"let the fun begin," the Curator whispered as the screen went black. Reagan took a breath, ignoring the stabbing pain in his side. The time for talking was over.
The silence of the field was instantly shattered. The floor became a slaughterhouse as goblins cackled, ants hissed, wolves snarled and thousands of humans were forced into a desperate dance for survival. Reagan gripped his rusty sword, his knuckles white. Across from him, two goblins rushed forward. They were hideous, stilunter things, but they were alive - and to survive, Reagan realized he had to be the one to end that life.
He swung as the first goblin entered his range. The creature chirped a laugh, effortlessly blocking the strike with it's daggers. The impact sent a jolt of agony through Reagan's dislocated arm, nearly making him drop the blade. Seeing the weakness, the goblin lunged, cackling at it's easy prey.
It didn't realize it had walked into a trap. Reagan ignored the pain, grabbed the goblin's bald head with his good hand, and pinned it to the ground. Using the weight of his injured arm, he drove the sword through the creature's chest and wrenched it sideways. Green blood sprayed across his face, hot and smelling of rot.
[KILLED LEVEL 1 GOBLIN]
[GAINED 120 EXP/ 10 G COINS]
[GOBLINS DEFEATED: 1/10]
The second goblin hissed, slashing Reagan across the back. The sting was blinding. He spun, teeth bared, and caught the creature mid air, slicing its throat in one fluid arc. Blood gushed over its fingers as it tried to hold its neck together. Reagan didn't give it a chance; he thrist his sword through its mouth, finishing the job.
[LEVEL UP!]
[HP: 110/110 | GAINED 3 ATTRIBUTE POINTS]
A wave of intense warmth flooded his body. The agonizing ache in his rib vanished; his dislocated shoulder snapped back into place with a satisfying pop. The exhaustion was gone, replaced by a surge of raw power.
"So, they are just walking EXP," he muttered upon the realization, a dark smile playing on his lips.
He didn't wait for them to find him. He sprinted towards a group of goblins feasting on a fresh corpse. He was faster now, his mind processing the battlefield with uncanny clarity. He realized his intelligence stat wasn't just about book learning; it was reaction speed and tactical coldness. He moved like a shadow, taking the first goblin from behind by severing its spine at the nape. The others shrieked and swarmed him. He parried a blow, but his sword let out an omnious crack.
[DURABILITY: 8/10]
A goblin leaped for his throat from his blind spot. Reagan didn't even turn his head; he simply adjusted his stance and thrust the blade upward, skewering the creature through the jaw.
Four down.
As he pulled his blade free, the goblin leader stabbed it's dagger deep into Reagan's stomach. It began to chuckle, but the sound died in it's throat. Reagan didn't flinch. The wound compared to the ones before, it was not that painful. He clenched his abdominal muscles, trapping the blade inside his own flesh so the monster couldn't retreat. Before the goblin could process the madness of the move, Reagan drove his sword through the top of its skull.
Five down .
The remaining goblins broke and ran, terrified.
"Turning your backs on me?" Reagan growled. "How dare you."
He hacked them down as they fled
Six.
[LEVEL UP!]
[GAINED 3 ATTRIBUTE POINTS]
Slash. Seven down.
Slash. Eight down.
He pinned the ninth to the ground and executed it. The tenth tried to flee among the chaos, but Reagan yanked the dagger out of his stomach and hurled it with pinpoint accuracy. It buried itself in the back of the goblin's neck.
[GOBLINS DEFEATED: 10/10]
[GAINED 10* 8 G COINS]
[GAINED GOBLIN DAGGERS]
[TIME REMAINING: 6mins: 29sec]
He felt stronger, but the level ups were slowing down as the EXP requirements doubled with each level. He needed bigger prey. He didn't have to look far.
A sudden weight slammed into his back, and the sound of tearing flesh echoed in his ears.
"Aaaaaargh!!"
He spun to find a lycan wolf, it's muzzle dripping with his blood. Reagan swung his sword in a blind rage, but the blade simply bounced off the beast's thick, matted hide and shattered into pieces.
[DURABILITY: 0/10- WEAPON DESTROYED]
The wolf lunged, its jaws wide enough y crush his skull. Reagan shoved his left arm into the beast's mouth to block the killing blow, shouting in pain as the fangs sank deep into his forearm. Blood erupted into the creature's mouth dripping down.
"Inventory," Reagan called out. He grabbed the Goblin Daggers he'd just earned - higher damage, better steel.
"System, put all points into strength."
[STRENGTH: 8]
His muscles expanded, his grip tightening like a vice. He drove the dagger upward, straight through the soft tissue of the wolf's throat and into its brain. The beast slumped, dead weight on top of him.
[KILLED LEVEL 1 LYCAN WOLF]
[GAINED 240 EXP AND 10 G COINS]
[ STATUS: BLEEDING DEBUFF]
[ - 1 HP PER SECOND]
He shoved the carcass off. He was bleeding out, losing health every second. He couldn't afford to play defense anymore. He needed another level up to clear the debuff, and he needed it now.
Reagan looked toward the crimson rifts where the monsters were still pouring out. Most people were running away from the holes in reality. Reagan did the opposite. He gripped his daggers and began to sprint toward the source.
[TIME REMAINING: 5min: 31sec]
He wasn't the prey anymore. He was the hunter.