It had been exactly five days since the system's arrival on Earth. Five days since everyone had disappeared. Five days of killing, slaughter and destruction. Arthur woke up to greet the new morning feeling stronger than he ever had before. It felt as if his entire body had been made anew over the past few days, completely reforged; more durable, flexible, tenacious and most of all, faster.

Much, much faster.

Upon consuming the shadow elixir three days ago, Arthur had over tripled the speed at which he could previously move, no doubt because the shadow panther it had been derived from was an agility based predator. That in addition to the strength he had gained, made Arthur an entirely different person from the helpless individual he had been when the system arrived.

The magical prowess that the panther had displayed during their short fight was still sadly beyond Arthur, but he could feel its incredible abilities lying dormant within him, beneath the surface and out of his reach, but ready for when he was finally able to use magic. At least he hoped so. It would suck if Arthur was still unable to use ether properly even after unlocking the system.

Looking down at his hands, he saw that they had become rough and calloused from wielding the katana so much, now a far more familiar weapon in his slightly more experienced hands. Speaking of which, it stood upright near the bed he’d decided to sleep in last night, the once shiny, glamorous blade now a dull grey, its edges chipped. It was all the more beautiful to Arthur now, however, each blemish a tale that spoke of its use and his victory. Okay, stop being melodramatic.

Sadly, it still meant that Arthur would need a new weapon soon, but he held on to it for sentimental reasons as well as the fact that it still had some use left in it. With its aid, he had managed to get to this point and Arthur was loath to callously cast it aside now that he had little use left for it. Okay, I think I have issues here.

He also had the option of taking the weapon he had found stored in the bedside cabinet, but Arthur knew that despite it being the logical thing to do, he would never be able to wield the same tool that had ended his sister's life. Perhaps he was being irrational. ‘You need to stop living in the past,’ his therapist would no doubt advise, but Arthur wasn’t quite ready to move on yet. He doubted he ever would be.

Yawning loudly, he stretched himself, preparing for the day. Arthur had lost most of the urgency he’d had in the first few days of the system's arrival when he realised that animals didn’t grow in levels explosively as he’d first believed. Rather, they seemed to all quickly reach level 10, evolving at level 5 without fail, before their growth speed slowed down to much more manageable rates. That was the only reason Arthur was still alive right now without access to the system. 'And it tells me how stupid I was for drinking that elixir just because I was panicking.'

The highest level animal Arthur had seen in the city was a level 23 wolf which he had wisely decided to not engage. Whilst he could now handle his fair share of level 10 monsters, Arthur wasn’t quite confident enough to fight a beast twice that level, nor was he that stupid. All in all, it had been quite a productive few days and his ether progression counter could attest to that fact.

Current progression:41,780/42,000

In all honesty, Arthur could have easily finished his collection quest off yesterday, but he had decided to wait for a new morn to take the last step instead of unlocking the system as night was approaching. Dawn was the time of new beginnings, and it had taken all of Arthur’s self-control to not go after and kill the level 8 horned rabbit he had seen, but caution, as well as past mistakes, had taught him to never be too hasty.

Arthur had no idea what to expect when he finally unlocked the system, but he’d feel stupid if he died just as he was completing his quest because he’d been too impatient to wait and take things slowly.

Sadly, no monsters he’d killed had dropped another core, and yes he had checked every single one, highlighting just how rare and special the panther he had killed was.

It made him feel relieved that he was able to prematurely put an end to such a great threat before it had time to grow into the city-destroying monster that its description had suggested.

Slapping himself on the cheeks, Arthur tried to psych himself up. Come on Arthur. This is the day you get to finally unlock your god-damn system. Look a little lively.

Walking out of the bedroom he’d stayed the night in, Arthur carefully made his way down the stairs, listening intently to see if he could hear anything coming from the first floor.

Thankfully, he could. The sound of pots and pans crashing to the floor could be heard from the kitchen, loud and clear and he wondered at how he had even managed to sleep through the racket. Arthur smiled wryly; it seemed that the frenzied chihuahua he’d managed to lure into the house last night still hadn’t found a way out yet.

It would make his life a whole lot easier. Arthur quickly made his way to the kitchen.

Holding his katana in a firm, confident grip, he quickly opened the door. Immediately, the tiny, mad dog threw itself at him in a suicidal charge, spittle flying from its razor-teeth, red-rimmed eyes filled with insanity, courtesy to its Frenzied status.

It didn’t get far. Moving much faster than humanly possible, Arthur sliced his sword through the air, cleanly bisecting the enraged beast into two perfect halves, so cleanly, in fact, that a single drop of blood didn’t make it onto his clothes. Damn if that wasn't smooth.

Feeling the familiar rush of energy flow into him, Arthur braced himself for something momentous to happen. Nothing did. Remember Arthur, your system’s slow, it doesn't work properly. Just give it some time. Arthur reassured himself, trying to not let panic set in. Just as he was about to start fearing that something was wrong, the familiar blue of system messages assaulted Arthur's vision. For once it wasn't unwelcome.

He smiled.

Ether progression: 42,160/42,000... Required ether absorption reached... Quest completed... Re-establishing a proper link with host... Integrity 27%...28%...29%...40%...

The numbers continued to rise rapidly and Arthur waited anxiously for something big to happen.

...98%...99%...100%

Arthur staggered as he felt a massive amount of energy infuse itself into him, simply absurd in its magnitude before the system messages continued appearing. It almost made him blackout with the sheer quantity of ether flowing through him.

Link established… Re-configuring to match host… Adapting… Adaptation complete… Welcome host Arthur Ward to the system… It is advised that you find a secure location as you will be losing consciousness in the next 30 seconds…

"Oh shit!"

Cursing the system that now seemed to have developed some shitty humour, Arthur quickly rushed up the stairs to the bedroom he’d just come from. Barricading the door with everything he could find, Arthur practically fell onto the bed in an undignified manner, unable to even position himself properly before darkness claimed him.