My Tribrid System: More than a Monster

Chapter 73

A few minutes ago, during the height of the Aberrant chase, Ray had been gravely injured, his body pushed far beyond its physical limits.

He had been brutally pierced in the abdomen by the Aberrant’s claws to such an extent that the jagged tips of the talons actually popped out from his back.

The monster, showing no mercy, then proceeded to fling his critically wounded body away like a piece of discarded refuse.

And while his form was cutting through the air in a desperate arc, a sharp, digital ding suddenly echoed within the silent halls of his mind.

[Conditions met]

[All Bloodlines Activated]

THUNK—!

His body smashed into the trunk of a massive tree... hard. The impact was enough to rattle his very soul.

[-8 HP]

’Wh-what’s the use now? It’s—it’s all over.’

Ray had already given up on life.

With a measly two HP remaining in his bar, what was the point of struggling? There was no realistic coming back from such a life-threatening, gruesome injury.

To be honest, he was more than just exhausted; he was profoundly pissed off at the moment.

He was pissed off at the cruel world, pissed off at the government for putting him in this death-trap situation, and absolutely livid at himself for being so pathetically weak.

And finally, he was pissed off at the system for awakening his bloodlines only when he was on the literal doorstep of death.

’What is the point of even getting angry? It is what it is. Let me just accept my fate and... and...’ His thoughts were getting slower, becoming sluggish as a heavy darkness crept up on his consciousness at an alarming rate.

Crimson blood gushed from his opened abdomen as his head dropped forward, his vision blurring into a messy kaleidoscope of greens and browns.

’... I just want to sleep. Wake me... wake me when it’s—it’s all over. Goodnight world.’

The moment he finished that final, weary thought, the darkness claimed him entirely.

He didn’t know how long had passed in that void, or how much time had been spent in the silence; he had lost all senses and the ability to track the ticking seconds.

But then, drifting through the nothingness, he could hear a voice.

No, wait... not just a solitary voice. He could hear another.

What was going on?

The voices were blurry at first, muffled as if he were underwater. He couldn’t make out what was being said for a few agonizing moments until—

”Wake the f*ck up, you bozo! It isn’t over yet!”

The shout was thunderous.

It was as if a massive speaker box had been placed directly against his ears and some unfortunate human had decided to scream at the top of their lungs into a microphone.

That was how deafening the voice felt.

And in the process, his eyes snapped wide open instantaneously.

But what he saw wasn’t what he expected at all.

Instead of the countless, towering trees of the forest, what he saw in front of him was a boundless, infinite sea of darkness.

The whole place was pitch black, devoid of any features, except for a single, brilliant light source which was coming from directly in front of him—specifically just a few feet away.

”Huh? Is—is this the afterlife?” He muttered the question in a haze of confusion as he blinked, trying to adjust his eyesight to the strange environment.

That was when he finally noticed a peculiar detail.

A sleek black chair, which looked remarkably like the high-end seats gamers of the old world used, was placed just a few inches away from a hole or opening that gave off the blinding light in this dark world.

”No, silly. This isn’t the afterlife; it’s your mind space space.” A soothing, melodic voice was heard coming from directly behind him.

’Huh?’ he thought, his neck feeling stiff as he tilted his head upward.

For some reason, he was laying flat on his back, hence he naturally tilted his head back to get a glimpse of the owner of that angelic voice.

And there the owner was, sitting peacefully.

Seated on the bare, dark ground was a figure with a warm, gentle smile on their face.

Ray was momentarily stunned, as he didn’t know whether to call the figure a male or a female; they looked so impossibly beautiful.

It was the kind of ethereal beauty you simply wouldn’t encounter in the human world—almost like something otherworldly or divine.

The figure was draped in a flowing white robe that didn’t have a single speck of dirt on its pristine fabric.

Long, snow-white hair cascaded down the figure’s back, reaching the base of the collarbone.

Beautiful, silver-like eyes stared down at the Aspirant with a depth that felt ancient.

”Hi Ray, I’m Elyon.” The figure introduced himself, the words accompanied by a warm, welcoming smile that seemed to radiate peace.

”I can’t believe we are stuck here with a weakling who couldn’t even defeat a simple, easy threat like that.” A rougher, more gravelly voice cut through the air from the side.

Ray blinked, his movements sluggish as he slowly pushed himself into a seated position.

He strained to get a clear view of the second speaker, who stood shrouded in a dark corner where the light failed to reach.

But due to his naturally sharp eyesight—which could now pierce through the veil of night like a predatory bird—he was able to discern a clear picture of the one lurking in the shadows.

The man had long, unkempt brown hair and fierce black eyes that looked as though they could send physical daggers flying.

He possessed broad shoulders, built almost like a professional bodybuilder, and sharp, pointed teeth that gave him a beastly, primal edge.

A jagged scar ran across his cheek, further adding to his mean, battle-hardened appearance.

”And that’s Bruce,” Elyon added, introducing the second figure with a playful grin on his face.

Ray didn’t reply instantly. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the primary light source.

Now that his vision and head had cleared enough, he could finally see what it truly was.

It looked like a screen—resembling a massive LED TV mounted in the void and fixated in a single position.

From this ’monitor,’ he could see the very forest where the Aspirants had been hunting, as well as the ongoing, bloody struggle against the Aberrant.

’Huh? How is this even possible?’ he mused, a confused and weary expression crossing his face as he stared at the display.

”I know you are profoundly confused at the moment,” Elyon began, refusing to budge from where he sat on the dark floor.

”But now is not the time for questions. Just know that we mean you no harm. We were created specifically to assist the one who would inherit the system.”

”Speak for yourself, you old fool. For all I know, I could cause him plenty of harm,”

Bruce chimed in with a sinister grin, rubbing his calloused hands together while staring at the Aspirant.

Yet, for some reason, Ray wasn’t scared in the slightest as he stared back into those fierce eyes.

Ignoring the brute’s provocations, Elyon continued his explanation.

”Right now, you are far too weak to go back and face that Aberrant thingy. And so am I; I’m not much of a fighter, unfortunately. But Bruce can help. He is, after all, a brute. You just need to give him your permission to take over.”

Ray’s brow furrowed into a deep frown.

”Permission? Why? If he’s a part of me, can’t he just take control?”

Elyon shook his head vehemently. ”He cannot, because this is fundamentally your body. Without your spark, we wouldn’t even exist here. So, just say the word and he will take the reigns.”

Bruce scoffed, his frown deepening. ”What now? Why are you making me sound like some mindless puppet to the kid?”

Ray went silent, his mind racing. ’I’m not foolish enough to think that the Aberrant would let Van and the others escape safely.

Even though I’m skeptical of letting an unknown entity take control of my physical form, I still have no choice if I want Van to live. This is a small price to pay in the long scale of things.’

Elyon and Bruce were now bickering loudly at one another, snapping back and forth like a pair of angry cats and rats.

Their argument filled the void until, all of a sudden, Ray got on his knees and bowed his head deeply toward Bruce.

The sudden gesture caught the brute completely off guard.

”Please. If you can help, please do so. Protect my friends at all costs. You can take control over my body for now.”

Bruce paused, his eyes blinking rapidly as he stared down at the lad.

”You do know that I have the option to refuse if I wanted to, right?”

Ray slowly lifted his head, his gaze steady. ”I have a feeling you won’t refuse. If you do, we might all just die here. And I’m sure you don’t want to fade away into nothingness, right?”

”....”

The silence stretched for several long seconds as Bruce scanned Ray from head to toe, while Elyon was seen stifling a laugh with all his might.

”Tsk. Fine then,” Bruce finally scoffed, turning away and beginning his walk toward the gamer chair in the center of the room.

Clack. Clack.

”And for the record, I’m not doing this for you. I just need to stretch my limbs a bit more. It’s been far too long.”

With those final words, Bruce sat down in the chair and gripped the armrests.

Crack, Crack, Crack—!

The sickening sound of bones shifting and snapping suddenly echoed through the subconscious space.

”Time to unleash the true power of a werewolf. Hahahaha~” Bruce’s menacing laughter filled the air, sounding like a sadistic villain finally unleashed upon the world.