"System," I said without even thinking.
A window appeared in front of me, as if materializing out of thin air. It hovered weightlessly in front of my face, slightly transparent, written in bright red letters that looked disturbingly like fresh blood on glass.
[ Status ]
[ Title: Beggar in a field ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Class: Beggar ]
[ Level: 1 (0/100) ]
[ Stats:
Strength: 5
Endurance: 5
Agility: 5
Intelligence: 4
Points available: 1 ]
[ Skills: N/A ]
[ System's opinion: just a pitiful beggar ]
My heart skipped a beat. It was exactly like the games I'd played in the past- stats, race, and even a class screen. A ridiculous part of me expected a mouse cursor to pop up.
Wait… what?
Beggar?
Just because I woke up half-dead in a field didn't make me a beggar, right? The system could have gone with something remotely respectable. Warrior, Fighter, Survivor- hell, even "Peasant" would've hurt less.
And that system opinion…
A shaky, nervous laugh escaped my throat. In any other situation I might've actually found it funny, maybe even screenshot-worthy, but right now I had more pressing issues- like not dying.
My hand rose to my nonexistent beard, stroking it like some ancient sage contemplating the cosmos.
"It seems I leveled up after the fight…"
One stat point glowed faintly, waiting for allocation. I stared at it for a few seconds before placing it into Endurance. Strength would've helped in a fight, sure. But endurance meant one more breath, one more step, one more second alive.
[ +1 point allocated to Endurance ]
[ Endurance: 6 ]
A sudden rush pulsed through my body, dissipating the sluggish fog that had been clinging to my limbs. It felt like downing an energy drink on an empty stomach- sharp, immediate, almost electric.
My gaze slid toward the corpse at my feet. Even in death, it looked wrong—too gray, too rubbery, too alien. Blood had soaked into the soil, turning dirt into something thick and tar-like. And yet, beneath the grotesque image, a sense of accomplishment flickered in my chest. Small, but real.
Maybe that was what survival was- ugly victories with ugly rewards.
A simple, raw desire seized me. A desire stripped of morality, comfort, and logic.
Survive.
Despite the rift in the sky, the unnatural voice, and this bizarre system, I felt no curiosity for the answers. Not now. Curiosity was a luxury. Survival wasn't.
I bent down and picked up one of the goblin's teeth, pried free during the brawl. It was slightly curved, jagged at the base, warm from blood. It would serve as a makeshift weapon.
[ Goblin tooth obtained! (trash) ]
[ Inventory unlocked ]
Hm?
"Inventory," I said.
Another window unfolded, smooth and silent. Ten empty slots stared back at me. I placed the tooth toward one slot and watched as it disintegrated into tiny red and white particles before reforming neatly inside.
I exhaled, then slipped toward the treeline, approaching a dense cluster of bushes. The scent of damp leaves and moss coated the air, thick with humidity. I checked for movement, then sank into the foliage, letting leaves and shadows swallow me whole.
Nighttime exploration would've been suicide. The forest itself felt hostile- full of unseen things that breathed and watched. Even without monsters, getting lost would kill me just as effectively.
My eyes scanned every inch of terrain, hunting for twitching leaves, unnatural silhouettes, glimmers of eyes. The silence pressed against my ears, heavy and suffocating.
Once daylight returned, I'd head out. There was a train station roughly five hours away. Whether it functioned or not didn't matter; human structures meant shelter, water, maybe answers.
The wind crawled through the branches, carrying nocturnal dew and a chill that gnawed at my skin. Time warped into something shapeless- minutes leaking into hours. I drifted in and out of half-sleep, nerves buzzing, muscles shivering.
When morning finally arrived, light dripped through the canopy in thin, golden strands. The forest regained its idyllic façade- birds chirping, leaves shimmering, the illusion of safety settling over everything. But illusions were fragile things, and I'd learned better than to trust them.
I rose, brushed off dirt, and moved deeper between the trees.
After about ten minutes of walking, a thought struck.
"Map!" I said.
Silence.
"Help!"
Nothing.
"Admin mod!"
Not even static.
"Fucking system!"
[ System criticism detected ]
[ Punishment assigned: Fecal Odor I ]
[ Effect: The host smells like shit. ]
[ Duration: 12h ]
"No!! I'm sorry!!" I shouted.
A nauseating stench slammed into my face- warm, suffocating, unmistakably fecal. My throat tightened as I gagged.
So the system was useless and authoritarian. Wonderful.
A bitter thought wormed its way through me. Why couldn't I get a cheat like those protagonists in novels? A skill, a trait, a buff- anything.
I kicked a nearby tree in frustration.
Knock.
The sound froze me. I crouched into a bush, gripping the tooth tightly, breath shallow.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Footsteps followed- slow, heavy, deliberate. Then breathing- thick, moist, and disturbingly eager.
Breathing… of desire?
Wait, what?
A goblin stepped into view roughly ten meters away. Its skin was the same corpse-gray as before, its body hunched, its head too small. Drool threaded from its lips.
[ Gray Goblin ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Status: hungry, excited ]
My muscles tightened. My eyes locked on its throat- the quickest kill zone.
It advanced, sniffing the air, as if tasting the scent of prey. The soil squelched under its feet, the sound too loud against the forest quiet.
Six meters.
Four meters.
Three meters.
I lunged, bursting from the bush, tackling it hard. The impact rattled my bones. Before it could squeal, I drove the tooth into its throat, tearing warm flesh apart.
Blood erupted in a messy arc.
"GLOARKK!"
I struck again, and again, until the goblin went limp.
[ Level 1 Goblin defeated : +10 XP ]
I stood, breath ragged, heart thrashing against my ribs. A metallic taste coated my tongue- blood or adrenaline or both. Heat coiled through my muscles, like embers flaring under skin.
Alive. And I had killed again.
Faster. Cleaner.
I wiped the tooth on my ruined shirt, grimacing as the imposed stench of shit swirled back into my nostrils. I had to work hard not to gag.
Sunlight filtered through the trees, making the world briefly feel normal. It was a lie, but a comforting one. I listened. Birds sang, but their melody trembled, as if the forest itself was waiting for something worse.
As I rounded a bend, something caught my eye: footprints. Goblin tracks. Two- maybe three sets. Scattered. Uneven. Running.
As if to answer my suspicion, a shrill cry tore through the trees.
"ARRRR! HELP!"