Noa was excited.
The bright light was wonderful news, and he neared the corpse with high expectations.
Aeris witnessed his victory.
She was as cheerful as ever, carefully following his steps.
"Are you okay? Does it hurt somewhere? Is it scary?"
She barraged him with questions, not even giving him time to answer.
Seeing her concerned expression and reddened eyes from the tears she had shed, Noa's heart was touched.
It was his first time experiencing this warm feeling in his stomach, and he didn't know how to react.
"Don't worry," he responded. "I am half-immortal."
He sounded proud, but Aeris still lowered her brows.
"What do you mean, half?" she asked, crouching next to him as Noa was about to touch the dead spider.
"I can't die…" Noa said, trailing his words. "Unless I want to."
He wasn't twisting the truth.
Activating the Echo of Doom skill was his choice, and the revival only worked when he wanted it to.
Hearing his explanation, she added nothing, watching his every move with interest.
The moment Noa touched the warm body of the gigantic spider, it stirred with a thundering noise.
Then he met a blinding light until he sensed a heavy object in his hand.
Before the light subsided, Noa tried the Inspect skill, and luckily it worked, displaying the panel for the item.
[ Web Sword ]
[ Grade: Evolved Elite ]
[ Attack Power: +7 ]
[ Attack Speed: +5 ]
[ Durability: 30/30 ]
[ Bloodshed: Deals +2 extra damage to wounded foes ]
'Fucking hell! It's great!'
He exclaimed happily.
Why wouldn't he, when this sword was not only a rare drop, but it also gave him a huge attack and speed boost?
It wasn't all…
The most important modifier was an additional passive skill that the sword had imprinted.
Dealing extra damage was a remarkable bonus.
And even if the amount was low, Noa was content with that.
The blade itself was longer than his previous shabby sword, which had crumbled after the last attack.
It was a double-edged sword that radiated a sinister aura and had a white handle with bluish ornaments.
Unfortunately, there was no orb this time.
He had used all the luck he had, and now he had to search for a safe spot to hide and wait for the Embers to arrive before the second wave started.
Prior to that, Noa had the urge to use the Corpse Puppet skill and make this freshly slain monster his puppet for even a second.
So he triggered the skill.
"I will be back in a second," he said to Aeris, letting his mind be pulled from his body to another.
Soon, his consciousness shifted, and his vision changed.
Yet he had no moment to experience it thoroughly because the most unbearable headache almost crippled his brain, forcing him to go back into his body.
'It's because of the level difference,' he concluded and glanced at the other dead monsters.
Looting small spiders was an option as well.
However, after hearing echoing screams from the place they had rushed from, Noa knew he shouldn't be blinded by greed.
"We have to leave," he said to his sister, leading her into this vast place.
But one second wouldn't hurt, and he tapped the closest dead spider and took the orb before continuing his sprint.
[ Evolved Frail Spirit Orb ]
Noa felt a rich magical power from the object.
'I wonder how much I can sell it for,' he pondered.
After covering enough distance, the pair passed the other end of the corridor, and based on the building's layout, one or two turns were left before they reached the exit.
Noa couldn't see the Scar but knew it was on the other side of the building.
It gave him a sense of security.
He finally found a moment to let Aeris catch her breath, and he was able to peek at his flooded system notifications.
[ You killed an Evolved Bulky Spider Lv. 10 ]
[ You've gained 1,000 Experience Points ]
[ You killed a monster seven levels higher than you, earning an additional 7 Attribute Points ]
[ Level Up! ]
[ You've gained 0.3 stat points in Strength and Agility. You've gained 0.6 stat points in Vitality and Intelligence. ]
[ You've gained 1 Attribute Point ]
Noa was already level 3, and he leveled up only once.
His stats had been exponential before this, but after his last rampage, Noa had a hunch that they would be ridiculously high even if he compared himself to the other characters.
[ Noa Osborn ]
[ Species: Human ]
[ Grade: Evolved ]
[ Class: Wizard ]
[ Level: 1 → 4 ]
[ EXP: 9/100 → 509/850 ]
[ Strength: 2.7 → 7.8 ]
[ Agility: 4.6 → 8.7 ]
[ Vitality: 6.9 → 12.1 ]
[ Intelligence: 5.1 → 9.3 ]
[ Attribute Points: 0 → 8 ]
[ Talent: Death's Companion ]
[ Talent Rank: SSS ]
[ Skills: Echo of Doom ]
[ Class Skill: Corpse Puppet (Proficiency: 1.7%) ]
Noa had already allocated stat points before slaying the Bulky Spider, and now he had another 8 points to spend.
He felt great—both mentally and physically.
For a person from Earth, who was destined for a boring, everyday life in his home alone, Noa had stumbled across something extraordinary.
Most of the novel or video game protagonists wished to find ways to go back to their original planets after transmigration or reincarnation.
Noa had no such desire.
Compared to his previous life, he was much more content with spending his time in this exciting and perilous world.
It was something he had always wished for.
He happily basked in his new sensations, enjoying his inhuman growth.
Even the proficiency increase brought a smile to his face, and just as he was about to reach the last turn before the exit, Noa heard a voice calling him.
"Caught you, asshole!"
The voice belonged to Klaus, and appearing furious, he drew his sword and pointed it at Noa.
"I saw you loot the gigantic spider. I don't care how you did it, but you better surrender the spoil you got from it."
He seemed determined to get what he wanted and yelled in anger.
And Klaus wasn't alone.
He had his henchmen with him, surrounding Noa and his sister without bothering to hide their bloodlust.