Keizeix woke before sunrise feeling strangely refreshed.
For several seconds he remained beneath the warm coverings of his low bed, listening to the muffled movement of soldiers outside the tent. Then memories of the previous day came rushing back.
Seven thousand two hundred and twenty kills.
His eyes widened.
"The system."
The translucent blue window appeared almost immediately.
**Name: Keizeix Silversilk**
**Age: 6 months**
**Race: Spiderling — Silversilk Clan**
**Strength: 794 / 1,000**
**Health: 1,000 / 1,000**
**Magic: 437 / 1,000**
**Intelligence: 652 / 1,000**
**Rank: Beginner**
**Ability: Consumption Heal**
**Total Kills: 7,220**
**Consumption Points: 3,011**
Keizeix stared at the numbers.
Yesterday morning his Strength had been only twelve, his Intelligence seventy-eight, and his Magic had been nonexistent.
"So seven thousand two hundred and twenty kills gave me seven thousand two hundred and twenty attribute points..."
Yet his displayed numbers clearly hadn't increased evenly.
He began doing the math as best he could.
Strength had increased by 782.
Intelligence by 574.
Magic by 437.
That totaled 1,793 points actually showing in his visible attributes.
"Which means the points aren't just directly added."
He tapped one front leg thoughtfully against the bedding.
Either the system automatically distributed accumulated power according to what he was doing at the time, or each enemy only provided a chance of improving particular attributes.
The knights had forced him to overpower armor, stab through bodies, wrestle free from weapons, and constantly move.
That probably explained Strength.
The mages forced him to deal with magic repeatedly. He had dodged spells, been struck by some, and fought through magical pressure.
"So killing something doesn't mean one kill equals one stat."
He estimated roughly one visible statistic point for every four kills overall, though clearly the conversion changed depending on the opponent and what he was doing.
Maybe stronger enemies would provide more.
Maybe weaker ones eventually wouldn't provide anything.
His eyes narrowed with growing excitement.
"And Intelligence increased because I was constantly analyzing the battlefield, changing tactics, and figuring out how to kill them faster."
It wasn't enough information for certainty, but he had a working theory.
**Growth is influenced by actions, opponents, and experience rather than kills alone.**
That was useful.
Very useful.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Young master!"
Keizeix dismissed the window.
"Come in."
Shirespoke entered wearing an unusually pleased expression.
"Good morning, Prince Keizeix."
"Good morning, Mentor."
Shirespoke bowed.
"I would first like to congratulate you properly. Seven thousand two hundred and twenty confirmed enemies on your first battlefield outing."
His grin widened.
"I knew you had potential. I admit I did not know you intended to make me look incompetent for ever doubting you."
Keizeix laughed.
"I'll try harder today."
Shirespoke stared at him.
"That was not encouragement."
"It sounded like encouragement."
Shirespoke sighed.
"Naturally."
He stepped aside.
Two soldiers entered carrying something wrapped heavily in silver webbing.
Keizeix froze.
It was a man.
A human noble judging by his clothing, although most of his expensive garments had been torn during his capture. Only his head remained uncovered.
The man's eyes widened in terror when he saw Keizeix.
"M-Mercy! Please!"
Keizeix looked toward Shirespoke.
"Breakfast?"
"Indeed."
Shirespoke sounded as though he'd presented a beautifully roasted feast.
"A minor noble captured yesterday. Healthy, well-fed, and apparently accustomed to expensive meals. I thought it appropriate after your performance."
The noble began struggling violently.
"Wait! I have gold! Land! My family will pay anything!"
Shirespoke frowned.
"How noisy."
Keizeix felt a brief remnant of his old humanity twist uncomfortably inside him.
Once, seeing this would have horrified him.
Then memories of Earth surfaced.
Humans screaming.
Spiderkin hunting them.
His friends dying.
His entire planet destroyed.
Keizeix's expression hardened.
This wasn't Earth.
And if he wanted to survive here, pretending this world followed Earth's morality would get him killed.
He approached.
The noble screamed.
A short while later, Shirespoke waited patiently while Keizeix finished feeding.
It still wasn't pleasant.
He desperately missed cooked food.
But breakfast was breakfast.
Soon afterward they emerged from the tent.
Sia was already waiting.
The moment Keizeix saw her posture, he knew something was coming.
She looked unbearably smug.
Marike stood beside her looking even worse.
Shirespoke narrowed his eyes.
"Oh, I recognize that expression."
Marike smiled sweetly.
"You should."
Sia lifted her head proudly.
"My princess performed magnificently yesterday."
Keizeix glanced toward Sia.
"And?"
Marike produced a report.
"Princess Sia Silversilk achieved five thousand two hundred and eleven confirmed kills."
Sia practically radiated satisfaction.
"For a first battle," Marike continued, "she penetrated three defensive lines, personally eliminated two battlefield commanders, destroyed seven mage formations, and returned without suffering any significant wounds."
Shirespoke was silent.
Marike's grin widened.
"And therefore—"
"Seven thousand two hundred and twenty."
Silence.
Marike blinked.
Sia slowly turned toward Keizeix.
"What?"
Shirespoke folded his hands behind his back.
"My prince achieved seven thousand two hundred and twenty confirmed kills yesterday."
Marike's mouth opened.
Closed.
Opened again.
Sia stared at Keizeix as though he'd suddenly grown another eight legs.
"Seven... thousand?"
"Four thousand two hundred eighty-six knights and two thousand nine hundred thirty-four mages," Shirespoke added pleasantly.
Keizeix wished he could reproduce the smug human smile he had once possessed.
Sia's eyes narrowed.
"You."
"Me."
"You did that yesterday?"
"Apparently."
Her legs stamped against the earth.
"I was holding back!"
Keizeix tilted his head.
"You were?"
"I did not wish to embarrass my brother during his first battle!"
Marike suddenly looked elsewhere.
Shirespoke coughed suspiciously.
Sia stepped closer.
"Today I will not hold back."
Keizeix's competitive instinct immediately ignited.
"Good."
"I will surpass you."
"Try."
She stared at him.
He stared back.
Then both turned simultaneously toward the battlefield.
Shirespoke and Marike exchanged glances.
"This is going to become troublesome," Marike muttered.
"Extremely," Shirespoke agreed.
Then he smiled.
"But entertaining."
---
The battlefield became a slaughterhouse.
Keizeix attacked more aggressively than the previous day, but this time he fought with purpose rather than simply chasing kills.
He experimented.
Against heavily armored opponents he focused on raw physical strikes.
Against mages he dodged spells until he understood their patterns before attacking.
He deliberately used webbing in increasingly complicated formations, forcing himself to calculate angles and timing.
The system responded.
His attributes climbed.
Eight hundred.
Nine hundred.
Nine hundred fifty.
Nine hundred ninety-eight.
Then—
**Strength has exceeded Beginner capacity.**
Keizeix froze.
Power suddenly surged through his body.
His muscles tightened.
His core pulsed painfully.
A sensation like something cracking echoed through his entire existence.
**Threshold surpassed.**
**Rank advancement recognized.**
**Statistical capacity expanded.**
The window changed.
**Strength: 1,437 / 10,000**
**Health: 1,821 / 10,000**
**Magic: 1,296 / 10,000**
**Intelligence: 1,584 / 10,000**
Keizeix stared.
"Ten thousand..."
Everything was above twelve hundred.
Then another window appeared.
**Growth threshold achieved.**
**Choose one new ability.**
**1. Instant Dodge**
Automatically dodge incoming physical or magical attacks before they successfully land.
**2. Shadow Mist**
Become one with shadows. Meld into, become, and travel through shadows by transforming the body into an intangible shadow state that cannot normally be grasped or harmed. Sink into one shadow and emerge from another.
**Warning: movement, distance, and manipulation consume Mana.**
**Unlocks Mana Point Counter.**
**3. Magma Manipulation**
Gain complete resistance to heat and fire. Create and manipulate pools or rivers of magma. Swim through magma, drag enemies beneath it, use magma defensively, and recover while submerged.
**Unlocks Mana Point Counter.**
Keizeix barely needed to consider it.
"Shadow Mist."
**Confirm?**
"Yes."
The world changed.
Suddenly he could feel every shadow around him.
The shadow beneath a soldier.
The darkness beneath shields.
The shade cast by ruined siege equipment.
Even the tiny darkness beneath stones seemed strangely tangible.
A new counter appeared.
**Mana: 1,296 / 1,296**
Keizeix grinned.
"Oh, this is going to be fun."
A knight charged.
Keizeix vanished.
The sword passed through empty air.
The knight stopped.
"What—"
Keizeix erupted from the man's own shadow.
His front leg punched through the knight's back.
Another soldier swung.
Keizeix dissolved into black mist.
The weapon passed harmlessly through him.
He sank into darkness and appeared twenty feet away.
Then forty.
Then behind a mage.
Then beneath a wagon.
Then from the shadow of a terrified commander.
Keizeix laughed.
"This is amazing!"
Soldiers began panicking.
"DEMON!"
"HE'S IN THE SHADOWS!"
"LIGHT! GET LIGHT!"
Keizeix disappeared again.
**Mana: 841 / 1,296**
He barely noticed.
Another jump.
Another kill.
Another.
**Mana: 483 / 1,296**
The battlefield became a game.
Until suddenly the world tilted.
Keizeix stumbled after emerging from a shadow.
His vision blurred.
"What...?"
**Mana: 117 / 1,296**
His body felt impossibly heavy.
Cold washed through him.
"Oh."
He stared at the counter.
"Oh, that's bad."
For the first time, he understood Shirespoke's endless lectures about efficiency.
Having an incredible ability meant nothing if he stupidly exhausted the resource powering it.
Keizeix immediately retreated.
His guards rushed toward him.
"Prince!"
"I'm fine," Keizeix muttered. "Just... learned something important."
"What happened?"
"I got excited."
The guard stared.
Keizeix sighed.
"Very excited."
---
That evening, the prince and princess shared dinner with their mentors inside the commander's dining tent.
Keizeix had recovered enough Mana to feel normal again.
Sia sat opposite him looking suspiciously pleased.
"You seem happy," Keizeix said.
"I had a productive day."
"So did I."
"I doubt yours was as productive."
Marike smiled.
Shirespoke groaned.
"Not this again."
A reporting officer entered carrying two scrolls.
He bowed deeply.
"Prince Keizeix. Princess Sia. Your confirmed accomplishments."
Everyone became silent.
He opened the first.
"Prince Keizeix Silversilk: eleven thousand eight hundred forty-three confirmed kills. His Highness demonstrated a previously unknown shadow ability, repeatedly penetrating enemy formations before withdrawing after apparent exhaustion."
Sia's posture stiffened.
Keizeix glanced smugly toward her.
The officer opened the second scroll.
"Princess Sia Silversilk: twelve thousand one hundred and six confirmed kills."
Keizeix's smugness vanished.
Sia's returned instantly.
"Her Highness additionally manifested an unknown black-and-purple lightning ability, which she successfully maintained for a brief period. The ability caused severe destruction within enemy mage formations before dissipating."
Sia leaned forward.
"Do you have anything to say, dear brother?"
Keizeix stared at her.
"Two hundred sixty-three."
"What?"
"You beat me by two hundred sixty-three."
"A victory is a victory."
"You got lucky."
Sia stamped her legs indignantly.
"LUCK?!"
Marike burst out laughing.
"My princess wins!"
Shirespoke scoffed.
"By barely more than two hundred kills."
"Still a victory!"
"After losing yesterday by two thousand!"
"Yesterday does not matter!"
"It mattered greatly this morning!"
Keizeix and Sia stared at one another while their mentors argued.
"I'll beat you tomorrow," Keizeix said.
Sia's eyes gleamed.
"You may try."
"I'll win."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Definitely."
Their mentors stopped arguing long enough to look at them.
Shirespoke smiled.
Marike did as well.
Whatever annoyance existed between them, neither could hide their pride.
These weren't merely talented children.
They were monsters in the making.
Eventually dinner ended and they separated.
"Sleep well, young master," Shirespoke said outside Keizeix's tent. "And remember today's lesson."
"Watch my Mana."
"Precisely."
Keizeix crawled into bed.
His body ached pleasantly from the day's fighting.
For the first time since reincarnating, he felt genuinely excited about what he might eventually become.
Strength.
Magic.
Shadow Mist.
Evolution.
And tomorrow, Sia.
He absolutely had to beat her.
Keizeix closed his eyes.
Silence settled across the camp.
Then, just as sleep began taking him, a tiny blue light appeared in the darkness.
**Beginner's System Notification**
**Chosen One communication requirement fulfilled.**
**Inter-world communication channel unlocking...**
Keizeix's eyes snapped open.
The screen flickered.
Then a single message appeared.
**Searching for surviving Chosen Ones...**