The golden screen floated silently before me, waiting.
1,000 points. Skills or traits. No tutorials. No hand-holding.
I scanned the list. Rows of glowing options scrolled past—basic skills, elemental affinities, physical buffs. Plenty of overpowered traits like "Mana Prodigy," "Child of Nature," "Sword Saint," "Archmage." Flashy titles. All powerful.
I frowned.
Then closed the list.
"Hey, Kai… I've got a better idea."
"I want a custom skill. Can you do it?"
"Read my mind." I smirked.
<...>
Kai read through the thoughts forming in my head.
"You know, Kai," I said calmly, "having a choice is a privilege for the powerful. The weak don't get to choose. They're handed scraps by the strong and told to be grateful. That's not freedom. That's delusion."
"Someone once said only poor people say money can't buy happiness. If I'm going to have power now, I'll take everything I want. I won't rob anyone. But to earn anything in this world, I need power—and a lot of it."
"So, are you giving me that skill or not?"
Kai grinned.
We both said it at the same time:
"It's gonna be a lot of fun."
—
Ten minutes later.
—Flashback—
Before everything started, before even the first wolf appeared…
"System," I said, "Before anything else, I'm changing my name. From now on, call me Zero."
Then Kai chimed in before I could ask.
—Back to Present—
'System. Show me my status,' I thought.
A clean display opened:
Name: Zero
HP: 100/100
MP: 200/200
Class: None
STR: 10
INT: 15
AGI: 10
Traits:
– Cold Insight (calculating and emotionally detached)
– Cunning Veil (strategic instincts, passive bonus to manipulation and deception)
Active Skills: None
Passive Skills: [Reversal Field]
I tapped it.
[Reversal Field]
A passive barrier that reacts to your intent and perception, deflecting any physical force you recognize as dangerous and returning it with twice the impact.
✦ Ineffective against magic, illusions, or non-physical effects.
✦ You can also control its shape and size. Max range: 2 meters.
"This makes me immune to physical attacks."
Bushes rustled.
I turned left. A gray, wolf-like monster stepped out. Glowing red eyes. Matted fur. Slobber dripping from jagged teeth. Black stripes along its sides.
"Is that a wolf? Doesn't matter. They look… fascinating."
More emerged behind it—six… no, eight. The first leaped.
It collided with something midair and was flung back like a ragdoll.
I shrank the barrier to cover just my body.
Another wolf lunged. I raised my hand. Its jaw snapped down—met invisible resistance—and then its entire upper jawbone and skull jolted backward with unnatural force. There was a sickening crunch as the recoil slammed its head upward and twisted its neck unnaturally. The wolf's jaw shattered, and its upper spine buckled with a crack that echoed through the forest. Blood and bits of bone sprayed across the grass like a burst melon.
[A Gray Wolf defeated. 5 Shop Points earned.]
"So the skills I didn't pick go into the shop… and I can buy them with points from kills? Kai's already made this too convenient."
I checked the traits section.
"System, I want traits related to mana control. Something like:
– Ambient Mana Channeling
– Mana Efficiency Boost
– Spell Learning Acceleration
– Arcane Comprehension
– Adaptive Casting
– Elemental Tuning
– Fast Analysis
– High-Speed Learning"
[Due to novice discount, all available in a bundle: 999 points.]
"That's… a lot."
A wolf swiped. Its claw was pulverized instantly by my barrier.
"Let's finish this first."
Two more wolves rushed in. One lost its leg at the knee. Another was knocked into a tree with a bone-crunching thud.
"Guess I'll wait until they bleed out."
I opened the shop again.
"Let's grab a skill."
[Wind Blade – Requires: Basic Wind Affinity.]
"Of course it does."
[Buy Trait: Wind Magic (Basic) – Cost: 10 points]
I tapped [Yes].
[25 points deducted.
Trait acquired: Wind Magic (Basic)
Skill acquired: Wind Blade (Basic) – MP Cost: 10]
"Finally, an offensive move."
I walked toward a dying wolf, blood seeping into the soil.
"Let me put you out of your misery."
I first placed my fingers gently between its eyes—wondering if I could pierce through the skull. But instinct kicked in. Too thick. Too risky. I shifted down and touched the side of its neck instead.
"Wind Blade."
A thin arc of air sliced deep. The body went limp.
I repeated the process until none were left breathing.
Two hours passed. I followed their trail.
Along the way, I encountered more wolves. They must've been stragglers or perhaps reinforcements. Their reactions were the same—snarling, charging, lunging teeth-first into death. One had a darker patch across its snout and a limp, suggesting an older veteran. Didn't matter. The moment it touched my field, its skull caved inward like paper under a hammer. Blood splattered across bark and grass.
Another tried circling around. I adjusted the field's shape, funneling it backward like a curved shell. When it leapt, its ribs snapped in midair and it tumbled lifeless to the ground.
[3 Gray Wolves defeated. 15 Shop Points earned.]
I barely even broke stride.
Then—an open clearing.
A shadow fell over me.
I turned slowly.
A massive green-skinned humanoid loomed ahead, standing nearly eight feet tall with a hulking, muscular frame rippling with corded muscle. Its bald scalp was mottled with battle scars, and two thick tusks jutted upward from a wide, snarling mouth. Yellowed teeth gnashed as it huffed heavily through flared nostrils. Its beady red eyes locked onto me with animalistic intensity.
Around its waist, it wore a crude wrap of stitched-together animal hides, still matted with dried blood. In its massive fists, it held a primitive but deadly-looking axe—its jagged blade made of chipped stone strapped securely to a thick wooden shaft by sinew and iron nails. Despite its simplicity, the weapon looked heavy enough to cleave a man in half with a single blow.
Its posture was aggressive, shoulders hunched forward, head slightly cocked as it sized me up like prey.
It didn't just look dangerous. It reeked of it.
"An orc?" My eyes lit up. "They look so cool… and dangerous."
I blinked.
"Wait. Am I excited? I haven't felt like this in years."
The orc raised its axe—and struck.
The blow bounced.
"It didn't shatter his arm? Must've held back."
It attacked again. Still no break.
I wasn't scared. Just bored.
The same kind of numb boredom that used to haunt me back home—the kind that eats away at you during long nights of nothingness. My mind drifted again, not to fear or panic, but to numbers. Patterns. I used to enjoy math and physics. The clean logic of it. Variables, theorems, structures that never betrayed you. Science didn't lie. People did.
Back then, while others laughed or fought or cried, I solved problems. It was the only thing that made me feel in control. Predictable inputs. Predictable outcomes.
And right now? This system—this new world—it felt exactly like that.
The system startled me at first. It popped into my head like some divine prank, flashing stats and menus while I stood confused in a glowing field. But the moment I saw the structure—the logic behind the skills, the traits, the costs—I understood it.
This world spoke my language.
Now, even in battle, while an orc tried to rip me in half, I wasn't reacting emotionally. I was calculating angles, stress points, return vectors. This wasn't a fight.
It was a problem to solve.
I reshaped my field into an angled shell.
The next swing rebounded. The crude axe embedded halfway into its own throat.
Blood sprayed. The orc collapsed.
[Orc defeated. 10 points earned.]
More orcs emerged from the woods.
Two standard ones. One in the center—towering—wearing a crude metal shoulder pad and wielding a polished two-handed axe.
"That one's different."
[Identified: Orc Warrior. Chosen among common orcs through countless victories. Elite. Strong. Dangerous.]
"A warrior, huh?" I grinned. "Then I want it."
The regular orcs charged. The same result: broken arms, missing legs, dying screams.
The Orc Warrior came last.
It swung. Rebounded.
Tried to grapple—its hands cracked. It growled and raged.
I chipped away with Wind Blades—legs, face, joints.
It finally snapped. Grabbed its axe. Roared. Threw it full force.
I welcomed it.
The axe spun back. Buried itself in its chest.
[Orc Warrior defeated. 45 points earned.]
Then—a card floated before me.
[Class Unlocked: Warrior]
I smiled.
"The thing that cost Kai a chunk of divinity."
—Flashback—
"I want a unique ability. When I kill someone with a class, I get their class card. No limit. I can merge cards to create higher-tier classes. And I want to be able to bestow them—to give others class cards I own. But if I want it back, I have to kill them."
—Present—
"I'll keep this warrior card for now."
I looked at the path ahead.
"How many points do I have?"
[240 points.]
"Is there a skill to understand and speak all languages here?"
[Yes. Trait: Tongue of Realms – 210 points.]
"Buy."
I turned—and another orc burst from the woods.
Moments later, it lay broken. Axe embedded in its own leg.
"Can you understand me?" I asked.
"Chwek… You speak… our tongue… human?" the orc gurgled.
"Oh, good. Before you die, tell me where your village is. I want to challenge your champion."
I thought back to how the strong orc waited patiently for a one-on-one fight instead of rushing in. Maybe they follow some code of honor — one-on-one combat, respecting strength. That's why I'm trying this approach.
He coughed.
"Champion… stronger… Ballack… village… that way…" He pointed.
I looked in the direction.
"I got one final question."
I smiled.
"Do you know where I can find the undead?"
to be continued...