Alvaric had successfully avoided the Giant Sandworm. Now he was sitting on a large rock, holding three Sand Crawlers in his left hand. He was eating while staring straight ahead. What he saw was nothing but an endless desert. From Alvaric's perspective, there was no visible end to the desert.
He kept eating calmly. These were the 47th Sand Crawlers he had eaten. He had eaten so many Sand Crawlers that his tongue had become numb. He could now eat Sand Crawler meat without showing any sign of disgust.
"Will I be trapped in this desert forever?" Alvaric muttered.
He looked around, but all he could see was sand and dry land. There was no sign of green as far as his eyes could see. He jumped down, seeking shade under the rock. At midday, the sun would become scorching. Being under the sunlight without protection would burn his skin. Alvaric's skin was already dry, and his face was covered in dust. He hadn't bathed in two days.
In this desert, the daytime was extremely hot, especially at noon, but the nights were freezing like the polar regions. It was so cold that Alvaric felt as though his body was frozen. Not only that, but it was also pitch black. He could barely see anything. Alvaric felt like something was watching him at night, so he stacked stones and hid beneath them. That way, he could sleep peacefully.
"If this keeps up, I'll die of dehydration," Alvaric complained.
He was still able to survive because the blood of the Sand Crawlers was enough to hold off his thirst, but blood wasn't just minerals. There was iron and lead in it, which made his throat dry. Over time, it became more torturous. At first, he only needed two or three Sand Crawlers to delay his thirst.
However, as time went on, the amount he needed kept increasing. It was extremely painful. Alvaric felt he was going mad from the unbearable thirst.
"Looks like I have to go south," he said.
He decided to head south. Alvaric didn't know whether this was the right decision, but he had no choice. If he stayed in one place, it would be even worse—he would die from exhaustion or something else. Although going forward also carried a high chance of death, at least he had hope that maybe there was water there.
All Alvaric needed right now was water. He wouldn't be able to stay alive if he didn't find water in the next few days. His body was approaching its limit.
Far away, someone was holding a list of names. He frowned, certain that they had summoned 240 people, but there were only 239 present. He tried counting again, but the result was the same.
"Seems like one person didn't get summoned properly, sir."
The man glanced over. "Does it matter? Missing one won't change anything."
Alvaric walked with exhausted legs, his vision starting to blur, his breath growing heavier. He could feel that his condition was worsening. This was the fourth day he had been there, yet he still hadn't completed the first mission given by the system.
Alvaric glanced at the screen—it showed he had completed 98 out of 100 for his first mission. He only needed to kill two more, and it would be complete. But finding even one Sand Crawler had become extremely difficult.
After walking far to the south, Alvaric had hardly encountered any Sand Crawlers. For an entire day, he hadn't seen even one. His thirst was becoming unbearable. His throat was parched.
"Am I going to die?" Alvaric muttered.
He collapsed, his skin turning red and burning from the heat of the sand. Alvaric wanted to get up, but his body was too worn out. He felt no motivation anymore. Alvaric smiled and laughed like a madman. He was beginning to go insane from all of this.
The summoning, which was supposed to be a blessing because he would gain superpowers, had become hell instead. Forget powers—he didn't even have food or water. The place he ended up in was scorching hot, just like the descriptions of hell he had heard.
"If gods really exist, I curse them for sending me to this stupid world," Alvaric said bitterly.
According to the stories, a hundred years ago—or more precisely, in the year 2045—the world suddenly faced an apocalypse. Monsters emerged from mysterious portals and began to destroy the Earth. Humans were slaughtered by them. A year later, a plague broke out, killing almost 50% of the global population.
Just when all hope seemed lost, the world suddenly went dark, and a voice echoed from the sky, "You humans will receive our blessings. Rejoice!"
After that, some humans mysteriously disappeared, but three years later they returned with extraordinary powers. Those who came back and gained superpowers were called Awaken. Since then, people would mysteriously disappear every year.
It was said that the ones who summoned them were the gods. Their blessings gave humans superpowers. With the help of the gods, Earth began to recover. Life became more peaceful, and death rates decreased because the monsters were hunted down by the Awaken. Alvaric was supposed to be part of that—but instead, he had been thrown into a horrifying and unknown place.
"I'll kill you gods. I will kill—" suddenly, Alvaric's eyes saw something. He immediately stood up and ran while laughing. "Water!" he screamed.
He kept running. When he arrived, he immediately drank the water in the middle of the small oasis. But then, the water disappeared and turned into sand. In Alvaric's mouth wasn't water, but sand. He spit out the sand from his mouth.
Afterward, he lay down again, facing the sky. "Damn it, they even fooled me with a mirage."
Alvaric clenched his fists. He punched the sand repeatedly. Then he closed his eyes. Alvaric had given up—he didn't care if he died. In fact, he thought dying was better than surviving in this state.
Tring!
A strange sound appeared. Alvaric wanted to ignore it, but suddenly his body felt refreshed. The pain in his body healed, which made him open his eyes in shock. He looked at the system screen in disbelief.
[Mission Complete]
[Reward: Class Unlock (Human Regeneration), +100 XP, Regeneration]
[Level up +2]
"Huh? Why am I…" As he sat up and looked beside him, he saw two thumb-sized ants that he had just killed. "Hahaha, I killed ants and completed my first mission."
But when Alvaric looked at the system screen again, he frowned. It showed his class as Human Regeneration. He had never heard of that class before. What he knew were strong classes like Mage, Fighter, Sword Magic, Summoner, or others.
Yet here he was, getting a class called Human Regeneration. Something not only strange but unheard of.
Alvaric scratched his head. "Is this good… or garbage?"
He didn't know. Alvaric was just about to check it, but something happened. The sand began to tremble again. He clicked his tongue in frustration. The Giant Sandworm appeared once more. He stood up and ran as fast as he could. He abandoned the idea of dying right there.
"I still want to live, you bastard!" Alvaric screamed while laughing.