They went deeper into the jungle, and after two hours, they managed to kill a few pythons. Leo rosed to level two, and so did Ken. Leo allocated two points to strength, one point to vitality, and two points to perception. After putting them in perception it kinda gave quite an effect on him. He could perceive things more clearly, things that he usually ignored. ‘Hmm, I think I should put more in perception. Since it does heighten my senses a bit, but then my stats won’t be optimized for min-maxing unless I pick a class that relies heavily on perception.’

He was in a dilemma. But then he remembered those stats he earned from killing the snakes. He managed to kill two of them, and with Statistic Inheritor, he gained another two points in agility. Leo was glad to get those two points, but he still couldn’t rely on his trait a hundred percent not until he knew the trait’s limit.

‘Hmm?’ by chance his wandering eyes found a pair of eyes staring at the unaware Ken. ‘That’s…’ his eyes went wide, and he shouted. “Ken! To your left!”

Ken turned instantly and the hidden creature pounced from the cover of the thicket. Yellow fangs went for Ken’s neck, and he blocked it by the nick of time. The creature crashed against him, and the weight toppled him to the ground. Ken’s screams echoed through the jungle. His forearm was getting bloodied by the maw of a leopard. It glared at the human underneath it, biting fiercely through his flesh. Its paws pushed Ken to the ground with its sharp claws sinking deep into his muscles.

The pain was excruciating as Ken’s face flushed in red. Yet his eyes glared at the fucking leopard. “Die!” Ken grabbed the knife on his bandolier and stabbed the white belly of the big cat. The metal edge went in and out through the leopard’s flesh as Ken gave its retribution. Blood gushed over him as he succeeded. The leopard growled, and the bite on his forearm loosened. It tried to escape. Yet as it was about to leap into the bushes, a small glimmer of steel came from its side. A fire axe came hacking the leopard right in the face. The sharp edge cut through its flesh and struck against the skull of the leopard. Leo could hear the loud crack and the leopard started squirming on the ground, dragging Leo along.

Yet Leo’s strength at ten was no slouch. He held on to the axe as the leopard squirmed at the same spot. It growled and whined with blood seeping out from its belly wound and on its head.

Then an injured Ken rose from the ground as he glared at the thing that almost bit his hand off. He threw the bloody knife at the leopard, sticking it right on its hind leg. He grabbed another kitchen knife on his bandolier and charged at the jungle stalker. Again, the sharp edge of the knife cut through its fur, then its flesh, then its blood vessels like it was butter. The leopard growled even fiercer as the anger-driven Ken punctured hole after hole at the struggling feline.

Soon, it ended.

There was no more growling as the leopard was lifeless on the ground with blood pooling underneath its carcass. The axe was still half-embedded in its skull with no one holding the shaft. Leo’s hands were on his knees as he tried to catch up with his breath. He glanced at the leopard then at Ken. The man who almost met death was tying a tourniquet around his arm. Looking at the wound on the forearm, it was pretty bad. And Leo could swear he saw a bit of white bone underneath the bloody flesh.

[You have reached level 4]

[10 stat points have been given]

[Statistic Inheritor activated; +1 Perception]

Leo stood up straight and walked over to Ken. “You okay?” he asked.

“I’m not,” Ken curtly replied. “Fortunately, I’ve ten points to spare. I’ve put an extra five on vitality, and another five to fortitude. For now, my HP isn’t dropping, and let's wish it stays that way.”

Ken looked up at Leo and slapped him by the side of the shoulder. “Let’s go back, I need to clean up this wound before it gets infected or something,” Ken said. “And now we know why we aren’t fighting against monsters.” Ken walked past Leo and tracked back using the carving on the trees.

Leo understood well what Ken meant by that. ‘Just a single leopard alone was a hassle, and I can’t even imagine what would happen if we fought a big cat three times this size.’ His body quivered just from imagining it alone. Leo loosened the axe from the leopard’s skull and rested it on his shoulder. With how things had ended, both of them got pretty lucky. He trailed behind Ken and after another hour passed, they saw the tall building in between the trees. By dusk, they’d finally reached their safe haven.

Both of them barged through the kitchen back door, and the sound of cooking filled their ears. One of the kitchen staff noticed the duo and recognized the guy who stole most of their kitchen knives. Even the head chef's prized cleaver was gone.

“You…” yet his voice fell after seeing the bleeding forearm of Ken.

“Hey, you got a first-aid kit?” Leo asked and the staff nervously nodded.

“What are you waiting for? Go and get it,” Ken said, and the staff rushed on his feet.

In time, the kitchen staff brought over the first-aid kit. While Ken mended his wound, Leo couldn’t help but notice the kitchen was on full blast. “What’s going on? I didn’t remember the kitchen being this lively before we left,” Leo asked.

“Oh, you don’t know? The FBI, the CIA, and every police force are all ready to help us escape,” the kitchen staff said.

“You sure?” Leo asked.

“Yea, they made a video call two hours ago, and Atwell streamed it through the big screen at the lobby,” the kitchen staff said.

“What did they say?” Leo asked.

“They pretty much told us to sit tight and just wait for the rescue. After that, people started calming down, and the cafe started getting busy,” the kitchen staff stole a glance at those knives stuffed on Ken’s bandolier. The lack of knives made it harder for them to prepare the cooking ingredients, having them back would be a boon for the kitchen staff.

“Don’t even think about it,” Ken warned.

The kitchen staff quickly glanced away and gulped a mouthful. Unknowingly, the staff was pretty much kneeling in front of these two rowdy-looking men.

“You good right, Ken?” to Leo’s question, Ken just waved his hand as a sign he was fine. “Come to my office if you want to go back,” Leo said.

Ken smirked and just shooed Leo with his hand.

***

Peeking near a corner, Leo kept his eyes at the view beyond the main entrance. The vast empty walkway was now filled with people. Policemen guarded the perimeter, keeping the overly eager reporters behind the line. Firefighters and paramedics were on standby, waiting for the victims to be saved. Leo spotted a few security guards lingering around the main entrance as the scene wasn’t as chaotic like before.

‘I wonder if it will work,’ Leo stared at the main entrance and used Identify.

[Gateway(Locked)]

[Requirement: More than 50% reach level 10]

[Progress: 0/329]

Leo’s eyes bulged open. He thought he would just try it out since he had Identify, and yet he found another definitive hint that might allow him to return back. ‘I need to tell this to the others,’ Leo went to the staircase and climbed back up till he reached the sixth floor. Barging back inside his office, his appearance made people’s heads turn. His scruffy appearance, dirty pants and undershirt, and the dried dress shirt tied around his waist made him look like a man that just escaped the jungle after a whole month.

“Leo?” Jim saw his friend, yet he didn’t move, frozen in place. The one that was quick on her feet was Kareena as she rushed at him.

Leo found his cubicle and sat down, leaning on his office chair. It was a good feeling considering he had been walking nonstop for the last few hours or so. Yet his rest didn’t last long.

“Where had you been?” Kareena asked.

“The jungle,” he said the obvious.

“I know that, but what happened to you? And is that blood?” Kareena asked. Her keen eyes should not be underestimated. She spotted a few bloodstains on his gray undershirt, prompting Leo to check it himself.

“Oh, this,” Leo tried smudging it away. “It’s not my blood.”

“Then whose is it?” Kareena narrowed her eyes. “Is it Ken? I heard from Jim you went out with Ken.”

“He got injured, but he’s fine . . . I think,” he replied. “But that’s not the point. Why are you here, Kareena? I’m kinda in the need of resting here.”

“You need to stop this,” Kareena crossed her arms. “The government will come and rescue us, and you don’t have to succumb to this grandiose hallucination.”

“Grandiose hallucination?” Leo scoffed. “You think all of this is a hallucination?”

Kareena kept her lips sealed, with no intention to comment on Leo’s remark.

“You’re a smart woman right, Kareena,” Leo said. “Where you from again, was it MIT?”

“I drop out in the last semester, but what’s your point?” Kareena asked.

“My point is, do you really think those people can rescue us? Rescue us from this other dimension separated by a thin glass door?” Leo asked.

Kareena kept her silence as she knew what Leo meant. During the time when Leo was out in the jungle, Kareena went down and witnessed the guards shooting at the main entrance. Yet, no matter how many bullets they shot the sliding glass door didn’t even crack.

“You’re talking nonsense,” Kareena replied, deep down in her heart, she still hoped to be rescued despite how impossible it seemed.

“I wish I was, but sadly I’m not,” Leo said. “And I hate to break it to you, but no one is going through that glass door, not until half of us reach level ten.”

“What do you mean by that?” Kareena narrowed her eyes, growing curious over what Leo said.

“What I meant is, as long as you guys coop up in this building, none of us are going back home,” Leo said. “Now, can you please give me some space? I’m trying to rest here.”

Leo turned his chair around with his back facing Kareena. Yet Kareena spun him back. “Explain,” she said.

“You need a skill called Identify to see it,” Leo said. “I used it on the main entrance, and it showed me how to unlock it.”

“You mean I can do it too?” Kareena asked.

“Oh,” Leo raised his eyebrows for a brief second. He never thought the skill Identify would be this common. “That’s great. Now you can see it for yourself.”

“But how?” she questioned. The first time she saw those windows, she denied everything and reasoned it as some sort of visual hallucination. She didn’t even try using her Identify skill.

“Focus with intent, and you’ll get the hang of it,” Leo advised.

Kareena left, hoping Leo was just messing with her. Yet her desire to know took control as she went towards the lobby.

“Now let’s see,” he opened his status and pondered where to put his new points. ‘Let’s put aside min-maxing and do this for now.’

[Name][Leonardo Hart][Human]

[Level][4]

[Class][-]

[HP][100/100]

[SP][97/100]

[MP][Locked]

[Strength][14]

[Vitality][10]

[Fortitude][0]

[Dexterity][6]

[Agility][9]

[Perception][10]

[Intellect][7]

[Spirit][5]

[Charisma][6]

[Luck][0]

[Available Points][0]

Four points to strength, three points to vitality, and the last three points to perception. For now, Leo decided to even things out for his status. His plan of min-maxing wasn’t going to happen not until he earned a class.

Then he felt his phone vibrating. He pulled it out and saw the name on the screen.

“Dad?”