Apocalypse Baby

"Seriously, not another curse!"

Alex blurted, expecting the worst. The tense feeling whenever he remembered he still had a lingering bother. But now he has to deal with another.

'No please.'

But then, the system chimed, revealing a notification that made him breathe out a sigh of relief. It wasn't a curse this time but rather it was a blessing.

A tattoo began to appear on his wrist, spiraling into intricate, dark patterns.

Ding!

[You have received Goblinoid Tattoos: Status increases by 20% every time you face a creature from the goblin family.]

'Goblin family?'

Alex recalled what he knew about similar creatures from games he'd played. The goblin family were called goblinoid and they included hobgoblins, bugbears, kobolds, orcs, and even ogres.

A grin stretched across his face as he realized what this meant.

From now on, every time he faced one of these creatures, his stats would increase by 20% which was a massive advantage that would make him more powerful in fights with them.

He guessed that the system had awarded him this skill because he'd defeated so many goblins in such a short time, especially the goblin boss he had killed repeatedly.

Suddenly, a low rumble shook the ground.

Alex glanced at the walls as cracks snaked up, dust trickling down in small streams.

The cave was starting to crumble as the dungeon couldn't sustain itself without its boss.

Then, a small crystal appeared in front of him, glowing faintly.

Curious, Alex reached out placing his hand on it and a notification popped up.

Ding!

[Do you want to leave the dungeon?]

[Yes/No]

Alex muttered with a smirk:

"How convenient."

He'd been wondering if he'd have to sprint out of here, dodging falling rocks and collapsing ceilings, but the crystal had offered a shortcut.

"Yes, I'd like to leave," he said in response and the crystal glowed brighter.

A burst of light enveloped him, so intense he had to shut his eyes.

When the brightness faded, Alex opened his eyes—and found himself standing outside at the cave's entrance, greeted by the cool breeze of the open air.

The full moon cast its silver glow over everything, lighting up the night like a scene straight out of a movie. The dark blue sky, scattered with clouds, gave the whole area an eerie, otherworldly feel.

Alex heard a rumbling sound and turned to see the cave entrance collapse, crumbling into a heap of dust and rock. Seeing it fall gave him an odd, hollow feeling.

His adrenaline had faded, and he felt the weight of what he'd just done.

He'd invaded the goblins' home, crushed their leader's dream of rising to power, and brought their whole world crashing down.

To the goblins, he was the monster—a force that came out of nowhere and destroyed everything they knew.

This so-called tutorial world was brutal, a place that didn't care if he lived or died. Waiting around would only get him killed. He had to be smart and had to use every advantage he could to survive.

Taking the fight to them meant he'd be the one to make it out alive. And in this strange world, he'd been dragged into, surviving was the only thing that mattered.

Alex shook off his thoughts, snapping his focus back to the present, and opened his stats window. His eyes widened a bit, seeing the improvements since his last check.

Name: Alex Knight

Rank: E

Title: Apocalypse Baby

Class: None

Level: 12

HP: 200

MP: 150

[Stats]

Strength: 30

Agility: 30 [+5]

Intelligence: 30

Vitality: 20

[Stat Points Available: 50]

[Powerstones: 20]

[Skills:]

[Exploding Touch] [Sonic Howl] [Aegis Arcane] [SlipStream] [Stealth Walk] [Titan Fury] [Vigor Strike]

[Weapons/Items/Accessories]

[Eclipse Edge] [Scalewalk Boots] [Shadow Bites]

Alex grinned, taking in the changes.

His level had shot up to twelve, and he'd earned some new skills to boot.

Best of all, he now had a whole 50 free stat points waiting to be used.

'Time to put these to work.'

He quickly allocated the points, spreading them across his stats but giving agility a boost.

With ten points each to strength, intelligence, and vitality, and a solid twenty points to agility, his stats now looked like this:

[Stats]

Strength: 40

Agility: 50 [+5]

Intelligence: 40

Vitality: 30

[Stat Points]: 0

[Powerstones]: 20

Satisfied, he closed the stat window, feeling a noticeable shift in his energy and movement.

He still had power stones left to use, but he postponed the usage for later. His priority now was to figure out where to rest and recover.

But then a rustling noise caught his attention.

He spun towards the sound, only to find two cockatrices stepping out of the forest shadows. Their eyes glowed red in the moonlight, fixated on him with a menacing intensity.

'Seriously?!'

Alex clenched his fists in frustration. All he wanted was a break, but two cockatrices had appeared out of nowhere.

He took a deep breath:

"Okay, just two more cockatrices, and I can finally rest."

But as he took a step forward, another cockatrice emerged from the shadows.

And then another.

And another.

Within seconds, a dozen pairs of blood-red eyes stared at him under the moonlight, and within minutes, the number multiplied to nearly a hundred.

Alex's pulse raced as he took in the sight—a crowd of cockatrices all fixated on him, their eyes blazing with hatred.

"What the hell is happening?"

It was almost surreal, the way they gathered around him, like a nightmarish festival of feathers and fury.

The way the moonlight hit them, illuminating the sea of scales and wings, was strangely beautiful... if only he weren't glaring at him with murder in their eyes.

Alex's mind raced as he tried to piece together what was going on. And then, a horrible thought crossed his mind.

He quickly opened his status window, eyes scanning for the description of that dreadful curse he'd earned after defeating the Dreadfeather.

'Yep, this was the reason.'

There was no other explanation:

[Roosters Curse: Cockatrices will now seek out your tainted aura and as long as the curse exists, they will hunt you down. The curse can only be removed when the cockatrice king dies]

Alex sucked in a shaky breath:

"So… that's what this is about."

The curse had drawn every cockatrice in the area to him, and now their numbers were overwhelming.

Each one glared at him, their collective hatred almost palpable in the cold night air.

But then he spotted a cockatrice that stood out from amongst the crowd.

This one was larger than the rest, its feathers an iridescent blend of blue and green, shimmering under the moonlight like a peacock's tail.

But its feathers weren't just decorative; they looked razor-sharp, humming with an energy that made Alex's skin crawl.

The creature stepped forward, its piercing gaze locked onto him. And then, impossibly, its beak twisted into a sinister smile and it screeched, its voice hoarse and commanding:

"Kill the cursed one!"

The screeches of the cockatrices filled the night as they charged forward, talons pounding against the ground in a deafening rhythm. The earth trembled beneath their sheer numbers, a stampede of feathers and fury hurtling toward one single target.

His chest tightened as he faced the onslaught. Their blood-red eyes gleamed with one singular purpose to tear him apart.

But he steadied himself, fingers closing around a fistful of [Blastshards] he had prepared earlier. A grim smile touched his face. This felt like something straight out of an apocalypse.

Hundreds of cockatrices, all converging on him, their intense gaze making him feel like prey. It wasn't fair—but then again, in this world, fair didn't matter. This was survival.

Any slight guilt he'd felt for decimating the goblin vanished in an instant.

These creatures would have done the same to him without hesitation. They were the ones who ruled this forest, who had preyed on weaker creatures for ages. It was his turn to be on top.

With a grin, he clenched the [Blastshards] tight and hurled them into the charging horde. And in the next second, he vanished, activating [Stealth Walk].

The skill made him nearly invisible, slipping him out of sight just as the [Blastshards] hit the ground.

A massive explosion ripped through the front line of cockatrices.

Bodies flailed and feathers flew as the shards detonated, scattering them with deadly force.

Alex didn't wait for the smoke to clear as he darted from his hidden position, [Eclipse Edge] drawn and gleaming, his mind sharp and focused.

He charged forward, swinging the blade in a powerful arc.

The first cockatrice he met let out a shrill squawk as it fell, felled with one clean strike.

Landing amid the chaos, he raised his voice over the clamor, grinning wickedly:

"Just so you know. I eat your kind for breakfast. How'd you think I'd react when food shows up on my doorstep?"

With a roar, he unleashed [Sonic Howl] from deep within his chest.

The blast of sound tore through the night, sending shockwaves through the remaining cockatrices, many of them stumbling back from the sheer force.