I kept breathing hard, dagger hanging loose in my grip. My chest felt cramped, every breath dragging like I'd swallowed smoke. Sweat crawled down my neck, cold and annoying.
The first BoneCrawler sprinted straight for me, fast as hell.
I tilted my head, watching it like some bad replay.
Oh yeah, I know that move — the classic mid-range jump-and-bite special.
"Foxfire Step."
Heat burst under my feet, fire crawling up my legs. I moved quick, low to the ground, the dagger coming up with me, tip aimed straight ahead.
It jumped, high and fast, jaw wide, all its weight coming right at me. The moment stretched — I saw every muscle twist, heard every crack of bone as it lunged at me.
I didn't move. I waited.
The bite missed my throat by an inch, scraping over my dagger. My blade ripped its gut open as it lunged by, blood splashing over my arm and face. I didn't even blink — it felt warm against my skin.
It snarled as it flipped mid-air, landed on its belly and slid a bit, trying to push itself up.
I walked up slowly, my heartbeat steady now — too steady. I felt thrill crawling under my skin.
I raised the dagger and pushed it down — once, twice, again — feeling it sink deeper and deeper each time.
Warm blood hit my arm, slid down my cheek. I could feel the heat of it, smell of it.
I could hear the wet sound of each stab — thick, sticky — and I was enjoying it too much to stop.
I kept stabbing until the kicks slowed. I felt the last twitch run through the blade, then nothing.
I pulled the dagger out and wiped it on my sleeve. The blood clung on like it didn't want to leave me either.
I crouched down, carving out their monster cores one by one. The smell was awful but I just ignored it.
Now I had six monster cores in total. Even if I didn't need them to level up, I still needed them to pass the test.
I held one in my hand for a second, watching the faint glow inside it.
"Right… twenty-four cores," I muttered, trying to remember. "That's the number. Others need twenty-four F-rank cores to reach level F-2."
This test wasn't really about surviving. Everyone knew that.
If you stayed at F-1, you were done for. No one wanted trash in their academy.
F-2, F-3 or F4 might get you into some small city university if you were lucky.
F-5 and above… those were the ones people actually cared about.
I already knew how it worked. I just never thought I'd stand this high, this fast.
I clenched the core in my hand, feeling the faint pulse of energy inside it.
"Then I'll aim higher," I whispered. "Much higher."
I raised my hand above it.
"Void Eater."
Their bodies melted right in front of me — no blood, no bone, just gone.
The system screen blinked in front of my eyes.
[ Void Eater Activated ]
[ Devoured: 2 * BoneCrawler (F-2) ]
[ Experience Gained: +1500 ]
[ New Passive Skill Acquired – 2 * Blood Sense (F) ]
[ Effect: Detects living beings within 500 meters through scent and warmth of blood. Stronger heartbeat increases visibility. ]
[ Seed Growth: +4 ]
[ Taint: –2 ]
I looked at the screen, then at my hand, and grinned.
"Blood, huh…" I muttered, clenching my fist. "That'll help me hunt faster."
The blue screen flickered again right after the numbers settled.
[ Total Experience Gained: 5500 ]
[ Threshold Reached ]
[ Level Up — F-3 ]
[ Seed Growth: 64 ]
[ Current Rank: F-3 ]
[ Experience: 700 / 7680 ]
[ Taint: 33]
I watched the light fade from the screen and took a slow breath.
F-3 already.
It felt strange — how fast I was climbing.
Every time I killed, I could feel something laugh inside me.
Soft at first, almost gentle… like it was enjoying it with me.
Like it had been waiting for me to stop pretending.
The more I devoured, the easier it became to ignore what was left of me.
I grinned and whispered, "Let's see how far this goes."
I heard the tremor in the ground.
The ground under my feet vibrated — close, real close.
Then the smell hit me — thick and metallic, blood drifting on the wind from far away.
I grinned to myself. This new passive skill was amazing.
I didn't even need to chant to activate it.
It was just there, always on.
My sense of smell had changed — like a normal nose but sharper, stretched out.
Now I could smell blood from far, far away, every drop like a beacon pulling at me.
My eyes widened. That smell… it wasn't just the air or the blood. It was something else.
For a second, my head buzzed — scents twisting into shapes, those shapes bleeding into colors, and then all of it started to move.
It was like my brain was painting the scene on its own, faster than I could even think.
"Heh… hahah…" I slapped my forehead, a slow laugh slipping out.
The ground shook again, a rhythm I knew too well.
BoneCrawlers.
Coming straight for me.
Of course. The blood — on my hands, on my clothes. They smelled me.
And now they were coming for me.
A grin pulled at my face before I even noticed. I should've felt disgusted. Instead, I felt alive. The fire inside me burned hotter, something deep in my heart twisting with it — hungry, waiting.
And I knew what was waiting there — that same creepy seed.
I could feel it moving, sprouting its roots through my heart. Every pulse, every beat, made me feel more thrilled, more alive, like it was replacing me bit by bit with something else.
I raised the dagger, fingers trembling from how bad I wanted it.
"Come… faster," I muttered. My voice sounded strange, rough with excitement.
My heart pounded hard. Not from fear. From hunger.
Devour.
Devour.
The word echoed in my head, louder each time — like it wasn't me thinking anymore.
So much to devour…
The whisper slid through my chest, cold and sweet at the same time.
I could almost hear it smiling in the dark inside me.
I felt it right away — the rush.
The energy hit hard, filling every part of me. F-3.
My muscles used to feel heavy. Now they felt solid, alive, like the power had weight.
Each breath tasted heavier, thicker — like I was breathing strength itself.
I didn't need to dodge. Not this time. My body already knew it — the power in me wasn't asking to survive anymore. It wanted to crush them, to feel bones break, to feel the rush that came with it.
I slid the dagger aside and cracked my fingers. Each pop sent a small thrill through me. My fingers twitched, itching to feel it again — that clean, heavy crack when their bones break beneath my fist.
"Iron Fist."