How those ten endless days had dragged on, Wren couldn’t even begin to describe.
?Every single hour in that bleak, suffocating cell felt as long as an entire year. But somehow, against every cruel odd Norhera threw at him, he had endured. He had survived the nightmare.
?[ [Supremacy Through Envy] Backlash lifted. ]
[ All systems and restrictions returning to normal. ]
?Wren’s eyes snap open, and he frantically swipes his hand through the air to pull up his status screen, desperate to verify that the nightmare was truly over.
~~~~~~~~~ STATUS ~~~~~~~~~
Name: Wren Extenguard
Race: Human
Level: 2 (0/250)
Class: Hell-Keeper
Talent: None
Strength: 1.7
Agility: 1.3
Vitality: 1
Intelligence: 0.4
Spirit: 0.3
Will: 2
Free Attribute Points: 3
Skills: [ Hellfire Manipulation D(Lv.1) ], [ Chains of the Damned E(Lv.1) ], [ Supremacy Through Envy S(Lv.10) ]
Titles: None
Gifts: Tattoo of Envy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A wave of pure, unadulterated relief washes over him as he reads the clean logs. A bright, triumphant grin spreads across his face.
?Finally... everything is finally back to normal.
?Without wasting a single second, Wren thrusts his arms against the cold stone floor, trying to shove himself up into a standing position. But the moment he pushes, his limbs buckle completely.
?"Oh, shit..." he gasps, his smile instantly vanishing. "I don’t even have enough basic strength left to lift myself up?!"
?Panic flickers in his chest as the grim reality sets in—even with the system backlash lifted, his base physical stats are simply too pathetic to support his weight after ten days of total atrophy.
?Then, his eyes dart down to the bottom of the glowing interface.
?Free Attribute Points: 3.
?Without a moment of hesitation, Wren dumps all three points straight into his Strength stat.
?The moment the command registers, a sudden, rushing wave of soothing warmth floods through his veins, swirling through his muscles like liquid fire as his body rapidly knits itself back together.
Strength: 1.7 ? 4.7
A surge of raw, surging power explodes through his limbs. Clenching his fists tightly, Wren pushes off the floor once more—and this time, he effortlessly shoots straight to his feet.
Wren staggered for a moment before finally finding his balance.
He looked down at his hands, opening and closing his fists in disbelief.
"...Holy shit."
He hadn’t felt this good in what seemed like an eternity.
Ten days of lying helplessly on a cold stone floor had nearly driven him insane. He’d spent countless hours staring at the ceiling, listening to Envy complain, and wondering whether someone would eventually come to finish him off.
And now, he could finally move again.
He took one cautious step.
Then another.
A grin slowly spread across his face.
"I’m free!"
"Congratulations. You’ve successfully rediscovered the ability to walk."
Envy’s sarcastic voice rang out beside him.
The spectral owl was perched on a nearby stone ledge, lazily preening its feathers.
"Honestly, the way you’re acting, someone would think you’d been trapped in that position for a hundred years."
Wren’s grin immediately disappeared.
"Shut up. You have no idea how miserable those ten days were."
"Oh, I have some idea. I had to listen to you complain every single day."
"Because I WAS PARALYZED!"
"And I was forced to endure your terrible attitude. We all suffered."
Wren stared at the owl.
One day.
One day, he was going to find a way to grab that annoying bird by the neck.
But first, he had more important things to worry about.
He rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms, testing his body’s condition. Although he could move again, his muscles still felt stiff from ten days of inactivity.
Then he remembered something.
"Wait a minute."
Wren opened his status screen again.
His eyes moved straight to his attributes.
Strength: 4.7.
It was still pathetic compared to what he imagined a proper awakened hunter should possess, but it was considerably better than before.
More importantly, he had three free attribute points.
And now they were gone.
Wren frowned.
"Envy, why did my body recover when I put those points into Strength?"
"Because your attributes aren’t just numbers displayed on a pretty screen, genius."
Envy fluttered down from the ledge and landed on his shoulder.
"Your attributes represent the capabilities of your body and mind. Increasing Strength forces your body to adapt to a higher level of physical power. Under normal circumstances, the process would be gradual, but your system appears capable of accelerating that adaptation."
Wren raised an eyebrow.
"So I can use attribute points to strengthen myself instantly?"
"To a certain extent. Don’t get too excited. Increasing your Strength won’t automatically make your bones indestructible, teach you how to fight, or turn you into some unstoppable monster."
Envy paused.
"Although, considering your current condition, learning how to throw a proper punch would probably be a good place to start."
"Can you go five minutes without insulting me?"
"No."
Wren sighed.
He should have expected that answer.
Still, Envy’s explanation gave him something important to consider.
If he could increase his attributes by earning more points, then he wasn’t necessarily doomed to remain weak forever.
He just needed to survive long enough to grow stronger.
Simple.
Except that he’d already nearly died twice.
"...This world really hates me, doesn’t it?"
"Don’t flatter yourself. Norhera doesn’t care enough about you to hate you."
"That’s somehow worse."
Before Envy could reply, Wren’s stomach growled loudly.
Both of them fell silent.
Wren slowly lowered his gaze toward his stomach.
Then he pressed a hand against it.
"...I’m hungry."
Envy tilted its head.
"Remarkable observation. Ten days without proper movement, and you’ve finally discovered that you’re hungry."
"Have you forgotten that I’ve been lying here for ten days?!"
"Of course not. I’ve been counting. Every day, I hoped you’d finally stop whining."
Wren ignored it.
He had more immediate concerns.
During those ten days, he’d received almost no proper food. Whatever scraps the guards had occasionally tossed into his cell had barely been enough to keep him conscious, let alone recover from his injuries.
Now that he could move again, his body was demanding everything he’d been denied.
He needed food.
Water.
And, preferably, a bath.
A very long bath.
Wren glanced toward the iron door at the end of his cell.
"Envy, how much do you know about this place?"
The owl’s expression changed slightly.
"Not as much as I’d like. The guards have been moving around more frequently these past few days, and I’ve noticed several people wearing different insignias. This prison isn’t just a place where they throw criminals."
Wren’s eyes narrowed.
He remembered the officer who had threatened him with a dagger.
You won’t survive the next round.
At the time, Wren had assumed the man was simply trying to intimidate him.
But now that he thought about it, the officer had seemed far too confident.
Almost as though Wren’s next fight had already been decided.
"What exactly is the next round?" Wren asked.
Envy shook its head.
"I don’t know. But I suggest you prepare yourself."
"For what?"
The spectral owl looked directly into his eyes.
"Because while you were busy spending ten days pretending to be a corpse, something interesting happened."
Wren’s expression darkened.
"Envy."
"What?"
"Stop dragging things out and tell me."
For once, Envy didn’t respond with a joke.
Instead, it pointed one wing toward the cell door.
"Someone came looking for you yesterday."
Wren froze.
"Who?"
"A woman. She spoke to the guards, showed them something I couldn’t quite make out, and then left."
Envy’s golden eyes narrowed.
"But before she did, I heard her say your name."
Wren felt a chill crawl down his spine.
Someone here knew who he was?
That shouldn’t have been possible.
He had only just arrived in Norhera, and as far as he knew, nobody in this world had any reason to seek him out.
Unless...
Wren’s gaze drifted toward the black tattoo on his body.
Was this connected to my strange vessel?
Before he could think further, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from beyond the iron door.
Clang!
A key turned in the lock.
Wren instinctively stepped back as the door swung open.
Two armed guards stood outside.
And between them was a familiar, broad-shouldered figure with grey hair and a body covered in scars.
Hudson.
The massive man looked Wren up and down before letting out a deep laugh.
"Well, would you look at that. The little brat finally decided to get out of bed."
Wren stared at him.
Then he looked at the two guards.
Then back at Hudson.
"...What do you want?"
Hudson’s laughter faded into a grin.
"Relax, kid. I’m not here to punch you."
He stepped aside, revealing a narrow corridor beyond the cell.
"I’m here to take you to the person who wants to see you."
Wren’s heart sank.
Oh, come on.
I’ve been free for less than five minutes.