Chapter 18: Checking into a Resort and Level-up

After a good four hours of driving, Odin expertly steered Aunt Lucy's van into the parking lot at Gin's Hot Springs Resort, located all the way in Paradise, Montana. He couldn't help but let out a breath of relief since the people close to him had finally escaped the chaos caused by the rat attack back in Bozeman.

"We're here," he immediately said to Aunt Lucy.

"This is the place you selected for us, Odin!" Aunt Lucy said, glancing out of the van's window. "It's almost in the middle of nowhere and quite far from the city centers. I'll have to drive a good 200 miles to the auto repair shop if there's emergency work."

"Relax, Aunt Lucy," Odin said with a grin. "Take the next four days as if you're on vacation. Let's spend the time together as a family. As a matter of fact, you haven't looked at the place yet. There are very comfy and affordable cabins overlooking the mountains plus several pools filled with water from the hot springs. You'll surely love them if you take a look."

"Really, Odin?" Aunt Lucy smiled helplessly. "You sound like one of those sales agents from third-rate hotels."

"Aunt Lucy, you don't have to worry," Odin replied confidently. "This place is the perfect home away from home. I'm sure you'll love it here. Just trust me on this."

"Anyways, since you've already booked the place, there's nothing else we can do," Aunt Lucy said before turning towards the sisters in the back seat. "Girls! Get your things, and let's check out the resort Odin has gotten for us."

With that said, Odin eagerly helped them unload their bags from the van before checking into the resort. And as he'd expected, the ladies could not stay disappointed for long and immediately fell in love with the resort.

The pools of clear spring water and the natural aesthetics of Paradise, Montana, instantly dazzled them until they were only singing heartfelt praises for the place. Without needing Odin to do any more marketing, they quickly chose a small but comfortable mountainside cabin at the far end of the resort.

The cabin was cottage-style, with only two bedrooms, a storage chamber, and a living room area that also served as the kitchen. Nonetheless, Odin loved it as it had a naturally clean water supply from the hot springs nearby and a group of armed guards constantly patrolling the area around the clock. It was also a considerable distance away from the crowded urban zones that would soon be teeming with zombified humans in three days. It was the perfect hideaway that could ensure their safety and survival during the initial stages of the apocalypse.

The only cause for worry for Odin was the few miles of wild bushes and forested mountains surrounding the resort. Such jungles would be the perfect habitat for mutated creatures which might attack their dwelling at any time.

Odin, however, figured that he could solve those potential dangers if he thoroughly scanned the entire neighborhood that very day. With his spatial sense, he didn't believe that any creature could hide from him as long as he was careful while scouting around the area.

"Aunt Lucy," Odin said after making the resolution. "I'm heading out for a few hours. Please, stay inside and don't move about."

Aunt Lucy narrowed her eyes. "We just got here. Where are you going?"

"I need to scout around the place," Odin responded, pulling her towards the bedroom door and away from the sisters. "I want to check the entire neighboring jungles to ensure that no mutated creatures are hiding around the resort. I have to guarantee that an incident similar to the mutated rats' attack doesn't threaten our lives again. If I don't do that, I won't be able to sleep comfortably tonight."

"You want to go on patrol alone?" Aunt Lucy's face paled slightly. "What if you actually find a strong mutated creature? Then what?"

"I'll fight it," Odin said confidently. "Have you forgotten how I fought off those mutated rats?"

"Odin! You were armed with an FBI semi-automatic pistol at the time. What weapons will you use to fight the mutated creatures? I am starting to regret why I allowed you to book this place for us. We would have been safer if we had checked into a good hotel in the center of Bozeman."

"Trust me, Aunt Lucy," Odin said with a helpless sigh. "The city centers will be a hell-lot more dangerous than these jungles in a few days. Have you forgotten that they have armed guards here?"

"Then, let the guards do the patrolling," she said. "Why go out and put yourself in danger when there are professionals that can accomplish the task?"

"Aunt Lucy!" Odin's tone was disapproving. "Have you already forgotten the mutated rat attack? We can't trust anyone else to ensure our safety during these times. I'm just moving around to guarantee that the area around us has no latent dangers."

"Okay, okay," Aunt Lucy said, sighing. "I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, especially since you managed to predict the rat attack before it happened. At least that shows that you aren't full of nonsense. But I'm still not about to allow you to go into the jungles unarmed. Come with me." She led him by hand into her room.

"Aunt Lucy..." Odin was about to start complaining. But he stopped midsentence when he noticed his adoptive mother fish out a gun from her suitcase. "Aunt Lucy, you have a gun!?" He gasped in shock.

"Shhhh!" Aunt Lucy shushed him, placing a finger on her lips. "Lower your voice. I don't want the girls to find out about the gun. Here take it, and keep it hidden away." She shoved it into his hands without waiting for a response.

Odin's heart skipped a beat when he held it in his hand. He immediately recognized it as one of the eye-catching newer semi-automatic Kel-Tech Magnums with a high magazine capacity, molded plastic externals, a FastFire red-dot reflex sight, and a grip on the steeper side.

Almost by reflex, he released the magazine and checked the chamber before testing it out without removing the safety. The knurled grip surprisingly felt at home in his palm as the trigger bit into the pad of his first finger. But what amazed Odin even more than the gun's compatibility with him were the blood-red lines of text that appeared before his vision when he tried it out.

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[Low-level technological killing weapon detected]

[General Specifications: Copper Grade semi-automatic pistol, Can easily injure Type-1 and below mutated creatures, especially when fired from close range]

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"Seems like the Origin Order can also identify and classify killing weapons to some extent," he thought while perusing through the contents of the notification. "But why didn't the notifications appear when I held the service weapons of the FBI agents this morning? I need to test this function on other weapons to understand it better."

"So, what do you think?" Aunt Lucy's voice suddenly sounded and broke his thought process.

"It's a good gun," he remarked, glancing questioningly at Aunt Lucy. "But why do you have it?"

For as long as Odin could remember, Aunt Lucy had always been a person that advocated for tight gun control laws. She'd even reprimanded him for secretly going to a shooting range a year back. So, he was pretty surprised when he learned that she owned a gun.

"Don't look at me like that," Aunt Lucy said, seemingly reading his thoughts. "I still dislike guns. However, that magnum used to belong to my late husband. I've kept it with me for the past twelve years as a memento of sorts. Judging by how you handled those mutant rats, I guess you know how to use it. Or do you need me to teach you?"

"Of course, I know how to use the gun," Odin replied confidently after shoving it in his pocket. He'd spent his first year of university frequenting shooting ranges around Montana to let off some steam. He was sure that he would handle the gun with ease. "With this gun, I'll be much safer while on patrol. You don't have to worry about me."

"Here is another mag with extra bullets," Aunt Lucy said, handing it to him. "But you still need to be careful, no matter how powerful you're. Remember: your safety should be the top priority in everything you do. Okay?"

"Okay," he replied, nodding and shoving the extra magazine into his other pocket. "I understand, Aunt Lucy. But you must also remain inside the cabin until I return. Don't move about since we don't know whether there are any mutated creatures around here."

"Don't worry," Aunt Lucy said. "We'll stay inside until you return. Go; do what you have to do. But try to hurry."

Odin beamed. "I'll be back shortly. But remember to lock the doors and remain inside until I return."

"Okay."

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After saying his goodbyes to Aunt Lucy and his sisters, Odin walked out of the cabin. He hurriedly put on his shades since the afternoon sun rays were too intense for his eyes.

He took a deep breath and released his spirit energy waves, letting them flood into the area around him to form his spatial sensing domain. After ensuring that his gun was loaded, he chose a random direction and commenced his thorough scan of the area.

He began by going in small circles around the cabin. Immediately, several plants and animals appeared as blurry silhouettes within his spatial sensing domain. But since they were pretty harmless creatures, he disregarded them and continued scrutinizing each nook and cranny for any potential mutated creatures.

Gradually, he expanded his scanning radius, and the wild bushes and trees became denser. Beads of sweat soon formed on his forehead before sliding down to drench his t-shirt as the minutes turned into hours. But he persisted and continued moving through the bushes as he tried to ensure that the area where his family had settled was secure.

Finally, when his scanning radius had extended to about three miles, his keen senses picked up an abnormally alarming energy signature within his domain. Before he could take any action, blood-red lines of text manifested before his vision as if they wished to confirm his discovery.

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[Pseudo-Type-I Prairie Rattlesnake discovered]

[Conditions for E-Grade Mission have been met]

[Reaper's Origin Order Initiating an E-level Killing Assignment]

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[Pending Missions: E-Grade Mission -> Annihilate the mutated Prairie Rattlesnake. Rewards: +5 Origin points and a chance to absorb new core meta-genes (Accept/ Reject)]

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Of course, Odin hurriedly accepted the mission. Putting aside the rewards, he couldn't avoid fighting the mutated snake since he wished to eliminate all latent dangers near his family before the actual descent of the apocalypse. He decided to take action immediately without fear or favor.

First, he cocked his gun and turned off the safety while still monitoring the mutated snake's actions with his spatial domain. After readying himself, his enhanced hand speed bloomed forth as he unleashed three bullets in quick succession toward the snake's position. His aim was surprisingly on point as he realized that he could rely on his abnormally strong spirit to control his flexible hand muscles and fingers when he pulled the trigger.

"HISS..."

The snake let loose a painful hiss as it rose from the bushes right after the gunshots echoed through the area. It was surprisingly huge for a rattlesnake, probably seven feet long, with an enormous flat triangular head, blood-red eyes, and an abnormally long forked tongue that constantly flickered in and out of its fanged-maw like a black shadow. As for its body, it was the thickness of a small bucket and a light-brown shade, with oval patches that glistened in the rays of the afternoon sun.

For a moment, it remained motionless as it glared menacingly at Odin with its blood-red eyes. Then, just suddenly, its tail rattled slightly, and it moved before he could react. Like a brown flash, it covered a distance of five yards in almost an instant and was upon him as its sinister fangs gleamed closer and closer like sharp daggers within his vision.

"Fuck! How is this huge thing so fast?"

Odin let loose a few expletives as he ducked and side-stepped away from the vicious bite of the snake. Adrenaline flooded his entire body as his enhanced dexterity exploded. With a couple of quick steps, he was already five yards away.

"HISS..."

The snake hissed again as it halted mid-lunge. It then twisted its head around and focused its menacing blood-red eyes on Odin's position. It was obviously bracing itself to attack once again.

However, Odin didn't allow it to continue dictating the tempo of the battle. With a single measured step, he jumped to the side and avoided another swift attack from the snake. Before it could make another move, Odin quickly lifted his gun and fired five shots toward its enormous triangular head. He'd even relied on the FastFire red-dot reflex sight to ensure his shooting accuracy.

The snake tried to dive back into the bushes after seemingly anticipating the danger to its life. But it couldn't escape unscathed as two of the bullets had already punctured through the supple flesh on its flat triangular head. They'd even knocked it about a foot back due to their sheer momentum.

Odin, of course, couldn't miss the chance to finish off the enemy. He pressed the trigger two more times within an instant and punctured more bloody holes into the snake's head. He then stood to the side and watched it spasm and thrash about for a few minutes before totally turning still. It had finally perished.

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[Killed One Pseudo-Type-I Creature]

[Origin Points +5, Current Origin Points: 20/20]

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[Special Core Genes...]

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The lines of glowing red text flashing before his vision suddenly disappeared for a moment before flickering back to life. However, they were now full of forewarning notifications.

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[WARNING! WARNING!]

[Core Meta Genes within slain creature discovered to be of a totally different attribute from that of the Host]

[Absorbing the Meta Genes might bring about uncontrolled and unexpected significant mutations within the Host's body]

[Whether to absorb?? (Accept/ Reject)]

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"Reject."

Odin gave the mental command without any hesitation. The overpowered spatial attribute core meta-genes he'd acquired from the mutated rats were sufficient for him at the moment. So, he didn't wish to risk polluting his body with unknown meta-genes from another creature, especially before he could master his new abilities.

"Origin Order," he said while glancing at the corpse of the mutated snake. "In the future, please, don't notify me to absorb meta-genes that have a significant possibility of harming my body."

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[Host's command has been received and accepted by the Origin Order]

[There will be no future notifications to absorb harmful genes for the Host in the future]

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"DING"

Suddenly, a low chime rang in his mind as more of the Origin Order's notifications flickered before his vision.

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[Current Origin Points: 20/20]

[Origin points enough to level up. Please confirm whether you would like to level up (Accept/ Reject)]

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Odin had received five more origin points after killing the pseudo-type-I mutated snake. He had finally met the level-up requirements to advance to the next evolutionary level.

"Accept level-up."

He gave the command without a moment of deliberation. Immediately, he felt a warm current flow through his body before running along his spine and ending up in his brain. But before he could savor and immerse himself into the soothing sensation, it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.

"DING"

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[You have leveled up. Your current evolutionary level is Level 2]

[Level-up Reward: +1 unassigned attribute point]

[Current Origin Points: 0/40]

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Odin smiled to himself with glee before choosing to close the interface.

He'd already decided against utilizing the unassigned attribute point right there and then. He didn't wish to lose his nearly perfect body coordination after experiencing a sharp surge in strength. He would wait until he was back within the safety of the cabins before choosing to use the point.

"Let's continue."

He immediately walked away from the snake's corpse before continuing his scouting mission. Over time, he began hearing more insects buzzing and birds chirping as he expanded his scanning radius to over six miles. He even chanced upon small rodents and frogs when he scanned the thicker patches of bushes around the place. But fortunately, he didn't encounter any other mutated creatures until he ended his scouting mission three hours later.

When he returned to the cabins that evening, he was totally spent. His shirt was dripping with sweat, while his denim pants were covered in various patches of mud stains.

However, he didn't mind one bit. He'd just completed a thorough scan of the entire area and leveled up after killing a mutated creature. He could finally put his heart at ease and sleep comfortably and without any pressing worries that night. As for the preparations for the actual descent of the apocalypse, he would think about them the following morning.