Erison leaped sideways, narrowly dodging a slash of purple energy that tore through the air where he stood just a second ago.
[ WARNING — BUFF DURATION REMAINING: 50 SECONDS ]
His boot struck a rock. Without missing a beat, he launched himself forward again as another purple projectile grazed his head.
His eyes flicked to the floating blue screen in the corner of his vision.
"Eh?"
[…?]
He blinked, making sure he wasn't hallucinating.
"FIFTY SECONDS!?" he screamed hysterically. "WASN'T IT TEN MINUTES!?"
[Correction: The buff duration has always been 2 minutes.]
[Player was too panicked to notice the timer.]
Erison froze. Not from fear, but from pure, raw fury.
"TWO MINUTES!?" he yelled, nearly ripping his hair out. "THE DEBUFF LASTS 48 HOURS, BUT THE BUFF ONLY WORKS FOR 2 MINUTES!?"
[The system operates on a balanced risk–reward principle.]
"BALANCED MY ASS!" Erison stomped the ground, sending dirt exploding upward. "THIS IS A SCAM! A RIP-OFF! FRAUD!"
[Complaint registered. No changes will be made.]
"YOU DAMN SCAM SYSTEM!!"
WHUUSSH! WHUUSSH! WHUUSSH!
Three attacks shot toward him from different directions.
Erison rolled forward. It was messy, clumsy, and absolutely inelegant, but somehow, every strike missed.
"Hah… hah… hah…"
His breath grew heavy despite the active buff. Not from stamina loss, but from overwhelming mental stress.
His eyes darted wildly, searching for an escape route.
Behind him, ten soldiers chased with swords raised, faces red with anger. Some covered their noses, repulsed by Erison's disgusting stench.
In front of him lay a wide-open battlefield of scorched earth and fallen trees.
And in the center stood two figures.
A woman with black-pink hair knelt weakly on the ground. Approaching her was a horned man with black wings, a swirling dark aura pouring from his body. He walked leisurely, a victorious grin plastered on his face.
Ten more soldiers, wearing the same uniforms as those chasing Erison, formed a perimeter around the area.
Twenty soldiers total… plus one monster…
Erison swallowed hard.
[Buff duration: 31 seconds remaining.]
"SHIT SHIT SHIT!"
He had no choice.
He couldn't run left; the forest was too dense. He couldn't run right; a cliff blocked the way.
'Should I just dash through the forest!?'
[SYSTEM ALERT: DETECTED A CLIFF AT THE END OF THAT PATH]
'I'm gonna faint. Holy crap.'
There was only one path. Straight ahead. Right through the battlefield.
"UWAHHHH! WHY IS MY LIFE ALWAYS LIKE THIS!?"
But on the edge of insanity, his mind suddenly turned crystal clear.
'Wait....'
'Wait a damn second.'
His eyes flicked between the ten soldiers behind him and the terrifying horned man in front.
'If I have to pick an enemy… I'd rather fight ten normal guys than one monster who can summon giant skeletons from his sword!!'
"OKAY! NEW PLAN!"
Erison spun around, charging straight toward the perimeter of ten soldiers on the right.
"MOVE! GET OUT OF MY WAY!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.
The guards froze in shock.
"H-HUH!? HE'S RUNNING THIS WAY!?"
"STOP HIM!"
Swords lifted, purple aura swirling along their blades.
WHUUSSH! WHUUSSH!
Two slashes of energy flew at Erison. He leaped, body spinning midair. Both attacks missed by inches, slicing the ground instead.
He landed running, not stopping for even a heartbeat.
"DON'T BLOCK ME! I JUST WANNA PASS!"
Three soldiers stepped forward, forming a triangle formation to intercept him.
Erison bit his lip.
'I can't fight them… but…'
[Buff duration: 30 seconds remaining.]
'I STILL HAVE TIME TO ESCAPE!'
A soldier swung at his right. Erison ducked. The blade missed his head by a hair.
The second soldier thrust from the left. Erison twisted his body, and the sword only tore the edge of his cloak.
The third soldier jumped from above, sword coming down. Erison rolled forward.
CRASSHH!!
The sword stabbed the ground right where he had been.
"DAMN IT! HE'S TOO FAST!"
"CIRCLE HIM! DON'T LET HIM THROUGH!"
Seven other soldiers moved to surround him. But suddenly, one soldier staggered back, covering his nose.
"Ghh— I can't…!!"
Another gagged violently and fell to his knees, vomiting on the ground.
"THE SMELL!! DAMN IT, I CAN'T TAKE THIS!!"
'Oh right… I forgot about that.'
Erison glanced at his body. An aura of foul rot and corpse-stench still surrounded him like a toxic cloud.
'At least… it helped a little.'
But only for a moment.
WHUUMMM!!!
A massive pressure crashed down onto the battlefield. It was so heavy and dense that the ground cracked under Erison's feet.
Everyone froze. The soldiers stopped moving. Lyra, still standing in the distance, widened her eyes.
Erison felt his whole body lock up. It felt like something was crushing his chest from every direction.
He turned slowly to find Varek standing right in front of him.
'When…!?'
"Heh." Varek grinned wide, his fangs gleaming beneath the crackling lightning overhead. "You're surprisingly entertaining, kid."
The black aura around him spun faster, expanding like a growing black hole.
"But the game is over."
WHUUMMM!!!
His fist rose, coated in pitch-black energy swirling like hellfire.
Erison couldn't move. His feet were rooted to the ground. His body wouldn't respond.
[Warning — Buff Duration: 6 seconds remaining.]
"Ah…"
BOOOOMMM!!!
Varek's punch slammed into Erison's chest.
CRAAACKKK!!!
The sound of shattering bones echoed.
Erison felt his chest cavity collapse. Ribs pulverized. Lungs tore open. His already weak heart simply stopped.
Blood burst from his mouth, hot and bright red. His eyes widened, shocked, disbelieving, drowned in unbearable pain.
His body was flung backward like a ragdoll, slamming into a large tree with a thunderous THUD before falling limply to the ground.
He didn't move.
Blood poured from the hole in his chest, white bone visible beneath shredded flesh.
His breathing stopped.
***
Lyra stood frozen. Her eyes stared at the scene in pure horror.
'I… I couldn't do anything…'
Her hands trembled violently. Veins swelled, blood leaking from her pores.
'I just watched someone die… right in front of me… And I couldn't save him.'
Tears fell. Not because she knew the boy, but from frustration, guilt, and weakness.
'I got too emotional. I focused too much on beating him and forgot my stamina. I'm… an idiot.'
Her legs shook, threatening to collapse, but she forced herself to stand.
'Father… I… failed…'
In the distance, Varek laughed. Loud and wild, like a demon's howl.
"HAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHA!!!"
He spread his arms wide, black aura pouring from him like floodwaters.
"THIS IS MY LUCKIEST DAY!" he shouted gleefully. "Not only did I defeat a Voltheim noble, but I also gained two perfect sacrifices!"
His glowing red eyes shifted between Lyra and Erison's corpse.
"His body is destroyed? That's fine," he said with a wide grin. "What matters is the energy of despair."
He walked slowly toward Erison's body, dragging his sword behind him.
"I can feel it… the despair flowing from both of you," he whispered, voice dripping with madness. "That energy is the finest nourishment for Beleth. Perfect for the ritual."
He stopped over Erison's corpse, eyes burning with hunger.
"So… I won't kill you, Lyra Elvianne Voltheim," he said without looking back. "I'll make you a sacrifice. A living offering who will feel every second of agony as your soul is devoured by Beleth."
Lyra bit her lip. Blood dripped down, but she didn't care.
'I… I have to do something…'
But her body wouldn't move. Her legs wouldn't respond. Her hands couldn't grasp her sword.
I'm… completely helpless…
Varek raised his hand, black energy swirling into a ritual circle above his palm.
"Now… let us begin—"
Ding ding ding!
A loud, cheerful jingle suddenly echoed through the air. It was the absurd sound of a pachinko jackpot victory tune.
Everyone froze. Varek looked around in confusion. The soldiers exchanged bewildered looks.
Lyra lifted her head. "What… is that sound?" she whispered.
Varek narrowed his eyes, scanning the surroundings. "Music? From where—?"
But nobody could see the source. Only one person could see the blue screen appearing.
Erison.
Or rather… Erison's corpse.
[GAMBLING SYSTEM — EMERGENCY PROTOCOL ACTIVATED]
[Player condition: Critical]
[Initiating emergency rescue procedure…]
[Searching for nearest mana source…]
[Scanning radius: 100 meters…]
The blue screen blazed bright, filling Erison's darkening vision.
He couldn't move. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He could only stare, barely conscious.
[Scan complete.]
[Target found: Lyra Elvianne Voltheim]
[Elemental Affinity: Lightning (Voltheim Bloodline)]
[Mana Quality: Tier 4 — High Noble]
[Initiating elemental data extraction…]
[Extraction complete.]
[Elemental Data: Lightning (Voltheim-type) acquired.]
[Initiating Gambling Protocol…]
[Jackpot Probability: 0.0001%]
Three slot-machine reels spun rapidly on the screen. They moved so fast he couldn't see the symbols.
The reels spun.
And stopped.
[HEARTS] [HEARTS] [HEARTS]
[JACKPOT]
[Reward: Elemental Awakening — Lightning Element] [Source: Voltheim Bloodline (Modified)] [Additional Reward: Temporary Mana Core Formation] [Bonus Reward: Regeneration] [Penalty: Cursed Social Existence — Duration increased to 96 hours]
A surge of black light exploded from Erison's body. It was so intense everyone shielded their eyes.
"WHAT IS THIS!?" Varek shouted, stumbling backward.
Erison's broken body—unmoving, destroyed, dead—began to rise.
Slowly. Lifted by an invisible force.
His gaping chest wound sealed. His shattered ribs reformed. His torn flesh regenerated.
Lightning burst forth. Not pink like Lyra's, but black and white. It swirled around his body like raging celestial serpents, crackling with violent energy.
ZZZZT—ZZZZTTT!!!
[Element Added: Lightning (Corrupted Variant)] [Player Status: ACTIVE] [Buff Timer Reset: 00:02:00]
Erison opened his eyes.
And his eyes had changed.
The black in his irises flickered with white lightning, tiny bolts dancing within. He descended gently to the ground, electricity swirling around him like divine judgment.
He stood straight. Calm. Like someone waking from a deep sleep.
He looked down at his hand, lightning coursing between his fingers.
"…W-What… just happened?" he whispered. His voice trembled, not from fear, but absolute confusion.
He understood nothing. One second he was dying. The next, he was alive. And now his body crackled with lightning.
[Congratulations. Player has obtained their first element.]
[Side Effect: Penalty duration extended to 96 hours.]
"…Ninety-six hours?" Erison repeated blankly, his brain misfiring.
[Affirmative.]
"…Four days?"
[Correct.]
Silence descended on the battlefield.
Then, Erison screamed.
"FOUR DAYS OF SMELLING LIKE A ROTTING CORPSE!?"
[The system reminds you: Player has just survived death.]
"I DON'T CARE! THIS IS TOO MUCH!"
Before he could continue his rant, a voice cut through the air.
"You're… still alive?"
It came from ahead—cold, dark, dripping with murderous intent.
Erison froze. He turned slowly to see Varek staring at him with burning red eyes, black aura roaring violently around him.
"Interesting," Varek said, grinning wide. "Very… interesting."