The pain was sharp and shallow, threading fire through his side with every breath. Asher leaned against the crumbling wall of an abandoned ranger station, coat dark with drying blood.
> [Injury Detected – Laceration: Lower Ribs]
[Activating Moderate Healing – 65 KP Spent]
[Remaining KP: 120]
Cool numbness spread under his skin. The gash sealed slowly, muscle tugging together beneath the warmth of system-stitched flesh. He exhaled—quiet, ragged—and let his head rest back.
The encounter replayed behind his eyes. Jeff's grin. The flicker of the blade. The sheer speed behind each strike. He hadn't fought a person—he'd fought a storm wearing skin.
> [Entropy: 5.5%]
[Shadow Flicker Proficiency: 27%]
[Stealth Subsystem XP: 68%]
The system didn't label Jeff. No tags, no class. Not even a warning. Asher had barely survived that fight by instinct and luck—and Jeff had walked away laughing.
He reached into his inventory and pulled out the cracked Ritual Capsule he'd taken from a cultist days ago. It pulsed faintly in his hand—erratic, like something unfinished.
> [Item: Ritual Capsule – Unstable]
[Warning: Contents Unknown]
[Suggested Stabilizer – 85 KP]
He slid it back into storage.
Not yet.
There were still too many unknowns. And he needed more control. More strength. If Jeff was just the beginning, then he wasn't ready.
Not for what came next.
Asher stood, testing his ribs. Healed, but sore.
He turned toward the trees—toward the silence—and walked.
---
The forest felt different now. Not peaceful—just… watching.
Parasight hummed at the edges of his senses. It didn't speak directly, but he could feel it. Suggestions. Pressure. A quiet push toward violence.
Kill.
Adapt.
Advance.
> [Replay Log – 1 New Entry Available]
He didn't open it. He already knew what he'd see: the moment Jeff's blade hit, the moment he'd Shadow Flickered half a second too late.
Still, he survived.
Barely.
The interface blinked again.
> [New Task Branching – Optional: Investigate Cult Movement Near Ashridge]
[Reward: Unknown]
[Warning: Increased Anomaly Density]
Asher narrowed his eyes. Ashridge was supposed to be cleared. He'd gutted the last of the zealots two nights ago.
If the system flagged it, something had moved in.
He accepted the task.
---
It was past midnight when he reached the edge of the Ashridge clearing.
No torches. No chants. Just scorched trees and dried blood.
But something was wrong. The air shimmered—an oily tension under the skin.
Asher crouched, scanning.
Movement.
Not human.
Pale skin. Twisted limbs. Low to the ground.
> [Entity Detected – Anomaly Class: Unknown]
[Recommendation: Observe Before Engaging]
He stayed hidden. The thing twitched, sniffed, then bolted into the forest.
Gone.
Asher waited, knife ready. Nothing followed.
He exhaled, slow and steady.
He didn't know if this was connected to Jeff, or something worse. But the world was waking up.
And he was still breathing.
> [Entropy: 5.6%]
[Kill Points: 120]