Later that night, when everyone had left the ward and everyone else has fallen asleep, the new host named Andrew Collins could not get a wink. Due to three reasons. The first one is more of a thought than a certainty, it may be because this new body had enough time to rest and now, no matter how many hours has passed, he would not get tired. The second reason is more than likely his fear of not waking up again. Although he doesn't mind that, however because of the first reason, he couldn't test that theory. The third is because a certain pop-up window is still in front of his face.
He ignored it at first, acting like it didn't exist and quickly dodging to different angles to avoid seeing the screen entirely. He dodged left, right, up and even down under the pillow and blanket to try and avoid it, but it had a mind of its own. At first he could completely ignore it, but this game is slowly wearing him out and now he's on the edge of giving in.
Now after a few seconds of looking at the ceiling again, the screen popped in front of him again. In one last desperate attempt, Andrew threw off the blanket and get off the bed. Unlike earlier in the morgue, his legs didn't feel like jelly again. Despite his extra layers, he seemed to be walking just fine.
He strolled around the room, continuing to ignore the floating window at all costs. The door to the hallway had a long, rectangular window in the middle of it which he used to look through every time he walked past it. But no matter how may times he would walk around the room, the phantom screen kept following him.
He then noticed at the right side, there was a shelf with group of papers on it. He looked at it, like a dying man seeing an oasis in a desert. Andrew didn't care if they were blood results or any other results written in medical mumbo jumbo, he just wanted something to get his mind off this situation. Walking over, he grabbed the papers and tracked back to the couch. He plumped down, feeling the couch strain at the weights its holding and looked through the papers.
'Okay, the first page is nothing more than this guy's medical aid information and his otherwise general medical history. With the ward I'm in, you have to have insurance or else you're up to your eyeballs in debt. Or maybe he's loaded? Who knows? However, this guy should be lucky he kicked the bucket with an injury because with these results, he wouldn't have lasted long.' Andrew thought as he skimmed the page.
When he turned to the second page, he thought he struck gold. 'All right! Looks like this is his general information. Let's see.' The contends of the page read as follows:
NAME - Ji-ho Kim
AGE - 17
HEIGHT - 180 cm
WEIGHT & BMI - 120 kg(99.2)
'Shit!!! This guy's obese!! How the hell could he even walk?!' Andrew nearly yelled it out loud, but luckily he kept his cool just enough. He kept on reading until he reached an interesting piece of info:
NEXT OF KIN - Nabi Seongwoo (Sister)
'Say what? Wait a minute that lady from earlier is this guy's sister?!' It didn't make sense to Andrew. 'Hold on, if that lady is this guy's sister why are their last names different? Is she his step-sister? Was she adopted or was this guy adopted? Was their even an adoption?! AAAOWHH!! This is just making my head hurt.'
He thought about Nabi for a second. How she was so happy to see this Ji-ho guy wake up, after being dead. Then his response and attitude toward her came back into the play. After all that, is she still happy? 'I was kind of rude to her. She was just glad to see her brother again and now she probably thinks I'm a douche. No matter how justified I felt, I'm still the guy who crushed her happiness. I wouldn't be surprised if she hated me now.'
*BZZT!*
Then he heard the noise he's been dreading all night. Andrew took a deep breath in to try and calm himself. He wanted to turn away again, but then he asked himself a question: 'Am I just going to ignore this thing forever?'
Then he looked up to see the same message sprawled on the screen:
[NOTIFICATION!]
[YOU HAVE ACQUIRED THE NECESSARY QUALIFICATIONS TO BE A {PLAYER}.WILL YOU ACCEPT?]
[YES OR NO.]
Andrew was already at his limit and reading the same message again seemed to break every piece of resistance he had. Except one. "Would you just leave me alone. I don't want what you're trying to sell! Ok." But the notification still hung there in the air like a persistent phantom. It didn't give any indication that it heard Andrew at all.
Andrew growled and then threw the papers he had at it, but they went through the screen. The stack didn't even cause it to glitch. Completely fed up, Andrew put his head in his hands and cried.
He didn't know what to do now that his whole existence has been turned upside down. No matter how hard he thought he couldn't get answers for this. The only thing that dawned on him was that he was in a world where devils run around in the shadows, fallen angels toy with people, and angels do who-knows-what around in heaven. While all that is going on, there are also more monsters and creatures from other mythologies that could get him if he turns... his... back... to... them.
Slowly but surely, Andrew felt his mind clear up. His sadness, anger and worry slowly changed as his mind filled with clarity. "Ok, let's see the facts. I'm in a world that came out of a pervert's fantasies, where angels, demons, monsters and other things run around and do whatever they want. There are factions everywhere you look, all with their own agendas and plans. And while I know all this, I can still be killed in unique ways - eaten, burned, frozen, crushed and the list goes on. Now I can try to ignore them and live my life, but there won't be guarantees." Reality crept into his mind like a lion creeping closer to its prey, but instead of choosing feel fear, he looked at the notification like it was his only life line in this crazy reality. Or was it?
"But then again, you can just kill me if I don't play along. I could say no and take my chances with the monsters out there or I can say yes and deal with the monster in front of me... but with you I might still have a chance." Andrew then rested his chin in his hand, looking at the screen while contemplating his choices.
The monsters out there can kill him in many ways, that is true. This guy's sister, Nabi could also be toyed with by a stray devil or maybe even that crazy, bored exorcist. The thought made him feel cold. She got another chance with her brother and the thought of making her cry again or worse seeing her die, for some reason makes him feel devastated.
His eyes steeled with resolve, either his own or maybe its from the embers of this body's previous soul, as he stared at the screen. "I accept."
*BZZT!*
The screen changed and now it read:
[NOTIFICATION!]
* [YOU HAVE NOW BECOME A {PLAYER}]
There it is! Then after that the screen disappeared, four new, mini screens appeared in it's place. All four said:
1. [NOTIFICATION]
[THE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO ASSIST IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE {PLAYER}]
2. [NOTIFICATION]
[FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL RESULT IN A {PENALTY}]
3. [NOTIFICATION]
[YOUR REWARDS HAVE ARRIVED]
4. [NOTIFICATION]
[A NEW DAILY QUEST HAS ARRIVED]
Andrew did start feel uneasy about his choice, especially with the penalty, but he pushed those feelings away. "All right, lemme see the quest." The fourth screen then expanded and it read:
{DAILY QUEST: BODY STRENGTHENING}
[GOAL]
1. PUSH UPS {0/50}
2. SIT UPS {0/50}
3. SQUATS {0/50}
[WARNING!!]
[FAILURE TO COMPLETE THE DAILY QUEST WILL RESULT IN AN APPROPRIATE {PENALTY}]
'There we go!! But wait, why do I only have to do fifty of everything and why don't I have to do roadwork?' Although he might be confused about this change, it didn't really bother him. After all, he just needed to look down at his belly to feel grateful about the change and it might be awkward to explain to the night shift why he's running around in the hallways.
However soon that gratitude turned to shock when he saw the timer on the bottom of the screen. It showed a countdown:
[3:30]
[3:29]
Andrew felt his eyeballs pop out of his skull. 'Ohh shit!!!'
Without missing a beat, Andrew jumped on his arms and started doing push ups, hoping that by some miracle he could pull this off. However that proved impossible when his new body could barely go past five push ups. Pushing up to this sixth, he felt his arms shaking, and his lungs burning.
It took all his effort but he barely made it up at least, but when he went down for his seventh his face fell on the floor. He looked up with the sweat rolling down his face and the red timer inching closer and closer to the end.
[3:00]
[2:59]
[2:58]
With renewed determination, he pushed himself back up for number seven. He went down for number eight but felt he couldn't go all the way down or else his arms will buckle. 'Come... on Andy! You... can... doit!!' That along with the adrenaline helped him to concentrate and go through the remaining count. And for a while it made him more confident. Maybe he can do this.
However when he looked back up after his 45th push up, his confidence was shot to hell.
[00:30]
[00:29]
[00:28]
He lost all the hope he had of making it before the timer ran out. Andrew remembers how Jinwoo ran through a desert, dodging giant centipedes that popped out of the dunes and the thought of him doing that made his heart stop.
[00:25]
[00:24]
[00:23]
He couldn't get his attention away from the screen. His arms locked, refusing to budge in either direction. Then after a few more seconds, his body fell to the ground. All of the strength he thought would carry him through this, vanished and now he's left with heart that's burning with every breath and a slow realization that he might die... again.
'Andy... Ok, this is gonna happen... The second you're dropped in the desert, don't look around... pick a direction... and RUN! Don't stop... ever... or else' Andrew thought.
[00:10]
[00:09]
[00:08]
[00:07]
However, a thought occurred to Andrew: he isn't Jinwoo. 'Jinwoo had a luxury of having a skinny build, while I on the other hand have the problem of being wind resistant!!' He didn't see a way other than to run and hope it would work out. He then closed his eyes, and prayed.
[00:05]
[00:04]
'Our Father that is in Heaven. Hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven...'
[00:04]
[00:03]
'Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.'
[00:02]
'For thine is the kingdom...'
[00:01]
'The power and the glory.'
[00:00]
'Forever and ever. Amen.'
*BZZT*
Andrew looked up to see what he was well expecting, but still horrifying to see:
[NOTIFICATION]
{DAILY QUEST: BODY STRENGTHENING}
[FAILED]
Then Andrew felt the room starting to shake. It shook so much, he felt his whole body vibrating. Even the couch he was sitting on was bouncing up and down on the floor. Andrew then heard the heart monitor fall over. It felt like the whole is going to collapse on him. On instinct, he even covered the back of his head with his hands.
He braced himself. Preparing to book it, the second his body touched the crumbling sand. But when the quake stopped, he didn't feel the ultra-tiny pebbles stabbing his body or the sun baking his back. Instead, he felt something soft and mushy, and there was a cold wind sending a shiver down his spine.
Then he heard distinct rumble of a thunderstorm right above him. 'Rain?' Andrew thought, confused. He slowly unbraced himself and he could not believe what he was seeing. His environment was totally different. No longer was it a semi-comfortable room, but the bad news is that it also wasn't the familiar desert in Solo Leveling. In its place was a forest, with large cedar trees and dense shrubs and bushes packed tightly against each other.
Like the shrubs, the clouds overhead didn't let light through. It was so dark, it might as well have been night time. Except for, the occasional flash of lightning. Andrew stood up with haste and he noticed he was in an valley. That is when the rain fell, and grew until it became a full-on deluge.
"What the hell? Where am I?" Andrew asked. He could see it is a forest, but he couldn't understand why he's here instead of anywhere familiar. The chill then became hard to ignore and even with the added insulation in his body, he still had to rub his arms in an attempt to generate some heat at least. However, the wind snuffed out every attempt.
'That's it! I can't stay here. Gotta find a place with cover.' He then picked a spot of the tree line that looked dense enough to provide him cover from the rain and slowly walked toward it. It was hard to see with the wind smashing the rain drops into his eyes, but his large forearm did at least grant him enough cover until he arrives at his spot.
When Andrew's foot was about to touch the wet, pulpy ground, he suddenly felt a rumble start in the earth. 'Thunder?!' Andrew immediately checked his body, to see if any hair was standing on edge, and luckily for him there wasn't. But the rumble remained. It even grew until Andrew thought there might be another earthquake.
He then slipped and fell face first in the mud. But then the rumbling stopped. Andrew lifted his head in confusion, wiping the mud off his face in order to see why the rumbling stopped. The rainwater made it easier to get the mud off, but when he could finally see again he immediately wished he didn't. Because surrounding were dozens if not hundreds of creatures that Andrew never would have expected.
Centaurs.
Each one ranging from 8 ft to 10 ft tall. The human part, each was heavily built with muscles that would put every bodybuilder to shame, with long flowing hair and their ears even resembles that of horses. Their eyes were yellow and none of them looked like they even had pupils. The horse part was different with every centaur. Their pelts ranged from many shades between black and brown, and every hair on the centaur's body matched in colour.
Lightning flashed again to reveal more of them, hiding further into the tree line. Andrew started shuffling back toward the spot he was aiming for, noticing that there weren't any centaurs hiding there.
But then screens started popping up on top of every centaur's head. Each one in blood red said:
[BLACK HOOF HUNTERS]
Then a screen appeared in front of Andrew. It read:
[QUEST INFO]
[PENALTY QUEST: SURVIVAL]
[GOAL : 4:00:00 HOURS]
'OHSHIT!!!'
Then the timer started:
[3:59:57/4h]
Andrew turned around to book it, but then an arrow shot past him, leaving a small cut on his cheek, but still enough to draw blood. He turned back just in time for the hunting party to yell out a cry that made him feel so much fear, he just started running into the forest. In actuality that cry signalled the start of the hunt and Andrew was their prey.
(Scene change):
Back in the real world, a nurse came by to check on Andrew or Ji-ho Kim to see if he was still awake and if he was, to tell him to get some rest. Like almost every girl in this world, she showed almost supernatural levels of beauty and sex appeal.
However when she opened the door and check inside, she noticed his bed was a mess and his IV stand fell over, but she didn't see Andrew anywhere. "Ji-ho? Mister Ji-ho Kim?"
"What's going on?" Another nurse came by, also sporting sin-like beauty.
"Did you see where this patient went?" The first nurse urgently asked, to which the second only shook her head in concern.
(Scene Change):
Back with Andrew, he was still running. Barrelling through bushes and shrubs. Zig-zagging past massive cedar trees. Dodging arrows.
He's been running for such a long time that he's impressed with himself. Back in his world, he may not have been the star athlete of his school, but he still was impressive sport-wise. But now with his added plumpness, he thought he was going to burn out a lot earlier, but he's still going!
Despite the centaurs gaining on him or even... surrounding him.
...
...
"FUUUUCCKKK!!" It finally clicked for Andrew. They weren't missing nor were they chasing him. They're leading him. Like shepherds to a runaway sheep! With every arrow fired, they were subtly changing his direction. To where they wanted him to go. But where?
"It has to be a trap!" Andrew then thought of a plan. Just when it looked like he was going to pass he tree, he side stepped the charging centaurs and hid behind a tree. The centaurs up front missed him and couldn't see where he went, but the others behind them could see where he went clearly. But there were two problems:
Number one, even though there are centaurs who could see him, that doesn't mean the other could and before they could figure out why the ones in front suddenly stopped and tried to change direction, they collided. The second problem is that the ones who collided caused a massive pile up. There were some who stopped, but the chaos made it hard to track their prey's location and that is what Andrew was hoping for.
When he saw the result of his plan, he immediately dashed to the left. Jumping over centaurs, struggling to get back up and dodging others attempting to grab him. However, one got a good kick on his hip, causing him to fall down a hill. Andrew rolled through bushes and thorny shrubs that scratched his body and ripped his gown. Then his barrelling came to a sudden stop when his back was knocked against a tree, knocking the wind out of him.
He sat there, back against a tree in the middle of the hill trying to catch his breath. He wanted to get up but he was exhausted. 'How much longer? I can't keep this up.'
Then the screen popped up, as if it was sent:
[2:07:11/4h]
"Fuck!! Just kill me now, why dont'cha?!" Andrew yelled and his voice carried through the rain, back his hunters.
"He's over there!" Andrew heard one of the hunters say.
"Get him!" Another said. Then the rumbling started again, back in his direction.
"Fuck me and my big mouth!!" Andrew said just before he rolled to his side and slid down the last half of the hill. He reached the end of the slope just when the hunters reach the top. But they didn't charge after him. No instead they looked at him, hobbling in the distance with a sick grin. And just like that the hunt has taken a new turn.
(Scene Change):
Back at the hospital, the nurses were in a panic. The first two that came to Andrew's room and found it empty, left and informed the other night staff of their missing patient. Soon almost all the nurses were combing through the ward with their flashlights, looking everywhere for the teen they know as Ji-ho Kim.
"Did you find him?" One nurses asked.
"No, nothing. Where did he go?"
"Better question: how did we miss him?"
Then a security guard came around the corner, with his flashlight shining on both of them. "Hey what's going on in here? I saw lights flashing around while I was making my rounds outside." He said. The guard had a mean-looking demeanour on him with his rugged face and his voice sounding like a smoker's. He looked older than what he really is and that's why many people always kept their distance from when they came to the hospital.
"Mister Takahashi, thank goodness! We have a big problem."
"Yeah, one of our patients got out and we can't find him anywhere." Both nurses failed to notice their assets jiggling in front of the veteran security officer, but he definitely didn't. 'Crap, these women will be the death of me!' Takahashi thought, while trying his best to keep his poker face.
Clearing his throat he asked them. "Did you check the john, maybe?" Takahashi asked like it was obvious.
"Yes! But he wasn't in there."
"All right, where haven't you checked yet? Did you miss a spot?" He asked.
"We looked everywhere, but the only place we haven't is outside."
"Well, I can guarantee I didn't see anyone outside." The nurses then looked more frantic, and Takahashi wasn't in the mood for their panic. "But I'll keep looking. There's one place I haven't gotten to yet. I'll bring them back if and when I find them." And like that, Takahashi turned around and walked away.
"Oh thank you, mister Takahashi. You're a life saver." One nurse said as she bowed deeply toward his retreating form. He could almost picture the jubblies as she did so. 'Good grief, I'm really getting too old for this. It's sad really, back in my younger days me and my wife would get frisky every time we got a chance, but now we couldn't make it last even if I wanted to.'
And just like that everyone went back to searching, not knowing that Ji-ho or Andrew was on his last legs.
(Scene Change):
Andrew this time found himself in a better situation then he was in previously. During another trek through the forest, it became increasingly obvious that he was hurt, but luckily for him he found himself in another clearing and he could tell the centaurs were far away but still behind him. He managed to lose sight of them after he took off from that hill. But he couldn't just sit around there, he had to find a better place to hide until the timer went out.
And that idea is what brought him to this field. Andrew could see a tree near a large river. The tree was big, but it wasn't too big. Its branches were low enough for him to climb and it was close enough to the river that coupled with the noise of the deluge, would make it almost impossible to hear him, if they weren't already watching him.
Soon Andrew made it to tree, despite the pain in his hip and right above him was a branch that looked like it was strong enough to hold his weight. He jumped and grabbed hold of it but found himself with another problem: he was too tired. This chase already pushed his new body passed its limit. Now he has to climb a tree?
But these questions didn't get through to him, instead he shut them all out. The problems, the worries, and especially his aching muscles and burning lungs. He forced himself to climb, his adrenaline and sheer will power giving him that final push. Soon when he was on the first branch, he climbed the second, the third and then fourth.
He tried to position himself out of view, in case the centaurs came this way. He stopped his ascend when he noticed the branches were becoming smaller. If he went up too high, they would definitely not hold his weight and then he would definitely fall into the raging river. He sat there, feeling relief wash over him as fast as the water from the river beneath him. 'Ok, how much longernow?' Andrew asked.
Then the screen came back and it said:
[00:09:01/4h]
[00:09:00/4h]
[00:08:59/4h]
"Oh thank God. Not much longer now." Andrew said, but before he could sigh in relief, he then felt a painful sting flare up on his hip. "Ow shit! Guess that kick did more damage then I thought." Now that the adrenaline went away, there was nothing left to numb the pain. He positioned himself in order to get a more comfortable position for himself, otherwise the wait will be much more agonising.
However his peaceful wait soon shattered, when he heard the distinct sound of hooves clopping closer to the tree-line. After that, the centaurs all streamed out of the forest like a small wave, but all of them stopped running.
"Spread out, find him! He couldn't have gotten far!" Andrew heard one of the hunters order. "According to his tracks, he's injured." With that statement he felt his heart start racing again.
'Oh no!! They could follow my tracks! Shit, they'll find me at this rate and then what?!' Andrew thought that if the centaurs find him, they will definitely kill him. He scanned around hoping he could find a way out, but the more he looked at the area around him, the more he realised there was no way out!
All of the centaurs were still in the tree line and some of that group was sweeping the field. The scanning group is getting closer to the tree! He could try to run again, but with his limp he won't get far before he's caught. Andrew hated to admit it, but he's done for. All he could do now was sit on the branch and try to blend in, to disappear in between the leaves and other branches below him.
Soon he saw all of the scanning party either around his tree or right underneath him. He didn't know why but he found his eyes trained on the one centaur right below his branch. He knew that any movement or even breath will give himself away, so he limited his movement and breathing. When he was young, he always played hide and seek with his friends and every time they did he would hide up in a tree, winning every time he wasn't 'it'. After a while he would win so much, they made a rule stating no-one is allowed to hide in trees ever again.
That trip down memory lane was interrupted when one of the centaurs looked up the tree, searching through the leaves for him. Andrew knew as he kept his eye on them that they didn't see him, but he didn't know how long that would last.
Then Andrew saw the centaur's head stop moving. He couldn't feel his eyes on him, but he could feel them getting close. It squinted, trying to see him through the thicket. 'Oh shit! If worse comes to worse, I'll just have to jump in the river!' Andrew thought but he secretly hoped it wouldn't come to that. He's cold enough as it is.
However his fears were proven true. "Oi!! Look who's hiding up there, like a rat!" His voice carried and caused the other centaurs to gather beside him. "Come down boy! There's no use hiding anymore. You have no where left to run. We've got you surrounded!"
Andrew swore silently. "Yeah? And if I get down, you'll just kill me, right?! What kind of idiot do you take me for?!" He said.
"Of course! You're our prey. We caught you and now we'll kill you." The one with the black pelt, horse part said.
"It's the law of the hunt, child! There is no escaping it." The next one, a female with a brown pelt, said next. She looked like she was itching to make the kill, behind that smile that tried and failed to look compassionate.
"Oh spare me the knock-off, hippy BS, you sick sadistic freaks!! I know about the orders from the Moderator and if you ask me, some of you look a little to eager to kill me!" Andrew said but he failed to notice the dead branch he grabbed onto. The second his weight went on it, the branch broke and he nearly fell. He quickly scrambled for a better grip and he luckily caught himself just in time to see the branch falling to the ground.
He sighed in relief but the centaurs below started chuckling and giggling, sending a shiver up his spine. "Well, this is something. I gotta say of all the humans we hunted, you're by far the most interesting. At first, I thought you'd be an easy catch. Absolutely boring. But now I see... now I really want to skin the flesh from your bones and turn you skull into my new drinking cup!!" The black pelt centaur said and Andrew could see the bloodlust in his eyes, even though there were no pupils. Even his smile had this tint of gleeful malice in it.
But that isn't what freaked Andrew out. "Wait! You hunted more humans? How many did the system bring here?! Tell me!!!" But instead of answering his question. All the centaurs started cackling. They all laughed like he was the clown in a circus. That is when he noticed it.
Each centaur was decorated in distinct "jewellery". But it wasn't made out of gold, silver or even jewels. No they were bones! Many of males carried a similar necklace and bracelet, that looked like they were made out small ribcages and their weapons even had bone-like handles. But the worse thing he could see, was the small skull surrounded by sharp fragments on a necklace of some female who was laughing without a care in the world.
It made Andrew's heart drop down into his stomach and skin feel cold. He even started tearing up. But then that sadness turned into something else. Soon he felt his skin heat up and started to shake. He gripped the tree to hard, it felt like it be would be crushed any second. "All of you are monsters." It was soft, but the one with the gleeful malice could hear it over his comrades laughter.
"Huh? You say something." He was amused. Maybe his prey wanted to say his last words.
"I swear. Everyone of you will regret it." The black pelt centaur wanted to scoff, but for some reason there was more of a bite behind his words. Honestly, it felt strange to see. But still, Andrew continued. "I'll make sure to get stronger. I promise to get stronger than all of you and when I do, I'll come back here and avenge everyone you killed!!"
But none of them felt threatened, instead they all started cackling even louder. Some of the centaurs started to mock him. Well, except one. The black pelt centaur could see the cold fury in his eyes and he felt it in his words. All of sudden, the prey he was eager to catch and skewer had turned into something else. Only for a moment, but he swore he saw something that could become dangerous if he was left to do it.
"Archers!!" The centaurs stopped laughing and everyone who had a bow, cocked an arrow and aimed it right at Andrew. He felt his cold fury disappear when he saw that many arrows pointing his way.
"All right boy, that's enough!! This rain is getting on my nerves and right now we need new supplies, but luckily you'll help with that, won't you? It looks like you have more than enough to go around."
Andrew ignored him though. 'How much longer?!' He asked again and once again the screen popped up, saying:
[00:00:05/4h]
"Yes!" Andrew said, but a little too loud.
"Great, man thanks!!" One of the centaurs said.
"I DIDN'T MEAN THAT YOU RETARD!!!" Andrew lashed out before looked back at the countdown.
[00:00:04/4h]
[00:00:03/4h]
'Come on!! Come on!!!'
"Ready!! Aim!!" The centaur said.
[00:00:02/4h]
[00:00:01/4h]
"Don't try to kill him just yet! FIRE!!" Andrew heard the strings flick one by one and he closed his eyes to brace for the worse, but before he could feel the arrows pierce him, the screen timer ran out.
[00:00:00/4h]
Just like that, Andrew felt his butt hit the familiar tiles of a well polished floor. He opened his eyes to see he's back in his hospital room. For a second he thought it was a dream, but after a look around he finally let lose the sigh that he's been holding in for this long. He fell over and his back hit the hard carpet. Despite the uncomfortable and rough hairs on his back, he didn't care. The only thing on Andrew's mind was that he's safe.
He even let out a tired chuckle. He wanted to think that everything thus far was a dream, but the pain in side quickly destroyed that idea. "Ow ow, oh man, that stings!"
In that moment, two screens popped up, saying:
[NOTIFICATION]
[PENALTY QUEST: SURVIVAL]
[COMPLETED]
[YOU HAVE RECEIVED REWARDS]
[WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE THEM?]
[YES/NO]
As much as Andrew wanted to flip off the system, he was hoping it would show him this. "Go ahead, show me."
The two disappeared and new ones came up in their place. One said:
[YOU GOT REWARDS]
[1. FULL RECOVERY]
[2. ABILITY POINTS +3]
[3. RANDOM LOOT BOX]
The next screen looked all to familiar. This one said:
[STATUS]
[HP: 100/100]
[FATIGUE: 100]
[STR: 0]
[AGI: -5]
[PER: 10]
[VIT: -10]
[INT: 5]
"Wow! Ok, this body is not gonna get in shape overnight, even with the system's help." Andrew then gave his body another look. There wasn't any animosity or pity for the state of Ji-ho Kim. Whatever his reasons were, were his own and unfortunately he's gone from this world from whoever did him in. Andrew did believe that this wasn't an accident. According to the medical report he read in that stack of papers, he noticed the wound was a large hole in his abdomen. This immediately brought up memories from the anime, where Issei Hyoudou was stabbed in the gut by that light spear.
The wound looked a familiar based on that. 'Poor guy, what a way to go.' He thought, while looking at his stomach. 'On top of avenging those people, should I also look for Ji-ho's killer? Get him some justice?' Andrew was sure it was one of the Fallen Angels that did him in, but he didn't know who and also it would spell trouble if he suddenly killed one of them and risk an all-out war. No matter if his reasons are justified.
"Let me sleep on that." Andrew then stood up and was about to go to bed before he realised he missed something. "Oh right. Activate FullRecovery." Just like that, the fatigue dropped down to zero and all the cuts and bruises on his body completely disappeared. Satisfied, he picked up the IV stand and climbed into bed, trying to make himself look normal in case any of the nurses come here. "I'll deal with the other rewards tomorrow."
The sleep that came, swept him away the moment he closed his eyes and funny enough that was the best sleep he's ever got in a long time.
TO BE CONTINUED.