Chapter 3:
Pillow stood at the entrance of his apartment building, the obsidian spike in his hand still dripping with the dissolving essence of a monster. The city was still burning, but a sudden, eerie silence fell over the streets. The monsters that had been hunting humans in the open suddenly stopped. They didn't retreat; they began to liquefy, turning into streaks of violet light that shot toward specific landmarks—subway stations, abandoned malls, and skyscrapers.
A massive, transparent window materialized in the sky, visible to every human left on Earth.
[Tutorial Phase: COMPLETED] [World Status: Dungeon Era Initialized] [Announcement: All monsters have been relocated to designated 'Dungeons'.] [Warning: If a Dungeon is not 'Cleared' within its designated timer, a 'Breakout' will occur, releasing all contained monsters back into the world.] [Survival Tip: Form Guilds. Share resources. Do not face the Abyss alone.]
Pillow's eyes narrowed as he read the screen. "Form Guilds?" he muttered, a cold smirk touching his lips. "That's what people who don't know the 'meta' do. They group up because they're scared of the dark."
His phone buzzed—miraculously, the data networks were being "repaired" by the System. Messages flooded his screen. Government emergency alerts were already telling survivors to head to "Safe Zones" and register their "Awakened Classes" to join official military guilds. People were already flocking to the nearest banners, desperate for the safety of numbers.
Pillow looked down at his own status screen, which hummed with the power he had siphoned from the hallway.
[Sovereign Siphon: Level 3] [Essence Reserve: High] [Trait: Lone Predator (Passive) - Experience gain is doubled when no party members are present.]
He knew exactly how this worked from his years of reading manga. In a group, the XP is shared. The spoils are split. The "weak" drag down the "strong." If he joined a guild, he would have to explain his Siphon power. They would call him a monster. They would try to control his growth.
"If I go solo, I get 100% of the essence," Pillow said, turning his back on a group of survivors who were waving at him to join their barricade. "And if I'm the one who clears the Dungeons, I'm the one who keeps the 'Boss Drops'."
He checked his Beast-Sense. A faint, pulsing violet light was emanating from the subway entrance two blocks away. The timer on that Dungeon was already ticking. It was a Rank-E "Ant Nest." To a normal guild, it would take fifty men to clear. To Pillow, it was a buffet.
He adjusted the strap of his backpack and began walking toward the violet light. He wasn't heading toward the Safe Zone. He was heading toward the danger.
"Let them play house and form their little clubs," Pillow whispered as he reached the mouth of the subway. "By the time they realize how the System actually works, I'll already be the one at the top of the food chain."
He stepped into the swirling portal, the darkness swallowing him whole. He didn't need a guild. He had the tropes, he had the knowledge, and he had a hunger that would never be satisfied.
To be continued..