The First Death

Elion jolted awake, his eyes wide and trembling. His breathing was erratic, cold sweat dripping down his face as his entire body trembled violently. He rubbed his stomach in panic.

"What? What just happened?" Elion asked, confused. "Did I just... die?"

He didn't want to believe it, but the scene before him said otherwise. A small barely usable bed, partially crumbled walls, rubble as far as the eye could see, a cracked road, and a sky covered in thick black smoke.

This was his room, and he was back at the beginning.

"System!" Elion called out anxiously. "Where are you? Explain to me what just happened!"

[Relax. You were just killed by a Dred.] 

The system responded, trying to soothe him, but the overwhelming panic, fear, and anger the 14-year-old felt made it impossible to calm down.

"Relax? Do you not understand that I just died?"

[Calm down. You still have two more chances to start over if you die.]

Hearing the system's response, Elion clenched his jaw. After assuming the system had human-like emotions, he was now faced with the harsh truth that it was all in his head.

This system would never understand Elion's feelings. 

"Two more chances? Are you kidding me? Do you think I want to experience that horrifying feeling again?" Elion's chest heaved, and his breathing was uncontrollable from the surge of anger.

It was something Elion never wanted to experience again—the sensation of being stabbed from behind, his stomach being torn open, and watching his own blood spray out. 

Because it was unbearable.

As Elion drowned in his fear, the system's voice returned.

[If you don't want to experience death again, then become stronger.]

[You got a new quest!]

[Daily Quest:]

[Run: (0/10 km), Push-ups: (0/300), Sit-ups: (0/300), Squats: (0/300), Read Books: (0/10)] 

"What the hell? Do you think that's possible? With a body like mine? And what's with the books? Is there even a book left in this world that isn't buried or burnt? You've got to be kidding me."

Question after question spilled from Elion's mouth, displaying his frustration. The system's quest seemed utterly illogical to him. 

How could he, with his malnourished body, complete such a rigorous daily quest? He probably couldn't even finish a quarter of it. Not to mention the books he had no idea where to find in this ruined world.

[Okay, okay. Relax. I'm going to lower the numbers.]

Elion could sense the irritation in the system's voice, but he didn't care. Giving him a daily quest like that was practically asking him to commit suicide.

[Daily Quest:]

[Run: (0/10 km), Push-ups: (0/100), Sit-ups: (0/100), Squats: (0/100), Read Books: (0/10)] 

"That's the same thing!" Elion shouted angrily.

[Oh, so this is what you're going to do? Cry like a baby while those Dred coming for your life?]

Elion flinched at the system's words. He realized that he had reverted to being a coward. It wasn't that he didn't want to do the quest; his mind was just clouded, haunted by images of his death.

[Get your shit together and man up! You have to survive!]

Elion glanced at his trembling legs, his mind processing the system's words. For some reason, the system sounded like an old man this time. He had many thoughts, but now wasn't the time for hesitation.

Clenching his fist, Elion punched himself hard in the face.

"Ouch!" He groaned in pain, but his mind was now clearer. "Okay, there's a lot to do, but let me start with a push-up."

Elion had experienced death. And he would likely experience it again. But that wouldn't kill his determination to keep living. He would continue to live and grow stronger. Because, in his opinion, becoming the strongest was the only way to achieve true freedom.

---

From that moment on, Elion became more cautious. After experiencing death once, he used his perfect memory to move swiftly, avoiding Dred while returning to the supermarket to store food and water in his inventory.

He also gathered materials to repair his room, though he didn't build an entirely new house this time. Magically, no Dred attacked or lingered around his home. Perhaps because his house appeared wrecked, apart from his room, the Dred didn't pay it much attention.

Day by day, Elion completed his daily quests, growing stronger with each passing day. Every time he finished a quest, all his stats would increase by two points.

But did he have a safe route to jog each day? Of course not. He typically faced at least five or six Dred attacks per day, and each time he defeated them, his level increased by at least two. Elion was getting used to facing them.

Just like yesterday.

As usual, Elion jogged along the city outskirts. Wearing a gray sporty jacket, black athletic pants, and shoes—all created using his [Creation] skill.

He ran, panting heavily, still not accustomed to such strenuous activities.

"S-System... h-how much farther do i have to go?" Elion asked between gasps.

[You've only run one kilometer.]

"What?" Elion stopped, focusing on the robotic voice in his head. "You're lying, right? I definitely ran five kilometers already."

[Tch. If you knew, why'd you ask?]

"Wowww! You see this, guys?" Elion bent down, talking to the grass swaying beside his feet with a bewildered expression. "This system just tried to trick me! I can't believe this!"

Seeing Elion talking to grass, the system couldn't handle the absurdity anymore and said,

[While you're at it, why don't you touch some grass?]

Elion shot the system a glare. But as soon as he noticed something moving in the bushes, he immediately became alert.

[Warning! A dred is coming at you!]

With the system's warning, Elion whispered, "Inventory."

A portal appeared, hovering beside him. He reached into the sub-dimension and pulled out a kitchen knife that he had kept in his inventory.

Taking a deep breath, Elion steadied himself. He assumed a defensive stance, raising the knife in front of his chest. His eyes sharpened as he waited for his enemy.

Strange noises came from the bushes, and within moments, two Dreds lunged at him at full speed. One was a mix of a monkey and a tiger, while the other had a crow's head and a horse's body.

Prepared, Elion deftly dodged their attack, then swung his knife to slice the crow-headed Dred's neck clean off, letting its head roll to the ground.

[You have successfully killed a Dred!]

The other Dred glanced briefly at its fallen companion, then launched another attack at Elion with its claws.

Elion parried the Dred's claw with his knife, making him stumble slightly, but he quickly regained his footing and began sprinting towards the Dred. 

The Dred let out an odd growl, its tiger-like face furious. Seeing Elion charge at it, the Dred swung its sharp claws, creating a powerful gust of wind.

But Elion remained unfazed, closing the distance between them. As the Dred's claws swung just above his head, cutting a strand of his hair, Elion spun to the side, avoiding the attack. 

He then thrust his knife into the Dred's side, dragging it across its body to its belly, creating a massive gash. Blood splattered, and the Dred's organs spilled onto the ground.

The Dred stopped moving, collapsing into a pool of its own blood.

[You have successfully killed a Dred!]

[You have leveled up] [Lv. 20 → Lv. 21]

System messages popped up on the screen. Elion glanced at them briefly, wiping the blood from his face with his shirt as he whispered,

"Let's go."

He turned around and resumed his jog, leaving the two Dred corpses behind, laying pitifully on the center of the road.

---

Then how about the daily reading quest?

The first time Elion found a book was in the ruins of his own home. Surprisingly, some books his parents had stored in the attic remained in good condition.

When he finished reading all the books at home, he moved on to find more elsewhere. Of course, his first target was the city library.

Unfortunately, most of the books had either burned or were trapped beneath large rubble that Elion couldn't lift on his own. Afterward, he had no choice but to dig through the ruins of various buildings in the city.

One day, while wandering the city looking for books, Elion was about to give up when a collapsed building caught his attention.

It looked like a martial arts dojo.

Elion then curiously lifted the debris around the dojo, hoping to find something. Sure enough, he found an old, dusty book.

Blowing off the dust and brushing it off his leg, he cleaned the book thoroughly. Once the dust was gone, Elion read the title on the cover.

"Beginner's Guide to Taekwondo," Elion whispered. "A martial arts book."

It was the first time Elion had found a book about martial arts. He quickly opened it and began reading. The book contained images of stances in taekwondo.

"This is interesting."

As Elion was immersed in his reading, a sudden system notification appeared above the book, startling him.

[Skill: [Taekwondo Lv. 1] Successfully acquired!]

Elion immediately broke into a wide grin. To him, this was an unexpected reward.

"I can gain skills just by reading books, huh? This system isn't so bad after all."

[5 Months Later]

Elion opened his eyes, still in the same room he had woken up in five months ago. Rising from his sleep, he sat up, gathering his thoughts. After a few minutes, he looked up and called out,

"System, what kind of quest do I have today?"

The robotic voice, now all too familiar to Elion, echoed once again in his mind.

[Still the same thing. But what's with the question? You've been asking the same thing for over a week now.]

"It's getting boring, though. Doing the same thing over and over again," Elion sighed, relaxing his shoulders.

[Boring? Even though you've only been at it for five months? You think you're tough now, huh?]

"You're missing my point, aren't you? Imagine living in a world by yourself, unable to meet or talk to anyone, and all you do every day is the same workout. Doesn't that sound boring?"

Silence briefly filled the room.

[Well, I guess you're right.]

Elion blinked in surprise at the system's response.

"I didn't expect you to actually understand what I meant," he said, raising one of his eyebrows. "What kind of system are you, anyway? How can you speak as if you have emotions?"

[Alright. If you're feeling bored, I'll give you a new mission.]

"Oh? Now you're just dodging my question. This makes you even more—"

Elion's words were abruptly cut off by the sudden appearance of a flashing screen in front of his face. The light from the screen momentarily blinded the room.

[New Quest: Revenge!]

[Quest Detail: Find and confront the Dred, who previously killed you, and exact your revenge!]

Reading the new mission, Elion smirked. "If you're giving me this kind of mission, it must mean you think I'm strong enough now. Isn't that right, system?"

[Hmph. Believe what you want, kid.]

What a jerk, Elion thought. He smiled as he began preparing, donning the clothes and shoes he had created using his [Creation] skill a few days ago.

"Open status window!" he commanded while turning the door handle and pulling the door open.

A moment later, a large holographic screen appeared in front of him.

[Status Window] 

Name : Elion Viro 

Level : Lv. 75 

Age : 14 years 

HP : 7,500/7,500 

IP : 7,500/7,500 

Strength : 251 

Intelligence : 493 

Stamina : 254

Agility : 235 

Skills : [Creation Lv. 3] [Inventory] [Taekwondo Lv. 1] [Karate Lv. 1] [Sword Lv. 2]