEGIN IMMEDIATELY]
A menu appeared showing various training methods, each with different risk-reward profiles. Zororo studied them carefully as he walked.
[TRAINING OPTIONS]
[1. DUNGEON GRINDING - Enter dungeons solo to rapidly gain experience]
[RISK: HIGH | REWARD: MODERATE | TIME REQUIRED: 6-7 DAYS]
[2. SHADOW REALM TRAINING - Enter a special dimension where time flows differently]
[RISK: EXTREME | REWARD: EXTREME | TIME REQUIRED: 1 NIGHT = 7 DAYS INSIDE]
[3. SKILL FUSION - Combine existing skills to create more powerful abilities]
[RISK: LOW | REWARD: MODERATE | TIME REQUIRED: 2-3 DAYS]
[4. VILLAIN'S GAMBIT - Complete high-risk missions for accelerated VP and stat gains]
[RISK: VERY HIGH | REWARD: VERY HIGH | TIME REQUIRED: 5-7 DAYS]
The Shadow Realm training immediately caught his attention. Seven days compressed into one night? That would give him the time he desperately needed while maintaining his normal schedule. But the "extreme risk" label was concerning.
"System, explain the Shadow Realm training."
[SHADOW REALM TRAINING]
[DESCRIPTION: Enter a pocket dimension controlled by your villain system where time flows seven times slower than reality. One night outside equals seven days inside.]
[TRAINING FEATURES: Enhanced experience gain, access to shadow element resources, combat simulation against various opponents]
[RISKS: Mental strain from time dilation, potential permanent psychological damage if training exceeds user's limits, cannot exit early once entered]
[COST: 500 VP]
[CURRENT VP: 710]
[PROCEED?]
Five hundred villain points was steep, but Zororo had enough. The mental strain was concerning, but what choice did he have? He needed the power boost desperately.
Before committing, he pulled out his phone and sent messages to his sisters saying he'd be training intensively tonight and not to worry if he seemed tired tomorrow. Then he texted Yukari with a vague excuse about family matters.
Finding a secluded location was easy the original Zororo's memories included knowledge of an abandoned warehouse district near the industrial zone. Few people ventured there at night, and the shadows were deep and plentiful.
Zororo reached an empty warehouse and sealed the rusty door behind him. The vast space was dark except for moonlight filtering through broken windows. Perfect for shadow element training.
"System, I'm ready. Initiate Shadow Realm training."
[INITIATING SHADOW REALM TRAINING]
[COST: 500 VP DEDUCTED]
[REMAINING VP: 210]
[PREPARING DIMENSIONAL TRANSFER...]
[WARNING: ONCE TRAINING BEGINS, YOU CANNOT EXIT FOR SEVEN SUBJECTIVE DAYS]
[CONFIRM ENTRY?]
"Confirmed."
The shadows in the warehouse suddenly came alive, writhing and expanding like living creatures. They rushed toward Zororo from all directions, engulfing him in absolute darkness. He felt his body dissolve into shadow, his consciousness separating from physical form.
The sensation was disorienting like falling through infinite darkness while simultaneously being everywhere and nowhere. Then, abruptly, he landed on solid ground.
Zororo opened his eyes to find himself in an alien landscape. The sky was a swirling vortex of purple and black. The ground was smooth obsidian that reflected the strange sky like dark glass. Towering pillars of crystallized shadow rose in the distance, and the air itself felt thick with dark energy.
[WELCOME TO THE SHADOW REALM]
[TIME REMAINING: 168 HOURS (7 DAYS)]
[TRAINING OBJECTIVES WILL BE PROVIDED DAILY]
[CURRENT OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE AND ADAPT TO THE ENVIRONMENT]
[BONUS: ALL EXPERIENCE GAINED IS MULTIPLIED BY 3]
Zororo tested his movements. His body felt lighter here, more responsive to his will. When he stepped, shadows rippled outward like water. He could feel the dark energy permeating everything, resonating with his villain system.
A figure materialized in front of him a humanoid shape made entirely of condensed shadow. It carried no weapon but radiated hostility.
[SHADOW TRAINING DUMMY - LEVEL 5]
[OBJECTIVE: DEFEAT IT USING YOUR CURRENT ABILITIES]
The dummy attacked without warning, moving with surprising speed. Zororo barely dodged a strike that would have caved in his ribs. He countered with Shadow Step, teleporting behind the dummy and manifesting Shadow Blade.
His sword of darkness cut through the dummy's arm, severing it. But the limb simply reformed from ambient shadows within seconds.
"Regeneration. Great," Zororo muttered.
He needed to destroy the core. Using his Shadow Sense, he detected a concentrated mass of energy in the dummy's chest its weakness. Zororo feinted left, then used Shadow Step to close distance and drove his blade directly into the core.
The dummy exploded into dispersing shadows.
[SHADOW TRAINING DUMMY DEFEATED]
[+150 EXP (x3 MULTIPLIER = 450 EXP)]
[LEVEL UP!]
[LEVEL 3 → LEVEL 4]
[ALL STATS +2]
[NEW SKILL POINT AVAILABLE]
Warmth flooded through Zororo's body as he leveled up. The sensation was even more intense here in the Shadow Realm, like liquid power flowing through his veins.
Before he could check his updated stats, three more dummies materialized all level six this time.
Zororo grinned despite the danger. This was exactly what he needed. Constant combat, accelerated growth, and no holding back.
He dove into battle.
[DAY 1 - SHADOW REALM]
The first day was brutal. Zororo fought wave after wave of shadow constructs, each slightly stronger than the last. He died four times each death resulting in his body reforming at a designated respawn point with a painful reminder of his failure.
But each death taught him something. He learned to better integrate Shadow Step into his combat flow, chaining teleports to create unpredictable attack patterns. His Shadow Blade evolved from a simple weapon into an extension of his will, shifting forms mid-combat.
By the end of day one, he'd gained three more levels.
[LEVEL 4 → LEVEL 7]
[STATS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED]
[NEW SKILLS UNLOCKED]
During rest periods the Shadow Realm mercifully provided breaks every six hours Zororo explored the skill system more deeply. He discovered he could spend skill points to upgrade existing abilities or unlock new ones.
He invested points into Shadow Step, upgrading it to allow longer distances and reduced cooldown. He enhanced Shadow Blade to maintain multiple weapons simultaneously. And he unlocked a new skill called Shadow Clone that created temporary copies of himself for confusion tactics.
[DAY 2 - SHADOW REALM]
The training escalated. The system introduced elemental variants fire shadows that burned with dark flames, ice shadows that froze his movements, lightning shadows that moved at blinding speeds.
Zororo adapted by combining his skills creatively. He used Shadow Touch to mark opponents from a distance, then teleported directly into their blind spots for instant kills. He created shadow clones to draw fire while his real body attacked from stealth.
His combat instincts sharpened with each encounter. The accumulated experience from his previous life as Nanzi the pattern recognition, strategic thinking, stress management merged with this new body's physical capabilities and the villain system's powers.
He was becoming something more than human, more than a simple system user. He was becoming a true villain cunning, powerful, adaptable.
[LEVEL 7 → LEVEL 10]
[MAJOR MILESTONE REACHED]
[VILLAIN'S AUTHORITY - UNLOCKED]
[VILLAIN'S AURA - UNLOCKED]
The moment he hit level ten, everything changed. Dark energy erupted from Zororo's body like an explosion, and he felt his consciousness expand. Two new abilities activated simultaneously, fundamentally altering his presence.
[VILLAIN'S AUTHORITY - LEVEL 1]
[DESCRIPTION: Impose your will upon weaker opponents. Can induce fear, paralysis, or seal enemy abilities temporarily. Effectiveness scales with level difference.]
[COST: 100 MP PER USE]
[VILLAIN'S AURA - LEVEL 1]
[DESCRIPTION: Passive intimidation effect. Your presence naturally unnerves opponents and inspires loyalty in followers. Can be suppressed or amplified at will.]
Zororo tested the abilities immediately. When he activated Villain's Authority against the next training dummy, the construct froze mid-attack, trembling as if experiencing terror despite being a lifeless construct. He destroyed it effortlessly.
This was power. Real, tangible power that could change the odds against Kazuki.
[DAY 3 - SHADOW REALM]
The system introduced boss-level opponents. Massive shadow constructs with complex attack patterns and devastating abilities. Each boss fight pushed Zororo to his absolute limits.
He faced a Shadow Dragon that could manipulate the environment itself, creating walls of darkness and raining shadow projectiles. He defeated it by using his new Shadow Clone ability to create a dozen decoys, then striking the dragon's core while it was distracted.
He fought a Shadow Assassin that matched his own mobility, forcing him to predict movements and counter-teleport reactively. That battle taught him the importance of reading opponent patterns and feinting.
Each boss dropped rare items that the system could convert to permanent stat boosts or skill upgrades. Zororo carefully allocated these resources to maximize his combat effectiveness.
[LEVEL 10 → LEVEL 13]
[MULTIPLE SKILLS UPGRADED TO LEVEL 3]
[NEW ULTIMATE SKILL AVAILABLE: SHADOW DOMAIN]
The Shadow Domain skill was expensive requiring 300 MP to activate but its description was incredible. It created a pocket dimension where Zororo controlled reality itself, amplifying his shadowing abilities while suppressing enemy powers.
[DAY 4 - SHADOW REALM]
Midway through his training, the system introduced a new challenge: fighting against simulated copies of real opponents.
The first simulation was Yukari Shirogane. Her ice abilities were perfectly replicated, forcing Zororo to develop counters specifically for her fighting style. He learned to use shadows as insulation against cold, and discovered that rapid teleportation could break through ice barriers before they fully formed.
The second simulation was Raikou Kaminari. Her lightning speed and overwhelming offensive power were terrifying. Zororo died six times before developing a strategy using Shadow Domain to slow her movements while his clones created openings for counterattacks.
Each simulated fight refined his understanding of high-level combat.
[LEVEL 13 → LEVEL 15]
[DAY 5 - SHADOW REALM]
The system finally introduced a simulation of Kazuki Shirogane himself. The moment the simulation materialized, Zororo understood why this duel was considered so dangerous.
Kazuki's Ice Dominion System was overwhelming. He could freeze entire sections of the battlefield instantly, create ice constructs that fought independently, and his personal combat abilities were refined through years of training.
Zororo lost the first match in under thirty seconds.
He lost the second match in forty-five seconds.
By the twentieth match, he lasted three minutes.
By the fiftieth match, he finally won barely, using every trick and tactic he'd learned, burning through his entire MP pool, and exploiting a single moment of overconfidence in Kazuki's pattern.
The victory felt hollow because he knew the real Kazuki would be even stronger, would adapt faster, and wouldn't have predictable patterns. But at least now Zororo understood what he was facing.
[LEVEL 15 → LEVEL 17]
[COMBAT PROFICIENCY: SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED]
[NEW TITLE EARNED: SHADOW ASSASSIN]
[EFFECT: +10% DAMAGE FROM STEALTH, +15% CRITICAL HIT RATE]
[DAY 6 - SHADOW REALM]
The second-to-last day focused on refinement rather than raw power gain. Zororo practiced integrating all his abilities into seamless combat flow. He worked on energy management, ensuring he wouldn't exhaust his MP pool mid-battle. He drilled escape tactics for when situations turned desperate.
The system also provided theoretical knowledge lessons about system types, weaknesses in common abilities, psychological warfare tactics, and how to read opponents' intentions from subtle body language.
[DAY 7 - SHADOW REALM]
The final day was a gauntlet. Zororo faced a marathon of consecutive battles against increasingly difficult opponents, culminating in a three-way battle against simulations of Kazuki, Raikou, and Yukari simultaneously.
It was hell. Zororo died eleven times during that final fight. But each death taught him coordination, prioritization, and crisis management. When he finally won by pitting the simulations against each other and exploiting their conflicting abilities he felt transformed.
He wasn't the same person who'd entered this realm seven subjective days ago. He'd grown not just in power but in confidence, skill, and understanding.
[FINAL LEVEL: 18]
[TRAINING COMPLETE]
[TOTAL TIME ELAPSED: 168 HOURS IN SHADOW REALM = 1 NIGHT IN REAL WORLD]
[ACHIEVEMENTS UNLOCKED: SHADOW MASTER, RELENTLESS, TACTICAL GENIUS]
[PREPARING EXTRACTION...]
The Shadow Realm dissolved around Zororo, reality reassembling itself. He felt himself pulled back through layers of darkness, consciousness returning to his physical body.
He gasped and fell to his knees in the abandoned warehouse. His body was drenched in sweat and trembling from exhaustion. Seven days of constant combat compressed into one night had taken its toll.
But when Zororo checked his status screen, he smiled through the exhaustion.
[STATUS SCREEN]
NAME: Zororo Kurogami
LEVEL: 18
SYSTEM RANK: SSS (Villain)
HP: 1200/1200
MP: 1500/1500
STRENGTH: 35
AGILITY: 42
INTELLIGENCE: 48
CHARM: 39
LUCK: 15
INFAMY: 45
He'd grown tremendously. Not enough to guarantee victory against Kazuki's level twenty-eight, but enough to make the fight competitive. Enough to survive.
Zororo stood on shaking legs and checked his phone. It was six in the morning he'd been in the Shadow Realm for exactly eight hours of real-world time.
Six days remained until the duel. And now, finally, he had a fighting chance.
[END OF CHAPTER 10]