Looking at the Elder Lice, Roman muttered under his breath, "You're dead."
Blood poured slowly from his ribcage and hand, staining the snow red. His mind was hazy, his body hanging between life and death. Half-conscious. Half-mad.But he ran anyway.Straight toward the monster.
The Elder, seeing the small creature charging, seemed stunned for a moment. Then it screeched louder, high and sharp, as if accepting the challenge.
Roman moved like a broken puppet—barely dodging the elder's massive forearm slash that could have ended him. The strike lifted him into the air, but Roman twisted mid-fall and slammed his chitin blade straight at the Elder's mandible.
But he missed.He missed the weak spot his Psych Vision showed him.He felt the blade scrape off the hard shell uselessly.
Roman hit the ground with a grunt, half-buried in the snow. His bones screamed. His heart was nothing but a sluggish thud.He couldn't even lift his arms properly anymore.
But hatred... hatred kept him standing."If I can't kill you," Roman growled, voice raw and cracked, "I'll just destroy all your damn family!"
He roared like a beast, throwing himself at the swarm.Small lice. Lice generals. He butchered them all.Chitin cracked under his broken fists. Heads popped under his feet. His body was on fire. His mind half gone.
EXP rained down.
[Received +2500 EXP!]
[Received +5000 EXP!]
[Received +10,000 EXP!]
The ground around him turned into a field of corpses.
But the Elder Lice had enough.
Sensing Roman's fading strength, the giant insect leaned forward, mandibles wide. Its uninjured right forelimb tensed—ready to finish this with one clean swipe.
Roman's body barely moved, but his instincts—his Psych attribute—kicked in. Pure reflex.When the claw came, Roman rolled messily to the side.
CRACK!
The impact broke the chitin blade he was still holding.
Panting, bleeding, he grabbed another broken blade from the ground without even thinking. His fingers were numb. His vision was black at the edges.But maybe... maybe this was what Psych was for.
But maybe... maybe this was what Psych was for.Awakened at the verge of death.
He didn't attack head-on anymore.
Instead, he stumbled and ran opposite of the Elder's strike, circling toward the creature's side.He didn't care about the wind.He didn't care about the snow.He didn't care about his broken body.The winds here didn't blow because of the bison's big neck—Roman knew about it. That's why he ran here in the first place.But now, he understood—Coming here was a death sentence.But he didn't have a choice. It was either die by the chilly wind...or be eaten alive by these insects.
With everything he had left, Roman sprinted at the Elder, trying to forcefully activate the Psych power inside him.After all—he had 11 points in Psych!
And finally... somehow... he controlled a small part of it.
It lifted him a little into the air, and he stumbled—But he didn't fall onto the ground like a dead animal.No.
Immediately, using the Omega Doctrine, he unleashed the strength of ten men into his legs and sprinted toward the Elder.
Then again—he pushed the Psych power. To jump a long distance.This time he succeeded—not an overwhelming force, but enough.Enough to lock eyes with the Elder.
The Elder, seeing the madness in Roman's gaze, tried to defend using its broken arm.Roman jumped at its defensive posture.The Elder expected a slash—But Roman had planned differently.
Yeah.
Roman's real target was the small ancient scar it had hidden for centuries.Nothing more. Nothing less.
Again, with another strong leap—Roman, using everything he had left—Struck.
But that scar... it was dangerously close to the Elder's mandibles.
The Elder reacted violently.The mandibles snapped toward him, trying to slice him clean in half—As if questioning why this prey was throwing itself into its mouth.
But before the Elder could close its jaws—Before it could stop him—
A danger it never sensed before touched it.A fear crept into its ancient eyes as it felt something touch its body for the first time in so long.
The Elder shrieked—its body shook.It tried to pull back, but it was too late.
Roman's mandibles were within reach of the Elder's weak spot—But then—Suddenly—Something pierced Roman's chest.
A Blood Spear.
As Roman fell from the height, crashing hard onto the ground, he looked up with disbelief.The spear...
It was made from his own blood—the blood scattered during endless fighting.
"Magic...?" Roman thought, mind numb.He never even thought the Elder could use magic.But maybe... just maybe... like him, it didn't know it either.Maybe it awakened at the very last moment.
No wonder the Elder could survive living on a bison's back without starving to death.
Roman laughed weakly, blood bubbling from his lips.His consciousness started to fade away.But then—
THUD.
Something heavy fell on top of him.
The Elder's corpse.And Roman felt his entire body crushed like paste.
But right now—he wasn't worried about broken bones.
No.
He was most concerned about something much more precious.
His family jewels.
Something heavy had landed right on them.
With the last bit of strength he could muster, Roman reached down, trembling, touched it—
"...Eh?"
He blinked.A stupid smile bloomed on his bloody face.
"They're safe."
As a sweet mechanical voice rang in his ears—
[Ding! Host killed an Elder Lice. Gained +900 EXP!]
[Talent Activated: 10,000x EXP Multiplier!]
[Received +9,000,000 EXP -- 9 Million Exp!]
He felt the power rushing into his body like a spring wind after killing the dreadful foe.Warmth flooded his broken body—but just as fast, a cold screen flickered in front of his eyes.
[Transcendence Window Activated!]
Roman blinked in shock.
He watched helplessly as his hard-earned EXP was immediately swallowed up by his SSS-rank talent, like a beast devouring its prey.
And then—the window changed.
Name: Roman MaximusTrait: Origin Mana EnhancementRank: Tier - 2 (0/14,845 EXP)
Trait: 10,000x EXP ConverterRank: Tier - 1 (0/50,000,000 EXP)
Mana: 1,500 / 6,800Strength: 80 (+70)Speed: 80 (+70)Psych: 81 (+70)
Skills:
Basic Martial Art (Omega Doctrine)
Proficiency: Medium (17%)
Roman stared at the floating window, his mind still dizzy.
9 million EXP?
He blinked again.No. He wasn't hallucinating.
Its Nine. Million.
The number was so absurd, so stupidly big, Roman wanted to punch himself.Or the damn window. Whichever was closer.
He spat a mouthful of blood to the side and laughed bitterly
He had an SSS talent. Sure.But it wasn't a free ride.
No.It was a damn curse.
The EXP he should've gotten — gone.Eaten. Devoured. Converted into something he couldn't even touch unless he fed this monstrous trait.
But seeing the result he felt it was worth it. But he wasn't there be to see its glory.
If he lived he would obviously needed to level up the 10,000x EXP Converter.But not first before the Origin Mana Enhancement.
As time went by he felt a small connection, as if something calling him toward it. But before he could understood what it was, his body immediately vanished from Origin realm along with the elder's body which was on top of him.