“You think you have seen it all? Bah, you couldn’t be more wrong. Void, the System, all of the factions and so much more. I have lived for more cycles than I can count and yet even I know that there is so much more for me to see. After all, with every new Universe crushed, we get a whole new one, just waiting to be explored.”

~Lone Traveler to his audience, 30th Outbreak

Touch of Carnage, doesn’t sound ominous at all. Leo thought staring at the floating orb and the object stared back, as if alive. The violet energy still swirled around the item, but now that Leo stood so close to it, the orb seemed calmer, waiting for him to act.

And so Leo did, his hand moving forward. Hopeful that Identify didn’t forget to add some vital information on how the orb could kill him with a touch. It certainly would be ironic considering the item’s name…

When Leo’s hand was not even an inch away, the orb moved. It spasmed, shrinking as it slowly landed in the outstretched hand. Leo gasped, the power of the orb tingling across his skin.

Almost instinctively, he guided his own Essence into the hand, slowly forcing it into the object. A second, ten passed as Leo just stood there transfixed as his soul energy mixed with the one of the orb. And then it happened.

Do you wish to Install Touch of Carnage into your soul? Install-Type items can be removed any time you want.

The System and growing amounts of Essence waited for Leo’s command. He gulped as the final choice flashed before his eyes. Did he use the item and endure any potential consequences or take it with him, without installing the mysterious object.

Leo’s gaze went to the benefits gained from the orb, a sigh leaving his lips. Too much to gain and nothing really to lose. I can remove it if anything goes wrong. At least as soon as I figure out how…

Leo gave the command and groaned as Essence reversed its flow. The energy stopped flowing out of his body and instead was dragged back inside along with the power of the orb. The violet glow covered all of Leo’s hand as he gritted his teeth, fighting the scream that wanted to leave his throat.

The new power spread all over his body before the majority of the energy settled inside the pond of Essence that made Leo's soul. He gasped as his senses once again sharpened, body burning as small bits of the orb’s energy mended with his every muscle.

It was completely different from when Leo leveled up. With every level he felt his body, senses becoming stronger thanks to some alien force that the System's provided, but now? Now it was all the thanks to the Essence within the small orb, boosting his attributes beyond their current limit.

Though the System wasn’t lying with the warning. Even now as Leo closed his eyes and touched his small pond of Essence, he felt the additional force weighing down on his soul. And even if it didn’t hinder him now, Leo wasn’t sure what would happen if he installed another item.

Eyes opening, Leo grimaced. With his focus fully on the object, he almost forgot the state of the room he was in.

Leo backed off a few steps and left the office. No matter how much Essence he could still drain from the remains of Voidlings inside, Leo had no plans to step that low yet. Outside he had more than enough Essence to drain and it didn’t require him to bath in the blood and gore of monsters.

Besides, Leo didn’t want to stay in the petrol station for longer than he absolutely needed. With that in mind, he moved to the entrance of the shop and took a quick look outside.

As predicted the rest of the station lacked any Voidlings, all of them killed either in the explosion or in the battle after. Leo only managed to spot a few monsters moving down the street, though none of them even tried to approach his location, apparently happy with their position on the road.

Do I go now or check the notifications first? Leo mused.

The area seemed safe for now, but Leo didn’t want to risk being caught off guard. Especially considering the sheer number of notifications that still waited for Leo’s attention. And so no matter how hard his curiosity burned, Leo decided to wait a few more minutes.

He only had to get to the small neighborhood near the industrial area and find an empty house. It had been a few hours now since Leo began his journey and he needed some time to rest and eat. Besides, his back deserved to get a few hours without any additional abuse. No way Leo was going any deeper inside the city without being at one hundred percent health or at least close to.

Nodding, Leo left the shop, true stealth activating as he ducked behind one of the cars near the exit of the station.

Two Voidlings blocked his path to the other side of the road. And while Leo could just move a bit further to the right and probably pass without anyone noticing, what was the sense of leaving two, level one monsters alone.

Dagger in hand, Leo used his patented trick and baited both of the monsters to his position with a small pebble. The two almost mindless beasts rushed towards Leo’s cover, ready to tear apart their offender.

Only Leo moved first. The moment the Voidlings passed him, he jumped at the nearest monster and let his claws slice through the back of its neck. The additional strength pushed Leo’s claws deeper, almost leaving the Cursed Human without its head.

Before the body even fell to the ground Leo already spun in place, ducking under a slow swipe from the second Voidling. The dagger sailed forward, creating a long and deep gash across the monster’s stomach, blood and insides slipping out.

The creature bent, screeching in pain, and Leo followed with an uppercut, claws digging into the monster's neck and chin. It gurgled but didn’t give out any other sound as its movements grew weaker and weaker.

The body stilled and fell to the ground with a thump as Leo turned around and looked at another level one Voidling that probably heard the cry of its kind and followed. The monster didn’t even try to approach Leo, instead, its eyes darted between its fallen kin and the human that killed them.

Then its gaze fell on Leo’s bloodied claws and it hissed, baring its teeth. Leo stiffened, his tainted arm raising, ready for another fight. Only it never came as the Voidling turned around and ran away.

What? Leo gaped, watching the back of the retreating monster. It was still running on the road in the direction from which Leo came.

Did a Voidling really run away from me? It seemed wrong even thinking about it, but as Leo looked down at the massacred bodies and his inhuman arm, it made a little bit sense. No matter how much the monster wanted to eat Leo’s essence, it still witnessed him slaughtering two of its kin in seconds, and the level disparity was also there.

Maybe they have some sort of survival instinct. Though shouldn’t it disappear in the face of a meal? Leo mused as he drained the bodies, his mind flashing to the scenes where Voidlings worked on freeing another one from a car, and the Cursed Human that no matter what, tried to get inside the trunk. Weird... Maybe it is just the level difference or lack of any support. No way to find out for sure.

Sighing, Leo dashed across the street and jumped into the large bushes. The plants grew by the entire length of the road and should give him enough cover to reach the neighborhood. The other side of the bushes offered Leo a clear sight of more farmlands. Though those were empty of both crops and Vodilings.

And so Leo walked, weaving between the branches and partially transformed leaves that wanted to slap him in the face. For the entire length of the walk, Leo's mind tried to find more reasons for why the Voidling escaped, but he always came to the same conclusions as before.

I really need more information.

He stopped at a crossroad where the small square neighborhood began. It consisted of a bunch of small detached houses and one long block of flats that separated this residential area from the industrial one.

Looking to his left, Leo abandoned the cover of the bushes and walked by a wooden fence that separated the farmlands and the houses. Not that the fence offered any sort of security or even privacy with all of the holes and broken boards. Though it gave Leo a chance to peek into the gardens or even the street on the other side.

From experience, Leo didn’t expect to find a lot of Voidlings in this area. One only needed to look at the broken or boarded windows, large parts of the roofs missing or destroyed walls to know that not many people could have lived here.

And that indeed was the truth as most of this neighborhood's population already moved inside the long block of flats that in comparison to those houses looked like a peak of architecture. Truly a sad fate for one of the oldest areas in the city, but a necessary one. If it wasn’t for the Outbreak, in a few years those houses would be replaced by more blocks for people that worked in the nearby factories or warehouses.

Let’s get it over with. Leo grunted as he jumped over the fence and walked to the backdoor of a house that despite all of the boarded windows, seemed to be in a good condition.

He broke the lock with a sharp tug and stepped into the darkness. Taking a whiff of the air, Leo smiled a bit when he didn’t register any stench of blood or death. Neither did he spot any irregularities inside the living room as he swept his glowing arm across it. Well apart from some destroyed furniture that was probably left by the previous owners of the house.

Just to make sure, Leo checked every single room on the ground floor and then the attic where he found the only window lacking any covering, even glass.

Good, another source of light. Leo thought, sitting next to the broken window. He pulled some dry food and water from his backpack and sighed. Now, let’s see what's going on with those notifications.

Due to achieving the first milestone on your journey, your connection with the System improves from “Weak” to “Average”. Evolution and Job menu unlocked.

Huh. It was Leo’s only thought as he read the first notification.

During the introduction with the doppelganger, Leo was informed of the connection between his Interface and the System, but he thought it was a done deal. Guess I was wrong. He shrugged, looking at the second part of the message.

Ever since Leo woke up, he only received small snippets of information about evolution and none about the Job. Apparently now he had an answer why. Though it also put to question what else would be unlocked if Leo strengthened his connection with the System even more.

A thought for another day. Give me the ne- Argh!

Assassin level five skill awarded: Kiss of Death

Kiss of Death (Uncommon):

Bread and butter of every assassin. Stealth may lead you to the target. Sharp eyes might let you spot their weakness. But Kiss of Death will allow you to use this chance and give you the strength required to end your target.

Effects:

Allows you to coat any weapon in your possession with finely refined Essence to strike with deadly strength. Provides a one-time increase to armor penetration and the overall sharpness of your blade. The efficiency of this skill is dependent on your Mind.

The knowledge of the new skill slammed into Leo’s head with the subtlety of a jackhammer. He gritted his teeth as the instructions on how to form the ability step by step were forcefully burned into his mind.

“Fuck!” Leo gasped as the System finished its job, leaving him panting. No matter how nice it was to know how to use a skill from the beginning, Leo didn’t fancy a headache like this the next time he received a skill.

As for the Kiss of Death? Not as useful as Leo hoped when he heard the name, but with some tweaking, he could see the potential. Only for now, he doubted that he had the required control to mess with this skill.

I hope I won’t regret it, but next.

Title Received: Adaptable

Adaptable:

Even in the face of the end of the world, you pushed through, adapting to every single obstacle that came in your way. May your new path lead you to greatness.

Effects:

The System will take your adaptability under consideration in your future choices. Permanent +5% Soul.

The System will take your adaptability under consideration. Okay? Should I be worried? Leo gulped, his eyes glued to this one line. What the hell did it even mean? Leo knew that he adapted quite quickly to the changes that happened in the world, but he had no other option apart from dying somewhere in a ditch.

Whatever. Leo sighed. I don’t know what it means anyway and the additional five percent is nice even if barely noticeable for now. Next?

Nothing appeared and Leo frowned. He thought there were more notifications waiting for him. Guess not. Though maybe it had something to do with the new menus… Let’s see.

Congratulations. The Evolution menu is now available. After reaching the necessary requirements you may force the evolution of your race. Warning: Evolution is non-reversible.

Evolution Stage II:

Minimal Requirements: 50 Ether (32/50), 25 Voidlings Killed (34/25), 12 Hours of Sated Status (14/12)

Evolution Unlocked:?

Recommended Requirements: 75 Ether (32/75), 50 Voidlings Killed (34/50), 24 hours of Sated Status (14/24), 1 Small Crystalized Essence

Evolution Unlocked:?

Optional Requirements: 100 Ether (32/100), 100 Voidlings Killed (34/100), 48 hours of Sated Status (14/48), 2 Hearts of the Tainted

Evolution Unlocked:?

That’s a lot of killing. Leo grimaced. If he wanted to go for anything other than the — going by the requirements — weakest evolution then he only needed to gather a bit more of this mysterious Ether. The recommended evolution seemed possible after some work, but the optional?

Two Hearts of the Tainted? They want me to butcher people that were unlucky just like me? Yeah, no thanks.

Leo dismissed the menu and leaned against the wall, eyes closed. Until now he didn’t even think about evolution, but now the doppelganger's words echoed very clearly in his head.

Consume and evolve. Use this ability or die.