The room was small. Three enemies. Two clones. One starving F-Rank Hunter.
Kane laughed, swinging the metal bat onto his shoulder. "Did you hear that? The trash thinks we're worth credits."
The two thugs chuckled, stepping forward. They didn't see the shadows rising behind them. They were focused on the skinny, trembling boy in front of them.
Lin wasn't trembling from fear. He was trembling from Calorie Deficit.
"Kill them," Lin whispered.
SWISH.
The shadows moved.
One clone lunged at the thug on the left. It didn't punch. It didn't kick. It wrapped its arm around the thug's neck in a rear naked choke.
"What the—!"
CRACK.
With 12 Strength—equivalent to a professional weightlifter—the clone jerked its arm back. The thug's neck snapped like a dry twig. He dropped to the floor, eyes wide, dead before he hit the ground.
[Ding! Enemy Killed.] [Experience: +50]
"Ambush!" Kane roared, spinning around.
His reaction speed was Rank-E. Fast. He swung the metal bat instinctively at the second clone approaching him.
SMASH!
The bat connected with the clone's ribs. There was no resistance. The clone didn't bruise; it shattered. It burst into black smoke instantly, dissipating into nothingness.
"Smoke?" Kane's eyes widened in confusion. "A summoner?"
He had made a fatal mistake. He was looking at the smoke. He should have been looking at Lin.
While the clone took the hit, Lin had already moved. He grabbed a rusty screwdriver from his table—his only weapon.
He didn't aim for the head or the heart. Kane was wearing leather armor on his chest. Lin aimed for the femoral artery in the thigh.
SHUK.
The rusty metal plunged deep into Kane's leg.
"ARGH!" Kane howled, dropping to one knee. He swung the bat wildly at Lin.
Lin didn't dodge. He didn't have the stamina to dodge. [Shadow Clone: Summon.]
A third clone materialized directly in front of Lin, acting as a meat shield.
BAM!
The clone took the bat to the face and exploded into smoke. But it absorbed the kinetic energy.
Lin stepped through the dissipating smoke, his face expressionless. He was now inside Kane's guard. He grabbed Kane's hair with one hand and jammed the screwdriver into his neck with the other.
"A Rank-E throat is just as soft as a Rank-F throat," Lin stated.
SHUK. SHUK. SHUK.
Three stabs. Maximum efficiency. Kane gurgled, blood foaming at his mouth. He slumped over, the expensive metal bat clattering to the floor.
The last thug, seeing his boss butchered in seconds, turned to run. "Monster! You're a—"
"Clone," Lin commanded.
The first clone (the one who snapped the neck) was still active. It blocked the doorway. The thug skidded to a halt. He turned back to beg, but Lin was already there.
Game over.
Five minutes later. The room was silent, except for the sound of rain.
[Battle Ended.] [Total Experience Gained: +220] [Level Up!] [Current Rank: F (Low) -> F (Mid)] [Free Stat Points: 2]
Lin didn't celebrate. He felt no guilt. In the Slums, it was eat or be eaten.
He walked over to Kane's corpse.
[Looting Protocol: Active]
"Leather Armor. Rank E. Durability 80%. Market value: 800 Credits." Lin stripped the bloodstained armor off the body.
"Steel Bat. Heavy alloy. Value: 500 Credits." He picked it up. Heavy. Good.
"Wallet." He opened it. 1,200 Credits in cash chips.
"Jackpot," Lin muttered.
Suddenly, a wave of dizziness hit him. [Warning: Calorie Level Critical. Body Fat at 4%. Muscle degradation imminent.]
He had summoned three clones. The hunger was now a physical pain, like acid in his stomach. Lin looked around. He saw the bag of takeout food Kane's thugs had brought with them—probably a snack for after they beat him up.
Burgers. Greasy, synthetic beef burgers.
Lin tore the bag open. He didn't chew; he inhaled. One burger. Two. Three.
[Calories Replenished.] [Status: Stable.]
Lin wiped the grease from his mouth. He looked at the three half-naked bodies piled in the corner of his container.
"I can't leave them here," Lin calculated. "The Guild will investigate."
He looked at his status panel. [MP: 60/60] (Mana recovered, but Stamina was the cost).
"Shadow Clones don't leave fingerprints," Lin said to himself. "And the Slums have plenty of hungry rats in the sewers."
He summoned two fresh clones. They picked up the bodies with mechanical obedience.
"Dump them in Sector 9," Lin ordered. "Then disperse."
The clones nodded and carried the dead men out into the rainy night.
Lin sat back on his cot, counting the cash chips. 1,200 Credits. Plus the gear. Total assets: ~2,500 Credits.
"Enough for one day of Life Support," Lin whispered, clutching the money. "But I need 500,000."
He looked at his hands. They were stained with blood. He didn't wash them. He opened his status panel and dumped the 2 Free Stat Points into Intelligence (INT).
"I need more clones," he said.
("Enjoying the massacre? Drop a Power Stone to feed the Clone Army!")