The Twin-Headed Cerberus didn't roar. It didn't posture. It simply exploded into motion.
For a creature the size of a dump truck, it moved with a terrifying, fluid grace. Its massive paws, tipped with obsidian claws the length of short swords, tore gouges into the stone floor as it launched itself at Zack.
Zack's 47.7 Agility screamed at him to move. He dove to the left, a split second before the beast occupied the space where he had been standing. The impact shook the entire boss room, dust raining down from the ceiling.
HISS-CRACKLE!
Where Zack landed, a glob of green slime splattered against the stone. Smoke instantly billowed up as the rock dissolved.
He looked up. The Right Head (Acid) was tracking him, its jaws dripping with a glowing, neon-green saliva that burned the air itself.
Simultaneously, the Left Head (Frost) opened its maw. A cone of absolute white cold blasted out.
Zack was trapped between a melting floor and a freezing wall.
"Serious?!" he yelled, activating [Shadow's Cloak Lv. 2].
He vanished into a smoky blur, his speed jumping by another 10%. He sprinted up the wall, his boots finding purchase on the rough stone, running vertically to avoid the converging breath attacks.
Below him, the acid and frost met. They reacted violently, creating an explosion of freezing, corrosive steam that filled the center of the room.
Zack back-flipped off the wall, landing behind the massive hound.
"My turn," he snarled.
He channeled his 47.0 Strength into his right fist, the dark [God-Eater] aura swirling like a black hole around his knuckles. He aimed for the creature's rear leg.
BOOM!
He connected. It felt like punching a tire made of steel. The Cerberus's fur was matted and thick, acting like natural armor. His punch sank in, bruising the muscle, but he didn't hear the satisfying crack of bone he wanted.
This was a D-Rank (Intermediate) monster. Its Defense was likely pushing 60 or 70 points.
The Cerberus didn't even turn around. It just lashed out with its tail—a thick, whip-like appendage covered in spikes.
WHACK!
The tail caught Zack in the ribs. Even with 48.1 Defense, the air was driven from his lungs. He was sent skidding across the floor, tumbling until he managed to dig his fingers into the stone to stop himself.
He coughed, tasting copper.
"Okay," he wheezed, standing up. "It's fast. It's tanky. And it has range."
He held his left hand to his ribs. [Heal].
The green light flashed, consuming 15 Spirit. The bruise vanished instantly.
He checked his reserves. He was full. The Death Knight drain had left him topped off.
"I can do this all night," he whispered.
The Cerberus turned, both heads fixing him with four burning yellow eyes. It realized the little shadow wasn't dead.
The Frost Head inhaled deeply. The air in the room seemed to be sucked into its lungs.
Zack knew what was coming. A breath attack.
But the Acid Head did something different. It began to hack and cough, spitting out massive globs of acid in high arcs, like a mortar.
The acid globs landed all around Zack, creating pools of death that limited his movement.
Then, the Frost Head exhaled.
[Blizzard Breath]!
A hurricane of ice and snow blasted toward him. Zack couldn't dodge left or right—the acid pools blocked him.
He had to go through.
"[Energy Drain]!" he shouted, not at the monster, but preparing his hands.
He charged into the blizzard.
The cold hit him like a physical wall. His skin began to crystallize. His movement slowed. His health bar (if he had one) would be ticking down rapidly.
But he didn't stop. He reached the Cerberus's front paws, sliding under the Frost breath's cone.
He slammed both hands onto the beast's chest, right between the two necks.
[Connect]!
Two thick, pulsing purple tethers erupted from his palms, drilling into the monster's chest.
The effect was immediate.
The Cerberus roared—a dual-voiced sound of confusion and pain.
Zack felt the rush. It was staggering. The amount of Stamina and Spirit this thing had was immense. It flooded into him, repairing the frostbite on his skin faster than the cold could damage him.
He was drinking from a firehose.
"You want to freeze me?" Zack roared, his eyes glowing purple. "I'll just burn your own energy to stay warm!"
The Acid Head looked down, snapping at him. Zack released one hand and punched the snout, his fist heavy with stolen power. The head recoiled.
But the Frost Head was smart. It stopped breathing ice and bit him.
Massive jaws clamped onto Zack's left shoulder.
CRUNCH.
The teeth pierced his 48.1 Defense. His shoulder bone splintered.
"GAAAAH!"
Zack screamed, but he didn't pull away. He couldn't. If he pulled, he'd lose his arm.
He was ruthless.
He jammed his right hand—the one still tethered—deeper into the beast's fur.
And with his left hand—the one inside the monster's mouth—he activated [Heal].
Inside the mouth.
The emerald light exploded inside the Frost Head's throat.
Healing magic wasn't meant to be an attack. But pure, concentrated life energy exploding in a dark creature's sensitive gullet was disorienting.
The Frost Head gagged, its jaws loosening just enough.
Zack ripped his arm free, blood spraying. He rolled underneath the beast, narrowly avoiding a stomp from its massive paw.
He was under the belly now. The soft underbelly.
"Jackpot," he hissed.
He activated [Shadow's Cloak] again, vanishing into the darkness beneath the monster.
He grabbed the fur on the creature's stomach and pulled himself up, clinging like a tick.
He placed both hands flat against the creature's ribs.
"[Energy Drain]! Max Output!"
The Cerberus went wild. It felt the parasite draining it. It jumped, bucked, and rolled, trying to crush Zack.
Zack held on for dear life. He was being slammed against the stone floor, dragged through acid pools, and battered by the sheer force of the beast's thrashing.
Every time he took damage—acid burn, broken rib, concussion—he cast [Heal].
Damage. Heal. Drain. Damage. Heal. Drain.
It was a war of attrition.
And Zack was winning.
He could feel the beast slowing down. Its movements were becoming sluggish. Its roars were turning into whines. He was sucking it dry, turning its own massive vitality against it.
"Getting... tired?" Zack grunted, spitting out blood.
He released his grip and dropped to the floor.
The Cerberus stumbled, its legs shaking. It turned to face him, but its eyes were dim. The glowing green saliva was just a drip. The frost breath was a cold wheeze.
Zack stood up. He was battered, his clothes were rags, and he was covered in his own blood and the monster's slime.
But he stood straight. His stats were pushed to their absolute limit.
He walked toward the beast.
"End game," he said.
The Cerberus, driven by instinct, lunged for one final attack. Both heads snapped at him.
Zack stepped forward. His 47.7 Agility was now overwhelming against the weakened, drained monster.
He stepped between the two heads.
He grabbed the loose skin on the back of their necks.
With a roar of exertion that strained every muscle fiber in his 47.0 Strength body, he pulled.
He yanked the heads together.
CRACK!
The two skulls collided with sickening force. The beast stunned itself.
Zack didn't let go. He vaulted onto the monster's back, right between the shoulder blades.
He raised his right hand. The [God-Eater] aura wasn't just a mist anymore. It was a solid, jagged blade of darkness extending from his fist.
"This is for the grind," he whispered.
He drove his hand down.
It pierced the thick hide, the muscle, and the bone. It plunged deep into the monster's chest, seeking the core.
He found it. A dual-core, spinning with opposing energies.
"[DEVOUR]!"
The Cerberus stiffened. Its twin howls were cut short.
The massive body began to convulse, shrinking rapidly. The fur turned gray and fell out. The muscles withered. The bones turned to dust.
Zack rode the dying beast down to the ground.
He didn't stop draining until there was nothing left but a pile of black ash and silence.
Zack knelt in the ash, his chest heaving.
He checked his body. He was a mess of healed scars and fresh bruises, but he was whole. His Spirit was surprisingly high—he had ended the fight with nearly 40% Spirit remaining, thanks to the massive drain on the boss.
This was the power of the God-Eater. As long as there was an enemy, he could not die.
He looked at the ash pile.
Resting there, glowing with a beautiful, deep blue light, was a pile of cubes.
It was a massive haul. A "Roaming Boss" summoned by a paid item dropped significantly more loot than a natural dungeon boss.
Zack's hands shook as he reached for them.
He counted them.
3 Blue Strength Cubes.
3 Blue Agility Cubes.
3 Blue Stamina Cubes.
3 Blue Spirit Cubes.
2 Blue Defense Cubes.
He did the math in his head instantly.
Each Blue Cube was 1.0 point.
Strength: 47.0 + 3.0 = 50.0.
Agility: 47.7 + 3.0 = 50.7.
Stamina: 47.7 + 3.0 = 50.7.
Spirit: 47.0 + 3.0 = 50.0.
Defense: 48.1 + 2.0 = 50.1.
He had done it. He had cleared the threshold.
"System," he rasped. "Absorb all."
The cubes dissolved into streams of light—blue, white, red, green, yellow. They swirled around him before slamming into his chest.
It wasn't painful. It felt like a lock clicking into place.
A deep, resonant gong sound echoed in his mind.
His body felt... complete. The last bits of weakness were purged. His bones hardened to the density of steel. His muscles achieved a perfect efficiency. His mind expanded, his senses reaching out to fill the room.
[Stats Updated.]
[Threshold Reached: 50.0 in ALL Attributes.]
[System Assessment: Complete.]
[CONGRATULATIONS, HOST.]
[You have surpassed the limits of the E-Rank shell.]
[Promoting Host Rank...]
A column of golden light erupted from the floor, engulfing Zack. It was warm, comforting. He felt his very DNA being rewritten, optimized, evolved.
[Rank Up: D-Rank (Beginner).]
[All stats normalized to Rank Baseline.]
Note: Excess decimal points from cubes absorbed during the breakthrough are retained as 'Potential' for the next rank.
[New Feature Unlocked: D-Rank Parallel Dimension.]
[New Feature Unlocked: Class Evolution Path (Locked until C-Rank).]
[System Shop Updated: D-Rank Items available.]
The light faded.
Zack stood up. He felt lighter. The gravity of the world seemed to have lessened. He looked at his hand. He clenched his fist, and the air popped from the speed and pressure.
He wasn't just an E-Ranker punching above his weight anymore.
He was a D-Rank Hunter. A true one.
And in the real world, where Hunters usually had unbalanced stats, a "Perfect 50" D-Rank was a monster.
"Monday," Zack said, a grin splitting his face. "Bring it on."
He checked the time in the real world. It was 4:00 AM on Monday morning.
He had four hours until he had to report to the Academy.
"System. Exit Dimension."
Zack reappeared in his study. The silence of the house was a stark contrast to the violence of the dimension.
He walked to the window and watched the sun begin to rise over the city.
He was tired, yes. But it was a good tired. The kind that came after a job finished.
He went to the kitchen and drank a liter of water. Then he went upstairs to shower and change.
He put on the gray Academy tracksuit. It was cheap, scratchy material. It fit him a little tight around the chest and shoulders now.
He looked in the mirror.
He saw the patch on his shoulder: SUPPORT CLASS.
He touched it.
"Support," he chuckled. "Yeah. I'll support them."
He grabbed his bag. He didn't need weapons. His body was the weapon. He packed his toiletries, a few changes of clothes, and his "Healer" kit.
He walked out the door, locking his house behind him.
He got into his car and drove toward Sector 1.
The Central Awakened Academy was a fortress. Huge concrete walls, guard towers, and a massive steel gate greeted him. Hundreds of other cars were lining up. He saw nervous teenagers, grim-faced adults, and arrogant-looking scions in expensive, custom-made armor stepping out of limousines.
Zack parked his modest sedan in the student lot.
He got out, slinging his bag over one shoulder.
"Hey! You!"
A voice called out from behind him.
Zack turned.
Three young men were walking toward him. They were wearing the Academy tracksuit, but theirs looked tailored. They had the COMBAT CLASS patch on their shoulders. The one in the lead, a blond guy with a sneer, looked Zack up and down.
"Support Class, huh?" the blond guy laughed, nudging his friend. "Here to carry our bags, newbie? You look like you got lost on the way to the cafeteria."
Zack looked at them.
A week ago, he might have been intimidated. They were probably E-Rank (High) or maybe even D-Rank (Beginner) from rich families.
Now?
Zack looked at the blond guy. He saw the stance that was off-balance. He saw the exposed neck. He saw the slow, sluggish pulse of energy in the guy's veins.
He saw prey. Or rather, he saw an ant trying to bully a boot.
Zack didn't get angry. He didn't flare his aura.
He just smiled. That kind, gentle, harmless smile.
"Actually," Zack said, his voice polite and soft. "I'm just here to learn. Like everyone else."
He turned his back on them and walked toward the gate.
"Hey! I'm talking to you!" the blond guy yelled, reaching out to grab Zack's shoulder.
Zack didn't stop. He simply shifted his shoulder, a movement of less than an inch, timed perfectly with his 50.7 Agility.
The blond guy grabbed empty air, stumbled, and fell face-first onto the pavement.
Smack.
Laughter erupted from the other students nearby.
The blond guy scrambled up, his face red with rage and embarrassment. "You... you tripped me!"
Zack stopped and looked back, his face a mask of concern. "Oh no! Are you okay? You should really watch your step. The ground is uneven here."
He turned and walked through the gates of the Academy.
The grind was over. The game had begun.
[Reader's Note: Zack's Stats ]
Rank: D (Beginner) / (System Rank: D (Beginner))
Class: Healer / God-Eater (Mythical)
Strength: 50.0
Agility: 50.0
Stamina: 50.0
Spirit: 50.0
Defense: 50.0
(Note: Zack has officially reached the baseline for D-Rank in his System. Any decimal points over 50.0 were absorbed into the rank-up process to stabilize his foundation. He is now a "Perfect" D-Rank Beginner.)