Despite the dire situation, Ace couldn't have been happier. In the sea of useless trash that was the scrapyard, he had found a weapon. The crowbar became his lifeline and using it effectively would determine if he would live to see another day.
As the chase continued Ace began to run low on energy. In contrast the beast behind him kept the same pace, in fact he could have sworn he heard the sound of its footsteps speed up, as if it was encouraged by his fatigue. A grim realization dawned on him as he rounded yet another corner.
'If I want to kill this beast, then I have to give it what it wants.'
He sailed out of the maze and into a clearing similar to the one that housed his original scrap pile. Scanning the open space, Ace noticed that there was only one path both into and out of the clearing. Cursing his luck, he ran to the center of the field and turned around, left with no choice but to face the beast.
He had hoped he could take advantage of the scrap maze to make a surprise attack, but he would have to manage without them, relying on his skill and tenacity alone. Gripping the crowbar tightly in his hand, he turned the double pronged side outwards.
Seconds later, the beast tore through the entry way and locked eyes with him. The bird-like creature had seemed ravenous before but now it looked downright feral, almost as if it was enraged by the long chase. He taunted the animal.
"Alright you big fatty, two meals in one night?! You wish! If you want a piece of me then come and get it!"
Strangely, the bird refused to charge at him like earlier. Instead, it began walking a circle around him, waiting for a chance to strike. Drool dripped from its long beak as it sized Ace up.
Then, the bird did something unexpected. It took flight. Using its strong wings, it circled him from above.
The bird was fast on the ground, but from the sky... it was almost a blur.
He gave up trying to track the creature and instead steeled his spirit. He knew what he had to do, and he knew when the bird would attack. After all, he knew the bird better than it knew itself.
The bird was a coward. It had only attacked creatures weaker than itself and chased Ace only because he ran away first. Similar to the thugs of the slums, the bird would only attack him if it was from behind. He could feel it in his bones.
Ace focused on the sound of the bird's wings and waited. One second passed, then two, then twenty. With seemingly no warning, the rhythm of the wing flapping changed.
Almost instantly, the beast was upon him, leading with its beak as if it were going to skewer Ace. However, the boy turned around almost as fast.
It was over in less than a second.
[Congratulations....]
The warden was talking but Ace couldn't make out what it was saying.
"Fuck... "
He looked down and spat out a globule of blood.
The beast had pierced him cleanly, its beak burrowing through his stomach and exiting out of his back. He looked at his left hand. In it, was the crowbar, with most of it buried deep in the skull of the bird. It had died instantly.
At the moment of impact Ace had thrust the crowbar forward while leading with the double pronged blade. He wouldn't have been able to pierce its skull with his own strength but by using the bird's momentum, he didn't have to.
"That's what you get for being greedy you overgrown pest! This is what happens when your food fights back...Ughhhh!"
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
He let out another mouthful of blood.
Losing strength by the second, he pushed himself off the beak and fell down to the ground as blood gushed from the hole in his stomach.
Images of his family flashed before his eyes. He couldn't believe it was ending like this.
'Killed by a bird? It was a big bird but damn! Are you kidding me? To think I died before Rus... wow.'
Unable to muster the energy for even his thoughts, Ace closed his eyes and waited for the end to come.
Instead, the sleepiness of encroaching death was replaced with a burning pain in his abdomen. It was so great that Ace couldn't help but thrash around. Gasping for air, he pulled up the tattered remains of his shirt only to see that.... the hole in his stomach was shrinking?
As the tissues of his internal organs weaved themselves back together, he felt waves of searing pain course throughout his entire body. The feeling was indescribable, forcing his body to convulse even more violently. Eventually, once the organs had finished patching themselves back together, the protective muscle and fat came next.
Huddled in the fetal position on the ground, he continued to writhe in pain until the healing was complete. Once it was all over he found himself drenched in a puddle of his own sweat and finally able to hear his floating friend.
[Congratulations Laevus, you are the first human of GQC-1 to have killed a Sever Beast (Grade 1 Raven). You have earned the following awards.]
A floating red screen appeared, hovering above Ace's face while he tried to catch his breath.
---
[Awards]
[ Title : Trader of Life ]
[ Title : Prime Adaptor ]
[ Merits : 1000x ]
[ Alias For Warden ]
Bonus : Compensation for Unforeseen Event
[ Choice of Following Options ]
- Terran Beast Guide
- Trial Hidden Objective Guide
- Sever Energy Ascension Guide
---
Finally able to sit up, he asked for an elaboration.
'Uh...So what does a title do? What are merits for? And I'm getting bonus rewards as well? '
[A title creates a privilege that is usually linked to one of my core functions. In rare cases, a title is an analysis of unique properties your Sever Energy has. Regardless, a title of any kind will increase your standing on other planets that Interlopers have already subjugated. The stats page will give additional information on the exact privileges you have received.]
[Merits are a type of currency that is linked to one of my locked core functions. It will be released at the start of Combat Testing.]
[You have been granted a bonus reward because the two beasts you encountered were anomalies that should not have been able to make it to this installation in the time since the barrier opening. The incident has already been reported.]
'Alright, I think I'm following you. Please tell me more about the bonus rewards!'
[The Terran Beast Guide will download into my database, giving me all knowledge of Sever Beasts on this planet regardless of their grade. This means that you need only see a beast to identify and receive valuable information about its habits and special abilities.]
[The Trial Hidden Objective Guide will download the requirements necessary to complete a hidden objective for any upcoming trial. It can be an individual hidden objective or one for the entirety of humanity. The choice is yours.]
[The Sever Ascension Guide will immediately unlock all my data on Sever Energy and how to become more proficient in its use. As all beings can eventually receive this information through either self discovery or being taught, there is a notable bonus included in this guide in particular.]
[These are your options. You have 24 Hours to make your decision.]
'Thank you Warden. And what about the alias thing?'
[It means that you can give me a name. There are benefits as a warden grows closer to its user. That is all I am authorized to say.]
'Interesting... I promise I'll come up with a good one then!'
With that, the red screen fizzled out, leaving Ace alone in the clearing with only the body of the giant bird to accompany him. Finally, after a couple of minutes, he found the strength to push himself to his feet. Looking down at his abdomen he couldn't even find a trace of the grievous wound that almost killed him.
Having an idea of what happened, he brought up his stats but only focused on the lines that contained question marks and his Sever Capacity.
---
Sever Capacity: 0/80.1
???? ??????? ???????: 15/20
---
Just as Ace had suspected, the mystery stat that had been full only a couple of minutes ago had been partially used up by healing from his injury. Curiously, his Sever Capacity had also increased.
Having at least some of his questions answered, he let out a long sigh and turned to look at the horizon.
The first rays of sunlight were pushing out the darkness of the night. He didn't have much time to return home if he wished for his late night excursion to go unnoticed. In a hurry, he grabbed the crowbar from the bird's corpse and began running home.
As a result, Ace failed to notice the cloaked figure standing atop the walls of the scrapyard. Still hidden from sight, the figure disappeared with a small flash of light.