Terrence and Eiselle stood before a massive, glowing red portal. It was an ethereal, swirling doorway that looked like the entrance to another universe itself.
A Rend.
One of the red types—which Terrence knew was one of the boss level ones. Unfortunately, that was all they could find.
So here they were.
"This could either go right," Terrence muttered, "or I get pummeled and die like those knights did Jin Woo in the double dungeon."
Eiselle frowned, her golden eyes glinting under the portal's red glow. "You're looking pretty unsure about this," she said softly. "You don't have to do it if you don't want to, Terrence."
She used his full name. That was never a good sign.
Terrence glanced down at her, 6'2 against her 5'5 frame, her white hair catching the light, her expression full of concern.
"I have to, Eis," he said with a grin that didn't quite hide his nerves. "It's the only way we're getting out of this hellhole. Trust me, I'll be fine."
"If you say so…" she murmured, watching him step toward the Rend. "Just be safe, T."
[Boss-Type Rend Ahead]
[Do you wish to enter?]
Terrence looked back at her one last time and gave a confident nod, the kind that said 'I'll be back in one piece.'
She returned a shaky smile, mouthing two words as he dissolved into red particles.
"You better."
Inside the Rend
When Terrence opened his eyes, he found himself standing in a vast, rainbow-colored wasteland—an endless, shimmering plain that stretched infinitely.
"Looks like the Lucky Charms leprechaun shit all over the place.." he muttered, scanning the horizon.
Then came the CRACK.
A sound like thunder splitting the sky in half.
The ground far ahead fractured, glass-like terrain breaking apart as radiant dust spilled into the air. The fissure widened, and something began to climb out.
Terrence's instincts went berserk. Every part of him screamed Run.
Four massive skeletal hands burst from the chasm, each the size of a mansion, veined with pulsing crimson light. Their claws dragged molten trails across the glass as they pulled something impossibly huge from below.
Then the rest of it rose.
A colossus.
Humanoid, but wrong..eyes like smoking voids, chest glowing with a circular sigil that pulsed like a second sun.
[Boss Detected.]
[Lower Rend Guardian LV. 50]
[Ethereal Colossus of the Forgotten Realm]
Terrence's eyes widened. "What in the DMC Dark Souls shit is this?"
Welp. If he was gonna die, at least he'd go out in sty-
The colossus moved, slowly getting into a running stance.
"Oh hell nah—"
"System! Release all Werewolf Teeth! Release all Spoons and Forks! Release all Werewolf Claws!!"
[Request Granted.]
The sky shattered.
Tens of thousands of items rained down like a divine apocalypse—forks, spoons, teeth, and claws shrieking through the air like meteors.
Each glinted with power. Silver reflecting rainbow light, crimson fangs trailing energy, claws spinning like buzzsaws of death.
The colossus charged. Even impaled and slashed by the storm, it kept running.
Terrence braced, realizing he wouldn't dodge in time.
"Welldamn.."
The Guardian's fist slammed into his chest. Pain exploded through him—ribs cracking, lungs burning, blood spraying from his mouth as he was hurled backward.
He hit the ground hard, rolling until everything blurred.
The worst pain he'd ever felt.
He coughed up blood and looked toward the monster, expecting another hit.
But the colossus wasn't moving.
Its eyes dimmed..and then, it collapsed, its titanic body shredded and punctured by countless silver forks and crimson claws still embedded across its flesh.
A moment of silence.
Then a red window blinked into existence:
[Boss-Type Rend Completed!]
Terrence blinked through the pain. "Wait..I won?"
Suddenly, light engulfed him. His wounds closed. His body straightened. The agony melted away like it was never there.
[Congratulations, Terrence! You have Awakened!]
[As a bonus for Awakening, you may multiply and receive anything ×10,000 of your choosing.]
[What will it be?]
Wait he gets to pick anything?
He remembered the hundreds of gamer novels he'd read before and said-
"Okay, okay. Maybe x10,000 SSS-Rank skills—"
[Are you sure? There's no going back..]
He hesitated.
What were x10,000 SSS-Ranked skills if he couldn't even survive a hit? His stats were ass. Skills wouldn't matter if he didn't have the strength to use them.
Then it hit him.
A wide smirk formed. "I want all my stats multiplied by 10,000."
[Are you sure?]
"Hell yeah."
[Wise choice.]
[Request Locked.]
[Now generating Talent…]
The System glitched, flickered, then stabilized.
[Talent Acquired!]
[SSS-Rank Continuum Engine: The Loop That Learns]
[Description]
Every motion you make carves a trace across micro-timelines.
Each trace replays until perfection is achieved.
Failure becomes data; data becomes instinct.
The [Continuum Engine] converts repetition itself into power, turning every mistake into progress.
Terrence blinked. "So what, like a Sharingan?"
[Better. You'll see.]
Then another notification popped up—
[Infinite Rewards Harem System: 'Harem Features' Unlocked.]
[You will now be unconscious for recalibration. When you wake..everything will be different.]
Terrence's expression froze.
"Wait, what the hell does that mea—"
And before he could finish, he collapsed as the world faded to black.