SPLAT.
"Finally killed you, you disgusting piece of shit."
A deep, smooth voice laced with irritation followed as a black boot lifted off the crushed remains of a roach. Not just any roach, one of the flying ones.
"Y'know, in all my days of living, I've never seen anyone who hates roaches as much as you do."
The reply came lighter, feminine, smooth and teasing, genuinely amused.
"Sounds like a lie. Everyone hates mosquitoes and roaches. The two banes of existence." he replied matter of factly, brushing the gore off his boot with the edge of a rock.
"Whatever you say, T.." she giggled, shaking her head.
Terrence Danbrose could honestly say that ever since he died and woke up in this new fantasy world, the same one he'd once devoured as pages of his favorite novel 'Rising of the Primordial Mage,' the experience had been nothing like reading.
It wasn't like he was the main character, Kaiser Kons, that plot-armored, overpowered, power steroid-fueled son of a bitch. No. Terrence was just an extra, if you could even call him that.
But that didn't bother him. Not one bit. Because he had something the main character didn't.
Before that though, let him explain the world of Rising of the Primordial Mage.
In Rising of the Primordial Mage, there were seven beings called Primes. These were entities above SSS Rank, apex predators of existence. Primordials. During the War of Eternity, these Primes fought each other in battles so reality-breaking they altered the very laws of creation.
Who won? No one knew. The Primes vanished, leaving behind scars in existence itself called Rends.
Tears in reality that bled monsters from other worlds. Beasts that didn't want to conquer humanity, but erase it or drag it screaming into their realms.
And humanity? It should've ended there. But the lingering radiation of the Primes' power mutated mankind, awakening something long thought impossible: the ability to fight back. To close the Rends. To challenge the unknown.
Terrence, however, had something different. Something unique.
There was a reason he went out of his way to stomp down every disgusting roach in the Nobody Region, which was a place outside of the 5 great Kingdoms plagued with Rends.
Because every kill meant progress.
[System Update]
+1 Brown Flying Cockroach killed
+0.5 EXP gained!
[x10,000 Rewards Activated!]
0.5 EXP → 5,000 EXP
Level Up!
+1 Infinite Reward Point
"Nice. One step closer to being strong enough for my first Rend.." he muttered with a satisfied smile.
This ×10,000 rewards system was his trump card, gifted to him by the hidden Author Gods of this world.
Formally? It was called the Infinite Rewards Harem System.
The "harem" part..yeah, he wasn't worried about that yet. Not while he was stuck in the hood version of this world. But the rewards? That, he'd exploit until the world broke.
He flicked his fingers, pulling up his Status Screen. Eiselle—dirty black-white hair hanging in unkempt waves, dulled golden eyes, bare feet pressing against the cracked earth—watched with quiet curiosity. She never said anything when he did this. She couldn't see the screen. But she always stared like she wanted to.
[Status Screen]
Name: Terrence Danbrose
Level: 4
Title: [Hidden]
Vitality: [10,000/10,000]
Mana [5,000/5,000]
[Physical]
Strength: 5
Agility: 5
Dexterity: 5
Endurance: 10
[Mental]
Focus: 10
Intelligence: 15
Perception: 10
Talent: [Unawakened]
(Unlocks after completing first Rend)
System: [Infinite Rewards Harem System]
All rewards amplified ×10,000
Harem Features: [Locked] (Unlock after completing first Rend)
"Damn, everything's balanced as it should be" Terrence muttered, closing the screen. "Once I hit Level 5, I'm diving into my first Rend. Good shit."
His stomach growled. Roach hunting was hungry work.
"Y'know, I always wondered if you're outright insane for talking to yourself all the time. Were you slow as a child?" Eiselle asked, so bluntly it made Terrence laugh.
"Trust me, I definitely was.." he admitted with a smirk. "But that's another conversation for another time. Let's get something to eat."
Later
"So T, I've got a question…" Eiselle said as she leaned forward, her golden eyes narrowing while she sniffed at what she considered the weirdest thing Terrence had ever shown her.
They sat across from each other on opposite wooden logs, a crackling campfire between them. The flames painted gold and amber over their faces, while the full moon hung high above the dark forest, glowing like a silent witness to their 'absurd' meal.
"Yeh wahsuh??" Terrence mumbled between bites, barely glancing up as he devoured what he proudly considered the best food in existence.
"Just..what the hell is this? A butter shell with crinkled beef particles?" she asked, her brow arched in disbelief, her elf ears twitching in faint disgust.
Oh did he forget to mention she was an elf? Yeah. She was.
Terrence froze mid-chew, his eyes slowly widening as he turned to her like she'd just said the most offensive words known to mankind.
"What..did you just say?"
Eiselle giggled at his expression, her white hair bouncing slightly as she did.
"I said these 'tacos' are-"
"The most delicious thing in the world, right? You haven't even tasted it yet!" Terrence cut in, proudly gesturing with his hand.
He'd put blood, sweat, and tears into getting these tacos. He'd earned them, his glorious reward for slaying his first 100 roaches. One taco was supposed to be his prize.
But his system had multiplied it by ten thousand.
Now, the man would never go hungry again.
Who would've thought?
"Hm, well, I suppose-"
The moment Eiselle took a bite, her words vanished.
Her pointed ears stiffened. Twitched again.
Then came a muffled sound. A half gasp, half moan.
"W-what..what is this flavor?!"
Terrence grinned like a proud father. He was about to say something, until a voice drifted through the darkness.
"Canwehavesome??"
Instantly, both of them tensed. Eiselle's dagger appeared in her hand like magic, gleaming in the firelight. Terrence well, he dropped the taco and got in a fighting stance.
"Hell no!" he barked. "What's in it for us?"
The shadows shifted, and five cloaked figures emerged, their hoods drenched in the dark blue of the night.
Terrence and Eiselle had run into types like these before. In the Nobody Region, trust was a currency more expensive than life.
And those who gave it away?
They didn't live long enough to regret it and plus he'd read about it as well.
Terrence's eyes narrowed. He already had a feeling about who, or what they were.
"What? Can't help a friend?" The middle figure's voice was smooth and mocking. "How cruel…"
The group began to inch closer.
"Eiselle…" Terrence's tone dropped, serious now. His dark brown eyes met her golden ones.
She understood without a word. Her expression softened for just a moment, then turned away, her hands trembling as she clenched her dagger.
This might be the last time she'd ever see him.
But she nodded and ran..fast, silent, and graceful through the trees. Withholding the unseen tears with strength.
They'd had this talk before. Terrence had a self understanding that he was weak as fuck and didn't want her to get hurt in a situation like this where he couldn't do anything. To his knowledge Eiselle didn't have any powers herself, so he decided he'll hold whoever back and let her escape.
Terrence exhaled slowly, chuckling to himself.
A noble sacrifice that'd make Majin Vegeta proud.
"Step any closer," he warned, rolling his neck, "and I'll be kicking your ass into next week."
His gaze flicked open his inventory. Nothing useful in a situation like this. Just..
10,000 silver forks and spoons.
"Seriously?" he muttered. "How's this supposed to help? I'm not running a damn diner—"
"Oh? Big words from a little man." the leader growled, removing his cloak. The rest followed.
What stood before him now made Terrence's jaw clench.
Werewolves. Scrawny but sharp, their gray fur slick and matted, their fangs dripping with hunger. They looked like they hadn't eaten in weeks.
Welp. His guess was right. Looks like the Lycans finally decided to reveal themselves.
"Then show us!" one of them howled and the five lunged at him in unison, claws glinting.
Terrence just smirked.
What were werewolves weak to again?
Then he grinned wider.
"Oh, right..silver."
"System," he roared. "release all 10,000 silver forks and spoons!"
[Request granted.]
The world exploded.
Thousands of silver utensils materialized above them, swirling like a metallic storm under the moonlight.
Spoons and forks rained from the heavens, each one shimmering like a holy relic of divine punishment.
The werewolves shrieked, flailing as they were pelted from all directions.
CLINK! CLANK! THUD!
Forks lodged in fur, spoons smacked into skulls, and knives (oh, where did those even come from?) whirled like silver shurikens of death.
It was chaos. It was ridiculous.
It was effective.
Within seconds, the werewolves looked like victims of a culinary massacre.
Impaled, flattened, or pinned to trees, they slumped in silence beneath the metallic rain.
Terrence blinked. Then grinned.
"Well..that worked way better than I expected."
The last few spoons clattered to the dirt. The forest was silent, except for the faint ping of metal cooling in the moonlight.
[System Update!]
[x5 LV.4 Werewolves killed!]
+5,000 EXP gained! (x10,000) → 50,000,000
+10 Silver Spoons (x10,000) → 100,000
+10 Silver Forks (x10,000) → 100,000
+5 Werewolf Teeth (x10,000) → 50,000
+5 Werewolf Fur (x10,000) → 50,000
+5 Werewolf Claws (x10,000) → 50,000
+5 Infinite Reward Points
Level Up!
Terrence laughed, glancing at the glowing blue text. "Man, this shit is crazy. But I'm not complaining. I'm way above Level 5 now..which means-"
He looked toward the distant horizon, eyes gleaming. "I can finally enter my first Rend."
Then he smirked.
"Oh and Eiselle, I know you're still there. You can come out now."
From behind a tree, a white-haired elf stepped into the open, her eyes wide.
"But how did you—"
"Intuition, I guess.." he said with a chuckle, brushing silver dust from his shoulder as hundreds of utensils gleamed around him like trophies.