Michael stepped into the containment dome—a massive barrier that kept the Interstellar from breaking into the city and turning it into a slaughterhouse. The air inside was thick with heat and dust.
Broken meteor fragments jutted from the ground like blackened bones, and on them, the Interstellars roamed.They were Gravehowlers.Some prowled restlessly, claws scraping the cracked floor.
Others crouched or sat atop the shattered meteor rock—not really stone, but hardened cosmic ore split open from the impact. Their bodies were lean and twisted, wolf-like but wrong, with jagged bone ridges and empty, glowing eyes.
The moment Michael crossed the threshold, a familiar window flickered into view before his eyes.
Mission: Defeat the Gravehowler
Danger Level: Minimum
Reward: 10,000 BEUs each.
Michael stared at the notification—then started laughing.The sound echoed across the dome, bouncing off the cracked meteor and ruined concrete.
The Gravehowlers immediately snapped their attention toward him. One by one, their mouths opened in a chorus of unnatural howls, the air vibrating with their rage and hunger.They had found their prey.
Michael scoffed, rolling his shoulders loose. "Stop shouting. Maybe it sounds like singing to you, but it's tearing my ears apart."
Twin short swords shimmered into his hands as he pulled them out from his inventory, metal glinting under the artificial lights above.
While the Gravehowlers gathered themselves to pounce, Michael moved first.He vanished from his spot in a blur and appeared in front of the closest Gravehowler.
Before it could even flinch, his blade drove straight down through the top of its skull, splitting its head like rotten fruit. The beast collapsed in a twitching heap.
A window appeared.
Defeated: 1 × Gravehowler
Reward: 10,000 BEU
Absorb Black Essence?
YES / NO.
"Surely yes," he said, almost amused, and tapped YES.
Black essence surged from the Gravehowler's corpse like smoke and poured into him, threading through his veins, sinking into his Lotus.
But Michael didn't wait for the process to finish. The instant the absorption started, he dashed toward the second Gravehowler.This one leapt at him from the side, jaws wide.
Michael dropped low, slid under its lunge, and rammed his sword upward through the bottom of its jaw, the blade tearing through skull and muzzle. He ripped the weapon out, splitting its face nearly in half.
Another notification bloomed.
Defeated: 1 × Gravehowler
Reward: 10,000 BEU
Absorb Black Essence?
YES / NO
The two corpses hit the ground, twitching once before going still. The remaining four Gravehowlers backed away a step, their snarls faltering. Confusion crept into their movements.
Fear followed.To them, this was a battlefield.To Michael, it was practice.He spared a glance at his updated stats, the Black Essence still flowing.
Essence & Ability Growth
Black Essence Capacity: 560… 616… 672 / 8000
Essence Absorption Rate: 56 BEU/sec
Lotus Synchronization: 8.33%
Petal Stage: 2 / 24.
He analyzed it mid-fight, casual as if he were solving a math problem and not surrounded by predators.
Every ten seconds, it refills 560 BEUs, he thought. And the refill timing will change as I add each time to the vitality.So what if I add one point to a stat every cycle while holding the other notifications… and keep killing in between? And until then, I'll just toy with them while the Black Essence fills back up.
A slow grin tugged at his lips.
Let's test it.
He pulled up his stat window and tapped:+1 to Vitality
Core Combat Stats
Strength: 61
Agility: 51
Endurance: 52
Vitality: 56
Offensive Power
Base Attack Power: 122
Ability Amplification: 112%
Elemental Affinity (Black Essence): 27.5%
Critical Force: 56.0
Effective Damage (per strike): 272.95
Defensive Power
Damage Resistance: 36.4%
Corruption Resistance: 15.6%
Mental Fortitude: 15.6%
Regeneration Rate: 11.0%
HP: 550
Essence & Ability Growth
Black Essence Capacity: 0… 60… 120… 180 / 8000
Essence Absorption Rate: 60 BEU/sec
Lotus Synchronization: 8.33%
Petal Stage: 2 / 24.
The Gravehowlers circled him, hackles raised, claws scraping.
Michael rolled his neck, feeling the subtle thrum of new strength settling into his muscles.
"All right," he murmured, raising his blades. "Round two. Let's see how much fun we can have before the meter fills again."
And so the one-sided toying began.
Michael danced through the pack of remaining eight Gravehowlers like a predator playing with crippled prey.
He kicked one hard in the ribs, sending it tumbling across the cracked meteor ore. Another lunged; he sidestepped and cracked the flat of his sword hilt against its skull, dropping it dazed but alive—for now.
He left the absorption notification that he got from his second kill from grave howler hovering in his peripheral vision, their glow partially obstructing his sight, but it didn't faze him in the slightest.
He thrived in the chaos.Every ten seconds, 600 BEUs piled into his reserves from passive absorption. He invested each batch methodically: +1 to Vitality. Each time he added the vitality, the absorption rate increases.
The black essence from his first kill paused mid-flow as the capacity hit its limit.
Spotting it, Michael tapped YES on the queued notification. The dark energy resumed pouring in, threading through his veins like liquid shadow.
"Status," he commanded mid-spin, ducking a claw swipe.
Core Combat Stats
Strength: 61
Agility: 51
Endurance: 52
Vitality: 75
Offensive Power
Base Attack Power: 122
Ability Amplification: 112%
Elemental Affinity (Black Essence): 27.5%
Critical Force: 56.0
Effective Damage (per strike): 272.95
Defensive Power
Damage Resistance: 36.4%
Corruption Resistance: 15.6%
Mental Fortitude: 15.6%
Regeneration Rate: 15.0%
HP: 750
Essence & Ability Growth
Black Essence Capacity: 70… 140… 210… / 8000
Essence Absorption Rate: 70 BEU/sec
Lotus Synchronization: 8.33%
Petal Stage: 2 / 24
Michael stared at the numbers.
Then—slowly—he smiled.
"This is it," he murmured, his voice low and steady.
"By absorbing Black Essence before confirming the next kill, I leave nothing behind.
No wasted essence. No loss."
His smile widened slightly.
"And also my HP skyrockets."
He clenched his fist.
Power hummed beneath his skin—subtle, alive, obedient—like something that had finally recognized its master.
"I'll harvest like this," he decided.
"First I will raise the vitality and then the rest."
Across the crater, the Grave Howlers hesitated.
For the first time—
They felt fear. Not confusion. Not instinct.
Only Fear.
And then—
As he approached to the remaining Grave howlers,the remaining Grave Howlers recoiled, claws scraping backward, bodies instinctively retreating from something they could no longer understand.
"Why are you waiting there?" Michael asked, tilting his head slightly, eyes glowing faintly black.
His grip tightened around the weapon.
"Come on," he said softly, almost kindly.
"Become my stepping stones."
A pause.
"To my growth."
Outside the Energy Dome, The Vice Chief stood frozen, his entire body drenched in cold sweat.
The subjugation time had already passed.
More than an hour had gone by.
And Michael still hadn't come out.
"Fuck… why is he still inside?" the Vice Chief muttered, his voice trembling despite himself.
"Is he dead? If he's dead, I'm finished. Completely finished. The Vellory household and their branch families will hunt me down for letting him enter—but not just them. That Mr. Beauty… he'll kill me himself."
His breathing grew shallow.
He glanced back.
The crowd had grown restless.
People murmured, whispered, pointed at the dome. Phones were raised. Videos were recording. The tension in the air was thick enough to choke on.
"Fuck… I can't even fake the scenario," the Vice Chief realized, his eyes widening in horror.
"The whole crowd saw it. They saw me wholeheartedly send him inside."
Pressure crushed down on him.
His eyes bulged slightly as he ran through every possible outcome—none of them ending with him alive.
Then—
From afar— An engine roared.
The Vice Chief stiffened and forced to look at the side.
And then his color drained from his face.
A reinforced Auden forced its way through the crowd.
It stopped.
The door opened.
Chief Roshan Sahay stepped out.
His expression was serious. Annoyed and Sharp as he saw the DEF personnel made any move and waiting outside the dome.
The DEF personnel straightened instantly.
Roshan's gaze swept the area—and stopped on the still-active dome.
His jaw tightened.
"Vice Chief," he called.
The Vice Chief flinched and ran toward him.
"Y–Yes, Chief!" he answered, fear bleeding through every syllable.
Roshan looked at him calmly and yet furious at his tone.
"I gave you one task," Roshan said.
"And told you not to mess it up."
The Vice Chief opened his mouth— and started blabbering.
Excuses spilled out.
Half-formed explanations.
Nervous justifications tangled over each other as his mind collapsed under pressure.
Then—
The crowd behind them erupted.
Cheers. Gasps. Shouts like they saw their hero.
Both the Chief and Vice chief turned.
The energy dome flickered.
And then—Collapsed.
Michael stepped out.
White cloak floating lightly behind him.
In his hands—two broken short swords, warped, cracked, completely ruined.
"I overused them," Michael said casually, glancing at the shattered blades.
"Toyed with them a bit too much."
He tossed the swords aside without a second thought.
Then he walked forward—ignoring Chief Roshan Sahay entirely.
Straight toward the Vice Chief.
"Vice Chief," Michael said, his tone polite, almost warm.
"Thank you for your cooperation."
He leaned just enough for his voice to carry.
"Soon, you will be rewarded."
Roshan's eyebrow rose slightly.
The Vice Chief felt his stomach drop.
"Fuck,He trapped me"
Michael turned and began walking away.
"Wait," Roshan finally said.
Michael stopped.
Roshan's eyes narrowed as he took in the cloak, the insignia, the unmistakable presence.
"You exited a restricted DEF zone," Roshan said coldly.
"Care to explain?"
Michael turned halfway back, expression calm, eyes sharp with wit.
"That's a good question," he replied.
"But you should ask it to the Vice Chief."
The crowd surged closer. Cameras flashed.
Before anyone could react—
Michael jumped.
In a single fluid motion, he landed beside his car, slid inside, and ignited the engine.
The window rolled down.
Michael leaned out slightly and waved.
An innocent wave at the same time a mocking one.
"Bye-bye, Vice Chief."
The car roared through the crowd and vanished into the distance.
Silence followed.
Roshan stared at the empty road. And the Vice Chief stood frozen—
Knowing his fate had already been sealed.