Unlike back in the convenience shop, this time around, Isaac stood his ground against the pain, gripping the stone table so tightly his fingers nearly snapped. His knees buckled, his muscles screamed in protest, but his mind refused to yield. Deep within, he still heard the familiar song of his blood, fighting alongside him, helping him to process the pain.

  And so, he closed his eyes, focused on this feeling, and let it consume him.

  For seconds, minutes, or maybe even hours, Isaac weathered the inferno spreading through his body, claiming his every cell. Yet, the stronger it grew, so did his endurance as the blood sang louder and louder. Sometimes, it even managed to drown out the pain, giving him a brief respite. Without those, he might have gone mad.

  Thankfully, at some point, even the fire burning him from within had to give. Bit by bit, it backed off, leaving behind not a dull void or aching exhaustion, but something more—something he couldn't quite put into words.

  The sensation came from the center of his chest, yet Isaac somehow knew nothing inside his body changed there—well, almost nothing. It was a connection, a link, an extension of himself—like a limb—except one he couldn't even control. The mystery just sat there, waiting and echoing with the same comforting song that helped him with the pain.

  Although, it didn't stick around for long, and as the last bits of pain left his body, so too did the song. The connection, however, remained, lying in wait, now just pulsing in the beat of his own heart.

  Isaac gasped, trying to stop hyper-focusing on this new connection—organ… whatever.

  What is this… What did you do to me?

  Yet that wasn't the end of the surprises. As his eyes opened and he regained full control of his body, it didn't take him long to realize that something more inside his body had changed. Just like with the mysterious connection, he didn't quite know how to describe it, but one thing was obvious.

  Isaac had never felt more alive.

  His entire body was brimming with some unknown energy, coursing through his skin, veins, bones, and even organs. He stepped away from the stone table, and the energy moved with him as if supporting his every motion. To put it simply, there wasn't a part of himself he couldn't feel.

  It was quite overwhelming, if he had to be honest. Not in a bad way, though, just confusing—something he would have to get used to.

  Is this… Is this that Viron the Interface mentioned? Isaac mused, trying to reach the new energy with his thoughts.

  Of course, that didn't work. Not that it stopped him from trying again and again.

  Maybe if he kept at it, he would have figured something out—or just gotten lost in the thrill of chasing the unknown—but the red text flashing before his eyes yanked him back to reality. He blinked, shaking off the daze, and mentally tried to push the overwhelming energy out of his head.

  Somehow, it worked.

  Linking successful. Congratulations! You have awakened the Origin of Blood. Viron production is back online. More Interface notifications are ready and waiting for your command.

  His Origin—blood. It should have surprised him, but it really didn't. With the song pushing him forward during every struggle, and now the constant echo of his heartbeat, this outcome was quite obvious. Or it would have been if he understood more about Origins.

  Isaac grimaced as a sudden headache surged through his skull. He instinctively knew the cause—the waiting notifications of red text pressing against his mind. Still, he didn't give the command to release them just yet.

  Surroundings and timer first.

  He rubbed his eyes as he scanned the area around him. Not much—if anything—seemed to change since his episode began. The only noticeable difference was the dimming of the four blue flames. A few more hours, and they would vanish completely.

  Which means this had to take longer than a few minutes. He thought, summoning the timer first. The pain in his head intensified at that, but he would have to deal with it for a minute longer.

  Time until release: 29 minutes.

  "Oh…" Isaac muttered, his eyes growing wide. The last time he checked the timer, he still had over three hours left. "I need to hurry."

  Without any further delay, he called on the first notification held back by his headache. To his surprise, it was just his status, not a full one, though.

  Name: Isaac Walker

  Origin: Blood | LVL. 1

  Legacy: Locked

  Virus Stage: I - Attachment (Phase 1)

  Virus Integrity: 100%

  There it is. His gaze drifted past the new Origin. Wait what? Hundred percent? How?

  Isaac quickly glanced at the cut on his arm and then the ones on his leg. Nothing. Well, nothing aside from fresh, somewhat pink skin. Whatever wounds he had, they healed during his hours-long suffering.

  That's nice, he thought, summoning the onslaught of the waiting notification.

  Connection with Origin of Blood established. You may now level up through many different actions to obtain Ascension Power needed to advance your attributes. Please familiarize yourself with the following information.

  [Blood - You now embody one of the ancient Origins of Life and Death. It will now assist you in all your future struggles. Blood calls for blood. Regeneration attribute efficiency greatly enhanced.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  Ascension Power distribution: Power: Peak | Agility: Normal | Toughness: Low | Regeneration: Enhanced Peak | Insight: Normal]

  Your Origin has managed to awaken with three starting abilities: Symphony of Blood, Sacrifice, and Blood Draw. Check your status to learn more about them.

  There was something more waiting in the back of his mind, but Isaac stopped the flow of the red text at this point. His headache had already faded, so he might as well take a moment to process what the Interface had given him until now.

  The part about levels he remembered. Although, it would be nice to know what exactly those 'many different actions' mentioned were. Not that he couldn't figure that out on his own. No reason to worry.

  Guess now I know why I healed so fast, Isaac mused, looking through the description of his Origin. Life and Death, though? Sounds important. And the distribution… Let's try this. Interface: Enhanced Peak.

  Nothing. The Interface stayed silent.

  He furrowed his brow and tried again with the other attributes. Still nothing. Either the Interface wasn't ready to tell him yet, or—more likely—he had to figure it out on his own.

  Fine by me. He shrugged and dismissed the notifications he had already processed. There was still the one about his three new abilities, but he ignored it for now. He had to check the status again for them anyway, and the headache was slowly returning.

  Whatever the final message from the Interface was, it had to be important.

  Beware, Host! Only thirty minutes are left until your trial for the Integration rewards will begin. Once the timer falls to zero, you will be released into a small Quarantine dimension filled with enemies claimed by the Broken Strain. Defeat the boss and claim its key to complete the trial. To help you in your future struggles, you have been granted the basic Analyze skill.

  Warning! Acceptable modifications to the trial detected. Applying… Success! To all Hosts: Obtain the key by any means necessary. Potential bonus rewards established. Good Luck. May the best Virus win.

  Isaac stared at the message, silent for a moment. Then, slowly, a small smile tugged at his lips.

  "So that's how it is," he whispered. "Very well."

  He should have been angry, mad really, at the final part of the notification. Someone powerful was playing with him and all the hosts, who did their best to awaken early. His earlier comparison to this being similar to a game was becoming more and more real.

  And yet, Isaac barely felt a speck of anger inside him as his smile grew wider. So the Interface—or whoever the hell did this—screwed them all over again. Nothing they could do about it anyway now, so why bother complaining? The trial was coming, and they had to survive by any means necessary, just as the message said.

  And he definitely would. After all, he wasn't planning to die here, not when he was just starting to come alive.

  "Bring it on," Isaac muttered, dismissing the message.

  The beginning of a familiar song—no, not a song, a symphony—entered his veins, his blood, repeating the same notes over and over. It wanted to play more, but for now, it was just happy to wait for the next stage to come.

  I see.

  [Symphony of Blood | Grade: Superior | Tier I]

  A strong pseudo-passive Origin ability. Awakens the blood during times of struggle and battle to assist its host. Slightly enhances the user's perception and battle prowess. Heightens pain tolerance.

  Thank you for helping me even before the awakening, Isaac called out even though no one was listening. Now, at least, he had a name for the force that had assisted him during every battle, during every second of struggle back in Galt.

  And there's more, he thought, summoning the descriptions of his two next Origin skills.

  [Sacrifice | Grade: Normal | Tier I]

  An active Origin ability. You may now use some of the blood coursing through your veins to enhance the next Origin-related ability. Beware: Your blood isn't limitless.

  [Blood Draw | Grade: Normal | Tier I]

  An active Origin ability. By drawing onto the power of your Origin with Viron, you may now unleash waves of deadly blood. Best used when armed.

  Isaac grinned. "Short and simple. I like it." His brow then furrowed. "But how the hell do I use any of you?"

  Symphony of Blood wasn't a problem. It should activate on its own when needed. For now, that should do. But the other two? The interface definitely didn't give him any guidance on how to activate them. Was he supposed to work it out on his own, or was there something he was missing?

  He glanced at the ever-present timer. Twenty-four minutes. That's… not good. Maybe that Analyze skill?

  [Analyze | Grade: N/A]

  A very basic scouting ability provided by the Interface. Can be used to assess some of the threats by comparing them to the host's power level. Also useful for analyzing new items. Activated with a mental command.

  So in short, very useful but won't help with my problem. Got it. Isaac summed up and glanced at the sword lying on the table. Might as well test it out. Analyze.

  It seemed that, for once, he had done something right as a second later, brand new text appeared before him. This time, it was blue for some reason.

  [Simple Longsword | Grade: Inferior]

  An ancient longsword modified by the Overseer to remain sharp and in one piece for the duration of the Pioneer trial.

  "Huh." Isaac blinked. "Not what I expected, but okay."

  Just to make sure the ability was working correctly, he used it on a few more items in the room. Weapons or the leftover food? No problem. But when given anything else to work with—like the blue flames, for example—it didn't even activate.

  Whatever. Got to figure out those two skills in twenty minutes. Or at least that Blood Draw. Sacrifice can wait.

  And so, just like the ability said, Isaac grabbed the longsword and got to work. It mentioned Viron and Origin, so that was what he began with, and to his surprise, it worked out better than he expected.

  While he couldn't control the new energy coursing through his body—that was far beyond him for now—calling his Origin for help turned out to be quite simple. All it took was a mind focused on the new ability and a phantom hand reaching out toward the pulsing link.

  However, his revelation didn't arrive in the form of some instant knowledge download or something similar. No, what happened next was quite a unique experience.

  As if guided by an unseen hand, Isaac adjusted his stance, spreading his legs just a bit. At the same time, Viron stirred within his body, first reaching toward the Origin, then flowing into his hands, and spreading over the longsword waiting there.

  A crimson, liquid-like mass bled out from his fingers and crawled over the blade until no metal remained visible. Then, Isaac struck.

  The moment his blade started to move, so did the energy. It surged outward, exploding in a wave of blood that followed the arc of his swing. Its reach, however, was far beyond the weapon's length, almost reaching the wall a few feet away from him.

  And then, as quickly as it began, it was over. His swing came to an end, and the blood upon his blade faded, the lingering trail vanishing a second later. Now, he simply stood there, sword still extended, and the room as quiet as ever.

  "Wow," Isaac muttered as he lowered the blade. His eyes locked onto the wall ahead, and at that moment, he realized how wrong he had been. "No way…"

  Stepping forward, he reached out, letting his hand glide over a few bricks. His fingers sunk into a cut, short and shallow, but still a cut nonetheless. One that definitely wasn't here before.

  Isaac laughed.