Chapter 50: The Price of Survival
---
Silence.
Not the peaceful kind. Not the kind that settles over a quiet hilltop or a sleeping city.
This was the kind of silence that screamed in your bones — the aftermath of something that was never meant to be survived.
The battlefield of Verax Infernum no longer roared with flames or shook with demonic laughter. It was just ash and blood, a place where time itself seemed reluctant to move forward.
Lian stood at the heart of it all.
His hands trembled, coated in soot and memories. The charred remnants of Jayce's final joke, the lingering laugh of Korran, the echo of Elyra's last spell — they haunted the wind.
But the system did not wait for grief.
> [World Exit Detected – Transfer Initiating]
Countdown: 00:59…
Rewards Calculated.
Experience +5,000
Coin Balance: 1,038,450
System Evolution Triggered – Please remain conscious.
Lian blinked. The world tilted. A second heartbeat pulsed in his head. Pain cracked his skull like a crowbar.
> [System Evolution: Golden Rank Initiated]
Talents, vehicle, and privileges evolving…
Choose a Branch:
1. Fate Devourer – Convert enemies' future potential into coins.
2. Echo of Loss – Turn the death of allies into combat abilities.
3. Balance Breaker – Ignore level and tier restrictions for one enemy every day.
Lian didn't hesitate. His pain was too raw, too immediate.
Choice Made: Echo of Loss
> Talent Evolved: Golden Fate Diver → Echo of Loss
• For each fallen ally, unlock a new passive skill.
• Elyra: +50% magic resistance, access to barrier casting.
• Jayce: +20% evasion, random comedic weapon summon every 6 hours.
• Korran: +25% critical strike chance, "Berserker's Laugh" passive (boosts morale and stats at low HP).
Warning: Using these powers will come with mental toll — hallucinations of the deceased may appear.
Lian's breath caught.
Jayce's voice echoed beside him: "Man, you better use my power to kick some cosmic ass or I'll haunt your coins."
He didn't laugh. Not really. But a shadow of a smirk flickered.
Then the world flashed white.
---
Transfer World: Daggerfall Reign – World Rank: Tier 4
The sky was black. The clouds pulsed red like bleeding wounds.
Lian stood at the top of a ravaged cliff, the Phantom Sovereign Cycle beside him. Sleek, black, and burning with violet runes — a machine that looked like it fed on shadows and regret.
Below him: a city under siege.
Demons. Mutated humans. Mechanical war beasts. All charging the ruins of a citadel holding the last few survivors.
> [New World Objectives]
Main Quest: Reach the Citadel.
Optional Quest: Protect at least 5 of the remaining 100 survivors.
Consequence of Failure: All allies in this world are permanently removed from the system.
Timer: 3 hours.
Lian mounted the bike.
> "No time to mourn. No time to break. If I fall here, their deaths meant nothing."
As he rode, gunfire and magic lit the horizon. Screams layered the air.
A beast the size of a truck lunged from the smoke.
He activated Jayce's passive — summoned a comically oversized rubber chicken.
It hit the beast with a honk and exploded into a flashbang.
Lian roared and stabbed through the stunned enemy's eye.
> -11,230 Critical.
> New Skill Unlocked: Elyra's Ward – Barrier Dome (50% damage reduction for 10 seconds)
He deployed it just in time as a sky demon dive-bombed him with sonic blades.
He bounced off rubble, bloodied, dazed — but alive.
> "Just keep going. Even if my bones break."
He reached the base of the Citadel. Survivors screamed above. An old man reached out to him.
"Please! You have to hold the gate!"
The gate shattered.
Three Tier 4 Hellborn Juggernauts entered — armored, massive, wielding corrupted war axes.
> [Mini-Boss Encounter – 3 vs 1]
> "You are alone," one growled.
Lian stood, eyes red, body shaking.
"No. I'm all of them now."
He triggered Echo of Loss in full.
Magic barrier. Jayce's wild dodge. Korran's berserker scream.
He became a blur of vengeance.
One minute in: one Juggernaut fell.
Two minutes: another collapsed, but Lian had five broken ribs.
Final one: crushed him with its fist. Cracked his spine.
> HP: 3/100
But Lian rose, bleeding from his nose and mouth, smile crooked.
"Berserker's Laugh, you bastard."
He struck — not with a weapon, but with everything he carried.
> -32,000 True Damage.
The final Juggernaut fell.
> [Bosses Defeated – Survivors Saved: 57]
World Reputation Gained: +1,000 (Feared, Respected)
New System Upgrade Available Soon…
---
As the survivors cheered, Lian collapsed to his knees.
He didn't cry. Not tonight.
But he whispered into the night:
> "Jayce. Elyra. Korran. I'm still moving. I won't stop."
The wind answered — warm, soft, almost like laughter.
---
Chapter End
---