The night was heavy as he ran outside the city walls, his labored breaths mixing with cold vapor escaping from between his lips.
"Damn… damn that merciless monster!" Inumaki muttered between his teeth, kicking a small stone.
His hands were still trembling from the echo of the black whip that had been slashing the air behind him relentlessly.
Inumaki stopped for a moment, leaning his hands on his knees as he panted, then raised his head toward the dark road ahead.
"I escaped… at least for now. But… what if it keeps chasing me my whole life?!" He smiled bitterly, then cursed loudly as if the man could still hear him:
"Damn you, you giant! Don't you know the meaning of surrender?!"
He's back in the city where it all began.
As soon as Inumaki entered the city, he felt a strange sensation inside him.
The buildings were collapsed, broken windows reflected the pale moonlight, and the streets were filled with dust and rubble. No sounds of life… no people.
But inside, this was exactly what he was looking for.
"I guess this is the best place to train right now," he said coldly.
He could no longer rely on the cursed word; he had to become strong.
He tightened his grip on his bag, then smiled faintly, a smile full of determination:
"I'll see what I can accomplish during these few days."
Even though only a few days remained until the results appeared, he would try nonetheless.
While wandering through the alleys, he stopped abruptly.
A familiar sound… "Meow."
He turned slowly… and there, next to a leaning post, appeared the little white cat. The same innocent eyes, the same soft fur.
He remembered when he had left it some time ago at the animal care center.
He raised his eyebrows in surprise, then let out a short, sarcastic laugh:
"Haha… I can't believe it. You followed me all the way here too?"
The cat approached confidently as if it knew he would give in to it eventually. Its tail swayed gently, and its eyes gleamed with innocence.
Inumaki stared at it for a long moment, then shook his head sarcastically while readjusting his white scarf:
"Great… I run from a giant man with a whip, only to find myself being chased by a little cat. Is this a joke?"
Yet despite his sarcasm, he did not shoo it away. On the contrary, he let it walk beside him as he moved through the ruins of the destroyed city.
In the heart of the ruined city, he reached an old stadium. The iron fence was half fallen, the stands cracked, and the ground littered with scattered stones. Yet, the place seemed perfect for training.
He approached the rubble of the wooden seats and spotted an old, rusty bat. He picked it up slowly, then swung it through the air.
A sharp sound pierced the silence… and with it, a glowing notification appeared before his eyes:
[Physical Strength 0.0002]
[Current Strength: 15]
[Normal human average: 20]
He cast a cold glance at the numbers, but did not stop. He swung again and again, strike after strike, until the echo of his movements filled the ruined arena.
Minutes… then hours passed. Sweat drenched his face, his muscles screamed in pain. With every round, the notifications appeared:
[Physical Strength +0.002]
[Physical Strength +0.005]
[Physical Strength +0.002]
By evening, the last message appeared clearly before him:
[Total increase for today: +1.0]
[Current Physical Strength: 16]
His hands suddenly stopped. Finally, he had raised his level… yet he could not even celebrate. His entire body was frozen, muscles cramped, fingers barely able to move.
He collapsed to the ground, eyes half-closed, as the pain penetrated every fiber of his body.
The white cat sat quietly beside him, watching with innocence as if silently witnessing his struggle against himself.
And so ended his first day in the ruined city…
At sunrise, Inumaki slowly opened his eyes. His body still felt as heavy as lead, pain weighing down his joints and making movement difficult. He tried to move… but the pain in his muscles was overwhelming.
Yet in front of him, there was a small, shining box that had not been there yesterday. When he extended his trembling hand and opened it, he found inside a hot meal, simple but satisfying: some bread, a piece of meat, and a bottle of water.
A notification appeared before his eyes:
[Daily reward: granted basic sustenance for survival]
"Finally something useful."
He didn't think for long. He devoured the food quickly, and once finished, he stood leaning against the rusty fence of the old stadium.
Day Two
Training was no longer random swings with the rusty bat. Now he focused on precise repetition of strikes, jumping and spinning, along with agility training.
Notifications continued appearing:
[Physical Strength +0.003]
[Endurance +0.001]
But the pain intensified. With every extra hour, he felt his chest burning and lungs nearly bursting. When he collapsed, the white cat sat on his chest, causing a faint smile to appear on his lips.
Day Three
The morning food was returned to the box. The system was precise: it provided a meal… no extra food, no surplus. Its only purpose was to ensure he didn't die.
Inumaki began grumbling inside, yet this food was mercy for now.
Still, he continued. This time he added running through the ruined city's alleys. Jumping over stones, dodging leaning posts, turning the entire destroyed city into his training ground.
[Speed +0.002]
[Physical Strength +0.004]
Day Four
Small cuts appeared on his palms from gripping the iron bat, blood staining his fingers, yet he did not stop.
Blue bruises started to form near his wrists, with slight bleeding from the tips of his fingers.
The cat never left him. Sometimes it ran ahead, sometimes it followed, and Inumaki could not understand why.
But tonight, as he was on the verge of collapse, a different notification appeared:
[Endurance increased by a full level: +1]
[Current Physical Strength: 20]
20… finally reaching the normal human average. He smiled despite his tears, then collapsed, unconscious.
Day Five
He woke up feeling a clear difference. His body was no longer fragile as before. The pain remained, but he felt freer in his movements.
[Physical Strength +0.006]
[Speed +0.004]
[Reflexes +0.002]
Day Six
With every strike, he felt his body growing lighter. His movements became more precise, and even the bat that had once felt heavy now seemed light.
At night, he sat on a cracked stand, gazing at the moon.
His body was smeared with dirt, sweat, and dried blood from the day's training. His breaths were heavy, chest rising and falling slowly
At his feet, the white cat stretched peacefully, unaware of the cruelty of this world.
But his eyes… they were lost elsewhere, far… far away.
Old images flowed into his mind.
A woman with a calm face, brownish-gray hair, a weak smile as she placed her hand on his head when he was little.
It was his hand… small, clutching her white clothes while he was sick.
Her whispered voice: "Don't worry, Asher… I'm here."
He bit down on his teeth until blood ran from his lower lip.
"Mom…" he whispered, barely audible.
He raised his head toward the dark sky.
"I want to see you… I want to hear your voice again… even if it's just a dream."
Hot tears fell from his eyes without him noticing.
He hated crying… but he could not stop.
"Are you still alive? Or did I lose you, like I lost everything else?"
He could no longer bear it.
With a trembling voice, he spoke:
"…System."
[System Activation: Listening.]
He swallowed hard, his hands shaking as he pressed them to his chest.
"Tell me… please. Is my mom okay? Is she still alive?"
Seconds passed like hours. Then a cold, merciless notification appeared:
[Current user level: Low.]
[Information on external entities unavailable.]
[No way to access "Mother" status at this stage.]
It felt like a dagger piercing his heart.
"What… does this mean?! You know… you know everything!" he screamed hoarsely, his voice shattering with the air.
"Why won't you give me something… even a word?!"
But the system replied with only one sentence, cold as ice:
[Access denied.]
His body trembled, and he held his head in both hands.
A short, broken laugh escaped him despite himself.
"Haha… of course. Even here… I'm still powerless."
He closed his eyes, tears falling onto the dirt beneath him.
He wished she were beside him now, placing her hand on his head, telling him a single phrase to restore his strength… but he knew.
There is no chance of seeing her while he is this weak.
Once he manifested in this world, he had lost every chance to speak with her.
That night, he couldn't sleep. He remained seated there, surrounded by the ruined city, the small white cat beside him…
Day Seven
The final day was true hell. The system seemed to raise the requirement ceiling. Training was no longer just physical effort… it was a test of will.
He fell many times, hands trembling, vision blurred. Yet he rose each time, dragging his legs even if they could no longer carry him.
Before he fell for the last time, a series of notifications appeared:
[Endurance +1.2]
[Physical Strength +1.5]
[Speed +0.8]
[Reflexes +0.5]
[Total increase during the week of hell: +5.0]
Even feeling his muscles tear, he remained standing.
The white cat climbed onto his shoulder this time, before he noticed a mechanical plane carrying a strange package.
"Finally."
And thus, the week of hell ended…