The System was a cheat code. A broken, glorious cheat code.
While other examinees were stumbling blind through the fog, Ryker could see them. Not the monsters, but their data.
Name: Slacker Frog
Traits: [Camouflage] (Blue), [Tank] (Blue), [Giant Maw] (Blue), [Toxin] (Green), [Omnivore] (Green)
Found you.
A few meters ahead, a Slacker Frog lay in wait. It was a massive, ambush predator that relied on patience. It buried itself in the mud, opening its colossal mouth to mimic a cave or a valley. Its camouflage was perfect; to the naked eye, it looked like part of the landscape.
But to Ryker, that glowing [Blue] tag was a neon sign pointing to a loot box.
"Hey! You there! Wanna join us?"
Voices drifted through the fog. A group of lost examinees had spotted Ryker's silhouette.
"We have some strong fighters in our group! We need to stick together to survive this place!" another shouted.
Ryker ignored them. He was sprinting.
"Wait... something's wrong!"
The ground beneath the group suddenly shifted. The "valley" they were walking through snapped shut.
The earth rose up in a V-shape. A cavernous, pink maw filled with rows of backward-curving teeth revealed itself.
It was the Slacker Frog.
"AAHHH! HELP!!"
"What is that?! RUN!!"
Panic erupted. The examinees scrambled, slipping on the slick tongue. The frog's jaw began to close, sealing their fate.
"What... what is that?!"
A green-haired girl, the last one sliding into the maw, looked up.
Above the closing jaws, a shadow fell from the sky.
"Is he crazy?!"
"He's jumping in?!"
"It's suicide!!"
The trapped examinees watched in horror as Ryker descended like a meteor.
To them, it looked like a heroic (or idiotic) sacrifice. To Ryker, it was just farming.
[Monstrous Strength] (Gold).
Mid-air, Ryker twisted his hips, channeling the kinetic energy of his fall into his right arm. His muscles rippled, swelling slightly as the trait activated.
Serious Punch.
BOOM!
His fist connected with the center of the frog's skull.
The sound was sickening—like a sledgehammer hitting a watermelon.
The Slacker Frog didn't even have time to croak. Its entire head exploded under the force. Brain matter and blood sprayed outward in a gruesome firework display.
The jaws went limp.
The trapped examinees, covered in slime and expecting death, found themselves sitting in an open, dead mouth.
"Uh..."
"Did... did he just one-shot it?"
"A monster... he killed a monster with one punch?!"
They stared at Ryker, who landed gracefully amidst the carnage.
"Quickly," Ryker said, not even looking at them. "Wipe that slime off. It's acidic."
"R-right!"
The survivors scrambled to clean themselves, wincing as the digestive juices began to sting.
"Thank... wait, where did he go?"
The green-haired girl looked up to thank her savior, but Ryker was already gone.
[You have killed a Slacker Frog. Plunder Successful.]
[Acquired: [Camouflage] (Blue), [Tank] (Blue).]
Ryker grinned as he ran.
[Camouflage] (Blue): Blend into any environment by altering skin pigmentation.
[Tank] (Blue): Increases physical defense and resistance to blunt force trauma.
Excellent.
These were monster-exclusive traits. Humans couldn't drop these. The Wetlands were truly a paradise.
[Godspeed] (Gold).
Ryker accelerated, leaving a trail of mist in his wake.
"HELP!!"
"MONSTER!!"
Ahead, another group was in trouble.
Huge, lumbering shapes emerged from the fog. Strawberry Tortoises.
They looked cute—massive shells adorned with delicious-looking strawberries—but their beaks could snap steel beams.
Crunch.
One unlucky examinee was bitten in half, his scream cut short.
The rest were backed against a tree, trembling.
"We're dead! We're dead!"
WHOOSH!
A human lightning bolt tore through the clearing.
Ryker didn't stop. He treated the tortoises like speed bumps.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Three punches. Three exploded heads.
The massive beasts collapsed mid-stride, dead before they hit the ground.
[You have killed a Strawberry Tortoise.]
[Acquired: [Strawberry Growth] (Blue).]
[You have killed a Strawberry Tortoise.]
[Acquired: [Longevity] (Blue), [Super Hard Shell] (Blue).]
[System Note: Fusing [Longevity] (Blue) + [Super Hard Shell] (Blue) + [Strawberry Growth] (Blue)...]
[Acquired: [Super Longevity] (Purple)!]
"Yes!"
Ryker pumped his fist.
The examinees stared at the carnage, then at the retreating back of the mysterious savior.
"Was that... a god?"
"He saved us..."
They wept with relief.
But Ryker didn't care about being a hero. He was just clearing the map.
This wasn't an exam. It was an All-You-Can-Eat Buffet.