"Most inefficient weapon of all time, you say? Sounds to me like someone just sucked too much with it." Azrael replied casually, fully aware of what the arrogant fool was trying to do.
Since yesterday, he and his group had been humiliated by Victor. The man's ego must have been deeply scarred, and now he was trying to rebuild it by picking on people who looked easy to push around.
"Big words for a commoner," the blonde man sneered, sizing him up. He noticed Azrael, had no jewelry, no ornaments, not a single indication of wealth or status.
"For someone born with a golden spoon in his mouth, you sure have trouble keeping it shut. Do you perhaps want me to help you with that?"
A vein bulged on the blonde's forehead as he was about to hurl a curse. Unfortunately for him, the instructor cut in.
"Seeing that all of you have taken your weapons, it's time to enter the containment room," Iris said, not even sparing them a glance.
"Once inside, remember two things. First, if you want to get out alive, every single monster must be killed. Second, fighting or killing fellow Chosen is strictly forbidden. We have surveillance everywhere. If we catch you red-handed, you're out of the Moon Breakers."
'Such tragedy,' Azrael thought inwardly, showing no emotion on his stoic face.
The blonde man sneered and turned away, clearly no longer interested in continuing the exchange.
Azrael narrowed his eyes and used [Inspect] on the rich aristocrat.
'Troy, huh? Let's see what you can really do when the fighting starts,' he mused.
The massive doors creaked open. Revealing Inside of the containment room.
It was the first time Azrael had seen something like this. A forest environment with trees, flowing rivers, a clear sky with drifting clouds. Even wind was simulated, adding a chilling realism to the artificial battlefield.
They were in an underground room. He guessed that after managing to force a Rift of the lowest Danger Level to appear, they had designed the place to look as natural as possible.
"Before you enter," Iris said again, regaining their attention,
"Know that you will be watched, and your results evaluated. Those who perform best, by killing the most monsters, will be granted special privileges."
"Good luck." With that, she turned and walked away, leaving them to fend for themselves.
'Special privileges…' Azrael's interest piqued. They'd already given him food and shelter, what more could they possibly offer?
'Maybe a weapon or an armor-type item?' He grinned at the thought of summoning a deadly scythe with a flick of his fingers.
"Still, let's not get too greedy…" he muttered, spinning the scythe around his wrist. Thanks to the weapon's high quality and his past experience, he'd already grown instinctively familiar with its weight and balance.
While he was busy considering his next move, the other Chosen began to move. The ones that had established groups prior headed out, the idea of getting a special reward for killing the most monsters seemingly made them forget the very real danger of death.
Others, still afraid and without allies, searched desperately for people to partner with.
And then there were those too scared to move deeper, lingering near the entrance, hesitant and uncertain.
'Going alone will lead me the most points… if I can even kill monsters in the first place,' Azrael analyzed. While he had Inborn Trait of the Divine Rank, he had yet to acquire any useful skill that could guarantee his survival.
'Traveling alone is too risky, while a large group will only slow me down,' he thought, eyes stopping at the behemoth that was somehow supposed to be of the same age as him.
"Hey," he called out, getting the man's attention. "Victor, right?"
The man that had been about to head deep in the forest solo, eyed Azrael suspiciously, "Spill the beans. What do you want?"
A smile curled upon Azrael's face; the man wasn't beating around the bush and he liked that.
"It's too dangerous to go solo, while too slow to go with a large group. What do you say we form a temporary team?" he suggested.
Victor's eyes narrowed momentarily. "Why should I go with you?" he challenged.
Azrael scoffed, "Because after yesterday's fiasco, where you almost killed a member of a great clan, no one wants to associate with you out of fear of the consequences? Plus, before I was Chosen, I was a monster corpse gatherer. I know a thing or two about their anatomy."
Victor paused, then nodded. "Alright. Let's go."
With the temporary alliance made, both of them shot toward the forest.
Azrael's eyes moved briefly to the menacing Rift towering over the trees.
When he laid his eyes on it, he felt a crawling sensation beneath his skin—both his instincts that sensed danger and the divinity in him that demanded he entered and cleared it.
'Now it makes sense why Iris said we wouldn't be able to enter even if we tried,' he mused, eyes scanning ahead.
It didn't take long for two monsters to emerge. They stood about as tall as the average man, with bodies vaguely resembling humans. Each had two arms ending in razor-sharp claws. No neck or head—instead, a single giant eye was embedded in the center of their chests, scanning the world around them.
Azrael immediately used [Inspect] to get a better idea of their power.
Name: [Unnamed]
Race: [Gazerborn]
Danger level: [Feral]
Corruption Rank: [Warped]
'The lowest Rank of Corruption,' he noted, eyes briefly moving toward his companion.
"Given our setup, I suggest you take the role of tank. I'll flank."
Victor spared him a glance, scoffed, and reached behind his back.
A giant double-headed axe was his weapon of choice—unique, that was for sure, but at the same time it suited the man, taking into account his giant figure.
Without hesitation, he rushed forward, meeting the two monsters unfaced, tensing his muscles to the limit.
Producing a mighty roar, he slammed down the axe faster than both of them could react. The one positioned on the left, unfortunate enough to stand in Victor's path, exploded, its guts spraying in all directions.
'That's… not how a tank acts,' Azrael shook his head.
A low grin appeared on his face, 'Still, good to know that you are not going to be a burden.'
Not even a second later, the other Gazerborn raised its claws, ready to strike at Victor.
Since its attention was now focused on the man, it had left its rear undefended.
That simple mistake ended up costing it its life, a blade passed cleanly through its body, splitting it horizontally in two. The Death Heir had used the element of surprise to swiftly take down the creature.
The monster's body toppled to the ground, Azrael stood behind it with a now blooded scythe resting on his shoulder. His eyes narrowed briefly as he heard the monotone voice of the system echo in his head.
[Corrupt soul has been devoured. The taint in your soul grows darker.]
'As suspected,' he thought grimly, eyes shifting to the system window.
Corruption Rank: [Warped]
Corruption Progression: [1/100]
'Killing monsters means devouring their souls. But what happens if I kill too many—causing my Corruption to evolve before my Purity?'
His grip on the scythe tightened at the thought, 'I can't risk losing myself. Eventually, I will have to start killing Chosen too…'
If that was what it took to survive, then so be it. But to do that he would need to find at least 99 more Chosen, kill them and devour their souls.
The problem was that going on a random killing spree wasn't possible in the Moon Breakers. It looked like they had eyes on everything.
'Not to mention, I got lucky with those monsters by using the element of surprise. But with humans, it'll be much harder—especially if they have an arsenal of unpredictable skills,' his mind raced, eyes growing darker.
"You are silent and swift," Victor acknowledgment broke him out of his thoughts.
Azrael laughed, shaking his head, grounding himself back in reality.
"And you're loud and strong."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cloth, carefully wiping the blood from his scythe.
Once he was done, his eyes landed deeper in the forest.
"Let's go deeper, who knows, we might even be able to earn a skill or two."