Isaac crouched next to the Salirian's corpse, his gaze sweeping over the alien's remains from head to toe. Now that the shock of killing another Host was fading, he could finally focus on the other important issue with this entire mess.

  This wasn't a human but an honest-to-god alien.

  Even though he had accepted that his life had somehow become a playground for some powerful—or maybe even omniscient—entity, he had assumed only Earth was affected. Which, in hindsight, was quite a reasonable conclusion. Even if people loved talking about aliens, no one really expected to get real proof of their existence—at least not in their lifetime.

  Yet here he was, staring at the warm corpse of a brand-new species.

  Isaac snorted. Of course the first meeting between a human and extraterrestrial had to end in violence and death on one side.

  It's like some self-fulfilling prophecy.

  Shaking his head, he reached for the body, intending to turn it over. Yet, just as his hand brushed against the Salirian's clothes, another Interface notification popped up right in front of him.

  Host! As the winner of the duel inside this Quarantine Dimension, you have the opportunity to absorb the remnants of your opponent's Virus. In the future, this process might not always be available unless you meet certain conditions.

  Do you wish to proceed?

  Isaac blinked. This he hadn't expected. The corpse hadn't disappeared like the other monsters, but that was easy enough to explain. This though? The short-term benefit might be nice, but his mind instantly went to all the possible consequences of offers like this.

  Don't tell me people will have another reason to start killing each other…

  The only saving grace of this notification was the mention of those 'certain conditions.' If not for that, he could only imagine the total chaos he would return to after finishing this trial. Though, considering how messed up some people were—and wasn't he a hypocrite for even thinking that?—the mere possibility of absorbing other hosts might still cause tons of trouble.

  Then again, it really depends on what those conditions are… Interface, you willing to help out this once?

  To his surprise, the first part of the message before him shifted a bit.

  At the current stage, absorption is only possible if the following conditions are met: The defeated Host is of a different species. Their Sire is different from yours. Your Virus stage is equal to or lower than the absorption target.

  "Huh…" Isaac muttered, still half-surprised that his query had worked.

  Though, honestly, this might have happened only because he killed the other Host. For some weird reason, he doubted the Interface would be this helpful just to anyone.

  Still, I got what I wanted, he mused, reading the notification again. It definitely put some of his worries to rest. Then again, the mention of Sires created even more questions in his mind. He still had no idea what that really meant.

  One step at a time, Isaac. One step at a time. For now, let's see what will happen if I do this…

  With a single nudge of his mind, he accepted the Interface's prompt to absorb the Virus.

  Bright light instantly washed over the corpse before him, covering every single part of the alien, even the separated arm and head. Then, with a loud crack, the body shattered into countless motes of light that rushed into Isaac's body.

  All that remained of the alien were its clothes and weapons.

  Absorption successful. Your Virus has grown in strength and entered the third Phase of development.

  This time, Isaac felt the change right away. His Viron spiked, thrashing wildly all around his body. The gaps left behind by his previous use of Blood Draw filled out within seconds. More than that, for the first time since gaining this new energy, he finally had some inkling of just how much of it coursed through his form.

  A lot more than he had expected, that was for sure. He should be able to use at least six Blood Draws before coming close to running out.

  I am slowly getting the hang of this, he thought as Viron settled—still wild, but much calmer than a moment ago. It still refused to listen to him, but at least now, he could push it around a little without much of a fight.

  Another notification had also arrived as the rush ended.

  Viron: Potency has advanced a tier.

  Good progress. And I still have to kill the boss. Isaac smiled and reached for the items left behind by the Salirian.

  The clothes, while appearing ancient, were surprisingly well-made. He still put them to the side. Analyze didn't work on them, so they couldn't be anything special. Besides, even if riddled with minor cuts, he liked what he was already wearing.

  Another potion? He raised an eyebrow as he fished out a vial of brown liquid from the alien's leather pouch. Analyze.

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  [Energy Potion (P) | Grade: Inferior]

  A weak energy potion that speeds up the body's processing power, thus providing a small temporary boost to the Host's physical capabilities. Beware: Repetitive use may lead to rapid exhaustion and even sudden unconsciousness.

  A magic stimulant? Lucky that guy never had a chance to use it.

  With that, Isaac pocketed the vial and slumped down against a half-collapsed wall. The alien possessed nothing else of use to him. Though, he should take the short sword once he decided to head for the boss. A backup blade could be useful.

  For now though, he still needed some rest.

  His left arm, while functional at this point, hurt like hell to move—the closing hole in his shoulder made sure of that. And then there was the cut on his chest, soaking all his clothes with a constant supply of fresh blood. At least, the injuries on his leg and back had mostly healed.

  My Virus Integrity also isn't doing too bad, all things considered.

  Virus Integrity: 63%

  With the injuries the Salirian had given him, he had worried this percentage would be much lower. But, apparently, wounds gained from other Hosts weren't as dangerous as those from Broken Strain monsters. Or well, at least not dangerous to Virus Integrity.

  If not for his Origin, he would have probably bled out long ago.

  "Blood," he whispered, placing his fingers against the cut on his chest. The crimson liquid slowly spilled onto his palm. "So that guy had lightning… or something related. Hmm…”

  Back when he first checked the definition of Origin, the Interface mentioned the infinite aspects of the Mystical World. He still had no idea what that was, but aspects? That, he was beginning to understand. Still, he couldn't help but wonder just what counted as one.

  If they're supposed to be infinite. Can alcohol also be one? Or plastic? He chuckled, wincing as the action shot a spike of pain through his chest. Right, no sudden movements…

  Either way, Isaac couldn't wait to return to Earth. According to his phone, it was the middle of the night back home. By now, more people must have unlocked their Origin. Or maybe not. He had no idea how it all worked for Hosts who weren't part of these messed-up trials.

  Look at me, all it took was the world ending to get excited about something. If you can see me now, old man, I'm sure you're having a good laugh.

  He shook his head, a weak smile stretching across his face. At the very least, he could be certain the old man would be happy with how quickly he adapted to the new order. After that? He would probably start worrying about the rest of the family.

  Shit. Elaine…

  Isaac and the old man's granddaughter had never really gotten along despite his final caretaker's best effort to make them co-exist. And once the man passed, the situation between them only took a turn for the worse. The contents of the will certainly hadn’t helped mend their relationship.

  Damn… Isaac let out a heavy sigh. I'm gonna have to check on her once I return, aren't I?

  He wanted to feel annoyed—his go-to emotion when the woman came up—but he couldn't. Not after everything the old man had done for him. Checking in on his last blood relative was the least he could do in return.

  That was all he planned to do, though. If Elaine were alive and safe, she could take care of herself. It wasn’t like she would accept help even when offered, at least not from him.

  Right. I will deal with that later… I still have the boss left, and checking out the final ruins might also be a good idea. He nodded to himself. First though, what's this new skill I got?

  [Blood Dagger | Grade: Normal | Tier I]

  An active Origin ability. You may now summon small, sharp blood constructs and fire them at your enemies.

  Another simple one, Isaac hummed and reached for his Origin.

  The connection answered and moved Viron across his body. Instinctively, he raised his hand, palm up, and watched as a small cloud of crimson miasma gathered above it. Slowly, it shifted, taking the shape of a simple spike-like blade.

  Isaac lowered his hand, yet the blood dagger remained afloat, waiting for his command. He obliged and nudged the weak link inside his mind that definitely wasn't there before he activated this skill.

  In response, the crimson blade shot forward and sank into a wall a few feet away. A second later, it faded out of sight, leaving behind a deep hole in the stone brick it hit.

  There's my range ability. No bows or crossbows needed.

  Even better, Blood Dagger barely drained his Viron. Isaac paid close attention when the energy moved, and it was nowhere near the amount he had used for Blood Draw. Which, to be fair, made sense. The difference in power between the two skills should be obvious to anyone with working eyes.

  Still useful, though. Especially if I can figure out how to summon multiple daggers at once.

  A task for later. For now, he had to wait for the bleeding to stop. Afterward, the third ruins, and the boss awaited.

  —————————————————————————

  It took over an hour before Isaac could move without being in constant pain. Sure, the raw cut on his chest was far from healed, but at the very least, it no longer made him squirm with every breath he took. The same applied to the hole in his shoulder. As long as he didn't make any sudden movements with his arm, it was fine.

  His Virus Integrity had also returned to the mid-seventies.

  As such, Isaac left the safety of the ruins and stepped back into the forest. For a brief moment, he considered just going inside the large building next to him, but if it was really the boss's lair, it could wait. There were still four hours on the timer, after all.

  With how fast his regeneration worked, he should be almost fully recovered after another hour or two.

  And so, he traveled toward the final ruins, killing every Deepearth Gremlin on the way. The creatures stood no chance, not when almost all of them were still level one. By now, he had only encountered one at level three, and even that monster had died from a quick Blood Dagger to the head.

  In the end though, his short trip was all for nothing. No monsters, no loot—just a single empty chest. Obviously, the other Host had already looted this place on the way. It was also probably where the explosion happened. He had found some scorch marks at the edge of the ruins.

  And so, slightly disappointed, Isaac returned to the only unexplored ruins. He stopped just at the edge of the forest, right where he had a clear sight of the entrance and the two gremlins guarding it.

  Blood Dagger.

  Instantly, two crimson clouds appeared at his sides, quickly condensing into familiar blade-like constructs. With a mental nudge, they shot toward the two gremlins like a bullet, plunging right into their skulls.

  The monsters crumbled to the ground.

  [Deepearth Gremlins x2 slain.]

  Blood Dagger has advanced a tier.

  That's tier three already. Isaac grinned, leaving his cover and approaching the two fallen gremlins. Still no level, though. Boss it is then.

  Drawing his longsword, he stepped into the dark entrance.

  Origin: Blood | LVL. 5

  Legacy: Locked

  Virus Integrity: 74%

  Agility: Feeble - Tier III

  Toughness: Feeble - Tier III

  Regeneration: Developed - Tier I

  Insight: Feeble - Tier III

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

  [Sacrifice | Grade: Normal | Tier II]

  [Blood Draw | Grade: Normal | Tier III]

  [Analyze | Grade: N/A]

  [Pain Tolerance | Grade: Inferior | Tier III]

  [Viron: Potency | Grade: Normal | Tier II]

  [Blood Dagger | Grade: Normal | Tier III]

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