Chapter 4: Quiet Resolve

The academy buzzed with the usual energy, students training and preparing for the upcoming tournament that would determine their future. But Elric's mind wasn't focused on the tournament. Instead, he found himself making plans—plans that no one else could know about.

He was going to leave the city.

The thought alone made his stomach churn. It was dangerous, reckless even. The world outside the city walls was no place for the weak, especially for someone like him. But if he wanted to survive the tournament, if he wanted to have any chance of competing against the others, he needed to find a way to grow stronger. And the only way he knew to do that was by figuring out the Creator System.

Elric had spent the last few days thinking about it, turning the possibilities over in his mind. He couldn't rely on his Flame Spark alone. It was too weak, too unreliable. The system, however, offered him something more—soul points, the key to unlocking his real potential. But there was only one problem: the system demanded that he kill awakened beings to earn those points.

He wasn't sure what that meant exactly. Did he have to kill other people? Or could it be demons or beasts? He was betting on the latter, though he had no way of knowing for sure. And that was why he had to leave the city. He needed to test the system, to see if he could gain soul points by killing one of the weaker beasts that roamed the wilderness beyond the walls.

But leaving the city wasn't easy. The guards were strict, and without proper authorization, no one was allowed to venture beyond the safety of the walls. That left Elric with only one option: he had to sneak out.

He sat on his bed in the small, cramped room he had been assigned, staring at the pack of supplies he had gathered over the past few days. It wasn't much—just some dried food, water, a basic survival kit—but it was all he could afford. The academy didn't provide much for someone like him, and he wasn't exactly swimming in resources.

Elric stood up and began going through his pack again, making sure he had everything he needed. He'd taken a knife from one of the training rooms, a simple blade that wasn't anything special, but it would have to do. It wasn't like he could just waltz into a shop and buy a weapon without raising suspicion.

His heart raced as he mentally checked through his preparations. Food. Water. A weapon. Extra clothes. It wasn't much, but it would have to be enough to last a day or two in the wilderness.

He glanced out of the small window, the sun already starting to set on the horizon. He'd chosen to leave under the cover of night. It was the safest time to slip past the guards and avoid being caught. But even with the cloak of darkness, there were risks. The city was heavily guarded, and the patrols were frequent.

Elric sat down on the edge of his bed, the pack resting beside him, and let out a slow breath. His hands were shaking, the reality of what he was about to do settling in. He wasn't just sneaking out for a stroll; he was heading into dangerous territory—territory filled with creatures that could tear him apart if he wasn't careful.

Am I really doing this?

The question hung in the air, unanswered. He knew the risks, but he also knew what would happen if he stayed. The tournament was less than a week away, and with his current strength, he wouldn't make it past the first round. If he didn't do something now, he would fail. And failure meant being left behind, forgotten, a nobody.

He couldn't let that happen.

Elric stood up, his resolve hardening. He had to take this risk. There was no other choice.

He glanced around his room one last time, making sure there was nothing he was forgetting. The academy wouldn't notice he was gone until morning, and by then, he planned to be far beyond the city walls. His heart pounded in his chest, the uncertainty of what lay ahead fueling his anxiety. But he pushed it down. He couldn't afford to hesitate now.

I have to do this. I have to.

He grabbed the pack and slung it over his shoulder, taking one last look at the academy grounds through the window. The training fields were empty now, the sun's final rays casting long shadows over the buildings. Most of the students were already back in their dorms, resting for the next day's training. No one would notice him slipping away.

Taking a deep breath, Elric quietly opened the door to his room and stepped into the hallway. The dim light of the evening made it easy for him to stay in the shadows, his footsteps light as he made his way toward the exit. He had studied the guard shifts for days, memorizing when they would be changing shifts and where the gaps were in their patrols. This was the best time to make his move.

As he reached the outer walls of the academy, his pulse quickened. He could see the guards up ahead, stationed at the main gate. They looked bored, their attention focused more on their conversations than on the surrounding area. He had chosen this moment carefully—right before they changed shifts, when they would be the most distracted.

Elric crouched behind a low wall, watching the guards closely. His breath came in shallow, careful gasps, his nerves on edge. He could feel the tension building in his chest, the fear of being caught gnawing at him. But he couldn't back out now.

He waited, counting the seconds as the shift change approached. The guards began to talk more animatedly, clearly eager to finish their patrol and head back inside. Elric saw his chance.

With a quick glance around, he darted out from his hiding spot, keeping low as he moved along the shadows. His heart raced, his body tense with the fear of being spotted, but the guards remained oblivious. He kept moving, one careful step at a time, until he was past them, the outer gate just ahead.

Almost there.

He reached the gate and slipped through a narrow gap in the side, barely wide enough for him to squeeze through. Once outside, he exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. The city's walls loomed behind him, tall and imposing, a stark reminder of the protection he was leaving behind.

Elric stood there for a moment, staring out into the darkness beyond the walls. The wilderness stretched out before him, a vast expanse of unknown dangers. The world outside the city was harsh, filled with creatures far more dangerous than anything he had encountered inside. But it was also his only option.

He needed to find a beast. A low-level one, something he could handle, according to the power scale he'd learned about in his studies. If he could kill it—if the system rewarded him with soul points—then he would know that the path forward wasn't as impossible as it seemed.

The night was quiet, the air cool against his skin as he began to walk, the weight of his pack pressing against his back. Every sound made his heart race—a rustle in the bushes, the distant call of some nocturnal creature—but he kept moving, his eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of danger.

Elric wasn't sure how far he would need to go to find a beast, but he knew that venturing too far would be a mistake. He needed to stay close enough to the city that he could make it back quickly if things went wrong. But far enough away that the creatures that lurked outside wouldn't hesitate to attack.

The wilderness was a dangerous place, even for those with powerful Talents. But for someone like Elric, with nothing but a weak Flame Spark and a mysterious system he barely understood, it was a death trap.

He tightened his grip on the knife strapped to his side, his eyes flicking to the darkened horizon. He didn't know what kind of beast he was looking for, but he would recognize it when he saw it.

Just one, he thought. I only need to kill one to know if this system works.

His thoughts turned briefly to the tournament, to the other students who were resting in their beds, confident in their strength and abilities. He wasn't like them. He couldn't rely on his Talent to carry him through. But he wasn't going to let that stop him.

He had made his decision. He was going to survive, no matter what it took.

End of Chapter 4.