After several hours later...
Rayne slowly opened his eyes, his entire body feeling weak and sore, but not because he was still exhausted.
He held his stomach, his breathing heavy, his face tense as he endured the hunger gnawing at his gut.
"Ughhh... I haven't eaten anything since I got here."
Earlier, he could still endure hunger because he was always in adrenaline mode, but now, after resting and fully calming down, the fatigue and hunger hit him hard.
"I-I need to eat something," he muttered, then stood up.
He peeked through the gap. Outside was silent, but he knew there was no such thing as safety — not out there, not even here.
Krekkk...
He tore the lower part of his shirt with a small dagger and tied his stomach tightly.
A little pressure on the stomach could trick hunger—at least for a while.
"Haahh..."
After that long sigh, he approached the gap, slipped through it, and slowly moved sideways.
Once outside, his gaze had already turned fierce, like a natural predator's instinct.
Rayne looked at several trees. There was nothing but young and dry leaves.
He tried walking farther, noticing that the trees all looked the same. He realized he couldn't hope for fruit.
So he moved toward some bushes, taking one of the freshest-looking leaves.
He sniffed it and was about to put it in his mouth, but before that happened, the system immediately gave a danger warning.
{DING! Warning! The system has detected movement with killing intent from the east side.}
Rayne quickly turned around, both his sword and pistol already firmly in his grip.
Some time passed, but there was no movement at all. However, just as Rayne thought it was just a passing monster—suddenly—
A shadow-like monster darted out from behind the trees.
Swoshhh... Rayne slashed his sword forward in panic, but only cut through empty air.
Realizing his enemy had extreme speed, he replaced the pistol in his hand with another sword identical to the one in his right.
He took a few steps forward.
Swoshhh... The shadow appeared again, this time from behind.
"Heh," Rayne smirked faintly.
Clingg...
Swoshh!
As the figure was about to pounce on his back, Rayne used his eye's power: shifting to the position he was in three seconds earlier. The sensation was strange—like his body was split between two directions of time. Even though it was his first time using it, it wasn't too hard to control.
However, even after successfully deceiving the creature, he still couldn't touch it.
"What the hell is this? System, analyze!"
{DING! Analysis complete.
Monster level 6.
Abilities: extreme speed, suppressing opponent's speed in one-on-one combat, able to predict attacks, and regenerates quickly.
Weakness: weak defense and vulnerable to fatal attacks despite regeneration ability.}
Rayne glanced at the system panel without lowering his guard.
"With that regeneration ability, it probably doesn't care much about my attacks."
"But with Mora energy, I can make wounds that won't regenerate."
"Good, I just need to hit it once."
While still forming his strategy—
Swoshhh...
"Above..."
Following his wild instinct, the sound of air being sliced filled the area. The shadow appeared from above, diving like a flash of lightning.
Rayne jumped backward and slashed the ground hard, but once again, the monster escaped.
Less than a second later, the creature attacked again from the side.
Cling...
Rayne vanished to his previous position before jumping back.
"Alright, let's gamble!"
Srakk...
Rayne's arm was struck.
Srakk...
Followed by his leg.
He winced in pain, but his expression wasn't panicked, as if he was intentionally letting himself get hit.
Srakkk...
Srakk...
Srakkk...
Srakkk...
Swoshhh... Another strike came straight at his crotch. Rayne, feeling the cold wind near his lower part, instinctively twisted sideways.
Srakkk... As a result, his upper thigh was torn open, spilling blood.
The attacks continued, until after a series of slashes he endured, finally, the sound he'd been waiting for appeared—
{DING! Death probability has reached 95%. The system recommends activating Death Step, as conditions are met.}
"Finally."
"Death Step!"
Rayne straightened his body full of wounds, all pain vanished instantly, both swords in his hands radiating a red aura mixed with gold.
Swoshhh... The monster attacked again, but now Rayne's time perception slowed down, and he could predict his enemy's movements.
First prediction: attack coming from lower right side, speed 0.3 seconds after shadow appears—target: abdomen.
Action: step 15 degrees left, twist body toward the attack, counter-slash diagonally upward.
Swoshhh!
His slash shot forward, nearly hitting the monster's head—but it narrowly dodged, exactly as Rayne predicted.
Second prediction: the monster will use momentum from the first strike to attack from upper right.
Action: don't look toward the attack—block with left sword.
Clingg!
A loud clash echoed, sparks flying between his sword and the monster's claws.
The creature was thrown back, but immediately spun mid-air.
Third prediction: speed increasing, rotating motion pattern, target: neck.
Action: step forward to deceive using eye ability.
Swoshhh...
One inch before the monster pierced through his chest, Rayne appeared back at his earlier position—now right in front of the monster.
Final prediction: the monster will attempt to redirect its dash, but its reaction delay is 0.2 seconds too slow.
That's the opening.
"It's over," Rayne muttered quietly.
Swoshhh!!
Both swords crossed, forming an X with thick red-gold energy.
The slash was so fast it split the air around them.
The monster froze mid-air—then its body slowly split apart, from shoulder to stomach.
Though invisible, Mora energy spread through the creature's body, devouring mana, burning its tissue, and severing regeneration.
The creature's body scattered onto the ground.
{DING! You have slain a special-type level 6 monster. Gained 80 hunter points and passive skill: Resistance to Medium Poison.}
Poison and illusion share the same tiers: low, medium, high, deadly, infernal.
Without saying anything, Rayne knelt and picked up the monster's flesh.
One sword stuck into the ground, while the other sliced through the meat, separating fur and bone.
The monster was about the size of a normal adult cat, but its body shape was strange, and its flesh and blood were pitch-black.
Rayne rummaged through the monster's body without even a hint of disgust.
As for the monster core, he had already stored it in the system's storage; the glow from it was brighter than any core he'd seen before.
After ensuring there was nothing else to take, he stored half a handful of the meat into the system storage.
After that, he ate a bit of it without hesitation.
Just from the smell alone, it was clear the meat was awful—and probably poisonous.
But Rayne was too hungry to care. He was no longer moving by reason, but by his survival instinct.
After all, he was human, and humans become a little insane on the edge of death.
Even now, his body rejected any pain thanks to Death Step still being active.
Rayne's body knew itself better than anyone—its survival instinct was still active, because once Death Step ended, he might collapse and never wake again.
He devoured the meat. The mix of blood and flesh slightly held back his hunger and thirst.
{DING! Passive skill Resistance to Medium Poison neutralizes the poison in your body.}
As Rayne tried to stand up and had only half-risen, the system gave another notification.
{DING! Death Step will soon end, Master. You must return to a safe place immediately, as you may lose consciousness upon receiving the backlash.}
Without asking more, Rayne immediately ran while staying alert, heading toward the room within the gap that he hoped was still safe.
It didn't take long—he was almost there. But his steps halted when he saw the ground ahead moving... black, rippling like living liquid.
Tiny monsters, each the size of a tennis ball, in uncountable numbers, crawling and swarming the gap.
Entering it—and becoming its new owners.
Rayne quickly dove into the bushes beside him, lying prone, his eyes wide open.
If he had rested there any longer, perhaps even his bones wouldn't remain.
{DING! Death Step duration has ended. Prepare yourself, Master.}
Zrrtttt...
Like being electrocuted, unbearable pain shot through every nerve.
Blood poured from his eyes, his heart beating painfully slow as if exhausted, his body stiff like it was struck by lightning.
Even so, Rayne still struggled to stay conscious. He couldn't pass out near monsters.
No groan escaped him. He bit his tongue, blood flowing from both corners of his lips down to his chin, dripping endlessly.
As his vision grew blurrier, a terrifying roar suddenly echoed from afar.
Groooaaarrr!...
{DING! Warning!...}