Michael took up the offer.
But to hunt interstellars, willpower alone wasn't enough. He needed equipment—fine, lethal, purpose-built.
So he headed for the Dharma Bazaar.
If he was going to hunt Copper Horn Boars, he needed weapons forged for one reason only—survival.
Blades reinforced with shock cores.
A compact kinetic spear.
Armor layered with meteor-resistant plating, light enough to move, strong enough to endure a mistake.
After gearing up, he didn't want to get caught Raju, and lily who were sleeping very soundly.
And Victor wasn't there.
And that suited him just fine.
Once prepared, Michael made his way toward their destination.
At the same time, Victor was searching for Michael.
Not because a whole day had passed without his return—but because the mission involved the sly fox, Mint Vashir.
That name stirred memories he had buried deep.
Michael as a child.
Laughing. Unbroken.
Then the image of his mother—Angel—her warm smile, gentle and unwavering.
And beside her, a soldier's innocent grin—untouched by politics, orders, or bloodshed. A man who still believed the world could be protected.
The moment those memories surfaced—
Smoke began to pour from Victor's body.
It seeped from every pore, thick and black, as the air around him warped and trembled.
Heat surged violently, his skin glowing red-hot, cracking open as molten fire pulsed beneath it. In seconds, his entire body transformed—burning, not with flame, but with living lava.
With a thunderous burst of power, Victor lifted into the air, tearing through the sky like a blazing meteor.
His voice followed—cold, absolute, and filled with deathly promise.
"Vashir…
If you dare do anything to him—
that will be your last day in this world."
And Michael reached the territory of E-rank interstellar beasts which was under the control of C.O.S.M.O.S.
People always assumed these creatures arrived only when meteors fell. They were right.
But what people never understood was that the meteor wasn't the end.
It was the beginning.
Once a meteor struck, the nightmare had to be hunted down—burned out, erased—before it twisted the land beyond repair.
If they failed…
Or worse—if they chose to ignore it…
The infection settled.and it would grew.
And eventually, it transformed into a habitat.
If that habitat happened to be an Outcast Slum—somewhere the world had already thrown away—then no one intervened. They watched from afar as people inside bled, screamed, and died inch by inch.
Michael knew this truth intimately.
Because he came from one of those slums.
The only difference?
His slum hadn't been abandoned.
This interstellar habitat was watched.
Observed.
Monitored by C.O.S.M.O.S.
To them, every interstellar habitat was a resource. Data. Samples. Live testing grounds.
Now, that same land had been repurposed as a training zone for C.O.S.M.O.S. recruits.
Michael arrived at night.
Darkness was kinder in the face of authority.
He slipped past the outer perimeter, moving silently while the guards slacked off—an irony, considering C.O.S.M.O.S. was famed for discipline. But even iron-rigid organizations rusted at the edges.
Michael exploited that rust.
Without a sound, he crossed into the habitat.
Inside, the ground was littered with skeletons and skulls—outcasts who had once lived here. People who'd been declared disposable.
One skull rolled close to his boot.
He didn't flinch. He didn't slow. He didn't feel sympathy.
Because Michael knew how this world worked.
But what burned inside him wasn't indifference.
It was rage. And then—
The air shifted. Not wind's current and sound
But the pressure.
The kind of pressure that crawled under the skin and whispered you are prey.
Michael's grip tightened around his weapon.
Somewhere in the darkness, something exhaled.
One by one, Copper Horn Boars emerged from the mist—massive silhouettes first, then glowing eyes, then the brutal curve of copper-veined horns.
Their breath steamed white in the cold, snorting clouds that rolled across the ground like war drums announcing a charge.
A small, crooked smile tugged at Michael's mouth.
"Let's fucking dance, ugly," he muttered.
He was armed with only two short swords.
Broad at the base.
Mid-length.
Edges sharpened enough to carve bone, thick enough to survive impact.
Jet boots were strapped tight to his feet, humming softly—restrained power waiting to explode.
Armor plates locked around his torso and limbs, heavy iron weighing him down, slowing him just enough to remind him that mistakes had mass.
Not that he earned any of it honestly.
No—he stole every piece straight from Victor's shop.
If Victor ever found out Michael was using his gear to invade C.O.S.M.O.S. hunting grounds, the man wouldn't hesitate. He'd carve Michael open himself.
And honestly?
Michael wouldn't blame him.
Who in their right mind arms a lunatic willing to pick a fight with the biggest military organization on the planet?
The boars spread out, hooves grinding against corrupted stone. Ten of them. A full herd. Their bodies were thick with meteor-tainted muscle, copper growths embedded into flesh like natural armor.
Each breath they took vibrated with low-frequency growls—territorial, ancient, hungry.
Michael was outnumbered.
He knew it.
And he walked in anyway.
Because of the cursed relic.
The black lotus.
That thing buried inside him, dormant and silent, like it was watching. Waiting.
So now it was time to see what it could do.
Ten Copper Horns. Ten interstellar beasts.
That was the reality standing in front of him.
Did he know their hunting patterns?
No—just scraps of rumor. Half-truths traded by scavengers who'd never seen one up close.
Was he prepared for the worst?
Not even close.
But he couldn't afford to imagine it.
Because if he let the worst crawl into his thoughts, it would devour him long before the first horn ever hit.
And suddenly the first boar charged.
Michael aimed for its eye—perfect kill shot.
But the beast swerved, far quicker than its weight suggested.
The second slammed into him from behind.
Air blasted out of his lungs.
His chest burned.
Before he could breathe, a third boar rammed him. Then a fourth. Then a fifth.
He was tossed across the dirt like a toy at a drunken festival. Horns clanged off his armor until he finally skidded to a stop—armor cracked, chest screaming.
He glanced down.
The plates were split.
One more direct hit and he'd be a smear on the ground.
The herd pawed the earth, hungry for the next round.
Then—his opening.
Their rhythm faltered. Their unity broke just for a second.
Enough.
And that's when Michael realized something.
He'd underestimated them.
They weren't brainless.
They weren't stupid.
They adapted.
The first boar came again—same trajectory, same fury.
But this time Michael ignited his jet boots, heat exploding beneath him, launching him upward.
Steel punched through the boar's eye.
The beast shrieked, thrashing in agony.
Another charged. He slid aside, sparks spitting from his boots, vaulted over its skull, and stabbed downward—both eyes gone.
It screamed, blinded, swinging wildly. A blind beast was still dangerous—but predictable.
So he repeated it.
Again.
And again.
Every charging boar—he blinded.
Every set of eyes—he carved out.
Their tortured cries tore through the air until ten Copperhorns lay dead, twitching, scattered across the battlefield.
And with each kill—
[ SYSTEM: Defeated "Copperhorn Boar." Reward: +100 Black Essence Units ]
[ SYSTEM: Defeated "Copperhorn Boar." Reward: +100 Black Essence Units ]
The notifications stacked endlessly.
Ten kills.
One thousand Black Essence Units.
Silence settled.
Blood pooled.
Steam rose from corpses.
Shattered tusks glinted under the dim sky.
Then—
[Mission Completed]
Unlock 1st Petal of Black Lotus? – Yes/No
Michael clicked Yes without hesitation.
Another prompt appeared:
[All Black Essence Units will be consumed. Confirm? Yes/No]
He clicked again, irritated.
"Why ask twice? What's the point?" he muttered.
Immediately, the corpses exhaled.
Ten streams of black fumes snaked upward, twisting like serpents before plunging into his body.
Heat exploded in his chest.
His skin crawled.
His veins burned like molten wire.
And then—
Darkness.
[SYSTEM: 1st Petal of Black Lotus Unlocked]
Activate? – Yes/No
Michael grinned, annoyed yet eager.
"That's why I fought. That's why I bled. Yes."
The world shattered.
Colors drained away.
The sky, the earth, the corpses—even his own hands—bled into black, white, and grey.
His fingers looked hollow.
Not human.
Like shadows pretending to be flesh.
"What the fuck…" he whispered.
He forced out the command:
"Status. Open."
A window appeared—bright in a world of monochrome.
[ Combat Stat ]
[ Offensive Power ]
[ Defensive Power ]
[ Essence & Ability Growth ]
He opened Essence.
There it was:
[SYSTEM: Essence Absorption rate: 0.02 BEU/s]
[SYSTEM: Lotus Synchronisation: 4.16%]
[SYSTEM: Ability Unlocked — Void Eyes]
He tapped the ability.
[Void Eyes: The ability to perceive the flow of Black Essence in all living and non-living things. Reveals vital points and structural weaknesses.]
Michael whistled quietly.
"That's not an ability… that's cheating."
But before he could admire it, the ground trembled.
Twigs snapped.
Leaves rustled.
Low, guttural squeals echoed through the mist.
Thirty Copperhorns stepped out—bodies rendered in dull grey through his Void Eyes. Muscles bunched. Hooves shook the dirt. Steam poured from their mouths.
Then it came.
The giant.
Ironhide Copperhorn Boar—its hide layered in stone-like plates, horns massive, breath boiling hot.
A deeper grey aura pulsed from it.
[ SYSTEM ]
Defeat D-rank Interstellar Beast – Ironhide Copper Horn Boar
Rewards:
+400 Black Essence Units
Ironhide Second-Grade Copper Horn ×10
Ironhide Copper Horn Boar Meat
Michael's pulse hammered.
His Void Eyes flared.
Every beast—normal or Ironhide—glowed with faint marks.
Vital points.
The gap between their neck and front leg.
Michael grinned—feral, hungry.
Then another window popped up:
[SYSTEM: Bonus: Copperhorn Boar Meat ×10]
[SYSTEM: Surprise Bonus — +10 points in all Combat Stats for unlocking 1st Petal of Black Lotus]
Michael clenched his fists, veins singing with power.
"So this is it… the real hunt begins now."
He cracked his neck, stepped forward, and smiled like a bastard.
"So what's up next? It's Harvest time."