The corpse of the Level 5 Rot-Tooth Rat lay slumped against a wall of moss, its massive, armored head separated cleanly from its shoulders.
Unlike the smaller scavengers they had faced earlier in the day, this one was a beast of muscle and hardened gristle, the size of a small bull.
Its teeth were like serrated daggers dripping with a concentrated decay element.
Decay was one of the most annoying elements within the Biological elemental group. Once caught in the flesh, it would spread into the body if not contained.
It was not something an inexperienced hunter dared to fight.
Yet, it had fallen to his sneak attack. This was the power of a Divine.
Aldric stood over the carcass, his chest heaving slightly, though not from exertion. It was the thrill of the mana coursing through him.
He wiped a smear of dark blood from his cheek and dismissed the spatial distortion lingering near his fingertips.
[You have killed a Level 5 Rot-Tooth Alpha.]
[Experience threshold reached.]
[Level 4 → Level 5]
[Radial Number (RN) increased: 4 → 5]
[All Attributes +1]
[Free attribute: +1]
[Total unallotted attributes: 5]
Every level-up gave a hunter a single free attribute. Once they reached levels that were multiples of five, all the attributes would gain a single point.
He hadn't allocated his free attributes yet, as he hadn't obtained a skill. He would allocate them based on the needs of his future skills.
He exhaled, watching the blue text dissolve into the humid air.
Level five. In less than twelve hours, he had achieved what most rookie Tunnel Runners took a week to accomplish after they reached the Star Network—and even then, only with the help of the experienced.
The power of a Divine Talent was terrifyingly efficient.
"Kraaa! Kraaa!"
Eira bounced on top of the dead Alpha's ribcage, her wings flapping in a display of pure hype.
She pecked at the thick hide of the beast, then looked back at Aldric with eyes that shone like rubies.
To her, he now looked like a Shura from hell.
She had watched him dismantle the monsters of this root world with a wave of his hand, tearing the very air apart to kill them.
Her little heart beat in awe. Every time he felled a beast, she felt a vicarious surge of pride.
My human, she thought proudly.
"We're done for today, Eira," Aldric said, his voice softening as he looked at her.
He offered her his arm, and she hopped onto it, nuzzling her head against his bicep.
"The Tunnel gets dangerous when the bio-luminescence dims. We need to find a place to rest."
Night in the Tunnel was not defined by the setting of a sun, but by the rhythm of the flora.
As the hours passed, the jade moss that coated the ceiling began to dim, shifting from a bright, sickly green to a low, pulsating indigo.
The shadows lengthened, twisting the roots into grotesque shapes that seemed to watch them from the darkness.
The temperature dropped, the humidity turning into a clinging, cold mist.
Aldric found a hollow formed by three massive, ancient roots knotting together. It was a natural alcove, elevated from the muddy floor and shielded on three sides by wood as hard as iron.
He worked quickly, gathering drier patches of bark and stripped fibers.
He didn't have a fire-starting skill yet, so he used a simple flint striker from his survival kit.
Being the nephew of the City Lord had its uses, as his uncle had given him a spatial bag, which was a dream for many until they joined the Academy or military.
It took a few tries, but soon a small, controlled fire crackled to life.
He was careful to keep it small; he didn't want to choke them with smoke or alert every predator in a five-mile radius.
The orange glow of the fire pushed back the encroaching darkness, creating a small, intimate sphere of warmth.
Aldric sat with his back against the rough bark, tearing into a package of nutrient-dense jerky.
He tore off a generous strip and handed it to Eira. She took it delicately, holding it down with one talon as she tore bite-sized pieces, her eyes never leaving his face.
In the dim shade of light, she found her human particularly handsome.
For a long time, the only sounds were the crackling of the fire and the distant, echoing drips of the Tunnel.
Aldric stared into the flames, his expression shifting from the focus of the hunt to something heavier, darker.
The adrenaline had faded, leaving behind the cold reality of his situation.
"Eira," he whispered, breaking the silence.
The Raven flinched, thinking he caught her ogling him.
"Do you know why I was so desperate to reach Level 5 today?" he asked, though he knew she couldn't understand the complexity of his words.
He needed to speak it aloud, to manifest the thoughts that had been eating at him since his awakening.
He looked at his hand, flexing the fingers that could command space.
"This power… Dimensional Sovereign. It's too heavy."
Eira hopped closer, sensing the shift in his mood. The scent of him had changed.
The euphoric smell of excitement was gone, replaced by a dull melancholy.
Eira didn't want her human to be sad. She jumped onto his shoulder, rubbing his chin with her head.
"Humanity is a Tier 6 race," Aldric continued, his eyes reflecting the dancing flames.
"In the Star Network, we are nothing. We are dirt. We are barely considered sentient by the High Races. They view us as resources, or worse, as pests."
He picked up a stick and poked the fire, sending a shower of sparks drifting upward.
"If they knew about me… if they knew a human had awakened a Divine Talent, a power reserved for the gods of the multiverse… they wouldn't sit back. They would come for us. They would burn Earth to ash just to make sure I didn't grow up to challenge them. That is the 'Great Filter.' They kill the potential before it becomes a threat."
Eira stared at his eyes closely. Although she was trained to understand words, the complex meaning behind them was alien to her.
She didn't understand what Tier 6 was, except that her human was sad about it. So, she wanted to change this Tier 6.
Eira fanned her wings, projecting her intent to change it. She puffed her chest in confidence.