Eryon tried to organize his thoughts.
Nothing that had happened made sense. The evolution, the system, time being frozen… everything felt out of place, even for the tower.
Maybe… if I open the status window, he thought. Maybe there will be answers there.
That was when he felt the pain.
A bite on his leg.
He looked down by reflex. One of the creatures had its teeth sunk into his flesh. It hurt—but not as much as it should have. The fangs hadn't penetrated deeply; the skin had split open, but the muscle held.
That detail was enough.
The memory struck him immediately.
He was still surrounded.
Time had fully resumed. The creatures were moving again, screeching, lunging at him from different angles. The swamp had once more become a hostile place—alive, hungry.
He clenched his teeth.
The confusion faded.
In its place rose a dense anger, built up for far too long: the massacre in the treasure hall, the helplessness, the pain, the fear, being reduced to prey.
"Fine…" he muttered.
With a sharp movement, he grabbed the creature by the head and tore it off his leg. The neck gave way with a dull crack, and the body fell lifeless into the mud.
Eryon lifted his gaze toward the others.
"Alright," he said quietly. "Earlier, you gave me a hard time."
He took a step forward.
"Now let me return the favor."
He set aside any attempt to find answers. That could wait. At that moment, only one thing was clear: he had no intention of running.
A crooked, dangerous smile spread across his face. It wasn't joy. Nor relief. It was something closer to determination pushed to its extreme.
He thought about the skill he had just acquired.
Not about how it worked.
Only about using it.
The system responded immediately, a clear message resonating in his mind:
Transcendent Physique — skill activated.
Mana stirred around him.
Eryon felt an immense force fill his body.
It wasn't easy to describe. It didn't feel like a simple boost in strength, but as if his entire body were functioning better all at once. Every muscle responded without delay; every movement felt firm and precise. For an instant, he had the impression that his own body had ceased to be a limitation.
At the same time, he noticed something else.
His mana was draining rapidly. He felt it flowing out of him constantly, like an open faucet he couldn't shut off. He didn't know how long he could maintain that state, nor what consequences would follow afterward.
But at that moment, it didn't matter.
It was enough.
The creatures still surrounded him. There were many of them, moving through the mud, screeching, attacking without coordination. However, something had clearly changed.
They were no longer an immediate threat.
Eryon advanced toward them.
When the first one lunged, he answered with a simple, direct punch, without adjusting his stance or measuring his strength. His fist struck true.
The creature's body gave way instantly. Bone and flesh shattered with a dull sound, and the remains splattered across the muddy ground.
He stopped for a second.
Looked at what was left.
He didn't avert his gaze. He felt no revulsion.
The scene was strangely interesting.
He moved forward again.
Another punch.
Another shattered body.
The creatures kept coming, but the result was always the same. Every impact ended immediately, without real resistance. The mud began to fill with remains, and the metallic smell of blood became overwhelming.
That was how the massacre began.
And as he continued advancing, blow after blow, Eryon became aware of something he didn't like to admit—but couldn't ignore:
He wasn't just surviving.
He was enjoying it.
Eryon held the last creature by the neck.
It writhed weakly, scratching without any real strength. He held it with one hand, unhurried. His expression was calm, almost satisfied.
With his other hand, he grabbed its head.
A sharp pull.
The neck gave way without resistance, and the head separated from the body with a dull sound. The corpse fell into the mud, motionless.
Silence.
Eryon remained standing for a few seconds, observing his surroundings.
The swamp was covered in shattered bodies. Remains were everywhere—flesh, bones, blood mixed with murky water. There were so many that, for a moment, he wondered if he had wiped out the entire nest.
Then the sensation hit him all at once.
An intense weakness spread through his body. His legs faltered and he nearly collapsed, but he managed to stay upright with difficulty. His breathing became heavy and uneven, as if he had just run a marathon without stopping.
He inhaled several times, trying to regain control.
"…What…?" he murmured.
It took him a few seconds to realize.
The flow of mana he had felt earlier was gone. His insides felt empty, drained. He understood then that this wasn't ordinary physical fatigue.
His mana had dried up.
And with it, the skill had deactivated.
He lowered his gaze to his bloodstained hands, breathing heavily, as the swamp fell silent once more.
Eryon sat down in the middle of the circle of corpses he had left around him.
It wasn't a dramatic gesture. He simply let his body drop into the mud, resting his arms on his legs, allowing his breathing to slowly stabilize. The swamp still smelled of dampness and blood, but he no longer sensed any nearby movement. No splashing, no screeches. For now, nothing seemed about to appear.
He took advantage of the moment.
He thought about the status window.
There was no need to say anything. Simply by focusing, a translucent interface appeared in front of him. It wasn't entirely solid nor entirely ethereal; it seemed to exist halfway between the real and the nonexistent, floating steadily before his face.
It was different.
Not only because the values had changed, but because there were new sections—and others that were gone.
He scanned it in silence.
Name: Eryon Valen
Age: 17
Rank: B
Class: None
Level: 1
His eyes lingered on that point for a second. He didn't remember the class being able to disappear. He continued reading.
Physical Attributes
• Strength: Low (High)
• Endurance: Intermediate (Low)
• Speed: Low (High)
• Reflexes: Intermediate (High)
Special Statistics
• Mana: Intermediate (Intermediate)
• Perception: Low (Intermediate)
• Luck: Intermediate (High)
Finally, he reached the section that interested him most.
Skills.
The skill he had possessed since his awakening was no longer there.
Integrated Physical Reinforcement — Rank B
It had vanished completely.
In its place, only two entries remained.
TRANSCENDENT PHYSIQUE — RANK S
SKILL ??? — RANK ???
Eryon remained silent, seated among the shattered bodies, staring at those lines again and again.
None of this matched what he had been told about the system. This wasn't a normal upgrade. This wasn't a common evolution.
He closed his eyes for a moment and exhaled slowly.
He had survived.
But judging by what lay before him, the price was still unclear.
He scanned the window again.
His physical statistics had increased, though not in an exaggerated way. They weren't absurd numbers, nor immediate changes that alone could explain what he had just done. Even so, it was clear that something had changed. He immediately linked it to the forced bodily evolution he had undergone minutes earlier. It didn't seem like a temporary boost, but a permanent modification.
As he analyzed the values, he noticed something strange.
The skills weren't just text.
There was a faint sense of responsiveness, as if he could interact with them. He hesitated for a moment, but curiosity won out. He extended a finger and touched the entry labeled TRANSCENDENT PHYSIQUE.
The main window faded, and another appeared over it.
Eryon was surprised and began to read.
TRANSCENDENT PHYSIQUE — RANK S
Description:Active Rank S skill. Fundamentally transforms and elevates the host's physical capabilities beyond conventional limits. Grants superhuman strength, endurance, speed, and regeneration, turning the user into a pinnacle of physical form.
Effects upon activation:
• Strength: Significant increase (+100%)
• Endurance: Significant increase (+100%)
• Speed / Reflexes / Agility: Significant increase (+100%)
• Regeneration: Accelerated wound healing (+100%)
• Bodily adaptability: Optimization and assimilation of physical improvements (+50%)
Cost:
• Mana consumption: Drastically increased mana drain per second while active.
Eryon finished reading in silence.
There were no embellishments or dramatic warnings. Just direct information. Functional. Cold.
He closed the window with a slow gesture and stared at the bloodstained mud in front of him. What he had felt during the fight matched that description almost perfectly—the strength, the endurance, the way his body had responded without hesitation… and the immediate exhaustion afterward.
"No wonder…" he murmured.
It wasn't a skill meant to be used for long periods. It was an extreme state, limited by mana. A dangerous tool if abused.
And yet…
Eryon lifted his gaze and thought about the second entry.
The one that was still there, without a name or an explanation.
The ??? skill.