Raven gripped his sword, staring at the dying beast before him. He felt intensely nervous, not out of fear of the monster itself, but because he hoped to gain experience points by killing it. After all, he hadn't brought the beast to this state; the snake had. He also reasoned that the experience points from this monster would be substantial.
Then, he delivered a powerful blow directly to the beast's head.
Dang!
Raven's hands were numb; the sword had slammed against the beast's armor. "Damn it! It's as hard as metal! I thought I could break through it. So how strong must a crocodile's head be to pierce this armor with his bare hands...?" He remembered the scene from the previous night and his body trembled. The monster was truly terrifying.
Raven stabbed the monster several times in different places, but to no avail. The message didn't appear, and the monster's body trembled as it tried to rise and kill Raven. But it couldn't; the poison had already spread throughout its body. It was on its last breaths, and finally, it gave up all resistance, staring at Raven with savage, sunken eyes. It felt insulted that this lowly creature was trying to kill it.
"Well, you wretch, don't look at me like that. You'll be my precious experience points." This time, he decided to stab the weakest part of the body, stabbing the monster's eye with all his might. This time, half the sword penetrated the monster's eye. The monster struggled a little, its body trembling. Its muscles had been destroyed by the poison, so its resistance was useless.
Rrrrrrrrragh!!
Because of pain, or perhaps anger, the monster screamed loudly, but Raven didn't stop. He plunged the entire sword into the monster's head and stabbed it repeatedly until the screams ceased and the monster lay lifeless.
He didn't draw his sword, tense as he muttered, "Show yourself, show yourself, please show yourself." He waited for the system notification. A second passed, then another, and another, until he heard that beautiful sound.
Ding!
[You killed the monster Kronm]
[Your level has increased]
[Your level has increased]
[Your level has increased]
[Your level has increased]
"Whaaaah, yes yes, hahaha, you're the most beautiful terrifying creature in this damned world, hahaha!" Raven was jumping around like a madman, hugging the dead monster. Perhaps this was the first time in his life he felt happy. "Four levels! It used to take me weeks to get from three to four levels!" Then he looked at the system interface.
00000000000000000000000000000000000
Name: Raven Drakharn (Unawakened)
Title: None
Level: 10 (85%)
Health: 100%
Race: Human
Specialization: None
Skills: None
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Main Quest: Destroy the Chaos Monster Egg]
[Details: Destroy [Egg of the Chaos Monster and kill what's inside to complete the test]
[Mission Success: 1- Test Completed]
[Failure: Death]
Raven was overjoyed with this unexpected gain, having climbed several levels in a short time and with minimal effort. Upon reaching level ten, he felt significantly stronger than before; the difference was vast. He felt a power no ordinary human could possess and thought he was close to awakening. However, after considering the strength of those who had awakened, he dismissed this notion, realizing they were essentially monsters in human form due to their immense power.
He sped away from the monster's carcass, as it might attract more hungry beasts. A smile spread across his face as he traversed the forest, thanks to his incredible speed and newfound stamina. Since childhood, he had suffered from a lack of endurance, relying on cunning and deceit in all his actions, from theft to murder, knowing his body couldn't keep up with long runs. But now, with his current strength, all this was possible, thanks to the system.
"It's unfortunate I'll lose it as soon as I leave the tower," he thought. He knew he would lose the system once he successfully awakened, so he decided to exploit it fully, unsure of what he might face upon his return.
There was also an important matter he didn't want to think about, but it constantly plagued him: his body. He was injured and near death. "If my real body on Earth dies from these injuries, I'll never be able to return," he thought. This was one of the pieces of information the world's governments had published: anyone whose body died while still inside the tower was imprisoned there forever. Therefore, a law was established that no creature could break, and it was protected by the world's most powerful hunters. It forbade killing anyone undergoing the Awakening Test.
Several hours passed before Raven finally managed to enter the forbidden zone. The only difference was that the second moonlight that illuminated this area was slightly less intense, almost nonexistent, as the zone relied heavily on the first moonlight.
Raven moved cautiously from place to place, searching for shelter to rest in, but to no avail. All the trees in this area were the same height, and they weren't dense, but rather scattered among grass and weeds. This was the first time he had ever seen grass and weeds.
"I'm exhausted." He had been running for several hours, and although he had rested intermittently, his weakness was becoming apparent. He lacked fitness and endurance. After running such long distances for so long, he realized he was still human, and that the strength he had acquired was common among other humans—not all, but perhaps the athletes.
He sighed as he sped up. He increased his speed because night had fallen, and he didn't know what the darkness might hold, as he had never entered this area at night before. Then, in the distance, he noticed a cluster of scattered houses.
"A village...? Does anyone live here...?" He didn't rule out the possibility of humans; after all, he had seen some of them in the cave prisons. So, he decided to observe the area more closely before going in, as he might not be welcomed. However, his fears vanished completely the moment he reached the village.
"I should have expected that!" This village was built of some kind of stone, and there were a total of eight small houses topped by one large, two-story building.
But wherever he looked, there were skeletons scattered on the ground. He entered the village and, as he walked, stepped on one of the bones, and to his surprise, he lost
The bones turned to dust.
"How long has it been since they died...?" If they turned to dust, it must have been hundreds of years since their deaths.
He searched every house but found nothing. Everything had decayed, consumed by time. Finally, he decided to settle in the largest house, after thoroughly searching it, of course, to ensure no monsters were hiding there.
He tried to climb to the second floor using a wooden ladder attached to the ceiling, but the moment he touched it, it turned to dust.
He sighed, looking at the hole in the ceiling. It wasn't impossible to climb; the hole was close to the wall. So, with great speed, he jumped onto the wall and then pushed himself from there to the hole, where he grabbed hold of it and climbed up.
The second floor was filled with boxes, large and small. The moment he touched them, anything he touched turned to dust. Raven sighed as he sat down, drawing his sword.
"Everyone who died in this village died without putting up a fight." He had noticed the positions of the skeletons and how they lay on the ground. Some were sitting, others sleeping, and some were lying flat. Even children's bones lay scattered in the same spot. "They must have died while playing."
He felt a little uneasy, but it didn't last long, as these bones were hundreds or thousands of years old. So he decided to relax. He leaned against the wall and opened his bag to eat some dried meat.
"A bit tough, but delicious." Of course, anything was delicious to him, because in his exile on Earth, he ate rotten food and sometimes anything he could find on the ground, like insects or rats.
After finishing his delicious meal, he closed his eyes to sleep.
"So this is the first time I've slept in a house that isn't my own..."
Time passed slowly. While Raven slept, the atmosphere outside changed. A thick fog enveloped the area, so dense that it completely engulfed the forest. Trees, ground, and houses disappeared, leaving only the thick fog.
Through the fog, strange creatures could be seen moving towards the village.