Eron was half awake now, the pain burning deep inside him, and he could barely feel his limbs. The wolf maintained its pace, snarling at him menacingly.
The blood rushed into his eyes. For a moment, everything went silent, and then…
[Classless System Online]
[Class: Null]
[Condition: Critical]
[Awakening Requirements Have Been Met]
"Wha.. What the fuck."
A holographic blue panel materialized in front of his eyes.
[You Have Gained A New Skill: Fangs Of Chaos]
[Effect: Paralyzes And Blows Up Anything That Has Been Cut With Your Weapon]
[You Have Gained A New Skill: Basic Weapon Mastery]
[You Have Unlocked A Weapon: Sickles of Pyrus]
[Do You Accept?]
[Yes/No]
"Yes, Yes, Yes." He said without hesitation, in that moment, two weapons formed in his hands: twin curved sickles, dark metal veined with dull crimson light, a chain connecting their handles. His hands clasped around the handles; he felt a jolt of energy coursing through his veins.
His eyes glowed a deep blue, and his body felt lighter.
[Basic Weapon Mastery: Activated]
[Strength +10]
[Agility +12]
[New Objective: Defeat The Krahn Wolf]
The monster lunged at him. Eron moved fast, the beast's claws swiping at the wall where his head had just been, reducing it to dust and jagged rubble.
The chain snapped taut as Eron swung one sickle low, carving through its leg, the wolf stumbled and then…
BOOMM!!!
The leg was blown off at the joints. Eron didn't hesitate; he swung the chain, spinning the sickle, hooking it through the hind legs, watching them erupt in flames. The beast fell to its knees now, howling.
Eron stood behind the wolf, the weapon still spinning in his hands, and he leaped onto its back, running across the length of its body, lifting himself into the air.
He spun mid-air, driving the sickle blades through the monster's neck, and an explosion tore through the air, flinging the wolf's head from its body against the wall.
Eron landed in a low crouch, the sickle still humming in his grasp, the body behind him collapsed to the ground, leaving a pile of dust and a blue Crystal the size of a bowling ball in its wake.
[Objective Complete]
[The Krahn Wolf Has Been Defeated]
[You Have Gained EXP points +10]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[Class Restrictions Have Been Lifted]
[Infinite Growth Paths Unlocked]
[You Have Unlocked Inventory]
He took a deep breath, the weapons dematerialized, and his eyes returned to normal. He raised his palm, flexing his fingers.
'I feel… great!' He mused, his mouth curling into a curt grin, excitement written all over his face, 'But I won't rush to show everybody these new powers I've gained, I'll build in silence, until I'm sure there's no one in this world who can stand against me.'
"Open inventory," he said out loud.
[Inventory]
[Item(s): Sickles of Pyrus]
He picked up the glowing crystal.
"Add this to my inventory."
With that command, it vanished from his hand and appeared on the panel. He then made his way out of the rift, crossed the threshold, and found himself breathing regular air again. He was met by the same hunters who had deserted him.
"No way! Don't tell me he survived that!" One whispered.
"He probably got lucky; a classless person could never take on something of that magnitude." Another one muttered.
"The beast probably didn't want to waste its time on something so weak and pathetic."
Eron ignored them and walked along. He felt a firm grip on his shoulder.
"How did you survive that? We thought you were a goner back there." Ior inquired.
"You didn't think anything, you left me for dead," Eron responded without turning back.
"You know how it is, gotta think about the team, if we engaged, we would've just lost more hunters."
"Right. Well, I got lucky; the creature ran back through the portal for some reason."
"Ohh… Okay."
Eron shrugged his arm off and kept walking, past The Apex, all the way back to his starting point, his home.
The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm orange glow on the roads and buildings. The streets were less crowded, so he skated by unnoticed. He had no idea how much time had passed while they were inside the rift.
He plopped down on his hard mattress, the events of the day still replaying in his head.
'I killed a fucking beast.' He pondered. 'For some fucked up reason I was granted this system or power or whatever the hell.'
He sat up immediately.
"System… show me."
The panel appeared again, startling him for half a second.
[Name: Eron Ashfall]
[Rank: Classless]
[Class: Null]
[Strength: 17]
[Agility: 19]
[Focus: 10]
[EXP: 10]
"So I'm still classless." He said out loud, a hint of disappointment in his voice, "17? 19? Not impressive, not yet, I'm gonna have to find a way to increase my stats."
"But how do I go into rifts as an unlicensed hunter?"
He contemplated for a bit. Then, a thought.
"Open inventory."
[Inventory]
[Items: Sickles of Pyrus, Blue Rift Shard]
'Blue rift shard?' The glowing crystal immediately formed in his hand.
'Hoo… I don't even need to say it out loud.'
He twirled it around in his hands, 'I'm gonna have to find a way to sell this.'
With another thought, the shard dematerialized and was back in his inventory.
'If memory serves me, the rifts are always guarded at night to prevent rift breaks. I'm going to have to sneak past the guards somehow; that's the perfect time to go in without drawing any attention.'
His stomach grumbled. For the first time since he woke up, he felt real hunger. He got up and walked towards the kitchen. It was empty, just a pile of cookware.
'Not even a single slice of bread, really?'
He rummaged through the empty pots and pans, cursing under his breath. The hunger chewed at him, sharply dragging him back to reality.
'Great, so I survive a literal monster attack, but I'm going to die of hunger.'