—BAAM!

The door slammed open as a figure trudged into my dorm room.

“FUCK!”

Who told the {Evil} to enter here!?

WHO!?

I could barely keep my mystic pattern alive, supplying it with every inch of mana I could siphon from the world. I wasn’t adept at any of these actions. I did it simply to survive. I did all I could, all for one more breath.

I saw the {Evil} being through a crack in my blanket.

It was a reptilian, bipedal monster, like a crocodile walking on two long legs. Its hands had talons as long as daggers, and on its head was a maw filled with rows and rows of bloody teeth.

The monster had no eyes. It had no nostrils. Only eight holes that served as its ears.

It subsisted on the ambient mana, breathing in pure energy, and exhaling a putrid essence that could choke the soul.

Exactly as I had written it.

Now I could feel myself shivering in its presence.

The smell of blood emanated from its breath, stifling my own.

Ugh.

I felt like throwing up. The nausea of this scent even triggered my and impaled my brain upon a stake.

Rage boiled within me as the {Evil} moved towards me.

I hated everything about this. Everything.

The opportune moment wasn’t going to arrive at my leisure. I had to make one out of thin air.

However, how was I supposed to do that? The talent that I created was unparalleled at making things difficult for me. The insignia I made forced me into a Class that barely had any decent heritage in this city. It was already a miracle for to exist.

I didn’t know how, but it was there.

It was my only solace in my current situation.

“Here! I saw it enter this room!”

I heard voices, and so did the {Evil}. Turning its head before the rest of its body, it lunged with open maws.

—Crunch!

The emerging freshman whose confidence had been through the roof, instantly fell prey to the {Evil}’s ambush. His confidence shattered, but not before his life ended.

‘A chance,’ I thought, as another freshman in the hall perished under its claws.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

While several more reckless freshmen attacked the {Evil}, I observed it standing within my doorway. I watched the twitch of its muscles. The waving of its claws. Nervous about whether or not I would succeed given the deviation from my original plans.

Swiftly, as if compelled by the situation, I drew yet another mystic pattern for [Quiet]. Then, I sprung out of my bed and lunged forward. The stale, polluted air moved past my face while I strained every muscle I could.

I had to maximize my speed, no matter how little it was.

Then, with an outstretched arm, I placed my palm upon the {Evil}’s slimy scales, and the mystic pattern adhered itself to its body.

Suddenly, the {Evil} froze. Like suddenly going blind, the sounds that had once accompanied it throughout its entire life had suddenly disappeared.

To be disoriented in such a scenario would be an understatement.

‘I only have five seconds of this—!’

I dove to the ground and grabbed a shortsword, taking the weapon from the lifeless corpses throughout the hall. Lifting it up, I felt its weight and the meaning it brought — death, survival, and plain killing.

Then, with an awkward slash, I cleaved into the {Evil}’s clavicle.

I watched as it seemed to cry out in pain, yet I heard no sound.

Leaving the sword embedded where it was, I grabbed a nearby dagger from one of my fellow freshmen. It was still coated in its owner’s blood.

This time, my target was the {Evil}’s heart.

—Ssuk!

With a flicker of motion, a dagger found its way into the {Evil}’s chest… yet missing its heart by a few inches.

‘Damn!’

I cursed my incompetence. Three seconds had passed.

I had two more.

So, I fled. I dove into my cabinet and once again drew my one and only mystic pattern.

—KREUNNGGGGGGGGG!

A bestial roar enveloped my ears, and I felt the vibrations in the air. My mystic pattern had lost its effect, and I had no more mana to make another. The one that I was drawing at the moment would be my last.

Moreover, I was slow.

Only after the length of another breath did [Quiet] once again fall upon my shoulders. I was choking on my own breaths. The suspense was a murderous affair.

If I had insisted on debuffing the {Evil} again, I would have surely died first.

Frustration welled up in my heart. Such a good opportunity… wasted. All because I was unfamiliar with the usage of weapons.

However, at least I had some consolation.

[Your mastery over your craft has been acknowledged.]

[You have gained a Class.]

[You have gained a Rank.]

[Class: Artist]

[Rank: 0 ]

***

The {Evil} couldn’t find me, but it could easily hear more prey rapidly closing in, foolish and in droves. What compelled it to enter my room no longer seemed to exist.

Therefore, I concluded that I was safe. Here, hiding in my closet.

The foul energy that it exuded gradually thinned — I could feel it walking away. I was finally allowed to relax, ever so slightly.

However, even if I was on the verge of fainting, I still poured mana into my mystic pattern. I needed it to stay in place, supplying me with silence.

I would only release it when I truly had no choice to. Just to be sure.

And that moment arrived sooner than I thought.

Lightheadedness assaulted me. The world began to turn white.

Naturally, what meager reserves I had, was drained entirely. My mystic pattern dissipated on its own. I was once again reconnected with the world.

Yet there were no more roars nor screams upon its disappearance. Only an eerie silence.

I got lucky.

Those were my last thoughts as I lost consciousness.