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Thud-thud-thud!
Footsteps closed in—fast.
Rick Dalton and Nick Barnes had already reached the rooftop.
Fingers locked onto jagged brick, digging in like claws. Knuckles turned white, fingertips torn raw, blood seeping down in tiny rivulets. The whole body hugged the wall like a shadow, muscles twitching against the cold slap of wind.
Rock climbing. Once a hobby to manage executive stress. Never thought it would be a lifesaver.
The night wind howled, slapping loose strands of hair across a face smeared in blood. Every breath came sharp and metallic, like sucking on a mouthful of rust and adrenaline.
"She really got away?!" Rick's furious shout rang out from above, accompanied by frantic pacing.
That voice.
The one in the body's memories.
The one that had gripped the neck and shoved this body off a rooftop.
Teeth dug into the lower lip. The taste of rust filled the mouth.
"Can't see shit from up here," Nick growled, peering over the edge.
[Time completed. Congratulations, Host, on completing Mission 1.]
[You have successfully survived.]
[Reward dispatch in progress…]
Then—
A surge of blistering energy stabbed into every nerve like red-hot needles threading through muscles and bones.
Pain blurred the vision. One slip, and the hands might've let go.
[Superpower Awakening Initiated.]
Oily black filth oozed from the pores, smelling like rotting eggs mixed with gasoline. If not for the pain monopolizing every sense, the stench alone might've knocked the host out.
The energy rushed through energy channels, violent at first—then calming.
A warmth flushed through limbs and spine. Sight sharpened; sounds from a hundred meters away rang clear.
The body pulsed with explosive power.
"System LUSTRA... hell of a perk."
The wind screamed, whipping blood-matted hair into Avery's eyes. Each breath burned—copper and gunpowder, like licking a battery after a fistfight.
Avery muttered without thinking, impressed despite the agony.
[Ding! System Storage Unlocked: 10m³] [Newbie Mission 2/3: Uncover the truth behind Avery Blake's death within 30 days.] [Reward: Physical upgrade + 6 months life extension]
Breath still ragged, the mind managed a question:
"And if not?"
[Fail this mission = Game Over. Permanently.]
Above, Rick's voice returned, louder now.
"What the hell?! She was bleeding out a minute ago!"
Nick snorted. "We find the bitch at school, throw her off a taller roof next time—fifty floors or bust. Let's see her crawl back from that."
Fingers flexed. Elbows bent. The body launched itself back onto the rooftop.
"What the—?!"
Rick stumbled back, nearly crashing into Nick.
"Fuck! You're like a cockroach! Nick swung the pipe. "Let's fix that!"" Nick roared, charging with the crowbar.
Avery looked up.
The world slowed.
The arc of the weapon. The shift of weight. The placement of his foot.
It was all there—like muscle memory from a life that hadn't been lived in this skin.
Crack!
Fist met face.
Skin tore like wet paper. Cartilage snapped. Skull cracked. A spray of blood fanned across Avery's arm.
Nick's head exploded like a pumpkin hit by a shotgun, the body soaring in a lifeless arc off the roof.
"M-Monster!"
Rick's scream snapped the moment.
Avery moved.
Toes hit concrete—hard.
Crack.
Concrete spiderwebbed beneath her as she launched into the air. Mid-twist, every muscle snapped into perfect tension. Her leg swung like a whip.
WHAM!
The kick landed square on Rick's chest with a sickening crunch. Ribs shattered. His spine bent the wrong way with a sharp, audible crack, bones collapsing like a folding chair.
He flew—back arched, limbs flailing—before vanishing off the rooftop's edge. His last expression frozen in raw, paralyzed horror.