“Alright, Carl. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I'll be shutting the lab down now. I can see you've been having a blast, but all good things must come to an end.”

Jin's words poured a bucket of cold water over Carl's head.

“I've failed … how predictable … how pathetic.”

Carl disparaged himself, which was so commonplace for him. This time, however, he might have blown a major opportunity. If he didn't make good enough of an impression, he might never be given another chance. After all, Jin brought him here on a day off, since the man had access and was allowed to work extra hours, which he did regularly. From the next day onward there would be other researchers present, and they were also going to get more undergrads soon. With that, Jin would have trouble smuggling him into the lab again.

“Ahh,” the boy sighed with resignation after exiting the cabin and stretching his weary bones. “That was the kind of arena I was longing for, Jin. I don't know how to thank you enough.”

“No need, Carl. That's some invaluable data you've given us. I hope we can stay in touch, even if we're not permitted to test you any further. After all, once you turn eighteen, it won't be an issue any more.”

Carl smiled dolefully.

“And I hope I'll live long enough.”

“Woah, man! Is it really that bad?!” Jin jumped up in fright.

“Who knows. It's a genetic anomaly, impossible to predict how it'll develop.”

“In that case, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. And you don't give up, okay?”

“Sure,” Carl expressed tenderly. “And what about the brain implants?”

“Proprietary tech,” Jin shook his head. “Unless we get a green light for you, we'll have to extract them. I'll let you know in the next few days. Now, let's shut everything down.” After that statement he started operating his tablet and turning the systems he'd been working on off, one by one. “Can you get the cabin power switch? Yea, that big handle over there. I'll go to the server room to wipe out your traces, be back in a few minutes.”

“Hmm?”

As Carl turned the power off, he realized he still had a chance.

“The server room is in the basement, I can make it before he gets there!”

His eyes flashed with resolve, and he immediately turned the power back on when Jin disappeared behind the door. He now knew how the system operated – it was very simple and fully automated, requiring only a couple steps from boot-up to entering the cabin.

Within seconds the lid was closing, and the ultra-fast machinery was up and running again.

“For the win!”

Carl restarted the simulation the same way he did before, when he encountered the first difference.

System prompt: Select the location for your recording. Default | Browse.

“Gah, the settings were reset … I guess I'll just cancel. Oh, it went ahead anyway?”

Since this attempt wouldn't be saved, it no longer mattered. But if he wasn't going to impress others with it, then he would fight for his honor instead.

Soon, Carl was standing on top of the familiar hill, which he abandoned three hours prior.

“Controls! Weapons! Woah, woah, go back! Controls!”

Carl suddenly froze …

… because all the settings were unlocked!

He tensed up.

This was it.

“No turning back.”

He took a deep breath and committed to the final challenge.

“Settings! Hmm … where is it? Realism! Maximum! Yes!”

He accepted all the warning prompts and steeled himself. The run restarted with the changes in effect, and Carl summoned the combat knife.

He gazed down at the majestic beast in the distance, his face solemn and dignified.

The fear was back, but he decided to ferociously thwart it.

“Enough cowardice! I've been through this a thousand times!”

He looked back on his first attempt, scowling at his wretched existence.

“For glory!”

Carl's legs moved, as if on their own. Soon, he was running. The closer he got, the more darkness welled within him … only to further awaken his spirit.

While the two forces contended for supremacy, ravaging his soul, he entered the lion's aggro range.

He slowed down and approached it with fast, but casual strides, as if he didn't care. Tightly squeezing the knife, the only thing on his mind right now was bloodshed, and in front of him stood his mortal enemy. In his eyes … was murder. Cold and ruthless.

And then it began.

The alert feline shrunk in surprise, watching the incoming creature with hyper-focused attention.

Carl never stopped or wavered. Within moments, he entered the beast's personal space, which inadvertently provoked angry growling every single time … until now.

The unusually silent lion took a few uncertain steps back and finally produced some threatening sounds, but they sounded completely different now. It was visibly intimidated by Carl's body language, perceiving him as a far bigger threat than he really was.

The boy, however, had no time or desire to admire the AI any more.

“Just tank and stab, no point in messing around.”

Seeing that he was already upon it and the lion made a sudden shift, Carl also sprung into action, lunging forward with his whole body as if he was invincible.

He was instantly greeted with a raised paw and a terrifying growl.

“Heh, just like a cornered cat. But for you, I'll have no mercy!”

Since the lion met Carl's right armed hand with its left paw, the boy couldn't block it with his body to land a counter. Instead, he instinctively raised the right hand, holding the knife in reverse grip – as he found out through trial and error, that this way it was easier to hold on to it, and he could absolutely not lose it now. He then braced himself as he collapsed forward, fully determined on taking the blow to his exposed side.

Stinging pain pierced him, as the claws tore his skin and flesh, but things were happening so fast, and he was so concentrated on finding a mark with the knife, that he managed to outright ignore it.

The blade moved with killing intent, the lion's head at the receiving end of its trajectory. Carl may have aimed for the eye, but he would be completely satisfied with any good connection. And although a critical hit just wasn't meant to be, as Carl didn't prepare to be shoved aside by the impetus of the beast's massive limb – the wide open maw, which tried to intercept the incoming weapon, was not accustomed to warding off such assaults …

… and so the snout bore the brunt of the pointy metal tip, which struck it from above.

Carl felt the morbid, yet gratifying sensation of something breaking – maybe not a bone, but some cartilage in the nose – and was instantly reassured.

As the boy landed and shifted his weight on his left leg to decelerate the sideways movement, the lion sharply withdrew its head, revealing the business end of the blade – a solid third of it dyed scarlet red. Carl could then hear an anguished snarl.

“That's right, now come back for more!”

As soon as he steadied himself, Carl went full steam ahead again. A fraction of a second later, reacting in kind, so did the wounded animal. They were now on a collision course, and Carl remembered full well, how it ended every time this transpired before. Fifty kilograms could not stop two hundred and fifty – he was going to get tackled and pinned, which heralded his inevitable demise.

But when the beast became airborne, giant paws fully outstretched to grip and restrain, furious muzzle ready to engulf its hated assailant and tear him to pieces – Carl didn't hesitate in the least.

“I will not back down any more!”

Crazed, he punched with the left hand.

The conclusion was easy to predict – while the paws landed on Carl's shoulders and the claws cut into his flesh until they reached bone, the incisors snapped shut around his wrist.

Carl smiled to himself, despite the countless needles pricking his brain viciously.

The powerful urge to panic was once more arrested by the restless anticipation of what was going to happen now.

As Carl fell on his back with a strong thud, the air escaped his lungs through his gritted teeth, but once the hefty mass landed on him … his knees were already bent and tucked in. Drowning out the reflex to gasp and not tolerating any delay, he fought fiercely to bring them all the way under the lion's head while it was still preoccupied crushing his left hand, which – as the feline stood up again – he achieved with unexpected ease. And as he held the hilt firmly over his temple all this time to guard his head …

… he now had the leverage he needed!

Pulling the immobilized left hand with all his might, he began stabbing like a madman. Though his vision blurred from pain, he held nothing back.

One!

Two!

Three!

Four!

One after another, a rapid rain of punctures fell on the beast's head. Most hit the thick skull and stopped there, others sunk slightly deeper, but only as far as Carl's meager strength allowed. While the lion endured with tightly shut eyes, moaning miserably and shaking left and right in anger and annoyance, its perseverance waned.

Again!

After another deep jab, it finally relented, opening it's maw and releasing a tragic wail together with Carl's hand. As the boy never stopped stabbing, it also reeled back with indignation, which Carl took advantage of immediately, jumping to his feet with the kind of vigor that he had when he was younger and healthier.

The disfigured left hand was gushing blood, and it seared like it was on fire together with the rest of his body, but Carl forcefully detached himself from that feeling and went for a frontal confrontation for the last time, inhaling deeply and taking the same quick and disrespectful steps as before, not putting the beast in his eyes at all.

“It's either now or never!”

Although now wary of its opponent, the lion wasn't going to back away, either.

“Good. Come!”

As Carl approached with his left side forward, squeezing the hand holding the knife against his initially shredded right flank, which was also bleeding profusely, another lethal scuffle commenced.

Carl deliberately presented his left, and the beast took the bait, attacking in a similar fashion it did during the boy's first run – trapping his injured hand and reaching with its fangs all the way to the ribs, clenching its jaws so hard Carl couldn't breathe, and holding him with its paws by the hips, as the boy collapsed to his knees under the huge weight.

But he couldn't care less any more.

Unbeknownst to him, something had switched in his mind. Maybe it was sudden, or maybe it occurred gradually throughout the ordeal – something now stood in opposition to the agonizing suffering. Something he couldn't place or comprehend.

Something … indomitable!

BAM!

The tip of the blade descended in an arch, finding the orbital cavity. It wouldn't reach the small brain, as it was hidden well and the knife arrived from an unfavorable angle, but the scale of destruction was enough. The pressure on his lungs instantly lessened, as the lion jolted back with a wince.

BAM!

A blow to the body found a space between the ribs on the beast's left side, which it presented while retreating its head. It stumbled back from the severe trauma, but Carl held on to the hilt for his life, ripping up a gashing wound and inducing a lamenting, accusatory whine.

Just as the blade parted with the lion's flesh, Carl propped himself up on one leg and jumped forth, landing on top of the shaken animal.

BAM!

Another good hit found the more delicate belly, hacking it open during the ensuing tussle.

Sensing both the weakness of his enemy and his own, Carl stabbed savagely – again, and again, and again, letting out all his pent up frustration on the gory remains. Only after a few good seconds did he acknowledge the translucent message in front of him, which appeared with a distinct sound notification.

System prompt: All enemies have been defeated. Would you like to restart the simulation?

The whole battle lasted no longer than the average. Carl stood up, seemingly not registering the unbelievable result. He looked up at the sunny sky, taking a deep, pained breath, that smelled so unpleasantly of iron. He felt like he could fall over at any moment.

However …

… he was now overflowing with an unknown strength.

It stabilized him, shrugging off all thought of fainting. More than that – it made him even more alive.

Carl balled his fists in spite of broken bones and torn tendons, flexed his meager muscles, and reveled in this newfound power, oblivious to all discomfort.

Yes!

This is it!

I will fight to the very end!

Fire burned in his eyes, and his countenance beamed.

…

“Alright, I'm done. We can go now,” Jin said upon returning.

“Okay,” Carl stood up and followed his senior.

“Everything fine with you?” Jin stopped, noticing some changes in the boy.

“I'm good. I'm not an egg, Jin.” Carl smiled. “Let's go.”

Jin shook it off.

“I must be overthinking things. Though he might just be putting up a front to hide his vulnerability …”

Jin patted Carl on the shoulder like a good colleague.

“Don't worry, man, everything's gonna be fine,” he encouraged cheerfully.

Carl glanced at him with a smirk.

“Do you see me worrying?”

Jin said no more.

“There really is a spirit of a warrior inside that fragile body!”

… He had no idea.