"I was quite lucky. I got two Cores, from the strongest monsters to boot, plus all their fangs, for a total of 16 pairs of fangs. They may not be worth much, but since I don't have any weapons, I think I'll have to make do."
"However, I still feel like I'm missing something...yet I can't think of anything."
"Whatever, if it is important I will remember. Now I have to figure out where I am and how I ended up here."
After rearranging his thoughts, the first decision he made was to change the area. There was too much blood here, surely it would attract more monsters.
And speaking of the area, he had no idea what kind of monsters to expect. Sure, he had become stronger, but being arrogant would cost him dearly.
So, he decided to set off in any direction together with his little undead ally.
"Still, this feeling is strange. I'm sure I've forgotten something..."
---
The forest was strangely silent. It was as if the monsters inside were hiding from something.
He had spotted movement in the distance, but it was hard to see anything with this dense vegetation.
The silence of the place made him be cautious, walking slowly through the forest avoiding making too much noise.
After about an hour of walking nothing seemed to have changed. Although slow, this was in comparison to their top speed. Compared to an ordinary human being they moved much faster, leaving only wind trails in their path.
The ground around there was littered with beasts. Some looked really strong, others as weak as the ones he had faced before.
But one thing in common among all of them frightened him and kept him alert.
They were dead. All of them.
Then-
A deep tremor shook the forest.
"What the-"
Jeremy almost fell to the ground from the strong tremor.
A shock wave shook the foliage and all the forest around.
Looking up he realized why this was happening.
Two strange figures were exchanging blows in the sky.
Their bodies were indistinguishable given the enormous distance between them, yet it was clear. These were not human beings.
They were beasts.
Of immense power.
Despite the distance the shockwaves of their battle were reaching here.
"-100"
"???"
An alarming amount of damage struck Jeremy. Considering he only had 1200HP, he would have died with 11 more of those blows.
And they weren't even hits, it was just a simple shockwave.
"-115"
Blood came out of the young man's mouth.
He finally understood why there were all those beast corpses around there.
"I have to run away."
That was the boy's first thought.
So without a second thought he turned and ran at top speed.
He no longer cared about hiding his presence, the only thing that mattered was getting away from that area.
And after about half an hour he had managed to get quite a distance away from the battle zone.
"Terrifying."
"I could have died without knowing how...this place is too dangerous, where the hell did I end up" breathing hard, Jeremy's calm and composed face was gone, replaced by panic.
During his race at full speed he had caught a glimpse of some beasts who seemed to have the same thoughts as him.
None of them seemed interested in stopping the boy. They were all running for their lives.
Suddenly something seemed to appear behind him, making no sound. It was extremely close to the boy, who took no notice.
Then a strange and unsettling feeling crept up inside Jeremy.
He immediately jumped sideways, trying to dodge whatever was behind him.
Turning his head, an expression of visible embarrassment covered the young man's face.
"Cough, I tripped, the ground is slippery here, be careful.
"..." The black bony mass's expression remained the same as ever as he watched his master's antics.
Which made Jeremy even more embarrassed.
"Now I remember."
"You, like me, have also leveled. Then again, you share the same level as me."
"How could I have forgotten..."
---
Status
Name: Drae'mon
Class/race: Mutated Undead Razorfang
Lv4/5
Potential: ??
HP: 1200
MP: 800
Physical: 4 (×2)
Agility: 4 (×2)
Intelligence: 2 (×2)
Endurance: infinite
Free Attribute Points: 30
Skills: Ferocious Bite, Poisonous Claw, Dash, Blessing of ??
---
Just like him, his summoning had gained 3 levels and 30 stats points, after allocating the various points, Drae'mon became really strong.
He was much stronger than Jeremy, although they shared the same potential.
How come?
Because of two factors.
One. His blessing gave him a mutated race capable of getting x2 to all stats.
Two. He was an undead. He did not need to give stat points to stamina. It was infinite.
So with a x2 to all stats and one less stat to level, the skeleton's strength became frightening, comparable to much stronger monsters.
Its stats were as follows:
HP: 4400
MP: 1400
Physical: 20(x2)
Agility: 15(x2)
Intelligence: 5(x2)
Endurance: infinite
---
"Well, with our combined power, we should be able to carry out the Rank Up mission. I just wonder what it will be..."
With one level away from the maximum, it was time for Jeremy to hunt some beasts nearby.
Just as they were wandering around looking for an exit, they found a body of water.
"Finally, I can take a bath and get all this dirt off me," Jeremy's excitement at the sight of the pond seemed even greater than the joy of leveling.
The reason was simple.
It was dirty.
Perhaps dirty was an understatement; it was literally filled with a mixture of all kinds of blood and soil.
Hell, it had been soaking in a pit full of corpses for who knows how long, it had absorbed the stench of death from that place.
Just as he was about to take off his clothes and jump headlong into the water, he saw at the corner of his vision a strange grayish mass.
He turned his head and-
"Shit, it's huge what the hell is-"
As if listening to his thoughts, a system notification rang out.
Giant Ape
Rank C, High Potential
Lv 35
HP: ????/????
MP: ???/????
Physical: ???
Agility: ???
Intelligence: ??
Endurance: ??
Skill: ??
"I'm screwed-"
This was Jeremy's first thought at the sight of all those question marks.
A growl resounded throughout the place, causing Jeremy to stumble backward. However, aside from that and staring intently at them, the beast did nothing else.
This played in Jeremy's favor, and he quickly backed away, grabbing the stupid skeleton by the paw.
Unlike Jeremy, Drae'mon felt no fear.
He was ready to charge the beast without a second thought.
Turning his gaze for one last time, Jeremy noticed something strange.
The beast's grayish fur was stained red here and there. Even the ground under its body seemed to be a different color.
"Blood, it's wounded" the realization of this discovery made Jeremy understand why the beast had not executed them on the spot, but it made the boy wonder.
At first he seemed to have been incredibly lucky to find an area where there were only weak Rank F monsters, otherwise he would have died again.
"I just wanted to take a bath, because such bad luck," he said in frustration. "Am I destined to stay this dirty?"