Draven slowly opened his eyes. When he tried to stretch, he winced from the pain over his body.
"Urgh… I need to get treated. Who knows if the wound will worsen?" He mumbled and sat up.
Standing to his feet, he slid the curtain aside. Noticing it was still very early from the dark horizon, Draven decided to plan his day.
He went to his bed and lay down.
'All I need to do today is ask Doctor Annie about Elites and hunt. But I need effective hunting; running and searching wildly will only slow me down. I might even run into a trap like those vines. Also, I need to get my wound treated.'
Draven drew his phone from his pocket, sighing in relief when he noticed his cracked screen hadn't worsened even after he slept on it. Then he logged into the Transient Elite forum, scanning his badge and face as the clearance.
There, he saw more than different talks, ranging from successive hunts, advertisements of gears, rumors of monsters, strange locations, group hunting patterns, and many more. When he scrolled through, he realized there were many Rank 1 Planes. But Draven was experienced with precise searches, as he had done so with the Blue Plane.
So, he filtered it until it remained talks about Green House Rank 1 Plane.
That was how he got to work. Draven meticulously read through with rapt attention, ranging from facts to rumors to useless talks. He even saw some sketches of maps.
Though there were many useless talks, and he got the reason after a brief pondering—why would anybody release accurate locations of monsters instead of hunting themselves if they want to ascend? From most write-ups, he realized that Transient Elites are considered half-elites. So, every Transient Elite wants to ascend! They are highly motivated to advance!
After much work, he finally finished going through many things. He stretched his stiff body but groaned at the stinging pain.
'This is going to lower my hunting efficiency.'
His stomach suddenly grumbled.
Turning his head, Draven noticed the sun coming out.
He ignored the hunger and decided to check his Elite System first.
––––
[Name]: Draven
[Class]: None
[Race]: Human
[Legacy]: Soul Mystic (Sealed)
[Rank]: Transient
[Order]: Second
[Soul Vitalis]: 20
[Mana]: 8/100
>Physique: 2
>Constitution: 1
>Will: 28
[Skills]: [Mental Serration], [Soul Sense], [Stasis], [Igni Vitalis], [Soul Covenant (25% Unsealed)]
[Gears]: [Oculus Visor], [Verdant Reaper], [Iron Plate], [Penta Claw] (×2), [Key 122]
–
[CURSE OF VOIDHELL]
––––
'My Soul Vitalis is remaining twenty? I even killed a Second Order Transient monster when I was a First Order Transient Elite, but still received a single Soul Vitalis. If not for running into a horde of First Order Transient monsters, I would have been left zero Soul Vitalis! Luckily, even after I've ascended, I still receive Soul Vitalis from First Order Transient monsters. But… does that mean I will focus on First Order Transient monsters to be able to keep up with the depletion of my Soul Vitalis?'
His eyes lowered to see his Physique and Constitution attributes, making his expression darken.
Draven finally realized while this flaw was fatal to him—to kill the same rank and order of monster as himself would require depletion of more than one Soul Vitalis, while he would receive only one in return. If this situation continues, his Soul Vitalis will continue to deplete until it is completely empty. When that happens, with his problematic attributes distribution, he will become a fish on the chopping board. A mere First Order Transient Elite.
'Worse of all, I can only receive a single mana value from First Order Transient monster crystals now that I've ascended!' He cursed inwardly, thinking of a solution.
Another grumble from his stomach broke him from his trance.
Shaking his head, he decided with a glint in his eyes, 'Looks like I have to follow that Soul Mystic suggestion in order to survive and cure my sickness.'
Draven decided to check his new gears.
––––
[Gear: Penta Claw]
[Rank: Transient]
[Order: First Order]
[Type: Weapon]
[Description: A flexible but tough glove with five claws! A protector of the hand!]
––––
'I received two!'
Summoning a single gear for his right hand, a black glove materialized and enveloped the hand.
It was a comfy black glove with pointed tips at his fingers. He flexed his hand. Nodding his head, he ran his fingers on the wall, drawing five gashes over it.
'Sharp, but no normal person will battle close to a monster.'
He dismissed it and switched to the key.
––––
[Gear: Key 122]
[Rank: Transient]
[Order: Second Order]
[Type: Utility]
[Description: A single key to a single door.
⟨Kill Count: When exposed, records the number of keys of Transient beings.⟩]
––––
Summoning it, a palm-sized rectangular card appeared in his hand, with the key name on it.
Dismissing it, Draven went to take a bath that made him wince every time he touched his bruises and wounds.
It made him remember that he had a skill that could quicken his healing.
'Sigh! I need to get used to my skills, to make it my instinct. I could have used it while sleeping.'
After bathing, he went to eat at a restaurant not far from his location. Then he left for the hospital to find Anna; she was the only person he knew who could explain the attribute stuff for him.
***
Draven soon found himself sitting opposite Annie. Both of them locked gazes in silence, with Draven smiling while Annie was frowning.
"You left before I returned," she said with a sharp gaze.
"I was in a hurry to enter the Plane, and luckily, I'm back," Draven said calmly, smiling to ease the tension.
Her brows knitted together.
"Why are you back? To get more bad news? Fine! Lie down, so that I can test you, and you will get the news of your death drawing closer!" She snapped.
Draven opened his mouth but shut it when he didn't know how to reply. He couldn't understand her anger. They had only met three times, with this being the fourth, so she shouldn't care if he dies.
Annie waved her hand and finally smiled. "Forget about my outburst, but you should have waited for me to return before leaving. So, why are you here?"
"I want to know about the Elite System," Draven said, not wanting to be specific, or else she might realize he stole her legacy.
"Didn't you learn that in school?" She questioned.
Draven smiled awkwardly, "I was depressed after knowing I might die, so I stopped attending theoretical classes, making the best use of my time while I'm alive."
Of course, the best use of his time wasn't for chasing pleasure but research about the Blue Plane.
"Fine. What do you know about the Elite System?"