Inside a store, two people were seen locked in a staring contest—one in a falling posture and the other grasping his hand to prevent him from falling.
The two stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, unmoving, simply standing there, frozen in their posture. Ren appeared calm externally; however, his mind was in complete disarray. She's so pretty… how on earth did such an angel come to exist?
The girl grasping Ren's hand was a blonde-haired beauty with a slim build, standing at 166 cm (5 ft 5½ in) in height, with perfect curves that matched her frame.
It was not that Ren hadn't seen a beautiful lady before; it was just that there was something about her that attracted him.
Ren was jolted back to reality by the sound of her clearing her throat.
"I–I'm sorry," Ren said, stuttering. Reorienting himself, he couldn't help but think, Damn, she's so beautiful. What are the chances of me randomly finding my speck in a place like this?
"Hi, the name's Seo-yeon. And you? Hope you weren't injured," a sweet voice rang in Ren's ear.
This may be a once-in-a-lifetime encounter. If I don't grasp it, I may never leave as Ren again, Ren thought while calming his nerves. "My name's Ren, and nah, I'm not injured," Ren answered.
"Umm…" Ren let go of her hand and was paralyzed once more. What the hell am I supposed to do now? Go away? No, no, no—ask her for her communication number, you dumb idiot, Ren thought.
Clearing his throat and calming himself, Ren asked, "If you don't mind me asking, is it okay for me to take a picture with you?"
"Sure!" Seo-yeon smiled.
Without delaying, Ren 'calmly' walked to Seo-yeon's side, removed his phone from his pocket, and took a selfie. Meanwhile, in his mind, he was screaming, The first thing you could ask for was a picture? What about the communication number, If you lose this opportunity, you may not get this kind of luck again, you idiot.
"Oh, yes, Mm… can I have your communication number?" Ren asked.
"Er…" Seo-yeon was somewhat dumbfounded. First you ask me to take a picture, and then this? Isn't this guy shameless? Seo-yeon thought.
Before she could answer, Ren interrupted her.
"It's fine if you don't want to. I mean, it's kind of rude of me, right?" He waved his hand awkwardly as he nearly panicked when he saw her reaction to his question. Meanwhile, his heart shattered. Oh no, she found me creepy, didn't she? Damn it, you blew it!
Contrary to his expectations, Seo-yeon chuckled as she took out her phone. "Here, scan this…"
Ren's broken heart was rebuilt the second he saw this. Damn it, this goddess is actually allowing me to scan her communication number? No way! Ren thought as he calmly took out his phone, pressed a few buttons, and scanned the QR code on her phone. Then Seo-yeon verified it with her fingerprint.
"So…" Seo-yeon smiled sweetly, making Ren's heartbeat go haywire. Noticing the bags of rice on Ren's trolley, she chuckled. "Really, a big eater, huh?"
"Oh no," Ren turned to his trolley before replying. Similarly, he lightly chuckled. "I just ran out of groceries and thought of restocking. How about you? A big eater?"
"Huh?"
"Nah," Seo-yeon replied while breaking her eye contact with Ren. She started walking, with Ren following behind her. "Just came shopping with some friends," Seo-yeon continued.
Standing several meters away from Seo-yeon and Ren were two hot beauties who, upon seeing them, waved.
"You stay around here, right?" Seo-yeon asked.
"Hmm," Ren replied.
"Then see you around," Seo-yeon said while blowing a kiss at Ren as she took her leave, walking toward her friends.
"Little Seo Seo, seems you just got asked out," one of the beauties said, teasing her.
"Mmm. Seems he's got the balls, unlike some bastards that don't dare to chase what they want."
Back on Ren's side, turning around a corner, Ren couldn't help but exclaim, "Did I just exchange contacts with the famous Seo-yeon of the Dragon Bone Clan? Yes, I did—Seo-yeon, the winner of this year's junior inter-clan tournament."
Regaining his sanity, Ren walked toward the payment counter and paid. During this, he eyed Seo-yeon and her companions in the surroundings.
Stepping out of the supermarket, Ren couldn't help but release a visible sigh. Damn, I almost made a fool of myself in there. Thought I could at least hold myself together. Well, I really did get something out of this whole tirade.
Boarding the train to the station near his apartment, he couldn't help but think on the way, Wait… I think I'm missing something. Oh, her class. Why couldn't I copy it? Huh. Well, never mind—I should just focus on what I gained from this encounter.
Back in his apartment, the first thing he did was arrange everything he bought in their designated places. Once done, Ren slumped onto his bed, busy browsing the internet on his phone. He couldn't help but keep wondering if he should text Seo-yeon or give her a call. This went on for some hours, and before he knew it, he was fast asleep, a foreboding feeling kept swelling in his heart and before he knew it...
---
A symbol—circular, layered—and then the words, "Would you still save them?"
Then whiteness.
"Ahhh!"
Ren violently woke up, gasping for air. What… what the hell? Did I just have a nightmare? Ren thought while breathing fast, like someone who had just run a marathon.
Going into the bathroom, Ren splashed water on his face. Raising his head and looking into the mirror, he couldn't help but be stunned. His face had changed considerably from how he last remembered himself in this lifetime. Where his hair had been black with streaks of white, it was now fully white. His face now bore some resemblance to his face from his old life.
"Huh! Strange, but it doesn't matter. Just makes me look more handsome, right?"
Snap out of it, Ren, Ren thought after getting a hold of himself.
He went into the kitchen to cook a simple dish. While doing this, he couldn't help but think about the strange dream. Well, it doesn't matter.
Some hours later, Ren was done eating. After resting for some time, he went to the teleportation station. Paying the required fee, he stepped in, appearing in his room in the Pathway.
Now that I have a class, I should look for opportunities to copy strong classes. But first, I should look for a way to earn money, which brought him to the left side of Green Hyde Castle, an area mostly populated by insect-type beasts.
A day ago, Ren wouldn't have even thought of hunting beasts—especially those that hunted in groups—so calmly. But now, things were different. With his class, all he needed was a touch, and the strongest classes would be his to use.
After doing some warm-ups, Ren slung his nylon bag on his back and sheathed the iron daggers he had bought earlier. He stepped out. Gossiping whispers trailed behind him, but he ignored them and headed to the Poisoned Valley.
His main reason for coming to the Poisoned Valley was the frenzy beasts in the environment. The frenzy beasts were fast but lacked both strength and defense, though they made up for it with their dreadful poison. With just a scratch from a primitive frenzy beast, someone with low endurance stats like him would be paralyzed for a long time.
Several kilometers out, Ren found a giant hive dangling from a tree, surrounded by a storm of buzzing feral bees. One massive primitive bee hovered at the center—three times the size of the others.
A feral-grade frenzy hive, Ren thought as he observed.
Every ten to eleven minutes, a group of fifteen to twenty bees separated from the swarm, flying off in random directions. Some returned with round objects clutched in their hind legs.
Perfect.
Ren waited.
When another group peeled away—eighteen this time—he followed them silently, leaving the hive behind.
Once far enough, he triggered his ability.
[Copied Class Activated]
Amidst golden sparks, a sleek, full-body golden armor materialized over Ren's body, shaped aerodynamically with a phoenix motif.
Cracking his neck, Ren unsheathed his dagger and dived into the swarm. Hitting the ground, Ren did a forward roll and sprang up. He swung the dagger in his hand, slashing through multiple beasts at once, carving through chitin. Bee bodies hit the dirt as he moved. Their buzzing staggered into chaos before they regrouped.
The swarm lunged.
Stingers battered against Ren's armor like hailstones, each strike pinging harmlessly off the Phoenix Carapace.
Holy—this armor is strong, Ren thought as he continued the massacre, grinning.
He did not stop grinning until the last body fell to the floor.
[Feral Creature Frenzy Beast Slain]
[No Beast Memory Gained]
[Consume to Gain Ascension Point]
"Wow… this ability is insane," Ren muttered. "Not only does it not weigh me down, it even slightly boosts my speed and strength."
Who would've guessed that bastard gave me such a class?
With this armor, I can finally breathe when facing lower-ranked beasts, Ren thought.
Crouching beside the corpses, Ren activated the function Consume.
[Consume Activated]
One feral point gained.
One feral point gained.
Forty-eight feral points gained.
By the twelfth bee, Ren could no longer gain points from the same beast. Not bad.
Creatures only gave ten points max, and repeated consumption dwindled quickly until they gave nothing at all. That was why hunters were always chasing new prey.
Ren summoned his status screen while stuffing the unused corpses into the nylon sack.
[Status]
Race: Human
Name: Ren
Class: Genesis
Stats
Life Span: 200
Requirement for Ascension: Ascension Permit
Beast Memory: None
[GENESIS RESTRAINED]
Focusing on the Ascension Permit, a new screen popped up.
[Ascension Permit]
Feral Points — 68
Primitive — 0
Aberrant — 10
Absolute — 0
Then he shifted his gaze to the stats section.
[Stats]
Strength: 26
Speed: 26
Defense: 26
Energy: 26
Hmm. I really am getting stronger, Ren thought as he finished stuffing the nylon sack.
With the sack slung over his shoulder, Ren murmured as he moved deeper into the valley,
"Snacks for later."