[Welcome to your first trial, seeker.]
[The Thyxar Kingdom has infiltrated your ranks.]
Zach saw the familiar screen in front of him; his senses returned, and the overall sharp pain of his ribs came back.
'Arthur can't do this... I need someone powerful... much more powerful than that.'
The carriage trembled, and the familiar voice of the Thyxar echoed.
Hunters are a whole other powerhouse; they, like humans, can use skills and have devastating strength.
If Zach wanted to pass this trial, he really had to do this right.
[Name: Zachariah Oliver Keal]
[Age: 17]
[Class: Shifter class]
[Sequence level: Earth]
[Existence pool 0/100]
[Soul essence 100/100]
[Skill: Shadow Morph
User can transform into any animal imaginable; beware, the stronger the animal, the more soul essence it'll drain.] -
The system screen had reverted his level once again.
Zach's limbs felt lighter; his vision became a little blurry, and the space around him didn't sound as it used to.
Zach braced himself; the box was lifted up and thrown violently into the water.
Zach's body crashed against the walls of the coffin before hitting the calm surface of the lake.
[PARADOX SYSTEM INTERFACE]
[Objective: Lead humanity to victory against the Thyxar.]
[Difficulty: Hard]
[Consequences for failure: Death]
[Chances left: 8]
[Thread wisely, seeker... the cycle of despair... Continues]
[Path: Path of Iniquity.]
[Trial rank: 194]
My trial rank rose...? Zach didn't know what this trial rank was, but it sure looked important to notice.
Zach braced himself, kicking the lid of the coffin with both feet.
This time, he didn't swim away from the large sea serpent.
He transformed his lungs to that of gills and waited for the gigantic serpent to notice him.
This time, he was confident he was able to defeat the writhing sea creature again.
Eventually, the serpent noticed him and threw itself at him like a bullet.
Zach braced himself; his MP wasn't dropping as rapidly as usual.
He gritted his teeth, turning to the side to narrowly dodge the creature's attack.
Turning his fingertips to that of a tiger's, he slammed his hand into the creature.
The lake water thrashed as Zach slammed his claws into the creature's head yet again.
Zach's body moved unpredictably as the serpent tried to get it off its back, but he wasn't letting go.
Gritting his teeth, he rammed the claws into the creature's eye; blood spewed all over.
The snake thrashed like never before, hitting itself against the lake bed.
[41/100]
Zach's soul essence was being drained even faster now because his breathing increased.
The snake's violent wiggling slowly turned to weak writhing, then it transformed into twitching.
Zach stuck his hand deeper into the eye; last chance.
He was stuck here for a while, looking for the snake's bloodstone, but now he was already aware of the position of its bloodstone.
The stronger the monster, the purer the bloodstone.
With a satisfactory grin, Zach placed the stone near his mouth and inhaled it.
[Mp +1]
Zach swam towards the surface and reverted his transformation.
His figure emerged from the deep; his brown hair dripped off the excess water as he looked forward.
In front of him were the two familiar Thyxars, having a face-off with Ingrid.
Ingrid, the middle-aged, lazy-eyed knight, looked at Zach's figure with a hint of bewilderment in his eyes.
"What? Another one?" The shorter beast sneered.
Zach just sat by the lake, panting; behind him, the dead body of the massive sea serpent surfaced.
"Don't mind me... I'm just a mystic arts major." He grinned.
Both beasts looked at each other with a mix of confusion and irritation.
Before they knew it, Ingrid had already closed in.
The fight didn't last long; the beasts tried to resist, but Ingrid quickly dealt with them.
"Thanks for distracting them." Ingrid sheathed his sword.
"Nothing's for free, man." Zach groaned, standing up from the boulder he was resting on by the lake.
Ingrid raised a brow. "Then... I'm guessing you want something..."
"Exactly." Zach sighed.
Ingrid pondered for a bit, then sighed. "What is it...?"
Zach pondered. "I want you to be here by the third of next month." Zach said firmly, standing his ground.
Ingrid was taken aback; usually, students normally beg for bloodstones, but this guy was asking for him to be here by the third of next month.
"See, boy... I have a very busy set of activities over the next month; I can't do that." Ingrid sighed, sheathing his sword.
'There's no way I can explain to him that I traveled back in time and somehow, on the third of next month, a Hunter-ranked knight is just suddenly gonna pop up and wreak havoc.' Zach internally pondered.
"I want to learn the Algera Thrust..." Zach stated, arms straight.
Ingrid's brow furrowed. "The Algera Thrust...." He bit his lip, like he was nervous.
"I'm not sure... You have instructors at the academy, right...?"
"That's the problem, sir; none of them could exhibit the technique as flawless as you, sir." Zach stated.
"No need for flattery... Although I am the best when it comes to the move... Alright." Ingrid turned.
"I'm going to be here early in the morning, so don't be late."
Ingrid walked away; Zach watched his back, contemplating.
In the last chance, Ingrid said he'd see what he could do, but still didn't show up.
Maybe he changed his mind? Maybe not.
But this time... this time, for sure.
Zach checked his stats once again.
[Name: Zachariah Oliver Keal]
[Age: 17]
[Class: Shifter class]
[Sequence level: Earth]
[Existence pool 0/100]
[Soul essence 100/100]
[Skill: Shadow Morph
User can transform into any animal imaginable; beware, the stronger the animal, the more soul essence it'll drain.] -
His hand transformed into that of a tiger.
[Congratulations; your skill "Shadow Morph" has advanced to the Curious stage.]
Zach's body felt like a bowl of ice-cold water washed his insides, and an ancient curse was lifted off him.
That was the only feeling to describe it; his body pulsated.
[Mp +100]
His eyes widened.
His soul's essence had doubled instantly.
His skin felt a lot smoother; his eyes got sharper, and his height—Zach could feel himself grow taller.
His body also felt a lot lighter.
[Name: Zachariah Oliver Keal]
[Age: 17]
[Class: Shifter class]
[Sequence level: Earth]
[Existence pool 0/100]
[Soul essence 201/201]
[Skill: Shadow Morph
User can transform into any animal imaginable; beware, the stronger the animal, the more soul essence it'll drain; you possess speedy transformation and can incorporate one attribute of a monster by touching them.] -
[You have peaked onto the Curious stage; beware, curiosity kills the cat... be careful.]