Lee's body hummed with newfound strength. The System screen glowed softly in his vision, a welcome sight.
[LEVEL UP!] [LEVEL UP!] [LEVEL UP!] [You are now Level 5!] [+15 Stat Points Awarded]
"three levels at once?" Lee muttered, a grin touching his lips for the first time in years. Without hesitation, he willed the points into his core being. Five into Strength. Five into Vitality. Five into Agility.
[STATS UPDATED] [STR: 15 | VIT: 15 | AGI: 22 | INT: 0 | WIS: 9 | LCK: 5] [STAMINA: 150/150]
The effect was instant. The deep exhaustion from the climb vanished, replaced by a resilient, thrumming energy. "This is good. Really good." He flexed his hands, the raw, bleeding wounds now just a dull ache. The pain was still there, a reminder of his ordeal, but the crippling fatigue was gone. He had 150 Stamina now. He felt like he could run for miles.
He started walking, his steps lighter and surer on the uneven ground. After about five minutes, the harsh landscape offered its first gift: a wrecked merchant wagon, tilted on its side like a dead animal.
"What's this doing all the way out here?" he wondered aloud, his voice rough from disuse. "So close to the Pits…" The canvas covering was slashed to ribbons. "This was attacked. Recently."
Cautiously, he approached. The cargo was mostly looted, but in a splintered crate, he found a roll of thick, durable cloth, slightly torn but otherwise intact. "This… this could be useful."
An idea sparked. He spent the next few minutes working with a focused intensity he hadn't felt since his days tinkering with broken tools in the pits. Using a sharp piece of metal from the wagon's frame, he cut and shaped the cloth. He layered it, creating something practical and protective. When he was done, he held up his creation: a tattered, heavy mantle.
He swung it over his shoulders. It draped heavily, the frayed ends brushing against his calves. It was rugged and thick, perfect for blocking the wind and hiding his form. He pulled the high collar up, and it wrapped around his neck like a scarf, rising almost to his jawline, casting the lower half of his face in shadow. For the first time, he didn't feel like an exposed fugitive. He felt… guarded.
A quick search for food yielded little—a few scraps of hardened journey-bread. Disappointed but not defeated, he pressed on.
The path ahead curved into a narrow, high-walled canyon. The air grew still and heavy, the tall rock walls blocking the wind and trapping the day's heat like an oven.
"The Serpent's Pass," Lee whispered, a old memory surfacing. "I heard about this place as a kid. The people at the orphanage… they said only the brave or the stupid took this road." A bitter smile touched his lips. "I guess that makes me both." He shook his head, a familiar hollow feeling opening in his chest. "I'm far away from that place now. Both my mom… killed, probably. And my dad… I never even knew him."
As he rounded a bend, the scene unfolded before him, and all thought vanished.
It wasn't an ancient battlefield. It was fresh.
The acrid smell of spilled blood and ozone hit him like a physical blow. Three large, overturned merchant wagons formed a pathetic barricade. Their contents—fine cloth, shattered pottery—were strewn everywhere like garbage.
"And the bodies…" Lee's voice was a tight whisper. Six of them. Men and women in travel clothes, lying where they fell. "What the hell…?"
This was no monster attack. The wounds were clean, precise the lethal cuts of sharpened steel. They had been executed.
His eyes were drawn to one body in particular. An older man, better dressed, was slumped against a wagon wheel. A merchant. Clutched in his stiffening hand was a small, leather-bound journal, its cover stained with blood.
Lee pried it free, his new cloak muffling his movements. He flipped to the last pages, written in a frantic, shaky script.
"Set out from Luminas… hired new guards…" "Reached the Serpent's Pass. The air feels… heavy here. Silas, that young scout we picked up… is nervous…" "Ambush. But not by bandits. Their armor was polished… They didn't say a word. They just… started cutting… They're looking for something else. Someone else. 'The resonance is faint. The Asset isn't here.'" "They're checking the bodies… Silas, the scout, he slipped away… They're coming… warn them in Last Hope. Don't trust the quiet men. Don't trust anyone with the sun-and-gear sigil. They're not hunters. They're…"
The entry ended abruptly.
"It's amazing that he was able to write this while getting hunted," Lee murmured, a cold dread settling in his stomach. He looked toward the end of the pass, where the path led to the settlement. "I'm getting close to the village. This is really getting interesting."
Lee looked around a bit more, uneasy, when a faint crunch of gravel broke the silence.
A voice followed, calm but carrying a weight of intent.
"I guess we left one more survivor. I'll just get rid of you."
Lee spun, cloak snapping with the motion. A man stood there, half his face covered by a black mouth mask, eyes cold and sharp.
"You must be with—" Lee began, but the words stuck in his throat.
The man blurred. Steel flashed.
Only Lee's heightened agility saved him. His body lurched back, the blade carving a clean arc through the space where his chest had been. He skid across the dirt, heart hammering.
Who the hell is this guy? I only dodged because of my stats…
"Blade Summon!"
A weapon snapped into existence in Lee's grip, cool steel anchoring him against the sudden rush of fear.
The masked man tilted his head. "Fast for a merchant. Guess you're another bodyguard. Doesn't matter. I'll make this quick."
A pulse flared in Lee's vision.
[New Quest: Kill the Unknown Swordsman]
[Reward: 1,000 XP]
His jaw clenched. "Fine. Let's do this."
The man lunged. Their swords met with a ring that shivered up Lee's arm. Blow after blow fell like rain, the stranger's strikes sharp and merciless. Lee parried desperately, boots grinding against stone. Sparks scattered with each clash.
He's strong… but I can keep up. For now.
Steel rang, again and again. Lee's breath came sharp. Sweat streaked his brow.
"I'm just defending… I should switch to offense."
He stepped into the next clash, pushing harder, blades grinding as they locked. For a heartbeat, their eyes met. The man's gaze narrowed.
This kid…
The thought flickered across his face before he spoke aloud.
"Water Magic."
Lee's instincts screamed. He darted back just as water coiled around the man's blade, slick and alive.
Tch. He wasn't even trying until now?!
The swordsman's lips curved beneath the mask. "River."
The water burst outward, a surging stream that slashed toward Lee like a living current. He rolled aside, the torrent carving a furrow in the canyon floor.
Lee's grip tightened. "My turn."
"Blade Summon!" Another blade shimmered into existence. He flung it like an arrow, the steel whistling through the air.
The man raised his sword lazily, deflecting it with a flick. "Pathetic."
Lee was already in motion, charging in, swinging with every ounce of his strength. Their blades collided in a storm of steel, Lee's strikes fueled by desperation. Yet the man parried each one, almost bored.
"Let's end this," the masked fighter muttered. He caught Lee's guard, twisted, then drove a boot into his chest.
The world spun. Lee crashed to the ground, rolling through dirt and dust before forcing himself up, cloak heavy on his shoulders. His lungs burned.
The man raised his sword high, water swirling around it like a storm given form. His voice rang out, deep and certain.
"Water Magic: Water Dragon."
The liquid surged, coalescing into the massive head of a dragon, its eyes hollow, its maw opening wide. It was as big as a tree, the water churning with enough force to sweep him away like a twig.
Lee's throat went dry.
How am I supposed to win against this?
The dragon roared, and the canyon shook.
Lee gritted his teeth.
Either I put everything on the line now… or I die