《Passive Berserker (LITRPG)》


 1. The Berserker Who Wanted to Die

    Cole Xander thought he could finally have a perfect rest today, so he strode to the arena with a big smile when the announcer called his name.


    The spectators chanted his name and shouted for his victory. He bet many of them had betted for him. Too bad their undefeated champion would rest peacefully today for he had planned his own death, and this deathmatch would be his last fight.


    It was probably the happiest day in the life of Cole Xander for he would finally reach true freedom. The freedom of choosing his own death. For him, living in this hell didn¡¯t matter anymore. He had had enough of killing his gladiator brothers.


    The announcer, who was sitting in her place, cleared her throat, and the crowds calmed down. She gripped her mic and shouted from the bottom of her lung. ¡°And introducing his opponent! Standing at 178 cm and weight 73kg. He is the dark horse of Hell¡¯s Kitchen¡¯s underground deathmatch arena. With the record 13-0, no one has posed a threat to him before! And now, this challenger bares his fang against the undefeated champion, Cole Xander. Here he comes! The Swift King, Caseeeyyyyy Howaaard!!¡±


    With the cheer of spectators, the iron bars on the opposite side slid up, and the opponent that would grant Cole a perfect, honorable rest ambled to the middle of the arena. He was a young man at the height of Cole¡¯s chest, and he carried two swords in his hands. His smooth black hair fell to his shoulder, and he had a rather pretty complexion, but everyone in this stadium could vouch for the might of this young man. Never tasted defeat, the spectators wouldn¡¯t look down on him if Cole died in his hand.


    ¡°We finally will have a fight, big brother,¡± Casey said calmly. There was no sign of fear in his expression as if he was confident that he could defeat an undefeated champion with the record 113-0.


    Cole felt relieved about his attitude. He didn¡¯t want to die at the hand of someone who feared him. ¡°Heh, you seem confident, lad. No hard feeling when I kill you, alright?¡±


    Casey smiled. ¡°I won¡¯t lose. They will grant me freedom if I win.¡±


    ¡°Heh. Same here.¡± Cole snorted. ¡°Don¡¯t know what you have done to make them angry toward you. They actually will burn my lifetime contract if I kill you. Imagine, Howard, I can finally breathe the fresh air of the outside world.¡±


    The referee stood in the middle of them and spread her hands. ¡°There is no rule. We decide the winner when one of you dies. Are you ready?¡± Both fighters put on their fighting stances, and the referee lady stepped back until she was far enough. After that, she swung down her hands. ¡°Fight!¡±


    Cole extended his greatsword and let Casey¡¯s twin swords touch the tip of the blade. It was a greeting and hidden message saying ¡®no hard feeling between us¡¯.


    The winner would live with the loser¡¯s blessing. There was mostly no hard feeling between gladiators. The reason was most fighters were sworn brothers behind the arena.


    ¡°Don¡¯t hold back, Brother Cole,¡± Casey said before he leaped back and put on his graceful fighting stance again.


    Cole¡¯s heart thumped fast when he heard that, and he felt his blood flow throughout his body. His bad habit was kicking in again. It was the habit of imagining something bad he could do to his opponents, a habit that awakened the sleeping berserker inside him.


    Cole imagined many things, like slicing the young man¡¯s bowel, strangling the disarmed young man until his neck snapped, bashing his head with his sword, etc. Thinking of those things, he licked his lips. However, he immediately regretted his action. He had let his berserker nature get the best of him again.


    Cole bit his lower lip and shouted to himself, ¡®I have had enough of killing! Just rest already! They won¡¯t grant you any freedom if you win. Your contract differs from theirs. Let the young man win and have his freedom.¡¯ With that thought, he let out a long sigh, and his body cooled down. ¡°Come.¡±


    Cole lifted his greatsword as Casey charged at him, and he swung it down, but the young man flipped to his side and bruised his left shoulder. Cole ignored the pain and pivoted his waist to the back, swinging his sword toward the young man¡¯s neck.


    Casey arched back, evaded the sword a hair away, and then somersaulted several times before landing again. Having evaded death, the young man¡¯s breathing became rough.


    Cole licked his lips and grinned. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Come again.¡±


    Casey leaned forward as he ran to him again. He came like a swift swallow.


    Cole thrust his greatsword, but the young man flipped his body and passed over his head. Casey saw an opening and didn¡¯t let the chance slip away; he bruised Cole¡¯s nape.


    ¡°Tsk, too shallow,¡± Casey complained.


    As Casey landed on the ground, he turned back to face Cole. He pointed his sword at him and shouted, ¡°What are those amateurish moves? Are you joking with me?¡±


    Casey might have missed the chance to deal critical damage, but Cole¡¯s simple attack motion made him think the man was holding back. He was sure of it because he had watched all of Cole¡¯s fights. The man fought like a beast. Ferocious. Fast and Furious.


    The crowds berated Cole, and some of them threw many things into the arena. The owner of this underground deathmatch arena, who was watching in the balcony on the top of Cole¡¯s entrance gate, shouted at him, too. Many people betted to his win, so looking at him playing around unamused them.


    Cole only looked down and rubbed his bleeding nape. The scar wasn¡¯t deep. He realized Casey hadn¡¯t been serious yet, too. He faced the young man and said calmly, ¡°Come again. Don¡¯t you want freedom and to see your girlfriend? Put me to rest already.¡±


    Hearing his words, Casey widened his eyes. ¡°You really are playing around! Cole Xander, screw you! Don¡¯t you remember our talk before this fight?¡±


    Many fighters were sworn brothers, and they held no grudge for the winner. To reach that state of mind, two fighters would have a talk to know each other. They talked about each other¡¯s wishes and many things. As the result, many of them could sympathize with each other.


    Cole always remembered every fighter he had talked to, including Casey. All of them met the same fate. Dead. They had died in his hands. For every blood that splattered his living body, his mental burden increased. How came he felt nothing when had sympathized with them. He thought of them as his biological brothers in this cursed place.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care anymore. Just come straight to me. I won¡¯t put up a fight.¡± As he said that, he thrust his greatsword to the ground and closed his eyes.


    ¡­¡­


    A few days ago before Cole ¡®the Berserker¡¯ Xander vs Casey ¡®the Swift King¡¯ Howard.


    Cole Xander was meditating on his bed when someone knocked on the door of his room. The intruder opened the door before he permitted them to enter. The intruder was none other than Casey Howard.


    ¡°Hello, sorry for the intrusion. I rarely saw you outside, Cole.¡±


    Cole opened his eyes slowly and said, ¡°Sit.¡±


    Casey pulled a chair before the bed and sat. They only stared at each other, and Cole seemed to have no intention of opening a conversation. Breaking the ice, Casey asked him first. ¡°Um, what¡¯s your wish, brother?¡±


    ¡°I want to rest.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Do I come at the wrong time? Forgive me.¡± As he raised his butt from the chair, Cole raised his hand and shook his head. Casey felt relieved that he didn¡¯t bother Cole, and he sat again.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    Cole smiled. ¡°That¡¯s not it. Even if I win, they won¡¯t free me. I have a different contract than other people.¡±


    ¡°How so?¡±


    Cole leaned back and stared blankly at the ceiling. He remembered the scene where a man in a black suit had sold him to this illegal underground deathmatch arena. ¡°Someone has sold me to the owner of this place. I am his slave. When you have won ten matches, you can challenge the champion, and the owner will grant your wish if you win. My job is to crush those people in the last battle.¡±


    Casey rested his chin on his hands and put on a serious expression. ¡°And I am your next opponent, brother.¡±


    Cole closed his eyes. ¡°Of course, I won¡¯t hold a grudge if you kill me, but can you even do that?¡±


    ¡°I will try my best, and also I have a favor.¡±


    Cole kept his eyes closed because he could predict what the man would say. ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t hold back. I watched your fights. I admire your ferocity in the battle.¡±


    Cole opened one eye and looked at him. ¡°What¡¯s your wish, Howard?¡±


    It was Casey¡¯s turn to look at the ceiling and lean back, but he straightened his posture again. He remembered he was in front of the undefeated champion, so he needed to act composed. ¡°Let me tell you about myself first. I volunteered to take part in this underground arena.¡±


    Cole straightened his body when he heard that. No sane person would voluntarily join this underground arena. Most fighters were homeless people one could encounter in subways and everywhere. The owner of this place had kidnapped them. The minority of them was just a psychopath, and Cole didn¡¯t hesitate to kill them. He needed to hear Casey¡¯s reason, so he could judge if he was worth his pity. ¡°Why?¡±


    Casey told Cole about his story. His girlfriend¡¯s family had an enormous debt to the owner of this place, and they couldn¡¯t pay their debt. His girlfriend¡¯s father could compensate by becoming a fighter in the deathmatch arena, but out of pity, he volunteered to take part in his stead. Casey didn¡¯t have a family anyway, and he considered them a family.


    Cole rubbed his thin beard. ¡°You realized that if I am serious, there¡¯s a high chance you can die, right?¡±


    ¡°Nah, I will win. Besides, if I lose, it is an honor to die in your hand.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Don¡¯t you have someone important?¡±


    ¡°I do. They watched every of my fight. Every time, they are worried about me, and sure I want to come back to them. However, I learned something important in this place. Honor. The fighters here are chill to each other, and it amazed me. I don¡¯t mind if I die by any of you. Not that I plan to kill myself.¡±


    ¡°I see. How old are you?¡±


    ¡°19. Why?¡±


    ¡°You have a great wisdom for someone of your age.¡±


    Casey laughed. ¡°Don¡¯t make things awkward, brother. How about you? How old are you?¡±


    Cole smiled and gestured for Casey to go out. ¡°I will tell you if you win.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean you won¡¯t hold back against me?¡±


    Cole shook his head and chuckled. ¡°Get out, you battle-crazed maniac.¡±


    ¡°I will take that as yes. Good night, brother,¡± Casey said as he closed the door of the room.


    Cole lay down again. He had watched Casey¡¯s fights, too. His might was comparable to him, but his next opponent was still young. He had killed and crushed many people so far, but none of them was younger than him. Could he kill a young man that had family and goals in his life?


    Cole turned to the wall of his room. He felt sick of becoming people¡¯s wall. Maybe dying in the hand of a younger man that was as strong as him was a good idea. He clenched the spray on his bed. ¡°I have decided. It is my time to die.¡±


    ¡­¡­


    The mocking shout of spectators and the constant call from Casey didn¡¯t make him waver. Cole still stood firm with his eyes closed. Even if there was no honor in his death, he had had enough. The berserker wanted to rest.


    After calling Cole several times, Casey finally fed up with his opponent¡¯s antique. ¡°Fine. If that¡¯s your way, I will have my way, too.¡±


    Cole heard rushing steps coming to him. Wind bruised past him and a sharp blade sliced his left lateral, and then his back, and then his right waist. These pains were nothing. He didn¡¯t care about mocking shouts from participants, but his heart felt hard. His lower lip bled from gritting it too hard, and tears flowed down his eyes.


    The barrage of attack suddenly stopped, so Cole opened his eyes. Casey welcomed him with a straight punch to the face. He fell on his back, but he immediately stood again.


    The blood from his nose flowed to his mouth, and Cole licked it, but he instantly regretted it. His heart thumped fast again, and bloodlust surged to his brain. It worried him because he didn¡¯t know if he could withstand this feeling any longer. ¡°Why did you stop, Casey? Kill me in an instant.¡±


    Casey had sheathed his swords on his waist. He only came to him with his fists. He was throwing a left hook to the liver.


    Cole knelt and spurted saliva to the ground. He looked up at Casey and grinned. ¡°Nice one, but this isn¡¯t a boxing ring. Come on.¡±


    ¡°Shut up! You can¡¯t even hide your bloodlust! You are a battle-crazed maniac, just like me and others! That¡¯s what they made us, and that¡¯s why you never lost. So, just come to me with the intent to kill!¡±


    ¡°You will lose.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t. Trust me. I will grant you a perfect rest, so just be serious about this fight. Believe me. No one has defeated me ever before.¡±


    Cole stared straight into Casey¡¯s blue eyes. There was no fear. He had been confident this whole time. He decided to trust him, so he stood up again. ¡°I have disrespected you. Honor. I remember what our motto is. ¡®No grudge between us. All for honor¡¯.¡± Cole pulled his great sword from the ground and suddenly laughed maniacally as if a demon had possessed him.


    The crowds silenced as Cole¡¯s laugh boomed throughout the arena. Casey grinned too. This was the Cole he admired. The Berserker Cole Xander.


    Casey unsheathed his swords and charged at him. He was like a bullet. As he was a few centimeters away from him, he ducked by instinct, and a great sword passed above him. He felt relieved to have evaded it, but the attack had let his guard down.


    Cole kick his face and sent him flying back. Casey crashed against the wall and coughed blood.


    ¡°Fast! He is not like before,¡± Casey thought. He straightened his body again, but Cole was already standing before him. The berserker gripped his head, slammed him again, and then swiped him across the arena¡¯s wall, leaving a long trail of blood. After one turn of swiping Casey across the arena¡¯s wall, the berserker tossed his body to the sky and smashed his body down with the middle blunt side of the greatsword.


    Casey wasn¡¯t allowed to feel his pain as the berserker could come to him again. Out of fear, he was rolling to the side. Meanwhile, Cole had stomped the ground where Casey had used to lay.


    Casey''s expression was grim when the ground under Cole¡¯s foot cracked. ¡°Such power,¡± he exclaimed.


    Casey leaped to Cole. It was his turn to show his might too. However, Cole welcomed him with a thrust of his greatsword.


    Casey evaded the stab in the air, but the blade still scratched his cheek. He was swinging his sword to the berserker¡¯s kidney, but the berserker landed a front kick to his bowel, stopping his attempt. He coughed out blood, but he couldn¡¯t succumb to the pain. He stepped back several times and threw one of his swords at Cole.


    Clank


    Cole caught the sword with his teeth. His act surprised Casey. However, Casey had prepared a countermeasure.


    Casey shouted as he plunged from the air and slashed the berserker¡¯s chest. ¡°You are inhuman, brother, but I win.¡± Or so he thought, but Cole could still swing down his great sword with full power. Casey evaded it by flipping his body in the air.


    The spectators could barely keep up with them, but they still cheered for them regardless. Even the announcer could only shout hyped nonsenses because of their ever-changing movements. Both fighters were inhuman. The Swift King lived up to his title, agile and flexible. The Berserker was also fast, and all his attacks packed massive damages.


    They were eager to see the outcome of this fight, and the final came upon them at least. Cole lifted Casey and strangled him. On the other hand, the Swift King gurgled air into his mouth as he sank his nails into Cole¡¯s wrists and kicked his solar plexus repeatedly.


    Having taken many kicks, Cole coughed up blood and let him go. The Swift King still had a hard time breathing, but he immediately picked up his sword on the ground and stabbed Cole¡¯s chest.


    ¡°This is the end. I win.¡±


    Cole knelt and grabbed Casey¡¯s hand. His ferocious expression slowly turned into a radiant smile. ¡°Thank you.¡± He fell on his back and controlled his rough breath.


    The spectators cheered for Casey, the new undefeated champion. Some of them shouted to finish Cole, but the berserker¡¯s fans argued against them. Casey ignored them. Even without them telling, he had to put his opponent to rest. He knelt beside him.


    ¡°In the end, you held back against me.¡±


    Cole coughed and forced himself to laugh. ¡°What are you talking about?¡±


    Casey shook his head and said nothing. He was lucky to survive. ¡°Do you have any last word?¡±


    ¡°Leave this underground arena. You don¡¯t belong here. One more thing, I want to answer your question from before. I am only 22 years old.¡±


    Casey¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You are as young as me. You¡­ if there is a next life, I hope you¡ª¡±


    ¡°Enough chitchat. I prefer there is no afterlife or next life. I want to stop thinking and rest in the void.¡±


    Casey nodded. ¡°One more thing. Are you happy right now?¡±


    Cole smiled widely. ¡°This is the happiest day in my life. Thank you, Casey, my brother. Because of you, I am finally¡­ free.¡± As he said that, Casey stabbed his heart.


    Darkness engulfed his vision. The bell of death rang in his imagination, and he thought of them as his sign to rest.


    Cole wondered what would happen next, and his curiosity was answered as he suddenly saw a speck of light in the middle of the darkness. He reached out to it and felt the warmth as if he was really grabbing something. After that, he dropped his arm to the ground and let out his last breath.


    ¡­¡­


    You have absorbed an experience card. You are qualified to become an explorer of Doomsday. Transporting your body to the brand new universe.


    Hearing the sound in his head, Cole opened his eyes. He found himself lying on the white floor. He looked around and saw many white pillars in this unfamiliar place. Not only that, he saw many people lying on the floor around him. He stopped focusing on others and observed a blue screen in front of his face.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 1 [0/125])


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 2


    Vitality: 2


    Agility: 2


    Intelligent: 2


    Wisdom: 2


    Free Points: 1


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 1


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1

 2. Suffer in Death or Live

    Cole was confused. He should have been dead and granted a peaceful rest.


    He looked at his healed body. He had suffered injuries during his fight against Casey, so it was weird to see himself in healthy condition. Not only he wasn¡¯t dead, he was healthy as well.


    In the end, Cole assumed this place was the afterlife. In many legends, afterlife existed. If this place was an afterlife, then the matter about his healed body suddenly made sense.


    After realizing he was in the afterlife, he sighed and lamented in his mind. Living was troublesome, he thought. What was the purpose of coming back alive if he had reached his purpose? He had served his purpose by achieving his ideal way of death.


    If this place wasn''t the afterlife and in fact another world, Cole would find himself in a difficult position. Cole knew nothing aside from fighting and killing. Just in case he was in another world, he calmly thought of what to do in his new life. After thinking of many things, he couldn¡¯t find an answer. In the end, he wanted someone to give him a perfect rest again. As he thought of that, another screen popped out in front of him, catching his attention.


    Do you want to see the function of the system? You can say yes or no. Or, you can click this button y/n.


    Cole was surprised to see it. To give him this TV-like feature, he found this afterlife dimension amusing. ¡°This system thing is like the TV we had in the canteen. Come to think of it. I rarely watched TV. For now, I will click yes.¡±


    Race: Human


    Rank: Bronze


    Description:


    The most common intelligent race throughout the multiverse. They have the lowest aptitude to become stronger, but they breed easily.


    Gains +2 strength, +2 vitality, +2 agility, +2 intelligent, +2 wisdom, and +1 free point for each unit¡¯s level.


    ¡­¡­.


    Class: -


    Level: -


    Step: -


    Description:


    Locked. You can unlock a class after acquiring matching skills, blessings, or/and items.


    ¡­¡­.


    Unit¡¯s Level: 1


    Description: You gain an open skill slot at levels 1, 3, 6, and then every 6 levels.


    ¡­¡­.


    Active Skills: 0


    Description: The user can activate active skills by consuming mana.


    List: -


    ¡­¡­


    Passive Skills: 1


    Description: Passive skills¡¯ effects are permanent, but the user can¡¯t activate them.


    List: [Injury Transmutation]


    ¡­¡­.


    Blessing: 1


    Description: Blessing is similar to skills. You can have one blessing for every 50 levels.


    List: [Dedication for Passivity]


    ¡­¡­


    Debuff: 1


    Description: negative passive effects that are attached to you.


    List: [Passive Risker]


    ¡­¡­.


    Plenty of screens popped out at the sides of the main screen, giving all information. Cole took his time to understand them. He realized the system would give him information if he pointed his finger at the screen. For example, he was checking the skill list feature out of curiosity.


    ¡­¡­


    Skill: [Injury Transmutation]


    Effect: Increases strength, vitality, agility, and HP recovery the more the user gets injured.


    ¡­¡­


    Cole liked this skill. He had got injured many times in battles, but it only made him weaker. This skill was very convenient for his fighting style.


    Cole remembered he had got a blessing and debuff, too. He clicked the ¡®Blessing¡¯ and ¡®Debuff¡¯ texts, and two screens appeared in the air.


    ¡­¡­


    Blessing: [Dedication for Passivity]


    Effect: Increases the effectiveness of passive abilities by 100%. Increases the chance to get rare passive skills by 100%. The user gains a permanent debuff, [Passive Risker].


    ¡­¡­


    Debuff: [Passive Risker]


    Duration: Permanent


    Effect: The user can¡¯t use active skills.


    ¡­¡­.


    Cole didn¡¯t know what active skills were, so he was fine with everything he had got. However, he didn¡¯t understand. Why would he get these magical abilities if he was dead? He had a bad feeling about this.


    The surroundings people stood, and Cole did the same thing. Those people suddenly performed their own skills. A man was conjuring flame in his hand, another man was turning their skin into steel, and another person was running around with incredible speed.


    Cole suddenly understood how cool active skills were. He felt jealous because he couldn¡¯t use active skills, but his feeling disappeared in the blink of eyes. His situation was something out of his control, so it would be better if he sought the joy in his aversion.


    Cole kept watching other people and noticed something. Everyone seemed to have different abilities from each other. Maybe there was someone in a worse situation than him. Thinking of that, he felt grateful for what he had.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Everyone stopped their activities when a giant light orb appeared in the air. After a while, the orb faded and turned into a man figure. This man had a similar feature to normal humans, except there was a pair of wings on his back.


    The man looked down at them with his cold gaze, and he introduced himself. ¡°My name is Zoroel, the emissary of the Immortals. This situation may confuse you, and I will explain.¡±


    The winged man suddenly saw a woman raising her hand to ask something. He snapped his fingers, and a magic circle appeared before the woman¡¯s mouth, preventing her from speaking. ¡°No one is permitted to ask anything. This is a warning or you die. First, let me show you what has happened to your world.¡±


    Zoroel snapped his fingers again, and a screen appeared in front of everyone. It was playing a video about what had happened to their world, Earth.


    The earth was floating in its orbit like usual. Then, a planet-sized beam came from nowhere and destroyed the planet. After that, the screen turned black again.


    ¡°That¡¯s it. Immortals destroyed your world. Oh, I will shut up everyone who wants to speak. If not, they will force me to kill you. The immortals did that to save you from the true threat.¡±


    The screen suddenly played another video. It showed an enormous blob of tentacles and dragon heads that was floating in the void. It was swinging its tentacles to destroy tiny galaxies in the vicinity.


    ¡°This is live footage of the Primordial Idiot destroying galaxies. It is currently on the way here and will arrive in¡­ Ah, this is a secret.¡±


    Some people couldn¡¯t help to mutter with each other. As for Cole, he kept his composure. He had no fear for this unknown Doomsday. If he died, he rested. Life was simple as that for him.


    Zoroel clapped his hands and magic circles appeared in front of everyone¡¯s mouth, preventing them from speaking. He continued his speech.


    ¡°This is not the afterlife. This is a new dimension in the brand new universe. Immortals have chosen qualified people and sent them to this new universe. What are qualified people? They are intelligent creatures that have absorbed experience cards and gained levels in their previous world. What is an experience card? Well, it is easier for me to give you a consumable card about the system in these dimensions.¡±


    Zoroel clapped his hands, and a glowing card appeared in front of everyone. It entered Cole¡¯s body, and streams of information flowed into his head. He suddenly understood the system.


    ¡°Now that you have gained information about the system, I want to inform you about your mission. There is only one. Get stronger so you can survive Doomsday. Immortals created these dimensions to help you reach your goal. There are two taboo things here. First, you can¡¯t commit suicide.¡±


    Zoroel snapped his finger, and the screen in front of Cole played another video. The flame was burning everything in this place from hills, ground, forest, and even people. The burning people were screaming in agony as they ran around restlessly.


    ¡°If you commit suicide, they will sentence you to live in the purgatory for one thousand years. Every time you die, the immortals will revive you again, so you can suffer repeatedly. After your sentence is done, they will turn you into data so you can reincarnate in the new world after Doomsday. Well, this is better than the second taboo.


    ¡°The second taboo is you can¡¯t die in the hand of void creatures. If you die in their hands, they will erase you from existence. Not even the immortals can save you. That is eternal death.¡±


    ¡°Oh, if you die of natural cause or someone kills you, they will reincarnate you as a soldier that will fight void creatures on the Doomsday. This is such an honor for you, qualified people,¡± Zoroel said with sincerity.


    The winged man really believed that was an honor. However, Cole didn¡¯t want to fight under someone anymore. Among those choices, he chose to be strong enough to survive Doomsday. He sighed because the situation forced him to live again.


    Zoroel cleared his throat. ¡°Well, I said that is such an honor for you, but that¡¯s what they told me to say. If you want my honest opinion, becoming soldiers to fight void creatures is an awful choice too. Don¡¯t forget void creatures can erase you from existence. That¡¯s why you all should pursue strength. Finally, I want to give you a parting gift.¡±


    He clapped his hands, and glowing cards appeared in front of everyone. ¡°Those cards will give you the most suitable equipment for you when you touch it. That¡¯s all I have to inform you. Best luck to you.¡± After giving information to them, Zoroel¡¯s body became transparent and disappeared.


    Cole touched the card in front of him, and it changed shape into the form of a greatsword. The handle was as long as his forearm, and the blade was two of third of his height. He smiled and swung it around easily. This weapon was really suitable for him. At least, his favorite weapon accompanied him in this world.


    Cole noticed a screen floating about the sword, and he read it.


    ¡­¡­


    Name: Greatsword


    Type: Equipment Card


    Rank: Bronze


    Effect: Increase the user¡¯s strength by 15%.


    ¡­¡­


    Cole closed the information box and comprehended the new memory that had entered his mind. Those cards were called Immortal Cards, and they were essential in this world. There were ten types of cards, and Cole had to gather matching skill cards to awaken his class.


    That was the information he had got, but of course, there were many unknown ways to gain classes. In this world, if one wanted to reach the pinnacle of strength, one needed to gain a class first.


    While people were testing their equipment, a man walked to the only giant doors to the outside. Some people saw him, and they approached the doors too. No one dared to open them yet. They had gained information from the consumable card, so they knew what existed outside of this place. Monsters! In this world, monsters existed, and they could level up by farming experience cards from their corpses.


    ¡°We can¡¯t survive alone!¡± a certain man shouted, and his voice vibrated throughout the place. ¡°We need to stick together.¡±


    ¡°Hah! Why would I take care of all people here? I will take stronger ones with me, though. I will lead you guys,¡± a skinny young man said. He had a messy brown hair, and there were black bags under his eyes. Even though he looked weak, he carried himself with arrogance.


    A bulky man approached him and looked down at the young man. ¡°You talked all high and mighty. What can you do?¡±


    The young man laughed maniacally. ¡°This is a new world where power matters, but physical built isn¡¯t everything.¡± He extended his staff and shot electricity at the bulky man. ¡°This is everything. Your skills are everything.¡±


    The bulky man dropped to the ground. His body charred, and smoke came out of his mouth.


    The skinny young man stomped the bulky man¡¯s corpse while laughing. ¡°Now, death isn¡¯t everything, right? Enjoy your stay as a soldier for those immortal ones.¡±


    People stepped forward and formed lines. Most people had hostile glances at the young man, but the young man still kept his composure. ¡°I won¡¯t take weak people, but people with unique skills can join me. As you can see, I have a powerful skill. Anyone who wants to join me can step forward.¡±


    A handsome man wearing a military uniform stepped out in a friendly manner and said, ¡°You are right. Abilities are everything here, but we still need to form a team to survive. How about adding me as your member?¡±


    The young man grinned. ¡°Finally, someone who has a strong mentality. What is your skill?¡±


    The man conjured a rectangular energy shield in front of him. ¡°I am useful as a defender. How do you think? I am compatible with your long-range attack. You attack, I defend.¡±


    The young man chuckled. ¡°Sounds cool. You pass.¡±


    More people came to the young man and pledged him to accept them on his team. Those people were crazy, but some humans would do anything to survive.


    The rest of the people who didn¡¯t want to join the lightning young man¡¯s team did the same thing. They gathered other people and formed their own teams. Soon, they already forgot about the dead man on the floor.


    Cole knelt beside the dead man and clasped his hands together in praying. He had no belief in absolute beings. He just did this out of habit. This was a sign of respect for dead people.


    The skinny young man approached him and extended his hand at him. ¡°You look strong. Do you want to join our team?¡±


    Cole looked around first. He thought he could find Casey or anyone he knew because they were from the same place. Either they hadn¡¯t been able to get an experience card, or the immortals had sent them to another place. After looking around, he finally looked at the young man.


    ¡°Your sword is so big. It looks like a buster sword in a certain manga I read. Are you skilled in swordplay? Can you show your swordplay?¡±


    Cole stood and lifted the sword with a relaxed expression. He swung it repeatedly, and his feet jumped from place to place. His movements were light, even though he was carrying a heavy weapon. Because of his graceful performance, people flocked around him and cheered at him.


    The messy-haired young man observed him a bit more before saying, ¡°What is your first skill?¡±


    Cole looked at him in the eyes. This young man valued skills, and he didn¡¯t hesitate to kill, too. This young man probably had no reason to kill him, but it didn¡¯t mean Cole wanted to reveal his skill to his potential enemy, so he decided to tell him a lie.


    ¡°My skill is a passive skill that increases my attack by 15%.¡± His heart felt heavy when he said that. Even though he had murdered many people, Cole rarely spouted a lie, so he felt weird to say that.


    ¡°Hm, a pity. I am sorry, but we only accept people with potential. I hope you understand.¡± The young man turned his back and walked away.


    Cole weaved in relief. He had escaped danger, and he felt relieved about it. At the same time, he felt ashamed too. He was a murdered who didn¡¯t fear death. Since when did he fear danger? Did he have an expectation in this world?


    While he was pondering, he put on a sad expression. Because of that, people cast pitiful glances at him. Even though some people sympathized with him, no one offered him to come to their team despite how amazing his swordplay performance was. In the end, people judged others by their skills.


    Humans¡¯ ability to adapt to their environment amazed Cole. Even though no one desired him, he didn¡¯t care about it either. People had used to look at him in admiration and fear. He might have no purpose aside from going on living, but he didn¡¯t want to see people pitying him. It hurt his warrior pride. If people didn¡¯t want to form a team with him, he just had to assert his dominance alone like what he had used to do. Strive alone.

 3. Bloodlust

    People gathered in their team circles, and leftover people wandered about. Some of them hoped a team would take them, some teams accepted beautiful women with no noticeable skills, and some leftovers formed their own team. There were many people who preferred to be alone too, including Cole. No one offered him to join a team, but he didn¡¯t want to work under someone. In this world, he decided to live for himself.


    After many people formed teams, someone opened the doors to the outside, showing the light of the outside world. Outside of the building was a prairie. Ahead of it, there was a clean river, dividing a prairie and another prairie. Ahead of the second prairie, many hills spread.


    On the first prairie, brown rabbits wandered about everywhere. Looking around, no one saw other creatures beside the rabbits. Judging by their harmless look, people put their guards down against them.


    People stepped out of the building including Cole. After he was outside, he finally could see the outline of the building. It was a big one-story building with no windows, and the roof was made of a single dome. It was a gigantic structure, but this building couldn¡¯t fill everyone on earth.


    Cole suspected two things. First, similar buildings existed somewhere, or those people here were the only survivors on earth. He clung to the first idea. If that was the case, perhaps Casey had been transported to this dimension too.


    He smiled after thinking of that. Death didn¡¯t mean rest, so he might as well enjoy a new adventure with people he knew. One of his goals was to find his gladiator brothers.


    While he inspected the building, people had already explored the area. Some of them were wary of those rabbits as they approached them, but those creatures didn¡¯t show hostility and even rubbed their bodies to their legs. After that, some people dared to touch those creatures.


    After inspecting the building, Cole walked around. He encountered a lone rabbit and observed it. There was a floating screen above it.


    Name: ???


    Level: 1


    Cole was sure this rabbit was a monster. He rubbed the monster¡¯s head, and it felt smooth. Looking at their docility, this creature might be an easy kill. When monsters died, they dropped cards, and it could be experience cards that would increase his level.


    Cole picked the rabbit up and squished its body harder. The creature squeaked weakly and kicked his hand, but he didn¡¯t stop. He was about to strangle it to death when he heard a fuss. Two men were fighting for whatever reason, and people were watching on the sidelines.


    The first man scratched the second man¡¯s cheek with a sword, bleeding the second man. Smelling blood that flowed out of his cheek, the rabbits¡¯ eyes glowed red, and they suddenly attacked nearby people.


    The rabbit in Cole¡¯s hand was the same. Its eyes turned red, its claws extended, and it bit his hand with its sharp teeth. He instantly knew the blood had triggered them because he was the same as them. Sometimes, his bloodlust increased at the sight of blood and gore too, but he never wanted to admit it openly.


    The situation quickly became chaotic. Some people cast skills to fight the rabbits. However, many people were just normal humans in the past life, so there were many people who were scared to fight for the first time, and these cowards ran away with their courage shoved into their guts.


    Rabbits were jumping onto the unlucky ones¡¯ backs and tearing their flesh. A woman was lying and screaming on the ground as rabbits were pulling her limbs and digging into her belly.


    Cole was too busy to mind other people. He was strangling the rabbit in his hands with all his might, but the rabbit¡¯s flesh was like a solid rock in their berserk state. He could kill it with his sword, but he didn¡¯t want to give the rabbit a chance to escape.


    Thinking of a way to deal with the rabbit, he remembered he had a free point for attributes, and he checked the system.


    ¡­¡­


    Strength: Determines physical prowess


    Vitality: Determines physical endurance and defense


    Agility: Determines the variety of motor quality and abilities


    Intelligent: Determines the mind, intuition, and magical aptitude


    Wisdom: Determines spirituality


    ¡­¡­


    Cole thought of spending his free point on the strength attribute. The free point decreased to zero, and the strength attribute increased to three. All his muscles contracted for a second and relaxed again. He suddenly felt explosive energy coming from his muscles.


    Cole squished the rabbit harder, and the creature exploded out blood and meat paste. Blue mist sipped out of the corpse and formed a golden card. His eyes widened. The golden card was the experience card, one of ten Immortal Cards. He grabbed it and willed himself to absorb it.


    You have killed a Frenzy Rabbit for the first time. The monster is added to the system¡¯s monster encyclopedia.


    You have absorbed a low-grade experience card, gaining 50 EXP.


    ¡­¡­


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 1 [50/125])


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 3


    Vitality: 2


    Agility: 2


    Intelligent: 2


    Wisdom: 2


    Free Points: 0


    ¡­¡­


    Even though the rabbit¡¯s blood had disappeared, the smell had attracted more rabbits to him. They were tiny, but if they came at the same time, they were easy targets. He raised his greatsword from the ground and swung it horizontally, killing several rabbits in an instant. Cards of various colors floated out of their corpses.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Rabbits bit him from behind, but with a fast spin, Cole freed himself from them. He killed them with one swing. This seemed easy, but he couldn¡¯t block them all. Some rabbits attacked his blind spots too. However, the more he got injured, the faster the energy surge that flowed throughout his body. His skin reddened and became tougher, and his HP recovered faster. These were the effects of Cole¡¯s [Injury Transmutation].


    Cole grabbed floating golden cards and absorbed them. His HP recovered to full as he gained a level. He immediately spent his free point to vitality, so he could withstand this barrage of attacks.


    ¡­¡­


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 2 [25/250])


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 5


    Vitality: 5


    Agility: 4


    Intelligent: 4


    Wisdom: 4


    ¡­¡­


    His overall physical performance increased, and he didn¡¯t need to rely on his passive skill too much.


    Cole swung down his sword and destroyed the ground into chunks. He sensed enemies coming from behind and leaped to the side to avoid them. A rabbit clung to his arm, but its teeth couldn¡¯t pierce deeper. He pulled the rabbit and bit its head to death. More enemies swarmed him, and he spun his body like a tornado.


    With rabbits¡¯ blood all over him, he looked like a madman. People near him distanced themselves from Cole as they looked at him in fear.


    Cole didn¡¯t care about them. He was enjoying his rampage. Such ferocity and wildness came from him. As the feeling of accomplishment doped his brain, Cole rushed to the river when other people came back to the building.


    As he kept going, Cole suffered more injuries. His passive skill enhanced his physical performance, but those rabbits won in quantity. He could die, but not today. He reached the river and plunged into it.


    The rabbits lined on the riverbank and squeaked. It looked at Cole with bloodlust, but no rabbit chased him in the river, so Cole swam to the other side.


    After a while, he got out of the water, and he sighed in relief. Luckily, no water monster had attacked him in the water.


    Everyone had come back to the building, and Cole felt pity they didn¡¯t risk their lives to cross the river. Once those rabbits smelled intelligent creatures¡¯ blood, they wouldn¡¯t come back to normal for a day, and that was what the monster encyclopedia said about frenzy rabbits, so they could either cower in that building or risked their lives.


    Cole couldn¡¯t control his big grin. He felt freer. This world was fun. For example, he felt a sense of accomplishment after collecting many cards in his hand, and he could strengthen himself by levelling up too. He had never felt such fun in his previous life on earth.


    Remembering he had got experience cards, Cole tried to absorb them, but he failed. The cards were still in his hands. Feeling confused, the system screen suddenly appeared in front of him, providing him with information.


    You have absorbed experience cards. You have failed. Higher-level units can¡¯t absorb lower-level experience cards.


    Cole shook his head. He had known this after absorbing the knowledge card from the emissary of the Immortals, but he forgot about it because of things that had happened. He had no choice but to hunt monsters at the same level as him or higher if Cole wanted to use experience cards and level up.


    Cole couldn¡¯t use the lower level experience cards, and he planned to sell them later if he could. Aside from experience cards, there were several types of cards in his hand. Those were three yellow consumable cards, five orange loot cards, and three grey point cards. All the consumable cards had the effect of healing his HP by 10%. The loot cards comprised the rabbit monster¡¯s body parts. The point cards were like the currency in this world, and each card had ten points value.


    Cole used all HP recovery consumable cards. Suddenly, smoke came out of his scars, and an additional layer of skin enclosed them. Soon, his HP increased to one hundred percent. He had been healed. However, he still felt the fatigue after fighting so many monsters.


    Cole looked at the surroundings. There were many hills, and many trees towered over those earth mounds. It seemed there was a forest above the hills. He didn¡¯t think too much and walked ahead. There was no monster on his way, but he didn¡¯t let off his guard even a bit.


    On the way to a hill, he used up point cards. In his system, his currency point increased to thirty. The currency point would be useful in the future because he could use points to buy other nine types of cards: active skill, passive skill, blessing, consumable, equipment, debuff, loot, monster, and experience cards. He could trade with other units or dimensional merchants. He knew these pieces of information from the knowledge card he had absorbed.


    The cards left in his possession were loot cards. He could eat some loot cards such as monsters¡¯ body parts. Those were the same type as consumable cards, and the main reason they fell into loot type was they had some values. For example, he could sell them at high prices. Not only that, some classes could use loot cards to craft various things too.


    After confirming all cards in his possession, Cole thought of a way to store them. He had nothing with him. He was even shirtless because he hadn¡¯t worn a shirt when the Immortals had transferred him to this world. The only thing that covered his skin was his long, black pants. It had pockets on the sides, so he stored his cards in each pocket.


    As he arrived at the top of the hill, Cole could see the surroundings better. These hills spread until the riverbank. There were other hills ahead, and a valley in between. Ahead of the opposite hills, he could see a forest.


    Cole could choose to go to the riverbank, or he could traverse the valley and go to the forest. He thought about his choice.


    There seemed to be nothing if he went to the riverbank. However, the valley under him seemed dangerous because he spotted many giant holes, and enormous black ants the size of tigers occasionally got out and in.


    Looking at those hundreds of giant ants, Cole¡¯s heart raced, and he couldn¡¯t stop grinning. His hands were itching to bash those creatures¡¯ hard carapaces. They were the perfect target for his greatsword compared to Frenzy Rabbits.


    Cole shook his head and thought about his choice rationally. If he rushed alone, he was doomed to die. His goal was no longer finding a perfect rest, so he couldn¡¯t reckless.


    Cole sighed. ¡°Is this dimension designed for people to venture together? No, I can¡¯t give up. I shall traverse these hills and arrive in the forest.¡±


    Cole observed one ant, and a screen appeared above it, but the system only showed him question marks and its level. He couldn¡¯t get more information about them, or at least it was still locked before he killed an ant.


    Cole picked a rock on the ground, pivoted his waist, and threw it to a level two ant. The rock hit the ant and cracked its carapace. His eyes widened in surprise. He couldn¡¯t believe a mere throw could deal damage to a monster. He suspected it was the work of his attributes.


    As he thought of that, the ant¡¯s antennas swayed. It spotted Cole on a hill, and it rushed at him. The creature¡¯s action attracted its comrades, and other ants followed behind it.


    Cole grinned as the ants arrived at the hill. He swung his sword, splitting a level two into two parts. Two more ants of the same level charged at him from the sides. He flipped his body in the air and severed an ant¡¯s head. As he landed on the ground, he spun around and slashed the third ant.


    Cole was lucky because three of them were level two, but stronger ants kept coming from the valley. He fetched the cards from those three corpses and ran away. Several ants caught up to him, and a level three ant rammed its head to his back. Cole thrust his sword on the ground to support his body from falling.


    Cole bit his lower lip to endure the pain, and he immediately absorbed one consumable card with the effect of healing his HP by 10%. The card had halfway dissolved into smoke, but it turned as a whole again. At the same time, the system rang in his head.


    You can¡¯t use healing cards in the middle of the battle.


    Cole didn¡¯t have time to complain as he sensed an ant¡¯s killing intent on his back. He flipped up his body and stood on the handle of the greatsword with his hand. He pulled his sword, slashed an ant, and landed on his feet again.


    You have triggered the effect of [Dedication of Passivity].


    As the ant turned into blue smoke, a black card floated in its place, and he instantly picked it. He wanted to read the card, but those ants surrounded him from every direction. His heart raced in thrill. The risk was worth it because Cole had just got a black card, aka a passive skill card.


    ¡°What great timing. I need experience cards to level up and open my skill slot.¡± As he said that, he jumped to a nearby ant and pierced its head. An experience card dropped from the corpse, and he absorbed it along with other experience cards in his possession.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 2 [175/250])

 4. New Skill

    Luckily, he could absorb experience cards in the middle of the battle. Cole needed to absorb two more experience cards in order to level up, so he continued his rampage.


    He pulled his sword and jumped to another ant, but the ant parried his sword with its mandibles and threw him back.


    As his body was in the air, Cole laughed in excitement. In his deathmatch arena, he was proud of his inhuman strength, and because of that, he rarely had satisfying battles. In here, however, powerful monsters were abundant, and many of them possessed threats for him.


    Cole licked his lips as he was about to fall on an ant. He spun his body and severed the ant¡¯s head, turning it into blue smoke. Luckily, it left an experience card, and he immediately absorbed it. With that, he only needed one more experience card to level up.


    As his body landed on the ground, an ant suddenly approached from the left side, trying to ram him with its hard head. However, Cole blocked it, placing his greatsword in front of him. He used the flat of the sword to hold the ant¡¯s head.


    The ant kept pushing him, making him busy with it. At the same time, another ant came behind him and sliced his right hip with its mandible.


    Cole gritted his teeth, and veins popped out of his face. Luckily, the scar wasn¡¯t deep, but his HP kept decreasing gradually. At the same time, he got a notification from the system that the bleeding buff affected him. If he kept getting the same attacks from their mandibles, he would die out of blood loss eventually.


    He didn¡¯t want to die. He had barely achieved anything in this world.


    Cole roared as explosiveness surged from inside him, and he punched the ant that had attacked him, cracking its carapace. As he started to become out of control, more ants were coming at him.


    Cole pivoted his waist as he killed several ants with one horizontal slash. Many cards floated out of their corpses, and he took them. He absorbed one more experience card and retreated to the river.


    You have leveled up.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 3 [25/375])


    You have opened one skill slot.


    Cole read the passive skill card he had gotten as he was running toward the river. He didn¡¯t want to absorb skills carelessly because he could only absorb passive skills. Furthermore, Cole had to wait until level 6 and then every 6 level to gain more slots.


    Skill: [Ruin Gust]


    Effect: When attacked, has a 35% chance to bring powerful gust from the Ruin Realm, dealing pure damage to all nearby enemies.


    Cole smiled. This was a perfect passive skill for his current situation. If he triggered the effect, he could damage many enemies at once. He decided to absorb it.


    The card turned into smoke and entered his body, filling his skill slot. He suddenly stopped running and faced his enemies again. He wanted to take a gamble by triggering the effect of this skill.


    Cole stabbed an ant in the skull, pulled his sword back, and slashed the enemy behind him. An ant managed to stab his back, and Cole arched his back, piercing its skull from above.


    After killing it, Cole staggered, and the sword in his hands became heavier. This weakly condition only lasted for a second before the effect of [Injury Transmutation] kicked in and enhanced his overall physique.


    Cole looked at his HP bar and it was filling up faster, meaning he could continue his rampage. Grinning, he rushed at an ant.


    As he killed an ant, another one slashed his thighs and triggered [Ruin Gust]. A red helix was revolving around Cole and hitting nearby enemies.


    So this is the effect of the [Ruin Gust], he thought.


    While the effect was still active, Cole used this chance to leap into a spot where most ants gathered, killing them in an instant. After several seconds, the helix vanished.


    Seeing him with no protection, ants ganged upon him again. Thanks to [Injury Transmutation], he could tank their attacks. He endured and waited for the skill to appear again. After a while, the red helix appeared again out of thin air and revolved around him.


    Time passed. No more monster came to him from the hill, and his enemies were all dead. Cole sat on ground and controlled his breath. He put a wide smile on his face. He didn¡¯t know what other people thought, but this place was heaven for him. No guilt and free rampage.


    Cole looked at twenty-seven cards he had gotten from those ants. He had got ten level-two experience cards, five level-three experience cards, one level-five experience card, seven loot cards, and four point cards.


    Cole couldn¡¯t absorb the level-two experience cards, so he planned to sell them to people that had come to this world at the same time with him. He glanced at the building over the river. People were getting out of the building and killing Frenzy Rabbits.


    After looking at them, Cole rejected the idea of selling the cards to them because they could just get them easily by killing monsters. So, he threw all level-two experience cards to the ground.


    The loot cards were useless too. If he needed it, he could hunt those Goliath Ants anytime, so he dumped them to the ground too. The only cards left in his hands were high-level experience cards and point cards. Cole absorbed them at once.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 3 [325/375])The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Currency Point: 60


    Cole stood up and walked to the hill again. The sun was still high, so he planned to hunt as many as he could until night.


    On the top of the hill, he observed those ants and confirmed the strongest ants were only level five.


    Cole ran to the valley. His HP was far from full, but the current him had enhancement from [Injury Transmutation]. He jumped into the middle of enemies and killed one level-three ant. The corpse let out of an experience card, and he immediately absorbed it.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 4 [0/500])


    His HP was full again because of the benefit of level up, but it made him panic. There was no enhancement from [Injury Transmutation] anymore. He had to escape.


    Cole jumped from an ant to another ant in order to escape, but they climbed atop each other and trapped him. An ant kicked him, and it activated [Ruin Gust]. Cole managed to land on his feet, and he ran again as he picked every card from dead ants on his way.


    After a while, Cole arrived at the top of the opposite hill, the one that led to the forest. He miraculously arrived at the destination, but the ants were still chasing him, climbing the hill in order to reach him.


    For a moment, he thought of running into the forest, but he didn¡¯t know what powerful monsters awaited him on there. He realized coming to the forest was a reckless idea, so he ran down the hill again.


    As he arrived in the valley again, more ants came out of the holes, making Cole difficult to get past them. A wave of ants befell upon him and swarmed him with attacks. Cole¡¯s HP kept decreasing as he supported his feet to keep standing by thrusting his greatsword to the ground. His skin turned redder, and he felt explosive power in his muscles. He pulled his sword, spun one time, and pushed those ants away. His HP was close to zero, so he ran straight to the hill and didn¡¯t bother about nearby cards anymore.


    Ants kept chasing him, and he spotted a level-six winged ant. Cole put one free point on agility, increasing his speed. He got away from every ant except the winged one, but he felt assured as he arrived at the riverbank. Without hesitation, he jumped into the river.


    The winged ant floated above the river for a while, but it didn¡¯t dare to lower its altitude, so it came back to the hills.


    Cole got out of the river after the winged ant disappeared behind the hill. He suddenly didn¡¯t have the mood to hunt after he had attracted stronger monsters, so he decided to see people¡¯s condition on the other side.


    Cole watched people struggling against rabbits. He wouldn¡¯t have thought there was a day he could become a spectator of death fights. It was as thrill-inducing as getting himself in a real death fight. No wonder many people liked to watch people fight to death.


    A group of five people jumped to the river and traversed to the second prairie. They spotted Cole and approached him. They were none other than the lightning young man and his teammates. His members comprised the barrier man, the healer, and two melee attackers.


    The skinny man smiled at him. ¡°I was wrong about you. You are strong.¡±


    Cole nodded. ¡°Thanks.¡±


    ¡°I saw many floating cards behind you. I suppose you killed monsters. Where did you find them?¡±


    Cole pointed his thumb at the hills. They thanked him once again and went to the hills. He had angered stronger ants, but Cole didn¡¯t stop their curiosity to check the place. Each had its own business. Besides, he remembered when the skinny guy had killed a man for a petty reason. The man¡¯s followers might not be bad people, but they still followed the man after knowing about his character.


    Cole lay on the ground. No other groups traversed the river. They were cowering in the building after fighting rabbits for a few times. Getting bored, he decided to rest for a while. He closed his eyes while keeping his guard up. If opponents came to him, he was ready anytime.


    When Cole opened his eyes, it was already evening. He got up and walked to the hills again. Looking down, he saw no ant anymore.


    Cole had been waiting for this moment. After killing many ants, He had got advanced knowledge about Goliath Ant in his system. They were inactive from twilight until dawn, so he ambled down the valley. It was the chance to go to the forest safely.


    On the way, Cole found many things in the surroundings. There were weapons, trails of blood, cards, and torn clothes. He suspected the skinny man¡¯s group had fought those ants and died. He knelt and clasped his hands in prayer. After that, Cole picked their weapons and turned them into equipment cards. He might have a chance to sell them in the future.


    Cole was lucky to get a woman''s sling bag. He stored cards in it. After that, he absorbed one experience card and four point cards.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 4 [50/500])


    Currency Point: 100


    Cole continued his walk to the opposite hill and faced the forest. He finally could enter his next destination without ants chasing him, but he needed to act carefully. Goliath Ants might be active in the day, but it wasn¡¯t necessarily the same for other monsters.


    Cole gripped his greatsword. He couldn¡¯t find out anything if he stayed here. He wanted to progress, so he could only go on. With raging determination, he entered the forest.


    Cole might be a ferocious beast in people¡¯s eyes, but even he didn¡¯t know what to do in the forest. Weeds and scrubs grew everywhere, preventing him from seeing further ahead. Sun would sink completely in a few minutes, and sunlight would be gone. Some monsters might have night vision, so wandering at night would put him in a disadvantaged position. Many thoughts flowed into his mind, and Cole found himself back on the hill again.


    ¡°I can¡¯t throw away my life carelessly. I like this world.¡±


    Cole planned to come back tomorrow in the day. He had passed through waves of ants. He could do it once again.


    Cole was about to walk down the valley when he heard a rustle from the forest. A giant beast with long legs stood behind him. It had thick white furs with black stripes. Its head was long, and hose-like tongues came out of its mouth.


    Cole turned back and recognized this monster from an animal channel he had watched on the TV. It was an anteater. However, this anteater was different from the same specimen on Earth. The one in front of him was three times taller than him.


    Cole immediately looked at the screen above it, and his expression turned grim. The monster was level eight. He didn¡¯t overestimate himself and immediately ran down the valley. As expected, the giant anteater chased him.


    After running for a while, Cole finally arrived at the riverside. However, the giant anteater still chased him even after he plunged into the water, so he kept swimming to another side.


    In the middle of the river, he saw something jumping out of the water, and its image became clear as the silhouette clutched onto the anteater¡¯s body. It was a scaled humanoid with the head of a piranha. It wasn¡¯t alone. More of them came from nowhere and approached him too. Each of them was level six.


    Cole swung his sword at one of them, but his attack only left a shallow cut. He didn¡¯t want to injure himself anymore today just to boost his strength, so he focused on swimming to another side. Luckily, the anteater behind him went berserk and swung its tongue at them like a whip. Those water humanoid piranhas changed their target to the anteater and let Cole escape.


    As Cole reached the land, Frenzy Rabbits rushed to him. Unlike ants, they seemed to be active at night too. Cole swung his sword like a madman as he ran to the building. He might have gotten stronger, but he needed a shelter to rest at night.


    The rabbits only left shallow scars on him, and the [Ruin Gust] easily got rid of them. After a while, Cole reached the building safely, and he immediately knocked on the door.


    ¡°Someone. Can you open the door?¡±


    ¡°NO! You come with rabbits. Stay away from us!¡±


    Cole only sighed. He couldn¡¯t complain when he had never helped them too. He saw many cards from rabbits¡¯ corpses, and an idea came to his mind.


    ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal. You open the door, and I will help you hunt experience cards.¡±


    There was no reply for a while, but Cole didn¡¯t rush them, even though rabbits kept attacking him. After a while, the door opened a bit, and he slipped past it.

 5. To the Forest

    As he entered the room, seven people stood in front of Cole. They introduced themselves as the captains of the teams. It turned out every team here formed an alliance under the leadership of a certain man.


    ¡°Who is the man that can unite all teams here?¡± Cole asked curiously.


    ¡°If you want to meet our leader, hand over the experience cards you have promised,¡± a captain said.


    The lower experience cards were useless for him, so Cole handed those cards to them. After that, they led him to the end of the room.


    At the end of the room, a dark-skinned, middle-aged man leaned against the wall. He wore a japanese kimono, and a katana hung on his waist. Most noticeable feature he had was an X scar on his right cheek.


    At the moment, the man observed him with his hawk-like eyes. After that, he gestured Cole to sit in front of him.


    Cole complied with his words and sat in front of him.


    ¡°Cole ¡®the Berserker¡¯ Xander,¡± the man said cooly while folding his arms over his chest.


    ¡°You know me?¡± Cole asked.


    ¡°I am your fan until this day. I would never have thought I could talk to you. My name is Jeff Doucette, and I am the leader of this alliance.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect people would unite under someone.¡±


    Jeff grinned. ¡°All it took was getting rid of people who opposed this idea. There was only one team who opposed us, though.¡±


    Cole nodded. ¡°They are dead.¡±


    ¡°Good riddance. Forget about them. I want to hear about the situation beyond the river.¡±


    Cole nodded. He explained the ant nest in the valley and the forest beyond the second hills. The place was even more dangerous at night, and he advised them to traverse the valley in the day.


    ¡°Even the Berserker can¡¯t traverse the valley alone?¡± Jeff said calmly.


    Cole didn¡¯t want to prove anything in front of these people, even though he had traversed the valleys alone once. ¡°Yes, but I assure you those ants are as weak as rabbits if your level is enough.¡±


    ¡°Now that¡¯s a relief. I believe in your words, Mr. Xander. However, I need to man up everyone here first. We came from various backgrounds. Some people have got the courage, but some people need more time to realize we are not in the same world. They chose me as a leader. Can¡¯t abandon them, can I?¡±


    It seemed this man wanted to recruit Cole as his combatant. Jeff hadn¡¯t asked yet, but if he did, Cole planned to refuse him. After all, those people were the first to reject him when they thought he had no value.


    Cole would cooperate if it was only business matter. After that, he would walk on his way again.


    Cole rested peacefully that night. He woke up in the dawn and planned to hunt the rabbits early. Jeff had waited for him in the door, and they got out of the building together.


    ¡°Can you fight, Mr. Doucette?¡± Cole asked.


    ¡°I guess. I watched your fights a lot.¡±


    They arrived in the middle of the prairie. The rabbits were present, and when they approached them, no rabbit turned berserk. They were back to normal. A rabbit even approached Cole¡¯s leg and rubbed its face against it like a spoiled pet.


    Before he started his rampage, Cole looked at Jeff. The man¡¯s weapon was a katana, and he carried it with elegance. ¡°Say, Mr. Doucette. Was watching people fight to death amuse you?¡±


    Jeff smiled. ¡°I won¡¯t lie. It was adrenaline-inducing.¡±


    Cole closed his eyes and stepped forward. Those deathmatch spectators were maniacs. He put his hopes high, thinking Jeff would have a pity for him and his brothers. That man might have a sense of humanity, but deathmatch fighters were not human in Jeff¡¯s eyes.


    Cole raised his greatsword and smashed a rabbit to paste. Suddenly, other rabbits turned frenzy and started attacking him. He only stood and did nothing. Those creatures could only give him light bruises, and these shallow cuts would easily trigger his [Ruin Gust].


    As a red helix revolved around him, Cole turned back to check on Jeff, and his eyes widened. The middle-aged man fought like a ferocious beast. He was evading many attacks like a feather being fluttered by the wind. At the same time, he killed many rabbits. Jeff¡¯s fighting style reminded him of his own fighting style, the mix of ferocity, agility, and explosiveness.


    Jeff Grinned as he slashed a rabbit into two. ¡°I don¡¯t need your help, Mr. Xander. Look at my fighting style. This is proof of how much I adore you.¡±


    Cole shook his head. He was agile, but he couldn¡¯t evade so many attacks. He realized that this was Jeff¡¯s skill. The middle-aged man probably had a skill that let him sense enemies¡¯ presence.


    ¡°Your first skill is passive,¡± Cole said.


    ¡°Correct. By the way, are you fine? Those rabbits are clinging to you. Need help?¡± As Jeff said that, a rabbit pounced on his neck. He suddenly turned into black smoke and reappeared again not far to the side.


    The door opened wide, and people rushed to aid. ¡°Charge! We can¡¯t let the leader fight alone!¡± someone said. Those cowards cooperated to fight Frenzy Rabbits.


    Cole observed the situation for a bit before he called Jeff. ¡°Mr. Doucette, I have paid my debt. You don¡¯t need me anymore.¡±


    ¡°You want to leave?¡± Jeff asked in the middle of slashing a rabbit.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Cole didn¡¯t answer him. He turned his back and walked to the river. They already mustered the courage to fight, and it wasn¡¯t his task to watch them out.


    After he traversed the river and arrived on the second prairie, Cole looked back. Those people were dominating the battlefield, and they would be fine under Jeff¡¯s leadership.


    Before he turned his back, Cole found Jeff standing on the riverbank as he looked at him. Their eyes met.


    After staring at each other for a while, Cole nodded and turned his back. He walked to the hills again at ease.


    On the Hill, Cole looked down the valley. Ants were wandering around like usual. Luckily, he spotted no winged ant among them. Finding a chance to traverse the valley easily, he shouted and ran down the hill.


    Cole couldn¡¯t avoid the fight against them, but he tried his best to avoid them. After a while, he successfully arrived in front of the forest. Behind him, the ants were crawling out of the valley, so he ran into the forest.


    Cole passed through shrubs and stopped at a wide area. He turned back and saw five ants approaching him. His HP was almost half, so he had enough enhancement from [Injury Transmutation].


    Cole fought and killed them easily. After the fight was over, he got three level-four experience cards and two healing cards. Cole absorbed them all, increasing his HP and experience point.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 4 [200/500])


    Cole still had one free point, but he saved it for an emergency. Who would have known the situation in the future? He might need strength, vitality, or agility. He abandoned wisdom and intelligent stats because these two stats were useless to him.


    Cole looked at the surroundings. He knew nothing about this forest, and a powerful monster like the giant anteater could show up anytime, so he continued walking. Staying in one place was dangerous because the trace of the battle could attract other monsters.


    As he kept walking, he realized he couldn¡¯t continue like this. A shelter was essential to provide him protection. Furthermore, Cole hunted alone and didn¡¯t have anyone to watch his back when he rested, so his first mission was to find a safe place and build a shelter.


    Cole¡¯s knowledge about forest was limited to everything he had watched from TV, so he could only depend on his instinct, the thing that had been saving him countless times throughout his life.


    His instinct told him an open area was dangerous, but entering bush was more dangerous. In the bush, a powerful monster could ambush him, so he needed to stay away from it. If he had to encounter a monster, he preferred them to come at him in this open area.


    Cole looked up. Above, the trees seemed quiet. Trees might be the best choice as a shelter, so he approached a tree and climbed it. He wouldn¡¯t know if he didn¡¯t check it out.


    Cole had never climbed a tree, but he didn¡¯t have a problem reaching the top. On the top, he could see the area better. He saw the river before the hills and noticed it ended up leading to the sea. After that, he looked forward and saw a mountain range beyond the forest.


    Cole climbed down a bit to see the surrounding of the forest. His instinct was right about bush being dangerous area. He saw a giant bear sleeping in the bush. Shifting his attention to the side, he saw a giant python slithering into the hole. With his system, he could see their levels.


    ¡°Level 13. Level 15. This forest is more dangerous than I thought. Where am I supposed to find targets around my level?¡±


    Cole didn¡¯t panic. The day was still long, so maybe he could find a monster around his level before the night.


    Cole climbed down again and continued exploring the forest by following the open path. The open path was the safest path, or so he thought.


    The forest was still dangerous, even if Cole only followed the open path. On the way, he encountered a group of monsters. They were bipedal grey rabbits with a unique feature; gauntlet-like carapaces covered their forearms


    They were only at the size of his legs, but their ferocious complexions made him wary of them.


    Name: Frenzy Rabbit Guard


    Level: 5


    Cole somehow could see their name this time. It was probably because they were related to Frenzy Rabbit, and he had gathered advanced information about Frenzy Rabbit.


    Unlike their cousin species, these Frenzy Rabbit Guards were aggressive. They were charging at him the moment they saw him.


    Seeing them, Cole licked his lips. They were only level five, so they possessed enough threats to induce the thrill.


    ¡°Bring it on,¡° Cole shouted. He was about to slash the rabbit that was coming to him when a beast chomped the creature between its teeth. As his blade fell to the ground, the rabbit wasn¡¯t in front of him anymore.


    Looking at the side, Cole found the monster that had snatched his prey. The ambusher was a tiger-like monster. Gleaming armor covered its entire body. On its back, it had a sharp dorsal fin. On its rear, it had a scorpion tail.


    Name: ???


    Level: 8


    The tiger was too high-level for him at the moment, Cole thought.


    Sensing hesitation in his heart, the tiger glared at him. It dropped the rabbit''s corpse in its mouth, and it was about to charge at him. Luckily, those rabbits attacked it first. It ignored cole and attacked the rabbits.


    As they were busy fighting, Cole sneakily approached the rabbit¡¯s corpse and snatched it away. He was curious because it didn¡¯t disappear when the tiger had killed it. However, the moment he touched the corpse, it turned into blue smoke, and a smoke residue turned into a blue card.


    Cole¡¯s eyes widened when he saw the blue card. It was an active skill card. He had struck it rich, but it was a pity he couldn¡¯t use it. Even though he couldn¡¯t use it, he planned to sell it to others.


    After taking the card, Cole observed their fight from a safe distance. So far, those rabbits had an advantage. They were using their powerful grips to crack open the tiger¡¯s steel-like carapace.


    The tiger galloped through those rabbits and killed them with its claws, bite, sharp pincer tail, its blade-like dorsal fin, and even with its thick skull. In the end, the tiger wiped out its enemies.


    Cole grinned. The tiger was limping to him, and its blood was gushing out of cracked carapaces. It was a chance to kill it.


    ¡°This is cowardly, but you are a beast anyway.¡± Cole bolted at the creature and swung his sword against the tiger¡¯s cracked carapace. The clanking sound resounded as the carapace repelled his greatsword.


    Cole jumped back to evade the tiger¡¯s claw. ¡°Huh, my attack is weak.¡± He knew that his HP had become full, but he refused to believe the Frenzy Rabbit Guard¡¯s attack was stronger than his attack. Luckily, he still had one free point, and Cole increased his strength.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 4 [200/500])


    Currency Point: 100


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 10


    Vitality: 9


    Agility: 9


    Intelligent: 8


    Wisdom: 8


    Free Points: 0


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 2


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1


    Explosive pressure flowed throughout his body, and Cole felt much stronger than before. He swung his sword again, but the tiger evaded to the side, and his attack cracked the ground instead.


    The tiger growled, stepped back slowly, and ran away with its tail between its legs. Refusing to let it escape, Cole chased it. However, the creature was still faster than him, even though its body was injured.


    Cole gritted his teeth. He didn¡¯t want this easy prey to escape, so he slashed his own bowel with the greatsword. His skin reddened, and he ran faster.


    Cole caught up to the tiger. He laughed maniacally and stabbed the tiger, pushing it against a nearby tree. The creature let out a pitiful cry and died. A golden card floated out of its corpse, and Cole picked it.


    Name: Experience Card


    Level: 8


    Grade: High


    Description: Increases experience by 300.


    ¡°Huh, high-grade experience card? Should I absorb it?¡± Cole thought about it for a moment, but he decided to absorb it in the end. He could hunt monsters for more experience cards. There was no need to act economically about it. This place was dangerous, and he needed to get stronger as soon as possible.


    You have leveled up.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 5 [0/625])


    After he leveled up, he felt today¡¯s hunt hadn¡¯t been satisfying him enough. He could gain more than this, so he looked for a suitable hunting ground for him.

 6. Beginner Islands Base

    Cole was doing fine with his hunt. He had been fighting the Frenzy Rabbit Guards non stop. He was lucky no powerful monsters appeared to intercept his hunt.


    Cole stabbed the last rabbit to death and wiped his sweaty face. Wondering how long he had been hunting, he looked up. The sky beyond tree leaves was still white, meaning he still had time to hunt, but he decided to rest.


    After gathering cards, Cole sat under a tree. He felt physically tired, but his mind was at peace. Killing was the only thing he was best at, and killing monsters was more fun than killing humans. When he killed monsters, there were achievements like leveling up and getting skills too. In this world, Cole had a better purpose. Life wasn¡¯t so bad anymore.


    Cole suddenly thought of his gladiator brothers. He hoped they were free and enjoyed life like himself. They were the same as him. They all only knew how to fight and kill.


    Cole gripped his fist as he suddenly found a new purpose. ¡°I hope I can meet them again, so we can hunt together and laugh at our rest time.¡±


    Having purposes in life was important, but he had a more important thing to do first, and that was to get stronger. Cole counted the cards he had gotten from the hunt. In his hands, there were five usable low-grade experience cards, three point cards, two consumable healing cards, and ten loot cards. He put the loot cards in the sling bag and absorbed the rest.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 5 [250/625])


    Currency Point: 130


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 12


    Vitality: 11


    Agility: 11


    Intelligent: 10


    Wisdom: 10


    Free Points: 1


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 2


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1


    Cole had one free point, but he only planned to use it in a dangerous situation, depending on the situation. He could need more strength to strike a stronger monster, vitality to survive, or agility to escape. He wouldn¡¯t know what would happen to him, so it was a smart idea to save the free point.


    Cole thought his situation was in control, except for one problem. He was midway to level six, but he didn¡¯t have any skill cards yet. He needed to hunt for a passive skill card.


    Cole knew nothing about monsters¡¯ drops, but he guessed skill card drops depended on the type of monsters. Snakes could drop venom-related skills, and ants could drop strength-related skills. This was just a hunch, and that was why he would keep hunting Frenzy Rabbit Guards. They were durable, and their grip strength was deadly. He hoped to get passive skills related to defense and strength.


    ¡°Haha, found you!¡± said a familiar voice from behind. Cole was about to turn back, but his body suddenly jolted as electricity struck his body. His HP kept decreasing, activating his [Injury Transmutation]. His skin reddened, and he suddenly gained the strength to turn back and leap back.


    In front of Cole, a skinny man stood with an evil grin. He wore torn outfit and dried blood covered his skin. The man was none other than the lightning user he had encountered.


    ¡°Give me back my staff and my teammates¡¯ belongings!¡± the man demanded.


    ¡°You are still alive?¡± Cole asked coldly.


    The man laughed manically, and his gaze became empty. ¡°I sacrificed them to save myself. However, those ants managed to disarm me, but that¡¯s alright. I come back stronger. Give me back my wand and my teammates¡¯ items. If you do that, I will let you join my team.¡±


    Cole didn¡¯t understand why this skinny man was so full of himself until he saw his information.


    Name: ???


    Level: 6


    Cole put a serious expression. When someone reached level six, they would open one skill slot. The man probably had three skills, and that was why he was confident about facing him. ¡°I am sorry, but I have had enough of working under someone, especially those who sacrifice his own teammates.¡±


    ¡°I see. Too bad. You are a tanker. Our dynamic would be great. Die!¡±


    The skinny man emitted electricity currents from his hands, but too bad Cole had known his intention. Cole had jumped to a nearby tree before the man cast his skill, and the lightning currents hit the ground, charring it black.


    The skinny man startled. ¡°Impossible. How did you evade lightning?¡±


    Cole didn¡¯t care to reply to him. He rushed to the skinny man, but the latter only stared at him with a blank expression. Looking at his expression, Cole confirmed active skills had cooldown time. That was why his enemy was desperate to find teammates.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    His suspicion was right, but Cole forgot the man was level six, meaning he had more skill slots.


    As he got closer, the skinny man grinned and shouted, ¡°[Lightning Ring]!¡± An electricity ring surrounded his body and expanded its size, passing through Cole.


    Cole¡¯s body jolted as the ring hit him, but he could move again after a while. He was about to take another step forward, but his enemy suddenly jumped back, pulling the lightning ring. The lightning ring passed through Cole¡¯s body again, stiffening his body.


    ¡°Hahaha! How is that? This ability doesn¡¯t deal plenty of damage, but it is enough to stall time to do this! [Lightning Strike]!¡± The skinny man emitted electricity currents from his hands and hit Cole.


    Cole knelt and bit his lower lip to endure the pain. His HP kept decreasing, and he decided to spend a point to increase his vitality.


    Vitality: 11 -> 12


    Cole was lucky the electricity stopped, but the skinny man didn¡¯t give up and hit him with the electricity ring. His HP had already decreased to the quarter of the bar, and his skin was as red as blood. As his HP bar reached low, he suddenly found standing easier. He leaped forward and slashed the skinny man in half.


    The skinny man¡¯s upper body crashed against a tree, and he looked in horror at his standing lower-half bursted blood like a fountain. ¡°No! I can¡¯t die here! I want to live!¡± He anguished for the unfairness of the world as his life flashed in his eyes.


    Joseph was his name, a pitiful high school student. His father had abandoned him when he was a kid, and his mom had raised him to be weak.


    Joseph would¡¯ve stayed as a weak man if he hadn¡¯t watched a deathmatch in a certain underground arena somewhere in the Hell¡¯s Kitchen. A friend had invited him there to watch a deathmatch. Normal people would feel freaked out, and he would have felt the same, but he had come to challenge his courage. Unexpectedly, the first deathmatch he had watched was so wonderful.


    Casey Howard VS Barrack Trump. After witnessing Casey¡¯s fight and victory, the event forever inspired him to become a better person in the wrong way. He wanted to be like Casey, a beautiful, powerful fighter. His way to do that was through violences. He had got a lot of fights with bullies and never once he had won.


    In the end, Joseph had had enough of everything. He had given up, but suddenly miracle had happened. That day, there was a rain of golden cards. He had reached out and grabbed one card. The next moment, he had woken up in an unfamiliar building.


    After hearing an explanation from the immortals¡¯ messenger, Joseph had once again found hope to become a better person. However, this world was tough.


    In the end, he lay under a tree with an empty expression, and the broad shoulders of his enemy were the last thing he had seen. ¡°I see. You are strong.¡± With that, he let out his last breath.


    Cole knelt beside him and clasped his hands together in prayer. The skinny man might have been a bad person, but he was still a human and deserved a prayer. ¡°May you live a glorious life as the soldier of immortals.¡±


    Cole cast a glance at the skinny man, turned his back, and walked away. He held an active skill card in his hand. After killing the man, the card had floated out of his corpse. This was ironic. If evil people found out they could get immortal cards from human corpses, they would take advantage of it.


    Cole wasn¡¯t against killing people, but he would only do that if the situation forced him to. If else, he would just hunt monsters. Killing humans always left a sour feeling in his heart.


    ¡­¡­


    Cole continued his journey, walking on a pathway. He didn¡¯t know where this natural pathway would lead him to, but he suspected it was the path designed for newbies. Those immortals wanted to save humanity, or so he wanted to believe, so they wouldn¡¯t wipe out humans from the start.


    Cole only met Frenzy Rabbit Guard so far and occasionally the Armored Tiger. If he met a tiger, Cole would lure it to a group of rabbits, and let them fight. After that, he would kill the survivors and harvest the cards from their corpses. At the end of the day, he managed to level up.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 6 [25/750])


    Currency Point: 200


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 14


    Vitality: 14


    Agility: 13


    Intelligent: 12


    Wisdom: 12


    Free Points: 1


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 2


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1


    As usual, Cole planned to save his free point in case of an emergency. He could fill one skill slot too, but he didn¡¯t have any passive card yet. He had been doing well so far, so there was no need to rush things.


    Cole was right to follow the path as it led him out of the forest. As he looked ahead, there was a large river and a bridge. Beyond the bridge, he could see a small island with a similar building as the one on the first prairie.


    The sun almost sank, and the horizon turned orange. The idea of resting on a tree wasn¡¯t bad, but he found a better place to rest, so he traversed the bridge. On the way to the building, he encountered many giant rabbit monsters, and their heights were the same as him.


    Cole stopped and inspected them first. As he thought, his system could inspect them because they were the cousin of Frenzy Rabbits. More precisely, they were the giant version of them. After reading their information, he dared to approach them.


    Name: Frenzy Rabbit


    Title: Ace


    Level: 15


    Docile creatures. They only will go berserk if you kill one of them.


    The monster entered his monsterpedia. After killing various monsters, his monsterpedia gave him another knowledge, and that was about monsters¡¯ titles. Monsters had various titles, but he only knew the lowest of those titles: Ace. Titled monsters were in an entirely different realm than normal monsters. They became more durable and stronger.


    These rabbits were docile unless someone attacked them. Thinking of that, Cole rushed to the building, and he arrived in front of it. This building didn¡¯t have doors, but there was a transparent blue wall in front of the entrance. He thrust his hand inside, and nothing happened, so he stepped into the building.


    Inside the building, he saw a counter, and he approached him. As he arrived, a blonde woman with a pair of wings welcomed him with a sweet smile. ¡°Welcome to the Beginner Island¡¯s base. You are the first person to arrive, so you will get a reward.¡±


    ¡°Reward? You have wings. Are you the emissary of immortals too?¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡± She put a grey point card on the table. ¡°Would you like to know about this building?¡±


    Cole took the card with a sigh. He expected a special reward than a point card, but getting something was better than nothing. ¡°Please.¡± While the lady explained about this building, he read the card.


    Name: Point Card


    Grade: High


    Increases points by 1000


    Cole didn¡¯t know how valuable points were, so he absorbed them without care. His points increased to 1200. After that, he listened to the lady.


    ¡°This is a safe place. Monsters, except void monsters, can¡¯t enter here. Here, you can use your points to buy various things. There are several shops, and you can see them on the screens above me.¡±


    There were four screens in a row above the lady. Equipment Dealer, Consumable Card Dealer, Skill Dealer, and Bank Dealer. ¡°Those screens are up there. Should I jump to use the shop?¡± Cole asked.


    The lady giggled. ¡°You can summon your system and point it at a screen.¡±


    Cole nodded and tried it on the Skill Dealer screen. His system screen showed the shop. There were lists of skill cards and even the option to sell things. He had many trash cards in his sling bag, so he sold them first.


    Cole opened his bag and took out all cards. The lady told him to show those cards in front of his screen, and his screen system emitted a flashlight to scan. After that, those cards disappeared and reappeared on the sell list.


    Are you sure you want to sell these cards? You can deselect cards to cancel selling.

 7. Contempt

    Cole sold every card for 330 points. Loot cards had varied prices ranging from 1 to 30 points. The more valuable, the more expensive it became. Starter equipment cards were rather cheap too as they only gave 20 points. An active skill card he had sold gave him 50 points.


    After selling things, Cole checked the skills he could buy. There were only eleven skills, including the one he had sold, and three of them were passive skills. First, [Raging Strength], boosted the user¡¯s strength by 35%. Second, [Dexterous Motor], boosted the user¡¯s agility by 35%. The third one, [Boulder Essence], boosted the user¡¯s vitality by 35%.


    These skills cost 100 points, but Cole needed to choose one as he only had one free skill slot. He didn¡¯t think about it too much and chose [Raging Strength]. The reason was Cole wanted the strength to kill higher-level monsters.


    Are you sure you want to buy [Raging Strength]?


    ¡°Yes,¡± Cole said.


    You have used 100 points to buy [Raging Strength]


    Currency Point: 1430


    The system screen emitted a flashlight to the table and manifested a black card. Cole took and absorbed it immediately. At the same time, his veins popped out as if they were about to explode. Aside from that, his heart thumped fast, and he could hear it drumming in his ears. However, it was momentarily as his body suddenly adapted to his new condition. After that, he felt a lot stronger than before.


    After inspecting his new condition, Cole pointed his screen to the consumable card dealer. This shop sold consumable cards like food, drinks, healing card, purification card, antidote cards, etc. He remembered he hadn¡¯t eaten yet, so he bought some food cards, drink cards, and other consumable cards he would need in an emergency. They cost three hundred points.


    Currency Point: 1130


    After buying consumable cards, he moved to the equipment card dealer. This shop didn¡¯t have too many cards to sell, but everything was expensive here. Cole darted his eyes around the list and found something he needed.


    Name: Inventory Ring


    Grade: Low


    This ring has two dozen blocks to store cards. It can stack the same card up to 99 times.


    Cole immediately liked this ring. It was more convenient to bring around than the sling bag. If he bought this ring, there was no need to carry the bag anymore, but the price was more expensive than other equipment cards. It cost five hundred currency points.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. I will buy it.¡± Cole clicked buy, and the system screen manifested a white card on the table. It changed into a ring when Cole touched it.


    Cole wore it on his left ring finger. After staring at the ring for a bit, he took off his bag and put it on the table. ¡°Goodbye,¡± he said as he offered a prayer to the bag.


    Cole only had 630 currency points remaining, and he planned to buy more equipment cards. He used up 500 points to buy long leather pants, a leather shirt with long sleeves, and a pair of boots. They naturally increased his attributes, albeit by 15%.


    Bonus attributes from equipment: 30% vitality, 15% strength, and 15% agility.


    Bonus attributes from skills: 35% strength.


    Total bonus attributes from skills and blessings: 70% strength.


    There was a mirror nearby, and he approached it. He looked at his appearance. There was no size option for equipment, but somehow his outfits fitted him. He hadn¡¯t worn cloth because fighters fought without them, so he was happy to wear them. The temperature had been cold, but this brown leather cloth warmed him.


    Cole turned his consumable sandwich card into a real sandwich and ate it. There were tables and chairs, but he used to eat while standing or squatting.


    While munching on the tasty treat, he looked around. This base area was smaller than the newbie building. There was another entrance on the back and a magic circle in the middle of the room. He approached the receptionist lady and asked about it.


    ¡°What is that magic circle in the middle of the room?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a teleportation circle. It can take you to various places, but for now, you don¡¯t have access to use it.¡±


    ¡°How do I get the access?¡±


    ¡°Getting a class will allow you to access to the next island. Defeating a Rex-titled monster allows access to an even higher level dimension. As a messenger, it is my duty to remind you that the void and void creatures will destroy this newbie dimension at a certain time, so you have to go to a higher dimension as soon as possible.¡±


    Cole ignored her warning and thought of something else. If he got a class, he could access other islands. One of his goals was searching for his gladiator brothers since he had nothing to do. They didn¡¯t have to follow him. Cole simply just wanted to know about their well-being.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    ¡°Thank you, sister. How do I get a class?¡±


    ¡°Only yourself can unlock it,¡± the lady said.


    Cole nodded. ¡°I understand. Then, farewell.¡± He turned his back and went to lie down on the table. The night was dangerous, so he could only wait until tomorrow.


    The place was quiet. Cole liked this ambient atmosphere, but since he was with another person, it became awkward to stay silent, so he talked with the receptionist lady, but she only responded to only important things as if she was an automaton robot. In the end, he gave up on his attempt and meditated again on the table.


    A few hours had passed. Cole opened his eyes to the marching footsteps. Jeff Doucette and his people entered this place. Their eyes met, and the man approached him. Cole looked at the man¡¯s information and became surprised.


    Name: Jeff Douchette


    Level: 6


    ¡°You have reached level 6,¡± Cole exclaimed. To reach the same level as him was admirable, considering Jeff led many people.


    Jeff smiled. ¡°And you came here by yourself. I admire your strength, Mr. Xander.¡±


    ¡°Did you come here at night?¡± Cole rhetorically asked, even though the answer was clear to him. He genuinely admired his leadership. The night was the time when many monsters became active. He would never have thought the man could convince the crowd to go at night.


    ¡°We were lucky that some people could guide us at night. Through effort and cooperation, we had it done. This is the benefit of staying as a group. How about it, Mr. Xander? Would you like to become a part of our group? You can lead your own squad.¡±


    Cole thought about Jeff¡¯s offer seriously. Normally, he would say no because he disliked working under someone, but after knowing the difficulty of hunting alone, he was tempted to look for a few people that could support him.


    ¡°I¡ª¡± Cole found his sound gluing in his throat. He felt heavy to accept Jeff¡¯s offer for some reason. ¡°I like to hunt alone, but thanks for the offer.¡± His eyes widened at the realization of his own words. He might be an introvert, but it wasn¡¯t as if he was an antisocial person. His heart just couldn¡¯t allow himself to say yes to Jeff.


    Jeff patted Cole¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Just let me know if you change your mind.¡±


    Cole was alone once again. No one bothered to get close to him, and even Jeff¡¯s people looked at him with contempt. He didn¡¯t understand why. He wore new outfits, so it wouldn¡¯t be his body odor. Even though their gazes bothered him a bit, he maintained his stoic expression.


    ¡­¡­


    The building had a hologram clock, and Cole got out at 6.00 AM when many people were still sleeping. He met Jeff leaning against the entrance. He greeted the man with a nod.


    ¡°Hunting?¡± Jeff asked.


    ¡°I hunt alone, so I have to work harder than others.¡±


    Jeff raised his hand. ¡°Good luck with your hunt.¡±


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Cole slapped Jeff¡¯s hand and walked past the transparent barrier. The Ace Frenzy Rabbits were still sleeping at the riverbank, so he didn¡¯t feel worried about bumping against them. Not that he would walk carelessly too.


    After he passed the bridge, Cole stopped for a moment to look at the forest. He summoned a consumable map card from his inventory ring and used it. This was one of the consumable cards he had bought for 10 currency points. The system screen appeared on its own and showed a new feature, Maps. Currently, he only had a map for Beginner Island Number #101.


    Cole clicked the map, and the screen showed an image of the island. There was a green dot before the bridge, and it represented his position. He summoned a consumable monster detector card, and he used it. This card allowed him to detect monsters for one day, and he bought it for a pricy 50 currency points. Red dots appeared on the map, and they showed monsters¡¯ levels when his finger clicked on them. With this, Cole wouldn¡¯t be afraid of what he hunted.


    Cole entered the forest. After reaching level 6, he had new targets. However, these level 6 monsters had a risky habitat. He needed to traverse the bush in order to reach their place.


    As he walked, he occasionally glanced at the map to make sure he was on the right track. The map and the monster detector were important in this hunt.


    ¡°I have to make minimal 100 currency points today to replenish the monster detector and buy other necessary cards.¡±


    Cole shifted the last tall grass on his way and peeked out. Ahead of him was an open field, and there were several ponds.


    In the ponds, giant frogs at the height of his thighs lived. Unlike normal frogs, these green frogs had a bulging vocal sac on their back, and it occasionally inflated.


    Name: ???


    Level: 6


    There were two types of monsters: aggressive and non-aggressive. Cole didn¡¯t know which type these frogs were, so he just assumed they were aggressive. He thought of a way to approach them, but nothing came up in his mind. In the end, he stepped out of the bush and looked at their reactions.


    Those frogs looked at him. Most of them ignored him and kept minding their business like bathing in the pool, but a few approached him out of curiosity. With this, he confirmed they were non-aggressive monsters.


    Cole rushed to a frog, and the creature sensed his killing intent. It opened its mouth and stuck out its long tongue like a bullet.


    Cole used the flat side of the blade to parry the attack and bash the frog¡¯s head. As the creature was stunned on its feet, he delivered a clean cut to its neck.


    Cole looked around. Other frogs didn¡¯t care as the frog¡¯s head dropped to the ground. This was a good thing for him. After taking a card from the corpse, he charged to another frock. After a while, he killed two more frogs, and he gained information about them on the monster knowledge list. According to the system, the frogs were called Sloth Bullfrog.


    Cole continued his hunt. He was in a good mood because this place was an easy farm spot for him. Only he alone could hunt them, or so he thought.


    After killing a dozen of frogs, he took a rest for a while, sitting on the ground. There were still many pools ahead, and the stock of frogs was abundant, so he wasn¡¯t worried he would run out of his killing targets.


    After a while, he was about to go ahead when the bush behind him swayed. Five people arrived at this place. A man stood in the middle, and he assumed he was their leader. The other four comprised two women and two men.


    Those people were members of Jeff¡¯s group. As they spotted Cole, they looked at him with contempt.


    Cole had had enough of their gazes and decided to approach them. He wanted to find out their reason to look at him like that. As he stood in front of them, he smiled and said, ¡°Hi. Is there something wrong? You people have been staring at me as if you are looking at garbage.¡±


    They looked at each other and didn¡¯t know what to reply. In the end, their leader replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about.¡±


    Cole looked at each of them. Their hands gripped their weapons tighter. They were ready to attack him. ¡°You look so tense. You see. I won¡¯t bother any of you, so I will appreciate it if you guys stop looking at me like that.¡±


    ¡°You are a murderer, right?¡± the woman in the group asked innocently, and her teammates glared at her bluntness.


    Cole blinked his eyes. He wasn¡¯t sure what to reply because they were right. He had killed hundreds of people throughout his career as a deathmatch gladiator. ¡°I won¡¯t murder people wantonly.¡±


    ¡°So the rumor is true,¡± the woman said.


    Cole frowned. There might be people who recognized him from Jeff¡¯s group, and these people might have spread a nasty rumor about him. ¡°What rumor?¡± he asked

 8. Cooperation

    ¡°Someone spread a rumor that you are a murderer,¡± the woman said innocently.


    Cole sighed. He never offended people, but trouble still came to him. ¡°And who spread that?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know him, but he claimed to know you.¡±


    If these people didn¡¯t know that person well, it surely wasn¡¯t Jeff who had spread the rumor. Those people were still dumbass to believe a baseless rumor, even though it was somewhat true.


    Cole speculated that this person was a regular spectator of the deathmatch fights. This frustrated him more. Why did he keep encountering spectators but not his brothers?


    Cole shook his head and smiled. ¡°I¡¯d advise you to not believe a baseless rumor. I am not a bad person. How about I tell you some useful information about those frogs as a token of goodwill?¡±


    Cole told them everything he knew about Sloth Bullfrog. Those people thanked him and started hunting on their own. This place was large, so he didn¡¯t mind sharing this hunting ground with them.


    As they were fighting monsters, Cole observed their fighting style while absorbing the cards he had got. These cards included three low-grade experience cards and three point cards.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 6 [175/750])


    Currency Point: 160


    Cole still had the other six cards, but those were loot cards, and Cole stored them in the inventory ring. After that, he looked at his experience bar and sighed helplessly. ¡°Leveling up is more difficult now because the experience bar keeps increasing. I can¡¯t relax.¡±


    Cole told himself to keep on hunting, but he would do that after watching the people. Their cohesive teamwork impressed him. The female fighter, the leader, and another man acted as melee fighters. On the back, one male wizard dealt ranged magic attacks. Beside the wizard, the female healer healed melee fighters when they suffered injuries.


    Their fighting style was cool, and it motivated him. He stood up and stretched his body, preparing to hunt monsters again. After all, he was alone, and he couldn¡¯t afford to relax if he wanted to grow faster.


    To prevent them, Cole ran to another pond. His footsteps created ripples in the water, but he kept charging at a frog and bruised its skin. After that, he ran to another one. As a result, he agitated these frogs, and they chased him.


    Cole kept repeating the process until many monsters chased him. After he gathered several frogs, he stopped running and let them attack him. Their fast tongues punched his gut, slapped his ribs, and tied his limbs. His HP kept decreasing, and his skin reddened, but he still endured until an attack triggered the [Ruin Gust].


    The rex helix revolved around him and hit all frogs at once. It kept spinning and scraped half of a frog¡¯s head, turning half of its brain into a paste. Not only that, the spin severed many frogs¡¯ limbs and their body parts. It didn¡¯t miss any single frog.


    As the red helix weakened his enemies, Cole charged at each of them and finished them with slashes.


    On the other side, those people stopped after killing a frog, and they spectated how Cole fought. They suddenly felt ashamed of themselves. One man could tank many frogs while killing them, but they had to depend on teamwork to just kill one. Thanks to Cole¡¯s action, each of them reached a silent agreement to hunt frogs as individuals. They needed to train themselves.


    After dealing with a group of ten frogs, Cole rested a bit to absorb the harvested cards. As he did that, he took a glance at the group. To his surprise, they were hunting frogs as individuals. He didn¡¯t know why they did that, but it was a pity. They looked cooler as a group.


    After absorbing the cards, Cole¡¯s experience increased, and it put him in a good mood. He loved to see numbers going up. That meant he was closer to his goal of reaching level twelve. He needed to reach that level to open the next skill slot.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 6 [475/750])


    As usual, he put the loot cards in his inventory ring. After counting those cards, he realized he had fulfilled his daily quota. He could stop hunting, but he wasn¡¯t feeling satisfied yet. He wanted to kill more monsters.


    As he was about to continue his hunt, a man screamed in pain. The man was none other than the male fighter. He was lying down on the ground while grabbing his bleeding arms.


    In front of him, a wolf monster crouched and growled. The monster was as tall as Cole was. It had azure fur with a few white stripes. On each of its shoulder blades, a bone spike protruded out.


    Name: ???


    Level: 10


    The wolf leaped at the lying man, but before it could land on him, the wizard man shot an invisible shock ball, pushing its body to the side.


    After that, the female fighter and the captain pulled the injured male fighter away. However, the wolf had stood up again and leaped back at them.


    Cole arrived at the side and slashed the wolf¡¯s body. The blade penetrated the hide and scratched the monster. At the same time, the wizard at the back launched another shock ball and pushed the monster away.


    Cole clicked his tongue. His attack only did a shallow scratch. This monster was strong. ¡°Run! I will buy time.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t joke around. You can die!¡± the leader shouted.


    ¡°Why do you care? I am a murderer! Go! Run!¡±


    The leader gave the injured man to the female healer, and he rushed to the side. ¡°They are my teammate and my responsibility. It is my job to protect them.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Cole hesitated a bit and said, ¡°You¡­.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t give me a wrong idea. I hate owing something to outsiders. Everyone, you can go without me!¡±


    The healer took the injured man and escaped. However, the female fighter and the wizard stood in line with Cole and the leader.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± the leader asked.


    ¡°Leader said a melee fighter is a vanguard of the team. I am just simply buying time for those two to escape,¡± the woman said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t plan to die with you guys, but my skill is useful to send that monster flying. I will escape if things go south,¡± the wizard said.


    Cole admired their courage. Once again, he looked at them one by one and carved their appearances in his mind. The leader was a plain-looking buff guy; the woman was a pretty brunette with a slender-muscular frame, and the wizard was a man with a slack expression.


    ¡°Hey, my name is Cole. May I know your name?¡±


    ¡°Lisa,¡± the pretty female fighter said.


    ¡°Abraham,¡± the leader said.


    ¡°Roger,¡± the wizard said with a yawn.


    ¡°I will remember you.¡± Cole spent one free point to strength and charged at the enemy first, shocking other people. He swung his sword at the wolf.


    The wolf caught the blade with its teeth and pushed it down. After that, the monster leaped past Cole and left a deep slash on his right shoulder.


    Cole grinned as his skin reddened. He pivoted back and stabbed the wolf¡¯s butt, making it jump while crying.


    The female fighter jumped into the air, and her blade left a trail of blue light as she slashed the wolf. This was the active skill that one could buy in the shop, and it was strong enough to penetrate the monster¡¯s thick hide.


    The wolf cried agility and caught the woman in midair. After that, it sank its sharp fangs into her shoulder.


    They landed on the ground with the wolf above her. Blood splattered everywhere, and Lisa¡¯s body twitched weakly.


    ¡°Lisa!¡± the leader shouted as he bodied his shoulder against the monster¡¯s head.


    The wolf stiffened. It tried to move, but it couldn¡¯t do it. This was the leader¡¯s skill that could stun a monster.


    After the leader used [Stun], the wizard shot an invisible shock ball, sending the monster toward Cole.


    As the wolf was flying toward him, Cole placed his greatsword in front of him, stabbing it in the belly.


    Cole laughed maniacally as he pushed the wolf to a tree. As its body crashed against the trunk, he pulled his sword and delivered a barrage of slashes. In the middle of swinging his sword, he saw a claw coming at him, and he jumped back, but the claw still scratched his chest.


    As he made a distance between them, Cole saw flakes of ice on the ground and the wolf¡¯s body. He realized he had been hitting some kind of ice armor. ¡°No wonder you are so hard to kill,¡± he praised the wolf.


    Cole and the wolf stared at each other, and none of them moved. The situation tensed, and he hoped those people could back him up. However, after waiting for a minute, no one approached the wolf.


    Cole looked back and saw the wizard carrying Lisa away. After they escaped, the leader approached him and stood by his side. ¡°You don¡¯t run yet?¡± Cole asked in a mocking tone.


    ¡°Nah, it seems we almost kill the monster. Can you believe it? We are all level 6. Let¡¯s divide the resources evenly.¡±


    ¡°I am fine with that¡­.¡± Cole said with a trembled voice as he suddenly felt the searing pain in his injuries. Having [Injury Transmutation] didn¡¯t mean he was immune to injuries.


    ¡°Just don¡¯t die,¡± Cole said.


    They both shouted as they charged at the monster. At the same time, a layer of thin ice spread from the wolf¡¯s upper body. It was trying to cover its body with ice armor.


    Cole slid forward and slashed the monster¡¯s right legs before ice could reach those body parts. As a result, the wolf fell to the side, and its head leaned forward.


    Coming from the front, the leader bodied his shoulder against the wolf¡¯s head, making the ice layer around the head crack. The attack was supposed to stun the wolf, but thanks to its ice armor¡¯s effect, it negated a skill effect. However, the leader¡¯s attack still agitated the wolf. It cocked its head forward and opened its jaws wide.


    ¡°Shit,¡± the leader exclaimed as the wolf opened its mouth wide at him.


    Cole stabbed the wolf¡¯s neck from the side, but he was too late. The wolf had torn the leader¡¯s right arm apart. Seeing blood spurted out of him, the leader fell to his knees.


    Cole shouted out of frustration and pushed his sword deeper into the monster¡¯s neck. The wolf wiggled and whipped Cole¡¯s back with its tail, but he didn¡¯t let go. After the second whip, the red helix appeared out of thin air and revolved around him.


    The wolf roared in pain as the helix destroyed through the ice layer and hit its body. It couldn¡¯t breathe anymore and fell to the ground.


    You have killed a Frost Wolf Brat.


    Smoke came out of the wolf¡¯s body and gathered in the air to become a golden card. Cole grabbed it and immediately checked the leader¡¯s condition.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Cole asked. He was about to embrace the man¡¯s shoulder, but the latter parried his arm.


    ¡°I can¡¯t be saved,¡± the leader said.


    ¡°That¡¯s not true. Here, I have a healing card.¡± Cole took out a healing card from his inventory ring. He used it, but a screen appeared on the side and said the activation had failed. ¡°Why?¡±


    The leader said with panted voice, ¡°I¡ªmy HP is zero. My vision is blurring. It is a miracle I can talk with you.¡±


    ¡°You¡­.¡± Cole felt pity that nothing could save the man. ¡°Do you have any last word? I will deliver it to your loved ones. I promise on my name.¡±


    The leader chuckled. ¡°They are wrong. You are a good person. I have a favor. Just treat it as my share of resources. Join my team. I¡ª¡± He coughed blood and fell to the side. His body trembled, but he forced himself to say, ¡°I want you to stay until they are strong enough as individuals. Help me. My team is the backbone of the¡­ alliance.¡±


    ¡°Brother, hey, stay with me.¡± Cole shook the leader¡¯s body, but the latter didn¡¯t move anymore.


    After a while, the man turned into smoke and vanished. He felt conflicted about the man¡¯s last wish, but he didn¡¯t have to comply with it. However, the man still died in honor, so he clasped his hands in prayer.


    ¡­¡­


    After Cole came back to the base, Jeff held a burial ceremony for the leader. It seemed the man had an excellent reputation in this alliance of people. They had been here for a few days, but people created bonds faster than he thought.


    Lisa wept as she hugged the leader¡¯s empty tombstone. She seemed to be the one who was grieving the most. Jeff had told Cole that she and the leader were close relatives.


    After the ceremony ended, Jeff invited Cole to lunch in the cafeteria. These people were indebted to him, so Jeff treated him. Cole didn¡¯t shy and ordered a lot of food and drinks.


    ¡°This alliance has many teams, but Abraham¡¯s team was the main force. His team comprised five people, now four. Their mission was to get stronger without caring for other people,¡± Jeff said.


    Cole chomped a piece of meat and said, ¡°How about you, Jeff? You are strong.¡±


    Jeff smiled calmly. ¡°I take care of other people. How about Abraham¡¯s request? Do you want to join the main team as a leader?¡±


    ¡°Can I? I am just an outsider.¡±


    Jeff smirked. ¡°Everyone here is a stranger to another. We unite together as one to survive. Remember, our objective is to escape this Beginner Island before void creatures appear here. We don¡¯t know when void creatures will appear, but according to the lady messenger, once they appear, we are doomed.¡±


    Cole didn¡¯t have any affection for this alliance. He was wary of Jeff too, but he had witnessed the main group¡¯s members¡¯ loyalty to each other, and it touched him. Furthermore, he liked to honor the dead¡¯s request if he could grant it. ¡°If they don¡¯t mind my presence on the team, I don¡¯t mind joining for a while until they are a little bit stronger.¡±


    ¡°I understand. I shall summon them immediately.¡± Jeff stood up and looked for the main team¡¯s members. After a while, he came back with two men and two women. He told them to sit.


    ¡°You people have heard Abraham¡¯s last request, right? This is Cole. He is your leader from now on,¡± Jeff said.


    ¡°I have witnessed his might. I don¡¯t mind him in this group,¡± Roger, the wizard, said expressionlessly.


    ¡°It was Uncle Abraham¡¯s wish, so I am fine with it,¡± Lisa said.


    ¡°No problem here,¡± the female healer said.


    ¡°Wait, I know it was Mr. Abraham¡¯s wish, but we can¡¯t just put a random person in this group. First, I want you to tell us about your skillset and what you are capable of,¡± the melee fighter man exclaimed. He was none other than the first person to get injured by the Frost Wolf Brat.

 9. Disciples

    Cole felt irritated. If it wasn¡¯t for a dead person¡¯s request, he wouldn¡¯t think further about joining a group. There was a saying that wherever the water flowed, a rock would stand in the way, and it was true for his situation right now.


    He drew a deep air into his mouth and asked, ¡°May I know your reason? Other people can testify to my power.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. You are being unreasonable here, Mark,¡± the wizard said.


    ¡°But how can you replace the leader just like that? He may be strong, but we don¡¯t know his capability of leading a team,¡± Mark, the melee fighter, said.


    That person acted too much. Cole could ignore him, but he wouldn¡¯t allow himself to be insulted further. ¡°That¡¯s enough. I won¡¯t join the team¡­.¡±


    ¡°Wait, Mr. Cole. This is a misunderstanding.¡± Lisa pushed down Mark¡¯s head into bowing. ¡°Please apologize to Mr. Cole.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. No matter what he says, I won¡¯t change my mind, but a promise is a promise. I won¡¯t join the team, but I will help your team to get stronger.¡± Cole took out the experience card he had got from the Frost Wolf Brat and absorbed it.


    Name: Experience Card


    Grade: Perfect


    Gives 500 experience points


    The card glowed and disappeared. Cole¡¯s experience increased, and he leveled up.


    ¡­¡­


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 7 [225/875])


    Currency Point: 160


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 17


    Vitality: 16


    Agility: 15


    Intelligent: 14


    Wisdom: 14


    Free Points: 1


    ¡­¡­


    ¡°There is a saying teaching someone how to fish is more valuable than giving him a fish. I owe your team two things. Firstly, the request of the dead. Secondly, the experience card I¡¯ve got from our cooperation hunt. I will help you four reach level 8, and¡­.¡± Cole pointed at Mark and Lisa. ¡°You two are melee fighters. I will help you get stronger. That¡¯s my deal.¡±


    ¡°Help us get stronger? Are you even stro¡ª¡± Before Mark could finish his words, Jeff had approached him and punched his gut.


    ¡°Oi, you aren¡¯t the face of the entire alliance. If you can¡¯t shut your mouth, I will slit your belly and dry your inside. Do you understand?¡± Jeff whispered in Mark¡¯s ear.


    Mark might not respect Cole, but Jeff was another story. His face paled as the man threatened him, and he nodded weakly.


    Jeff patted Mark¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I can vouch for Cole¡¯s strength. Training under him will benefit you guys. Okay?¡±


    Mark could only nod and looked at Cole grudgingly.


    ¡­¡­


    Lisa and Mark waited in the backyard. It was an open field facing the river. There was no Frenzy Rabbit here, so it was a suitable place for training.


    Cole came to the place carrying a big log on his shoulder. Those two opened their jaws wide at the sight. The man carried such a big log, but his face showed no pain and tiredness.


    Cole looked fine on the surface, but he was enduring the pain of carrying a big log. Even with his skill, [Raging Strength], Cole barely could lift the log, but he was used to enduring pain.


    He threw the log to the ground, summoned a great sword from his inventory ring, and chopped the log into half with one swing. Looking at his clean-cut, he nodded in satisfaction.


    Those two had witnessed Cole¡¯s clean-cut too, and they gulped. They couldn¡¯t deny Cole¡¯s swordsmanship.


    Looking at their shocked expression, he grinned and muttered, ¡°According to the plan.¡± Showing his might to his pupils was a technique he had learned from his combat mentor. One day, two people had ridiculed his mentor, and the mentor had shown them his might to shut them off. From then, Cole had learned about humans¡¯ judging nature. If he wanted to be respected, he needed to show he was worth respect through his actions.


    Thinking about that person, he smiled. He hoped the man was still alive. Cole owed many things to him, and if he was in this world, he wanted to have an adventure with him.


    While he was pondering, Cole still concentrated on his work. Under their gazes, Cole scrapped the bark with his greatsword. He shaped the wood into a carving that he¡¯d imagined in his mind. After an hour, he made three wooden swords with a thick grip and a big blunt top. He gave each of those two a wooden sword.


    ¡°Um, because you have enhancement of stats, I guess you have no difficulty swinging this wooden sword around.¡± Or so Cole thought. Those two had a quite hard time swinging the swords. He picked up his own wooden sword and swung it with one hand several times. It was easy, and his sword had a longer blunt top similar to his greatsword¡¯s length.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    Cole couldn¡¯t understand them, so he asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter, you say? The grip is too wide and smooth. We can¡¯t even grip the sword properly because of that,¡± Mark complained.


    ¡°Ah, I am used to that, so I didn¡¯t consider that, but please deal with it. We start our training now. First, I want to see your shadow swordplay using the wooden sword.¡±


    Lisa made the first move. Her footwork was nimble. She was tiptoeing forward and piercing the air with her wooden sword. It was like a mix of ballet and fencing. She hadn¡¯t done yet. She was pivoting her waist and slashing 360 degrees.


    Cole admired the show and applauded when she was done. ¡°Where did you learn that move?¡±


    ¡°I made it. I called it the Dance of Swan Sword Style.¡±


    ¡°You are not wrong. It was a beautiful dance, but it was not suitable for fighting. Dance is a dance. Your sword style lacks practicality. You next, Mark.¡±


    Cole ignored Lisa¡¯s complaint and focused on Mark. Mark¡¯s move was fine. His footwork was just fine, and his arm movements were swordplay text-graded, but this was his flaw. He had the basics, but he lacked variety. It was the complete opposite of Lisa who lacked practicality.


    Cole immediately discussed their flaws with them. After that, he instructed them to train again and fix their flaws. Even with his guidance, those two couldn¡¯t improve in a short time. Furthermore, they were the backbone of the entire group and couldn¡¯t stop their hunt just because of their training.


    When they stopped their training at night, those two had pale complexions, and their breathings were rough. Luckily, Jeff bought some magical food from the store so they could recover again. The man even treated Cole to a few meals and drinks too. Cole didn¡¯t have a reason to refuse, and they enjoyed dinner together.


    Hours had passed. A quarter of the sun emerged in the East, dying a spare of the sky orange and leaving the rest dark. Cole and the team had gotten out of the building and breathed cool air into their lungs. After doing light exercise, they began their adventure in the forest.


    They followed the safe area they had mapped. Even if it was marked as ¡®safe¡¯, everyone but Cole was nervous, eyes darting back and forth. They even reacted to the swaying bush. They really couldn¡¯t help it. The death of their former team leader carved a trauma into their hearts.


    Keeping up guard was good, but they needed to learn how to keep cool in a dangerous situation. With their condition, they couldn¡¯t manage it, so Cole decided to break the ice. ¡°What kind of person your team leader was?¡±


    And he asked the wrong question. Everyone put on sad expressions when they heard his question.


    Lisa drew a deep breath and replied, ¡°He was a busybody, always minding people¡¯s business, but that¡¯s why we never felt alone with him around.¡±


    Mark looked up and said weakly, ¡°I owe many things to him. I wish he¡¯s good on another side.¡±


    Cole could feel sympathy for them. He only knew their former team leader from their cooperation to fight Frost Wolf Brat, but he could judge a person¡¯s personality by their fighting style. The man had a noble heart.


    Cole respected their former team leader, and he was sure their former leader wouldn¡¯t want to see them sulking over his death, so he tried to cheer them up. ¡°Keep living. Don¡¯t let his sacrifice be in vain. Become stronger. We don¡¯t have a luxury of time, so you will train as you fight monsters.¡±


    Cole explained his idea as they passed through the bush and arrived at an open area with many ponds. On there, Sloth Bullfrogs idled everywhere, but they mostly bathed in the ponds.


    Everyone walked into different areas and lured those monsters. After that, they fought these creatures alone.


    Fighting as an individual was Cole¡¯s strategy to train them. In a dire situation, they could only depend on themselves, so personal experience in survival was very important.


    Cole took his time by sitting from afar. He wanted to observe them first, especially the melee fighters. He forbade them to use skills, and they had to fight those frogs with their swordplay.


    Lisa fought a frog. She evaded the frog¡¯s tongue shot to the side. After that, she poked a small hole into the frog¡¯s surface skin and then spun it to its rear. As usual, the female fighter had grace but lacked practicality.


    Cole shouted and reminded her to use her power. Lisa tried to practice his instruction, widening her legs into a firm stance and swinging down her sword with all her might. However, the frog leaped forward, evading her attack.


    ¡°Try to combine your grace and power together!¡± Cole said loudly, but his words only panicked her and lagged her thinking. As a result, the frog landed a tongue shot on her belly and made her fall on her back.


    Cole sighed in disappointment, but he realized she was just a normal person until immortals had teleported people into this world. It was normal for her to not master everything he had taught in a short time. However, she needed to adapt to this world. If she wanted to survive and get stronger, she had to break through her limit.


    Cole believed in her and focused on Mark. The man was fighting two frogs at once. He had jumped to evade a tongue attack toward his foot. Swinging his upper body downward, he stabbed the first frog in the head. He pulled his sword again and charged toward the second frog.


    Mark suddenly planted his feet into a deep stance and parried a tongue shot with the flat side of his sword. After that, he cut the tongue and advanced forward. As he arrived in front of it, he slashed the frog into two halves.


    Mark perfectly combined grace and power. His sudden breakthrough amazed Cole. He suddenly remembered that geniuses existed.


    Cole walked to his side and applauded. ¡°Bravo, Mark. You have passed the test. Now, you can hunt frogs with your skills.¡±


    Hearing Cole¡¯s praise, Mark scratched his nape and smile awkwardly. He bowed to Cole and charged to the pond, luring two frogs.


    Cole smiled proudly. Not only he had been successful as a teacher, but he had also changed someone¡¯s opinion about him. He knew Mark was growing respect for him. This was the first time he achieved something that was not fighting and killing, and he felt fulfilled.


    ¡°This Feeling is not bad. I like this.¡± Cole muttered.


    A feminine cry snapped him to reality, and he looked at the source of the voice. Near him, Lisa fell to the ground again after a frog had attacked her. It was not a life-threatening situation, so he looked away.


    Everyone aside from Lisa was doing fine at hunting as an individual. He believed they would improve more without his observation, so he decided to hunt too. After all, they weren¡¯t the only ones who needed to get stronger.


    Summoning his sword from his inventory ring, Cole jumped straight into a pond, splashing waves of muddy water onto the frogs. The frogs immediately noticed his presence and attacked him at once. A barrage of tongues hit his body, decreasing his [HP]. His skin turned red.


    An attack triggered his [Ruin Gust], summoning a red helix around his body and hitting nearby enemies. While the passive skill was still active, Cole used the chance to run around, exposing the helix to enemies. Limbs and mutilated body parts scattered about as frogs were getting slaughtered. Some frogs survived with one or two losing limbs, but he immediately killed them all with his greatsword.


    In just a few minutes, Cole slaughtered them all. He walked through the murky, red puddle and swept aside mutilated body parts in his way to collect floating cards in the vicinity. He got out of the puddle after he had finished looting.


    Cole had killed eleven frogs and looted eleven cards. Those cards were two level-seven experience cards of low and normal grades, five level-six experience cards, and four low-grade point cards. He immediately absorbed level seven experience cards and point cards.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 7 [375/875])


    Currency Point: 200

 10. Revenge

    After absorbing experience cards, Cole felt satisfied. He had been progressing at a steady pace. With this, it wouldn¡¯t be long before he leveled up again.


    Not only that, his disciples had been doing well too, but he needed to improve them more and faster. The faster they reached level eight, the faster he could hunt solo again. To do that, he took special care of the one with the least progress, Lisa. She was fighting a frog again. This time, she could combine both power and grace together. It seemed she had learned from her last fight.


    Lisa stabbed the frog in the head and killed it. The dead frog turned into smoke and some of the smoke¡¯s residue became a blue card, an active ability card. She gasped in surprise and looked around in search of attention. She found Cole observing her, and her face beamed. ¡°Xander, look at that card. I have gained an active skill card from a monster!¡± she exclaimed while pointing at the blue card at her side.


    Her loud, merry voice caught everyone¡¯s attention. They saw a blue card floating beside her and immediately realized the monster had dropped an extremely rare card. Everyone rushed to her, but they stopped their footsteps midways and looked at her in horror.


    Seeing everyone¡¯s reaction, Lisa tilted her head. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Cole approached her carefully. He extended his hand forward and said, ¡°Lisa, come to me slowly and take my hand.¡± His worried tone made her realize there was something behind her. She was about to look back, but he warned her to not do that. ¡°Don¡¯t look back! Just come here.¡±


    The situation grew tense, and because of that, Lisa could sense an icy presence behind her. She reached for the card at her side, and the creature behind her growled. Lisa widened her eyes when she heard the sound. It was a familiar growl of a canine.


    Feeling the icy breath on her nape, Lisa sweated. She hung her hand in the air and controlled her breathing. After that, she grabbed the card and bolted to Cole.


    She had taken a few steps forward before the creature pounced on her back, dropping her on her stomach. Lisa felt the weight pressing her down as if a tractor falling on her. Luckily, it only lasted for a few seconds before the weight disappeared from her back. She immediately turned back to see the assailant.


    A white wolf with azure strips growled in front of her. Its size was about two meters, and a pair of ivory spikes protruded out of its shoulder blades. She knew well this wolf. It was the same species that had killed her uncle, a Frost Wolf Brat.


    As she realized the identity of the assailant, Lisa¡¯s body trembled. She crawled back and bumped into Cole¡¯s legs. The man stood behind her while pointing his greatsword forward. She suddenly felt assured.


    ¡°Are you okay, Lisa?¡± Mark asked. He and the others had regrouped to Cole¡¯s side. After seeing her in danger, no one put on a scared expression anymore. They prepared themselves to fight the monster.


    Lisa immediately stood again and put on a battle stance. She prepared herself for the battle too.


    A hand suddenly patted her head and followed with praise from Cole. ¡°Good job. He is level ten, the same as the wolf that killed your uncle. I can defeat him. However, I need your help. This is your chance to breakthrough. Unleash your anger against him.¡± Not me, Cole added in his mind.


    Cole¡¯s encouragement worked well as they unleashed their mana. He admired their spirits and promised to protect them. He didn¡¯t want his first disciples to die after all.


    Their bursting auras affected the wolf, and the creature immediately used its ability. A thin layer of ice covered its entire body. After that, it ran in a circle around them.


    The wolf was fast, but the ice layer around its body made the surrounding temperature colder. Thanks to that, Cole could predict its movement. The others could feel the cold air when the wolf moved too, and they instinctively formed a circle with their backs against each other.


    They put their guard on, but because of that, they tensed. Cole was an exception; he was calm. In his mind, he played several simulations about the wolf¡¯s potential moves. At the same time, his eyes darted about, following the wolf¡¯s movement.


    The creature could attack at any time, but it seemed to wait for the right opportunity. Cole could see the wolf was a natural hunter because of its keen instinct, but he wouldn¡¯t lose in the battle of wit.


    Cole¡¯s first move was grazing his shoulder, leaving a deep enough scar to let his blood flow. His [Injury Transmutation] was activated, turning his skin redder.


    He didn¡¯t injure himself in vain. His blood emitted a delightful aroma for monsters. As the aroma entered the wolf¡¯s nose, it leaped toward Cole. It wanted to indulge in the fresh taste of a human¡¯s blood.


    However, the human had expected his move. Cole swung his sword at the wolf¡¯s head, and it sent the creature crashing against a tree. As the creature dropped to the ground, he stood on it and stabbed its belly.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    The layer of ice cracked, freezing his skin, but he didn¡¯t give up and pushed the wolf¡¯s thick hide deeper. Because of his persistence, his hit points kept decreasing, but it was the same for him. It became a contest of endurance.


    A layer of ice kept crawling up his body, and it reached his neck. Cole grinned as his life was in a danger. He could choose to be reckless, but he still wanted to live, so he looked up and shouted, ¡°I won¡¯t last long! It is your chance to get your revenge!¡±


    The ¡®revenge¡¯ word worked like magic in their mind as they charged forward at the same time. The wizard and the healer kept firing at the monster from a long distance while Mark and Lisa attacked from a close distance. They had insane looks on their faces. Even though Cole had ¡®the Berserker¡¯ title, they looked more like berserkers than him at the moment.


    Cole laughed. ¡°Yeah, keep doing it, guys. We are lucky to have this puppy pinned down by me. Lisa, try to put more strength in your swing. Mark, you need to swing faster. Oh, yeah. Someone needs to attack its throat so it can¡¯t scream. Yeah, just like that.¡±


    Leading people were surprisingly fun, and they seemed to not mind. His disciples were busy pouring all their hatred into their attacks. When this pool of anger had been squished dry, the wolf laid motionlessly in the pool of blood. Zero percent hit point. Death.


    The wolf¡¯s corpse turned into smoke, and some residues became cards of several colors. These items hovered in front of them, making them emotional. Lisa dropped to his knees and wept; the healer and the wizard hugged each other; Mark bump his fist in the air and shouted, ¡°We did it! We became stronger!¡±


    Cole shook his head in amusement. They could only kill the wolf because of him, but looking at their cheerful faces satisfied him too. Besides, a win was a win, so they deserved praise. ¡°Hey, drop that. We need to pick the loots first.¡±


    They looked at him and approached him. They looked at him with flat expressions, and they crept him. ¡°What?¡± Cole asked.


    They suddenly smiled, threw themselves at him, and hugged him tightly. Lisa pressed her head against his chest; the wizard and the healer glued to each of his arms; Mark jumped to his back and coiled his arms around his neck.


    ¡°Hey, hey, what¡¯s this?¡± Cole asked in confusion. He didn¡¯t sense evil intentions in them, but this was a new thing for him. He didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡°First, can you guys let me go? I need to breathe. Uh, for some reason, I find it hard to breathe.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you are injured. Let me heal you,¡± the healer said. She covered her hands in light and put them on his injured shoulder.


    Thanks to that, the others let him go. Mark walked to the front again and extended his fist forward. ¡°I was wrong about you, Brother Cole. You have helped us to become stronger. I, no, we are really grateful.¡±


    Cole smiled. ¡°Your training hasn¡¯t finished yet. As my promise, I will help you reach level eight.¡±


    ¡°Do you want to hunt alone again after you have helped us?¡± Mark asked, and Cole only looked at him without replying. ¡°But we want you to become a part of our team. Isn¡¯t that right, Lisa?¡± Mark added.


    Lisa nodded enthusiastically. ¡°Always has been. Don¡¯t go anywhere, Brother Cole.¡±


    Cole ignored them and said, ¡°Lisa, please gather the cards. We need to distribute them.¡±


    They suddenly remembered the loots and didn¡¯t pursue to invite him anymore. Cole sighed in relief when he had averted their attention. He liked them, and they had good chemistry. However, he already chose who he wanted to be with, and it was with his gladiator brothers. He owed many lives. In this world, he wanted to ensure their happiness.


    ¡°Your eyes seem to look at somewhere else. I am sure you have people you want to be with,¡± the healer woman whispered in his ear.


    Cole looked at her, who was smiling sweetly at him. The others were busy gathering cards, so he was alone with her. For once, he realized how pretty she was. Her hair was long and black. She wore glasses, and she had a mole under her lip, adding charm to her face. She was standing too close, and he could smell her flowery aroma.


    ¡°I¡ª¡± Cole was enchanted by her beauty, and he stuttered. However, his mind was powerful, so he came back to his sense again. ¡°I want to find my brothers.¡±


    ¡°You have siblings?¡±


    ¡°They are not my biological siblings, but I think of them as a family.¡±


    ¡°I see. What a pity. I really want you to be with us. I am starting to like you.¡±


    Cole felt weird hearing that because this woman was dating the wizard man. Assumptions were humanity¡¯s greatest enemy, he thought. She might not mean any weird thing by that. ¡°Sorry.¡± The word felt like an appropriate response for her first and second statements.


    ¡°It is fine, Cole. Say, after we come home, why don¡¯t we go somewhere else just between us?¡± The woman leaned forward and pressed her huge knockers against his arm. ¡°I really want to make a beautiful memory with you.¡±


    Cole gulped as he realized she had ¡®that¡¯ intention. He pushed her away gently and bowed. ¡°I am sorry. I¡¯d rather not start anything weird between us.¡±


    The woman was stunned, but after a while, she started laughing. ¡°I was joking.¡± She winked and joined the others.


    Cole didn¡¯t mind her anymore and checked his shoulder. The scar was closed, but he still felt a stinging pain. When he checked his system window, he found his [HP] hadn¡¯t reached 100% yet. The woman didn¡¯t finish her job. He sighed and approached them. Maybe he could find a healing card among the loots.


    ¡°What do we get?¡± Cole asked.


    ¡°There are only four loots,¡± Mark replied. ¡°One point card, two experience cards, and one loot card. One experience card is a perfect grade.¡±


    ¡°How do we distribute this?¡± the wizard woman asked.


    Cole sighed. ¡°Only 4 dropped cards with all that effort. You guys can discuss how to distribute them. It is all yours.¡±


    ¡°No, Brother Cole. You take this perfect grade experience card,¡± Mark asked. His statement shocked people and Cole.


    ¡°No, just absorb it yourself. The faster you get stronger, the better.¡±


    ¡°No, I insist.¡± Mark pushed the card in front of Cole. ¡°You are the strongest here. I want you to take this so you can protect us from powerful monsters. Isn¡¯t that a logical choice?¡±


    ¡°I agree,¡± Lisa said. ¡°I am sure everyone agrees with this. Isn¡¯t that right, everyone?¡± She looked at her teammates, and they all nodded in agreement.


    Cole took the golden card and looked at them. ¡°I thank you all.¡± He immediately absorbed it.


    You have absorbed a perfect grade experience card. You have leveled up.


    Name: Cole Zander (Level: 8 [0/1000])


    Currency Point: 200


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 19


    Vitality: 18


    Agility: 17


    Intelligent: 16


    Wisdom: 16


    Free Points: 2


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 3


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1


    ¡­¡­.

 11. Frost Wolf

    Every time he leveled up, Cole felt the change in his body. His joints were lighter, and he could move faster. Even though his muscles didn¡¯t get bigger, he could lift heavier weight. His skin grew sensitive against the natural energy as if it had been wrapping itself around him gently, making him fresh. Those were all possible because of the system. It gave him the power to do many impossible feats for a normal human.


    Cole was happy to level up again, and this time, he leveled up because of them. He felt grateful to them. He wanted to see them getting stronger like himself too.


    ¡°Have you decided who is going to absorb the other experience card?¡± Cole asked when he saw them still discussing in a circle.


    Lisa looked at him and said, ¡°Not yet, but I am thinking of giving it to our wizard. What¡¯s your opinion about this, Brother Cole?¡±


    Cole shrugged. ¡°Well, I am fine with whoever. Just decide it faster. We are still in a dangerous area.¡±


    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you pick someone instead, Cole? We are going in a circle about this. We will respect your opinion,¡± Mark said.


    Cole nodded and pointed at the wizard. ¡°I pick you. I will focus on leveling you up first because I think that¡¯s the more effective way to strengthen your group,¡± he said. This decision wasn¡¯t definitely because he felt guilty about him that his girlfriend had asked to make love with him.


    Mark clapped his hand, drawing everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°Alright. As I said, we will respect your opinion. Let¡¯s give it to Roger.¡±


    The wizard man took the floating experience card and absorbed it, and a golden aura surged from his body for a second, increasing his level to level eight. Feeling stronger, he inspected his body with a wide smile.


    After enjoying the sensation of getting stronger, Roger looked at his friends and spread his hands to the sides. ¡°Hey, man, I am the first one to reach level 8 among us.¡±


    Roger said that with a proud tone. That was his last happy moment in this world. Suddenly, a cold, blue mist ball passed by his left arm and kept advancing toward the people in front of him.


    Cole was the first to respond. He had pushed the ladies, kicked Mark, and jumped to the side, avoiding the ball. The ball hit the tree and exploded, freezing the surrounding in a small radius.


    Roger was confused about what had happened. He looked at his left arm and widened his eyes. His arm froze. He tried to move it, but crack lines appeared all over and shattered his arm to pieces. ¡°No, my hand!¡±


    As Roger cried about his arm, a giant silhouette rushed at him and bit his neck. It was another Frost Wolf Brat, but this one was two times bigger than the previous one. The wolf pulled its head and tore a chunk off Roger¡¯s flesh. Blood spurted out of his nape, and he fell to the ground.


    ¡°No, Roger!¡± the healer woman cried as she saw her boyfriend¡¯s lifeless eyes.


    She effectively drew the wolf¡¯s attention. The giant creature growled at her, ducked in a stance, and pounced on her. It dragged her farther, leaving a blood trail on the ground.


    Cole knew the female healer was beyond saving, so he would do what he could do. He put his sword in the inventory and immediately ran toward Lisa. He closed her mouth before she could scream. After that, he carried her in his arms and ran away. ¡°Come on, Mark. Save your life.¡±


    Mark gritted his teeth, trying to hold himself from shouting in frustration. His veins bulged out of his head, and the color of his face reddened.


    Cole was worried about him, so he lifted Lisa on his shoulder and slapped the man¡¯s back. ¡°Focus.¡±


    ¡°I know, damn it!¡±


    ¡°Cole, you want to run faster. That wolf is chasing us!¡± Lisa suddenly shouted near his ear.


    ¡°I hear you.¡± Cole glanced at Mark once again in worry. From now on, everyone could only depend on themselves. Luckily, he had two free points. He put them all to increase his agility.


    Agility: 17 ¨¤ 19


    Cole¡¯s feet moved faster. He jumped on one foot, evading a giant root; ducked when he was about to crash a low branch; and hopped from a trunk to another trunk, evading the shrub below. He was like an agile beast.


    ¡°Lisa, how is the situation behind us?¡±


    ¡°The wolf is still chasing us.¡±


    ¡°How about Mark? Where is he?¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Someone patted his shoulder from the side, and Cole turned his head. He saw Mark running by his side.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know you can run so fast. That¡¯s a good thing,¡± Cole said. His level was higher than Mark''s, so he was genuinely surprised.


    ¡°No, I bought speed-increasing cards for this situation. I have one more. Use it.¡± Mark threw a yellow card at him.


    Cole caught it, and it turned into a potion. When he saw Mark once again, he realized a yellow aura covered his body. That was probably the effect of the potion, so he opened the lid and drank it.


    His body suddenly emanated the same yellow aura as Mark¡¯s aura. He threw the potion away and ran even faster than before. Luckily, Mark could keep up with his pace.


    Even though they had become faster, they still couldn¡¯t relax yet. In this forest, they weren¡¯t alone. They met several monsters on the way, and those creatures were chasing them too.


    Cole could feel the effect of the potion was almost running out. Luckily, they almost reached the base. ¡°How is the situation behind us?¡± he asked Lisa, who was watching the monsters.


    ¡°The wolf is still chasing us. It is the strongest monster among them. Oh, no. It is shooting the ice ball toward us.¡±


    Cole felt a freezing sensation on his back, and he realized it was too late to evade it. He summoned his sword from his inventory ring and held it over his back. Suddenly, the sword crashed against something cold and pushed him forward.


    Cole rolled on the ground and immediately used the momentum to stand again. He looked around to search for Lisa, and he found her kneeling close to him.


    ¡°Lisa, run!¡±


    Lisa looked at him with one eye closed. Blood was flowing down her head. She staggered when she was trying to stand up. However, Mark immediately came and carried her in his arms.


    ¡°I am sorry, Brother Cole. I will call for reinforcement.¡±


    ¡°No need!¡± Cole exclaimed as Mark was leaving. He was about to run, but monsters suddenly surrounded him. He looked over and saw the giant wolf was about to arrive too.


    Cole glanced to the side, and he spotted his sword on the ground. He immediately rolled over and took his weapon. After that, he ran again.


    When he was running, a level eight Armored Tiger climbed onto his back and bit his nape. They were on the same level, and the damage he took was massive. His [HP] depleted so fast, but thanks to it, his skills became active.


    Cole¡¯s skin turned red, increasing his speed. He outran every monster. Not only that, a red helix hit the tiger on his back many times. Even so, the tiger didn¡¯t stop biting him, so he stopped his movement and stab the monster in the belly.


    Unlike its other body parts, no armor protected its belly. Cole dealt critical damage to it. The tiger screeched and dropped its neck on his shoulder. It died. After that, it turned into several cards. Cole immediately took them and ran.


    Because he had stopped, a monster caught up to him. It was a level seven Metal Bee. The creature shot a stinger from its lwer body part, and he blocked it with his sword. It grew its stinger back and attempted to stab him, but Cole ducked, letting the stinger hit the air over him.


    At the same time, a frost mist ball passed over him, freezing the Metal Bee to death. Cole didn¡¯t have to look back to know that the giant wolf was getting closer. He could hear its loud footsteps. Luckily, he saw a light at the end of the path.


    His heart raced, spreading adrenaline throughout his body. The biting pain in his neck dulled, and he became naturally faster. His eyes¡ªfocused on the light at the end of the path¡ªbecame dilated.


    Cole almost reached the end of the path; he only needed to pass several trees more. However, the temperature on his back dropped even lower, a sign that the wolf was getting even closer. He had a feeling that he couldn¡¯t get out of the forest at this pace, so he did something crazy to save himself.


    Cole lifted his greatsword with its blade pointed downward, and then he grazed his rib. He howled in pain, his skin turned into a murky red color, and he bolted even faster, getting out of the forest. He saw the bridge and the base beyond it.


    Cole thought he was already safe, but he heard a rustling sound behind him and felt a familiar cold sensation on his back. The giant wolf was still chasing him. He had lowered his guard just because he had seen the base, and he had dropped his speed.


    ¡°Ah, this is my end.¡± Cole thought. His HP was only five percent left because of the bleeding in his rib. A mere scratch from that giant wolf would be fatal for him.


    The freezing air felt like piercing his nape as the wolf arrived behind him.


    Thinking he was about to die, infinite memories flowed into his brain. Death. Dead people. Those were the memories of each time he had killed his gladiator brothers.


    Cole had spent his previous life killing to survive, and he had been doing the same thing in this world too. However, no one forced him to kill in this world, and he had been enjoying killing in this life. Suddenly, he suddenly roared in rage as the joyous moments in this life flashed in his mind.


    ¡°I refuse to die!¡± Cole gripped his greatsword with both hands, spun his body, and swung the weapon with all his might. The blade created a whoosh as it collided with the air. He saw the wolf lifting its front foot to attack him, revealing the opening in its belly. Cole changed the sword¡¯s trajectory to the belly. However, someone suddenly kicked him from the side, pushing him away from the wolf¡¯s attack range.


    Cole immediately stood again and checked his HP. 5%. The kick might have been strong, but it wasn¡¯t enough to injure his enhanced physiology, and the person didn¡¯t have the intention to harm him. In fact, the person had saved him.


    In front of him, the giant wolf growled as it looked down at the man who had saved Cole. He had dark skin, and there was an X-shaped scar on his cheek. The man was none other than Jeff Doucette, the leader of the Alliance.


    ¡°Yo, Cole. I heard you are in danger, so I have come to rescue you.¡± Jeff lowered his hips and opened his hand forward in a greeting gesture. ¡°Nice to meet you, monstrous wolf. My name is Jeff Doucette. If you want to kill that man, kill me first. I am as delicious as him.¡±


    Cole thought there was something different in him because he sounded so confident. So, he peeked at his information.


    Name: Jeff Doucette


    Level: 8


    Class: -


    Cole was surprised that he had reached the same level as him, but he knew the wolf was stronger. He had fought its cousin species, so advanced information about it should have been available for him. He looked at the towering creature to see his information.


    Name: Frost Wolf


    Title: Ace


    Level: 15


    The cousin species of the Frost Wolf Brat. Aggressive. It will chase its first targets everywhere until it loses sight or after a certain time has passed.


    ¡­¡­

 12. Lisa and Cole

    Cole¡¯s assumption was right. The gap between their levels was too far. There was no way Jeff could defeat it, so he reminded him out of worry, ¡°What are you doing? Let¡¯s run.¡±


    Jeff looked at him from the side, and he grinned. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. Save yourself first. You are dying.¡±


    Cole had a complicated feeling about this. He had been a powerful individual, and he had never taken any helps from people. He took pride in it. To find himself in this position, half of him felt grateful, while the other half couldn¡¯t accept it.


    He decided there was no way Jeff could defeat the wolf. That was a logical thought in his mind. The gap between Jeff and the wolf was just too far. ¡°You can¡¯t defeat it! If you are so eager to die, I will join you too!¡±


    As Cole took a step forward, Jeff suddenly shouted. ¡°You fool! I can¡¯t defeat it, but I can buy time for you and me to survive this, so you just go! Go!¡±


    As the man said that, the wolf clawed him from above. Jeff had turned into a black mist form, evading the claw. Then, his body reappeared at the side.


    Realizing Jeff had skills to save himself, Colee gulped his saliva along with his pride and nodded. ¡°Be careful.¡± After saying that, he ran away with all his might.


    Jeff grinned. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I love myself more than anything in this world. There is no way I would die here.¡± With that, he jumped at the wolf¡¯s head.


    Cole didn¡¯t hear what Jeff had said as he already went too far. He arrived at the bridge. However, he couldn¡¯t relax yet. There was another hindrance ahead, the crowd of the level fifteen Frenzy Rabbits.


    These creatures smelled the blood stench from his scars, and their eyes glowed in red. They spotted Cole passing through the bridge and approached him.


    Luckily, they were slow compared to level one Frenzy Rabbits. Furthermore, Cole¡¯s [Injury Transmutation] was still active, making him faster than them.


    Cole could evade them one by one easily. However, he still proceeded carefully. Each of them was level fifteen. One simple attack from them could send him to his death. His eyes darted left and right to see a gap where he could move to.


    Cole was close to the entrance of the base, but several fat rabbits stood in his way, and they didn¡¯t leave a gap for him to pass through. His choice was to run back. He kept searching for a path, but these creatures had already surrounded him from all sides.


    Cole stopped in the middle. There was no path anymore, but he knew how to make his own way. He drew a deep breath and did a gamble.


    Cole stepped on a rabbit¡¯s head and jumped out of the crowd. He turned back to see them approaching him again. ¡°Here we go again from the start.¡±


    Cole sighed. He felt lazy to go through them all again. He just ran back toward the bridge.


    ¡°Ah, yeah. There is a Frost Wolf over there.¡± Remembering a greater danger over the bridge, Cole ran to the side, and those rabbits followed him like ducklings following their mother.


    ¡°Huh, that¡¯s right. They are slow. I can just lure them to one point and evade them. Yeah, let¡¯s do that.¡±


    Cole ran to the side where the riverbank was located. As expected, those fat creatures were following him. The straight path to the base was empty, and he suddenly saw Jeff passing by.


    Cole smiled in relief. It seemed the man had escaped from the Frost Wolf somehow, and there was no visible injury to Jeff¡¯s body. The black-skinned man looked fresh.


    Cole was still surprised that he had escaped from the wolf unscathed. The old man might have used healing cards on the way here. His eyes suddenly widened in realization after thinking that. ¡°Oh, man. I should have bought a healing card, so I won¡¯t appear injured in front of these creatures. That¡¯s educational, Jeff.¡±


    Cole ran sideways like a crab, and the line of rabbits arced. He proceeded carefully and made sure the rabbits on the rear didn¡¯t leave the line, and he succeeded. He arrived at the center again and immediately ran straight to the entrance of the base with no hindrance.


    When he entered the base, the invisible barrier caressed his skin. It felt like being touched like a bubble. Cole looked back and saw a rabbit turning into dust when it tried to enter the barrier. The other rabbits stopped. One of them sniffed the barrier, looked at Cole inside the base, and turned its back. After that, the rest of the creatures turned their back too as if they understood how dangerous the barrier was.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    Cole sighed in relief. It had been an exciting day. His heart had been thumping so fast in the face of death. He had gone through much life and death situations, but this time was different. He wanted to live in this world and refused to die before he could see the whole of this brand new world.


    Realizing the voice of his wish, Cole suddenly laughed. He wiped the tears from his eyes and said, ¡°I have changed. I am grateful.¡±


    ¡°Brother Cole!¡± a feminine voice called from behind, and Cole turned back. He saw Lisa running toward him. She threw herself at him, making him fall on his back.


    ¡°I am so glad you have survived.¡± She hugged him and pressed her head against his chest.


    Her action took him aback. Cole leaned upward and pushed her face away from him. ¡°I am surprised too.¡±


    Lisa parried his hand to the side, and she buried her head on his chest again. Cole didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry, but in the end, he smiled. No one had cared for him to this extent. It was a novel experience for him. It wasn¡¯t a bad feeling, but his body was still feeling bad from the bleeding. ¡°Apologize, but can you move? I am dying here.¡±


    Realizing the man suffered injuries, Lisa pulled her body from him. She laughed awkwardly, and her face reddened. ¡°I am sorry. Let me treat you.¡±


    Lisa stood up and gestured for him to follow her. ¡°Mark and Jeff are waiting.¡±


    Cole stood up and followed her to the canteen. After they arrived, they immediately noticed Jeff and Mark, and they immediately joined them.


    Mark only nodded at him. After that, he looked down and pondered something. Tears were flowing from his eyes. He was a close friend of Roger, the wizard man, so he felt devastated by his death.


    Cole leaned forward and patted his shoulder. ¡°Hey, Mark. I am sorry. It was my fault. I couldn¡¯t protect them.¡±


    Mark shook his head. ¡°You have done nothing wrong. I am just weak. Abraham, Roger, and Miki died because of my weakness. I am sorry. I need time to be alone. Whatever plan you have decided for the team, I will follow.¡± He stood up and walked to the back of the base where the green field facing the river was located. No monsters existed there, a perfect place to get peace of mind.


    ¡°Cole, use these cards to heal yourself.¡± Jeff put several healing cards on the table.


    Cole used them one by one. Light covered his body and closed his scars. His health was full again, and he felt fresh. After that, he pushed the remaining cards to Jeff again. ¡°Thanks, I will pay for the cost later.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it. It is my job to ensure your group stays in a good shape. I want a report from today¡¯s expedition. Who wants to report it? Lisa?¡±


    Lisa nodded and told Jeff where they had explored today, and Jeff drew a route map on a large paper after listening to Lisa¡¯s explanation. After that, she explained how the healer woman and the wizard man had died. Her voice tone trembled when she did that. As for Jeff, the man noted everything with an indifferent expression.


    ¡°That¡¯s all the reports, Mr. Doucette,¡± Lisa said. Her face paled. She stood up and walked away.


    Cole noticed the woman had been holding her emotion because she had to report to Jeff. He was worried about her, but the best thing to console her was to let her alone.


    ¡°She has a powerful personality. She will be a great asset in the future for the team,¡± Jeff said after seeing Cole, who couldn¡¯t take his eyes from Lisa. ¡°She will make a great wife too.¡±


    Cole frowned. Normally, he would get along with the joke, but it was inappropriate to make that kind of joke knowing her friends had died. Jeff¡¯s joke left a sour taste in him, but he still nodded to make things easier. ¡°That¡¯s right. Now, if there is no important matter, I will excuse¡ª¡±


    ¡°Wait, Cole. We still have to discuss your team¡¯s future plan,¡± Jeff said calmly.


    Cole had stood up, but he sat again. ¡°I can understand their feeling of losing people dear to them. I need them to overcome their grief first.¡±


    Jeff folded his arms and stared at him with his hawk-like eyes. ¡°After that?¡±


    ¡°We will hunt like usual. Their comrades¡¯ death is ironically a lesson for them to be more careful.¡±


    Jeff nodded. ¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s the only way, but you lack man powers.¡±


    ¡°I prefer it that way. I can oversee them easier.¡±


    ¡°That can¡¯t do. As the leader of this group, I can¡¯t risk losing more original members of the main party. They are all the best fighters in this group.¡±


    ¡°Then, do you plan to add more members to this party?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°How many?¡±


    Jeff shrugged. ¡°Just one, and that person is none other than myself. I will join your party.¡±


    ¡­¡­


    After Cole had a discussion with Jeff, he immediately looked for his disciples. They said they went to the backyard of the base, so he went there. As he exited the door to the backyard, he spotted Mark sitting at the riverbank. He was about to approach him, but Lisa¡ªwho was sitting on the bench near the door¡ªcalled him.


    ¡°Brother Cole.¡±


    Cole looked to his right side and saw her smiling at him. She was pretty, so he couldn¡¯t help to observe her facial feature. He noticed her eyes were red. It seemed she had cried.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Cole asked as he sat by her side.


    ¡°I am fine,¡± she replied in a hoarse voice.


    Cole knew she was lying, so he had to use a subtle way to make her confess. ¡°You see. On the battlefield, there is no room for emotion. Everything can turn grave if you don¡¯t focus. A night before the deathmatch, my gladiator friends like to get drunk, so they can relieve their selves from their aversions before they fight.¡±


    Lisa giggled. ¡°Are you trying to get me drunk?¡±


    Cole smiled. ¡°That would be a good idea.¡±


    ¡°I have stored ales in my card inventory ring. Wait.¡± Lisa took out two consumable cards and turned them into two big mugs of ale. She gave one to Cole.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± Cole said as he received the mug. He bumped it against her mug before he chugged the drink at once. After that, he wiped his mouth. ¡°That was good. I rarely drink like this.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Lisa asked after sipping from her mug.


    ¡°Well, getting drunk is only one way to relieve our stress. I have my own way of doing that.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it.¡±


    Cole leaned his back and looked at the sun with a smile. ¡°I love tranquility and peace. When I have stress, I just need to find a place to be alone and meditate. I will sort out everything into what I can¡¯t control, and what I can control. I will accept everything beyond my control and forget it.¡±


    ¡°That sounds like something that you can only do.¡±


    Cole looked at Lisa in her eyes. ¡°I believe everyone can do it, but I am not a forceful type myself. That¡¯s why¡­.¡± He raised his mug even though it was empty. ¡°Cheers?¡±

 13. COles Idea to Level UP Faster

    Cole was glad that Lisa had a strong heart. He didn¡¯t need to worry about her that much. However, Mark had a different character than her. He thought the man needed extra steps to be comforted.


    With that in mind, Cole approached Mark, who was throwing pebbles at the riverbank. He grabbed a handful of pebbles and walked to his side. He threw them one by one to the river too, and he found out doing this activity was fun.


    Cole kept throwing the pebble alongside his awkwardness. He wanted to try comforting Mark, but he was a timid person deep inside. It wasn¡¯t the first time he needed to comfort other people¡¯s feelings, but he never got used to it. The reason he could have done it with Lisa was that she was a cheerful person.


    Cole tried to find a good time to start a conversation, and he found it when Mark had thrown his pebble farther than him. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s cool, Mark. You beat me.¡±


    Mark smiled. ¡°I was just lucky. One more time?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡± Cole took a stance and threw a pebble at the same time as Mark. His pebble was bouncing on the surface of water several times before it sank, but Mark¡¯s pebble kept bouncing farther. ¡°You won again.¡±


    ¡°So, why are you here?¡± Mark suddenly asked.


    Cole thought there was no use in hiding his intention, so he just expressed his intention. ¡°I am here to check your condition.¡±


    Mark threw away all pebbles in his hand and dropped his butt to the ground. ¡°I am tired. Let¡¯s sit down.¡±


    Hearing his complain, Cole frowned. How could a superhuman be tired of this activity? He thought. He still wanted to throw pebbles. ¡°I can do this all day. Let¡¯s do it more.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to check my condition? Let¡¯s talk,¡± Mark said with a sigh.


    Seeing his tired expression, Cole realized it was Mark¡¯s mental that was tired. He nodded in agreement. Talking could improve someone¡¯s mental condition, so he sat on his side. Mark seemed to have something on his mind, so Cole waited for him to speak.


    ¡°Do you know why death is worse in this world?¡± Mark asked.


    Cole pondered about Mark¡¯s question further and realized something. ¡°When people die, Immortals will turn them into soldiers that will fight for them against void creatures.¡±


    ¡°Exactly. They will force all dead people to fight again against void creatures. That¡¯s worse. The messengers implied that chaos creatures are big threats. If those deceased people can¡¯t handle normal monsters, how will they fight against void creatures? Furthermore, when you die in their hands, you will become nothingness. I¡ªI am worried for them, Cole.¡±


    Cole was enlightened by his speech. He didn¡¯t want to fight under someone too, and he understood why turning into nothingness was scary for many people, even though he was fine with the idea.


    Cole empathized with Mark, but there was nothing they could do to save the dead. So, he needed to assure Mark that it was a waste of time to think about them. ¡°I don¡¯t think Immortals are that fool to depend on weak people to stop void creatures. If they gave us a chance to become stronger, I¡¯d like to think they will give them a chance to become stronger in order to fight void creatures.¡±


    ¡°How do you even confirm this?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I just believe it, so it eases my mind. If we move on with this mindset, we can hope to meet them again if we get stronger. Yes, maybe you will see them again if you become stronger. Don¡¯t you agree, Mark?¡±


    ¡°Cole¡­.¡± Mark stared at him and only found honesty in his answer. ¡°You are such innocent, and you are terrible at comforting people.¡±


    Cole dropped a sweat from his head. ¡°Is that an insult?¡±


    ¡°Just stating facts. But, thanks. I feel slightly better. Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t be a hindrance in tomorrow¡¯s hunt.¡±


    ¡°I am glad to hear that.¡± Cole stood up and started throwing pebbles again. Even he could feel stressed too, and this activity helped to clear his mind.


    ¡°Hey, Cole. How old are you, if I may ask?¡±


    ¡°Twenty-two. Why?¡±


    ¡°Eh, impossible. You literally look like an old man. Ah, this is not an insult. Even if you look like an old man, you are still good looking, and that¡¯s cool. You have a cool demeanor too.¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    ¡°Heh.¡± Cole snorted. ¡°How old are you?¡±


    ¡°Thirty-six.¡±


    Cole was about to throw another pebble, but he stopped when he heard that. He looked at Mark in shock. The man looked younger than his look. ¡°Impossible.¡±


    ¡°Lisa is thirty by the way.¡±


    Cole imagined Lisa¡¯s young-looking face, and he felt complicated.


    His confused expression made Mark laugh. ¡°It is the first time I see you drop your cool demeanor. Do you like Lisa? Don¡¯t worry. I think you both look great together.¡±


    Cole shook his head and continued throwing pebbles. He didn¡¯t see her in that way, but he didn¡¯t deny anything. After all, the future was uncertain.


    ¡­¡­


    Tomorrow dawn, Cole, Lisa, and their new member¡ªJeff¡ªwere waiting for Mark. They had been waiting for almost half hour, but the man hadn¡¯t shown up yet. Jeff was a man of discipline. The dark-skinned old man almost lost himself and was about to bring Mark with his own hands.


    Cole was aware of Jeff¡¯s hard-rock personality, and he was afraid the man would do something to Mark, so he stopped him and told him to wait for more. Luckily, Mark finally showed himself.


    Mark noticed something was wrong, so he smiled and asked, ¡°How is your morning, everyone?¡±


    Lisa approached Mark and pinched his shoulder. ¡°Where have you been? Team leader almost lost his patience!¡±


    ¡°Ouch, I am sorry. I was taking a big load. I ate too much last night to make myself better.¡±


    ¡°You seem fine, Mark,¡± Cole said. ¡°I almost thought you would never show up.¡±


    Mark put on an awkward smile. ¡°I already promised, didn¡¯t I? Besides, I don¡¯t have any other choices. A certain old man wouldn¡¯t let me slack off.¡±


    Jeff grinned. ¡°Good grief. If you have nothing else to do, let¡¯s go to the forest. I have planned our activities with Cole yesterday. You can hear it from him.¡±


    ¡°Actually, Doucette. I just thought of a quick way to level up. I want to try it on today¡¯s hunt, but I need your help,¡± Cole said.


    Jeff looked at Cole in the eyes and sighed. ¡°If you have an idea, you should have told me when we had planned things yesterday.¡±


    Cole nodded in agreement. ¡°I am sorry, but this idea keeps lingering in my mind the more I look at them.¡± He pointed at Ace Frenzy Rabbits who were gathering at the grass field at the sides of the road. They liked to gather there from midnight to dawn.


    The sun slowly rose to the sky, and those rabbits could move to the road anytime. It was the right time to test his idea.


    ¡°Alright, you can tell us about your idea. Make it quick,¡± Jeff said.


    ¡°Thank you, Mr. Doucette. This idea came to my mind when I found out those giant rabbits were slow. I could lure all rabbits here, and none of them could attack me. That¡¯s when I thought, ¡®oh, someone who is fast enough can be a bait to lure them, and another person can steal a rabbit¡¯s attention and kill it¡¯.


    ¡°Those rabbits are level 15. From my experience, the higher the gap of monsters that we have killed, the bigger resources they will drop upon death. That¡¯s my idea.¡±


    Mark and Lisa nodded in approval, but Jeff was still pondering about his idea. Cole persuaded him further by saying the pros of trying his idea. ¡°I know the risk, but you are fast, Doucette. Those rabbits can¡¯t touch you. Think about the rewards. The quicker our main team levels up, the quicker we can move from this tutorial area. Those monsters in the forest are too strong.¡±


    ¡°So, based on your idea, you will use me as bait to lure those rabbits. Why not? Let¡¯s do this.¡±


    Cole bowed. ¡°I am glad you agreed.¡±


    ¡°It is all for the sake of greater good,¡± Jeff said. Then, he looked at Mark. ¡°You have to inform others I forbid them to take a step out of the base today.¡±


    ¡°Roger, boss.¡± Mark turned his back and ran to the base.


    Without giving Mark a single glance, Jeff immediately walked toward the field. He was ready to become bait.


    ¡°What should I do, Brother Cole?¡± Lisa asked.


    Cole patted her head. ¡°You observe.¡± After that, he took several steps forward and focused his eyes on Jeff¡¯s movement.


    Jeff lifted his arm and counted from three with his fingers. When the countdown reached zero, he summoned his katana blade and bled his palm. After that, he gripped his blade with both hands. His blood dripped to the ground as he got close to those giant rabbits.


    At the same time, those monsters sniffed the blood. Their eyes shone in red as they glared at Jeff. After that, they chased the man.


    Jeff kept his calm. He didn¡¯t immediately run. First, he drew a deep breath and then uttered his battle cry. At the same time, a black mist surged from his body. He leaped to the side, leaving an afterimage in the place where he had used to stand.


    A rabbit pounced on the afterimage, but the creature only passed through it. The rabbit held his feet to the ground, forcing his body to stop in confusion. It wondered where the man had gone, but it couldn¡¯t think about the answer because other rabbits bumped against it.


    Jeff¡¯s distraction could only work for seconds. They immediately found him by sniffing at his blood. They rushed to him again, but when they were about to hit him, the man jumped back and left another afterimage. Jeff kept doing that until they chased him in one line.


    Cole¡ªwho was watching¡ªwas amazed. He guessed the old man was using his second technique that increased his speed, and it worked well. However, he couldn¡¯t let Jeff do that forever. The rest of the plan depended on him.


    Cole immediately ran to the rear of the line. He took out a pebble from his pocket and threw it at a rabbit. The attack hit a rabbit¡¯s eye, and it cried in pain and anger. The creature stepped out of the line and glared at Cole. After that, it chased him.


    ¡°It went according to the plan, Doucette!¡± Cole shouted as he lured the rabbit away from the march.


    ¡°What¡¯s next?¡± Jeff asked.


    ¡°When I lure this stupid rabbit far enough from them, you can come back to the base. I will kill this monster alone.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? That monster is level 15.¡±


    Cole suddenly remembered that he couldn¡¯t defeat this rabbit without getting himself injured. That meant he couldn¡¯t use [Injury Transmutation] to increase his damage. ¡°On a second thought, Lisa will come with me!¡±


    ¡°Roger, Cole!¡± Lisa replied.


    Cole lured the rabbit toward the right side of the base, and Lisa followed him from behind. When they arrived, he signaled Jeff to enter the base.


    Cole kept running in a circle with the rabbit that was chasing him and waited for Jeff to enter the base. Those rabbits were still in berserk mode after they lost their target. They could target everything they saw, but he was convinced they wouldn¡¯t come to his place. He had lured this rabbit far enough from them.


    ¡°Lisa, attack now!¡±

 14. Surprise Drop

    Lisa attacked the monster from behind, turning the rabbit¡¯s attention to her. Thanks to her action, the rabbit exposed its back to Cole, and he immediately attacked it. They kept doing this hit-and-run strategy because they couldn¡¯t afford to get themselves hit by a level fifteen monster.


    Each of their attacks slowly chipped the rabbit¡¯s HP. Even though the creature had a tough body, their attacks worked against it.


    Supported with their superior speed, they killed the rabbit without taking any damage. They only had spent longer time to defeat it, which was a comparable price with the resources left from its corpse.


    There were two experience cards, three loot cards, and three point cards floating in front of them. The numbers were only slightly better than the drop from a monster of the same level, making them think it would be better to just hunt monsters of the same level. However, Cole changed his mind after he read both of the experience cards.


    Name: Experience Card


    Grade: Perfect


    Gives 500 Experience


    Both cards were perfect grades, and Cole would instantly level up if he used both of them. Thinking of it, he put on a content smile.


    ¡°Were the drops good?¡± Lisa asked.


    ¡°Yes, it proved that killing higher-level monsters will drop higher quality resources.¡±


    Lisa took the experience cards from Cole¡¯s hand and read their information. After that, she said, ¡°Why don¡¯t you use these cards?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not for me to decide. We will discuss it with others.¡±


    Lisa shrugged. ¡°I am sure they are fine if you level up first. You are the strongest here.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s ask them first.¡±


    Cole wanted to level up fast too, but he was in a team. He couldn¡¯t decide everything by himself. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t refuse to use these cards if they permitted him. So, Lisa and Cole immediately went to the base to find out their answers.


    At the base, they approached Mark and Jeff to discuss the distribution of the resources, and they agreed to let Cole reach level twelve first. Experience cards were for him alone. As for other cards, they would distribute them evenly.


    After receiving the experience cards, Cole immediately consumed them, and he reached level nine in one go. After that, he put a free point into strength because he needed more power to kill the rabbit quicker.


    Strength: 21 -> 22


    ¡­¡­.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 9 [0/1125])


    Currency Point: 200


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: -


    Strength: 23


    Vitality: 20


    Agility: 21


    Intelligent: 18


    Wisdom: 18


    Free Points: 0


    ¡­¡­


    After leveling up, his craving for blood increased, so Cole urged them to hunt the rabbit again. The others agreed, and they went to the field again.


    They were afraid those rabbits were going berserk again once they smelled blood on Jeff. However, they ignored the old man because he had tended to his wound.


    Jeff walked through them calmly, and he casually sliced his palm in the middle of them, turning them into the berserk mode in an instant.


    The others waited for the rabbits to form a long line. After that, Cole ran to the rear and pulled one rabbit out of line, throwing a pebble into its eye.


    Cole lured the monster to the usual spot and then signaled Jeff to enter the base. After that, Lisa backstabed the rabbit. When the creature turned its attention to her, Mark slashed it from the side.


    The rabbit cried and turned its head toward Mark, stunning him on his feet out of fear. Cole didn¡¯t know why Mark lose his focus, but he wouldn¡¯t stay and let the creature attack him. He thrust his sword to the rabbit¡¯s bottom, making it jump forward in pain.


    ¡°Mark, what are you doing? Focus!¡± Cole exclaimed.


    ¡°Forgive me. Let¡¯s do it once again.¡±


    ¡°Cole, help! The rabbit is chasing me!¡± Lisa suddenly called. After Cole¡¯s attack, the rabbit vented up against the nearest target, and it chased Lisa.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°Sorry. Coming.¡±


    Cole was about to go, but Mark suddenly prevented him, extending his arm over Cole¡¯s chest. ¡°Let me do it instead,¡± Mark said, and then he ran to the rabbit¡¯s rear and stab it.


    The rabbit roared and turned back to chase Mark. Mark was running toward him. As they were getting closer, Cole slid under the creature¡¯s feet and slashed its belly, dealing critical damage.


    ¡°Nice save. That¡¯s a sick move by the way,¡± Mark said.


    Cole didn¡¯t mind Mark¡¯s compliment because he sensed danger. He immediately stood up and put on his stance. His instinct was right. The rabbit immediately leaped at him. Lisa and Mark were too far to save him, so he could only depend on himself against the giant rabbit.


    Cole shifted his foot to the side, evading the rabbit. After that, he slashed it from the side, leaving a thin wound on its tough skin. Even after increasing his strength, his attack only dealt more minor damage. The wound shouldn¡¯t have affected the rabbit too much, but the creature was so angry because it couldn¡¯t hit them.


    The rabbit immediately turned back and rushed at him again. However, Cole had predicted its next movement. He ran toward the creature¡¯s side while spreading his sword horizontally like a wing. He passed through the monster and left a long wound.


    The rabbit turned its head to the right, and Cole had predicted its habit again. He charged to its left side while slashing its tough skin again.


    Cole¡¯s combo connected until its HP almost decreased to zero. After that, he stopped dodging and stood steady, waiting for the rabbit to charge at him. As he thought, the rabbit was a simple creature, and it bolted straight toward him.


    Cole evaded to the side and delivered the last hit by slashing its belly, making the rabbit frustrated. The rabbit let out a frustrated screech and turned into smoke, leaving several floating cards.


    Cole sighed in relief when the fight was over. His adrenaline had been flowing inside him, and his heart still thumped as if it was about to explode. He looked at his teammates and flinched his eyes. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you help me?¡± he asked while panting.


    ¡°Ah, forgive me. Your movement was just beautiful. It enthralled me,¡± Mark said.


    ¡°It was the same for me,¡± Lisa said.


    ¡°I am flattered, but you have to focus. People¡¯s lives are at stake in the battle.¡±


    ¡°I am sorry,¡± both of them said at the same time.


    Cole nodded. ¡°As long as you understand. I want you two to defeat a rabbit. I will work alone. I want to train myself by being alone.¡±


    Lisa and Mark looked at each other when he said that. They were probably wondering if Cole was mad; he didn¡¯t. He saw a chance to do something alone, and he took it. Besides, he had judged that both of them could handle an Ace Frenzy Rabbit without his help.


    His judgment was proven true in the next hunt. Cole was fighting a rabbit alone while observing them. They were doing fine when facing a rabbit. However, they were slower than him. They depended on evading too much, while Cole dared to put his body at risk.


    With that, Cole could kill his opponent first. After that, he helped them. He could have let them handle it, but this wasn¡¯t training. They were in a rush to level up so they could defeat Frost Wolves.


    Even as those two grew tired, they started to hunt more rabbits. Seeing their spirit, Cole was happy. He personally could still go on, but he wanted them to take a rest for a while. With his suggestion, they went to the base and eat in the canteen.


    After eating moderately, they began the next hunt. This time, Lisa was the one luring all rabbits. She started off clumsily, but in the end, she did the job well.


    Cole was dealing with a rabbit alone. He was confident to do it quicker than them, but to his surprise, Jeff and Mark killed their opponent first. After that, Jeff helped him to kill his opponent.


    ¡°You know. You don¡¯t need to do that. I can handle it alone,¡± Cole said as Jeff delivered the last hit, piercing the rabbit¡¯s skull from above.


    Jeff pulled his sword and swung it, disposing the blood from his weapon. ¡°Time efficiency,¡± he said calmly.


    ¡°Fair enough.¡± Cole shrugged. As long as they reached their today¡¯s goal, he didn¡¯t mind that.


    Cole took the experience cards from the corpse and absorbed them. He gained experience again, and he kept getting more throughout the day. By the evening, they stopped their hunt, and he had reached level eleven. He estimated he would reach level twelve tomorrow.


    ¡­¡­


    As expected, Cole reached level twelve by tomorrow afternoon. The day was still long, and he planned to hunt more rabbits to help others level up.


    As Jeff lured all rabbits, he pulled two rabbits out of the line. After reaching level twelve, his attacks still dealt minor to decent damage to the giant bunny. However, they were too slow, and facing only one rabbit was unchallenging for him. He felt he could deal with two at the same time, so he put it to practice.


    Attacking a rabbit while dodging another one increased the stake for him. Cole smiled in excitement. The rule was still the same. He couldn¡¯t let the rabbit injure him, or else his wound would attract its friends.


    It took him a long time to kill a rabbit because he had to evade its attacks every time. He glanced at the dropped cards and found nothing interesting. After that, he faced the other rabbit. He was slashing, stabbing, and dodging while his mind was thinking how nice if the monster would drop a passive skill. There was one open slot available after he had reached level twelve.


    Cole was underestimating his opponent; as the rabbit¡¯s [HP] had reached 3%, it leaped and bit his arm. He immediately shook it off, but his hand bled as the result.


    As his blood dropped to the ground, Cole heard marching steps. Even without turning his head, he knew he attracted many rabbits. He roared and stabbed his opponent in the head, making the creature fall on its back. He jumped onto its belly and stabbed it once again.


    You have triggered the effect of [Dedication of Passivity].


    The rabbit lost all of its [HP], and it turned into smoke, leaving cards. Cole widened his eyes when he saw a floating black card among the resources. It was a passive skill card. He immediately took them all and fled.


    ¡°Cole, what happened? My opponent is chasing you,¡± Lisa said.


    ¡°Mark, Lisa, I want you to come back to the base first. I made a mistake. I will be fine,¡± Cole replied while running away from the rabbits that were chasing him.


    Cole lured all rabbits back to the middle of the road. As he did that, he eyed Lisa, Mark, and Jeff. After they entered the base, he changed his direction toward there. He rushed into the base with all his might and arrived safely.


    Inside the base, Cole controlled his breath. He wasn¡¯t feeling tired at all. His heart had been racing after getting a new passive skill. He couldn¡¯t wait to see it.


    Jeff suddenly approached him and said, ¡°Cole, it was rare for you to make a mistake. What happened?¡±


    ¡°All was my fault. I was too excited after getting a new skill card.¡±


    ¡°Oh, interesting. Is it an active skill?¡±


    ¡°Passive skill,¡± Cole said, hiding his excitement. As he expected, Jeff put on a disappointed face after hearing it. With their current condition, they needed active skills the most. However, Cole could only take passive skills, so the black card in his hand was worth a diamond to him.


    ¡°Well, why don¡¯t you show us?¡± Jeff asked.


    Cole nodded, and he showed the black card to Jeff and others. The card¡¯s title had white font, and below it was an illustration of the ability.


    The illustration showed a streak of red lightning. There was a description of the ability below it, but Cole looked at the title again and read it out loud. ¡°The name of this card is¡­.¡±

 15. Berserkers Nature

    ¡°[Ruin Flash],¡± Cole said. This skill had the same first name as his [Ruin Gust]. He wondered if both skills were related to each other.


    Cole shrugged and put the thought aside. He would find out eventually. For now, he read the description of the skill.


    Skill: [Ruin Flash]


    Effect: When the user synchs their attack with their soul, there¡¯s a slight chance to imbue ruin lightning within their attack, dealing three times of normal damage.


    Cole¡¯s eyes widened. Three times of normal damage was a lot. He really fancy this skill because he lacked offensive skills. Furthermore, he could control this skill if he concentrated enough, unlike [Ruin Gust] that could only be triggered if he was under attack.


    Cole looked at everyone and waited for their approval. They all smiled and nodded at him. His face beamed, and he absorbed the passive skill card in honor.


    The card disappeared, and his body shone. At the same time, an indifferent voice spoke in his mind.


    You have put [Ruin Gust] into your third passive skill slot.


    Cole looked at his body and noticed no change, but he instantly knew he could use [Ruin Gust]. His soul engraved the feeling of knowing the usage of the skill.


    ¡°How are you feeling, Cole?¡± Lisa asked curiously.


    ¡°I feel¡­ normal. Well, it was a passive skill card, and the effect isn¡¯t visible.¡±


    ¡°How disappointing,¡± Mark blurted.


    Jeff lost interest in Cole¡¯s skill anymore and walked to the entrance again, confirming the outside was safe. The rabbits once again spread throughout the field without giving the sign of berserk. Looking at them, he knew this was the chance to hunt again. ¡°Everyone, let¡¯s hunt again. We can¡¯t waste time anymore.¡±


    Mark shrugged. ¡°Old man really doesn¡¯t know how to rest. Let¡¯s go all.¡±


    They all followed Jeff to the field. The others immediately went to the usual corner as the old man was luring all rabbits again. They were waiting until those mammals formed one long line.


    After a while, Cole was the first to approach the line. As usual, he attracted two rabbits. Ideally, he should have lured one so he could concentrate on triggering his new skill, but he didn¡¯t want to have it easy. If he could do something with maximum effort, he would do it.


    Cole was already familiar with the rabbits¡¯ attack patterns. Even if the creature came from behind, he could sense the change in the air and evade the attack. After attacking, the rabbits usually had to stop their movements, and that was when he took the chance to hit it.


    Each time Cole attacked the rabbit, he tried to figure out how to synch his attack with his soul, but he couldn¡¯t feel it even after hitting his opponent several times.


    Cole didn¡¯t give up. He kept thinking how to synch his attack. He even stopped attacking and pondered about the answer while dodging their attacks. In the end, a thought flashed through his mind. To synch his attack with the soul, he needed to pour his strongest emotion in his attack.


    Cole shook his head after his attack hit it. He felt no synch with his soul. To reach the state, he had to match his attack with powerful emotion.


    Cole didn¡¯t need a long time to figure out what his strongest emotion was. In his heart, there was a sleeping emotion, and it would only awake when he was fighting. This desire was none other than his wrath. It had been inside him for a long time.


    Even at the moment, it was chirping like a nestling, desiring food into its hungry stomach. Cole knew about its food. Blood. It wanted to feast on blood. To synch his attack with his soul, he needed to comply with its desire, so he laughed maniacally and shouted, ¡°As you desire!¡±


    Cole roared as he swung his sword. Suddenly, a miracle happened. Everything became slower in his eyes. He could see the rabbit slowly falling onto him. Even the gust of the wind caressed his skin slowly. The same phenomena affected him as well, slowing his movement, making him wonder what happened.


    However, Cole didn¡¯t have time to think about it because another miracle suddenly occurred at the same time. His greatsword suddenly emitted sparks of red lightning, and he suddenly became aware it was the effect of [Ruin Flash].


    This skill had the hidden effect to make everything slow in his eyes. Cole named this hidden effect the slowed perception.


    As everything became slower in his eyes, Cole used this chance to direct his greatsword toward the rabbit¡¯s neck.


    When his perception turned normal again, his greatsword had severed the rabbit¡¯s neck, and his slash left a trail of red lightning.


    This skill¡¯s might surprised him. Not only he could deal three times of normal damage, but he could use the slowed perception to target the enemy¡¯s vital area, dealing another critical damage.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    ¡°That was great,¡± Cole said with a wide grin. He suddenly jumped to the side when the second rabbit was leaping at him. After that, he rushed to the rabbit.


    Cole slashed the rabbit¡¯s ribcage with a normal attack. As he had expected, he couldn¡¯t trigger the skill anytime he wanted it. The last time he did it was due to luck. If he wanted to master [Ruin Flash], he needed to burn his powerful emotion, and let his opponent feel the heat.


    Cole laughed like a madman and dealt consecutive attacks. He focused on attacking the monster and almost neglected his defense. A claw almost hit him, but he evaded it a strand of hair away.


    Cole needed to burn his emotion while keeping his defense too. It was difficult, but there was nothing impossible. Even if he failed ten thousand times, he would eventually master it if he didn¡¯t give up.


    Many times he had evaded close attacks, and many times he had failed to trigger [Ruin Flash]. However, his focus didn¡¯t wane even a bit. His berserker nature kept burning.


    After many trials and errors, Cole finally got a feeling he could make it in the next attack. He jumped, spun his body in the air several times, and slashed the rabbit¡¯s skull. His sword was emitting red lightning sparks and leaving a trail as his blade was swinging.


    [Ruin Flash]!


    The rabbit turned into smoke, and some residues turned into cards. After killing the rabbit, Cole took the dropped cards and looked at Mark and Lisa, who were giving him applause.


    ¡°Your skill looks cool, Cole,¡± Mark complimented.


    ¡°Thanks. I feel like celebrating it tonight, but for now, we have to help you guys reach level 12. Let¡¯s go.¡± After saying that, Cole immediately ran toward the rabbit line.


    ¡­¡­


    At the end of the day, Cole had helped Mark to reach level 12. Lisa and Jeff had reached level 10. They initially wanted to celebrate Cole and Mark¡ªwho had reached level 12, but Jeff ordered them to not do it.


    They complied and refrained from celebrating things, so they had the grit and the spirit to push themselves harder than today in tomorrow¡¯s hunt. Tomorrow, they hunted rabbits like madmen, and by the end of the day, all the main team members reached level 12.


    They celebrated this joyous occasion, treating everyone to a free meal in the canteen. They were free to drink a glass of beer too, but they had to pay if they wanted more.


    Cole never got used to this atmosphere, but he tried to blend in. He was eating and drinking moderately, while many people were partying and having fun. Even the stoic Jeff drank many glasses of beer.


    Cole wiped his mouth after finishing his meal. He felt like it was the right time to calm himself by sleeping. He was about to stand and find a corner to sleep in, but Lisa suddenly sat on the opposite chair.


    ¡°Brother Cole,¡± Lisa said with a beaming face. She handed a glass of beer to him.


    Cole didn¡¯t want to drink again, so he pushed the glass to her again, making her disappointed. He smiled and said, ¡°I am full.¡±


    Lisa laughed loudly, just like a drunkard. ¡°There is always a room for alcohol. Come on. Take it.¡±


    ¡°Big sister, you are drunk.¡±


    ¡°Big sister? I am still young. Also, I am not drunk.¡±


    ¡°Oh, really?¡± Cole pointed at the clock behind him. ¡°Can you tell the time?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Lisa stood up and walked to the clock, and then she pointed her finger at it. ¡°I am not fuck!ng drunk!¡±


    ¡°Pft. You are drunk.¡± Cole stood up and gripped her shoulders. ¡°You need fresh air. Let¡¯s go outside.¡±


    ¡°Are we going to see stars?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Yes.¡± Cole pulled her closer and escorted her to the backyard. There were many people in the backyard, but there were still many spaces. He found an empty spot easily and sat with Lisa.


    ¡°Look, Cole. So many stars!¡± Lisa pointed at the starry night. ¡°You see those stars. They are called¡­ what are they called?¡±


    ¡°Beat me. I never learned about astrology,¡± Cole said, and suddenly Lisa punched him. ¡°Aw. What was that for?¡±


    ¡°You said to beat you.¡±


    ¡°I meant not literally. Duh. Just calm your mind a bit. Take a breath.¡±


    Lisa drew a deep air and exhaled it. She did it several times. Her action made him laugh, and she frowned. ¡°What are you laughing at?¡±


    ¡°Nothing.¡±


    Lisa pinched his shoulder. ¡°You need to tell this little sister.¡±


    Cole laughed again. ¡°Big sister, you are older than me.¡±


    ¡°Huh? How old are you?¡±


    ¡°22.¡±


    Lisa suddenly blinked her eyes. ¡°I am younger than you. I am 18.¡±


    Cole shook his head. It was obvious she told him a lie. Mark had told him about her age. Furthermore, he believed what his master had said: women told lies about their age. However, he played along with her. ¡°Oh, right? You are younger.¡±


    ¡°You are right. How could you mistake me as an aunty? Look at my face.¡± Lisa pressed her cheeks with her index fingers, and she smiled. ¡°I am cute.¡±


    Cole, however, didn¡¯t respond. He only smiled at her, and it made her blush. ¡°Come on. Why don¡¯t you compliment me a bit?¡± Lisa pouted, puffing her cheeks.


    ¡°You will get your compliment if you show the result of your training.¡±


    ¡°Okay. Deal.¡± Lisa suddenly put a serious expression and stood up. She summoned her sword and performed graceful movements.


    As a superhuman, people could erase the drunk phase. It was a free feature in the system, and Lisa had used it.


    Cole¡¯s lips bent upward. It was according to his plan. He took her here, so she could erase her drunk phase. Aside from that, he wanted to see the result of her training too. Cole was her mentor after all.


    After she had done performing her movements, he clapped lightly and praised her. ¡°I could see the power in your swing. You have improved, Lisa. I am proud of you.¡±


    Lisa suddenly blushed and averted her eyes, but she regained her courage again in a matter of seconds. Feeling awkward about getting praised by a younger man, she approached him and leaned forward, hoping the man smell her perfume and break his character.


    ¡°I am worthy of rewards,¡± she said with a grin. ¡°As my mentor, can you give me something?¡±


    Cole agreed with her. He had to give his disciple a reward, and he pondered about it. He never gave someone a gift, so he was feeling confused. What was the best gift for this disciple? Cole thought.


    ¡°I will buy you something. Do you have anything you want? I can buy an active skill for you.¡± Cole thought his idea was brilliant. An active skill was a suitable gift for someone who had reached level twelve.


    Lisa, however, thought the gift idea was lame. She pouted and blurted what she actually wanted, ¡°I don¡¯t need it. I can buy one myself. I want a thing from Little Mentor Cole. Let¡¯s have a da¡ª¡±


    Before she finished her sentence, Mark¡¯s loud voice called them. His shout superimposed on her whisper. ¡°Cole! Lisa! There you are! We will have a meeting!¡±


    Cole immediately replied, ¡°I will come right away!¡± He turned back and walked calmly. Even though he put on a composed front, he actually felt relief because he had evaded something unnecessary.


    Cole wasn¡¯t dense. He knew where Lisa¡¯s conversation led him to. He was familiar with admiration, but he had his own focus. There was no way to accept such a relationship.


    Cole wasn¡¯t worthy to be someone¡¯s significant other. The stench of blood was strong in him, and so he never had thought of living a normal life. His path was that of slaughter and destruction, and he was happy with that.

 16. New Target

    The party was over once Jeff had had enough of fun. People felt bitter, but they complied with his order. Left with nothing to do, they came back to their rest stations. They were resting while Jeff and the others were having a meeting.


    Without wasting time, Jeff asked about what to do for the next day¡¯s hunt. Having an idea, Mark lifted his arm. He told them they were already strong enough, so he proposed to move their hunting ground and let the others level up by hunting rabbits the same way the main team had done.


    Jeff approved his idea and nodded. He was about to decide the hunting ground, opening a map on the table. However, Mark suddenly pointed his finger to a certain region where they had faced the Frost Wolf.


    ¡°Mark, don¡¯t tell me¡­.¡± Cole knew well about his idea, and he thought it was a bad idea.


    He hit a mark when Mark replied, ¡°Let¡¯s hunt Frost Wolves.¡±


    Cole shook his head. ¡°No, it is too dangerous. They are¡ª¡±


    ¡°Level 15 monsters. Just like those rabbits. We can defeat them.¡±


    ¡°No, it is different. We may as well call those rabbits walking dolls. Frost Wolves are the real deal. They are powerful.¡±


    ¡°I am aware, but we will have new abilities by then. Besides, I believe we can pull it off if we act as a team. Let¡¯s do it, Cole.¡±


    Cole stared into Mark¡¯s eyes, and he could see his persistence. Still, he was aware of his desire for Frost Wolves¡¯ blood. ¡°You want to revenge your friends, right?¡± he asked.


    ¡°You can tell. Of course, I do.¡±


    ¡°You should know you can¡¯t find your friends¡¯ killer among them. How can you differentiate them anyway?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. I just want to appease my anger on them. I will be satisfied with killing one of them. I promise.¡±


    This promise was just an empty word, Cole thought. Once someone smeared their hands with the blood of their enemies, they couldn¡¯t quench their hatred. However, he couldn¡¯t give the advice to stop Mark because he knew about that feeling well. He had smeared his hands with too much blood, and that was the reason a seed of wrath existed in his heart.


    ¡°I won¡¯t stop you, but just so you know you can¡¯t quench your anger by killing. Are you prepared for the consequence?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. No, forgive my words. I have been feeling angry. I can¡¯t help it, Cole. I promise my feeling won¡¯t hinder my fighting skills.¡±


    Cole looked at Jeff. ¡°What do you say about this, Doucette?¡±


    Jeff replied, ¡°We can see how much we have grown by fighting them. Besides, we get bigger resources by killing them.¡±


    ¡°I want to fight those wolves too,¡± Lisa said.


    ¡°If you all agree about this, then I will follow along. After this hunt is over, I want to announce something.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Lisa asked curiously.


    Cole looked at her and Mark. He couldn¡¯t deny he began to see them in a positive light. Staying with them would be fun, but he had made a promise to find his gladiator brothers, and he felt their goals couldn¡¯t align. So, he wanted to leave the party after the Frost Wolves¡¯ hunt was over.


    He had steeled his decision, but he realized he couldn¡¯t say it at the moment. He feared they couldn¡¯t focus on the hunt if he broke the mood at the party. ¡°You will find out after the hunt is over,¡± Cole said to Lisa.


    Lisa eyed him suspiciously as if she knew what he was thinking. However, she couldn¡¯t utter any words to stop his decision.


    Mark¡ªoblivious to Cole¡¯s intention to leave the party¡ªslammed the table out of excitement, and he exclaimed, ¡°Then it has been decided. Let¡¯s hunt Frost Wolves tomorrow.¡±


    Jeff clapped his hands and announced the meeting was over. He ordered them to buy survival necessities for the next hunt on the counter.


    On the counter, Lisa had bought the cards first, but she didn¡¯t immediately go. She waited for Cole. Cole had a feeling she would ask something troublesome, so he told her he was tired before she could ask anything.


    Cole successfully dodged her and came to his rest station on the floor. He lay and closed his eyes. He didn¡¯t have a hard time resting, and he woke up refreshed in the dawn.


    ¡­¡­


    The big road was still empty when Cole stepped out of the base because the rabbits were resting on the riverbank. He stretched his body and then performed a simple exercise. After that, he took a deep breath of the fresh air. The air felt chilly as it entered his nostril, but it woke up every cell in his body. He was ready for the hunt.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°Oh, Cole. You seemed to be the one with the biggest spirit today, even though you were against my idea of hunting Frost Wolves,¡± Mark exclaimed as he scurried to the big road.


    ¡°What¡¯s in the past should stay in the past,¡± Cole replied calmly as he tossed Mark¡¯s hand. As the man passed by, he noticed many people got out of the base after him. He guessed they were going to hunt Ace Frenzy Rabbits.


    Jeff and Lisa approached him, so Cole asked the old man about his guess. ¡°Are they going to level up the same way as we do?¡±


    Jeff nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said indifferently as if those people were not important. ¡°We should focus on our goal today.¡±


    Worried about those people, Cole grabbed Jeff¡¯s shoulder, making the old man stop. ¡°Hey, wait. Don¡¯t you think you have to give them an example of how to hunt those rabbits?¡± Cole asked.


    Jeff swept Cole¡¯s hand away from his shoulder and stared at him. ¡°They literally didn¡¯t have jobs when we were hunting those rabbits, so I told them to watch us closely. I believe in their observation and duplication ability as fellow humans, so you have to believe them too.¡±


    Cole stared back at him, but he didn¡¯t talk back. He simply couldn¡¯t decide whether Jeff was careless, indifferent, or really confident of them. However, he didn¡¯t think too much of it because he didn¡¯t want to stir trouble.


    ¡°Well, if you are really confident in their abilities, then I will believe it too. Let¡¯s go to the forest,¡± Cole said.


    They didn¡¯t argue anymore as they didn¡¯t want to waste time. After a brief check of the necessity items, they went to the forest.


    As they arrived in front of the forest, Jeff opened a drawn map and looked at the drawn region where Cole and the others had met the Frost Wolf. Beyond this region was still blank, meaning Jeff didn¡¯t know about the place yet.


    After seeing the drawn map, Jeff took out two cards and activated them. The first card appeared as a floating map, and he was the only one that could see it, meanwhile the second card was the highest-grade monster detector that could detect monsters in a three-kilometer radius.


    Jeff compared both maps just to be sure his drawn map was accurate with the map from the card. However, he found out the Frost Wolf that had killed his people had gone out of their original region.


    ¡°I see. There is a chance we can meet the wolf that has killed your friends,¡± Jeff said.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mark asked.


    ¡°I have bought information about Frost Wolves and their cousins. They usually hunt in a pack, except the lone wolf. The pack shunned the lone wolf after losing from an alpha, and they ventured alone in order to find their mate.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean we can find the one that has killed my friends?¡±


    ¡°Is it that simple?¡± Lisa asked. ¡°I mean how can we be sure it will stay in one place?¡±


    ¡°Monsters¡¯ situation is complicated. In their instinct, they can¡¯t carelessly pass through other monsters¡¯ territory. They have to make sure other regions are safe, and they usually take a long time to be sure. So, we have a fair chance to meet it.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait to meet it,¡± Mark said as he clasped his fist. ¡°I will take the last hit to kill the b!tch.¡±


    ¡°Are you done talking? If so, I will lead the way,¡± Cole said as he entered the forest first. He remembered the path to the lone wolf¡¯s spot, so it was only appropriate for him to lead the way. Furthermore, he had encountered several aggressive monsters when he had escaped from the wolf, so he wanted to avoid unnecessary enemies.


    When he was leading the way, they didn¡¯t encounter any monsters. However, they knew they would meet one sooner or longer, and their premonition came true.


    On the way, they smelled fresh blood in the air, and they immediately found the source. A humanoid monster with the head of a goat crouched over a giant anteater corpse. It feasted from the hole in the corpse¡¯s gut, voraciously tearing the flesh apart.


    Name: ??


    Title: Ace


    Level: 12


    Cole and the others faced the goat¡¯s back, and he planned to escape before it noticed their presence because he knew that monster was dangerous. The proof was the goat could eat in the open while the corpse emitted a powerful stench of blood. Furthermore, it had an ¡®Ace¡¯ title, meaning it had more [HP] than normal-titled monsters of the same species.


    As he was about to turn back, Mark suddenly grabbed his arm. ¡°Where are you going, Cole?¡± he asked.


    ¡°We need to escape. That monster is dangerous.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say Frost Wolf is more dangerous? We can handle that monster.¡±


    ¡°Yes, we can, but don¡¯t think it will be easy. We don¡¯t know what the monster is capable of, and we have to conserve our energy to fight the wolf.¡±


    ¡°I agree with Mark, Cole. We can handle that monster. We have bought new skills, haven¡¯t we?¡± Lisa said.


    Cole didn¡¯t know how to respond to this question. Yesterday, he had pretended to buy skills to hide his secret that he couldn¡¯t put active skills into the active skill slots. He looked at Jeff, hoping the old man would agree to his point.


    ¡°We haven¡¯t tried our active skills yet. We can test it by fighting that freak,¡± Jeff exclaimed as he pointed at the monster.


    And it was already late for Cole to convince them to not fight it. The Demon Goat suddenly sensed their presence, turning its head to the back. The monster dropped the meat on its mouth and roared as it saw them.


    ¡°Prepare to fight!¡± Jeff summoned a Japanese katana in his hand, and a blue aura coated his body.


    The same phenomenon happened to Lisa and Mark. This was the active skill they had bought when they had reached level 12.


    ¡°Oh, wow, we bought the same skill,¡± Mark exclaimed.


    Lisa laughed. ¡°Well, it increases all stats by 35%. Added with [Raging Strength] and other passive skills that increase our stats, we have 70% bonus attributes.¡±


    Thinking their similar choice of skills was funny, Jeff smirked. However, it seemed Cole didn¡¯t choose similar skills because the man did nothing. ¡°Hey, Cole, what are you doing? Use your active skill. The goat is coming.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I¡ª¡± Cole paused, thinking of a reason. ¡°I think you forgot I have got a passive skill card.¡±


    ¡°Up to you. Here it comes!¡± Jeff exclaimed as he leaped to the side.


    As the other scattered to the sides, Cole stuck his greatsword into the ground, shielding his body behind it. As the consequence, the goat targeted him, butting its head against the flat of the blade.


    Cole gritted his teeth as he held his ground, but the goat kept pushing him back. In the end, the difference in the frame made the goat win. It lifted its horns, pulling the sword from the ground.


    As his body was floating, Cole flipped midair and swung its sword. The sword came under the goat, but it had noticed it. The monster shifted its head a bit, letting the tip of the sword scratch its face. After that, it lengthened its claws and slashed his chest.

 17. Initial Mastery

    ¡°Cole!¡± Lisa shouted as the Demon Goat slashed Cole¡¯s chest, sending him crashing against a tree. She rushed toward the goat while coating her sword with energy. She slashed the monster¡¯s calf, making it trip to its knee.


    After that, Lisa moved behind it and slashed it. Then, she moved to another side and slashed it again.


    The goat had had enough of her, so it slapped her. However, its hand only touched empty air as she had moved from her spot. The monster tried to slap her again several times, but it could only hit the air or the ground.


    Jeff, aware that Lisa couldn¡¯t evade the attacks forever, rushed to help her. He activated his active skill that increased his speed, and he sneak-attacked the monster while leaving afterimages. After a while, Mark joined him too.


    Cole ignored his own injury to see them in action. They didn¡¯t lie when they said they had gotten stronger. Their speed was almost comparable to him when he had under ten percent [HP] and under the effect of [Injury Transmutation]. And Jeff was more amazing. With his skill, his speed surpassed even him.


    Cole, once again, realized how amazing other people were. Normal people could fill both passive and active skill slots. They were more versatile than him.


    To not let them leave him behind, Cole determined to add unique only passive skills into his slot. He would gather unique passive skills like his [Ruin Gust] and [Ruin Flash].


    That was his long-term plan. As for now, he had to focus on defeating the Demon Goat. He didn¡¯t want to sit under the tree while they were working hard.


    Ignoring his injury, Cole stood up. His skin had been reddening under the effect of [Injury Transmutation]. Roaring, he charged at the Demon Goat.


    The goat saw him running straight, and it targeted him, extending its claws toward him. The usual Cole would dodge, but he had been edging to use his [Ruin Flash] again, so he ducked when the arm was about to stab him, and then he went toward the creature.  He let his rage flow out of his body like a flame as he struck the monster with the tip of his sword.


    Cole had expected the [Ruin Flash] to come out. After all, he had expressed his anger. Too much of his disappointment, it didn¡¯t come out. The attack still penetrated through the goat¡¯s thick hide, but it was just a normal attack.


    Cole wondered what went wrong with his method. He knew the chance of letting out the skill was a little even after letting out of his deepest desire, but he had a feeling his method was wrong.


    ¡°Cole! Watch out!¡± Lisa shouted.


    Hearing her warning, Cole realized a hand was coming to him. He evaded it to the side, but a sharp nail still managed to leave a deep cut on his shoulder.


    After getting hit, the [Ruin Gust] suddenly became active. Red helix was revolving around him and hitting the Demon Goat several times.


    The goat wanted to attack him, but it felt like a wall pressing its body. Seeing it stunned, Cole made his move. He lifted his sword with one hand, ignoring the other shoulder¡¯s pain, and then he slashed the monster.


    It was a normal attack, but he still shoved the goat away, and it fell on its stomach. Worried it would wake up in no time, Cole jumped onto its body and stabbed its back over and over. He kept doing it with anger, hoping to activate the [Ruin Flash]. However, nothing came out even as the monster¡¯s [HP] hit zero.


    Cole shouted desperately, and he didn¡¯t stop attacking even after the goat disappeared; he stabbed the ground like a madman.


    ¡°Cole! Cole, stop! What are you doing?¡±


    Lisa¡¯s shout snapped him back to reality. He looked at the stab marks on the ground with a complicated expression. He disliked succumbing himself to the berserker nature in his heart, but he still did it because he hoped to activate the [Ruin Flash]. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Lisa asked in a concerned tone.


    Cole shook his head. ¡°Nothing.¡± He would reflect and review his method later. For now, he needed to go as soon as possible from this place. The stench of blood from the anteater¡¯s corpse was strong.


    Cole summoned the healing cards from his inventory ring and used it. After a while, his [HP] became full again, and his injuries healed. ¡°Let¡¯s continue our journey,¡± he said.


    ¡°How about the resources?¡± Mark said.


    ¡°Just keep it first. We will divide them evenly later,¡± Jeff said sternly, letting Mark collect the cards. After waiting for Mark to be done, they continued their journey.


    On the way, they encountered more monsters, but none of those creatures approached them. It seemed the party was lucky that the stench of blood from the anteater¡¯s corpse far back saved them. For that, they ventured in peace until they arrived at their designated region.


    They could relax a little when they saw a familiar place. There were many ponds, and Bullfrog scattered throughout the area. They didn¡¯t feel scared of those amphibian monsters because their levels were higher. However, it didn¡¯t mean they could lower their guards. This place was where they had met the Ace Frost Wolf, the spot where their teammates had died.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    They walked through the frogs and arrived at the other side of the place. They wanted to travel out of the Bullfrog Area, but the region beyond it was full of trees and tall bushes; powerful monsters or dangerous plants could live beyond this area.


    ¡°Does the monster detector sense anything, Doucette?¡± Cole asked.


    Jeff nodded. ¡°We are lucky to have bought a monster detector because there is one level 15 monster one kilometer from here. I can¡¯t see the name, but I am sure it is our target.¡±


    ¡°One kilometer, huh. So, we should go beyond this area,¡± Mark said.


    ¡°But we never traveled beyond this area,¡± Lisa exclaimed, expressing her worry.


    Cole grinned at her. ¡°Who said we have to go there? Let¡¯s just lure it.¡±


    Cole summoned his greatsword and lifted it with the blade facing down. He was about to do something, but Lisa suddenly grabbed his wrist and glared at him, making him confused. ¡°What?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t injure yourself.¡±


    ¡°Huh? I am not, though. I want to kill some frogs. One of you has to help me.¡±


    ¡°I will keep a watch,¡± Mark said.


    ¡°I will do it with you then,¡± Lisa said.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s go.¡± After saying it, he immediately leaped to a pond and splashed water on nearby frogs when he landed. Cole didn¡¯t waste a single second. He spun his body non-stop, killing the frogs, dying the water with blood.


    When an explorer killed monsters, their remains became, but at least they had left a blood stench before they had disappeared. Maybe it wasn¡¯t enough to lure the wolf, so he just had to kill to his own heart''s content until it came.


    Cole licked the enemy¡¯s blood around his face and laughed maniacally. He jumped from one pond to another pond, engaging in slaughter. He killed many of them in just a few minutes. As the result, the blood stench didn¡¯t disappear in the air.


    His teammates had dumbfounded faces when they saw him. They all thought Cole had a split personality that would come out when he was fighting.


    Even Lisa, who was supposed to help him, didn¡¯t have the heart to take part, so she only collected the cards.


    On the side, Jeff watched Cole while monitoring the map. His brows twitched when he saw a red dote approaching. ¡°Hey, the wolf is coming.¡±


    Hearing that, Cole stopped his slaughter. He leaped to Jeff¡¯s side, and then he looked at the forest ahead. He gripped his sword harder, thinking it was the chance to train his [Ruin Flash].


    Cole controlled his breathing and imagined the feeling when he had triggered the ability. He felt many things lately, but he could still remember the feeling well.


    Anger. His anger was there. However, he remembered it didn¡¯t burst like a raging flame. It felt more like a calm candle in a dark room. Controlled but still hot.


    Cole tried to apply the feeling again. He was always angry deep in his heart, so it was easy to lit the flame of anger. However, he tried to control it. In his mind, he imagined the wildfire getting smaller until it was the size of a candle flame.


    Cole felt his method was correct, so he patiently waited for the monster to come. After a while, the wolf showed up while growling. The air suddenly became colder, and the trees around froze.


    Everyone put on their fighting stances. No one dared to recklessly advance. It was a battle of wit to see who would lose patience, and the beast lost. It opened its mouth and shot an ice ball.


    The ice ball exploded and froze the ground. Luckily, everyone had jumped back to evade it, or they would be freezing.


    They thought they could catch a breath, but the wolf suddenly leaped onto the freezing ground in front of them. The beast looked at Cole and charged at him.


    Cole knew it would target him as he could see the anger in the creature¡¯s eyes. It remembered him. Having expected its action, he was calm. He exhaled and suddenly everything became slower for a moment, allowing him to jump to the side.


    The wolf¡¯s side was open for him, so he slashed it. However, no red lightning imbued his blade. It was just a normal attack. ¡°Don¡¯t give up. You almost succeeded,¡± he shouted, encouraging himself.


    The wolf was an agile creature. As he had slashed its side, the beast twisted its front body toward Cole. It opened its mouth wide as it was about to bite his neck.


    The wolf¡¯s saliva fell onto his shoulder, but the wolf couldn¡¯t sink its teeth into him as Jeff suddenly dropped a kick to its head, pushing the wolf away.


    ¡°That was a close one, Cole,¡± Jeff said as he smiled.


    ¡°Thanks for the cover, Doucette.¡±


    ¡°You are welcome.¡±


    Jeff charged toward the wolf, and the other two followed after him. They were using their buff skill, enhancing their bodies, so they could brawl against the giant wolf.


    Cole didn¡¯t want to be left behind, so he advanced on the wolf. At the same time, he didn¡¯t want to break his flow. He controlled his breath in rhythm, maintaining the slowed perception.


    The wolf was him as an easy target because Cole was running straight at it, so it extended its neck and opened its jaws wide.


    Cole, however, saw the wolf slowly coming at him thanks to his current condition. He swung his sword to the air, letting the weight of the sword pull him upward as he jumped.


    Everything still seemed slow to him, and thanks to that he could see many openings as he slowly passed through the wolf.


    He focused his attention on the beast¡¯s side, and he wanted to target it. He was still floating in the air, but he thought it was possible. First, Cole spun his body one turn and swung down his greatsword, letting the weight pull him downward, to the side of the wolf.


    As he saw the wolf¡¯s fat gut, Cole roared and directed his sword at it. At the same time, the blade emitted red electricity and left a tail-like trail as it slashed through the beast.


    The beast roared in pain and kicked Cole with its hind leg, pushing him toward a tree.


    Cole coughed out blood as his body crashed against the tree. The kick had hit his solar plexus and penetrated through his skin, making blood flow out like a fountain.


    He saw his innards jutted out too, and it would be bad to get up, but he stood up again. Cole finally got the gist of it. He wanted to try it out once again.


    Sensing strong blood coming from him, the wolf charged at him while covering its body with a thin layer of ice.


    Cole solidified his footing as he waited for the wolf to get closer. As it pounced at him, its movement became slow again in his eyes. ¡°This is it,¡± he exclaimed as he stabbed the wolf in the head, the red electricity flashing at the tip of his sword.


    Cole didn¡¯t remember what happened next. When he opened his eyes, he found himself sitting under a tree again, and his innards scattered everywhere on the ground. His vision blurred, and he felt the darkness slowly creeping from the corner of his eyes.


    He was familiar with this feeling. It was death. He would die again. Cole felt sad about it, but he smiled. At least, the berserker had been doing his best to change his life. There was no regret in this second life.


    As Cole thought of that, the light in his eyes faded out. He died, or so he thought. Fate, however, still wanted him to live as his injury suddenly healed in no time.


    His eyes reflected light again, and he checked his body. His scars were closed, and he felt no pain anymore. He stood up feeling refreshed too. He felt his body was several times lighter than before.


    Cole felt confused about what had happened. He needed an answer, and as he thought of that, a system screen suddenly appeared in front of him.


    Congratulation. You have grasped the initial mastery of Ruin Skills. As a result, you have unlocked a new class.

 18. First Class

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Cole¡¯s body stiffened like a rock, and blue light covered his body. He seemed to be unconscious, and it was dangerous because the wolf was still alive despite its injury.


    The wolf had a deep cut in its neck, and blood spurted out of it. Despite its injury, it glared at the unconscious Cole and growled. After that, the beast pounced at him.


    ¡°No, Cole!¡± Lisa shouted as the wolf bit Cole, but the beast¡¯s sharp teeth couldn¡¯t penetrate through Cole¡¯s skin.


    The wolf didn¡¯t give up yet. It saw Cole¡¯s innards and his opened belly. It dug into his belly, trying to make the hole bigger, but the beast couldn¡¯t do that as well. The human¡¯s whole body, even his inside, was as solid as diamond.


    Lisa¡ªwho couldn¡¯t see what happened from behind¡ªthought the wolf managed to damage Cole. She rushed toward the beast at full speed. She felt scared Cole would die if she was too slow.


    Luck was on her side for Jeff had arrived on the wolf¡¯s side earlier than her. The old man threw a roundhouse kick at the beast¡¯s neck, making it fall. After that, he pulled Cole¡¯s collar, trying to save him. However, Cole didn¡¯t flinch a bit from his spot. It was as if he was a statue cemented to the ground.


    Jeff released Cole and jumped back, evading the wolf¡¯s claw. However, the beast¡¯s muzzle butted his stomach, pushing him away.


    The beast was about to chase Jeff, but Lisa suddenly arrived at its side and stabbed its neck. The wolf, however, had sensed her presence. It had covered its body with a thin layer of ice and blocked the sword.


    The wolf bodied Lisa away and channeled a blue orb in its mouth. After a while, it shot an ice ball at Jeff.


    Jeff stood up, but he was too late to evade the ice ball. The ice ball hit him and exploded.


    The attack, however, had triggered his passive skill. He had disappeared and reappeared on the side, evading the direct attack. Despite that, the explosion had frozen the ground along with his left foot, trapping him.


    The wolf pounced at Jeff. As it was only a few centimeters before reaching the dark-skinned man, Mark suddenly slid under the beast and slit its throat.


    The wolf¡¯s armor shattered, and it bowed its head in reflection to its throat being slashed. It didn¡¯t bite Jeff, but it clutched him into its embrace, pulling him away. As the result, the old man lost his left foot.


    The wolf fell on top of Jeff, and froze the old man from his shoulders and down. The man couldn¡¯t move, or he would shatter like glasses. It was a good chance to kill its prey, but the wolf didn¡¯t do it. The beast realized it could die, so it stood up and ran away.


    Lisa approached Jeff and knelt beside him. She looked at him in worry. ¡°Boss, are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Forget about me! The wolf is dying! Chase the fu#ker!¡±


    ¡°I got you, boss!¡± Mark shouted. He was already chasing the wolf. He saw the wolf almost leave the Bullfrog¡¯s area, so he channeled his mana into his shield, and then he threw it.


    The shield passed above the frogs and hit the wolf in the head. The wolf¡¯s body stiffened for one second. When it could move its limbs again, Mark had ridden on its nape. He stabbed the wolf and stayed on the seat as the beast jumped like a rabies rabbit.


    He only lasted for several seconds before the wolf rolled on the ground and got rid of him. Mark stood up again and immediately leaped to the side, evading the wolf¡¯s jaws.


    Mark wanted to attack the wolf, but his sword was still sticking in the wolf¡¯s nape. Luckily, his shield was lying beside him, and he picked it up.


    Both Mark and the wolf stared at each other. The wolf thought Mark was not a threat without a sharp weapon, so it took a gamble to kill him in a few seconds. On the other hand, Mark thought he could kill the wolf if he targeted the open wound in its neck, so he took the gamble too.


    The stares only lasted a second, and they advanced against each other. The wolf opened its jaws wide, but Mark slid under it. When he was close to the wolf¡¯s throat, he extended his shoulder up and stabbed the wolf with his shield.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    The wolf instantly fell to the ground. It shrieked in agony as blood spurted out of its nape and throat until its body became weak. After that, the wolf exhaled its last breath and died.


    Mark still put his guard on even when the creature stopped moving. He could only breathe in relief when the wolf turned into mist and left floating cards.


    Mark fell to his knees when the creature had disappeared. He stared into the mist and thought of his teammates. ¡°I did it. I avenged you guys,¡± he said as tears were flowing out of his eyes.


    ¡­¡­


    Congratulation. You have grasped the initial mastery of Ruin Skills. As a result, you have unlocked a new class.


    You are the third of one hundred people who have achieved the first class. The top three people will be rewarded with a perfect-grade, silver-rank customized item. The system has detected an inventory ring. The reward will be transferred into the inventory ring.


    Cole blinked his eyes and realized all his wounds had disappeared. He stood up feeling refreshed as if he just had a deep sleep. Furthermore, his body felt several times lighter than before. Not only that, his mind was in serenity, and he wanted to enjoy the feeling longer, but he knew he couldn¡¯t do it because the wolf could be alive.


    Cole found Lisa and Jeff not far from him, so he approached them. The old man was half-naked, and Lisa rubbed his back. He thought this situation was weird, so he asked, ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    Lisa¡¯s eyes widened in shock when she saw Cole. She immediately raised her hands and explained in panic, ¡°Cole, this isn¡¯t what it looks like.¡±


    ¡°It looks like what?¡±


    ¡°I¡ªthe wolf froze him, so I helped the boss to warm his body.¡±


    ¡°Okay?¡± Cole ignored Lisa and inspected Jeff¡¯s condition. Luckily, there was no visible injury on Jeff, and all his limbs were still complete. Even so, he was still worried about him. ¡°You okay, Douchette?¡±


    ¡°As you can see, I am fine.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a relief. Where is Mark, tho?¡±


    Lisa pointed at Mark who was still crying emotionally. ¡°He¡¯s been like that ever since he has defeated the wolf.¡±


    Cole¡¯s face beamed when he heard that. ¡°So he avenged his teammates. I am glad.¡±


    ¡°How about you, Cole? I thought you were¡­ dead. Your innards were scattered everywhere,¡± Lisa said in a worried tone.


    ¡°I am fine. I fell unconscious, and when I woke up, my wounds were healed. I think that¡¯s the side effect of getting a class.¡±


    ¡°Did you say a class? You got a class?¡± Jeff asked.


    Cole smiled. ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°What is your class? Tell us about it.¡±


    Cole laughed. ¡°Relax, Doucette. I, too, haven¡¯t checked about my class either.¡± After saying that, he summoned the system screen and looked at his information.


    ¡­¡­


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 12 [50/1500])


    Currency Point: 1200


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: Ruin Berserker (level: 1 [0/125])


    Strength: 34


    Vitality: 30


    Agility: 30


    Intelligent: 24


    Wisdom: 24


    Free Points: 5


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 5


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1


    ¡­¡­.


    Cole noticed his stats increased a lot, and he gained one more passive skill. Those were good things, but the most important thing was he had a class. He clicked about the information of his class.


    ¡­¡­.


    Class: Ruin Berserker


    Level: 1


    Step: First


    Class skill: 1


    Description:


    A special custom class for passive skill wielders. Ruin Berserker has a special body that¡¯s accustomed to the environment in the Ruin realm, making them proficient in Ruin skills.


    Gains +5 strength, +4 vitality, +3 agility, and +2 free points for each class level.


    ¡­¡­


    As he thought, getting a class granted him a skill. Because his class was custom, he could guess that the skill was a passive skill. He clicked the Class skill info to find out his guess.


    ¡­¡­


    Class skill: 1


    <ol>


    <li>Name: [Ruin River]</li>


    </ol>


    Class/Step: Ruin Berserker/first-step


    Type: Passive


    Your mana flows like the rivers in the Ruin realm, increasing the chance of triggering ruin skills by 35 percent.


    ¡­¡­


    Cole¡¯s face beamed because this passive skill was really useful in his current situation. With it, he could trigger [Ruin Flash] and [Ruin Gust] more often. He couldn¡¯t wait to test how effective this [Ruin River] was in triggering his other ruin skills.


    ¡°What¡¯s your class called, Cole?¡± Jeff asked curiously.


    Cole snapped back to his sense, and he answered, ¡°My class is called Ruin Berserker.¡±


    ¡°What did you get after getting a class?¡±


    ¡°Class skills and class stats. You can increase your class level like your unit level apparently.¡±


    ¡°I see. I won¡¯t ask any further. Thanks for answering me.¡±


    Cole felt relieved in his heart when he heard that. Luckily, Jeff knew the boundary between people. He liked them, but he still didn¡¯t want to share them about his secrets such as he could only use passive skills. So, he was glad there was a person like Jeff who wouldn¡¯t push him too far.


    ¡°Congrats, Cole. I am glad that you have got a class. I can¡¯t wait to get a class too,¡± Lisa said.


    Cole smiled at her. ¡°You will get a class sooner or later. And, should we congratulate us? We have avenged your deceased teammates. I want to test my class immediately, but I feel like we need to go back to the base now.¡±


    When she heard his idea, Lisa wiped the tears she had been holding. ¡°You are so considerate, Cole. I have to admit that I feel exhausted after defeating the wolf. Can we go back to the base, boss?¡±


    Jeff nodded and showed a rare smile. ¡°You guys have done well today. You deserve one day off. Let¡¯s go back to the base.¡±


    ¡­¡­

 19. Departure

    The adventure had finished earlier for the main team, and they set up a party at night. The party wasn¡¯t only to celebrate Cole, who had got a class; they dedicated it for the deceased people too. Moreover, the joyous news didn¡¯t come from Cole only as many people had leveled up, and one of them had reached level twelve in just a day.


    Cole was happy to see them becoming productive, so he could relax when he left the party. He intended to tell them tonight, but he waited for the right time.


    As for now, Jeff was having a speech, standing on the table; Lisa was drinking many alcoholic drinks, and Mark was sitting on her opposite side. They were having their own fun, so Cole didn¡¯t want to pop the party with his announcement.


    As for Cole, he was happy by just watching them from his station. Covered in the blanket, he closed his eyes, simulating a fight against the Ace Frost Wolf in his head.


    Cole knew his capability the best, so his imagination about himself was ninety-nine percent accurate. As for his opponent, he didn¡¯t know the wolf¡¯s true potential, but he was sure his imagination about it was eighty percent accurate.


    They were having a deathmatch in his mind with the wolf gained an upper hand. Cole might be stronger than the wolf, but he only imagined himself before he gained a class.


    The fight was almost over. Cole had been in the lower hand several times, but in the end, he could take the beast down. In his mind, he was standing on the dying wolf¡¯s belly. He was about to stab the beast, but a deep voice called him, awaking him from his lucid imagination.


    ¡°Cole, I invite you to stand on our side,¡± Jeff called as he extended his hand forward. On his sides, Lisa and Mark looked at him with a smile too.


    Those people were standing at several connected tables. They called these tables a stage, but he definitely didn¡¯t want to stand on it. It was too embarrassing.


    Cole shook his head and smiled in embarrassment. After that, he covered his head with a blanket again. He thought tonight was the wrong time to tell them because they were drunk. He would tell them tomorrow, so he decided to sleep.


    Cole thought they would leave him alone, but this time, Lisa and Mark called him several times. Having tired of hearing them, he threw his blanket to the side, and then he stood up from the floor. Sighed, he walked onto the stage.


    ¡°And our main star finally stepped onto the stage. Please gives Cole applause,¡± Mark exclaimed.


    Cole looked at people who were watching him. He could see admiration on their faces. He felt bad about ignoring them, so he put on a shy smile.


    ¡°Thanks for having me,¡± Cole said lowly.


    ¡°You seem to be in a low spirit, young Cole. Cheer up, come on. This is a party,¡± Mark said as he raised his mug of beer.


    Cole knew Mark¡¯s intention was good, but hearing someone called Cole young was annoying. ¡°Can I go now?¡± he asked, his veins popping out of his temple.


    ¡°Not so fast, Cole,¡± Jeff said. ¡°An important person asked me to call you. She wants to announce something.¡±


    ¡°Who?¡± Cole asked.


    The answer to the question descended onto the stage. She was a beautiful woman with a pair of wings. She was none other than the angel-like being who was guarding the counter.


    The angel smiled at Cole and extended her hand. ¡°First, I want to congratulate you for gaining a class. You are the third person out of countless people who have gained a class.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Cole replied calmly, while shaking her hand.


    ¡°It is my job to inform a group of explorers about the world when someone has gained a class, so I want all of you to listen to me.¡±


    ¡°First, you need to know that this Beginner¡¯s Dimension #666 is small. It only contains around a hundred explorers. The highest level you can reach in this place is level thirty.


    ¡°Beginner¡¯s Dimension is the safest type of dimensions. Immortals have created a barrier to protect void creatures from entering. In other dimensions, you can encounter void creatures. Because of this barrier, the Immortals are afraid you will find comfort in this place. That¡¯s why they will create a hole for a void creature to enter when someone has gained a class. The purpose is so that you will be eager to leave this place.


    ¡°Before you ask a question, I will answer it. Yes, you can defeat void creatures. However, once you do that, another hole will form in the barrier, allowing more void creatures to enter. You have no choice but to gain a class and escape from this dimension.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°You can escape from this dimension by entering the portal in the middle of this base, but you can only enter once you have a class. That¡¯s all I want to say. Thanks.¡±


    After explaining things, the angel turned into light and disappeared. She reappeared again on the counter.


    Thanks to the angel, the crowd was having a fierce discussion. In other words, she popped the party. The situation got out of hand, and Jeff had to shut them up.


    With just his words, the crowd calmed down. Jeff stepped out and spoke, ¡°We need to relax. I promise you I will gather information about getting a class.¡±


    ¡°But what of the void creatures?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°What about them? If they come, we just kill them. The angel has said they are killable. If you don¡¯t want to meet them, we will gain class together and escape from this place as a team. Now, the party is over. I want you to rest, and we will hunt earlier in the dawn.¡±


    With a clap, the crowd scattered to their stations. As for the main team, they were still standing on the stage.


    ¡°I know you want us to have a meeting,¡± Mark said.


    Jeff nodded. ¡°Bingo, kid.¡±


    ¡°Um, before that, I have promised to tell you something.¡± Cole looked at them in the eyes. They looked back at him as if they knew about his thought. He sighed and confessed, ¡°I wish to leave the party.¡±


    Everyone was quiet, and the situation became awkward. Lisa¡¯s face paled when she finally heard it from his mouth. On the other hand, Mark kept shaking his head, and he was the first one to break the ice.


    ¡°Cole, if my words still offend you, I will apologize. Okay? I am sorry.¡±


    Cole shook his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s not about that.¡±


    ¡°Then why?¡± Lisa asked in a trembling voice. ¡°Do you dislike us?¡±


    ¡°No! I have grown attached to all of you. I like you guys.¡±


    Tears flowed out of Lisa¡¯s eyes. ¡°Then why? You are not making sense. Just stay here.¡±


    ¡°No, I¡ª¡±


    ¡°Cole, I love you. Can you just stay here for my sake?¡± Lisa pleaded.


    Cole frowned when he heard her confession. He was aware of her feeling to him, but he didn¡¯t like it when someone used their feeling as their bargaining chips.


    ¡°Lisa, listen.¡± Cole patted her shoulders, trying to console her. ¡°I like all of you, but I still can¡¯t go with you because I have a family. Lisa, your family is here, and that¡¯s why you have to stay here. As for me, I want to find my brothers. I hope you can understand me.¡±


    Lisa looked at him with a complicated expression. After losing many of her dearest people, she knew well the feeling of wanting to see and get close to the loved ones, so she could only shut her mouth.


    Cole patted her head. ¡°I am glad you understand. It is not like we will part away forever. We can still see each other in the future. I promise to meet you guys again after I meet my family.¡±


    Everyone said nothing, so he thought it was the perfect chance to say his goodbye words to them. First, he looked at Jeff. ¡°Doucette, you are probably the strongest person I have met in this new world. You are a great leader, so I won¡¯t be worried about their fate under your leadership.¡±


    Jeff smiled. ¡°I know this time will come. It is a pity that you don¡¯t want to stay with us. We can achieve many things together.¡±


    ¡°Sorry about that. I hope you understand.¡±


    ¡°I understood. I just hope you can inform me about how to get class according to your experience.¡±


    Cole laughed and handed him a paper. ¡°I had a feeling you would ask that, so when you were partying, I secretly wrote this. It is a note about my experience when I have got a class.¡±


    Jeff took the note from Cole¡¯s hand. ¡°Oh, well. Seems like you are in a hurry to look for your family. Thanks for this note. I wish you good luck.¡±


    After Jeff, Cole looked at Mark. He bumped his fist to his chest. ¡°Be a man, Mark. Don¡¯t complain about many things. Solve your problem with action.¡±


    Mark laughed awkwardly. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I heard this from someone who is younger than me, but you are right. I wish you good luck, Cole.¡± Mark gave him a bear hug.


    After hugging Mark, Cole faced Lisa. ¡°Lisa¡ª¡±


    Before he could finish his words, Lisa suddenly tiptoed her feet and tried to kiss his lips. However, Cole had a higher level than her, so he could react to her action. He had put a hand over his lips, preventing her from kissing him.


    Cole pushed her lightly and said, ¡°I appreciate the feeling, Lisa, but I¡¯d rather not start anything weird between us.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Cole didn¡¯t answer the reason. As a murderer, he felt he didn¡¯t have the qualifications to start a relationship. He belonged to the battlefield. He wished he could just tell this to everyone, especially the woman who had a feeling for him, but in the end, he only said, ¡°I am sorry.¡±


    Lisa smiled at him. She tried to be cheerful, but she couldn¡¯t hide her teary eyes. Getting rejected hurt her feeling. ¡°I¡ªI see. Cole, I wish you good luck. I hope you can find your family.¡± After saying that, she jumped down from the table and ran toward the backyard.


    Cole cast a last glance at her, and then he stepped down from the table too. Without hesitation, he walked to the portal in the middle of the room.


    The portal was a clump of mana revolving to its center like a vortex. In the past, it couldn¡¯t be used to teleport around. People had tried to enter it, but it hadn¡¯t teleported them anywhere.


    Tonight was different. The angel lady had told them Cole could use the portal, and it could take him somewhere.


    Cole using the portal would be the first spectacle for the explorers in this area, so when he walked toward it, he drew people¡¯s attention. They formed a circle around him.


    Cole raised his eyebrow when he saw them getting closer. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to withdraw attention.¡±


    ¡°Well, you are the first person to use the portal,¡± Mark replied.


    Cole extended his finger into the portal, and it glowed. ¡°Great, I can really use it. I guess this is a goodbye,¡± he said as he looked at Mark and Jeff. It was a pity Lisa wasn¡¯t here to see him off, but he didn¡¯t want to waste time looking for her either.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to see Lisa first before you go?¡± Mark asked.


    ¡°Just send her my regards.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Cole gave Mark a bear hug, and then he did that to Jeff too. After that, he stepped back closer to the portal while still facing those two. ¡°This won¡¯t be the last time we meet, so don¡¯t die early.¡±


    Mark grinned. ¡°That¡¯s my words, fool. You are going to an unknown area. Take care of yourself.¡±


    Cole nodded. ¡°See you later.¡± With that, he walked into the portal.

 20. Holo Fortress

    Cole arrived at the other side of the portal, and he immediately checked his surroundings.


    Seeing many houses around, Cole thought he was in an open settlement. There were many stairs leading to higher or lower platforms. After looking up, he saw a gigantic dome with many attached lamps. Then, he realized this place was an enclosed space.


    Cole was about to explore the place when the portal behind him flashed, and someone got out of it. They wore a silver cloak that covered their whole body. Not only that, they wrapped a scarf around their face, hiding their feature.


    Cole was the first one to arrive, so the burden of hospitality was on his shoulders. He approached them and nodded. ¡°Hello.¡±


    The person nodded back, but they said nothing. Cole thought they were wary of him, and it was an understandable reaction because everything could happen in this world, such as a man killing another man. So, he didn¡¯t take their attitude to his mind.


    Maintaining a respectful attitude, Cole said, ¡°I want to explore this place. If you are willing, let¡¯s do it together.¡±


    The person nodded to him, but they didn¡¯t move from their spot. So, Cole turned his back and walked first. He could hear their footsteps following him.


    Cole wasn¡¯t afraid the person would ambush him because he kept his guard up. If the person did it, he would kill them without hesitation.


    Cole suddenly imagined many scenes where he killed the person with many methods, and he licked his lips. However, he suddenly regretted it. Ugh, I have to control this berserker nature; he thought.


    As he explored this place, he realized this enclosed space was spacious but empty. No one lived here, even though there were hundreds of houses. Not only that, an abandoned place usually would be dirty, but this whole place was clean.


    Normal people would feel scared of this place, but Cole was excited, thinking this place was a trap. He couldn¡¯t wait to see the challenge that this place offered.


    As he thought of that, the person behind him tapped his shoulder. Cole looked back and saw the person pointing toward the side of the bridge they were on.


    Cole followed their direction and saw a house on a plateau. In front of the house, a man sat on a chair while cutting a cake on the round table.


    Cole and the person immediately crossed the bridge, walked across the fenced cliff, and went to the bridge that was connected to the plateau.


    When they arrived at the plateau, the mysterious man smiled at them and gestured for them to sit. ¡°Welcome, you can sit.¡±


    Cole and the cloaked person looked at each other and agreed in silence. They sat on their perspective chair.


    ¡°Tea. Please enjoy,¡± said the mysterious man as he poured tea into the cups on the table.


    The fragrant aroma of the tea entered his nose, but Cole didn¡¯t drink it, fearing it was a trap. Instead, he asked a question, ¡°I am sorry, but can you please tell us where are we?¡±


    The man sliced a cake into a mouthful piece and forked it into his mouth. After gulping it, he said, ¡°You are in Holus Fortress. This is a safe place. Monsters can¡¯t enter this place, so you can rest assured.¡±


    ¡°What about void monsters?¡± the cloaked person said, their voice was surprisingly feminine and pleasant in the ears.


    The man smiled. ¡°They have to break through the defensive barrier before they can enter this place.¡±


    ¡°Are you an explorer too?¡± Cole asked.


    The man stirred his tea and stared deeply into it as if reminiscing about his past. ¡°I was an explorer in another world before the Immortals appointed me as the fortress lord. Do you know the angel-like beings on the tutorial island? My job is basically the same as them, except I am not a heartless creature like them.¡±


    ¡°Why are Immortals appointing humans as a guardian?¡± the cloaked person asked.


    The man shrugged. ¡°Beat me. From now on, people like me will guard every place. My name is Holus by the way.¡±


    Cole nodded and introduced himself. ¡°My name is Cole Xander.¡±


    ¡°I know about you and your past,¡± Holus interrupted. Then he looked at the cloaked person. ¡°You too. I immediately know about the information of people who have arrived at my fortress. But, yeah. I guess you have to introduce yourself too. I will give you rewards as the earliest ten people who have arrived at my place.¡±The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Can I choose to not introduce myself?¡± the cloaked person asked.


    ¡°Sure, but there is no reward for you.¡±


    The cloaked person clicked their tongue before they took off the hood and the scarf, revealing their identity. Her silver hair fell majestically onto her back. In contrast to her glowing hair, she had dark brown skin, enhancing her attractiveness several times. Not only that, she had a pair of rabbit ears above her head, creating a unique charm that Cole hadn¡¯t experienced from looking at other women before.


    The woman in the white cloak introducer herself, ¡°My name is Elune Whitebun.¡±


    Holus nodded approvingly. ¡°You are the second person to awaken a unique race and the fourth person to acquire a class. I am honored to meet you, Ms. Whitebun. I didn¡¯t expect there are so many promising gems from nearby tutorial islands.¡±


    Cole looked at her, and the status window appeared above her. He suddenly realized the cloak was a magical item to hide one¡¯s identity. After she took it off, he could see her information, and he read it out of curiosity.


    Name: Elune Whitebun


    Class: No information


    Race: No information


    Level: 10


    Cole thought she was too under-level. Even without exploring this area, he knew this place was several times more dangerous than the previous area. He suddenly understood why she was wary of him. If he was a bad person, he could have taken advantage of her.


    She should have been better on the tutorial island, Cole thought. However, He was aware each person had their own situation, so he respected her choice.


    ¡°So, where are the rewards?¡± Elune asked impatiently as if she was in a rush to go somewhere.


    ¡°Why is the rush? You are safe here,¡± Holus said, but he still listened to her plead. With a clap, the beverages on the table vanished, and two piles of cards appeared.


    ¡°I will give both of you two things. The first reward is a week''s worth of allowance, more precisely 4500 points. The second reward is a general map of this giant island.¡± Holus applauded. ¡°I only give these rewards for the first ten people who reach this place. Congratulations to both of you!¡±


    Elune said nothing. She immediately took her share of reward cards. After that, she was about to go, but Holus stopped her.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need information from me?¡± Holus asked, his words holding her in her chair. ¡°Good girl.¡±


    Cole didn¡¯t expect rewards, so he took his share without complaining. He even felt grateful to Holus.


    ¡°By your words, does that mean we can ask anything from you?¡± Cole asked.


    ¡°No, not asking questions. I will only give you information about what you need to know. Please keep in mind that I only reveal this information to the first ten people who arrive here, so please listen carefully.¡±


    Holus prepared a mental note and cleared his throat. ¡°Firstly, you can get an explorer badge by signing yourself to my office behind me. Or, I can give it to you now if you want. Having an explorer badge means you can take quests from any explorer office and get rewards when you complete them.


    ¡°Secondly, the price of anything is more expensive than in tutorial islands, so you need to be smart in managing your points. Thirdly, do you want to sign yourself now? This offer is free for the first ten people. After that, I will charge people.¡±


    ¡°Can I survive if I don¡¯t sign myself?¡± Elune asked.


    Holus raised his eyebrow. ¡°Probably. However, you need to know monsters in this place are stronger than monsters on tutorial islands, even if they are at the same level. You people aren¡¯t the only ones who can gain a class. The quests in explorer offices are well-calculated according to the explorer¡¯s ranks, so living as official explorers are more comfortable. How about it? Want to sign yourself?¡±


    ¡°I do. Can we begin the process now?¡± Cole asked. He had calculated that he wouldn¡¯t suffer by signing himself. There was no requirement, and it was free of charge.


    Holus nodded. ¡°I like decisive people.¡± He summoned an item card out of thin air and gave it to Cole. ¡°This is the badge card. Pour a drop of your blood onto the badge, and it will recognize you as its owner. After that, you can take quests on the quest board behind me.¡± His thumb pointed at a floating blue screen in front of his house.


    ¡°Then I will immediately do it. Thanks for your support, Mr. Holus.¡± Cole stood up and walked toward the quest board.


    Holus didn¡¯t stop him, so he thought the man had nothing to tell him anymore.


    While Elune was still thinking of her choice, Cole summoned the badge and signed himself as an official explorer. After that, the badge carved an ¡®F¡¯ letter on its body, informing about Cole¡¯s current explorer rank. At the same time, information flowed into his head.


    Cole immediately learned that official explorers were divided into seven ranks. He was only ranked F. To reach the next rank, he had to reach level 30 and get the second class.


    It was a faraway problem, so he put it aside for the moment. Cole focused himself on seeing the blue screen in front of him. There were only rank F and E quests on the board. He guessed higher-ranked quests were locked before he reached the next rank.


    From the badge¡¯s information, Cole knew F-rank explorers can only get one quest, so he memorized all quests carefully before he picked one.


    After a while, Elune joined beside him. She focused on the board without bothering Cole.


    They both spent a long time memorizing the quests. However, Cole got what he wanted first, and he immediately picked it. Suddenly, a system pop-up appeared in front of him.


    Quest: Serpencide¡¯s Heart


    Rank: E


    Reward: 400 points


    Description: obtains 0/1 Serpencide¡¯s heart from a Serpencide monster. You can find this monster in the Valley of Trolls.


    Do you want to accept this quest? [Yes/no]


    Cole had memorized many F and E rank quests, and he judged this quest was the most suitable for him, so he clicked yes. Monsters from an E rank quest might be powerful, and they might live in a dangerous area. However, he didn¡¯t feel rushed to complete a quest. He could perform it while training himself in the wilderness.


    This town was still empty, with only him, Holus, and Ms. Whitebun. Cole would feel bored if he stayed here.


    Having accepted a quest, Cole wanted to venture outside immediately. Before that, he approached Elune and invited her to go with him out of goodwill. Normally, he liked to do things solo, but he was worried about her. With her low level, she would have a hard time surviving in this environment.


    ¡°Ms. Whitebun, I am quite strong. Do you want to explore the outside with me? I can help you raise your level.¡±


    Cole couldn¡¯t see her reaction because she was covering herself again, so he waited for her response patiently.


    Elune looked up and stared at his face. After seeing the sincerity in his eyes, she replied to him.


    ¡­¡­

 21 New Adventure

    Elune bowed respectfully and said, ¡°I am sorry, Mr. Xander, but I have to refuse. I have consulted with Mr. Holus, and he said I can raise my level by buying experience cards. I have a way to get points too. There are a lot of safe F rank quests such as gathering and public service. I will take that. I¡¯d rather stay safe here.¡±


    ¡°I see. That¡¯s understandable. I am happy that you have a way to survive in this place. Just let me know if you ever need something. You are my first acquaintance here, so I figure out we should help each other.¡±


    Elune nodded. ¡°I will. Thanks for your goodwill, Mr. Xander.¡±


    Cole waved his hand and turned around. Even though he was rejected, he still felt relieved. He didn¡¯t mind helping someone in need, but he preferred to stay alone. Luckily, Ms. Whitebun was a person who didn¡¯t like to be dependent on other people. With that, he could have peace of mind.


    Before going outside of the fortress, he needed to prepare some necessary items. So, he approached Holus and asked where he could buy things.


    ¡°Oh, right. I forgot to put store board. You can buy many things in the sundries board beside the quest board next time, but now, you can buy things through me,¡± Holus replied. He flicked his fingers, and a blue screen appeared in the air.


    [Sundries]


    Category:


    <ol>


    <li>Consumable Cards</li>


    <li>Item Cards</li>


    <li>Skill Cards</li>


    </ol>


    Cole needed to buy consumable cards, so he clicked the consumable cards category.


    As he did that, the screen showed various consumable cards he could buy. After scrolling up and down, Cole bought healing cards, speed-increasing cards to help him escape, debuff dispel cards, etc.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 12 [50/1500])


    Currency Point: 5700 ¨¤ 5300


    He was surprised to see he had consumed many points to buy what he needed. He realized Mr. Holus was right about the importance of points in this place. Even if he had many points from the reward, he couldn¡¯t afford to be extravagant.


    Cole suddenly regretted picking a rank E quest. The reward might be high, but it might be too hard for the current him. Holus had said the quests were good for getting currency points, and he had wasted the chance.


    Even if he regretted it, Cole couldn¡¯t do anything about it. Rice had become porridge, and the past couldn¡¯t be changed. So, he only needed to face the hardship in front of him.


    Thinking of hardship, Cole licked his lips. He didn¡¯t feel regret anymore, but he felt excited instead.


    With confidence in his heart, Cole started his adventure. First, he got out of Holus Fortress. He had walked thirty minutes to arrive at the gate.


    Looking back, he could see the fortress fully. The wall spread long, and he couldn¡¯t see the end of it. Behind it, there were many-tiered platforms, and each platform contained many houses. There were many towers between the wall and on the platforms, functioning as a defensive measure against dangers.


    Facing forward again, Cole saw a savanna field and hills. He summoned his map and checked the name of the place ahead.


    ¡°Holo Savana. That¡¯s my destination. Beyond that place are the Valleys of Trolls where I can meet Serpencide Monsters. However, I don¡¯t plan to go there now. I don¡¯t know how powerful monsters are around here.¡±


    Cole walked toward the Holo Savana. He didn¡¯t forget to carry his greatsword in case he would encounter a monster on the way.


    His suspicion was right when he met a school of monsters on his way. They were cows that were standing on two feet, and they had human-like hands with sharp nails.


    Cole checked their information and found out they were around level twelve to fifteen. They seemed like easy prey, and he was tempted to lure one out of the group, but he dismissed that idea. These cows weren¡¯t like the Ace Frenzy Rabbits that had slow speed.


    Cole avoided the school of cows, taking a further path. Luckily, he didn¡¯t meet any monsters again, and he arrived at the Holo Savana safely.


    In this place, many monsters wandered freely. There were cows, gazelles, zebras, and many others. Those monsters didn¡¯t look like predators, and that was why they didn¡¯t bother each other.


    Even though the situation seemed peaceful, Cole kept his guard up. After all, those monsters didn¡¯t bother each other because they were monsters. On the contrary, he was a human, and they might be intolerant to humans.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    Cole looked at the surroundings and found a lonely monster. It was a gazelle-like monster that was standing on two feet. Like the school of cows earlier, this gazelle had a pair of human hands with sharp nails.


    Name: Zellyr


    Title: Normal


    Level: 12


    Class: ?


    The lone monster was on the same level as him, so he approached him with caution. With light steps, he arrived behind it.


    The gazelle monster was eating grass with its hands, and Cole took the chance to leap on its back. After that, he stabbed its neck.


    His sword stuck in its flesh, and he couldn¡¯t push it deeper. So, Cole pulled it and leaped back.


    The monster roared and clawed at its back, but its hand only hit empty air. Turning around, it saw a man in front of it.


    Cole kept staring at its movement, being vigilant of it. The monster was tougher than it looked. He suddenly remembered the monsters in this place had a class, making them stronger than tutorial islands¡¯ monsters.


    Stronger monsters meant harder challenges. Thinking of that, his heart raced, and he made his first move, running toward it. Surprisingly, the monster ran straight at him too, and they were about to crash.


    Before their body would crash, Cole slid to the side and slashed the monster¡¯s belly. ¡°Bull¡¯s eye!¡± He laughed like a mad man when he shouted that.


    After that, he stood up again and bolted at the monster again. However, the monster had turned its back and launched two wind scythes at him.


    The attack caught him off guard and hit his shoulder and arm. At the same time, the red helix revolved around him, and he sped up forward, exposing the [Ruin Gust] to the Zellyr.


    The helix scraped the Zellyr¡¯s front body, spinning non-stop. The monster bled and roared. It wanted to attack Cole, but the helix acted as his shield too. It tried to push its body, but the helix felt solid and kept injuring it with each spin.


    Even though his enemy couldn¡¯t break through the helix easily, Cole could attack the enemy from inside as if the helix didn¡¯t exist for him. He thrust his sword and pushed the monster.


    The monster planted its feet into the ground, forcing its body to stop. After that, it charged toward Cole.


    Facing the monster, Cole was calm. He controlled his breath and rage. He imagined his own rage as a dim light that emitted a wisp of red mist. The red mist seeped out of his body and flowed to his sword.


    At the same time, everything seemed slow in his eyes. Cole thought his imaginary method was successful. With confidence, he swung his sword and slashed the monster¡¯s cheek while evading to the side.


    Even though the slowed perception was active, his attack didn¡¯t emit the ruin spark. It was just a normal attack. While his attack still cut the monster¡¯s lower jaw apart, he could have exploded its head if the attack was imbued by [Ruin Flash].


    Cole, however, didn¡¯t depend on his passive ability too much. Even though he had [Ruin River] that increased the chance of triggering ruin abilities, there was still a high chance it wouldn¡¯t trigger the skills.


    The beggar couldn¡¯t be the chooser, so Cole would use everything that he had at the moment. The slowed perception. While the slowed perception was still active, he charged at the enemy again.


    Cole was full of confidence, but his enemy was full of rage. After losing its lower jaw, its hatred toward Cole erupted, and its desire to survive exploded.


    It sent a barrage of wind scythes at Cole, and he evaded all of them. Not giving up, the monster let its arms loose as it performed several quick stabs. Yet, Cole could evade them all.


    Cole arrived in front of the monster. He ducked, evading a slash above him. After that, he spun his body and slashed the Zellyr¡¯s gut.


    Blood from its gut splashed to his face, and Cole licked his lips as the monster fell on its chest. After a few seconds, the monster and its splattered blood turned into mist, leaving several floating cards.


    Cole looked at the surroundings in case his battle attracted other monsters. To his surprise, no monsters approached him.


    He guessed they liked to mind their own business. Their attitude benefited him too. Without disturbance, he could take a quick rest.


    Cole took the cards and sat under a nearby tree. Having assured no predator was around, he checked the cards. There were 5 cards, two experience cards, two point cards, and one loot card.


    Cole immediately absorbed the point cards. As for the experience cards, he spent them all to his class level.


    ¡­¡­.


    Name: Cole Xander (Level: 12 [50/1500])


    Currency Point: 5320


    Race: Human (Bronze)


    Class: Ruin Berserker (level: 2 [75/250])


    Strength: 40


    Vitality: 34


    Agility: 33


    Intelligent: 24


    Wisdom: 24


    Free Points: 7


    Active Skills: 0


    Passive Skills: 5


    Blessings: 1


    Debuff: 1


    ¡­¡­


    Cole still had seven free points, but he didn¡¯t plan to increase his stats for the time being. With the stats addition from his class, he had become stronger. Or maybe, the enemies in this place were weaker, and it made sense since they were not predators.


    After thinking through it, Cole decided he would move further to meet stronger monsters. Before that, he wanted to rest a bit.


    Cole read the loot card and summoned it. Light flashed on his palm and turned into a liver. He sniffed it and then took a bit. After gulping the thing down his throat, his eyes widened. ¡°Not bad.¡± With that, he ate the whole liver.


    There was no beneficial effect after he consumed it. Cole had done that because he had read the liver was edible, and he was hungry.


    After eating, Cole stood up and walked further. Even when he was passing by a monster, it ran away from him. He sighed. Monsters in this area didn¡¯t provide him any challenge.


    As he thought of that, Cole suddenly heard a growl at the tall grass ahead. The sound was low, and he realized it wasn¡¯t an angry growl.


    He kept staring at the grass ahead, but nothing came out. So, Cole approached it sneakily and moved the grass aside. His eyes widened when he saw it.


    ¡­¡­.


    In front of him, an Armored Tiger was eating a corpse of Zellyr. It let out purring noises that he had mistaken as growls. What shocked him was the tiger¡¯s golden armor. Furthermore, the monster emitted a terrifying aura that made him shudder in fear.


    Everything about the monster was grand and flashy. No wonder it hid itself to eat, so other monsters wouldn¡¯t get scared and run away.


    The monster seemed strong, and luckily, Cole could read its information with the system.


    Name: Golden Armored Tiger


    Level: 13


    Title: Ace


    Class: Warrior


    Even though the monster was only one level above him, it had a title. Furthermore, it had a class too. Cole couldn¡¯t underestimate it.