The screeching of the Corridor Creeper was cut short by a sound like lightning tearing through silk.
A bolt of incandescent white energy slammed into the creature, blasting a fist-sized hole through its thorax and vaporizing the wreckage of the desk it was tangled in. The monster convulsed, its legs twitching, before a second figure blurred past Soumya's vision. There was a flash of steel, a wet shing, and the Creeper's head tumbled to the linoleum floor, its multifaceted eyes suddenly dull.
Two people stood over the corpse, clad in the practical, dark-grey combat gear of a Guild Hunter. The woman who had fired the energy bolt held her hand out, wisps of white mana still dancing around her fingertips. The man who had decapitated the beast casually flicked green ichor from a blade that hummed with a low thrum of power.
"Just a Creeper," the man said, his voice bored. "Maintenance will bill the university for the damages."
The woman, a Conduit, didn't even glance at Soumya. Her eyes were already scanning the library for other threats. "Clear. Let IHGA handle the witness."
They were Hunters. Real Hunters. The effortless way they moved, the casual power they radiated—it was a world away from Soumya's desperate scramble for her life. They were predators; she was barely prey. They were the reason she had wanted to Awaken.
The adrenaline began to fade, replaced by a dizzying sense of awe and a trembling that started in her knees and worked its way up. The blue screen was gone. Had she imagined it?
"You. On your feet."
The voice was flat, devoid of emotion. A man in a crisp, grey IHGA uniform stood in the ruined entrance to the library, a data slate in his hand. He looked past her, at the dead monster, then at her, his eyes lingering for a moment.
"Did you Awaken during the incident?" he asked, his tone that of a man asking for the time.
Soumya could only nod, her throat too dry for words.
"Standard procedure," he droned. "Come with me."
She was led out of the library, past paramedics attending to the injured and other officials cordoning off the area. The world felt muffled, distant. All she could think about was the blue screen. The words. Welcome, Hunter.
In a quiet administrative office that smelled of stale coffee, the official sat her down. "Focus," he commanded. "The System is tied to your consciousness now. Will it to appear."
Soumya closed her eyes, her heart pounding. She thought of the blue window, of the hope it represented. And it was there. Floating in the darkness behind her eyelids, the same translucent screen returned.
[Welcome, Hunter.]
"I see it," she whispered, a genuine, fragile smile touching her lips for the first time. The System was real. And it was hers.
"Good. Now, access your Status Window. It's the primary command. Just… think of it. Willpower is the mouse."
She did as he said, focusing on an invisible 'Status' button in her mind. The welcome message dissolved, replaced by a block of stark white text.
The numbers stared back at her, a brutal, uncompromising verdict.
Her smile vanished.
Name: Soumya Kanmani
Rank: E
Level: 1
Stats:
Strength (STR): 6Agility (AGI): 8Stamina (STA): 7Intelligence (INT): 12Perception (PER): 14
Skills:
[Unique Skill: Eidetic Recall (Lv. 1)]
Her eyes scanned the stats again and again, hoping she'd misread. She hadn't. Her physical attributes were pathetic. A healthy, Unawakened male athlete would have higher numbers. Her INT and PER were above average, but what good was that? You couldn't out-think a blade to the chest.
And her rank… E. The absolute bottom. The janitors of the Hunter world.
"Skill?" the official asked, tapping his pen impatiently on his data slate.
"It's… Eidetic Recall," she said, her voice small. She mentally focused on the skill, and a description box appeared. She read it aloud, her voice growing quieter with each word. "'The user's brain perfectly records and analyzes all observed phenomena. Allows for flawless replication of physical movements and identification of patterns in enemy behavior.'"
For a moment, a flicker of hope. That sounded useful. Then she read the final, damning sentence.
"'Efficiency is dependent on the user's physical stats.'"
The official sighed, a sound of profound boredom. He made a few notes on his slate. "Right. A memory skill tied to a weak body. It's a support-class debuff, basically. You might be able to find work as a Gate analyst if you get your license. Don't expect to see much combat."
He printed a thick stack of forms from a nearby terminal and dropped them on the desk in front of her. The cheap paper felt as heavy as a tombstone.
"Another E-Rank," he muttered, more to himself than to her. He then looked at her, his face a mask of bureaucratic indifference. "Fill out these forms. You have 30 days to apply for your Provisional License exam. The fee is non-refundable. My advice? Start studying. Don't get yourself killed before then."
And that was it. No congratulations. No words of encouragement. Just a mountain of paperwork and a death sentence wrapped in a piece of friendly advice.
Soumya stared at the forms as the official left the room. The initial, brilliant explosion of hope she'd felt upon Awakening had collapsed into a tiny, dense point of despair in her chest. She was a Hunter, yes. The weakest of the weak. She had been given the key to a new world, only to find that she was locked in its basement.