The doctor didn’t say anything at first.
He just watched her.
“Your ability,” he said after a moment. “What did you receive?”
Erica hesitated, then answered honestly. “Double jump.”
A look of disappointment crossed his face immediately.
Then interest followed.
“…You can jump twice very quickly?” he asked, adjusting his posture slightly.
Erica shook her head. “No. I can jump in midair.”
The doctor glanced up at the ceiling.
It was high. Maybe ten feet.
He gestured upward. “Show me.”
Erica followed his gaze, doing the math without meaning to. A normal jump would not even get her close. Even a good one might only get her halfway.
But if she doubled it…
She shifted her stance, then bent her knees and jumped.
The first jump felt normal.
The second did not.
There was no platform.
No visual cue.
Just knowledge.
Her body reacted before she understood it. Her feet pressed down against something that was not there but absolutely existed. A solid resistance met her, and she pushed off it instinctively, launching herself higher.
Her head came dangerously close to the ceiling.
She twisted midair, pulling her chin down and bracing as she redirected her fall instead of smashing into it.
Then she dropped.
For a split second, she tried to jump again.
Nothing.
Cooldown.
She hit the ground harder than she expected. The impact traveled straight through her ankles in a sharp, focused jolt that made her wince.
“…That’s new,” she muttered, shifting her weight.
Fall damage.
Targeted.
Is this what falling actually feels like?
The doctor folded his arms.
“Well,” he said, “it is not a particularly impressive ability.”
Teresa gave a small snort beside him.
“Sorry, hun,” he added. “You really must be quite unlucky.”
Erica looked between them.
They were not mocking her.
Not really.
But the expression felt familiar. The same one people gave a kid who showed them something they were proud of.
Before she could respond, a screen flashed into her vision.
───
TUTORIAL BEGINS: RESEARCH FACILITY DEFENSE
───
Erica blinked.
“…Wait,” she said slowly. “That wasn’t the tutorial?”
A massive crash echoed from above.
The ceiling rattled. Dust fell.
Teresa’s expression changed instantly.
She closed her eyes for half a second, her posture tightening as something clicked into place.
“Doc,” she said sharply. “We have movement. A lot of it.”
She opened her eyes and looked at Erica.
“…You really are a bad luck charm,” she added under her breath. “That’s probably why they threw you out.”
Erica pressed her lips together.
She already hated this backstory.
And now it was affecting her stats.
Great.
Still, she leaned into it.
“Sorry,” Erica said quietly. “I didn’t mean to become a burden for you too.”
Teresa froze.
Then her expression softened.
“Hey. No,” she said. “I didn’t say that.”
She tapped Erica lightly on the shoulder.
“Stick by me,” she added. “You’ll live another day.”
───
NEW LEGENDARY COMPANION ACQUIRED
Teresa Van Helsing
───
Erica blinked.
Legendary?
“…Okay,” she said. “Deal.”
A heavy slam echoed through the room.
Then another.
The door bent inward.
Teresa stepped forward, blade already in her hand.
Another slam.
A new screen appeared.
───
WARNING: TUTORIAL ESCALATION
ELITE MUTATED BRUTE VAMPIRE PLATOON DETECTED
+ ELITE VAMPIRE LIEUTENANT
───
“…Ah,” Erica muttered. “There’s the luck.”
The door exploded inward.
Creatures flooded the room.
Dozens of them. Twisted bodies forcing their way through the opening, their health bars stacking into a chaotic wall of red.
Teresa moved first.
She did not charge.
She appeared.
One step and she was already inside their formation, her blade cutting clean arcs through bodies before they could fully enter. Limbs dropped. Heads separated. Blood sprayed across the walls.
But they kept coming.
Too many.
“Back!” Teresa snapped. “Stay behind me!”
Erica didn’t argue.
She grabbed Dr. Gan’s sleeve and pulled him with her as they retreated deeper into the lab.
The hallway ahead wasn’t clear.
More movement.
More shapes pushing through broken doors and shattered glass.
“…They’re inside already,” Erica muttered.
“Of course they are,” the doctor said calmly, still clutching his bags. “We are compromised on all fronts.”
Great.
A brute lunged—
Too fast.
Its claws slammed into her side.
A flash hit her vision.
───
HP: 36 → 14
───
Pain followed instantly.
Sharp. Focused. Real.
Her ribs screamed as the impact knocked the breath from her lungs.
“Okay—yeah—this is real,” she gasped, stumbling forward.
She forced herself to move.
───
STAMINA: 12 → 5
───
Her legs slowed.
Just for a second.
That second almost killed her.
A second brute crashed through a broken doorway ahead of them, blocking the path completely.
Erica pivoted hard, dragging Dr. Gan with her.
“Other way!”
They ran back toward the main lab.
Behind them, something tore through the hallway wall.
Wood splintered.
Metal screamed.
Another brute forced its way through from the side, its body barely fitting through the opening as it pushed into their path.
“…Why are there so many!” Erica shouted.
“Because you are unlucky,” Dr. Gan replied flatly.
Now was not the time.
She adjusted.
Short bursts.
Move. Pause. Move again.
───
STAMINA REGEN: 5 → 9 → 12
───
Okay.
That was the system.
A brute got too close.
She swung.
The bat cracked against its shoulder.
───
Enemy HP: 100% → 98%
───
“…Yeah,” she muttered. “That’s not my job.”
A second brute slammed into her.
She hit the ground hard.
───
HP: 14 → 7
───
Pain shot up her spine.
Her vision blurred slightly.
Not fading.
Warning.
Two more hits and she was done.
She rolled immediately, scrambling back to her feet as claws slammed into the floor where she had just been.
“MOVE!” Teresa’s voice cut through everything.
She reappeared between them and the hallway, blade flashing.
Three brutes dropped instantly.
Five more followed.
But this time—
Teresa didn’t reset immediately.
Her shoulders lifted slightly.
Her breath was heavier.
She stepped back once instead of forward.
Erica noticed.
She’s getting tired.
“Stay close!” Teresa snapped again, intercepting another brute mid-lunge and cutting it clean in half.
They moved.
Not escaping.
Just surviving.
Weaving through the lab as more vampires poured in through broken doors, shattered walls, and collapsed ceiling sections. Every path they took filled seconds later.
Every time Erica thought they found space—
It closed.
Then—
Everything stopped.
Not silence.
Something worse.
Presence.
A figure stepped through the doorway.
Tall.
Too tall.
He had to lower himself to enter. Even then, his head nearly touched the ceiling.
Unlike the others—
He was perfect.
Clean. Refined. Whole.
“…Ah,” he said softly. “Dr. Gan.”
His gaze settled on the doctor.
“This is where you were hiding.”
Teresa moved instantly.
A strike aimed for his neck.
He dodged effortlessly.
A flick of his hand—
A desk tore free and slammed into Teresa, sending her crashing into the wall.
This time—
She didn’t get up immediately.
“…Tch,” she muttered under her breath.
“Mmm,” the vampire said. “I’ll deal with you in a moment, Helsing.”
He began drifting forward.
Not walking.
Floating.
Erica and the doctor backed up.
Behind them, the tunnel shook violently.
Something was trying to break through.
No escape.
No space.
Erica tightened her grip on the bat.
“…Screw it.”
She ran forward.
The vampire turned slightly, amused.
A flick of his wrist—
A blade of blood cut toward her.
Too fast.
She jumped—
Then again.
The second jump triggered midair, launching her sideways as the attack barely missed.
A grazing hit clipped her arm.
───
HP: 7 → 4
───
Pain flared along her forearm.
She didn’t stop.
Didn’t even look.
Just kept moving.
She swung.
The bat connected with his face.
A sharp crack echoed.
───
Enemy HP: 100% → 99%
───
“…Okay,” Erica breathed. “That counts.”
He straightened slowly.
“…Ow.”
He raised his hand—
Then froze.
A flash of steel.
A wet crunch.
His body locked.
Teresa stood behind him.
Blade held in the air triumphant.
Breathing heavier now.
The head of the Vampire fell from its position on top of the body. Rolling on the ground.
“…sorry no pretty girl for you,” Erica breathed.
The head's eyes blinked. Anger seeming to flare on the now decapitated vampire.
“…FUCKING HELSING! I END YOU! MARK MY WOR—”
Erica stepped forward and swung.
Again.
Again.
Again. Crushing it into a pulp. Brain matter spraying on her pants.
───
Enemy HP: 5% → 0%
───
She didn’t stop.
Even after it stopped screaming.
Something about this one—
She didn’t want it coming back.
Teresa caught the bat mid-swing.
“I think he’s dead,” she said. “For now.”
Her voice was steady.
Her breathing wasn’t.
Erica froze.
Her hands trembling.
───
HP: 4 / 36
STAMINA: 9 / 12 → REGENERATING
───
“…Yeah,” she said quietly.
“I think we got him.”
Teresa gave a small smile.
“Sure did.”
───
TUTORIAL COMPLETE
REWARD: ENHANCED METAL BAT
───
Her bat glowed.
Dents smoothed. Metal reinforced. Spikes formed. Gold lines etched faintly along its surface.
───
FIRST KILL: ELITE VAMPIRE LIEUTENANT
TITLE: HUNTING PRODIGY
+20% Strength, +20% Health, +20% Stamina
───
Then came the notifications.
───
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
───
They stacked endlessly.
When they stopped, she was level 37.
Erica blinked.
“…Okay,” she said slowly.
“…That feels quite lucky.”
───
║ ERICA VAN HELSING – STATUS SHEET ║
║ Type: Player
║ Race: Human (Glitched Lineage)
║ Level: 37
║ Vampire Level (VL): 0
║ HP: 691 / 691
║ Stamina: 317 / 317
───
║ CORE STATS (Base Points)
║ Health: 48
║ Stamina: 44
║ Strength: 52
║ Dexterity: 46
║ Intelligence: 28
║ Luck: 12
───
║ MODIFIERS
║ Endurance Bonus (Hunting Prodigy): +20% Health & Stamina
║ Unlucky Trait: −10% Luck, +10% Strength
║ Title Bonus (Hunting Prodigy): +20% Strength, +20% Health, +20% Stamina
───
║ ACTIVE ABILITY
║ Double Jump
║ • Jump again in mid-air
║ • Creates temporary invisible platform
║ • 6 second cooldown
───
║ PASSIVE TRAITS
║ Unlucky
║ • Luck −10%
║ • Strength +10%
║ • Increases chance of high-risk encounters
║ • Boss-tier enemies may scale upward
║ Hunting Prodigy (Title)
║ • +20% Strength, +20% Health, +20% Stamina
║ • Bonus rewards for elite kills