Cloud stared at the two remaining bottles in the shop, flashing with "Limited Rare" tags, and knew he had no choice.
"It's just Source Points! Take them!"
Gritting his teeth, he made a decision that would pain any hoarder-type player.
"System, sell everything in my inventory except core skills and gold-tier items!"
"Haggling," "Culinary Mastery," various random weapons, even those cases of "Gamer Fuel Soda" he hadn't gotten around to drinking—all went up on the system's "secondhand marketplace."
After a tearful "clearance sale," he also poured in all the Source Points he'd been saving for a glorious "whale ten-pull."
Finally, he scraped together enough for both potions!
"Go big or go home! Today, I WILL break through!"
Cloud downed both potions, their contents shimmering with dreamlike starlight!
BOOM—!
An indescribable flood of cool, majestic energy surged into his mental sea!
His consciousness felt like it had been launched into deep space.
He saw cells dividing, DNA helixes spiraling, saw the tsunami of life energy represented by his 52 Constitution, 50 Strength, and 50 Agility!
Before, he'd merely been a user of these energies.
Now, under this massive mental surge, he began to... understand them, perceive them, control them!
His martial will and physical power began their deepest fusion!
After an unknown amount of time, when Cloud's consciousness returned to his body, his world had completely transformed.
[Spirit: 50]
Conditions met!
"NOW!"
Cloud leaped to his feet, eyes shut tight.
He no longer tried to project power outward. Instead, he frantically compressed, condensed, and crushed the violent energy inward!
Using his now-substantial 50-point mental power as an invisible net, he bound together all his strength, all his will, all his insights!
"BREAK... THROUGH!"
HUMMMMM—!
An invisible, transparent force field expanded outward with Cloud at its center!
The field covered a ten-meter radius. Within it, time itself seemed to slow for an instant.
Air became viscous like gel. Weight plates on the floor lifted by unseen force, floating gently.
The training room's alloy walls groaned under the pressure, hairline cracks spreading across their surfaces!
Cloud slowly opened his eyes.
In his world, everything had become crystal clear.
He could "see" every energy particle dancing, "hear" his DNA chains cheering in exultation, "feel" the spatial structure of the entire room.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! Genetic lock broken. Power and will united. Successfully comprehended—Absolute Domain!]
[Current Progress: Absolute Domain 5%!]
(Note: In the Hong Kong comics, Absolute Domain first appeared in KOF96. The Japanese version of '94 didn't include this concept. Introducing it here with low initial values prevents power scaling from getting out of control.)
Feeling this new realm where he could control everything at will, Cloud's face broke into a genuine, supremely confident smile.
From today on, he finally had the qualifications to compete on the same stage as Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami—the "Children of Destiny"!
...
The next day. Kyokugenryu Dojo.
A flashy red Ferrari F40 executed a perfect drift that would make any car enthusiast scream, stopping precisely at the dojo entrance without even kicking up dust.
The door opened, and a young man in a Versace custom white suit and Gucci limited-edition sunglasses stepped out with elegant flair. Tall and lean, with stylish short blonde hair.
Every movement radiated innate nobility and casual cool.
This was the sole heir to Italy's Garcia Financial Group, Kyokugenryu's "Flying Swallow," and the dream lover of countless young women—Robert Garcia.
"Ryo! I'm back! Did you miss this handsome Italian hurricane?" Robert removed his sunglasses, revealing an impossibly handsome face with a hint of playful mischief.
He spread his arms wide, ready to give his best friend a warm embrace.
But Ryo simply walked out of the dojo, glanced at him, and sidestepped—leaving Robert hugging air.
"...Still no sense of humor whatsoever." Robert awkwardly retracted his arms but quickly recovered his suave demeanor.
"By the way, where's my darling Yuri? I brought her the latest dress from Paris Fashion Week, plus a diamond I personally won at auction in South Africa!"
At the mention of his sister, Ryo's eternally frozen face finally cracked—and not in a good way.
He sighed and spoke in a tone that mixed "worried father" with "annoyed brother-in-law":
"Robert, if you don't step up your game soon..."
"I'm afraid... that prime cabbage we've been carefully cultivating for over a decade is about to be dug up—pot and all—by some wild boar that appeared out of nowhere."
"WHAT?!" Robert looked like he'd been struck by lightning. His Italian accent even slipped out.
"Who?! What blind fool dares make a move on my future wife?! Watch me pull out my black card and use 'money power' to show him what society's cruelty looks like!"
"A guy named Cloud." Ryo's expression grew complicated—part admiration, part annoyance.
"He's got incredible fighting talent. Improves insanely fast. And that mouth of his is sweeter than honey—he's got my sister wrapped around his finger."
He gave Robert a brief rundown of Cloud challenging the dojo and everything that had happened since.
Robert's expression shifted from shock to anger to gravity as he listened.