Free Web NovelChapter 24: Blood Tempest
Gabriel breathed with difficulty, lying on the cold floor of the colossal hall.
The system roared in his interface with an endless cascade of red notifications, but he lacked the strength to pay them any attention.
His vision was blurry, and the pain in his wounded eyes throbbed mercilessly. He heard faint footsteps approaching from behind, while his eyelashes trembled with the effort of staying conscious.
A shadow leaned over his body. He tried to turn his head, but the world went black.
He lost consciousness.
***
Hours later, he woke up coughing violently. Each spasm sent waves of pain through his torso.
He was covered in clumsily applied bandages that smelled of cheap herbs and medicinal alcohol. He found himself in an unfamiliar but modest and cozy room, with dark wooden walls and a low ceiling crossed by thick beams.
A small window let in the dim sunlight.
He tried to move, but a painful groan escaped his throat. His bones ached as they creaked, as if they had been ground down and reassembled. frёewebηovel.cѳm
His muscles burned from the tips of his toes to his neck—an extreme and exhausting pain. The sensations felt terrifyingly real.
At that moment, he noticed his interface flashing insistently. The main quest appeared marked in bright silver letters:
[QUEST COMPLETED]
Gabriel accessed it immediately. A flood of notifications hit him:
[Congratulations! You have survived the Door!]
[You have obtained the heroic title: Blood Tempest.]
By surviving the gaze of a God and preventing its descent, you have gained great fame and reputation among the factions of the world.
[Additional Reward: Mysterious Creature Egg (Quality: Unknown)]
An egg whose nature is unknown. Discover what secrets it holds and what opportunities it contains.
[You have been recognized as the new Regent of the Black Raven Order.]
As the sole survivor, control of the resources, knowledge, and responsibilities now belongs to you.*
[Lineage Evolution Activated.]
Your lineage has been shaped by divine pressure, with its purity and acceptance increased. You gain slight resistance to divine influences and external wills.
[Congratulations, player! Your legend begins.]
Gabriel was stunned. A great satisfaction grew in his chest, so intense that it made his wounds throb even harder.
There were many rewards he didn’t fully understand. The heroic title sounded grandiose and powerful, the position of Regent gave him control over an organization that until yesterday had been a mystery, and the lineage improvement promised profound changes to his condition.
For a moment, he wanted to believe that it had all been worth it — enduring the hardships, the pain, and the hunger he had awakened. But he preferred to postpone that reflection.
Thinking about damages and returns right now would only give him a bigger headache.
He claimed all the rewards immediately.
A burning heat coursed through his body. He writhed uncontrollably on the bed, clutching the sheets while the system painfully updated the state of his lineage.
The pain was sharp for nearly a minute, as if thousands of needles were running through his veins. When it finally passed, he felt his body improve at a surprising speed.
His wounds closed faster, the fatigue decreased, and a new vitality flowed through his muscles.
He got up slowly, still aching, and looked around. The room was humble but clean.
He carefully descended the creaky wooden stairs, holding onto the railing. The question of how he had ended up here gnawed at him.
The answer came quickly.
When he reached the main hall, a middle-aged woman with a dirty apron raised her broom threateningly in his direction.
"You! Damn drunkard!" she shouted.
"Sleeping at my door like a dog! If it weren’t for my daughter and her damn compassion, I would have left you out there. Now get out!"
Gabriel raised his hands in peace, feeling that his hard-rebuilt composure might crumble if he received a broom strike. He apologized in a hoarse voice and asked how much he owed for the bandages and the room.
"At least you’re not a beggar and seem considerate. Forty copper coins for you," the woman grumbled.
Gabriel paid immediately to avoid any awkward situation. He asked for his clothes, and the woman pointed brusquely to a back room.
There he found his coat and gear, somewhat battered but clean.
Upon leaving the establishment, he discovered it was a modest tavern that also offered lodging. Apparently, they had mistaken him for a libertine drunk when they found him unconscious in front of the door.
Gabriel decided to ignore the humiliation. He had more important things to think about.
He walked with difficulty to a public bench near the tavern. He sat down with a long, painful sigh.
For the first time, he reviewed everything that had happened. The trials he had arduously overcome, the cultists dying one by one, the leader revealing his true face, and the divine eyes that had nearly consumed him. Along with that voracious hunger that had emerged to save him.
None of it seemed like a mere twisted mechanic from a crazy developer anymore. In his bones, he felt there was something deeper and more dangerous.
He decided it was enough for today. He immediately selected to log out.
The transition was smooth. The virtual world dissolved into darkness.
*** ƒrēewebnovel.com
The neural helmet retracted with a soft click. Gabriel opened his eyes in his small apartment.
The real fatigue weighed on his shoulders like a constant reminder. He sat on the bed for a few minutes, processing everything.
Before trying to sleep, he went to the shared bathroom. He took off his worn shirt and washed his face and hair with cold water.
Several strands of hair were caught between his fingers. He frowned and looked up at the smart mirror.
He was completely stunned.
Small white streaks had appeared in his black hair, like snow scattered across the darkness. They weren’t normal gray hairs — they were bright and almost silvery, especially concentrated at the temples and with some frontal strands.
His black eyes, reflected in the mirror, showed deep shock.
He could only whisper, almost breathless:
"Shit..."
