BEEP
BEEP
BEEP
The sound of the beeping came from a place seemingly far away, but by the moment, it was closing in quicker and quicker, and soon it was closer than ever.
His eyelids shook slightly in one moment, and in the next, they fluttered open, revealing a pair of clear blue irises.
[Congratulations On Your Survival Host. You Have Completed the Secret Mission.]
The golden panel was the first thing Everlearn saw as he slowly sat up from his seat.As he did, pain gripped him, and his hands shifted to his ribs.He found it—bandages after bandages wrapped around his entire torso.
He was on the bed in a room which he found more than familiar.It was the room he had chosen in the mansion.
"Mission?" he asked, struggling to come to terms with the disarranging memories, but the panel flashed once more.
║ Secret Mission: Survive The Death Intent of a Mecha X-grade Corer.║║ Rewards:+2,000 EXP!+3 Ability Upgrade Cards+3 Level Up Cards! ║
It blinked before him, and finally, it all pieced together as Everlearn gave one more look at the room he was in before exhaling in relief.
"I survived… and it seems I even gained a little bit of something from the beating."He said, snickering in mockery at himself, but that stopped when he noticed the knob on the door twitch, and in came Boss Ash.
"You're finally up?"She asked, wisps of smoke leaving her lips as she spoke.
"Finally?" Everlearn called, and she nodded, coming to sit on a chair by the side of the bed.
"Yes. You've been out for three days now."She said, and his brows furrowed.
'That's quite a long time. Perhaps, if I had leveled up immediately, I could have been awake,' he thought silently, but he shooed that off, turning to her.
"So, how was the sample? Did you get it?"He asked, and as a reply, she brought a simple test tube, within which was a purple liquid.
"That's… an Arcane Serum." Everlearn said, his eyes almost shining with light.That was a new source of power.
"It took 76 men, 23 women, and 9 children, all experimented on and dying in the most horrifying way you could imagine to bring forth its success."She said, and the light in Everlearn's eyes immediately died off, his jaws hanging.
Yet looking into her eyes, they were as cold as ever, with zero sign of a joke in them.
"That's terrible," he mused silently, and she kept the serum back into her coat.
"That is just how far some people are willing to go to gain power in this world," she said, leaving him in silent contemplation.
"By the way,"
PSTCHT
She said, lighting up a cigarette after.
"I've recommended you to the base. They'll be sending forth the plane later in the night, and we'll be leaving Mechara."She said, as Everlearn paused before a glint flashed in his eyes.
"So I passed the test?"
"You did. The aim itself was to see what type of person you are when faced with danger."
"If you panic or break down like most, then you're useless for the base," she said coldly and calmly.
"But you were able to achieve the orders given, even using smarts to lure and conquer. What's more, you still survived the attack of a Mecha W-core, keeping that sharp thinking throughout instead of kneeling and begging like most will."
"Something that never helps them survive death, by the way," she added, exhaling smoke.
"You handled the mission very well," she said, and Everlearn watched as her hand reached out, rubbing his hair.
His lips parted open slightly for a moment before he whispered,"You know, it's really weird if you pat someone while keeping such a cold face," he said, as she silently took back her arm.
"While your injuries are healed, there are still some strains. Don't move around too much. You've got about ten hours before the plane arrives."She said, rising from the seat and moving to the exit.
"If the plane leaves Mechara, where is it headed next?" Everlearn asked as she gripped the knob and opened the door.
"Can't disclose," she replied curtly as the door shut close.
"As cold as ever," he mused beneath his breath before he fell back on his back.
"Initiate MDS Protocol," he ordered, and in the next moment, the panel flickered to life,
╔══════════════════╗║ [ SYSTEM INTERFACE ]║╠═══════════════════╣║ ▸ Name: Everlearn Snowfall ║║ ▸ Race: Human ║║ ▸ Age: 17 ║║ ▸ Level: 6 ║║ ▸ EXP: 2,000/2,000 ║║ Does Host Wish to Level Up ║
'Yes,'
║ Congratulations, Host has leveled up to Level 7. ║║ +15 Attribute Points Obtained. ║║ Level Up Cards: 3 ║║ Does Host Wish to Use Level Up Cards? ║
'Yes,'
║ -1 Level Up Card! ║║ Congratulations, Host has leveled up to Level 8. ║║ +15 Attribute Points Obtained. ║
║ -1 Level Up Card! ║║ Congratulations, Host has leveled up to Level 9. ║║ +15 Attribute Points Obtained. ║
║ -1 Level Up Card! ║║ Congratulations, Host has leveled up to Level 10. ║║ +20 Attribute Points Obtained. ║
'Oh, my attributes increased by +5 after the level up!?'Everlearn noticed.
═══STATS═══║ Strength: 40 ║║ Agility: 40 ║║ Endurance: 40 ║║ Intelligence: 40 ║║ Charisma: 40 ║║ Attribute Points: 65 ║║ How Does Host Wish to Distribute Attribute Points ║
With him leaving for the so-called base soon, and after narrowly surviving the harrowing fight against the Corer, Everlearn knew just what he needed.
"Add 20 attribute points to Strength, 20 attribute points to Agility, 10 attribute points to Endurance, and 15 attribute points to Intelligence."
║ Points Successfully Added. ║
═══STATS═══║ Strength: 60 ║║ Agility: 60 ║║ Endurance: 50 ║║ Intelligence: 55 ║║ Charisma: 40 ║║ Attribute Points: 0 ║══════
For now, Everlearn had decided to hold off on his Charisma for more important stats like Strength and Agility.If he had been faster and more agile in his last fight, perhaps he wouldn't have been reduced to such a sight.
But he didn't blame himself for the loss.Corers were full superhumans—more than twice as strong as the regular adult, not to mention the fact that the Corer was even using a destructive Corer Weapon.
Getting beaten up wasn't a shame in such a situation. He ought to be truly proud that he managed to survive it in the end.