Shadow Over Me

The bounty had changed everything.

Takami knew it was only a matter of time before stronger hunters came for him. But what troubled him more was why, why would Shurin Guild go so far? He had barely scratched the surface of this world, yet they were treating him like a major threat.

The book's missing page lingered in his mind. The Missing Seat. Exios. Something about The Life Scale wasn't right. Too many unanswered questions.

For now, though, survival came first.

As Takami walked alone that night, heading back from the park, something shifted.

A cold sensation crawled up his spine. His breath came out in wisps despite the mild temperature. He stopped in the middle of the empty street.

DING!

A sound he hadn't heard in a while.

[System Update Detected_

|Syncing with Host's Current State…]

Takami's expression dropped. "Now what…?"

[Sync Complete]

[Reminder!]

[|New Objectives Unlocked.

|Pending Rewards Available.]

"I totally forgot this" he muttered. He quickly opened the system menu.

[Pending Rewards:

_Survive an Assassin attack– Rank Adjusted_

|Reward: +1 Grant Boost ,60,000 yen (Collected)

_First High-class 2 Spirit Battle Won_

|Reward: ??? (Locked – Requirements Not Met)]

"Is that a warning telling me I'm not a match for high-class 2 spirits?" Takami thought. "I should probably avoid them, but the system doesn't warn me like this usually... Is something wrong? Guess I should be more careful then."

He smiled "The system pays are great though, that's one thing."

[New Objective:

|Unravel the Truth

|Discover the connection between Avatars and Exios.

|Locate the missing page.

Reward: ??? ]

Takami clenched his fists. The system had been quiet for a while… but now it was reacting to the mess he was caught in. It knew something.

"Guess I really don't have a choice, huh?" he muttered.

Then, he felt it, movement. The cold sensation from earlier.

Takami barely dodged as a dagger whizzed past his head, embedding itself into a streetlamp.

He spun around, eyes narrowing. Two figures stood behind him. One tall, cloaked, and silent. The other shorter, dressed in dark clothing, twirling a second dagger.

Bounty hunters.

Takami sighed and rolled his shoulders. "Man, I was hoping for at least a little rest."

The shorter one grinned, taking a step forward. "Sorry, kid. 50,000 yen is a good enough excuse to ruin your night."

The tall cloaked one raised a hand. A spirit materialized beside him, an ominous, hunched, shadowy figure with elongated arms and a wide, malicious grin. He had to be a spirit binder. Takami immediately noted the color coding on the system: "orange (hard)." On the two hunters and the spirit each 

"Great, and worst part is I'm out of healing potions" Takami muttered under his breath. "I'm cooked."

The system flickered a warning message:

[Player advised to retreat.]

Takami froze, heart racing. Retreat? The system had never told him that before. He gritted his teeth. "Are you freaking kidding me…?"

Before he could react, the short bounty hunter executed a parkour stunt, flipping over a nearby trash can, landing with deadly precision right in front of Takami, cutting off his escape route.

"Well, we didn't finish our chat, did we?" The hunter removed his cloak, exposing a muscular frame, and yanked his dagger free from the streetlamp. "Let's see how you handle the real thing."

Takami's pulse spiked as the two assailants closed in, their movements fast and calculated. The spirit was a blur of shadows, lunging with long, clawed arms. Takami's reflexes were sharp, but not sharp enough to avoid every strike.

They're fast, Takami thought, dodging another slash. I can't even get a clean hit in.

His system flashed again, reminding him of his low-level Skill: Predator's Insight (Lv.1). It was giving him brief flashes of their intentions, but they were too fast for him to keep up with.

The short assassin closed in, slashing with both daggers in a deadly rhythm. Takami barely managed to parry one with his own blade, only to feel the sting of the second blade graze his side.

Blood dripped down his arm, and his legs felt like they were slowly giving out. The pain was starting to cloud his focus, but his Predator's Insight skill kept him on his feet, just barely.

"Just need to hold on..." Takami thought, swaying with each movement.

The spirit lunged again, its claws raking through the air. Takami ducked, feeling the air shift as it passed too close, right before it's second hand sent him crashing into a wall with a punch. But there was no time to recover. The short hunter took advantage, coming at him from an unexpected angle, their daggers flashing with deadly intent.

Takami was on the defensive now, barely blocking and dodging. His body ached from the wounds, his vision blurring with each passing second. He was outmatched. The system's warning to retreat echoed louder in his mind. Yet, he couldn't. No way out.

He was about to lose his footing when, like a flicker of darkness, a slice went through the chest of both hunters, knocking them off balance. The spirit's eyes narrowed in fear as if it had seen it's maker as it was cleaved in two, diagonally, by an unseen force.

Takami stumbled back, looking around in confusion. The street was eerily quiet now. He couldn't see anyone, but someone, something had just saved him. His heart pounded, and the adrenaline began to wear off.

The two assassins collapsed, their bodies twitching before going still. Takami limped backward, trying to gather his bearings. He could only sense a feint presence before it faded. Whoever had helped him was already gone.

Meanwhile, on the third floor of a nearby school, Nyx/Yona leaned against a railing, hidden in the shadows. Her face was obscured, with only her eyes glowing with dark energy.

"I deserve the good part." She muttered with a sly grin, her words like a whisper in the air. Her Aura bled into the surrounding darkness, filling the space with an oppressive weight. She reveled in the feeling. "He still noticed my presence. Finally, someone worth my time in this world ."

She vanished into the shadows, her presence lingering for just a moment longer before fading completely.

Takami made his way home, his body sore, his wounds bleeding through his clothes. It had been a long time since he came back like this, his injuries reminding him of how vulnerable he still was. But there was something strange about the whole encounter. "Why did someone help me? And who was that?, enough to make a spirit scared?" 

"Even low class spirits don't bother attacking spirit keepers even though dieing was the only option, but this time around...it was fear"

When he arrived home, his mother quickly helped him dress his wounds. She said little, focused more on the task at hand than asking questions. Takami wasn't in the mood for explaining, so he let her work in silence.

"I'll be fine," he muttered, trying to reassure her, though the exhaustion weighed heavily on him.

"Just sit still would you?" She said

After she finished bandaging him up, Takami collapsed into bed, his thoughts racing as he tried to make sense of everything. His system had given him a clear warning, but his instincts had told him to fight, but even if he tried running, that wasn't gonna end well for him. The missing page, the bounty, and the shadowy figure that saved him was all connected, somehow.

The next day, Takami met up with Yuri and Jimin at the park. 

Yuri raised an eyebrow. "Look at you!" she teased, spotting the bandages "Did you get into a fight with a spirit up your class?"

Takami rolled his eyes, trying to hold back a wince. "Something like that, bounty hunters too."

Jimin grinned. "I see, So you ain't mister Invincible after all huh?"

Takami shot him a glare. "Yeah well invincible guys get tired sometimes."

Yuri raised an eyebrow. "So you're no longer worthy of the title mister Invincible. I declare it." She chuckled.

Takami chuckled. "Wait I never even said I was .",

Jimin grinned "Need lessons from pros, yeah?"

"Don't rub it in", Takami concluded

Yuri and Jimin exchanged a look and laughed.

"What's funny" Takami asked with a low expression "Sickos.", 

They all went on for a walk.

But as they walked off together, Takami couldn't shake the feeling that something much bigger was unfolding around him. And he wasn't sure if he was ready for it. Was this the consequences the hooded figure that gave him the system was talking about?. Who could tell.

-CHAPTER 10: SHATTERED THREADS-

END OF CHAPTER NOTES ✍️:

1. How does Takami level up?

Takami levels up by absorbing Grant from defeated spirits, but there are restrictions.

Leveling System:

1. Grant Extraction – When Takami kills a spirit, the system absorbs its Grant, increasing his power. The amount depends on the spirit's class.

•Low-Class Spirits: Minimal increase (barely noticeable).

•High-Class Spirits: Moderate increase (can feel growth).

•High-Class 2 Spirits: Significant increase (stats noticeably improve).

•Great Spirits: Massive increase, but it's almost impossible to kill them.

2. Skill Unlocking – Instead of learning skills manually, Takami awakens them by meeting certain conditions (like dodging enough attacks, taking enough damage, or killing enough spirits).

3. Dorm System – The system categorizes spirit-infested evolution areas as "Dorms" based on threat levels. Each Dorm has a "clear condition."

•Low-Class Dorms, Clearing them gives small rewards.

•High-Class Dorms, Rewards new skills or Grant enhancements.

•High-Class 2 Dorms, Game-changing abilities and big stat boosts.

•Great Spirit Domains, Almost impossible to clear, but success means power on a new level.

4. Boss Kill Bonus – Some spirits mark themselves as "Commanders" or "Bosses." Killing them gives extra rewards like:

•Passive buffs (faster healing, stronger strikes, higher perception).

•Special techniques.

•System upgrades.

5. Forced Evolution (High-Risk, High-Reward) – If Takami takes in too much Grant at once, his body can't handle it. He either:

•Adapts and evolves (massive power-up).

•Breaks down and dies (game over).

Limitations:

•The system denies Grant extraction from corrupt or weak spirits, preventing easy farming.

•He can't just grind low-level enemies to get strong, only real threats push his growth

•If he pushes too far, the system forces a retreat to avoid death.

Takami doesn't just level up... he survives, adapts, and dominates.