Exhausted but satisfied with the day's haul, the two friends settled into the dean's office for the night. As the sun began its slow descent, painting the sky in bruised purples and deep oranges, they meticulously secured their fortress. Every curtain was drawn, and every door on both floors was locked.
In their base, they left the curtains slightly parted—just enough to let the fading twilight in and to keep an eye on the world they now inhabited.
From their second-story vantage point, they watched the garbage bags they had dumped earlier. It didn't take long for the scent to attract attention. A dozen mutated rats, some the size of small dogs, swarmed the bags, their frantic chattering drifting up through the glass.
"Good thing we moved those," Wyn whispered. "If those were in the hallway right now, we'd be surrounded."
As they watched, a dark shadow suddenly detached itself from the sky. It was a blur of movement—silent and lethal. Before the rats could react, the predator dived, snatched a squealing rodent in its talons, and ascended back into the clouds in a matter of seconds. The remaining rats scattered in a panic.
The two boys shared a look of pure dread. They had been so focused on what was in the rooms and hallways that they had forgotten about the sky. Facing land beasts was a struggle; a flying predator was an entirely different nightmare.
A few minutes later, two crows landed near the bags. They were massive, their feathers shimmering with an oily, unnatural sheen. One held a struggling rat in its claws, beginning to tear into it with a beak that looked like a jagged shears. The other began pecking through the heavy plastic of the garbage bags, unbothered by the carnage around it.
Primo and Wyn stepped away from the window and sat on the floor, the gravity of the world outside weighing on them.
"We're lucky the birds didn't spot us earlier," Primo said, his voice low.
"Yeah... that would have been a disaster," Wyn agreed, wiping sweat from his neck.
"Putting that aside, we gained a lot today," Primo stated, trying to shift the mood. "We just need to be more careful walking outside tomorrow. The knives were a lifesaver with those cockroaches."
"Definitely," Wyn said. "But that spider... man, if it weren't for your Stone Skin, you'd be a snack."
Primo nodded. "Thinking about it, we can use that. I can act as bait. Since most beasts can't pierce my skin when it's active, I can catch them off guard while they're stuck on me, and you can deliver the finishing blow."
"It's a solid plan," Wyn replied thoughtfully, "but it's risky. What if we meet something that can break through?"
"Then we check the prey first," Primo said firmly. "We don't deploy the plan unless we're sure."
Primo pulled the jumping spider's core from his pocket. It pulsed with a vibrant, rhythmic light. He set it on the floor between them.
"Here. You take it, Wyn. We need to get you to Level 2."
Wyn looked at the core, then back at Primo, and shook his head. "No. You take it. It's more logical—your assimilation skill gets us the most benefit. If I take it, I might just get a stat point. If you take it, we get new abilities."
"You sure?" Primo asked.
"Yeah," Wyn teased with a tired grin. "Just promise me you'll find me three mutated rats tomorrow to make up for it."
"Deal," Primo smiled, and they shared a fistbump.
Night came.
They ate a quick, quiet dinner of biscuits and water. The exhaustion was finally catching up to them.
"Tomorrow, we hit the guard house first," Primo planned. "There should be keys and gear there. And we take our bags with us. I don't think we can stay in one place for more than a day anymore."
Wyn nodded and, within minutes of lying down, he was fast asleep.
Primo took the first watch. He felt surprisingly alert; perhaps his increased Stamina and Level 2 status were helping him recover faster. He sat in the corner, pulled out the spider core, and swallowed it.
[Assimilation in progress...]
[Target: Feral Small-Salticid Core (Low-Grade)]
[Status: 40%... 50%... 80%...]
The heat was more intense than the cockroach core, a sharp, buzzing energy that seemed to settle in his joints and behind his eyes, but it remained manageable.
[Assimilation Complete]
[Feral Small-Salticid Core (Low-Grade) Absorbed]
[Gained:
+1 Agility
+2 Evolution Points
Skill:
Primo kept his eyes closed as he felt something profound change. It wasn't just a boost in stats; his entire skin sensitivity was enhanced. He could sense faint movements and vibrations within the room that were invisible to his eyes. He felt the vibration created by the slight movements of his sleeping friend, and even the subtle flow of the air against his skin became noticeable.
It was as if every moving thing sent a signal through his body hair directly into his brain.
"This is another new sensation. Is this the 'spider sense' they talk about?" Primo wondered.
He scanned his body for other physical changes, but everything appeared the same. He realized that while Vibration Sense was passive, his other new skills were likely active types that required a conscious effort to use.
Curious about his progress, he quickly checked his status.
[Name: Primo Adam
Level: 2
Race: Human
Evolution Point(s): 4
Stamina: 9
Strength: 13
Defense: 6
Agility: 12
Will: 11
Skill(s):
Primo stared at the glowing status window, a quiet surge of pride warming his chest. It had only been two days since his awakening, yet he had already evolved and amassed 11 distinct skills.
He never expected to be this brave or to adapt so quickly to this brutal new era. Before the fever, he was just an ordinary student; now, he was a predator in a world of monsters. He suspected that
However, as the silence of the office deepened, his thoughts drifted to his mother. She was far away, working abroad. With the world in chaos and the skies filled with predators, the distance between them felt like an eternity. He knew that reaching her would be a long, perilous journey that he couldn't even begin to plan for yet.
For now, he had to focus on the present, prioritizing the immediate goals of helping Wyn evolve to Level 2 and reaching the government shelter where they might find news or a way to finally contact his mother.