Nathaniel moved through the city with a new sense of purpose. His previous mission to find supplies had become secondary to his need to test the limits of his newfound power. The city was a wasteland, filled with the weak and the desperate. It wasn’t long before he encountered another group of survivors—predators, much like the ones he had encountered before.

These people had been preying on the weak, taking what they wanted by force. Nathaniel could see it in their eyes, the way they looked at him as he approached, weapons drawn. But this time, he wasn’t afraid.

He stepped out of the shadows, his presence almost supernatural. The leader of the group—a burly man with a scar running down his face—snarled at him.

“Who the hell are you?” the man growled, raising his gun.

Nathaniel didn’t answer. Instead, he activated his Shadow Cloak, his body merging with the darkness. The man’s eyes widened in fear, but it was too late. Nathaniel moved faster than the eye could follow, his form a blur of shadow and violence.

The first man went down with a single strike, his neck snapped like a twig. The others barely had time to react before Nathaniel was upon them, the tendrils of darkness lashing out, tearing flesh and breaking bones. Blood sprayed across the pavement as screams filled the air.

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Nathaniel felt no remorse, only a cold satisfaction as he watched their bodies fall. The system rewarded him again, the familiar rush of experience points pushing him closer to the next level.

Level 4.

He had become a predator, hunting those who preyed on the innocent. The irony was not lost on him, but he didn’t care. This was what the world had become—a brutal game of survival, where the strong ruled and the weak perished.

Days passed in a blur of violence and bloodshed. Nathaniel stalked the city, seeking out those who had taken advantage of the chaos to commit atrocities. He became a ghost, a shadow that struck without warning, leaving only death in his wake. Each kill brought him closer to his next level, each battle honed his skills.

He no longer thought of the survivors he had left behind. They were safe, for now, and he had a new mission. The system had given him power, and he would use it to cleanse the city of those who had succumbed to the darkness.

By the time he reached Level 5, Nathaniel had become a force to be reckoned with. His abilities had grown, the shadows bending to his will with ease. His reputation had spread among the survivors, whispered rumors of a dark avenger who hunted those who preyed on the weak.

But as he stood at the edge of the city, gazing out over the ruined landscape, he knew it was time to return. The group he had left behind needed him, and there was something else—something dark and dangerous—that had been festering in the shadows. He could feel it, a presence that called to him, beckoning him back.

With a final look at the city that had become his hunting ground, Nathaniel turned and began the journey back to the camp. He had unfinished business, and the shadows whispered of a greater threat that awaited him.