The Last Dainv-Chapter 161

The Last Dainv-Chapter 161

The spider mech charged at Gale. Its metal feet dented the satin metal sheets of the street, sending vibrations throughout the floor.
Rolling sideways, the spider mech crashed into the building where he stood just seconds before. Metal plates and glass fell onto the floor. A large glass fragment the size of Gale's head lodged itself onto the metal just inches away from his face.
The spider mech backed up as its upper body spun a full 180 degrees while the legs stayed put. Small compartments popped open along its sides, revealing racks of missiles.
Shit!
Gale sprinted for cover as the first volley fired from the chambers.
Three missiles shot toward him, leaving smoke trails. He reached a large piece of metal that fell from the building and braced himself.
The explosion shook the street. Metal flooring that wasn't covered by the makeshift wall glowed red hot from the heat.
A high pitched whine came from the spider mech. Its barrels glowed red hot, building up something Gale wanted no part of.
He dashed away, zigzagging between broken building pieces. When the whine reached its peak, lasers cut through the metal and glass that nearly missed him, leaving molten edges dripping on the floor.
Tendrils spread out back to where the spider mech was. Each of its movements clearly mapped. Octopedal had unlimited movement options. It even spins its upper body so it didn't have to turn.
Focus, Gale. Always attack.
That is the defense.
The mech pivoted and charged again.
In the last second, Gale stepped to the side. Weber sliced through one of the leg joints. The blade bounced off.
The mech spun, one leg swept toward Gale. Dainv Combat Arts activated. His body flowed between movements. He jumped over the sweeping leg, rolled under another, and came up behind the machine.
The spider mech backed Gale toward a wall, using its bulk to block escape routes. Red targeting lasers tracked him to the chest.
Back to the wall. The mech trapped him. It slowed down its movement. Two legs rose up, ready to smash him down.
Phase Touch activated. Weber's circuits lit up. An ethereal glow spread along its edge.
The metal leg met the Weber slashing upwards. Weber cut through the solid metal like butter. No impact, no sound, just a clean cut with slight resistance.
The spider mech stumbled, suddenly off-balance.
Don't let up.
Gale dashed forward and cut through another leg joint. This time, the spider mech somehow screeched like it had feelings even though it's clearly a
clanker.
The spider mech backed away, dragging its damaged limbs. It shifted its remaining legs to keep balance. Weapons that had focused on close combat now rotated outward. More missile compartments opened and launched.
Barrage flew past him as Gale weaved and dodged, using all available obstacles as reorientation zones. He ducked and slid into an alley, hopefully breaking the tracking.
Missiles exploded at the entrance. Parts of the building on both sides collapsed. A large slab of metal fell straight onto the entrance, blocking it fully.
The spider mech climbed over the wall at the other side of the alley's entrance, blocking him in. Red dots tracked and painted all across Gale's chest.
Option 1, climb. Then it'd just collapse the whole building like the others.
Option 2, Phase Touch whole body and go through the wall, running away and fighting another day.
Gale smiled. For the first time in what felt like forever, his veins filled with the adrenaline of a life and death battle. Earth couldn't compare to the kind of hostility that this clanker was giving him.
Breath of the Void's inky patterns and intricate shapes bloomed all over his body from the crown of his head down to his toes. The world's colour flipped around. Reds became teals. Shadows became a blaring highlight. Buildings bent at a 45 degree angle when he knew they were supposed to be straight. On the spider mech itself, its face now bore the face of a crystallized human.
The spider mech fired another missile volley. Gale moved faster than before, but not fast enough. Left hand into pocket. Storage box interface popped up. But before he could pull up the Weber Ballista, a missile curved sharply while he fiddled around with the interface. The explosion caught him mid dash, throwing him against the alley wall.
Pain shot through his side. The impact knocked the air from his lungs. Gale pushed himself up, spitting blood onto the metal street.
"That's annoying," he muttered, staring at the spider mech.
He needed to go big or go home. The fight against the dark knight in the Eclipsed had combined both Alter and Distort to create reflections, and the effects were devastating when combined with Phase Touch.
It was the only way to get some kind of ranged attack on that thing. He still remembered the pathways needed to light up when combining both skills. Let's see if he can do it again without the doping.
Essence pushed through the specific pathways. A sharp stinging pain bolted through where the pathways were on his chest and arms.
Jumping up, he swung the blade like the way he ended the knight. Whoosh. The blade whistled. An imperfect swing, and nothing happened.
Another missile exploded at the side of him, launching him down to the floor. His back crashed against the metal floor. Blood sprayed out of his mouth.
Gritting his teeth, he quickly got back up.
Again.
A headache blasted through the back of his head. Jump up again. Swing. Nothing happened.
A missile exploded in front of him, but his Weber widened to look like a shield, preventing the bulk of the blast from hitting him.
Again!!
The headache grew to unbearable levels. Familiar pathways during the doping lit up again. Jump up. Swing. A distorted reflection cast out towards the spider mech, but it faded just before it reached the metal of the mech.
A missile barreled down on him, aimed directly at Gale's face.
Phase Touch activated. Pathways lit up once again. Grip tight.
Swing.
The reflection cast outwards. More solid this time. It vertically cut through the oncoming missile and decapitated one of the missile chambers on its back.
[New skill formation detected…]
[Reflections Lv.1 unlocked.]
The spider mech screeched again, skittering onto the wall while a high whining pitch revved up as the red glow on the laser barrels grew brighter. Targeting systems locked onto Gale.
Before it fired, he already saw the straight line and dashed forward to the side. Lasers whipped past him, searing the edges of his clothes.
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Another swing. Reflection sent forward at the red optical sensors. The wave hit right in the middle of the cluster. Half of it fell right off.
The machine backed away from the alley entrance. Its movements lost their smooth coordination from the impaired vision. Damaged sensors and missing legs made it look like an injured spider.
Well, technically, it's literally a spider, but this was the first time it actually retreated down to the floor and ran away.
Barrel aimed back at him while it ran. Lasers fired his way.
Dainv Combat Arts allowed him to weave through the urban-like street. Jumped over the pole and used the building wall to charge forward. Suddenly, he was up close to the spider mech.
Gale drove Weber into what looked like a bunch of computer wires and a bunch of buttons.
The spider mech bucked wildly, trying to throw him off. Unfortunately for this spider, even the wildest horse in Alberta wasn't as stubborn as him. Gale held on with one hand while the other kept cutting. Weber severed wires, punctured hydraulics that leaked out fluid, and destroyed anything important-looking.
Despite the damage, the machine kept moving. It slammed against buildings, trying to crush Gale between its body and solid walls. It spun in circles.
Weber continuously struck at anything it could get onto. Alter lengthened the blade to reach the hydraulics that were too far.
Still, the spider mech was one damn stubborn clanker.
Phase Touch channelled into the Weber. Another swing downwards. Reflection sliced through the whole mech, cutting it in half.
The spider mech froze.
Gale jumped away, landing on the metal floor as the two halves of the mech toppled away from each other and exploded.
[S4MECH Spiderling felled.]
[Its soul trapped in circuits, forever programmed to patrol the Tomb of the Architect.]
[Extracting Origin from Prey...]
[Spirit Core Part built. Total Essence increased.]
[Core density full.]
[Upgrading Core Class]
[Warning: Host will experience pain. Prepare your heart]
"What the fuck?" Gale managed to say before the world shook.
It wasn't the world trembling.
It was him
.
His whole body quivered from cell to cell. Pain swept through every part of him starting from his spine and heart and spreading out to the rest of his body. Muscles stiffened and tears dripped from his eyes uncontrollably.
Gale fell to his knees on the metal street. The pain only got worse with each second, beyond any pain he ever felt before. It was like his cells themselves were being torn apart and replaced.
He tried to stay awake, his hands clawed at the bare metal floor, leaving sheddings where he had clawed. His teeth felt like they were about to break from the force he was putting on them.
His vision narrowed, darkness coming into the corners of his eyes. Just as he was about to faint, a notification appeared in front of him.
[Warning: Do not shutdown while installation is in progress]
Fuck you,
he wanted to tell the Origin System. He'd roll his eyes if he could, but it was impossible to do so at the moment.
The pain continued and transformed from sharp prickling needles into something hot and burning. Once again, it spread from his spine and heart to the rest of his body. Sweat dripped from his skin, despite the cold air blowing as puddles formed under him.
He curled himself, drawing his knees close to his chest, hoping to alleviate any kind of pain to no avail. If another spider mech saw him, he would be dead in this state, but that kind of thought never came as he focused on breathing through the pain.
One breath. Another. Each intake of air felt like drinking fire. Each exhale came as a strangled gasp.
Time lost all meaning. The pain might have lasted minutes or days. He couldn't tell. The destroyed spider mech lay beside him, its metal cooling with soft pings and creaks that barely registered through his suffering.
Gradually, the pain subsided and the burning heat receded, starting from the tips of his fingers and toes. Then slowly from his limbs and finally going back to his heart and spine. The pain left no soreness, no ache. Just cold absence of any pain.
When the final waves of pain left from the two origins, Gale uncurled from his position. He sat up, checking his hands, extending his fingers as he looked at them. No soreness at all. Nothing seemed out of place. Instead, he felt… better. His skin seemed to fit better, as stupid as that sounded. His lungs felt clearer as he inhaled. Even his eyesight became sharper, able to see the graining in the metal wall from far away.
It was as if he had shed a layer of weight that was on him before that he didn't know about. He was 18 years old, yet he felt even more 18 than before and that definitely did not make sense.
[Attain Lv. 3 in all basic skills. Mission Complete.]
[Reward: 1000 points]
[Total Points: 2110]
[Core Part Installation completed.]
[Congratulations on attaining Core Class: Attuned.]
[Alter Lv.2 -> Lv.3]
[Essence Control Lv.1 -> Lv.2]
[Dainv Combat Arts Lv. 1 -> Lv.2]
[Breath of the Void Lv.2 -> Lv.3]
[Storage Space Unlocked.]
[Core Parts Unlocked.]
[Upgrade Core Parts per minor ascension is now available]
...
Name: Gale Hathie
Race: Dainv
Core Class: Attuned
Origin Grain: 0/1000
Core Attributes: [
Max Load: 150
Efficiency: 150
Essence: 1500/1500
]
Core Parts: [Body: 12, Heart: 12, Mind: 12, Spirit: 12]
Skills:
[Phase Touch Lv.3][Alter Lv.3][Distort Lv.3][Reflections Lv.1]
Passives:
[Breath of the Void Lv.3][Essence Control Lv.2][Dainv Combat Mastery Lv. 2][Space Storage Lv. 1]
…
Gale stared at the notifications, particularly at the "Origin Grain: 0/1000" line. He stood up, brushing off his clothes. Each Origin Grain from Vianne's shop was at 5000 points. No way that was happening.
"Guide," he whispered. "Is there any way to get Origin Grains besides buying them from the store?"
[Affirmative. Vianne's Express Amazing Store represents merely one acquisition pathway. Continued extraction of Origin from prey entities, as demonstrated with the S4MECH Spiderling, generates incremental Origin accumulation. This process mirrors the previous Core density increase mechanism but now contributes to Origin Grain formation.]
Gale kicked at a piece of the destroyed spider mech. "Fine. I guess grinding it is. What are these Core Parts? Body, Heart, Mind, Spirit?"
[Core Parts represent fundamental aspects of Origin Core functionality.
Body: Increases physical prowess, allows for stronger explosive power.
Heart: Increases essence and blood flow, allowing for higher skill control.
Mind: Increases processing power, allowing for faster skill activation.
Spirit: Increases parallel processor integration, allows for easier skill synergy.]
Gale frowned. "And what does Mind and Spirit do exactly? In terms I can understand?"
[The Origin Core contains multiple integrated components. The "Mind" Core Part functions as the central processing unit for skill activation. Enhanced Mind components reduce activation time, allowing for near-instantaneous skill deployment. The "Spirit" Core Part establishes parallel processing pathways, splitting Mind functionality across multiple simultaneous operations. Higher Spirit component values enable concurrent activation of multiple skills without performance degradation.]
Gale ran a hand across his face. "So my body is basically a computer, and the Origin Core is some kind of CPU?"
[Assessment contains partial accuracy. The biological-technological comparison provides a useful conceptual framework but fails to encompass the multi-dimensional nature of Origin interaction with host physiology.]
"Right," Gale said. "Let's test some of these new features."
He focused his thoughts on the newly unlocked Storage Space. A familiar interface appeared in his mind. It was identical to the Storage Box interface, complete with slot layout and item previews.
"Huh," Gale muttered. "They look exactly the same." He picked up his Storage Box from where it had fallen during the fight.
"I bet whoever designed this box made it after the innate Dainv ability."
He began transferring items from the Storage Box to his internal Storage Space. When finished, he checked the contents of his Space Storage:
[Space Storage]
[Description: A spatial storage system granted upon Cev's bloodline's ascension to Attuned.]
[Slots used: 17/56]
[Items: Broken Sword, E-Blade Weber S6L96, Weber X1-Balista, Red Marble, Ann Family Full Combat Kit x4, Ammo box x50, breach charges x8, anti-mage shockbangs x8, miscellaneous magic scrolls x16, M4 Longgun Glory Industry Mod x2, Desert Eagle Black x2, MageTech Ammunition Crate x2, syringe guns x40, null field generators x2, bag of grey marbles and red marbles, nutritional brick x50]
Lastly, he put the storage box into the space storage. No sense in throwing away a useful container.
He stood in the middle of the metal street, the broken spider mech beside him, and considered which upgraded skill to test first. The boost to Dainv Combat Arts, Breath of the Void, and Essence Control represented significant power increases, but how exactly they would manifest remained to be seen.
Gale took a deep breath, tasting the slight metal in the air. Going down to the floor, he wiped his finger on the metal floor and licked his finger. The air and the metal tasted the same, meaning that whatever this place was, it barely had any life in it.
More importantly, somehow it tasted stronger. Being able to taste the smell the air was already a strange feeling.
He looked at his arm and saw the slight pulse of essence that flowed within his veins. Testing it by switching up the pathways that lit up, it responded faster than before. It felt the same as moving his limbs, becoming one with him.
A spider mech like this one he'd just killed probably wouldn't be too much trouble now after attaining Attuned core class.

Chapter 161