"Aah!"
A slow, painful murmur escaped Zain's lips as he lay motionless on a worn-out brown carpet in the dim corner of a deteriorated room. His eyelids fluttered, struggling to open as a sharp, throbbing pain assaulted his head. His body ached as though it had been battered by a storm, and every movement sent ripples of agony through his limbs.
"So… cold…" he whispered hoarsely, his breath shallow and weak. His body trembled, fever consuming him.
As Zain slowly regained consciousness, his surroundings came into focus, a small, cramped room constructed of old bricks and rusted metal. The cold, hard surface beneath him only intensified his discomfort. His vision swam as he attempted to sit up, pressing his back against the dark red wall.
A sharp pang on the left side of his skull made him wince. Something stirred in his hazy mind, a vague recollection buried beneath the pain. His hand trembled as he raised it to touch his left eye, only to feel a grotesque wound in its place. Dried blood and clotted flesh formed three jagged scars across his eye socket.
A realization struck him like a bolt of lightning. He had lost his eye. His left vision was gone forever.
Zain exhaled a slow, weary sigh. At least he was still alive. But where was he? Who had brought him here? The room was empty, devoid of any signs of another presence. His mind raced with questions, yet no answers surfaced.
The poison… he suddenly remembered. That thing's claws had been laced with venom, he should have died. How is he still breathing? Not only that, but his wounds… They are healed.
His right shoulder, which should have been shattered, bore only three faint scars. The pain is gone. His ruptured organs, his fractured ribs, everything has mended as if the injuries had never existed.
Impossible. How could this be?
His gaze shifted to the far side of the room, where his war axe lay in the corner. Summoning his remaining strength, he reached for it, only to be interrupted by a voice from outside the room.
"Don't move. You'll only make things worse."
Zain froze. His head snapped toward the source of the voice. The door creaked open, and an elderly woman entered the room.
She appeared to be around thirty or forty, with brown hair streaked with strands of white. Her dark eyes, black as a winter night, held an unreadable depth.
"Where am I?" Zain rasped, his voice hoarse with exhaustion. He tried once more to push himself upright, but his weakened body refused to cooperate.
The woman approached, her expression calm yet firm. "Relax, boy. If I meant you harm, I would've left you in the Death Valley."
Zain's muscles tensed.
"You would've been devoured by the undead if I hadn't dragged you out and brought you to the nearest city," she continued, her gaze sharp as she observed him.
Suspicion flickered in Zain's eyes, but before he could speak, the woman smirked.
"So, you owe me for that," she declared. "And you'd best not be disrespectful to me, or I might just kick your ass."
Zain blinked.
A chuckle escaped his lips.
This woman is… amusing.
A sudden silence settled over his mind as his thoughts came to an abrupt halt.
Wait....
what the hell was he thinking?
What part of his brain had just decided to admire an old woman?
Zain stiffened, mentally berating himself. He is no longer an old man, he is now a teenager again.
As he finds difficulty in suppressing the desires of his new body.
Damn it, his morals and mind were in complete chaos.
The woman arched a brow at his laughter, clearly intrigued. "I see you're injured, but still breathing," she remarked. "So, I carried you all the way to my house."
She paused, then gave him a knowing smile. "By the way, congratulations on awakening."
Zain frowned. "Awakening?"
"You're quite lucky," she continued. "Surviving a fight with a Tier-1 Crawler and awakening at the brink of death? That doesn't happen every day."
Zain's mind reeled.
So that creature was called a Crawler. But what did she mean by Tier-1? And what was this awakening she spoke of?
Before he could voice his questions, the woman tilted her head.
"But I do have one question," she said. "What were you doing on the battlefield? The war between humans and the undead ended three days ago."
Zain parted his lips, but before he could utter a word...
A high-pitched whistle echoed from the next room.
The woman's eyes widened. "Ah, damn it!" she muttered before rushing out the door.
Zain stared after her, baffled.
"What is she doing…?" he murmured, waiting for her return. Minutes passed, yet she did not come back. He sighed, rubbing his temple.
Summoning what little energy remained in his body, he attempted to move...
[ Host, do not move. Your body is still in critical condition. Any unnecessary movement will worsen your injuries. ]
Zain's breath hitched. His body went rigid.
A voice. In his head.
"What…?" His heart pounded. "Who are you?"
"Mr. Oberoy?"
[ No. However, I am the gift Mr. Oberoy has left for you. ]
The voice was cold, devoid of any emotion.
[ I am known as the System. My purpose is to guide you beyond your limits and forge a path to the ***]
Zain inhaled sharply.
"So, you're my first gift," he muttered. "Then… what about my second gift? The black crystal?"
[ The crystal has been fused with your soul. You now possess the ability to monitor your body's condition. However, before you check, there are unread messages in your notification panel. You were unconscious for more than a day. ]
"What?" Zain's eyes widened. "I was out for that long?"
[ Yes. The woman discovered you while she and others were collecting the bodies of fallen warriors. She brought you with her team and treated your wounds. ]
Zain turned toward the door, where the woman had disappeared. He let out a slow breath.
"Good people still exist, huh?" he mused.
[ She saved you because she saw potential in you. ]
"I know," Zain murmured. "She already told me that. But can't you stop ruining a good moment?"
Deep down, he understood the truth. She had saved him because she believed he would be useful to her in some way.
But who wasn't selfish in this world? Even family members could be self-serving... let alone strangers in a war-torn land.
His thoughts drifted back to the words she had spoken.
"What does it mean to awaken?" he asked. "And what exactly is a Tier-1 Crawler?"
[ That is why I asked you to check your notifications. ]
Zain narrowed his eyes. "Why do you sound… annoyed?"
Silence.
"Fine," he muttered. "How do I check them?"
[ Say 'Status Window.' ]
Zain hesitated before exhaling.
"Status Window."
A purple screen materialized before him, glowing faintly.
His eyes swept over the text.
---
[ Killed a Tier-1 Crawler ]
[ System fusion criteria met. ]
[ Fusion in progress… 0%… 10%… 50%… 90%… 100%. ]
[ Fusion complete. ]
[ Loading features… ]
[ Error. ]
[ Error. ]
...
...
[ Loading successful. ]
[ Scanning body condition… ]
[ Scanning bloodline… ]
[ Scanning mind… ]
[ Scanning soul… ]
[ Error detected. ]
[ Scan complete. ]
[ Constructing Status Window… ]
Ding!
----------------------------------
User: Zain Miller
Age: 17 (1060) years
Race: Demi-Human (Dormant)
Tier: 0 (Orb; 0)
Awakened Ability: Regeneration(Mid Grade)
Innate Ability: Devour (X)
Devoured Abilities: None
Titles (3): The Coward, Anomaly, Dark Apostle, One-Eyed Weakling.
Skills: None
Aether Absorption Technique: None
Weapon: Tyrant War Axe [1st Tier]
--------------------------
[ Gained a new title: One-Eyed Weakling ]
[ Host has completed the beginner's mission: First Blood ].
[ Reward: Book Of Pandora ].
~~~
Zain's brows furrowed.
"What the fuck is all this?" Zain muttered, still unable to comprehend most of the information displayed on the screen.
[ Host, open the reward. There is a book that will provide you with knowledge about this world—from its name to its current state. ]
"Open the reward… Book of Pandora," Zain murmured.
Before him, an ancient black book materialized, its cover adorned with intricate golden linings. Eight enigmatic symbols were carved into its surface, encircling a single word written in blood-red letters at the center...
"PANDORA."