The system’s intentions have been clear from the beginning.
Kill the creatures in front and absorb their mana.
The tutorials over the past three missions enforced that pattern upon me.
This time, the target to be killed changed from an animal beast to a monster.
As soon as I woke up to that fact, I sprinted in the direction where the monster had disappeared.
I must catch the guy who stabbed me in the back just a moment ago.
Now that there’s a reason not to miss out on rewards based on performance!
“Ten million won!”
Yes, capitalism was great.
Enough to momentarily forget the resentment towards the system and the fear of death.
Although there was no guarantee that I could actually receive the money.
But if I could, I could earn ten million won in one go.
There was no reason not to run.
Of course, it was a judgment based on the belief that it was somewhat possible.
In addition to knocking down a polar bear with one punch, I didn’t fall far behind in the recent battle with the monster.
I was caught in surprise when its tongue suddenly stuck out.
But I could keep up with the monster’s movements and speed.
In fact, I dodged its attacks several times.
In the state of mana operation, I was not inferior physically.
Moreover, the guy was already injured.
“I can catch him!”
Chasing him was not that difficult. The spear he dropped was not far away.
After taking the spear, I followed the trail of black liquid on the ground.
“Could this be its blood?”
I was momentarily confused by the traces of the monster.
After a few minutes of pursuit, I found the target, and curses escaped my lips involuntarily.
“You crazy!”
The monster was about to kill a white man I had never seen before.
“Let him go!”
As soon as I started using mana, I lifted the spear and threw it towards the monster.
The spear, slashing through the air with formidable speed, pierced the monster’s abdomen.
“Kieeek!”
The creature screamed, turning its body.
Without any delay, it seemed as if it was trying to escape.
Sparks flew from my eyes where the creature was held.
Ten million won was slipping away!
“Hey, you there!”
This was something I couldn’t afford to miss.
I kicked the ground and leaped into the air.
The distance of 20—no, 25—meters narrowed in an instant.
When I descended past the fallen white man and saw the monster’s back, exposed.
“Ten million won! (Around 7500 USD)”
I shouted with all my might.
The reward I could get if I caught the creature flashed before my eyes.
Ten million won was enough to motivate me.
My concentration had increased dramatically compared to when I first encountered the monster.
Even the creature turned its body towards me.
Its sharp claws are aiming for me.
And its tongue suddenly protruded.
Everything seemed to happen in slow motion.
As my body floated in the air, I twisted my upper body to avoid the claws.
I grabbed the creature’s tongue with my left hand.
The spear in my right hand was already touching the creature’s jaw.
[Sensory expansion.]
[Ability Sensory Expansion is acquired.]
Beyond the suddenly appearing system message, my eyes met the eyes of the creature.
Strangely, at that moment, the only thing that emerged from the creature’s eyes was fear.
Even though I saw that, I didn’t hesitate and thrust the spear.
“Kieeeek…!”
This creature clearly intended to kill me.
It just couldn’t be because I wasn’t weak.
There was no need for compromise.
The resistance felt through the spear that pierced the tough skin was considerable.
As I pulled my hand, grabbing the creature’s tongue, toward me, the hand holding the spear pushed even harder.
Thud, thud.
Twice, the blade I thrust pierced through the creature’s palate, penetrating its skull.
Black liquid splashed into the air as the creature’s body collapsed.
When the corpse began to fall backward, I could finally stand on the ground with both feet.
“Whew.”
It all happened in just a few seconds.
But within the Sensory expansion that seemed to transcend the human realm, it felt like minutes.
An ability that makes everything slowed down.
I stored the sensation I felt just before killing the monster in the corner of my mind.
I’ll study that and practice again later.
Now it’s time for absorbing mana.
I prepared for the impending shock and turned around.
It was in the direction where the white man was.
Brown hair against the wall.
He, who had quietly risen from his fall, was staring at me with his neck firmly gripped.
“Let’s make it straight, this is mine.”
I thought of nailing down the idea so that there wouldn’t be unnecessary disputes about steal or whatever.
After all, if it weren’t for me, he might have died, so the justification was on my side.
I organized the words to say to the man step by step.
But due to the continued messages, the conversation with him had to be postponed.
[Successfully eliminated the enemy. Absorbing contaminated mana 61.]
The amount of mana that was more than defeating the polar bear didn’t catch my eye.
“Contaminated mana?”
I screamed in horror at the unfamiliar message, rolling on the floor.
“Ah!”
Hundreds, thousands of needles crawled into my body, piercing me all over.
I had never felt pain when absorbing mana before.
It was just an overwhelming sense of repulsion.
But this time was different. It felt like my body was being torn to shreds.
Even as I writhed in pain, the system messages continued.
[Contaminated mana exists in the body. Check the chaos index.]
[Mental contamination is beginning.]
[Purify the contaminated mana.]
The letters were thicker than usual and disappeared, leaving a lingering image.
“Hey!”
At that moment, the white man started to approach me urgently.
Pain like never before.
Approaching footsteps.
An unfamiliar person.
I reflexively pulled the spear out of the monster’s body and aimed it at the white man.
It’s dangerous if he attacks me now!
As the droplets of black liquid pointed at him, the white man stopped in his tracks.
Meanwhile, the pain continued.
“Ugh…!”
I tried to endure it by grinding my teeth, but my body writhed as if having a seizure.
My vision blurred as the spear shook.
“Ugh, ha!”
The pain didn’t subside until a long time after it normally would have.
Tears, mucus, and even saliva.
As I gasped for breath, the pain finally disappeared.
“Are you ok?”
I definitely tried to answer.
But what came out of my mouth was not an answer, but a question.
“What…?”
Someone in my head was whispering softly.
I roughed up my hair, but the voice became clearer.
When I finally understood what the words meant.
I unconsciously tightened my grip on the spear aimed at the white man.
“Kill…?”
It was just once.
When I understood the voice in my head, something surged up with a growl.
“Why am I suddenly like this?”
Why am I so angry?
My breathing became a mess, as if I had run hundreds of meters at full speed.
The voice in my head began to grow louder.
Kill, kill, kill, kill!
“What is this…?”
It felt like the schizophrenia I had only heard about.
I distanced myself from the white man, my eyes darting aimlessly.
Otherwise, I felt like I would rush at him.
It wasn’t a delusion. It was a boiling rage.
My pupils shook without direction.
At that moment, a word flashed through my mind.
[Purify the contaminated mana.]
‘Purify.’
I urgently opened the storage space and put the spear inside and opened my status window.
[Status Window
Player Kang Hyunwoo (Beta Tester)
Mana: 192.33 (Attribute Mana: 13)
Chaos Index: 31.72%
Affiliation: Earth
Race: Human (Player)
Grade: Delta (D)
Attribute: –
Ability: ?????, Assimilation, Determination, Mana Manipulation (0.57%), Sensory expansion (0.01%)]
“I’ve been collecting plants whenever I had the time.”
It wasn’t a large quantity, but it became a steady income outside regular missions.
As a result, a new term appeared under my Mana, nearing 200.
‘Chaos Index?’
A strange word, a message about mental contamination, and a bead the size of a ten-won coin. (18 mm in diameter)
There was only a moment of hesitation.
I put the white bead, presumably something that can purify, into my mouth.
The bead transformed like smoke, absorbed into my body, and the thorn stuck in my body smoothly came out.
When the Chaos Index reached 0, the voice that echoed in my head stopped.
“Phew….”
Finally, I could catch my rough breath.
When I got up from my seat, the Caucasian man trembled, looking startled.
I stared at him.
‘Player….’
A player like me who suddenly got involved in this insane game.
Among them, the top tier who cleared all tutorials.
A Caucasian who speak English.
Earlier I heard Japanese after being transferred to this space, I could tell that players come from various nationalities.
Instead of speaking, I just looked at the Caucasian man quietly.
He was the one to speak first.
“Are you ok?”
“….”
“Ah… I’m Ethan. First, thanks. You saved my life.”
“….”
“Do you speak English? Can you understand me?”
It wasn’t a conversation to the extent that I couldn’t understand, but it was enough to make my mind think very hard.
After passing the civil service exam, I completely abandoned English.
I hesitated for a moment before speaking shortly.
“It….”
Of course, I stopped before finishing my sentence.
‘No, why should I struggle to use English that I’m not good at?’
While the other person freely uses English without considering my situation.
I pointed to the monster’s corpse with my spear.
“Don’t bother claiming ownership. This originally belonged to me.”
I had the intention of catching as many monsters as possible to get the first-place reward.
The one I just killed was the stepping stone to my ten million won.
“What?”
The Caucasian asked, not understanding my words at all.
But there was no reason for me to kindly translate it into English.
‘It’s enough that I spared his life.’
I turned my gaze away from the Caucasian, or rather, Ethan.
“Tsk.”
Immediately after that, I stored the sword in the inventory and examined the monster’s corpse.
‘What kind of animal is this….?’
Even after searching my memories, I had never seen such a creature.
Moreover, a black liquid oozed from the wounds.
‘Is this real blood?’
The blood I know is red.
But the obvious and absolute truth I knew is being denied.
What could be the identity of this creature?
The word that follows the mystery is a term I’ve seen several times.
I checked the still floating status window, focusing on the affiliation section.
‘Affiliation is Earth….’
Then, how are others’ affiliations represented?
While pondering silently, I called up the mission window.
[MISSION
Promotion Test Beta Test
Eliminate the enemies. (1/13)]
The count increased by.
The monster I just killed was an enemy recognized by the system, so our affiliations must be different.
“For the existence of humanity….”
The only sentence I saw on the day I was first summoned to this ridiculous game confused my mind.
What on earth is happening?
“Phew.”
I sighed heavily and scratched my head.
‘Questions can wait for now.’
This was not a place suitable for deep thinking.
There must be at least 12 more monsters to deal with.
My questions about the system and the current situation were pushed aside as I looked at Ethan again.
As our eyes met, Ethan awkwardly smiled.
As if he had been waiting for me to give him attention.
“I have some….”
As Ethan opened his mouth, my body shuddered frighteningly.
The count at the top of the mission window had gone up.
‘Someone killed a monster.’
There was no time to stay still like this.
My goal in this mission was clear.
I tightly gripped the spear.
Judging by Ethan’s gratitude, it seemed he had no intention of claiming ownership of this monster.
Although he had been attacked by the monster, Ethan was also a player who had cleared all tutorials.
Is it beneficial to accompany him?
‘But will he try to take the next prey?’
There were a total of 7 players who entered the mission area.
One of them might have died, so there were 6 left.
The remaining monsters were 11.
How much success can Ethan and I achieve together?
Is it advantageous to accompany him?
Thinking became meaningless soon.
Due to my heightened hearing, I caught a strange sound.
– Kiiik.
I quickly turned in the direction of the sound.
“Hup.”
As I used Mana Manipulation, the sound of branches brushing became clearer amid the tangled echoes.
“Kik.”
“Kiiik?”
“Kiek!”
Thump, thump, thump.
The ground’s vibrations were not regular.
At least two!
“They’re coming!”
As soon as I shouted, two monsters came running from behind the trees and bushes.
They approached us at an unbelievably fast speed.
Then, as if agreed upon in advance, each of them rushed towards Ethan and me.
My impression was in a terrible state.
‘As expected.’
These guys are quite intelligent.
I aimed the spear at the one that leaped towards me, intending to dodge.
Even though I aimed directly at the torso, the spear didn’t pierce the monster.
Because it twisted its body to avoid it.
‘He knows that the tip of the spear is dangerous.’
The first time I encountered a monster, it also dodged when I thrust the spear.
They are aware of avoiding getting hit.
With heightened senses, I swung the spear.
The spearhead struck the side of the one that had twisted its body.
“Kieeek!”
The monster flew sideways, but at the same time, it stretched out its tongue towards me.
Instead of my neck or torso, I offered my left arm.
The three-forked tongue wrapped around my arm.
“Clang!”
As the creature landed on the ground with all four feet, I felt a strong pulling force.
‘If it weren’t for Mana Manipulation, I would have been pushed away, right?’
To avoid being dragged by the monster, I exerted strength in my waist and legs.
At that moment.
“Kwaaak!”
A scream echoed.
