I raised the G36, steadying it in my hands, and aimed through the sight at the four humanoid figures standing scattered across the grassland. They were, unmistakably, once people—human enough in form, but the details told another story. Their clothing was riddled with bullet holes and soaked in bloodstains, torn and ragged from whatever conflict had ended them the first time around.

I noticed signs of wear that could only come from prolonged exposure to gunfire. Killed by something else that could shoot, I thought, my mind drifting to the possibility of other corrupted encounters, maybe even a firefight between them. But whatever happened before, it was about to end here and now.

They wouldn’t last two minutes.

With the sight lined up, I squeezed the trigger, sending a controlled burst of precise shots downrange. My G36 spat out rounds in quick succession, each shot echoing across the quiet grassland. The bullets hit their marks, and one of the corrupted figures staggered under the impact, its body jerking as each shot tore into it.

The others turned, heads tilting in my direction, clearly alerted to my presence. But I didn’t stop, keeping up a steady rhythm, aiming carefully and peppering the first corrupted with round after round until it crumpled to the ground.

I ejected the empty magazine, letting it drop to the ground as I quickly slotted a fresh one into place. Just as I clicked it in, a sudden hail of bullets came screaming toward me, the corrupted firing their weapons in full auto with reckless abandon. I dived down, pressing myself against the ground to make as small a target as possible, the dirt and grass providing scant cover but enough to stay out of immediate sight.

[Husks - Lvl.2-6]

Husks, huh?

A sharp pinch hit my shoulder, then another, each one chipping away at my health bar in the corner of my vision. I gritted my teeth, feeling my HP steadily drop with each hit. But I kept my aim steady, returning fire even as their relentless spray of bullets rained down on me.

Without even thinking, I activated my healing magic, feeling a rush of warmth as I channeled it into my injured shoulder. My blue Psionic Energy bar ticked down, replacing my red health bar as I patched myself up with my left hand while keeping my right on the trigger. The magic pulsed through me, dulling the pain, even as I stayed low to the ground.

Even playing VR is never this good. I expected a rush of adrenaline, maybe a surge of fear or anxiety. But instead, I just felt… excited. There was a strange thrill in being shot at, in feeling the bullets bite and then watching my left hand work its slow magic, filling up my health bar bit by bit.

An idea sparked in my mind, bold and reckless. Why not? In this world, where death was temporary and rules were just suggestions, the "fuck it, we ball" approach seemed as good as any other.

I emptied another magazine, feeling the last round fire off before flicking the empty mag to the ground. In one smooth motion, I loaded a fresh one and flicked the selector switch on my G36 to full auto. Fuck it, let’s fucking go!!!

With the sights locked on the nearest husks, I broke into a sprint, charging straight at them. The world blurred around me, my focus zeroed in on the targets as I closed the distance fast I felt a lot of pinches at my body as the barrel of my G36 kept pumping the husks with lead bullets.

Switching targets, I brought my barrel within inches of another husk's head and squeezed the trigger. The bullets tore through, shredding the tissue and bone, turning its face into minced meat. Just as the last round left my rifle, the magazine clicked empty.

Without losing a beat, I yanked out the spent mag, flinging it straight at the final husk. The magazine hit him square in the face, making him flinch back just enough for me to reload.

The fresh mag snapped into place with a satisfying click. Without a second thought, I lunged forward, ramming the barrel of my G36 directly into his head, and pulled the trigger. The final husk dropped to the ground, skull cracking as the rounds tore through, leaving nothing but a lifeless shell.

I stood there for a moment, catching my breath, a grin creeping onto my face.

“That was fun.”

My red health bar flickered dangerously, hanging at a mere 20%. It was reckless, I knew that. Charging headlong, taking all those hits—it was a dumb move. But in the heat of the moment, with adrenaline surging and excitement overriding caution, I couldn’t help myself.

I placed my left hand against my body, feeling the warmth of my healing magic seep through. This time, I poured everything I had into it, draining my entire reserve of psionic energy. Gradually, my health bar began to fill, the pain easing as the magic worked its way through me.

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However, I realized that the absence of pain didn’t necessarily mean the absence of injury. Despite the closed wounds, bloodstains had seeped through my clothing. However, the healing spell managed to close all of the holes.

[Exiting Combat: +1,500 EXP]

[Level Up: 1 → 3]

[You Got Bonus Points For Your First Time Leveling Up]

[24 Status Points Available]

[3 Skill&Perks Points Available]

[Quest Complete: +3,000 UC, +400 Exp]

Nice. So, what is available at the moment for me?

The status screen then opened up for me, displaying the stats, and the whole thing about what its main purpose was.

[24 Skill Points Available] [3 Skill&Perks Points Available]

Name: Ain

Class: Guardian Healer

Race: Fallen Angel

Strength: 5 (You’ll be able to carry more loot, and probably handle heavier weapons, and life baggage)

Agility: 20 (You want to be Usain Bolt? You got that, girl)

Vitality: 50 (Your skin will be as tough as steel)

Aptitude: 15 (Maybe, just maybe, you can summon Monster Energy Drink)

“Hmmm, loot, eh?” I muttered, eyeing the equipment scattered around the fallen husks. They had four assault rifles, a handful of pistols, and all kinds of other potentially valuable gear. But with only 25 kg of carry weight and 15 of it already used up, I’d have to make some sacrifices.

Or… maybe not.

I decided to put ten of my status points into Strength. The moment I confirmed the points, I felt a strange surge course through me, like my body suddenly became lighter, and stronger. I opened my inventory, and sure enough, my carry capacity had shot up to a whopping 75 kg. Ten status points for a threefold increase in carry weight? I thought, half-amused. It felt a bit like cheating, but hey—if the game was handing out bonuses, I wasn’t going to complain.

I still had 14 points left. Maybe I should put it on aptitude so I could use my healing magic way often. Even healing up my health to the full amount took almost all of my psionic energy. With that, I got my full status points.

Name: Ain

Class: Guardian Healer

Race: Fallen Angel

Strength: 15

Agility: 20

Vitality: 50

Aptitude: 29

(What, do you expect a snarky comment?)

[Skills] [Perks] [3 Skill&Perk Points Available]

Curious, I pressed the Skills menu. A list of abilities popped up, most of them focused on healing, but a few race-specific options caught my eye:

* [Healing Bullet]

* [Healer Gas]

* [Dark Psionic Imbuing]

Each skill cost one skill point, and I had the option to upgrade existing skills with the same points. However, since skill points were limited and these choices seemed valuable, I switched over to the Perk menu to explore more options.

The perk menu looked different, showing passive skills instead of active ones. After scrolling a bit, I started to get a feel for it. Skills would be my go-to for abilities I could activate in battle, while Perks were more like background bonuses.

* [Fallen Angel Rage]

* [Potion/Stim Brewing]

* [First Aider Discount]

Each perk had its own appeal, but I decided to go with a strategic mix. First, I upgraded [Healing Hands] to boost my core healing ability, making it stronger and potentially more efficient for extended battles. Then, I picked up [Dark Psionic Imbuing]. If it added some kind of dark energy or damage boost, it could come in handy against tougher enemies.

Lastly, I unlocked [Potion/Stim Brewing]. Crafting my own potions or stims would probably give me more money than simply just being a wandering healer, right? I mean, I could be healing people and peddling drugs at the same time. It would be not so bad, wouldn’t it? Then, the full description of the skills appeared after I unlocked them all.

* Dark Psionic Imbuing: Imbue your weapon with dark psionic energy, transforming it into a semi-conscious entity. This imbued weapon unleashes devastating dark energy upon enemies, guides your attacks with unerring precision, and adjusts your bullets to strike true even against elusive targets.

* First Aider: Your bandaging and first-aid skills are 50% faster than other classes, making you the go-to for quick battlefield patch-ups. Plus, you take 50% less damage while healing others—because even the healer needs some protection in the line of fire.

* Potion/Stim Brewing: Unlock a specialized brewing interface, granting access to advanced recipes and the ability to craft potent potions and stims for enhanced performance.

With my skill choices made, I closed the menu and turned my attention to looting the husks. To my surprise, they had an inventory interface—no need for the awkward process of patting down corpses. All I had to do was touch their bodies, and a display popped up, showing what each husk was carrying.

A mix of items appeared: ammo, various weapons, and a few scattered personal effects. There were definitely some odd bits mixed in—things you wouldn’t usually expect to see on anyone carrying heavy firepower. But these corrupted had once been ordinary people, after all, so I wasn’t entirely shocked.

I grabbed anything useful or valuable, storing it in my expanded inventory space.

[Inventory - 50/75 kg] [4,100 UC]

* 240x 5.56x45 NATO [90x FMJ; 60x HP; 90x M885]

* 90x 9x19 [60x HP; 30x FMJ]

* M4A1

* UMP-9

* ADAR 2-15

* 4x M1911

* 8x Bar of Snickers

* Leatherman Multitool

* 4x Laptops

* 2x Flash Disks

* 4x IFAK [30x Painkillers, 20x Sterile Bandages, 8x Tourniquet, 30x Antibiotics]

* 5x MREs

* 30x Gelatinous Substance

* Eleanor’s Pudding Recipe

[Weapons][Vehicles][Armor/Equipment]

Alright, time to head back to the depot and sell all of these weapons, loot, and other things.