The giant goblin cried in pain as its ice began melting. With one last cry, the goblin fell to his death as his body revealed a Green Crystal.

Nikolai huffed as he stopped running. He fell on his knees in the middle of the goblin’s bodies. He took out a bandage from his bag and tied it around the wound on his bleeding arm.

The frost helped him decrease the bleeding, but it numbed his arm. Despite the pain, Nikolai stood up and picked up the crystal that fell from the goblin.

He killed four goblins, but only one dropped a crystal. This loot was what he got from trying to rely on his luck. That’s why the party system was so essential.

‘This is temporary.’ Nikolai consoled himself as he broke the crystal while investing another two of his points. ‘I just need to awaken.’

[2 Strength Stats Points have been absorbed.]

The notification made him sigh in relief. It has already been three days since he killed the lich. During those three days, he barely slept. There was nothing else on his mind but one: stats.

He had to invest 17 fate points to increase the probability of a few crystals. Since the drop rate was low, he had to make every crystal count.

He was proud of what he accomplished.

[Vitality: 26]

– [Blood Energy: 6.] 

[Strength: 25]

[Agility: 27]

[Intelligence: 25]

[Mana: 21]

Since he needed every Fate Point, he didn’t use them if he only needed one point from the crystal. As for the agility and vitality, he simply obtained them from the goblins even though he no longer needed these two stats.

The only stat left was mana, but Nikolai was exhausted. He was sleep-deprived and injured. He pushed himself for Sergio, but he was sure that the chief wouldn’t hurt them.

He was waiting for Nikolai to show up.

Nikolai picked himself up and went back to his camp, the giant tree. He fell to the ground with heavy breathing as his eyes blurred. It was time to use his Blood Energy.

A red hue glowed from his skin as the energy rushed to heal his body. The wounds began closing, forming new scars on his body as Nikolai started to regain consciousness.

‘I need to go today.’ Nikolai pulled himself up using the root of the tree before turning and leaning on it. ‘That chief might have some pink ideals of honor, but that doesn’t apply for the rest.’

He was hesitant before about awakening because he didn’t know what he would turn out to be. What if he turned into something that couldn’t live with humans? What would he do then?

That was his mindset and reasons to hesitate. Now, he didn’t care. Not because he wanted to save Sergio badly enough to sacrifice his humanity, but because he wouldn’t survive like this either. His ammunition was limited, and he needed his ship to leave.

Nikolai groaned as he stood up and carried his tired body out of the tree. He strolled toward the pirate ship that was full of spirits. It was nighttime when he arrived at the mountain.

‘How do I go up now?’ Nikolai sighed with exasperation. ‘The closest point for me to jump from will be the cliff of the mountain.’

Instead of whining about it, he began to climb. The pace he set for himself allowed him to recover before reaching the ship. By the time he needed to jump toward the vessel, his body was back to normal.

Nikolai leaned forward before sprinting. Using his Limit-Break and Blood Energy, he jumped from the mountain toward the ship. As his body began to descend, he grabbed the hull and began to climb.

“AAAA~”

The spirit began screaming as soon as he landed on the deck. He looked around at the destruction he caused, as the deck was a mess. There was barely enough foothold for him to walk. There were holes everywhere.

‘Damn, those pirates were lucky to survive.’ Nikolai was surprised that the explosion brought this much destruction. The only reason those three pirates survived was that they were running after Nikolai.

As he took out his gun to start hunting spirits, his ears picked up a sound from above. His irises constricted as he recognized the sound: it was the flapping of wings. Nikolai sprinted forward.

“Attack!”

A roar tore through the sky as countless vultures soared around Nikolai. He felt a presence approach from behind him. There was no need to turn. He knew it was the chief.

‘I was ambushed.’ Nikolai’s heart went cold. ‘How did they know I would find the ship?’

He couldn’t think of an answer, but he could suspect only one thing: The pirates’ captain that he poisoned had a way to find the ship. The Vultra Clan must have captured the pirates and found the vessel before him.

Nikolai was too focused on awakening that he missed calculating for such an outcome. Without turning, Nikolai jumped through the hole on the destroyed deck.

The chief’s attack destroyed the spot he was standing in as Nikolai fell into the room below the deck. It looked like a kitchen, and Nikolai fell on a table, breaking it down.

The explosion destroyed the interior of the ship so much that it looked like a ghost ship. Along with the roaming spirits, the scene looked like a tale Nikolai knew.

“Seize him!”

The chief’s roar arrived, and the Riders jumped after him. Nikolai rolled through the hallway as the spear attacks came to rip him apart. The walls tore like papers in front of the Rider’s wrath.

‘I need to find a way out.’ Nikolai thought as he made his way through the moonlit hallway. The moonlight fell in three parts, making pillars of light in the hallway. ‘Or not…’

Nikolai changed his mind when he saw a spirit leave one of the rooms. In one swift motion, he raised his gun and fired. The bullet destroyed the spirit’s core, killing it.

A white crystal fell on the ground as Nikolai’s fate points decreased. He slid across the hallway and picked it up, crushing it.