Chapter 1: System Online
The silence was thick. A quiet, breathing kind of silence—alien and too still.
Kendrick's eyes slowly scanned the crater he'd somehow created. The steam rising from his body had finally calmed, but his skin still tingled with leftover energy, like his muscles remembered something his brain didn't.
Then, it happened.
[SYSTEM CALIBRATION COMPLETE.][WELCOME, KENDRICK VALE.][UNIQUE USER DETECTED. GLITCHED PROFILE. RECONCILING WITH UNIVERSAL PROTOCOL… FAILED.][ALTERNATIVE SYSTEM ACTIVATED:
[TUTORIAL MODE: LOCKED INSTANCE - 1/1 USER ONLINE]
He blinked. A translucent window floated in front of him—clean, glowing slightly blue, with sharp white text and faint particles drifting like stardust behind it.
His heart skipped.His lips curled into a grin.
"So… this is my system," Kendrick muttered. "Looks like you've got some screws loose."
[NOT A BUG. A FEATURE.]
Kendrick's eyes rose in surprise as he flinched. "Wait—did you just—?" he exclaimed aloud as he thought to himself, 'Did that voice just read my thoughts?'
[SARCASM MODULE TEMPORARILY ENABLED.][WOULD YOU LIKE TO BEGIN SYSTEM INTRODUCTION?][Y/N]
'…Y.' he thought, trying to approve his hypothesis.
The screen flickered, and new panels snapped into place like puzzle pieces falling into a perfect picture.
STATUS PANEL
Name: Kendrick Vale
Race: Human (Modified)
Class: [Multi-Class Avatar System]
Title: [The Blank]
Level: 1
Health: 10,000 / 10,000 Stamina: 10,000,000 Mana: 1,000/1,000
Strength: 10
Agility: 10
Endurance: 10
Intelligence: 10
Next Level: 0 / 100
Soul Integrity: 92% [STABLE]
"Stamina… ten million?" Kendrick said aloud.
[YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN THE WARRIOR CLASS: TITAN OF COMBAT.][PASSIVE: STAMINA ENGINE – INFINITE STAMINA. HOWEVER, DUE TO HUSK LIMITATIONS YOU ARE ONLY ABLE TO GENERATE TEN MILLION OUT OF THE INFINITE POOL YOU OWN. YOU WILL SLOWLY UNLOCK THE REST AS YOU PROGRESS.]
His eyes narrowed, the corner of his mouth twitching. "So this is the real cheat."
He flexed a hand. It didn't hurt, didn't feel heavy—on the contrary, his body felt like it was constantly pulsing, like an engine warming up and refusing to cool down. Every breath fed his cells. Every heartbeat vibrated with quiet thunder.
He breathed in the putrid air of the underground as his eyes closed, he frowned before opening them again.
'Alright… let's see the rest.'
[ACCESSING CLASS PANEL…]
🛡 CLASS PANEL – Titan of Combat (Level 1)
EXP: 0 / 100
Abilities (30):– [Passive] Overclocked Physiology [1]– [Passive] Combat Mastery [1]– [Passive] Stamina Engine [1]– [Passive] Battlefield Devourer [1]– [Active] Endless Arena [1]
Locked: 25 Remaining Abilities.
Unlock via Progression.
Something ancient pulsed through the status screen as I scrolled down, each skill name tickling something primal in my chest.
But before I could open one to read its details, the screen changed.
[INITIATING TUTORIAL ENVIRONMENT.][YOU MAY NOW CHOOSE ONE STARTING CLASS FOR PHYSICAL SIMULATION.]
CHOOSE ONE:
{Paladin – God of Light}
{Warrior – Titan of Combat}
{Researcher – Primordial Engineer}
My finger hovered, as I hesitated for a split second to cautiously think.
'I don't know how dangerous this place could be, I need instant and pure firepower. Out of these three, the obvious choice for that is.' he thought as his fingered flashed over his option.
'Plus, it'll let me get a feel for the body first,' I thought. 'Warrior.'
[TUTORIAL INITIATED.][OBJECTIVE: DEFEAT THE SHADOW HOUND. TIME LIMIT: NONE.][NOTE: DEATH = SYSTEM FORCED REBOOT. SKILL PENALTY APPLIES.]
Suddenly, the world around the crater shifted. He was no longer in a cell. He was standing in a field of grass as rain poured down above him. He noticed he was in a field in the shape of a circle, in the center of a dark forest that seemed to stretch for eternity as he gazed into it.
'Great, horrible positioning, and potentially infinite monsters in the tutorial.' he thought as he sighed to himself, 'I understand now Shikamaru, what a drag truly.'
A single eye blinked open—then another, and another. Six glowing red circles stared into Kendrick's soul.
It snarled. The sound felt like a chainsaw buried in static.
Kendrick froze for a second, fear instinctually creeping its way into his body. His limbs paralyzed by the cold grip of death, that seemed to enclose him more and more the longer he stared into those eyes.
[FEAR DISPELLED. CLASS ACTIVATING]
[Class: Warrior – Titan of Combat]
Class Level: [1]
Class Experience: [0/100]
Skills:
Overclocked Physiology [Lv. 1] (Experience: [0/1000])
Passively increases physical stats at an accelerating rate. The more you grow, the more your strength becomes untouchable.
Stamina Engine [Lv. 1] (Experience: [0/1000])
Gain a massive stamina pool that grows with each level, ensuring you never tire in battle.
Combat Mastery [Lv. 1] (Experience: [0/1000])
Master any weapon or tool, allowing you to fight with unmatched efficiency and adaptability. Experience accelerates mastery and range.
Ruin Knuckle [Lv. 1] (Experience: [0/1000])
Activate a powerful fist that can shatter nearly any material with a single punch. Skill evolves to avoid unnecessary destruction.
Battlefield Devourer [Lv. 1] (Experience: [0/1000])
Increase stats based on the number of defeated foes, with exponential growth at higher levels.
??? [Locked] (Experience: Locked)
?????? [Locked] (Experience: Locked)
?????? [Locked] (Experience: Locked)
?????? [Locked] (Experience: Locked)
?????? [Locked] (Experience: Locked)
???
Class Description:
The Warrior – Titan of Combat class represents raw physical prowess, unyielding stamina, and overwhelming power. Masters of combat in any form, warriors in this class dominate the battlefield through immense physical strength, durability, and the ability to manipulate the world around them for tactical advantage.
Immediately, all the fear in Kendrick's body disappeared, as a beginner understanding of his skills flowed into him. But, in its place flowed something more powerful. A feeling he didn't understand, but was so intense he didn't give a damn.
Rage. Pure, unbridled rage.
"You got damned, mutt" he whispered. "I'm gonna rip your fucking heart out."
HOWL
Dozens of red eyes began to form all around Kendrick as he slowly rotated his vision without moving.
Kendrick cracked his neck and tuned into the skills that seemed second-nature to him as a red murderous aura grew behind him, turning his once bright emerald-like eyes into a deep shade of crimson as his long locs snapped out of their ponytail and began floating around him, clouding his eyes in darkness, showing only the red glow behind them.
📜 QUEST UPDATED:
Shadow Trial
Survive and destroy the Shadow Hound. Skill XP is tripled during this encounter.Warning: Tutorial Boss uses corrupted coding and forbidden magic, restrictions on pack are lifted.
Loot: [???] | Bonus Reward from ???: [???]
Kendrick took a step forward—and the ground cracked.
The Hounds lunged.
BOOM