Dust. Ash. And the taste of blood.
That was all Kael could feel as he lay on the ground, waiting to die.
His face was pressed against the cold black stone of the 100th floor. The floor was freezing. It felt like the cold was going straight into his bones. His chest hurt every time he took a breath. It sounded wet, like he was drowning in his own blood.
He knew he was dying. He wasn't scared anymore. He was just tired.
"Weak."
The voice came from above him. It was a deep, strong voice that shook the whole room.
It was Valac. The Demon King. The boss of the final floor.
Kael tried to lift his head. His neck hurt so bad it felt like it was breaking. But he pushed himself. He had to look. He had to see the monster one last time.
His eyes were blurry, but he saw a black boot. The armor was shiny and clean, even in this messy room.
Then, Kael looked to the left.
He saw a head rolling on the floor. It stopped right next to Kael's hand.
It was Leon. The Guild Master of the 'Excalibur' Guild.
Leon's eyes were wide open. He looked terrified.
Leon was the 'Sword Saint.' He was the strongest hero. He was the man everyone in the world loved. He was supposed to save humanity.
Now, he was dead. His head had been cut off in one hit.
"I can't believe it," Valac said. He sounded bored. "The last human alive is... you?"
Valac looked down at Kael. "A porter? A baggage carrier?"
The Demon King stepped closer. His heavy metal boots made a loud clank on the stone floor.
Crunch.
Valac stepped on Kael's right hand.
"AARGH!"
Kael screamed. He couldn't help it. The bones in his fingers turned to dust. The pain was white-hot. It was the worst pain he had ever felt.
Valac didn't even look down. He just twisted his foot, crushing Kael's hand even more.
"You have no magic," Valac said. He sounded confused. "You have no aura. You are nothing. Why are you alive when the heroes are dead?"
Kael bit his lip until it bled. He was crying from the pain, but he didn't close his eyes.
Why?
He asked himself that question.
Why am I the last one left?
Because he was a coward.
When the Dragon on the 50th floor breathed fire, the tank class hunters stood in front to protect everyone. They burned to death. Kael hid behind a big rock.
When the assassins attacked on the 75th floor, they killed all the support staff. Kael played dead. He lay under the bodies of his friends and held his breath until his face turned blue.
He survived because he was trash. He survived because he was so weak that the monsters didn't even care enough to kill him.
"I hate it," Kael whispered. His voice was broken and weak.
Valac stopped. He held his sword right above Kael's neck. "What did you say, little bug?"
"I said..." Kael took a deep breath. He looked straight at the Demon King. "I HATE IT!"
He shouted as loud as he could. He coughed up blood onto the Demon King's shiny boot.
Kael hated the Tower.
He hated the Hunters who treated him like a slave. They made millions of dollars, but they only gave him a few coins.
He hated the gods who watched them die like it was a TV show.
But most of all, Kael hated himself.
He hated that he was weak. He hated that he had no talent. He hated that he was going to die here, alone and forgotten. Nobody would remember a porter.
If I had another chance...
The thought burned in his mind. It hurt more than his crushed hand.
If I had power... I wouldn't try to be a hero. I wouldn't try to be a good person. I wouldn't save anyone.
Kael stared at Valac with pure anger.
I would kill you. I would tear your throat out with my teeth. I would eat your flesh until there was nothing left.
Valac raised his black sword.
"Goodbye, ant."
The sword swung down.
[System Error.]
Suddenly, time seemed to stop. The sword froze just an inch from Kael's neck.
[Condition Met: 'Absolute Hatred']
[Condition Met: 'Desire to Eat']
A blue window appeared in front of Kael's eyes. But it wasn't the normal blue screen he was used to. It was glitching. It was shaking and turning red.
[Hidden Trait Unlocked.]
[Starting Sequence: Reset.]
The sword hit his neck.
Everything went black.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The sound was annoying. It kept going.
Kael opened his eyes.
He sat up fast, gasping for air. His hands flew to his neck. He touched his skin, expecting to feel a giant cut, or blood, or nothing at all.
Smooth skin. No blood. His head was still attached to his body.
"Haa... Haa..."
Kael breathed heavily. His heart was beating so fast it hurt. He looked around the room wildly.
He wasn't in the dark throne room. He wasn't on the 100th floor surrounded by dead bodies.
He was in a small, tiny room.
The yellow wallpaper was peeling off. The room smelled like spicy ramen and old clothes. Sunlight was coming through the dirty window.
It was his goshiwon. The cheap study room he lived in ten years ago.
"No way," he whispered.
His voice sounded different. It wasn't the raspy voice of a 30-year-old smoker. It sounded young.
Kael looked at his hands.
They were pale. They were skinny.
In his past life, his hands were covered in thick calluses and scars from carrying heavy bags for ten years. Now, they were soft.
He grabbed his smartphone from the small table. His hands were shaking so much he almost dropped it.
He turned the screen on.
September 1st, 2024. 07:50 AM.
Kael froze.
September 1st. The Day of the End. The day the world changed.
"I'm back," Kael said. His voice was shaking. He didn't know if he wanted to laugh or cry. "I'm actually back."
He stood up. His legs felt light. In his past life, his knees were ruined from carrying too much weight. Walking had always hurt. Now, his legs felt fresh. They were weak, but they didn't hurt.
He walked to the window and looked down.
Outside, the city of Seoul was waking up. Cars were honking. People were walking to work with coffee in their hands. Students were laughing on their way to school.
They didn't know.
They had no idea that in ten minutes, the sky would break open.
They had no idea that half of them would be eaten by goblins before lunchtime.
Kael thought he should feel bad for them. He should run outside and scream. He should warn them to run away.
But he didn't feel like a hero.
He felt... hungry.
Growl.
A loud sound came from his stomach. It wasn't normal hunger. It didn't feel like he just missed breakfast.
It felt like a black hole was inside him. It was an empty feeling that hurt. It felt like his stomach was trying to eat itself.
"Argh!" Kael grabbed his stomach and bent over in pain.
"Status Window!" he shouted.
A blue hologram appeared in the air.
[Name: Kael]
[Level: 1]
[Class: None]
[Stats]
Strength: 4
Agility: 5
Stamina: 4
Mana: 2
Luck: 1
Pathetic.
These were the stats of a weak person. A normal adult man usually had at least 5 in every stat. Kael was below average.
But then, Kael saw the Trait section at the bottom.
[Traits]
Indomitable Will (Passive)
Gluttony (Unique/EX)
His eyes went wide.
In his last life, his trait was [Pack Mule]. It let him carry 10% more weight. It was a useless trait. It was the reason he was a servant for ten years.
He tapped on the new trait, [Gluttony].
[Gluttony]
[Rank: EX (Immeasurable)]
[Description: The user has a hunger that can never be filled by normal food.]
[Effect 1: Predator. You do not gain Experience Points (EXP) from killing monsters. You cannot level up normally.]
[Effect 2: Devour. By eating the body or core of an enemy, you permanently steal their stats and skills.]
Kael stared at the screen. He read the words again and again.
He couldn't gain EXP?
That meant he could kill a million goblins and he would stay Level 1 forever. In this world, your level was everything. If he stayed Level 1, people would think he was trash.
But... eat?
He looked at the second effect. Steal stats and skills.
A dark, crazy smile slowly appeared on Kael's face.
In the Tower, you were born with talent or you weren't. If you were born weak, you stayed weak forever. No amount of training could change that.
But this trait was different.
It meant his potential was infinite.
If he wanted to be strong, he didn't need to lift weights. He just had to eat something strong.
If he wanted magic, he didn't need to study books. He just had to eat a wizard.
BOOOOOM!
The building shook hard. Kael fell against the wall. Dust fell from the ceiling.
He looked out the window.
The sky over the city had broken like glass. A huge purple crack appeared in the clouds.
[The Tutorial has started.]
[Welcome, Humanity.]
The text floated in the sky. It was huge. Everyone could see it.
Screams began to come from the street below. Cars crashed into each other.
Kael turned away from the window. He didn't panic. He had lived through this day before.
He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a knife. It was just a cheap fruit knife. It was dull and the handle was loose.
But it was good enough.
His stomach roared again. It was louder this time. The hunger was making him crazy. It was a monster inside him demanding food.
"Time to eat," Kael whispered.