He pulled his face out of the pool of lukewarm blood minutes later and let out a long, exhausted sigh.
"Is there any way I can wash this damn blood off?" he muttered, wiping at his face.
Then he paused and his fingertips brushed his throat…
His voice… it was a bit deeper than before. "Right… I ranked up."
He turned toward the shriveled corpse of the Stoneback Gnawler. All that remained was a grotesque shell of stone plates and wrinkled leather-like skin where the body had dried and caved inward.
It wasn't pleasant to look at.
Regardless, Kōya pushed himself off the ground and immediately felt it… the surge.
Strength was practically humming through every muscle and bone in his body.
He pulled his ruined shirt completely off, tossing it aside. His torso was smeared with dried blood, but beneath it…
His abs were visibly forming and the lines sharper than before.
A genuine two-line black crest physique.
'Am I supposed to be this fit with a two-line black crest?' he wondered.
A screen popped up:
「No. One of your passive skills on the Skill Tree is currently moulding your body. Your physical gains are higher than that of the average Awakened.」
'Huh?' His brows went up.
Then he froze. "I… haven't checked my status since I got the System."
He nearly vomited blood. He had pulled off the most foul, cursed beginner's mistake known to ANY reincarnator… forgetting to check his own damn status screen.
But he had no time to recover from the embarrassment.
His ears buzzed since his sense of hearing was sharper now. He could hear rustling, chittering, and wingbeats from far away.
The System flickered again.
「You have received a new skill from Ranking Up」
「Speed Burst (D-Rank)」
「A beginner acceleration skill that launches the user forward after a 0.8-second activation delay for three meters. Mana must be compressed into the legs manually, making it slow and unstable in real combat. Allows short explosive dashes, but only in straight lines and with noticeable recoil.」
'Damn…' Kōya thought. He actually liked the idea of speed, but being locked to a straight dash? And a delay? That was limiting as hell. 'But for a D-rank skill, this is solid.'
He tightened his grip on his sword… because something else appeared at the mouth of the alley.
Four Twigspire Broodminders crawled into view with their tendrils twitching and wings buzzing with agitation.
Last time he saw one of these moss-green wasp freaks, he nearly pissed himself.
Now?
He felt… strangely calm.
He stomped the ground, splattering the dried blood around him. Red droplets splashed across the Broodminders' bodies, staining them.
They screeched in irritation.
Kōya raised his blade and poured mana into his foot to activate his new skill.
A message appeared.
「Think or say 'Burst' to use it. Due to your current physical condition, you can chain it about twice, but attempting a third before the five second cooldown will damage your legs.」
Kōya smirked lightly.
"Burst."
His vision snapped forward and the monsters suddenly looked very close to him.
Not because they moved… but because he did.
In less than a blink, he closed the distance and slashed horizontally, decapitating the first Broodminder.
His momentum carried him straight through the second one, the blade severing both heads cleanly before the world returned to normal speed with a spin.
The two remaining Broodminders screeched as they flapped their wings clean of blood.
"Burst."
The world stretched again.
A flash.
Two clean beheadings.
Then he was outside the alleyway, landing on one knee as the rush faded.
His legs trembled uncontrollably.
"Damn… my legs really do feel shaky," he muttered. Pumping mana that quickly was exhilarating and almost addictive.
But it drained stamina fast.
He forced himself to breathe slowly.
"Is that all…? I expected more."
The System flashed warningly:
「Host, I don't think you should jinx—」
Buzzing.
A LOT of buzzing.
Kōya looked around slowly and his expression flattened.
At least ten Broodminders hovered around him in all directions.
'What are my percentages of winning this fight?' he asked, raising his sword. 'And don't lie to make me feel better.'
「You have an 83% chance of winning this fight if you don't spam moves with mana」
Kōya's grin was already forming.
"I like those odds."
And he launched forward with his sword raised.
…
Nami sat behind her counter in the KCAC Branch 5, her chin resting on her palm.
The morning was painfully slow. Less than twenty applicants were scattered across the room, and none approached her station.
Her eyes repeatedly drifted toward her phone. Kōya's number glowed on the contact screen.
She wanted to call him.
But there was no network outside the Supercity barriers.
'Did he… die?' she wondered anxiously. 'Kami-sama… am I cursed? Any newbie under me always goes outside the barrier and… and then… they never come back…'
Kōya was the only one registered under her now. If he was gone, she truly would be cursed.
Her coworker at the next desk leaned over with a teasing grin.
"Nami-chaaan, you're worrying too much. About that super ikemen from yesterday, ne?"
"K-Kōya-kun is just a lazy bastard," Nami said quickly, her cheeks puffing like a pouting cat. "I'm not worried! I just want to c-cash in his… ano… insurance money."
"Yeah yeah, suuuure. Keep lying." Her coworker nudged her elbow. "Come on Nami-chan, when was the last time you had a boyfriend? If he comes back alive, why not ask him out?"
"We don't know each other yet! And besides… there's no guarantee that he will actually sho—"
The front doors creaked open.
Both women looked.
A tall blond-haired man stepped inside. His hair reached past his shoulders, messy and stained with dirt.
He wore a shirt that was slightly too big for him and a new pair of trousers. His face had a few scratches, but his expression was calm… and very much alive.
Nami's jaw dropped.
Kōya walked over, stretching his arms lazily like he had just woken from a nap.
"How long did I take…?" he yawned. "All that killing made me tired."
"You took… three hours, fifty-five minutes, and thirty-eight seconds…" Nami said, checking her timer.
Her cheeks were pink… very pink. "A-Ano… Kōya-kun, did you finally realize how dangerous the Outer Zone is? Would you like to settle for safer, in-city missions now?"
"Nope." Kōya said.
His ring glowed… and clink clink clink clink, mana cores poured onto her table.
Nami froze.
Then she noticed something even more shocking.
This morning, he had only one black mark under his right eye.
Now?
Two.
A full two-line black crest.
And his face… somehow had become more handsome.
'N-No way… he ranked up?! In under four hours?! Kōya-kun is… is a monster…'
Kōya scratched his cheek casually.
"So yeah. I'm back. Aren't you going to take all these?"