Chapter 9: Recap (Reincarnation Arc) [Part 2]
"The Orders I am telling you are actually the Ten Commandments."
"The Ten Commandments?"
"Yes. They were the ten Systems that afterwards were divided into the many different Systems we know today. You have the Sixth Order of the Ten. And not only that, you are the first ever person to possess both Domain and Sixth Order along with Ten Eyes."
"Okay so, what's the deal with that Tenth Order's arrival?"
"Look Dae-Yang, this world works with science, but the term magic too has a lot of importance here. Because the abilities that System provide aren't't less than some magic.
There was prophecy that one of the biggest guru once made. And it was about the Ten Commandments. When all the Ten Orders descend on this world together, they are bound to spar at least once. And the power the Orders possess is said to be enough to bend spacetime.
You are one of the Order. That means you will battle the other nine."
"Wait, what if some other Order possessors are fighting and one of them died?"
"They will return. The only way they can die is naturally. Till then, they will always rise again from the dead."
Dae-Yang stayed silent.
He was not ready mentally to do all this. As for, he has never been in a fight before.
"Dae-Yang. You need to get stronger. Much stronger than you are right now. As for now, you are not my only creation that has the Order."
"You mean you have another Trooper with the Order?"
"Yes. But he is not present at the moment. He is on a special mission for himself. Troopers are always busy fighting you know, because that's how this world works."
Dae-Yang was relieved for a moment, and then stressed out the next. It clicked that now, he have to fight the said Trooper one day. Although the fight is not mortal, he still doesn't wants to. Looking at Dr. Kim, he said-
"Dr. Kim, you said something about the mission right? I am ready. Of I have to keep fighting, then I have to get stronger, and also.. (Summons his S.Y.S.T.E.M)... I have to cultivate Ten Eyes further. Because this, is how things will work out smooth."
Dr. Kim looked at Dae-Yang's face. He saw a face not confident, yet determined. Giving out a sigh, he took Dae-Yang to the Caves, i.e, the place Troopers battle against each other.
Caves are 4th Dimensional Spaces that are created when a Trooper allows his fighting spirit to release. Once entered, the exit of the Cave is locked until the battle is over and a victor is chosen.
The Cave Dr. Kim took Dae-Yang was a 'Trainer's Level.'
"Here, Dae-Yang. This is it. The Cave you will practice in. Now, summon your S.Y.S.T.E.M. (Dae-Yang does as he says. After some commands, a data screen appears.) Now look. This is your database. Your level, strength, speed, defense, perception and stamina is visible here.)
[ /Level - 1
°Strength - 10
°Speed - 10
°Defense - ∞
°Perception - 10
°Stamina - 10/
*NOTE: DEFENCE IS INFINITE DUE TO USER POSSESSING TEN EYES. SO NO ENTITY CAN TOUCH THE USER UNTIL TOO POWERFUL.*
*ALSO , THE LEVEL OF THE USER DECIDES THE POWER OF THE OPPONENT. THE MORE YOUR LEVEL IS , THE MORE DEFENSE YOU WILL BE GRANTED. *]
"I see. Defence makes sense. Guess I might be able to clear this practice session real quick."
"You can also use your inventory, 11. Just grip your left fist tightly."
"Okay..... "
[ *Inventory - *]
"Your inventory, for now, is empty. But it gets the weapons you have seen already copied in it. Since you have never seen one, I might give you the Excalibur."
"The Excalibur?"
"It has the ability to increase its power depending on the will of the one who wields it. You see, it will emit some sparks and charges from it once powered up enough."
"That sounds... cool."
Suddenly, a magical portal appeared in the front of them.
"Now now. This portal is the entrance to the Cave. Get ready Dae-Yang. You are going to have your very first battle. Try to defeat as many Troopers as possible, and reach the max level you can in this."
"Alrig- wait what? 'As many as'? What do you mean? How many Troopers are in the-"
"Just go."
Dr. Kim pushes Dae-Yang into the portal. Dae-Yang falls into it and the portal closes.
"Good luck, young man. I hope you do your best"
(Inside the Cave)
"(Standing up) Uhh, I should have been on guard. I was careless, so my Domain was turned off. (Looks around, walking) I need to find a way to keep my Domain turned on forever. Sigh, this place is dark."
Dae-Yang walked through the cave. It seemed like an infinite non-linear space resembling the back rooms of a retail outlet. There was also a constant, irritating hum, that was notably getting louder and louder. The floor was wet with unknown substance. And it seemed like no two rooms are identical to each other.
"Ahhhh. This place is uncomfortable. I gotta finish this quick."
Dae-Yang suddenly stopped. In front of him, he could see a few red eyes, staring right at him. He hesitated for a while. The figure all of a sudden jumped at Dae-Yang.
____________________________________________
As he was walking further into the Cave, Dae-Yang stopped. He could see a few red, shining eyes, staring right at him. He froze. The figure didn't move. It was there, still waiting for Dae-Yang to make a move first. But Dae-Yang was rather too scared to even step ahead.
For a while, there was this awkward hum. Then all of a sudden, the figure jumped out of the darkness.
It was a Spider. And not an ordinary one. It was an 'Arch Spider.' They are also bio-engineered species created by the Troopers to help them train. While Arch Spiders are not made to kill, the wounds can sometimes prove fatal.
Dae-Yang was scared. The Spider (what we will call it here) hopped and used one of its 8 legs to attack him. Dae-Yang instinctively jumped and dodged. It was a near miss.
The area that was attacked by the Spider was now dismantled.
"It is too powerful. I.. I just can't."
While Dae-Yang was thinking, he felt a presence behind him. He looked back. There was another Arch Spider. It, too, tried to piercing him.
'Klaack!'
"Whoa! (Jumps into a corner. Dodges the second Spider. The first Spider also attacked him.) Eek! (Dodges that too. Falls down.)
M- my legs... They are numb. My body is unable to move. I can't think straight!!!"
Dae-Yang was traumatized. He wasn't able to stand up. All he did, was sob again, just like the coward he was in his past life.
"N-no. I can't. I have to do this. I can't waste this life. I have to! "
Suddenly, the Arch Spider in front of him opened its mouth. Energy started gathering around its mouth. Dae-Yang was watching the whole thing. The Spider shot an energy beam. Dae-Yang finally stood up. But his movement was sudden and too fast. Because of that, his ankle bent and sprained. The beam approached him and BAM!
The beam got past Dae-Yang and destroyed everything in its way.
(Awkward Silence)
(Noises of debris falling can be heard in a distant)
The energy beam was so powerful that even the two Arch Spider evaporated from its heat. It was just a Trainee Level Cave. How much powerful will be a foe of higher level? How much powerful will be the Troopers? What powers will be possessed by the Ten Orders?
Dae-Yang thought all of this. Then he opened he eyes. To his shock, he was alive. And not only alive, he was all fine. Not even a scratch.
"(Panting) Whoa.... I... I am alive?!.
It.. It must be Domain. Does that means I was able to repel my way of out of that energy beam.
Alright then (stands up) I guess it will not be that hard. Killing is the only way I can win from those Spiders. The best, I can look at four directions now from four angles. Only if I didn't panicked before, my clothes would have been a little dry. I am covered in sweat now.
(Wipes sweat out of his face. Slaps both of his face cheeks lightly.)
Okay Dae-Yang. You gotta do it. You CAN do it."
Encouraging himself, Dae-Yang stepped deeper into the Abyss.
He walked for what looked like an eternity. There were nothing but rooms all over the place. He could hear some walking noises from further into the caves.
"Fighting bare hands. No. I've got the Excalibur. (Opens Inventory) Here."
The Excalibur was heavier than he thought it would be. With the sword in his hand, Dae-Yang moved forward. He was now no longer scared because he now he trusted his S.Y.S.T.E.M.
After walking for a while, he found a room. It was darker than any other rooms in the Cave. Dae-Yang got an eerie feeling. As if someone was present there, with him.
"No matter what lurks here. No need to be scared. I can face it. I have everything needed to fight."
Suddenly, the Excalibur let out a spark. It was enough to light up the whole room. In the mere time of 2 seconds, Dae-Yang navigated the whole room. And he noticed another entity. A big moth like creature on the wall.
It flew towards him. The flapping sound of the wings was so loud that it could be heard from 100 meters away. With the help of the sound, Dae-Yang tried to move away and slash it.
Excalibur let out another spark. And this time, it kept it's shine. The face of the Moth could be seen. It's 6 eyes and a face so horrifying that it would haint your dreams.
But Dae-Yang didn't twitched. He knew if he did, Excalibur would loose ots spark again. With a deep breath, he dashed towards the Moth and tried to cut it. The Moth flew up and behind him. Without looking back, Dae-Yang threw the sword behind him and it pierced through the Moth's mouth.
Then Dae-Yang ran back, grabbed the sword and slashed the Moth into two.
[ *YOU HAVE EARNED THE TITLE /MONSTER HUNTER/ *]
[ *YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP* ]
Dae-Yang stood up, with the Moth's red blood on his face and clothes.
"Looks like killing these helps my levelling. Okay then. I am gonna kill every single Trooper in this Cave and.....
(Removes his Blindfold, revealing his Red and Black Eyes)
... Only I will level up."
____________________________________________
Dr. Kim was waiting at the Headquarters for Dae-Yang. It's been 2 hours since he went inside the Cave.
Meanwhile, Dae-Yang was bust killing the monstrosity that was in there. He had levelled up to 12, and he was able to sense the difference of power in him. He had more raw power, and Excalibur felt light as compared to when he wielded it for the first time.
(Slashed down another Arch Spider)
[ *YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP
/Level - 13
°Strength - 81
°Speed - 83
°Defense ∞
°Stamina - 62
°Perception - 85/ *]
"Sigh. I have killed more than a hundred now. Surprised that I am not tired yet. (Looks into the abyss) The fight isn't done yet. There are thousands left now. I have got to kill them all to get out of this damn place."
He runs deeper and deeper, mercilessly killing anyone in his way. Dae-Yang became so powerful in an instant that now that entities in the Caves were scared to fight him.
(Meanwhile at the System Headquarters.)
(Kim Roberto's assistant enters the room.)
"Excuse me, sir."
"Oh hey, Chris. What happened?"
"Bawi is back from the mission."
(Back in the Cave)
[ *YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP* ]
"Level 16. I have levelled up a hell lot."
All of a sudden, he felt something from the room on the right. It was different, and was powerful than anything he have faced till now.
Curious, he went the way the aura was coming from.
When he reached there, he saw a man. A 7 feet tall man. He had a severely scarred face, and he was sitting patiently, as if he was waiting for Dae-Yang since the time he entered the Cave.
"Hey four-arms dude. You don't look like you belong here."
"Why would I? I was here for you, Sixth."
"Sixth? You are mistaken mister. I- no wait. Do you mean the Sixth Order"
"Yes. And I will be happy to inform you that I, am the Third Order."
A wave of silence passed the room. The Third Order? Isn't it too soon?
"My name is Sung Joo. What is your good name?"
Dae-Yang didn't reply. Or to be more precise, he didn't knew what to say. The Third Order was in front of him. He could sense the energy emitted by him.
"Yes?"
"(Breaths in and out deeply) My name is Dae-Yang."
"(Loudly) OKAY THEN DAE-YANG! (Slows down) You, are now welcome to the War Commandme-"
"(Frustrated) Just shut the F**K UP!"
"(Confused, but interested) What's it, Sixth? Why are you sooo frustrated?"
"I am just tired of all this. Of all these freaking Tropes. Since I woke up here, everyone's talking about something or the else. I DON'T want to hear anymore of this."
"Dae-Yang, don't be so confused. You have to get a habit of this. This world is far more complex than your previous one."
"So- wait. You know about my previous life?"
"Let me just do a cliche. My S.Y.S.T.E.M's name is Past Eye. It allows me to see through the one I am looking through. I can see everything about your past. Everything you have done, talked about, all your past lives."
"(Thinking) About that. Even if he knows my past, it won't be much of use, right? I haven't been in a situation where something is planned or anything. So... "
Sung-Joo dashed towards Dae-Yang. Dae-Yang saw him. He attempted to punch, but Sung-Joo stopped right in front of him, then smoothly made his way to Dae-Yang's back. He opened his inventory in a split second, summoned a dagger, and stabbed Dae-Yang's back.
"Tch!"
"There there. Fast enough am I? "
"(Falling down) He! It was too fast."
"You know that you are not even my level, right? Let's see... (Opens System -> Database)
[ */Level - 36
°Strength - 1043
°Speed - 2048
°Defense - 999
°Stamina - 1558
°Perception - 3039/* ]
" Wh- what?"
"You see. You are no match for me. And that's why, I thought of getting rid of a weakling like yo-"
Dae-Yang got up to attack him. However. Sung-Joo was ready. He dodged, then stabbed Dae-Yang at 9 places in an instant, including his forehead.
Dae-Yang fell to the ground. He was covered in blood.
"Aaand, done I guess. Time to leave. See ya later, Dae-Yang."
He exited the room by creating a portal of his own power. When he was gone, another portal opened. A figure came out of the portal. It saw Dae-Yang on the floor, lifted him, and took it inside the portal.
____________________________________________
"It's been three hours now. Dae-Yang should have returned..."
Dr. Kim was now worried. There are 10000 Troopers in the cave Dae-Yang entered the Cave. Normally, a beginner would take 1.5, or maximum 2 hours inside. Something seemed off.
Meanwhile, Dae-Yang woke up and found himself in his room in the System Headquarters with an unknown person.
"Finally awake?"
"Who are you?"
"I am Bawi, a Upper Class Trooper."
"Are you the one Dr. Kim was talking about?"
"Look, I don't know what that old man was talking about, because he have created more than 5 bio-engineered humans. Although I am the first, aaand also the most special, and powerful, and handsome, an-"
"How did you find me?"
"(Smiling, but seriously) You are the Sixth, right?"
The atmospheric tone changed. There was a tension in air.
"You ARE the one Dr. Kim mentioned. What was your name again? Bawi?"
"Got that right."
"How do you know that I am the Sixth?"
"Instinctively."
"Explain."
"Can't. Just said the first number in my mind."
(Both of them stare at each other for a while...)
"You... Are kinda dumb."
"Yes I know. What's your point?"
" *visible confusion* "
"Oh! I forget to mention. As you know, the name's Bawi. My S.Y.S.T.E.M is called as One Eye. An-"
"Sorry for interruption, but do all Orders have their System named after some kind of 'eye's?"
"Uhh, yes? But now that you've mentioned, I guess yes. I've fought 2 Orders, all their System was related with their eyes. What's yours?"
"T-ten Eyes."
"Ahh shit."
"You won those 2 fights? "
"Easy win, you know."
"(Thinking) This guy! Just by looking at him, no one would think that this carefree ass is actually so much powerful than they expect! "
"Crap, forgot again. Don't interrupt me now, will ya? I've got to complete my introduction. (Clears throat) I am Bawi. My S.Y.S.T.E.M's called One Eye. I don't have any additional powers except for the Order. I am the-"
"(Opening the door violently) DAE-YANG!"
"Oh hey, Dr. Kim."
"You are injured severely injured!"
"Oh yeah got into a feud with an Order inside that Cave."
"Order? Inside that Cave?"
Bawi: "Will someone hear me out?"
Kim: "Bawi? You are here too?"
Dae-Yang: "He rescued me. I was unconscious, and he got me out of the Cave."
Bawi: "All thanks to me, the First Order!"
Dae-Yang and Dr. Kim stared at Bawi. Meanwhile, Dr. Kim's assistant Chris was just watching from behind the half open door. She got a call from the counter.
"I am sorry, Prof. Kim. I've got some work to do."
"Oh okay, Chris. You can go."
"Please excuse me."
Dae-Yang threw himself on his bed. He was just tired of whatever happened today.
Bawi: "I must leave now, Gramps. Take good care of this dude."
Kim: "Okay, Bawi."
Bawi: "And yeah. For my next mission, Sixth, I want you to assist me."
Dae-Yang: "(thinking) Talk about rest..."
Bawi leaves the room. Dr. Kim sat on the sofa. Dae-Yang was still lying on his bed. Then, after a while, he said-
"Orders sure are powerful, right? "
"Hmm. They are for sure. I am surprised that an Order managed to break into the Cave."
"I was in it for so long. Was there even a way to escape?"
"There were a total of 10000 Troopers inside. Once you kill everyone, the portal will open automatically.
How many you managed to slay?"
"Don't know. Didn't count."
"(Sighs) Congratulations. You managed to survive your first encounter with an Order. Though he battered you enough."
"I was lucky, actually. He, like, *daggered* me around. When he stabbed my head, before the dagger could go anything more deep..... "
(Scene changes to a building top, where Sung-Joo was lying)
"..... He used his System, Domain to block the dagger. Smart move. (Gets up) For the first time in a while, someone actually fooled me. I would really like to meet him again sometime."