The Final Desperation

It has been two days since 7156 entered this world. Thus far, he has done nothing noteworthy. Apart from exploring the city, nothing of significance has occurred. He doesn't understand why the group is so agitated about a survival mission. Can they not find a corner and hide for 20 days? What makes it so bad that they would prefer to become slaves for this world's duration?

For individuals willing to do anything to become stronger, this approach is suboptimal. However, for those focused on survival, there should be no issue with it. It does not seem difficult. One-tenth of the days have already passed with no incidents. What could possibly go wrong? Just as this thought took shape, EverRealm finally provided him with some action.

[Event triggered: Save the Damsel in Distress]

Duration: 15 minutes

7156 received a map pointing to the event's location. Upon comparing, he realized it was very close. This proximity might be why he triggered this mission. With nothing else to do, 7156 accepted the task and began sprinting toward the destination. Upon arrival, he had an epiphany. The damsel mentioned in the mission is purely symbolic. In truth, the individual is not a damsel but a muscular man bearing scars on his face. As for how he knows this is the damsel...

Let's just say he's struggling. That, and the opponent appears more monstrous than human. The creature is an insect-human crossbreed with carapace in some areas and human skin in others. Blood dripped down the blades that formed its arms. It is a strange creature to say the least.

 As 7156 approached the intense battlefield, the man noticed him. His eyes widened, and he shouted at 7156.

"A civilian? Why in the world are you approaching? Get out of here!"

However, this distraction proved fatal in the midst of battle. Seizing this opportunity, the insectoid disappeared. In the blink of an eye, two large cuts materialized on the man's body. One nearly severed the black wing on his right side, while the other ran across his chest – a grave wound that could potentially be lethal if left untreated.

Upon witnessing this, 7156 promptly drew his pistol and fired several shots to deter the creature. He is on a mission and refuses to let the target perish before his eyes. The impacts resulted in a few bursts of blood. By observing the limited amount, 7156 deduced that the attacks caused minimal harm.

Continuing to fire shots, he advanced toward the injured man, simultaneously retrieving his dagger. Upon reaching the creature, he raised his leg and kicked it, sending it flying back a short distance. The tactic worked, but the recoil was something else.

"This thing's strong. At least 7 strength."

[Kazuya]

Health: 1300/1300

Energy: 40/40

Con: 9

Str: 8

Dex: 6

Int: 2

Spc: 2

Skills:

- Transform: Alter the body into a combat form

- Named: Double the health and energy

 

A very sturdy physique, though rather ordinary. 7156 raised his dagger to his palm and made a slight cut. A small wound appeared on his left hand. He squatted down and pressed his bleeding palm against the man's chest, spreading a red glow onto him. Then, as if stimulated by something, the man's injuries started closing.

This was a healing skill he acquired after his first world. By sacrificing some of his health, he could provide a modest amount of healing. It couldn't compare to the abilities of dedicated healers, but it served well as initial aid. With his condition stabilizing, 7156 looked up at the approaching corruptor.

Since it's a named creature, something must be special about it. He will need to be careful in this fight. Lifting his dagger, 7156 ran at the approaching creature. His gun had been stored away in his hoster as bullets are not cheap. The creature swung both of its arms, but 7156 dodged by leaping high into the air.

Pulling his legs up, he swung his dagger downward. The creature absorbed the blow and counterattacked, thrusting its arm at his airborne target. This maneuver might have succeeded against someone else, but not on 7156. He activated his boot's ability: Double Jump, and stepped down on the air, propelling him further up.

On the way down, he activated the sharpening feature on his dagger and inflicted a deep wound on the shoulder. 7156 then followed up with an enhanced elbow strike from behind, enhanced by a shockwave skill. The blow shattered the surrounding carapace, causing blood to seep out from the wound. 7156 pivoted on his feet, using Strengthening to deliver a forceful kick to the injury.

*Caaaahhhh*

The creature emitted a piercing cry and collapsed.

413/1300

As 7156 moved to deliver the finishing blow, the injured man shouted at him.

"Hold on! Don't kill it."

In response, 7156 adjusted the trajectory of his strike and stabbed its shoulder instead. This way, there would be a window of opportunity in case it recovered and launched a counterattack. He approached the man and crouched beside him.

"Are you alright?"

Langeth struggled to rise.

"I've survived worse, but thanks anyway."

He then limped over to the insectoid, taking care not to aggravate his wounds. Once beside the creature, he drew his leg back and delivered a forceful kick to its neck.

7156 raised an eyebrow at this. Had the man asked him to halt so he could deal the final blow? That doesn't seem very smart. These doubts, however, were dispelled as the creature's carapace and arm blades faded away. What remained was a malnourished teenager.

"Could you assist in carrying him? I would do it myself, but I'm quite injured."

Langeth gestured to his wound and dangling arm. 7156 nodded and hoisted the scrawny individual onto his shoulders.

[Event completed. You have unlocked relations with the Mutant faction.]

[You have been recognized as a mutant and can participate in related events.]

 

---

 

When Kazuya woke up, he realized he was on a couch. He tried to sit up, but his body was in too much pain to do anything.

"What happened? The last thing I remembered was fighting a stupid beetle."

To pass the time, Kazuya looked around the room he was in. It was an unfamiliar room, but the decorations were decent. Judging by its size, Kazuya guessed that this living room was shared by many people. That, or the owner was wealthy. Kazuya was leaning toward the first option as his poor background had limited his imagination.

A few minutes later, a man with a scar on his face walked by with a bowl.

"Oh, you're awake."

The man sat down across from him and started eating his food. But as Kazuya realized what the person was eating, he felt hunger stir. It was bloody meat. Seeing Kazuya's eyes turn red again, Langeth sighed in frustration.

"Are you kidding me? Has no one ever taught you how to control your hunger?"

Kazuya was confused by this question, but he was too focused on the bowl in Langeth's hands to care.

"Fine. Eat up," Langeth handed the bowl over, exasperated by his intense stare.

Kazuya took it and poured all its contents into his mouth. Then he swallowed everything, not even bothering to chew. His body felt better after that.

"What do you mean by control?" Kazuya asked after he calmed down.

Langeth looked at him like he was an idiot.

"Who the hell awakened you? You don't even have the basics."

"Awaken?"

"Hold on, do you even know who your awakener is?"

"No? What's an awakener? And can you explain all these terms you're throwing out?"

Langeth started realizing how everything led up to this point. This guy had no one to guide him.

"I guess I should start from the beginning. Right now, you have become something known as a mutant. The person that made you like this is known as your awakener. You can identify them by the characteristics you have inherited when you transform. So do you have any idea who fits the description?"

Kazuya thought back to the fight he had. Aren't those hand blades very similar to the mantis that stabbed him?

"I have a brief idea, except it doesn't seem to be a human."

"Can you explain?"

Kazuya then explained everything that had happened to him in the past few weeks.

"I see. You're a first generation. That explains a lot. Well, the first thing you need to work on is controlling your body's output. Right now, you are in overdrive. That's why you are always so hungry. And if you stay in that state for too long, you might lose control again. We can work on that later. Now are there any questions you are still confused about?"

Kazuya thought about it before asking the main question on his mind.

"Why do I have to eat raw meat to satisfy my hunger? Like why does nothing else work when they all contain energy?"

"Have you ever thought about the origin of our powers?"

Kazuya shook his head.

"It comes from a parasite that lives in the corruptors' bodies. When they severely wound people, these parasites enter their bloodstream. Under most circumstances, this will act as a poison and kill the host, but there are exceptions. Some people might adjust to it and as a result, gain the powers and traits of the original host. Over time, these parasites would feed off the host and reproduce. The only thing is they are hungry for flesh. If they don't get it, they will influence the host to hunt for it. This influence reaches so far as taking control if necessary."

"Then how does controlling my body solve this problem?"

"Well, as much as the parasites grant us powers, all that has to come from somewhere. The fuel for it is our energy. The parasites use up a lot of energy to let us perform superhuman feats so they drain our bodies to replenish it. This will keep going as long as the parasites remain in this state. If we turn off these powers, the parasites will stop being so hungry and our bodies can start eating normally again."

Hearing this, Kazuya became relieved. He can finally return to his normal life again. Then he thought of a problem.

"What happens if I can't contact you for help?"

Langeth grinned.

"That's the easy part. The place I work at is full of mutants. Come. Let me introduce you."

Langeth then led Kazuya out of the room and through the streets until they came to a certain cafe.

"Langeth, you're back."

A coworker greeted him.

"Yeah. And I brought a newcomer."

"Newcomer?" Kazuya was confused by this description.

"Yes. You will be working here until you can control your powers. We can't risk you going on another rampage and exposing this side of the world," Langeth answered as he walked to the back and pushed open a door to the office.

 

---

 

Genji struck down another elite in an abandoned alley and swung his sword to clean the blood.

[Your maximum energy has increased by 3. You will no longer receive any bonuses from killing common units.]

[Energy from elite units will be reduced.]

[Your faction reputation has increased by 4.]

Genji looked at the notification. Right now, his energy had reached 90 points after a few days of hunting. Judging by the prompt, it seemed that every 10 points served as a benchmark of some kind.

"This is kind of slow," he muttered to himself.

"At least I will be getting my new weapons today."

He put away his sword and shield and started walking out of the narrow place. As he reached the entrance, he felt a familiar gaze on him. He turned around and realized someone was on the other side of the alley. He infused some energy into his eyes and saw a dagger in one hand and a pistol in the other. He only knows one person that wields such a strange combo.

"7156?" Genji recalled this person that fought with him.

The figure nodded, put away his weapons, and approached Genji.

"Let's exchange some information."

"Sure."

7156 led Genji to a cafe and got a window seat. A staff member came over and asked in a nervous tone.

"W-what can I get for you?"

Genji looked at the options and answered, "Iced coffee. No creamer."

7156 also placed his order and let the new staff leave.

"I joined the mutants," 7156 started.

"Corruption Elimination Corps."

"Access to limited events."

"A faction mission."

"Team up if needed?"

"Sure."

That was how their exchange went. It was a very straightforward conversation. They didn't even bother with pleasantries. 7156 didn't seem like someone that dallied in side talk, so Genji didn't bother either.

"You fight like Gladiator," 7156 mentioned as their drinks were served.

"Gladiator?" Genji took a sip.

"A fellow champion that died last month. Sword and shield."

"I see. I did reference a certain opponent."

"My number," 7156 pushed a paper over.

Genji took it and added it to his temporary phone. This will come in handy if they need to contact each other. Then Genji finished his drink and made his way back to get his new fuhai-boshi.

When he walked through the doors of the armory, he was handed two very heavy suitcases. He returned his current one and went to a corner to get used to them. He opened one and pulled out two rectangular swords with breaks every 6 inches. On the handle, there's a lever that releases the blades. The idea is that the blades may shatter in combat, but it will leave a deep wound before it happens. Then he can reattach a new blade like a disposable razor.

This was the best he could do at the moment since he can't get any stronger weapons with high durability. 

[Fuhai-Boshi]

Rating: Uncommon

Form: Detachable blades

Damage: 10

Durability: 30/30

Effects:

Disposable: Decreased durability, increased damage

Specialized: 4x damage to corruption, -50% damage to humans

 

He put the blades away and opened the other box. A bunch of components lay in front of him. Unlike the contents of the other box, this one is special. Genji will need to assemble everything manually without any help from contraptions. This is because this is a DIY gun set. He can construct any standard firearm he knows of. The idea behind this was to allow for high versatility.

[Fuhia-Boshi 2]

Rating: Uncommon

Form: Firearms

Damage: Varies

Durability: 50/50

Effects:

Flexible: You can craft most firearms out of this.

Semi-Specialized: 2x damage to corruption, 70% damage to humans.

 

It's not very strong because the bullets hold less of the substance that targets corruptors. A willing trade-off for Genji as he can fight from a distance. If one bullet isn't enough, then just fire a few more.

As for why he armed himself like this, let's say he found an interesting area that he wanted to visit. He heard about this place yesterday and decided to make this a temporary goal. But for that to happen, he will need to rank up first.

Since there was no way CEC would allow rank 5 corruptors to appear in the city, he would have to go out into the wild. It's an annoying hunt, but a necessary one. Genji purchased some camping supplies and put in his leave. Then he walked out without caring if it got approved. He's here to kill, not play office.

 

---

 

Two boring days passed as Genji hunted down a good amount of corruptors in the vicinity without much difficulty. Most of them were weaker mobs, but there were a few elites. Nothing too drastic, but there were a few surprises. For one, he got a drop. A pair of strong leather boots. It dropped from a horse creature, but since it wasn't an elite, it didn't have any properties. He replaced his current pair as the new pair was more comfortable and offered slightly more defense.

As for his energy, it had reached a maximum of 100 points, but that seemed to be the limit for elites. No matter how many more elites he killed afterward, the number refused to increase. This, though, did not mean he gave up on killing elites. The concentration of corruptors in the wilderness was greater than in the city, so he farmed a good amount of faction reputation points.

As he finished his meal, he felt the radar vibrate again. He pulled it out and headed towards the location as usual. When he got there, though, he was met with a surprise. The corruptor that he met was a humanoid with grey skin. When Genji came upon it, the creature was feasting on a dead sheep.

[Plain's Ogre]

Health: 2800/2800

Con: 16

Str: 16

Dex: 9

Int: 3

Spc: 0

Skills:

- Mini-Boss Physique: +2000 hp

- Resilient: Increased defense

- Swipe(Active): Strike with 2x str

- Battle Roar(Active): Increase stats by 15% for 5 minutes

 

Under normal circumstances, this was not a creature that Genji could fight. Take its strength and constitution stat, for example. Just for comparison, the creature had double the amount Genji had. But Genji had one advantage. His dexterity was higher. As long as he played his cards right, he wouldn't take a single hit. It was going to be risky, but what choice did he have?

Genji took a stance and charged the blades with 20 points of energy.

"Let's gamble."

Lightweight

Genji took a step and disappeared from the ogre's eyes. Sensing an approaching danger, the ogre held both arms up around the neck.

*PZZZZ*

A large amount of muscle fibers were cut, leaving a sharp nick on the bones. Genji then swung his other sword and flashed away. When he appeared in his initial spot, his blades had gotten shorter and the energy in them had run out. He clanged the two tips together, breaking off the chipped edge, and channeled another 30 points into them.

As Genji took another step forward, the ogre swung its left arm hard, twisting its body downward, and causing both of the strikes to land. The arm detached from the shoulder, but Genji was far from happy with the result. The ogre had sacrificed this one arm to land its next strike. As the arm wound back, Genji's eyes dilated.

"I can't avoid this in time."

Genji realized this, but he refused to give up.

Swift movement

His speed doubled again, and a sonic boom was heard. He channeled the last of his energy into his blades and swung one last time.

*Plop plop*

A heavy head and arm fell on the ground. Genji stood with his back to the mutilated body as his blades shattered in his hands. The mini-boss had been slain.