pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m Erik looked at the desolation inside his living room. He stared blankly at the wall for a moment, his heart pounding because of anxiety as if it would explode from within him like some kind of internal bomb.
He reflected on the events that had just transpired, including his brief confrontation with the unknown thaid, the extraction power he had obtained from the system, the opportunity to obtain yet another brain crystal power, and the requirement that he consume the blood and the brain crystal that had been taken from the mysterious creature.
Erik's head was spinning so much now; there were too many things happening in one day. It seemed impossible for anyone else but himself to have this amount of crazy happenings occurs all on the same night.
"I'm going nuts," he whispered softly into thin air while looking around again at nothingness in his almost empty house. "It can't be possible."
His mind kept thinking over and over about how strange everything has become lately—the sudden appearance of the system, the disappearance of his father, the thaid.
"My dad is the only one who could explain this system. But why didn't he come back?"
"Dad..." A tear rolled down Erik's cheek as he realized how lonely he was. After five minutes spent that way, Erik decided it was time to use his DNA point to get the unknown thaid DNA so that, in a couple of days, he could get his brain crystal power.
"System," Erik said. "Use fifty DNA points to extract the DNA from the unknown thaid I killed," he added.
[SYSTEM READY. DNA POINTS USED. COMMENCING EXTRACTION. HOST IS ADVISED TO LAY ON A BED.]
Erik didn't let the system repeat itself twice. He immediately jumped on his couch and understood why the system said to do so.
It was because of pain, excruciating pain. The sensation felt like someone was cutting an organ out of him, like he was getting pierced by countless needles and being burned alive simultaneously.
Erik suppressed his screams until they became hoarse whispers as tears streamed down his face. Then, after ten seconds passed, the next thing he knew was that his entire body started shaking violently.
His vision went and came multiple times in the span of ten minutes, and he fell from the couch. Then the pain subsided
"What...just happened? What did I just go through?" Erik asked aloud, still sitting on the floor of his living room.
[ANSWER: HOST JUST WENT THROUGH THE DNA ADJUSTING PROCESS. YOUR DNA IS NOW ABLE TO ACCOMMODATE THE UNKNOWN'S CREATURE BRAIN CRYSTAL POWER.]
[UNKNOWN CREATURE BRAIN CRYSTAL ALREADY ANALYZED.]
[INSUFFICIENT DNA POINTS TO PERFORM THE BRAIN CRYSTAL POWER EXTRACTION.]
Erik knew he couldn't extract this new power due to the lack of DNA points.
"Status," the young man said, and a blue window appeared before him.
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[Host Information]
NAME: Erik Romano
AGE 16
LEVEL 1
EXPERIENCE 150 /200
DNA POINTS 10
HEALTH 220 /220
MANA 150 /150
[Attributes]
STRENGTH 3
INTELLIGENCE 6
DEXTERITY 4
ENERGY 6
Available Attributes point: 0
[Powers]
[Biological Super Computer Powers]
-Brain Crystal Manipulation
-Brain Crystal Power Extraction
(Allows the absorbtion of the brain crystal , making the host able to acquire the power contained within. Notice: the DNA must be changed in order to allow the body to use the power. See DNA extraction.)
- (LOCKED)
- (LOCKED)
- (LOCKED)
- Brain Crystal Power Strengthening
(Allows the gaining of the energy attribute points)
-DNA Manipulation
-DNA Extraction
(Allows the absorbtion of foreign DNA, making the host able to replicate it inside his own body. Notice: Changing the DNA is a slow process and it is required to use new brain crystal powers.)
- (LOCKED)
- (LOCKED)
- (LOCKED)
-DNA Strengthening
(Allows the gaining of the Strength, Intelligence, and Dexterity attribute points)
- Analysis
(Gives the host information about his surroundings, plants, creatures, and ores)
-Brain Information Injector
(It allows the injection of information directly to the brain-Based on touch)
-Device Manipulation
(Allows the Host to manipulate electronic and mana-driven devices- Based on touch)
[Host's Powers]
-Rapid Growth [Plants] (ESIGMA1E-Ranked)
(Allows the host to make Plants Grow Faster)
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Erik looked at his DNA points; they were only ten, meaning that he had to make four daily quests to unlock the new power.
The young man also looked at the number of experience points he had; they were a hundred and fifty, as he gained a hundred from the emergency quest. Then Erik recalled that he still had to complete today's training quest.
"Quests," the young man said.
-----------------------------
[Quests List]
[Daily]
<Eating Habits: COMPLETE>
-Rewards for completion: Ten Experience, ten DNA points
-Failure Penalty: None
(Eat a healthy meal)
<Physical training: ACCEPTED>
-Rewards for completion: Ten Experience, ten DNA points
-Failure Penalty: None
(Train for at least an hour. The Host may choose whatever exercise to complete the quest.)
-----------------------------
I can still earn ten DNA points by making today's training quest. Erik nodded to himself, and then he dismissed the quest's window.
The young man then started training in earnest. His workout consisted of pushups, squats, sit-ups, reverse lunges, squats and presses, planks, and a variety of other exercises.
He had been doing these exercises for the past several days and was already noticing some improvements in his physique. Obviously, it was still soon to see big changes, but he felt stronger and more vigorous than usual.
Then Erik went to take a shower, and after that, he prepared dinner. He rested for the time he had available and then went to bed since the following day, he still had to go to school.
***
Raveena and Roma were still at the military outpost that was attacked. The Densoph threat had been stopped, but multiple were the damages that the creatures had caused.
Raveena was checking over the bodies of the fallen soldiers while Roma was going writing down the name of the dead.
The situation could have all ended differently if the army had given more people to the outpost. But they didn't because such vast attacks stopped at least twenty years prior, and the threat of the thaids significantly decreased on the Mannard continent.
There had been thaid attacks in the past months, yes, but an attack of such proportion wasn't predictable.
"Are you done counting?" Roma asked Raveena.
"Yes, there are at least thirty deaths," she replied.
"The management will call their families and inform them of the death of their loved ones," Raveena added.
"How long does this process usually take?" Roma asked.
"Usually one week or so," Raveena answered.
Then, the two women and a bunch of other people started searching the outpost for surviving enemies.
They searched room after room until Roma noticed something weird: a slightly opened door. The soldiers probably forgot to close it.
It was weird for trained soldiers to make an amateurish mistake, which made the young woman grow suspicious.
She quickly walked into the room which was filled with crates full of supplies. The woman scrutinized the room and found evidence of a thaid, the beast left excrement here and there, and there were also some blood stains on the floor.
Roma followed the stains; they were leading up. The woman looked at a wall and noticed an air vent without a lid.
This seemed strange enough to the young woman who decided to check inside. At first, she thought someone might be hiding behind the duct, but when she checked further through the opening she saw nothing but blood traces.
"Damn!"
Roma immediately understood. A thaid managed to escape through the air vents. The problem suddenly magnified many times now that the civilians were going to be involved.
<We need to tell the officers,> Roma thought to herself <They must alarm the city>
But before the young woman could leave the room, she heard footsteps coming towards her. The sound grew louder, and voices echoed in the hallway outside. Raveena entered the room and looked at Roma's anxious face.
"What happened?" Raveena inquired.
"There's a thaid loose somewhere," Roma told him.
"Did you find some tracks?"Raveena asked.
"Yes, see for yourself."
Raveena then checked the room and found what her colleagues did find. She then turned to look at her and said, "Don't worry! We'll catch whatever escaped."
Then Roma went to tell the officers about the situation while Raveena went outside the building to check if the creature had actually left the building.
The outpost wasn't particularly big; it only contained three buildings: the main base where most of the soldiers lived, a medical center, and another smaller building that served as a storage area.
The latter housed mostly weapons and ammunition. When Raveena arrived outside, she circled the area until she found an opened air vent. She looked at the ground and saw fresh Densoph's footprints on the ground.
Then the young woman returned to the building and informed Colonel Tiwana, Roma had already told him what happened, but Raveena added her findings.
"I think we should send a patrol team to search for the missing thaid," Roma said.
"Do it right away!" Tiwana ordered. "Roma will be in charge of the squad. I want you to find and kill this thaid."
"Yes, sir. Don't worry, I will find the beast and kill it."
"Good luck then. You can start tomorrow morning. You are all dismissed."
The soldiers and the two sergeants then left the room and went toward their room to rest.