Going in Azrael decided to check his stats inside the car
________________________________________
____________[Status Window]_____________
[Name: Azrael Talen]
[Level: 11]
[Class: Null]
[Title: Transmigrator]
[HP: 150]
[MP: 250]
[STR: 25]
[AGI :28]
[VIT :24]
[PER :20]
[INT :50]
[Fatigue: 90]
[Unused Stat Points:5]
[Skills]
[Appraisal]
[Allows the user to analyze and obtain detailed information about objects, creatures, and individuals. Useful for identifying weapon/armor properties, potions, and assessing enemy capabilities].
[Whispers of the Shadows]
[Hear the whispers of the dead. Grants minor insights from lost souls.
Passive Bonus: Enhanced combat awareness, improved agility, ability to sense hidden foes, and anticipate enemy movements.]
[Assassin's Build – X-Rank]
[A rare, altered assassin-type skill. Branches into side-skills at every 5 levels.]
[Basic Dagger Mastery]
[Improves proficiency with daggers: attack speed, accuracy, and precision strikes.]
[Shadow Veil – B-Rank]
[Shrouds the user in darkness, reducing visibility and silencing movement.
Cooldown: 30 seconds.]
[Daily Quest – Incomplete]
Push-ups: 100
Sit-ups: 100
Squats: 100
Run 10 kilometers: √
[Warning: Failure will result in a Penalty.]
[Rewards: +3 Stat Points, +Random Reward Box]
________________________________________
The hum of the Tesla's engine faded into silence as it pulled to a stop in front of the towering Hunter Association building. Azrael glanced up from his system window, blinking as the digital stats dissolved from his vision like mist. The building loomed ahead sleek, modern, and layered with glass panels that shimmered under the evening sun. It was busy, hunters coming and going, clad in a variety of combat gear, some bloodied, some spotless, most looking tired and irritable.
Lyra was already halfway out the door, stretching with a loud yawn. "Hurry up, bro. I want to see how much this 'no-drop, high-risk' dungeon's worth. Maybe they'll think we broke it."
Azrael followed her, but his gaze flicked backward for just a second toward where the black SUV had vanished. The image of the two men bowing deeply to Lyra replayed in his mind. Their expressions, their words, and more than anything, their sharp eyes that locked onto him like hawks. Find out everything about that boy… up to his pin… The memory made his spine stiffen if not for his passive skill shadow whispers he won't be able to hear them in the car.
"Lyra," he murmured, catching up to her at the sliding doors, "Who were those men?"
She turned her head slightly, still walking. "Hm? Just people from the Evercrest family. You know, house things."
"People who dig into strangers like they're spies?"
She stopped walking, facing him now. "What's with the tone?" Her voice wasn't defensive, but it wasn't as light as before. "Look, I didn't tell them anything about you. You just happened to be there. That's all. And trust me, if they really suspected you, they wouldn't be asking questions. They'd be acting."
That wasn't comforting, but Azrael let it go for now.
They passed through security quickly. Lyra flashed her ID, and Azrael showed the temporary card she had pulled strings to get for him. Once inside, the Association's interior opened up like a palace of polished obsidian and light elegant black stone walls with glowing neon strips that pulsed gently, guiding hunters to their destinations. Screens displayed recent dungeon clearings, bounties, and regional activity levels.
"Azrael Talen and Lyra Evercrest, please proceed to Counter 3 for reward processing," a voice echoed from the PA system.
They approached the glass booth where a middle-aged woman in a crimson vest typed rapidly behind a desk. She barely looked up. "Name and dungeon type?"
"Lyra Evercrest and Azrael Talen. E-rank Green Gate, difficulty spike registered. No drops, no monsters past floor two, dungeon collapse within forty minutes," Lyra answered crisply.
The woman paused, tapping a few more keys, then finally looked up. "That's… strange. No mana crystals, no monster corpses?"
"Nope," Lyra shrugged. "Only two small packs of corrupted ice wolves and a golem. Then it just started breaking apart."
Azrael stayed quiet, watching the woman's fingers twitch as she pulled up data on her screen. Her brow furrowed.
"There's no record of other teams entering the gate… and the mana saturation readings show it should've been C-rank, not E. Did you two encounter any irregularities Abd you say you two newly awakened killed a golem 🧐 i need to report this to my superior later?".
Only a shadow whispering to me, and a system threatening to rip me apart. Azrael inwardly scoffed.
"Nope," Lyra said casually. "Just a dud, I guess."
"Suspicious," the woman muttered but stamped their reward slips. "One low-value clear bonus. No drop record, so only the base contribution applies."
They each received 120,000 won barely enough to cover a decent meal and transport costs. Lyra didn't seem disappointed, but Azrael frowned at the sum. Risk your life and maybe get enough for a dinner buffet.
As they turned to leave, the whispers returned.
"Watcher… You are watched…"
Azrael paused mid-step. His eyes narrowed.
The shadows near the ceiling flickered. The overhead lights dimmed not visibly, but subtly. He could feel it.A presence.
Someone was observing him.
He activated Whispers of the Shadows instinctively.
His senses sharpened.
Dozens of people moved through the hall, but one stood out a tall man in an all-black suit leaning by the far elevator, pretending to look at his tablet. No ID, no badge. Too still. Too clean. His eyes flicked up only once.
Azrael met them. Cold. Calculating. The man turned and entered the elevator.And he was gone.
"Bro?" Lyra called, waving a hand in front of him. "You alright?"
He nodded slowly. "Yeah… Let's get out of here."
Once outside, the setting sun painted the sky in oranges and purples. Lyra stretched again.
"Hey. Let's hit the training center," she said. "You need to cash in that strength you showcased in the dungeon okay?"
Azrael checked his window again.
[Daily Quest Complete!]
[Reward: 3 Stat Points + Random Reward Box] [Would you like to claim rewards? Y/N]
He mentally hit Y.
The three stat points glowed and dissolved into his body. A small silver box materialized in his hand about the size of a jewelry case, faint runes etched across its surface.
[Random Reward Box Opened!] [Congratulations! You have obtained: Shadow Dancer's Band (C-Rank)]
[Shadow Dancer's Band] [An enchanted ring that increases agility by +5 and grants minor resistance to detection-based skills.]
That's… actually pretty damn useful. He slid the ring onto his finger. It pulsed softly, syncing with him.
They made their way to the nearby training center a sleek compound with private rooms for sparring, weight training, and ability testing. Azrael followed Lyra into one of the private chambers where she plopped herself onto a bench.
"Alright, let's see how strong you are now," she grinned. "No holding back."
"You sure?" he asked, stretching.
"Oh, please." She tied her hair back. "If I don't beat the crap out of you once a day, I start twitching."
Azrael grinned slightly and entered a stance. Assassin's Build—activate Shadow Veil he thought.
His body shimmered, fading into the shadows like he was never there not even his presence was felt soon he appeared at lyra's back.
Lyra's smile widened. "Oh, that's new you got a new skill that means you have mastered the first one to perfection just in one raid thats monstrous."
If only she knew i can acquire them without mastering it rather i must nearly die before i get one and i have 4 in my arsenal. Azrael thought while smiling.
The spar lasted fifteen minutes. Blades clashed, footsteps blurred, and the chamber sensors flickered from the sheer speed of their movements. Azrael didn't win but he landed three hits.
That was more than yesterday.
As he collapsed onto the floor, panting, his fatigue meter pushed into the red.
[Fatigue: 98 – Rest Recommended]
"You're getting sharper," Lyra said, offering him a bottle of water. "Honestly, a few more skills and training but you can't surpass a C-rank Variant, and you'll probably be able to match most mid-tier hunters."
Azrael took the bottle, drinking slowly. "If I don't die of exhaustion first."
She laughed, then suddenly grew quiet.
"You know… They're going to keep watching you," she said, tone soft but serious. "Evercrest doesn't let things slide. You're in too deep now If it's too much you can just take my snap and leave or you could join the academy as a commoner."
Azrael stared at the ceiling, eyes empty for a moment. Then he whispered, "Let them watch."
Why does my skills sound so evil geez talk about a broken system.