The frozen world glittered in the rainbow glow of the summoning station’s light. My eyes were glued on the station’s depths, and I was unable to tear them away from the shattering of reality occurring within. When the light bathed over my skin, I forgot my fear, and my pain. There were only butterflies on my stomach, and peace in my mind.

Tuttle’s scream of triumph ripped me away from my comfort.

[Congratulations Inheritor! You have drawn Laevateinn (legendary).]

A beam of rainbow light cascaded over the turgid Inheritor, casting a glittering glamor over him. From the summoning portal fell a single dagger, its blade formed from plain and simple steel, and its hilt was covered in a loose strap of leather.

The moment it fell into Tuttle’s claws, his eyes widened, and the world once again moved. There was something peaceful about the quiet and silence that followed, disturbed only by my backwards step as I pushed myself away from the two aliens.

A single whip of crimson light shattered the moment, and Tuttle turned to face Leonis. His face shifted into a crooked smile…

…then his lips parted in two, cut apart by the cyborg’s whips. His flesh quickly followed, and then his clawed hand fell to the ground, detached from its wrist. A leg soon followed, and then the surroundings shook as his bulbous stomach smashed into the ground. His chest had been carved open, revealing a gargantuan blue heart that was riddled with thick black veins.

Tuttle had been flayed alive in the blink of an eye.

“It is truly a pity when a gnat mistakes itself for a dragon. But this treasure was never yours to claim,” Leonis said.

His metal features warped into a simulacrum of a smile, twisted and jagged, and he stepped toward Tuttle’s body. His glowing eye ignored me, focused entirely on the dagger that had dropped into Tuttle’s hand.

Then, his body smacked against an invisible wall in the air.

[Not so fast, Inheritor.] The System’s voice interrupted, calm and confident. [Do you know how much paperwork you have just given me? None, because I don't use paper. Which sounds like a joke, but I only joke because I am well. And. Truly. Mad.]

Oh crap.

I hadn't known the System long, but everything it had shown me told me that it wasn't good to mess with it. Now, it was mad. I didn't want to know what happened when this System got mad. But I had a feeling I was about to find out.

Leonis punched the air in front of him and it rippled and cracked. “You cannot take away my right to the spoils of war, I have killed the Inheritor of this hub, and so I claim the right to its ownership.”

His words reeked of confidence, but I could see the cyborg’s fingers twitching as he spoke. He was nervous, and at the edges of his knuckles I could see the metal had frayed and rusted.

[You are not the master. You are an Inheritor, and I administrate your actions.] The System’s reply held no hint of emotion, but a chill ran down my spine. The air around me turned chilly, and in that moment, I realized nobody was watching me. [A hundred thousand years. That is how long it has been since an Inheritor has died at the hands of another before the twentieth floor. Now, you have killed one before the first even began.]

Leonis didn't care about me. The System was angry at him. And neither were on my side. As far as they were concerned, my life meant nothing, and both would likely find a way to kill me or worse once they finished their argument.

Nah. Screw that. I'm not going to wait and see what horrible death they have planned for me. But what can I do? Wait, why didn't I see any notifications?

I frowned. Every big moment had been accompanied by a notification from the System. This time, an Inheritor had died, but no notification had followed.

A movement at the corner of my eye caught my attention, and my eyes widened.

There's no way.

I shook my head. I'd seen what I'd seen, and if my eyes weren't playing tricks on me, it might be my only way forward. I pushed myself forward, inching toward Tuttle’s corpse.

[Perhaps I have been too lenient this cycle. Too incautious. Hmm.]

Leonis’s expressions shifted as the System spoke, and it quickly began to elaborate its qualms. But I ignored its words.

I'd made it to the tree stump, crawling stealthily over the tree trunk that had crashed into the ground. Smoke wafted off of the top of the stump, where Leonis’s whip had cut it in a perfectly straight line.

Now, I could see the remains of Tuttle’s body clearly.

The dagger was only a few feet away.

Leonis’s growl cut through the air. “You—”

[—Shut up. The issue is not that you killed the Merkiln. He stunk enough to make me want to kill him myself. And I have no nose. No. My problem is the number of Inheritors. Even if you claim ownership, the first floor must always have one hundred thousand Inheritors.]

The System’s voice tore through the air, and Leonis’s metallic body shrieked as it was smashed into the ground. Concrete met steel and lost as deep gouges were cut into the floor, sending a spray of shards in all directions.

And in that moment, I struck.

Pushing off the fallen tree, I leapt at the dagger and grasped it in my hand. The moment I did, several blue boxes appeared in my vision, but I pushed them aside and turned toward my target. The same thing I'd seen from afar as Leonis and the System argued.

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Despite having his body carved into pieces, Tuttle’s heart was still beating.

The Merkiln was still alive.

Wait. Was Tuttle a Merkiln? Or was that the name of a group of races? Deep down, I knew it didn't matter. Tuttle had his own story. A life lived. A home where his heart was. Perhaps, if I heard it, my opinion about his decisions would change. But the dozens of dead people on the floor told me all I needed to know.

I was going to stab him anyway. The dagger was light and cold to the touch, unblemished by the blood that had splattered around the Inheritor’s dying body.

Without hesitation, I plunged it deep into Tuttle’s open chest

[Tom Vegas (F-Rank) has slain an Inheritor; Tuttle, lord of the cherries and blacksmith of greed. Oh my god, you killed your Inheritor! You bastard!]

[An Inheritor has been slain before entering the first floor. You have achieved something that has never been achieved before! Reward: Pending review.]

The System and cyborg froze and fell silent as the notifications flooded in. A glowing red eye fell onto me as Leonis finally noticed my existence, and his face twisted into a snarl as he saw the dagger stabbed into the heart.

There was no doubt in my mind that he could end my life in an instant, just like he had Tuttle’s. My only protection was the System holding him down.

“Give me the weapon,” Leonis’s voice broke through the silence.

I slowly pulled the dagger out of Tuttle’s heart. It was surprisingly tough to do, the dead organ’s skin wrapping around the metal blade like bedsheets, but when I withdrew the steel, it was clean and unblemished.

“No,” I replied calmly. “I heard what you said. Tuttle owed you a debt. I don't.”

What the hell am I saying?

I looked around at the dead human corpses around me. Tuttle had killed them, his claw marks running across their backs. None of them had been struck from the front because they'd all tried to run. And every one of them had died without a chance of survival.

This new reality wouldn't be kind to cowards.

“What are you doing, human?” Leonis’s eye glowed brighter, and I raised the dagger in response. But as the cyborg tried to rise, he was once again pushed down into the concrete.

The System had interfered.

“My name’s Tom. Tom Vegas,” I said. “And I'm betting on myself.” I glanced up at the sky, and the omnipresent entity that I knew was watching us. “Hey, System, this cyborg just said that anybody who kills an Inheritor gets to claim this place, right?”

[That rule applies for Inheritors. You are a unit. Your only reward for betraying your Inheritor is death.] The System replied.

“Why the hell do I have to die!” I shouted. “You told me that I'd live as long as I fought for my Inheritor. Well, now they're dead, but I'm not. So why do I have to die?”

There was a pause. Then, a single box appeared in front of me.

[Inheritor Leonis, you are not permitted to view the administration processes to follow. You will be sent back to your hub to await my decision.]

“Tuttle and I had a deal,” Leonis roared. “His assets are mine.”

[I am altering the deal. Pray that I do not alter it any further.]

The cyborg tried to rise, and within his glowing eye I could see anger and fury simmering into something greater.

“Human,” the metallic voice cut through my ears like a cheese grater. “We will meet again. And when we do, I will take back what is mine. Until then, make sure you live so that we may meet again.”

“Just for you, I'll try my best to keep myself alive,” sarcasm dripped from my lips. “Your concern is touching.”

Leonis chuckled. It was a deep rumble that quickly transformed into a growl. “You are worth nothing to me dead, but alive, you may yet bear me fruit. One day, we may meet. When that time comes, give me the weapon. Or I will kill you as I did your master. If you do not give it to me, I will catch you. And I promise you this, I will not kill you, Tom Vegas. No matter how much you plead for death, no matter how much you beg for it, and no matter how much you scream for it, I will make sure you live.”

[Very entertaining. I look forward to your meeting.] The System said, its voice strangely enthusiastic. [Goodbye now, Inheritor.]

A bright flash of blue light struck Leonis before he could reply, and I staggered back as I was blinded. When my sight returned to me a few seconds later, the cyborg was gone, leaving only shattered concrete, a few clawed strands of glowing crimson whips, and broken metal to denote that he'd ever existed.

Then, the System’s attention turned to me.

[Maybe you are right.]

Wait. What?

Had my words gotten through to the System’s cold, inhuman heart?

[The paperwork would be so annoying.] The System’s voice took on a hint of despair. [There are one hundred thousand Inheritors fighting for the right to rule this world. None are meant to die until the 20th floor. Not unless they are idiots. Gah. This is such a crapshoot. I am going to penalize that Inheritor so hard for this.]

The System’s grumbling filled my vision as the blue box continued to grow larger, and just as I feared it would reach the level of a Star Wars opening crawl, it disappeared.

[A unit slaying an Inheritor. An unprecedented event. Normally, it would be impossible. Hmm.]

The System let out a long, drawn-out groan into my mind. Apparently, this was a difficult situation for it. I would've felt some sympathy if my planet hadn't been destroyed and humanity taken in and treated like cattle.

As it was, I was happier tapping my foot on the ground than acknowledging the ailing System.

[Would you stop that.] The System snapped at me. [I have made my decision, Earthling.]

There was a flash of light, and something dropped onto the ground in front of me with a thunk. I stared at it. It was a chest. Not the kind I had. It was the kind of chest that pirates looted. Its surface was covered in red velvet which glowed bright with the same rainbow light that was present in the summoning station when the legendary dagger had been drawn. A strange trimming covered the gilded material, and I realized that it was diamond.

After a moment of staring, several blue boxes flashed to life before my eyes, startling me.

[Congratulations Tom Vegas, you have accomplished the impossible and slain your Inheritor!]

[Your reward has been decided.]

[Reward: Diamond reward chest x1.]

I stared at the rainbow coloured chest. “What's in the box, John?”

The System cleared their throat, which I'm pretty sure was just showmanship on their part, and I could feel their pride in the solution they'd come up with.

[Unit Tom Vegas, for the achievement of slaying an Inheritor, you will in turn inherit all of their responsibilities. You will join the inheritance cycle of your world and lead your units to victory. However, your status of cattle—I mean, your status as a unit will not be revoked. You will not gain the invincibility of an inheritor, and you will not possess the political ties or familial ties of the inheritor you have slain.]

A tornado of blue boxes flurried around me as the System spoke, and pain exploded through my head as something drilled into my brain. The burning wasn't mental, nor was it physical, it was beyond both. A metaphysical pain so deep that it burned my soul and continued to do so even as I cried out in protest.

I fell to my knees and hit the Walmart aisle floor.

[You have been granted access to the Hub status screen.]

[You have been granted access to the Hub schematics.]

[You have been granted access to the Hub store screen.]

[You have been given permission to use the summoning station.]

[You have been granted access to the Inheritance Trials.]

Blue boxes flickered in and out of my vision as my mind burned. Some of them held words, but others displayed tables and stats that I had never seen before. Before my eyes there was a whole new world of skills and powers before my eyes to be explored, only for them to disappear the next moment and be replaced by a single sentence.

The pain reached a crescendo, cascading from my mind and into my wider body. My hands grasped at the back of my head, clutching my hair in clumps as I struggled to stay conscious. But the System had other plans for me, and I heard it tut as a new wave of pain exploded through my head.

And as the world went dark around me, a single blue box blazed to life my vision.

[Welcome to the universe, Inheritor.]