He still had enough Origin Points left to evolve one ability, but that wasn't what held Hansen's attention.
What truly froze him in place was a different realization.
"If evolving an N-rank ability costs a thousand times the points required for its first level-up, then that means..."
The elementary math played out in his mind. His eyes sharpened.
"Evolving an SSR ability would cost... one million Origin Points!?"
Fu*k!!
He sucked in a sharp breath, chilled to the bone by the crushing implication.
One. Million.
The grind would be beyond monstrous. It wouldn't be weeks or months. Heck, it could take years.
"At this stage, building a UR, red-rank ability from scratch is totally unrealistic. The only chance is if a pre-made UR ability appears and lets me copy it, but..."
The odds were laughable.
"That's even less likely than pulling an SSR from a free gacha. Forget it. I should focus on what ability evolution actually does before dreaming about URs."
He took a deep breath, grounding himself, then returned his attention to the two shimmering options on his panel.
Between the two maxed-out white-tier skills, the choice was obvious.
"System, evolve my core ability 'Hardened Carapace'!"
[Consumed 1000 Origin Points. Ability evolution complete!]
['Hardened Carapace (N)' LvMax → 'Spiked Armor (R)' Lv1!]
WMMM!!
An eerie wave of energy swept through Hansen's entire body. The thick black plating encasing him pulsed with life as magma-colored patterns ignited across its surface. Thin, glowing cracks began to spiderweb along the armor, as if the shell were molting.
The lines deepened, and with a series of quick surges, new carapace plates layered in, solidifying almost instantly.
This wasn't just a cosmetic upgrade. It was a complete metamorphosis.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
From every joint, curved bone spikes burst outward, longer, sharper, more menacing than ever. What had once been a defensive shell was now a living weapon. Each jagged spine glinted with a cold, steel-gray luster that looked sharp enough to split boulders.
['Spiked Armor (R)' Lv1: Mutated spiked armor. Greatly enhances defense. When struck, it absorbs a portion of the damage and triggers an automatic counterattack, inflicting piercing damage on enemies.]
"I see... It's no longer just defense. It's reactive armor now."
He could feel the ambient heat rising as the new armor pulsed with latent power. Not only did it offer greater protection, but it also returned damage. It was an entirely different league from before.
Hansen nodded with satisfaction. "So even the weakest ability can still evolve into something powerful, as long as you stick with it."
Still, the cost wasn't cheap.
He had to prioritize his choices. But in this moment, as he stood armored in lethal thorns and magma-lined plating, he felt proud. The core ability he'd inherited, the one that had started it all, was far from useless.
It had grown with him.
…
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The air trembled with each deafening thud echoing from the tunnel's depths. Every impact carried a terrifying weight, like mountains marching across the earth.
Something massive was coming.
In the underground chamber, every monster present, already on edge after the death of the slime octopus, snapped their heads toward the tunnel. All at once, they froze, eyes wide and limbs stiff.
A wave of primal terror swept through them like a tsunami.
Then came a thunderous crash. The tunnel's stone ceiling exploded like wet clay under some unimaginable force.
Shards of rock blasted outward. Dust filled the air in choking clouds.
And from within that swirling haze, a hulking figure emerged, well over three meters tall, clad in a brutal suit of jagged, jet-black Spiked Armor.
BOOOOM!!!
A nearly physical burst of sheer might erupted from the figure's core like a shockwave.
Overhead, the fluorescent lights spasmed violently. Several burst outright, showering sparks as power lines groaned under the strain. The entire underground complex trembled. Tiny stones were scattered across the floor, swept aside by an invisible pulse of pressure.
The air turned glacial.
That aura, a surging, suffocating force, was the unmistakable presence of a Demon-level monster. The entire area dropped into a paralyzed silence.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Several Wolf-level monsters collapsed without a sound. Their eyes rolled back, mouths foaming as they hit the floor unconscious.
The remaining creatures trembled, spines quivering and knees buckling. Even the more dangerous Tiger-level monsters couldn't hide their fear. Their eyes darted around like prey trapped in a nightmare.
"Demon... Demon-level!? That's impossible!"
A mantis-like Tiger-level monster screamed silently, but its limbs wouldn't respond. Not even a twitch. Its body refused to move.
How much time had even passed?
How could this guy vanish for a bit and then return radiating this kind of horrifying power?
This wasn't the presence of a slightly stronger opponent. This was the kind of soul-crushing pressure that came from high-tier Dragon-level officers, the ones who made entire stadiums fall silent when they appeared. It was a completely different league.
And the worst part?
They weren't hallucinating. According to the system, Hansen's Demon-level classification only applied to his base, unaugmented state.
Now, with Rover's four SSR abilities fully fused into him, the current Hansen, fully unleashed, had the raw strength to flatten peak Demon-level opponents without breaking a sweat.
This was what it meant to be a stat monster. Uncompromising, overwhelming, and utterly out of reach.
Among the crowd, the rat monster Fang had just finished devouring what was left of the slime octopus's corpse.
Its once scraggly, patchy gray fur now glistened with an oily sheen, sleek and smooth like satin. The shift in its aura was undeniable. The Tiger-level flesh had clearly boosted its strength.
But what had changed the most wasn't its body. It was its gaze.
When Fang looked at Hansen now, there was no trace of fear, only fervent devotion. Awe. Worship.
This was power. Absolute, terrifying, unreasonable power.
Hansen slowly scanned the room, his presence like a reaper's scythe grazing across the necks of every monster there. And wherever his eyes moved, the beasts lowered their heads even more, bodies shaking uncontrollably in submission.
"Starting today, this territory belongs to me."
His voice wasn't loud. But its weight was impossible to ignore, each word landing like a judge's gavel. Every monster present heard it clear as day, their bodies frozen stiff.
A moment later, his eyes stopped on Fang, who was trembling so violently it looked ready to collapse.
"Fang."
"Y-Yes! Yes, sir! I'm here!"
The rat monster yelped in panic and scrambled out from the shadows. Without hesitation, it flung itself facedown on the floor, pressing its rodent head low in an almost exaggerated show of obedience.
"From now on, you'll serve as my temporary lieutenant," Hansen said, voice steady. "You'll manage these weaklings, keep track of supplies, and relay my commands. Understood?"
Though the question was aimed at Fang, Hansen's eyes shifted toward the Tiger-level monsters standing nearby.
They weren't exactly intellectuals, but they weren't fools either. That icy gaze alone made their blood run cold.
To them, his words were a blade pressed to their necks. One misstep, and they'd be reduced to scorched husks just like the slime octopus.
Panic broke through their stiff masks. Nods came fast and frantic. The ground beneath them dampened as cold sweat poured from their trembling bodies.
"U-Understood! I understand completely!" Fang cried, voice breaking into high-pitched squeaks. His fear was now something else, raw excitement. The thrill of rising above his lowly kin.
The rat bobbed its head frantically, black snout twitching. It looked like a pestle pounding away at a mortar of garlic as it cried out, "Don't worry, sir! Even if I have to bleed out or get my bones crushed to powder, I'll make sure everything's perfect! You won't regret it!"
Hansen gave a faint nod. He was clearly pleased with the rat's enthusiasm and efficiency.
Having someone else to handle orders, logistics, and general rabble management would spare him from dealing with the small stuff. That left him free to focus on the only thing that mattered, getting stronger.
That was how a true leader operated.
Then, remembering the issue that had been nagging at him earlier, Hansen narrowed his eyes and spoke again, his voice low and sharp.
"Has the Association made any moves recently?"
A pause.
"And what do you know... about the Dragon-level officers?"
===
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