When Drake opened his eyes, the familiar ceiling of the cave greeted him once again. His body lay curled in a fetal position, unmoving. Then, the memory struck—cold steel piercing his skull. A chill ran through him.
"Wait… I died. So how the hell am I still alive? System, care to explain?"
SYSTEM MESSAGE:USER, THIS IS YOUR PUNISHMENT FOR YOUR DEEDS IN YOUR PREVIOUS LIFE.YOUR SPIRIT IS BOUND TO THIS DUNGEON.COMPLETE ALL EVOLUTIONS AND BECOME THE STRONGEST TO EARN YOUR FREEDOM.
TIME REMAINING UNTIL RESPAWN: 05:25:10
"Guess that explains it… Alright, show me my status."
STATUSNAME: DRAKELEVEL: 4EXP: 20 / 3000STR: 7AGI: 10MAG: 0CHRM: -1
"Lost a chunk of XP… but still close to evolving. Gotta be more careful—especially around humans. Apparently, I'm on their hit list."
With hours to kill before respawning, Drake let his mind wander back to his past life. Faces, screams, pain. And the memory of that blade… right through his head. For the first time, he felt something unexpected—regret.
Is this what they felt? The people I hurt...?
Clenching his fists, Drake made a silent vow. I'll change. No more running from what I've done.
Time passed quickly, and soon enough, the familiar force ejected him from the cave's core. This time, though, his feet landed steady—thanks to those extra agility points.
Drake took a moment to scan the area. Three goblins. No weapons on him. Yet.
No hesitation.
He rushed in, dodging the two that lunged at him and locking eyes with the one holding a dagger.
"Steal."
The weapon vanished from the goblin's grip and materialized in Drake's hand. Without wasting time, he slashed through its neck. One down.
The second goblin leapt from behind, but Drake spun, grabbing it mid-air and slamming it into the third. The impact crushed both into the stone wall.
DING[3 Enemies Defeated. EXP Gained.]
"Alright… that's more like it. System, is that kobold quest still active?"
SYSTEM:QUEST: KOBOLD SUBJUGATIONSTATUS: ACTIVEOBJECTIVE: DEFEAT 5 KOBOLDS AT ONCE.
"Then let's wrap this up and hit evolution."
With that, Drake pressed deeper into the dungeon, hunting goblins, absorbing crystals, and closing in on his goal.
Suddenly, a low growl caught his ear.
A grey-skinned, dog-headed creature stood before him.
"A kobold…"
It lunged with surprising speed—blades for claws flashing through the air. Drake narrowly dodged and activated his new skill.
"SPRINT!"
Time seemed to slow. His body moved like lightning, his blade piercing the kobold's skull before it even realized what happened.
DING[LVL 7 KOBOLD DEFEATED. 140 XP GAINED.]
He picked up the shimmering crystal left behind and popped it in his mouth.
DING[70 XP OBTAINED.]
"Not bad. Time to find more of these guys."
Two hours and several kobolds later, Drake checked his progress:
EXP: 1800 / 3000
Almost there.
DINGNEW QUEST: KOBOLD SUBJUGATION [Group]5 KOBOLDS DETECTED NEARBY – DEFEAT THEM ALL.REWARD: 1000 XP
Drake found the pack and crept closer. But one of the kobolds sniffed the air and growled—alerting the rest.
"Guess stealth's out."
Two kobolds rushed him. Drake sidestepped, drove his dagger into one's gut, then kicked it into the wall. A chill crept up his spine. Instinct screamed.
He rolled—just in time to avoid two more lunging kobolds.
Spinning up, he slashed clean through their necks. Three down.
The last two snarled and encircled him. They attacked together.
No way to dodge both…
Drake lunged toward one, sacrificing his flank. He skewered it through the chest—but screamed as claws tore into his back.
Still, he didn't stop. With a burst of rage, he slammed his blade into the final kobold's skull. Black smoke rose.
DING[KOBOLD PACK DEFEATED – QUEST COMPLETE.][EXP GAINED: 1000 + 680][TOTAL: 2800 XP]
Before he could breathe, the ground trembled. A wall crumbled. From the shadows, a massive figure emerged.
A hulking goblin, nearly two meters tall, muscles bulging, skin a dark blue.
DING[HOBGOBLIN – VARIANT TYPE – LVL 14]
Drake's blood ran cold.
"What the actual hell…"
The hobgoblin snarled and charged. Drake dodged, barely, as the monster's fist shattered the stone floor where he once stood.
"I can't take a single hit from this thing."
Racing behind it, Drake slashed at its leg—severing the tendon. The beast howled and went berserk, swinging wildly.
Drake kept moving, ducking under its flailing arms, then struck the other leg. More screams. More fury.
Then—a punch.
Too fast.
Drake braced just in time, curling into a ball before being sent flying like a ragdoll. He slammed into the wall with a sickening crunch.
"Ahh… damn… half my bones feel broken…"
Bloodied and barely conscious, Drake forced himself up. The hobgoblin was crawling now, enraged but crippled.
"This… ends now."
With everything he had, Drake activated SPRINT and hurled himself forward, ignoring the pain. The world blurred. He dodged a desperate swipe and drove his dagger straight into the creature's forehead.
The variant let out one last roar… then vanished into black smoke.
Drake collapsed next to a glowing crystal the size of a melon.
"System… show me everything…"
DING
3x LVL 6 KOBOLD DEFEATED: +360 XP
2x LVL 8 KOBOLD DEFEATED: +320 XP
KOBOLD QUEST COMPLETE: +1000 XP
FIRST VARIANT ENCOUNTERED: NEW PASSIVE SKILL UNLOCKED – [STATUS CHECK]
VARIANT HOBGOBLIN DEFEATED (LVL 14): +28,000 XP
LEVEL UP!LEVEL UP!LEVEL UP!LEVEL UP!
YOU QUALIFY FOR EVOLUTION. EVOLVE NOW? [Y/N]
WARNING: EVOLUTION HEALS ALL STATUS AILMENTS AND INJURIES.
Drake looked at the glowing crystal beside him, then at his broken, battered body.
"Yes… Please. Start the evolution."
EVOLUTION PROCESS INITIATED…
His vision blurred as light enveloped his body. He felt warmth, like a rebirth burning away every injury, every scar.
His last thought before blacking out?
"…Am I… turning into a Pokémon?"