"Hah. Hah. Haha. Wow. Nice prank. Realistic dream. Uhh, lucid dreaming? No. Uhh..."
Zhan had almost gone crazy from everything that just happened to him, his mind spinning like a broken record as he tried to make sense of what was real and what wasn't. It was normal for anyone to act like this when thrown into such a weird situation that felt like the worst nightmare ever made real.
He needed to get his head straight and think clearly about what was going on around him, but his thoughts kept jumping from one crazy idea to another. His hands were shaking and his breathing was fast and shallow, like he had just run a long race without stopping.
"..."
He went quiet for a moment, trying to calm his racing heart while his sweaty hands wiped against his dirty clothes. He stood up slowly on wobbly legs and stared at the bright blue sky above him, watching the white fluffy clouds move peacefully across the endless space.
The whole scene looked so normal and peaceful that it made him wonder if he was still dreaming in his warm bed at home. The sun felt real on his skin, warm and bright, and a gentle breeze moved through his messy hair.
The grass under his feet was soft and green, swaying back and forth in the wind like ocean waves. Small flowers grew here and there, adding spots of yellow and white color to the field around him. Everything looked like a perfect painting or maybe a scene from one of those peaceful video games he used to play.
But something deep in his stomach told him this was not a game or a dream at all. The air smelled fresh and clean, like after a spring rain, and he could hear birds singing in the distance. Even the dirt under his shoes felt real and solid, not like the fuzzy feeling you get in dreams.
"What's... For dinner tonight?"
He asked himself, trying to think about normal everyday things to keep himself from going completely insane with fear. His voice sounded strange and hollow in the open air, like it didn't belong to him anymore.
Suddenly he felt a small shake in the ground under his feet, like something very heavy was walking toward him with slow, powerful steps. The shaking got stronger and stronger, making small pebbles on the ground jump and dance around his shoes.
He looked in front of him and saw a big dark shadow covering the warm sunlight that had been hitting his face just a moment before. The shadow was huge and shaped like a person, but much bigger and wider than any human he had ever seen.
His heart started beating even faster as he realized something terrible was about to happen to him. The shadow moved and shifted as whatever was making it came closer and closer to where he stood.
It was an orc standing right there in front of him, looking down at his small weak body with hungry eyes. In fantasy video games, orcs were shown as big humanoid monsters that looked scary but cool at the same time, with strong muscles and fierce faces.
But this one was very different from those clean game versions that looked almost heroic and noble in their own way. It was a gross creature that smelled like pure garbage mixed with rotten meat and old sweat, making Zhan want to throw up right away.
The stench hit his nose like a physical blow, making his eyes water and his throat close up. It was the kind of smell that made you want to run away as fast as possible, like a dead animal that had been sitting in the hot sun for many days.
The orc's whole body seemed to be covered in some kind of slimy substance that made its skin shine in the sunlight. Flies buzzed around its head and body, attracted to the awful smell that came from every part of the monster.
"Haah..."
Zhan took a step back without thinking, his body moving on its own as pure animal fear took over his mind completely. The orc's skin was dark green and looked wet and slimy, like the skin of a giant frog that lived in a dirty swamp.
A torn and dirty cloth was wrapped around its wide hips, barely covering its private parts and held together with rough rope. The cloth looked like it had been white once, but now it was brown and gray with dirt and stains that he didn't want to think about.
It carried a huge rusty axe that looked like it had been used to cut down trees and maybe people too, with dark stains on the metal blade. The weapon was almost as tall as Zhan himself, with a thick wooden handle that was worn smooth from years of use.
Chips and cracks covered the metal head, showing that it had been used for many battles and had tasted blood many times before. The orc held it like it weighed nothing at all, even though it looked heavy enough to crush a person just by falling on them.
Its mouth was open wide, showing yellow broken teeth that looked sharp enough to tear flesh from bone. Thick saliva dripped from its lips as it smiled at his scared and pathetic figure, like a wolf looking at a helpless rabbit.
The orc's eyes were small and red, filled with a kind of mean intelligence that made Zhan's skin crawl with fear. They seemed to glow in the sunlight, like two tiny fires burning inside its ugly skull.
*CR——UNCH!*
Time seemed to slow down like in an action movie as the orc's big fist came flying toward his face like a giant hammer. The fist was huge and covered in scars and dirt, with knuckles that looked like they could break stone.
Zhan got sent flying through the air like a ragdoll before slamming hard into the ground, his body rolling several times before coming to a stop. His whole body hurt like he had been hit by a truck, and dust and dirt got into his mouth and eyes, making everything taste like sand.
The impact knocked all the air out of his lungs, leaving him gasping like a fish out of water. Stars danced in front of his eyes and his head felt like it was splitting in two from the pain.
Every part of his body screamed in agony, from his toes all the way up to the top of his skull. He could taste blood in his mouth, metallic and warm, and his vision went blurry for a few seconds.
"G-gagh..."
He made a painful choking sound as he tried to breathe, blood coming from his nose and mouth in thin red streams. He finally snapped back to reality and understood that this was not a dream or a game at all, but real life where he could actually die.
His whole body was shaking like a leaf in a storm as the pain hit him like wave after wave of burning fire. The taste of blood in his mouth was metallic and wrong, making him want to spit but not having enough saliva to do it.
His clothes were torn and dirty now, covered in grass stains and mud from rolling on the ground. Small cuts and scrapes covered his arms and face where he had hit rocks and sticks during his fall.
—S-shit! An orc!
He thought to himself, panic filling his mind like cold water as he realized he might actually die here in this strange place. His thoughts were a mess of fear and confusion, jumping from one terrible possibility to another.
He had read about orcs in books and seen them in movies, but seeing one in real life was completely different and much more terrifying. The smell alone was enough to make him sick, and the size of the monster made him feel like a tiny ant.
"I... I don't know how to fight..."
He said out loud, his voice weak and shaky as he remembered how he had spent most of his time inside his room playing games instead of learning real skills. His body was weak and soft from sitting around all day doing nothing but eating junk food and staring at computer screens.
He had never been in a real fight before, not even a playground scuffle, and didn't know what to do with his hands or feet when facing a real enemy. His muscles were like jelly and his reflexes were slow from years of not using his body properly.
The most exercise he ever got was walking to the kitchen for snacks or to the bathroom when he couldn't hold it anymore. His arms were thin and had no muscle at all, and his legs felt like they might give out under him at any moment.
Even lifting his backpack felt heavy sometimes, so how could he fight against a monster that looked like it could crush cars with its bare hands. He had always thought that if he was ever in danger, he would know what to do, but now he felt completely helpless.
"S-shit..!"
The orc charged toward him with heavy steps that made the ground shake like a small earthquake, holding its huge axe high above its ugly head. Each step the monster took left deep prints in the soft earth, showing just how much it weighed and how powerful it was.
Zhan spread his legs wide and got ready to move, his heart beating so fast he thought it might explode inside his chest like a balloon. As the orc brought its axe down toward his head in a move that would have split him in half, Zhan quickly jumped to the right side, barely getting away from the sharp blade that whistled through the air where his head had been.
The axe hit the ground with a sound like thunder, sending up a shower of dirt and grass that flew everywhere. The blade went deep into the earth, showing that the orc was strong enough to cut through almost anything.
If that axe had hit him, there would have been nothing left of his head but blood and pieces. The thought made him feel sick and dizzy, but also grateful that his weak body had somehow moved fast enough to save his life.
Dust went up into the air from where the axe hit the ground, making a thick cloud that was hard to see through. The whole area became cloudy and gray, filled with flying dirt and small rocks that got into his eyes and mouth.
Zhan thought he was safe for a moment and felt a tiny bit of pride for moving so fast when he needed to, something he never thought his weak body could do. Maybe all those years of playing video games had taught him something about dodging attacks after all.
"HAH.. I DODG—"
He started to celebrate too early, thinking he had won already just by dodging one attack from the monster. His voice was full of relief and happiness, like he had just passed a hard test at school.
But the feeling didn't last long because the orc was much smarter and faster than he had thought it would be. The monster's ugly head suddenly came out of the cloud of dust like a nightmare, moving faster than Zhan expected and catching him completely off guard.
There was a sick wet crunching sound, like someone stepping on a bag of wet sticks, as the orc bit down hard on Zhan's right leg. Its sharp yellow teeth went through his skin and muscle like they were made of soft butter, tearing through everything until they hit bone.
The pain was beyond anything he had ever felt before, worse than the worst toothache or headache multiplied by a thousand. It felt like his leg was being torn apart by a wild animal, which was exactly what was happening.
"AAAAAAGGHHHHHH!"
He rolled around on the ground in terrible pain, his whole body twisting and turning as he screamed louder than he ever had before in his life. Blood was coming out of his leg where the orc had bitten him, making a growing red pool on the dirt that soaked into the ground.
He could see white bone sticking out from where his leg used to be whole, and pieces of torn flesh hanging like red ribbons. The sight made him feel sick and dizzy, like he might throw up or pass out from the horror of it all.
His leg felt like it was on fire, with pain shooting up through his whole body like electricity. Every heartbeat sent more blood out of the wound, and he could feel himself getting weaker and weaker as the red liquid left his body.
The world started to look fuzzy around the edges, and sounds became distant and strange. He wondered if this was what dying felt like, slow and painful and scary.
"ST-STOP... PLEASE!"
The orc stepped down hard on his bleeding wound with its heavy foot, crushing the torn flesh and broken bone under its weight. The pain got even worse than before, if that was even possible, making Zhan feel like his whole body was being burned alive.
More blood came out of the bite marks, flowing like a small river across the grass and dirt. He wanted to pass out from the pain but his body wouldn't let him escape from this living hell.
The orc's foot was huge and covered in thick skin that felt like leather, with long dirty toenails that dug into his wound. It pressed down harder and harder, like it was trying to squash him like a bug under its foot.
The monster seemed to enjoy watching him suffer, making happy grunting sounds as it tortured him. Its red eyes glowed with cruel pleasure as it watched him writhe in agony beneath its foot.
"AAAAAGHHHHHHHHHHHH"
[Skillset acquired!]
[Eightswords, Lvl. 1]
[Pathetic human bitch!]
Zhan's wounds suddenly healed up completely, the torn skin and muscle growing back together like magic in just a few seconds. It was the strangest thing he had ever seen, watching his body fix itself like it was rewinding a video of the injury.
The pain disappeared as fast as it had come, leaving only the memory of how terrible it had felt. His leg looked normal again as if nothing bad had happened to it, not even a scar to show where the orc had bitten him.
He had been saved by some strange power that he didn't understand at all, something that felt like it came from inside his own body. A warm feeling spread through him, like drinking hot soup on a cold day, and he felt stronger than before.
The tiredness and weakness from losing blood was gone completely, replaced by a strange new energy that made his whole body feel light and powerful. It was like he had been given a second chance at life when he thought he was going to die for sure.
"AAH!"
He jumped back two steps, his body still shaking from the memory of all that terrible pain he had just felt. The fear was still there even though his body was healed, like a bad dream that stays with you after you wake up.
The orc was standing right in front of him again, showing its yellow broken teeth in a mean hungry grin. Its small red eyes looked at him with the kind of look a cat gives a mouse before it pounces, full of cruel enjoyment and anticipation.
The monster seemed surprised that he was healed, tilting its ugly head to one side like a confused dog. But the surprise quickly turned back into hunger and anger, and it raised its axe again to continue the fight.
Thick drool ran down from its open mouth, making wet spots on the ground where it landed. The orc looked even more angry now, like it was mad that its prey had escaped death so easily.
"StringMaster... W-wh-what the hell does it do!?"
He asked himself out loud, trying to figure out how to use this new power that had just saved his life from certain death. The name sounded strange and didn't give him any clues about what it could do or how to make it work.
He focused his mind and tried to make something happen, hoping the skill would work when he needed it most. Nothing seemed to happen at first and he started to panic again, afraid that the power was a one-time thing that wouldn't help him anymore.
He tried thinking really hard about strings, like the kind used to tie things together or the strings on a guitar. Maybe he could control ropes or threads somehow, but he didn't see any around him that he could use.
The grass was too short and soft to be helpful, and his clothes didn't have any loose strings he could pull off. He wished he had paid more attention in school when they talked about different kinds of materials and how they were made.
"P-please... Just activate already!"
He begged the power to work, his voice shaking with desperation as the orc came closer to him with heavy threatening steps. The ground shook under the monster's weight as it got ready to attack him again with that terrible axe.
Zhan backed up as far as he could, looking around for somewhere to run or hide, but the field was wide and open with nowhere to go. His back hit something hard and he realized he had reached a big rock that blocked his escape route.
The orc was taking its time now, walking slowly like it knew he was trapped and couldn't get away. It seemed to be enjoying the fear in his eyes, making low rumbling sounds that might have been laughter.
The axe looked even bigger and more dangerous up close, with dried blood stains on the blade that were probably from other people who had tried to fight this monster. The wood handle was dark and stained, worn smooth by years of killing and violence.
"N-no..."
He said quietly, feeling completely hopeless as the orc got closer and closer to his scared trembling body. The monster's awful smell got stronger as it approached, making his nose burn and his eyes water from the terrible stench.
Its axe was still covered in dirt from hitting the ground earlier, and small pieces of grass stuck to the metal surface. The wooden handle was dark with old sweat and blood from the orc's huge hands.
The monster's breathing was loud and rough, like an old engine that was about to break down. Each breath it took made a wheezing sound that echoed across the quiet field.
Its chest rose and fell heavily, showing that even though it was strong, swinging that huge axe around was hard work. But it didn't look tired at all, just excited to finish what it had started.
"DON'T COME NEAR ME..!"
By the time he looked at the orc again after closing his eyes in fear, he saw that one of its thick legs was being held down against the ground by something he couldn't see. The monster couldn't move forward anymore and looked confused and angry about what was happening to it.
Something invisible was keeping its foot stuck in place like the strongest glue or the tightest rope, no matter how hard it tried to pull free. The orc looked down at its trapped leg and then back at Zhan, its red eyes full of confusion and growing rage.
It tried to lift its foot but couldn't move it even a tiny bit, like it was stuck in cement that had already dried. The monster started making angry growling sounds and swinging its axe at the air, but it couldn't reach him from where it was trapped.
The invisible force seemed to be getting stronger, wrapping around more of the orc's body like chains made of air. The monster's other leg started to slow down, like something was grabbing onto it too.
The orc growled and roared, sounding like an angry bear that had been caught in a trap. It pulled and twisted its leg, trying to break free from whatever was holding it down, but nothing worked.
The invisible force was stronger than the monster's powerful muscles, keeping it stuck in place no matter what it did. Sweat started to drip from its ugly face as it struggled harder and harder to escape.
"W-wh..."
The orc suddenly fell down hard, hitting the ground with a loud thump that shook the earth around them. It was still alive but couldn't get back up, like both of its legs were now being held down by the same invisible power.
Zhan felt startled and confused, not understanding what was happening or how he was doing it. The monster's eyes were wide with fear now instead of hunger, looking around wildly for whatever was attacking it.
The orc tried to swing its axe from the ground, but its arms seemed to be getting slower and weaker. Its breathing became more labored and desperate, like it was running out of air.
The confident evil grin was gone from its face, replaced by the same kind of fear that Zhan had been feeling just moments before. The tables had turned completely, and now the monster was the one who was scared and helpless.
—Did... I do that?
He thought to himself, staring at the trapped monster that had been trying to kill him just seconds ago. The power he had gained seemed to be working without him really understanding how or why.
Maybe thinking about strings had actually done something, creating invisible ropes that could hold down even a monster as strong as this orc. The idea seemed crazy but he couldn't think of any other explanation for what was happening.
—Am I supposed to kill it..?
The thought of actually killing another living thing, even a monster that had tried to kill him first, made his stomach feel sick and twisted. He had never hurt anything bigger than a bug before, and the idea of taking a life felt wrong and scary.
But the orc would probably try to kill him again if he let it go free, and there might be other people around who would be in danger too. Maybe killing monsters was just something he would have to learn to do in this strange new world.
"Fuck... Just die."
The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them, filled with anger and fear and the need to survive. As soon as he said it, the orc's ugly head fell onto the ground with a wet thud that made him jump.
The monster's red eyes went blank and empty, showing nothing but fear and hopelessness in its final moments. Its mouth hung open and its tongue stuck out, covered in thick saliva that made a small puddle in the dirt.
The blood came next, gushing out of the orc's neck where something invisible had cut through it like the sharpest knife. The red liquid flowed across the grass and dirt, making the ground muddy and slippery.
The smell of blood mixed with the orc's already terrible stench, creating an odor that made Zhan want to throw up everything he had eaten that day. He had to cover his nose with his shirt to keep from getting sick.
[First blood!]
[Congratulations, you are the first to kill a monster. You are rewarded with extra levels!]
A voice sounded in his head, clear and loud like someone speaking right into his ear through headphones. Zhan fell backward onto the soft grass, his legs giving out from shock and exhaustion and relief.
His whole body felt weak and shaky, like he had just finished the hardest workout of his life. The adrenaline that had been keeping him going started to fade away, leaving him feeling empty and tired.
"haaa. Haah. Haah. Hah. I won."
He said quietly to himself, barely believing that he was still alive and that the monster was actually dead. His voice was hoarse from all the screaming he had done, and his throat felt raw and painful.
But he was alive, and that was all that mattered right now. The sun was still shining and the birds were starting to sing again, like the world was going back to normal after the terrible fight.
[Level up! X1]
[Level up! X2]
[Level up! X5]
[Level up! X10]
[Level up! X20]
The voice in his head kept announcing new levels, each one making him feel a little bit stronger and more confident. Energy flowed through his body like electricity, washing away the tiredness and fear that had been weighing him down.