At that moment, Noah sighed from exhaustion and leaned against the wall behind him as he stared at the writings before him, whispering coldly to himself, "Why?"
He remained in place, looking coldly at the wall writings with wide eyes, his lower eyelids darkened. After some time, Noah heard the elevator bell and saw Enel and an old man carrying two buckets of paint and painting tools. Noah had seen the same old man cleaning the university garden before.
"Sorry for the delay!" Enel said, flustered and slightly out of breath from his hurry and anxiety. He looked around but saw no one except Noah.
"Where are Sirius and Neriah?" Enel asked, puzzled, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
"They've gone back to their rooms. You can go too," Noah said calmly, in a monotone voice, without even looking at Enel, instead focusing on the wall writings.
"Are you sure? I don't mind staying-," Enel said, concerned about Noah, but his cold gaze interrupted him. Despite the piercing look that seemed to cut through his heart, Noah smiled faintly and said calmly,
"I'll be fine alone."
Enel didn't respond but simply nodded and returned to his room. His steps were hesitant, but he entered and slowly closed the door behind him.
The old man approached Noah. His back was slightly hunched, and he was bald. He was short, with a long white beard, and his face was covered in wrinkles. His eyes were closed the entire time, but his expression seemed to show a faint smile.
The old man stood close to Noah, nodding toward the wall writings, then began stroking his long beard and nodding slowly.
"I see what the problem is, young man. You can go inside and sleep. By morning, I'll have finished cleaning," the old man said in a shaky voice, clearly reflecting his old age, as he coughed at the end of his sentence.
"You'll die before morning..." Noah thought to himself silently, looking down at the old man. He sighed and took one of the buckets of paint from him along with a large brush.
"I'll help you," Noah said, turning toward the wall. The old man's eyebrows raised slightly, then he smiled and nodded.
"Alright then, do as you wish," the old man said, taking the brush as well, opening the lid of the paint bucket, and began painting.
Some time passed. Noah painted the higher spots the old man couldn't reach and finished quickly. It seemed as if the old man had just started. His brush never left the wall, moving it slowly and gently. Noah, in turn, kneeled down to reach the lower areas. After a period of silence, the old man decided to break it.
"Boy, what's your name?" the old man asked in a gentle, wavering voice, but wisdom filled the tone.
"Noah Grace," Noah replied calmly, not paying much attention to the old man and focusing on finishing the painting.
"Boy noah, do you know who did this?" the old man asked in his calm tone, his brush leaving the wall.
"I don't know. I'm not really interested," Noah said quietly, picking up the pace of his work instinctively.
"What would you do to the person who did this if you knew who they were?" the old man asked as he stepped back to take a good look at the wall before continuing to paint.
"I don't know. I already told you I'm not interested," Noah said slightly irritated, raising his voice involuntarily.
"Is that because you're weak?" the old man asked Noah. At that, Noah stopped painting for a moment, looking at the floor in silence.
"Is that the reason? What a cheap excuse. You're making excuses for yourself because you're afraid," the old man said, opening only his right eye for the first time, revealing a piercing blue eye. He glanced at Noah from the corner of his eye, feeling that he had struck a sensitive chord this time.
"So what if I'm afraid or weak? That's not a flaw," Noah said, slightly irritated, even though he knew deep down that he was wrong.
"True, feeling fear or being weak isn't a flaw. Fear is an instinct that helps you distinguish between what is dangerous and what's not, and weakness is a trait that has marked humanity for years. But, you choose to be weak. You chose to feel fear. You don't want to change and prefer to stay this way, pathetic as you are! Choosing to remain the same despite your weakness is the real flaw!" the old man said in a wavering voice, yet firm and harsh.
Noah's eyes widened as his mind processed the old man's words. He was painfully right.
"He's right. I can change, but I didn't want to. I chose weakness, even though I have the means to become strong now… What the hell am I doing with my life?! I have no excuse to remain weak after getting the system. I can't stay like this forever. I need to change. I need to… adapt," Noah thought to himself as the old man's words sank deep into his mind and soul. His eyes began to gleam with a new light—one he had never felt before. He realized the answer to a question he had been searching for.
The old man finished painting the wall writings, and the wall now looked as though it had never been touched. He placed the brush in the bucket and closed it with the lid. Then he turned his back to Noah and began walking away.
"Anyway, I've finished my job here, so I'll leave," the old man said, beginning to walk away.
"Wait..." Noah called out to him. The old man stopped and turned around to face him, raising his other hand, which was holding the bucket that Noah had been holding.
"Eh?" Noah noticed that the bucket, along with the brush, was in the old man's hand, and he hadn't realized the man had taken it from him.
"My name is Eldon Everyn, if that's what you were going to ask," the old man said, then finally left, a mysterious smile on his lips.
"I didn't even notice he took the bucket from me… Eldon Everyn…" Noah whispered quietly to himself, pondering deeply.
After a long moment of thought, Noah entered his room, took a shower, and after finishing, he dried his wet hair with a towel. He sat on the bed, lying down calmly, thinking about Eldon's words. But soon, Noah began to feel sleepy and closed his eyes.
"...Activating special training..." Noah whispered quietly.
Suddenly, Noah found himself in a dense black space, as if swimming in a sea of ink. In the next moment, he found himself in the usual place: a vast green plain stretching to the horizon, a large green tree, and a clear blue sky with the sun shining brightly.
[Name: Noah Grace, Age: 18, Gender: Male, Level: 9
Strength: 20(50-%), Speed: 22(50-%), Agility: 20(50-%), Intelligence: 28(50-%), Luck: 14(50-%)
Skills: "Influence Field" S-Rank, "Foresight" C-Rank]
[Mission: Kill the Ork 100/0 (Incomplete)]
[Rewards: Physical Therapy, 100 Gacha Coins, S-Rank Skill "Thermokinesis"]
"I haven't seen the system's list in a while," Noah thought silently to himself, as images of his previous battle with the red ork flashed through his mind. He felt a desire to vomit and run from this place.
"I can escape. I can avoid this. I can survive without worrying. Yeah, it's okay to be afraid or weak. I don't want to die. I want to live. I don't need to do this; I'm not obligated to!... This is what I would've said if I were still the old me. I knew I was pathetic, no, I only said that because I was used to being called that. But now, I realize it's true... and that needs to change. I'm not pathetic. I'm Noah Grace, a dreamer who was luckier than most and got a strange system that makes me stronger. Yeah, I'm not pathetic. I am a person too. I want to prove my existence desperately!" Noah whispered, a mixture of emotions swelling inside him, leaving his mind confused, unable to pinpoint which emotion he was feeling at that moment.
Then, the red ork appeared, almost identical to the one Noah had faced before. It had the same skin, wounds, and carried a similar axe. Noah made eye contact with the ork, his hands and pupils trembling.
"I'm scared. My hands are shaking. I want to run. I want to leave. I'm afraid of death... I want change!" Noah thought, closing his eyes and clenching his fists tightly, gathering his courage. Then, he opened his eyes, now darker and filled with determination, loosening his grip slightly. He was ready to fight.
At that moment, the orc charged at Noah with incredible speed, as if he had teleported right in front of him in an instant. He swung his axe horizontally toward Noah, but Noah ducked to avoid the strike and then expanded his wide, invisible field using the skill "Influence Field." The orc sensed a slight shift in the atmosphere.
Noah then aimed a punch toward the orc's chin, striking between the space separating the orc and his axe. However, the orc instinctively sensed Noah's intent and spun in place, tightening his grip on the axe and swinging it vertically at him. Noah managed to dodge the attack thanks to his future sight ability and leapt back.
The orc didn't give Noah a moment to catch his breath or plan his next move. It charged again like a raging bull with incredible speed. But Noah charged too, sliding on the ground to slip between the orc's legs to its back. Then, quickly placing his hands on the ground, Noah pushed off with full strength, leaped high, clung to the orc's back, and covered its eyes with his hands, blinding it.
"RAAAAGHHHHHH!!!" the orc roared savagely — the same roar that had once terrified Noah during his fight with another orc. But this time, Noah kept his calm.
The orc went berserk from losing its vision and started running wildly, bucking to throw Noah off. But Noah successfully guided it toward the massive tree and jumped off at the last second. The orc crashed into the tree, toppling and shattering it. Its head was bleeding heavily, but it didn't fall to the ground or even to its knees.
Then it suddenly grabbed its axe and threw it toward Noah. But Noah dodged the attack using his future sight skill by leaning to his right. In a bold move, he caught the axe mid-air by its handle. Though it threw him off balance, he managed to keep hold of it and regained his stance.
"Adaptation..." Noah said calmly, though drenched in sweat.
The red orc let out a roar of frustration from losing its weapon and charged at Noah fearlessly at full speed. Noah started running toward it too, dragging the axe behind him.
"I need to adapt...!" Noah said, as his pupils darkened more and more with each second.
Then, at the moment of collision, the orc threw a fierce punch at Noah. In a precise and calculated motion, Noah swung the axe with full strength, slicing off the orc's arm. But in a retaliatory strike, the orc punched Noah hard in the chest. Due to Noah's firm grip on the axe, part of the handle broke off and flew with him as he was launched into the air, hit the ground forcefully, bounced, and hit it again before finally stopping.
The orc grabbed its severed arm, trying to stop the bleeding by pressing on it. Meanwhile, Noah stood up. Despite his broken bones, he was standing — swaying like a zombie — and he was smiling.
"You're in the perfect place, bitch!"
Noah said with a wide grin, blood pouring from his mouth and nose. The orc let out another savage roar — but couldn't even finish it before the massive tree crashed down from above, completely crushing its body underneath.
[Your level has increased]
[Your level has increased]
[Your level has increased]
Noah collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. He was genuinely on the brink of death — but he was smiling. He raised his hand toward the sun with difficulty and shouted with all the strength left in his lungs:
"I WON!"
Then he lowered his hand as breathing became even more difficult — his lungs must've been filled with blood.
"Log out!" Noah said with a smile, and his body vanished from the training world.