Noel was ready to leave the house and step onto the bloodstained street where the creatures roamed. His hand rested on the door handle, his body tense and prepared to move.
Then he stopped.
He turned around and looked at his father. "Dad… are you ready?"
Hugh stood behind him, gripping a knife in each hand. His expression was hard, his eyes focused. He nodded once.
Seeing that, Noel opened the door and stepped outside. Hugh followed closely, keeping his distance small.
They walked for a while without encountering anything alive, only bodies. Neighbors. Strangers. People torn apart and left where they had fallen. The silence was heavy, broken only by distant screams echoing through the streets.
Then they saw it.
A small lizard-like creature, an Aurelnih, sat proudly atop a human corpse, its posture arrogant, as if it were claiming its kill.
Something snapped inside Noel.
Before Hugh could react, electricity burst from Noel's body. Dark scorch marks etched themselves into the ground as he dashed forward in a blur.
"Goodness…" Hugh muttered.
In the next instant, Noel collided with the Aurelnih. Electricity exploded outward at the point of impact, crackling violently. The creature didn't even have time to scream.
It died instantly.
The words in Noel's vision shifted.
[Low Aurelnih <1> killed]
| 10 Axis Essence gained
"Seventy more…" Noel muttered under his breath.
He looked ahead.
There were more.
Some resembled the Aurelnih, but others were different. Their bodies were more twisted, more demonic. Horns curved from their heads, and unlike the Aurelnih that merely killed, these creatures tore into corpses with savage delight.
"Hateful…" Noel growled.
He dashed at one of them.
But this time, the creature reacted.
It twisted aside just in time, avoiding Noel's strike. Electricity scattered uselessly through the air.
Noel's eyes widened.
Before he could follow up, the creature fled, sprinting toward a group of others like it. As it ran, it let out a harsh screeching sound, some alien language that drew the attention of the rest.
They all turned toward Noel.
Sweat beaded on his skin. "Fuuck…"
Six of them charged.
They were fast, nearly as fast as him.
Noel dashed forward, electricity flaring around his body as he gathered power. He caught up to the fleeing creature and slammed his fist into its back, releasing the charged energy. The blast injured it and sent it crashing to the ground, but it didn't die.
Noel struck again. And again.
Only after several brutal blows did it stop moving.
[Low Iraenih <2> killed]
| 20 Axis Essence gained
'Iraenih?' Noel wondered, but there was no time to think further.
The others were closing in.
He dashed backward, retreating toward his father. "Dad! Run!"
But Hugh was already moving. "You idiot!" he shouted.
Noel pointed ahead. "Into that alley! If they follow us in, I can charge and hit them all at once!"
Hugh didn't hesitate. "Alright."
They sprinted into the narrow alley. Hugh ducked inside first, Noel right behind him. Noel spun around, electricity beginning to surge wildly around his body. Sparks intensified, the charge growing heavier with every passing second.
Then, something flew into the alley.
Noel reacted and released the built-up energy.
The blast struck the object midair.
A corpse. A human corpse.
It burned instantly, reduced to ash and blackened remains.
The alley fell silent.
Then the six creatures entered slowly, cautiously.
"Fuck," Noel muttered.
"Dumbass," Hugh snapped. "I'm not trusting you with plans again."
He placed his hands firmly on Noel's back. A soft white light spread outward.
Noel felt warmth flood his body. His exhaustion faded, his breathing steadied, strength slowly returning.
"This is exhausting…" Hugh muttered through clenched teeth. "Go. You should have some stamina now."
The light faded.
"And be smarter," Hugh added. "Don't rush in blindly."
Taking Hugh's words to heart, Noel steadied himself and assumed a fighting stance, something rough and imperfect, copied from movies he had seen. It wasn't refined, but it felt natural enough. He planted his feet and waited.
He would let them come to him.
It didn't take long.
One of the creatures lunged first, unable to hold itself back any longer. It swung an arm toward Noel, the spikes on its forearm aiming to tear into him.
Noel moved.
He dodged with ease, slipping past the attack and driving his elbow into the creature's side. The impact staggered it, and seeing that opening, the others joined in.
Attacks came from multiple directions.
Noel dodged again and again, twisting his body, stepping just out of reach. But there were too many. He couldn't find the space to counterattack properly.
What they didn't know.
He had been charging his electricity the entire time.
Suddenly, sparks erupted from his body. Electricity burst outward in every direction, striking three of the creatures at once. Their bodies stiffened as the current paralyzed them.
Noel didn't hesitate.
"Dad! Throw me a knife!"
Hugh reacted instantly. One of the knives left his hand and skidded across the ground, stopping right in front of Noel.
Noel grabbed it and plunged it downward into one of the immobilized creatures.
[Low Iraenih <1> killed]
| 10 Axis Essence gained
He yanked the knife free and moved immediately. His next target barely had time to react before Noel drove the blade straight through its head.
It dropped.
But before he could reach the third paralyzed creature, the others closed in.
One of them stood out, larger than the rest, nearly Noel's size, only a head or two shorter. Its presence felt different.
Noel dodged an incoming strike and countered, thrusting the knife into another creature's throat. Blood sprayed as it collapsed.
Three remained.
One paralyzed.
One large.
One moving fast.
The large one didn't attack. It just stared at him, waiting.
Noel knew better than to overthink it.
He dashed for the paralyzed creature, but slipped as he dodged another incoming attack, dropping to his knees. Sliding across the ground, he reached the helpless Iraenih and jammed the knife into its eye.
Before he could pull it free, another attack came.
He abandoned the blade and rolled away just in time, but not without cost. A spike grazed his shoulder, slicing into flesh.
Pain flared.
The creature pressed its advantage and slashed again, cutting his cheek.
But it overextended.
Its torso was exposed.
Noel kicked forward, discharging the electricity he had built up. The shock slammed the creature into the ground. He jumped on top of it and began punching relentlessly, again and again, until it stopped moving.
[Low Iraenih <2> killed]
| 20 Axis Essence gained
[Level Up]
| Level 1 → Level 2
| +2 Physique
| +1 Mind
The surge of power flooded his body.
It felt euphoric.
Noel turned toward the last Iraenih, the large one that had been watching the entire time.
He dashed.
But the creature anticipated him.
It threw a straight punch directly into Noel's path. Caught off guard, Noel twisted aside, crashing to the ground and accidentally releasing the electricity he had been charging.
The Iraenih seized the opportunity.
It leapt at him, elbow raised, spikes pointed downward.
Noel reacted instinctively.
He kicked off the wall beside him, launching himself sideways just as the creature slammed into the ground. Its spikes embedded into the concrete for a brief second.
That was enough.
Noel sprang to his feet and dashed forward, smashing his fist into the creature's head and knocking it back. He followed up with a brutal kick, then another, building electricity with each movement.
On the final strike, he released everything.
The discharge exploded on impact, splattering blood across the alley walls.
Silence followed.
[Low Iraenih <3> killed]
| 20 Axis Essence gained
Noel stood there for a moment, staring at the bodies scattered around the narrow alley.
Then he looked down at his hands.
They were soaked in blood.
His stomach churned.
He gagged, then vomited onto the ground before his legs finally gave out. Exhaustion crashed over him, and he collapsed.