You earned [Blossom Blade]!

Riley’s eyes widened at the reward. “Blossom…blade?” He mumbled to himself; pink flowery petals started materializing out of thin air. Riley took a few tentative steps. The pink petals mixed with a scent as sweet as honey formed a ball. After a few seconds, it dispersed. A sword was created; it dipped towards the ground. Riley’s hand instinctively grabbed the handle with precision. He inspected it; it smelt sweet with a hint of calmness. The shiny blade shined from the ray of sunshine. A calm breeze came to play.

Riley looked around to see if anybody could see the sight; nobody was around the park. Riley’s silky hair danced with the breeze. The moment of the last few seconds of his death was deeply forgotten over time for a brief moment. “T-this is a masterpiece. Such beautiful work…” Riley’s soft-spoken words finally envelop the park.

[Blossom Blade]

Description: A blade imbued with magic. Its creator is unknown.

Rank: C-Rank

“It’s…a C-Rank?” Riley’s eyes widened. He couldn’t believe it; this sword was beautifully crafted. He looked at the description of the sword; this sword had magic even though he didn’t. He needed to test this out right now. He sheathed the beautiful sword. Riley takes out a hair tie from his pocket. He carefully grabbed his hair and tied it in a loose bun. “I look like a girl,” Riley tilts his head sideward while looking at his phone camera screen. “Eh, it doesn’t matter either way,” Riley mumbled as he walked through the calm park. He walks toward the D-Rank portal. The only safe portals to keep were the E and D ranks.

He reached the soldiers guarding the portal; he handed them his hunter ID. They gave him the speech that they weren’t responsible for his death, blah, blah, blah. He stepped into the portal; once again, it was the cave. The sound of dripping water echoed across the cave. The rattle of bones echoed again. “Not them again. I’m ready for you, you bastards,” Riley grits his teeth. He unsheathes his [Blossom Blade].

It was another horde. Their precarious structure was ready to tumble from any gust of wind. The swordsmen rushed at Riley; the bowsmen pulled the string of their bows. Riley’s lips curled into a smirk; his grip tightened on the handle. The red hue of their cores could be seen. Ready to be sliced and diced. Riley narrowed his eyes; he saw the imaginary thread, as usual. The white, thin thread followed the path of the skeletons; time seemed to slow down. The thread seemed to pierce through their core—none of the skeletons could feel it. It finally reached the farthest target it could grasp. Riley took a small step forward.

Riley focused on the imaginary thread; in a split second, the thread who thought they reached their farthest target seemed to expand even further. It continued to pierce the other skeleton's cores. The thread started to glow fluorescent pink; Riley’s eyes widened. Riley steadied his breathing.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

[The Threads of Life]

Riley’s body moved precisely, his sword slicing the skeleton’s cores. Riley slowly opened his eyes. In a few seconds, he sliced through most of the horde. Riley slowly turned around; his heart thumped at the sight. Beautiful, soft pink petals followed his sword; it flowed freely in the tight space. A petal slowly flowed down at the tip of his nose. A skeleton swordsman rushed at Riley.

[One Slash, One Life]

Riley’s sword sliced through the bones until it finally sliced the core in half, leaving no ridges. And to his surprise, the skeleton swordsman dispersed into petals. There are only a few skeletons left; the thread appears once again. It cut through the remaining skeleton’s cores.

[The Threads of Life]

In a split second, the skeleton’s bones dispersed into petals. They suffered the same fate as the others. Riley looked at his sword; the crisp atmosphere of the cave enveloped his body. “No way, this is a C-Rank! I wonder what a B, A, or even an S-Rank sword would be!” Riley exclaimed to himself. Of course, the noise attracted more monsters. Snarls and growls echoed in the cave. Riley’s head whipped to the noise; a bipedal creature appeared from the shadow.

The Lycan bore its fangs at Riley; drool dripped on the ridged, crisp ground. The Lycan charged at Riley with full force. Riley dodged the Lycan’s attacks. “You’re not a match for me, wolf,” Riley sneered. The Lycan desperately wailed its claws. Riley centered his blade and narrowed his eyes. At the last second, the sword’s blade was covered by a fiery pink aura.

[Pierce]

Blood gushed from the Lycan’s stomach; a loud screech echoed across the cave. Riley pulled out his sword, and a cascade of blood poured from the Lycan. The blood on the sword disintegrates from the pink aura. The Lycan’s body bursts into petals, suffering the same fate as the skeletons. The Lycan’s core settled on the ground; Riley sauntered over it. He picked up the core, its red hue vibrant.

You defeated a [Level 12 D-Rank Lycan]!

The noise attracted more Lycans to surround the area. Riley looked at the Lycans and smiled.

[Few Hours Later]

A good few hours passed since the farming in the portal. “Open system,” Riley muttered to himself.

System:

Name: Riley Whitlock

[Level 26: (65/100)]

Titles: [True Awakened], [Reaper’s Side Thorn]

Quests: [None]

[Strength: 26.5]

[Speed: 31.5]

[Magic: 0]

[Vitality: 152/152]

Skills: [One Slash, One Life], [The Threads of Life], [Hack n Slash], [Pierce]

Exclusive Skills: [Sword Aura]

Passives: [The Mad Swordsman]

Items: [Backpack], [Blossom Blade: Equipped], [30 D-Rank Mana Cores]

Riley’s eyes wandered at his status window. His eyes set on the new features he hadn’t seen before: Exclusive Skills and Shop. Riley looked at his sword, which still displayed the pink, fiery aura. Riley slowly sheathes his sword, and a tiny spark of the aura flows in the air before distinguishing. Riley turned his heel and went towards the exit. A fracture of him demands to keep working and get more cores. Riley shoves those thoughts down. This is enough.

He exits the portal. The sky’s hue turned into a melancholy orange. Riley walked past the soldiers; the soldiers looked at each other. “Poor thing probably didn’t get any mana cores,” the soldiers whispered to each other. Riley ignored them and continued walking. The curiosity killed him; he needed to know the ‘Shop’ function. He walked through a similar path. He passed a park, the voice of innocent children playing. Riley’s hand grabbed his hair tie on his bun; he let his hair go loose. The wind gust immediately blows into his hair, making it dance with the wind.

He exits the portal. The sky’s hue turned into a melancholy orange. Riley walked past the soldiers; the soldiers looked at each other. “Poor thing probably didn’t get any mana cores,” the soldiers whispered to each other. Riley ignored them and continued walking. The curiosity killed him; he needed to know the ‘Shop’ function. He walked through a similar path. He passed a park, the voice of innocent children playing. Riley’s hand grabbed his hair tie on his bun; he let his hair go loose. The gust of wind immediately blows into his hair, making it dance with the wind.