"To be alive does not mean you have returned… Sometimes the return begins when you decide to become someone worthy of survival, not just someone who survived."
From the thoughts of Kain
✦ From Kain Swan's perspective ✦
The first thing I felt… was warmth. It wasn't that usual physical warmth, but something deeper… as if light was seeping into me, waking me from a long and strange dream.
I opened my eyes, and saw her. Alice.
I smiled, barely, and said: "Hello… Alice."
Her face was calm, but it carried what resembled a silent collapse. Her mouth trembled, as if tears wanted to fall, but they did not fall… vampires do not cry.
But I was seeing her. Feeling her.
And for a moment… nothing else mattered.
Not the system. Not Shane. Not even who I am… or what I am.
All I wanted… was to stay in that moment.
… But I was not alone.
Charlie arrived quickly after hearing the news. He was not that strict man I had always known, but collapsed, sweating, his eyes searching for life in mine.
Then Renée… she left everything behind, planes, reservations, habits.
She sat beside me, combing my hair silently, as if I were her little child again.
Even Bella… despite the distance that had grown between us after our parents' separation, she sat by me for a long time, holding a book in her hand, and not reading a word from it.
Then… I felt something I had forgotten for a long time: family.
Love without return. A presence that cannot be bought.
I resolved in my heart: "I will not allow what I saw to become reality… I will fight… for them."
Later… they told me I had been in a coma for a month and a week.
A month? Only?
I swear I lived a thousand years there. I screamed, I cried, I was broken, I saw worlds destroyed, and Shane devouring stars.
But reality… had not stopped.
My body did not carry a single injury… and that puzzled them all. After some quick tests – long for me – I left the hospital.
And summer vacation had begun.
I returned to my room. Where light no longer frightened me. Where the system… was waiting for me.
I opened the system. The notification screen exploded in front of me:
[Mission completed!.. Congratulations to the host! 250 XP acquired and all stats increased +15]
[Level up] [Level up]
[Host has reached level 15.. A new skill has been unlocked]
[Currency exchange system unlocked]
[No missions generated due to host's condition] [Mission difficulty is accumulating…] [No missions generated due to host's condition…] [Mission difficulty is accumulating…] [Mission difficulty is accumulating…] [Mission difficulty is accumulating…]
—The last two lines were appearing constantly, daily, as if the system groaned in silence… waiting for my return.
Then a new notification appeared:
[New missions are being generated…]
[Long-term training mission created!]
📜 Mission details:
Run a distance of 10,000 km
500,000 push-ups
500,000 squats
1,000,000 sword swings
🕓 Deadline: only one week
🎁 Reward: 600 FP + 1,000,000 SP
[New mission created!]
[Hunting Marathon]
🎯 Details:
Hunt continuously for one year.
🕓 Deadline: 18 months.
🎁 Reward: Double SP points gained from kills + 10,000 XP.
⚠️ Note: In case the host fails in any of these missions, the system will shut down.
I stood before the notification screen, not knowing where to begin.
The system… had changed.
It had become harsher.
The rewards were huge, yes… but the responsibility was terrifying.
I had no choice. I looked at the missions, at the repeated words, at the accumulated system messages that I felt carried a silent blame… then decided to begin.
I opened my status screen:
✦ Host's basic status
Name: Kain Swan
Lineage: Human
Level: 15
[Strength]: 86
[Agility]: 126
[Intelligence]: 96
[Vitality]: 77
[Defense]: 69
[Stamina]: 88 / 88
Available FP points: 0
Available SP points: 10,000
Current XP points: 20 / 150
I looked at the numbers. I sighed: "I am still weak… too weak."
Compared to what awaits me… Shane, the universe, destruction… I must be stronger. As soon as possible.
Then a notification caught my eye:
[Activated: Currency Exchange System.]
I opened the window:
1 SP = $1000
1 XP = 10 SP
I smiled… Money? No longer a problem. XP? Expensive, yes, but attainable.
And finally… there was a tool that rewarded me for fighting.
Then I went to the shop.
[A new skill unlocked.]
🔸 Skill name: Marble Flesh
📜 Type: Physical defensive skill
🌟 Rank: S
✨ Description: "Transforms the host's body into a state of extraordinary solidity resembling black marble, making him capable of withstanding powerful physical attacks, as if his body cannot be broken."
🛡️ 1. Shock endurance: reduces physical attack damage by 10%
🧱 2. Temporarily unbreakable bones: his limbs cannot be broken or displaced easily, even under group attacks
⚖️ 3. Stony reaction: when fully activated, the body releases a small rebound wave that pushes the opponent back a short distance
💰 Price: 50,000 SP
Finally… a defensive skill.
It had always been my weak point.
My defense was the weakest among all the stats.
And now, I had a chance to strengthen this side.
But the price… fifty thousand? I would need to fight fiercely, or… complete the missions.
I stood before the screen. Contemplated the numbers, the missions, my abilities… then closed my eyes.
"No more hesitation. The next stage… is the hardest."
…
Now I had to prepare for the journey.
The Hunting Marathon was not a short mission, but required a full year of fighting. But where?
Forks… was small. The previous missions had nearly destroyed the ecosystem completely. I had to find a wider place… more savage.
Then the idea struck me: the Amazon rainforest.
Full of life, and dangers… and a perfect place for a hunting marathon.
But the bigger problem was not the place.
It was the farewell.
How would I convince Charlie? Bella? The school?
There was only one solution: "Convince them that I am still sick… I need to travel for treatment, and Carlisle will document that."
I contacted Carlisle. At first, he refused… he is a doctor, he does not lie. But after a long discussion, and after he looked at Alice and her worried eyes… he agreed.
And the moment of confrontation came.
In the evening, Carlisle arrived with Alice at our house. Charlie was waiting for them. I sat quietly, then said:
– Dad… I must travel.
He raised his eyebrows slowly: – What? To where? And why?
– My condition… is not stable, there is experimental treatment abroad.
Bella intervened: – You're joking, right? After you just came back?!
Carlisle said in a professional tone: – His condition needs a special environment… his body is completely strange, if he stays here, his condition may worsen.
Charlie stood up angrily: – Then I'll go with him!
But Alice placed her hand on his shoulder: – No need… I will accompany him.
Then she whispered, only I and Carlisle heard: "… with my life."
I looked at her, and smiled.
Charlie exhaled sharply, then sat silently, defeated. He finally asked: – When will you leave?
– Tomorrow morning.
– And school?
– Carlisle will submit official papers about my condition.
He kept looking at me for a long time… then said in a broken voice: – Just… come back alive.
…
And the next morning.
Alice stood in front of my house, wearing sunglasses, standing next to her shiny yellow Porsche.
She opened the door, I sat beside her.
She looked at me, then said: – Where to?
I smiled, and looked at the horizon: – The Amazon rainforest.
🌀[End of Chapter Fifteen]
✦[End of Season One]
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Hello everyone,
And that's a wrap on Volume 1! Thank you so much for joining me on this journey so far. Your support has been incredible, and I'm so grateful for every single one of you.
I'll be taking a short, one-week hiatus to dive deep into the world of Volume 2 and get the plot just right. I want to make sure the next part of the story is as exciting and engaging as possible.
I will be back with the first chapter of Volume 2 on Sunday, September 28th.
Thank you again for everything. I'm so excited for what's to come!
See you on the 28th!