Chapter 17: Initiate

Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Initiate

A game; simply a game to them. Victor wanted to look at the sky and curse those supposed gods, but since he was inside the house, he simply sighed, setting aside the fact that he could feel his anger burning inside his chest.

In fact, he had been more troubled than usual lately. Linlin and Dorian’s messages had certainly shaken him too much. Then there was Ayax’s obvious betrayal, which he couldn’t get out of his mind.

He had barely taken a seat in this place, and he was already drowning in his own bitterness. Aah... just like the old days. Who would’ve thought? It was a familiar feeling, this mixture of anger, sadness, and helplessness.

Yeah... He was already far too used to it, but that wasn’t important right now. The System window had some interesting things for him today, such as his position in the ranking.

"I mean, that’s way too many people. It’s like a hundred times the number of people who lived in my world."

This was the multiverse, so it wasn’t surprising that the number of participants in this ridiculous game was equally ridiculous. In fact, it was almost small when considering the very concept of a multiverse.

"And then there’s my rank. Initiate? Well, the meaning is pretty clear, but let’s see what the System has to say about it."

He stared intently at the window.

"There are ranks in this game. Explain."

[Ranks were created to classify participants according to their threat level. The Initiate rank is the first of all ranks and is obtained by growing stronger and surviving the first scenario. However, there are significant power gaps even within the same ranks. The higher a participant is in the ranking, the greater their threat level.]

’I suppose the farther I get from my Spawn Point, the higher I’ll climb in the ranking. That is, assuming I also get stronger enough to make it that far.’

It was also obvious that he would encounter more and more participants along the way, because 777,777,777 people was a ridiculously massive number.

"So, what comes after the Initiate rank?"

[The ranks, in ascending order, are as follows: Initiate, Survivor, Hunter, Predator, Executioner, Calamity, Dominator, and Cataclysm.]

’Hmm... Sounds complicated. I can’t even imagine how powerful a participant in the Cataclysm rank would be. If I already thought the orc was strong, I have no idea what awaits me later on.’

It was terrifying when he imagined it. Had the impacts in the sky been caused by the power of those powerful beings? Were those participants so powerful that the consequences of their battles could reach all the way to the starting scenarios?

Victor was already wondering how the gods managed to keep such monsters in check. Although perhaps the answer was too obvious. The gods were even bigger monsters. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t be able to use the people of the multiverse as their entertainment.

Leaning back in his chair, Victor let out a long, tired sigh.

"What’s worse is that I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do in this place. What is this supposed to be? A medieval city in the dark? Of course it is!" he muttered to himself, slamming his fist against the table.

Lifting the faded stone in his hand, his gaze became somewhat dull.

"The multiverse, huh..."

The more he thought about it, the less crazy it sounded. Maybe that was because Victor himself had already been a little crazy, even before arriving in this deadly game.

And now what was he supposed to do? Go outside and hope to find something nice? Nonsense! He had miraculously survived his first scenario, and he couldn’t risk dying in the second one, which would probably have even greater dangers.

Then what? He couldn’t stay within these four walls and silently rot away.

’I have to find a way to keep moving forward. If only I knew more about the gacha system, maybe I’d feel safer venturing into the darkness.’

He narrowed his eyes. Something was wrong.

He looked toward one of the wooden windows, which was closed, and heard a whisper speaking to him. The whisper had been so close that for a moment Victor thought someone else was standing beside him, but when he looked behind him out of pure instinct, he found nothing.

’I knew it was too quiet around here.’

He cautiously got up from his seat and approached the window.

The whisper became more noticeable, right behind his ear. Victor looked behind him again, but once more, he found nothing.

He raised his knife and grabbed his walking stick.

’I can’t understand what it’s saying, but it definitely wants to kill me. Everything here wants to kill me!’

He waited patiently, but nothing happened. His sense of smell couldn’t detect anyone with a scent, yet he felt a deep chill run down his back every time the whisper spoke close to him.

’What are you waiting for, bastard? An afternoon coffee at sunset?’

He really shouldn’t wish for things like that, or with his bad luck, they would come true.

Seconds felt like an eternity. Victor didn’t want to admit that he was scared, but the cold sweat running down his forehead gave him away.

A few seconds later, the whisper faded, and he stopped feeling that strange chill. However, he still had the feeling that something was wrong.

He swallowed and looked at the floor.

’Did it leave?’

It seemed so.

Relieved, he slid his back against the wall and sat down on the floor. The System window was there to keep him company, but Victor remembered something.

’Wait. That feeling was...’

The chill, the whisper. Wasn’t it strange that he could hear them when whatever was making that faint noise was supposed to be outside?

The Born Survivor skill had the answer.

[Born Survivor.]

[Rarity: SSR]

[Description: When death lurks, evading it becomes a possibility as your senses become distorted. Sense the danger and move away from it, for survival of the fittest is the law of the multiverse.]