Chapter 38: Survival Matrix Finale
Blessings were rare to obtain in Arden, and according to records, only about a dozen hunters had ever gotten a blessing. Just like reawakening, it was gained through dangerous means — ones where death was certain, and survival was only a distant possibility.
They had four ranks — Radiant, Sacred, Divine, and Mythic. The lowest, Radiant, was more than enough to change the destiny of a weak hunter, and yet Marlon stared at something far greater.
[ Bonus reward has been calculated ]
[ You’ve received 100 Free Stat Points to distribute ]
[ Goddess Gift Package has arrived ]
[ You’ve obtained a Sacred-Rank Blessing: Lifeflow ]
[ Blessing: Lifeflow ]
[ Rank: Sacred-rank ]
[ Patron: Goddess of Light ]
[ Effect: Health regeneration rate increased by 2000% ]
He froze.
’2000%!’ he bellowed inwardly, failing to maintain his usual calm composure.
His focus remained fixed on the blessing description as everything around him blurred out. His heartbeat quickened, and his body trembled with emotions that were hard to describe.
Around him, the others wondered what he might have seen to react in such a way. Their gazes shifted between worry and curiosity as they looked at him.
But Marlon didn’t care. The only thing in his mind was the astronomical blessing — nothing else mattered at that moment.
He calculated quickly.
A 2000% increase in his current health regeneration rate meant 20 HP per minute.
Most healers could not even heal that fast, and as for healing potions, one would have to spend millions of credits to obtain one of similar power.
Marlon’s reaction was no exaggeration, especially considering he had also received one hundred free stat points to distribute. To earn that much, one would need to level up fifty times!
It took over a minute before his racing heart finally calmed down. He regained his usual confident composure, shut his system interface, and turned toward the curious onlookers.
Once they saw that he had recovered from his daze, they surrounded him with questions. This time, composed, he responded only to the ones that needed answering and ignored the unimportant ones.
He revealed only a few of his rewards, skipping the part about the blessing. Still, the large number of free stat points he received made all his listeners jealous — including high-rank hunters and even a few guardians.
When the commotion finally ended, the E-rank hunters brought out their ID bracelets and quit the survival matrix, leaving only his team behind.
When they were gone, Marlon checked his ID bracelet to see how many contribution points they had earned so far and their current rank.
[ ID: 1820 ]
[ Contribution: 10,750 pts ]
[ Team Combined Contribution: 16,800 pts ]
[ Overall Ranking: #1 ]
[ Team Ranking: #3 ]
[ Health: 100% ]
[ QUIT ]
As expected, the little time left wasn’t enough for others to surpass his number-one spot. Still, their team’s ranking had dropped to number three, which was understandable since most teams had up to twenty members, while theirs only had four.
He could already guess the ones holding the top spot, but they were of no significance right now. No matter how far they had gotten, with his current level and arsenal of skills, he only needed a horde of monsters to surpass them.
"Guys, we’ve got some serious catching up to do. Hope you’re ready," he said, turning to his bewildered teammates.
The three paused for a few seconds before nodding their heads in agreement, still overwhelmed by the many surprises they had witnessed in the past few minutes.
Marlon began leading his team once more through the terrains of the Frost Grave. The icy lands stretched far and wide, and the cold wind blew harshly against their faces.
In less than half an hour, they came upon a group of monsters, and battle descended once again.
Marlon’s speed and strength had grown vastly — so much that he only needed to take down the mini-boss monsters in the horde and leave the weaker ones for his teammates to earn their own contribution points.
After taking care of the monsters that could trouble his teammates, he would find a comfortable place to sit and watch as the others fought.
Each time one of them got close to a near-death experience, like a knight in shining armor, he would appear, avert the danger, and then return to his resting spot as if nothing had happened.
His part in the survival matrix had changed — from participant to supervisor.
Lyra, who usually hated being helped by anyone, even her own family, did not resist his assistance. She accepted it in her usual silence — not because she wanted to ignore him, not because she was arrogant, but because she had nothing to say. She was speechless, still mentally overstimulated.
Among everyone, she was the most shocked and confused.
Shocked that he was the Obsidian Fist — the one who had made her heart race for the first time, the one who had stirred emotions she hadn’t felt since her teenage years.
And confused for many reasons — wondering if his words that night, about making her his lover, had been genuine or merely a façade. She didn’t even know how to react to any of it.
So she remained silent.
Her red eyes glinted as she tore through the ice monsters with her twin daggers, using their cries and her relentless strikes to drown out her chaotic thoughts.
Her prowess was flawless. Her actions and her already growing popularity drew even more attention from the spectators outside the matrix.
With Marlon sitting out of the fight, she became the center of attention.
Ashton and Logan had long since grown used to accepting help from Marlon. To them, he was more than a friend — he was a helper who had contributed more to their growth than their own families. They respected him deeply.
The two fought in perfect sync — Logan using beast whispering while Ashton slayed the monsters under his control, granting both of them a large amount of experience points.
Without realizing it, their teamwork and growing bond during the recent battles had caught the attention of the onlookers outside.
Hunters discussed how rare it was for two hunters fighting for experience points to cooperate so selflessly. Neither was greedy for more; neither bragged about gaining less or more.
Just two people fighting in complete unity, their focus sharp and their teamwork flawless.
Time went by.
Evening arrived at the coliseum, but no one left.
The area was properly lit, so bright that one might even mistake it for day.
Refreshments were served, and with Gigaman’s constant commentary, the survival matrix never lost its energy.
At that moment, the entire coliseum watched a single scene, every eye fixed with unbreakable focus on the golden child, the radiant figure who once again stole all attention with his unattainable prowess.
The usual snow-white landscape was in full splendor.
Two beings stole the scene.
One, an Ice Dragon — a rare boss monster in low-rank frost-type danger zones. Although it mostly appeared in F-rank dungeons, its destructive power and flight ability made it an E-rank threat.
Teams of veteran E-rank hunters would spend a lot of time to take down one, and a D-rank hunter might spend almost an hour fighting it.
Never in history had a single person below such a rank taken down such a monster. It was considered impossible.
Nonetheless, this terrifying boss, feared by many, now lay on the frosty ground, motionless.
Atop its massive body sat a single figure, resting his hand on his knee in a simple yet dominating pose. A grin adorned his face as he looked at the dozens gathered around him, their eyes filled with shock, reverence, and admiration.
They were at least sixty in number — all trainees who had heard the dragon’s roar and rushed to the scene to assist in taking it down, to lift the frostbite curse and clear the survival matrix objective.
They had all arrived here, quickly sharing strategies to take down the massive boss monster that flew above them, unleashing area-of-effect attacks that shattered the surroundings and chipped away at their health points.
Dozens died, and even more quit.
The few that remained got ready to risk it all.
And that was when he arrived.
With a single effortless move, he grabbed and hurled a large, thick snowball at the Ice Dragon, forcing it down to the ground.
The scenes that followed were actions that left them speechless.
Now, they all stared at him — the one-punch hero — each with different expressions.
And the hero, none other than Marlon, looked back at them while sitting atop the corpse of the feared monster. His grin widened, confident and calm.
He tilted his head slightly, saying with a teasing tone, "Come on, guys. If you keep staring at me like that, I might start blushing."
In such a tense moment, only he could make a joke.
It left them even more speechless.
Especially because all of them once knew him as ’Masochist Marlon,’ the popular weakling and troublemaker.
Now he was strong.
So strong that his strength could rival that of veteran E-rank hunters.
How had he grown so much in such a short span?
What kind of monster had he faced?
Did he find some divine treasures?
They all wondered.
But the question remained unanswered.
Right at that moment, across all the different danger zones within the survival matrix, the same notification appeared before every trainee.
[ A boss monster has been defeated. The overall objective of the survival matrix has been fulfilled. All candidates will now be teleported out. Congratulations. ]
Surprise rippled through the other danger zones. The trainees wondered who could have found and defeated a boss monster so quickly.
But before they could react, their bodies were wrapped in glimmers of light, and they vanished out of the battle-ridden world and back to the middle of more than two hundred thousand spectators awaiting them and something more....Outerworldly but familiar, entities that once shook their world and invoked fear.
....
End of Volume 1: Awakening
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