[Solara Group Chat]
As usual, Aron saw the chat icon appear. With a thought, he entered.
[Name: …]
To enter the group, he could use any name he wanted. Without overthinking it.
[Members: 7]
[Saint has joined the chat…]
Seeing the number, Aron understood. The seven represented people who had reached level 10 and unlocked the chat function.
(So, I'm not the only one after all.)
Aron was impressed at how fast others were leveling. After all, this was only the fourth day of the apocalypse. Still, he wasn't surprised.
Unlike him, who had started from zero, others had awakened offensive talents right from the beginning. With such abilities, their rise was inevitable.
Aron knew that even with his overpowered ability, if it weren't for his quick reactions and combat skills, he would already be dead. Any ordinary person in his shoes would have been.
He had wanted to go with Aron, but chose "Saint." instead, as a way to vent himself. All his life, he had carried blame and punishment for things he hadn't done, from parents who abandoned him, to an ex-wife who destroyed his life, to friends, and even the court. Innocent, yet condemned. In his heart, he believed himself a Saint wronged by fate.
After the message announcing his entry, the group went silent, with no activity at all, everyone was probably busy with their own things.
--
Aron turned his focus to the final reward: an upgrade +1. According to its description, it could enhance any sub-skill by one level. A smile spread across his face. Without hesitation, he chose to upgrade the newly gained talent, Socket.
****
Talent Socket:
Keep 5 abilities active at once
*****
The upgrade increased the sub-skill by another two, raising the number of talents he could keep active to five.
Aron turned on all his talents except for Burst. After all, he could only keep five active.
Satisfied, his stomach growled. Feeling hungry, he reached to the back seat and grabbed milk and biscuits. Uncapping the bottle, he ate quietly, glancing out the window now and then.
When he was done, half the milk remained. Although the car, Nule had a mini-fridge that could hold four to five drinks, Aron had no interest in using it. To conserve energy, he set the bottle aside, planning to finish it later before it spoiled.
After checking the car's systems and seeing everything in order, Aron finally let himself relax. Just as he was about to nap, Nule's AI voice chimed in:
[Shall I activate the resting feature?]
Aron wanted to refuse, but changed his mind. At least the body that worked so hard deserved some reward. With that thought, he clicked Yes.
The back seat, piled with food, blocked the mechanism. Aron sighed.
(Well, there goes a nice experience.)
Just as he was about to cancel, the AI spoke again.
[Obstruction detected. Rest protocol B activated.]
The two front seats began moving instead, shifting to face each other and reclining. Aron raised his legs as they slanted, the surfaces joining into a makeshift bed. The headrests served as pillows.
He was amazed. It was as if the car's maker had predicted everything and designed around it.
[Energy: 66% | Estimated: 19 days left]
Seeing no change in energy consumption, Aron was satisfied. Though his body was in top shape, mentally he was exhausted from the rollercoaster of emotions. With the comfort of the chair-turned-bed, it wasn't a minute before Aron fell asleep, snoring softly.
--
Blarrr… Blarrr… Blarrr…
[Incoming anomaly detected.]
[Permission to engage weapon system?]
Aron groaned, dragged from deep sleep by the car alarm. He felt cheated, like he had only just closed his eyes.
Irritated, he deactivated the resting feature. The seats slid back into place. His expression hardened.
"How long since I activated the rest feature?"
[Approximately 1 day, 4 hours.]
[Energy: 64% | Estimated: 18 days left]
(Damn…)
Aron cursed inwardly. To think he had been complaining about not getting enough sleep.
When he had dozed off, it was May 14, 2028, 10:34 a.m. Now, the dashboard showed May 15, 2:54 p.m.
Shaking off the thought, Aron focused on the threat closing in.
With night mode on, he saw a wolf, glowing white in infrared, charging toward the car.
The AI repeated its request to activate weapons, but Aron ignored it. Instead, he disabled self-drive and slammed the accelerator.
Bang!!!
[Wolf (Level 3) killed. 1 EXP gained.]
His satisfaction faded instantly. "Just one exp?" He muttered, baffled.
Reducing speed, Aron noticed a new alert on the car dashboard:
[Car damage: -1%. Nule condition: 99%. Repair requires 0.025% energy.]
Not even a hundred meters ahead, countless glowing eyes appeared on the road. Wolves. Easily in the hundreds. And at the center, one stood tall on an overturned, burned-out bus. Even under infrared, its fur shone with a regal glow.
The wolf's gaze locked coldly onto the car. By its aura alone, Aron knew, this was the real deal.