The rest of the night remained uneventful and it wasn’t long before weariness overtook Noah as the gurgle of the stream lulled him to sleep. He woke the next morning, refreshed and with a spring in his step. Like a kid on Christmas morning, he opened his status to look for new gifts.


    Status


    Name: Noah Denter


    Race: Human


    Grade: F


    Caste: Dust


    Gate: 1


    Path: Novice


    Level: 1


    Strength: 12


    Dexterity:14


    Constitution: 14


    Intelligence:11


    Wisdom: 13


    Willpower: 14


    XP:18/10


    Essence: 0


    Stat points available: 0


    With a mental prompt, he leveled, welcoming the system message with open arms.


    [Level 1 > Level 2.]


    Noah had already made the responsible choice so without further delay he allocated his points into strength. The fiery tingling returned, bringing with it a pressure that grew throughout his body. When it passed, the results were evident. His already visible abs were now well into the chiseled category, his arms and legs were simultaneously bulked and toned, and he could definitely see more clearly. It was amazing. He felt like he could grapple an Earth bear and come out on top! He chuckled in appreciation and considered the day ahead. It was time to grind some levels. With the most basic necessities covered, the next task was to get stronger. Level up, get a weapon, and level up again.


    Noah walked over to the stream and washed his face, the current moving too quickly to produce a reflection. As he reached his hands into the water he noticed that the handcuffs were entirely orange with rust. He gave them a tug, and they actually creaked. He tugged at them again, this time harder. The handcuffs fractured and with some encouragement, they fell from his wrists. Reveling in his newfound freedom, he stripped and plunged into the glacial water. Streaks of red streamed off his body as he massaged his wounds. Once the caked grime was removed he climbed out of the water and huddled by the fire. The bruising on his leg was now a pale yellow-green and had reduced to a dull ache. His forearm had mostly healed and now his most bothersome injuries were the chaffing of his wrists.


    He got clothed and retrieved the wolf carcass from the night before. As offputting as it may have been a few days ago, he couldn’t afford to be picky now, so he processed the animal to the best of his ability and set it over the rekindled fire. It was smaller than he had remembered from the night before, looking to be more like a coyote than a wolf, though he was unsure what the System’s transition had done to it. He sat near the fire and grabbed the rabbit skeleton he had left in the fire overnight, the bits of meat and sinew now burnt off, and the bones dry. The bones were weak and dainty, so they wouldn''t be suitable for most tools nor could they hold up as weapons. They would however make good arrowheads, sewing needles, or fishing gear. He wasn’t really a nimble person but perhaps with some extra points in dexterity he could work some crafting magic.


    The canine flesh wasn’t bad, and he was able to eat his fill with some to spare. After another rabbit-skin bag of boiled water, he was set to explore the area. He lay the rest of his twigs on the fire and pushed in the river stones, hoping it would protect the coals from going out. He decided to cover some ground by running along the stream. He called this direction North and started jogging along the well-packed dirt. His primary goals were to find a long branch he could make into a spear and to encounter some kind of prey that would take him to level three. He scanned the trees for low branches and signs of activity. The more he looked the stranger it all seemed. The trees were oddly uniform each towering at least 100 feet into the sky with the lowest branches well past 30 feet up the trunk. Even more peculiar was the complete lack of underbrush. Where were the bushes, saplings, brambles, and flowers? There’s no grass. Something about that realization set him on edge, this all felt so wrong. Every forest he had visited was filled with all kinds of critters, plants, and debris. This was more like the Christmas tree farms he had visited as a kid, with perfectly arranged trees and little else. As much as he wanted answers, and to get out of this eerie forest, he had work to do so he forced a smile and continued on. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    He had made it another few hundred yards when a scream tore through the trees. That was a person. Noah sprinted, shirtless and rock in hand, toward the noise. It had come from the Northwest, across the stream. Without hesitation, he rolled up his pants and crashed through the water before pressing on. As he moved into the woods he could only hope that we moving in the right direction and that this wasn’t some new form of monster.


    “No! Help! Stay away!” A woman cried out much closer than before. Noah altered his course and bolted in her direction. He saw movement up ahead. He rounded a tree and caught sight of the woman and two companions surrounded by five of the wolf-like creatures he had seen the previous night. One of the men was clutching his arm and bleeding through his sweatshirt, the other seemed to be in shock as he stood there with wide eyes. The woman stood in front of them protectively, wielding what appeared to be an orange frying pan. Not willing to stand and watch, Noah launched himself at the nearest wolf smashing his rock into its rear leg. It whined in pain and soon every eye was on him. He knew the fragile wolves were quick as arrows, so he made use of every moment as he followed up his first strike with a second to the side of the wolf’s head.


    Before he could relish in his feat, a sharp pain erupted from his left calf. One of the other beasts was already latched onto his leg. He frantically bashed its head, losing track of the rest of the wolves. The second one fell but not before another one raked its claws along his back. A pained yelp came from across the clearing followed by a heart-wrenching whimper.


    “Julie!” One of the others cried.


    Noah bit his lip and wheeled on the third wolf. He cracked its skull with a single blow and dashed toward the woman–Julie. She was on the ground, one wolf standing near her snarling with blood running down its face. The other was biting her foot as she kicked at it with the other. Noah yelled something unintelligible with all his might.


    “Aaaaah!” He roared as he barreled into the offending wolf. He brought it to the ground and pummeled it with his rock. When it stopped struggling he lept up and hurled the rock at the remaining beast. The rock struck its leg, and it yelped and started to back away. Noah picked the rusted pan up off the forest floor and delivered a quick end to the scraggy mutt. Not wanting to leave things to chance, he ensured that the other wolves were out cold before returning to the woman.


    “Are you okay?” Noah asked as he stretched out his hand to help her up. It was only then that he noticed the blood covering his arms. The look on the woman’s face confirmed that he looked more like a monster than a friend at that moment.


    “Ah. Sorry, I uh didn’t realize,” Noah said as he used his pants to wipe the blood from his hands. It wasn’t working. One of the men ran over then, the one with the injured arm, and helped Julie to her feet. Noah was relieved to see that her foot was still intact, albeit worse for wear.


    “Julie, are you okay?” The man asked her, repeating Noah’s question. She nodded.


    “I’ll be okay, Kyle.” She assured him. He supported her with his good arm and helped her over to one of the trees. Once she was leaning against it they both turned back to Noah, seemingly unsure of what to say.


    “Uh Sir… Thank you.” The man said. Sir? Noah thought confused at his response. He looked at the pair and realized they were younger than he first assumed. Their rough appearance and grim faces hid their youthful attributes. The boy, he realized was probably in his mid to late teens while the woman was at least a few years younger than himself.


    “Thank you so much,” She said, “I’m so sorry for my reaction, I was just startled by all the blood.” He gave a warm smile in return and nodded.


    [45 XP Gained.]


    Noah grinned at the familiar voice of progress only to stumble forward, just barely staying on his feet. The blood, He realized as he started to see stars. In a frantic effort, he mentally commanded the system to level up.


    [Level 2 > Level 3.]


    [Level 3 > Level 4.]


    [Level 4 > Level 5.]


    [Level 6 > Level 7.]


    [Level 8 > Level 9.]


    He barely had time to appreciate the notifications as he fell to the ground. With his last wisp of consciousness, he assigned his 15 points to constitution.