"Truthfully, the beginning of an Outbreak be the easiest and the hardest at the same time. Why is that? The answer is quite simple, my dear students. It is the hardest because the survivors must adapt to a pletely new reality. They must accept that their families, world, and old life are gone and will never return. That is the actual hard part of the Outbreak.

  At the same time, the beginning is the easiest because of the level of fighting. Yes, you heard me right, fighting. The worst the survivors have to worry about are the transformed creatures of their world that they are at least slightly familiar with. It is a much better fate than battling against the mohat will e from the Gates sooner or ter."

  ~ tral Academy, Ger

  Game-ging.

  There were no other words to really describe what Minor Takeover truly was. Alright, that might be an exaggeration. Leo could quickly think of a few different ways to define his first teique. Overpowered, broken, impossible, and more.

  However, ultimately, 'game-ging' enpassed everything Minor Takeover was for Leo. It possessed the potential to pletely ge how he approached this new unfiviy, giving him an edge Leo didn't even know he needed.

  A, here it was, an ability far beyond anything he could have ever anticipated. Moreover, who knew how much more Leo would be able to aplish with Takeover as both he and the ability grew stronger.

  Leo chuckled. And here I thought that Decoy was broken in my current state. Hell, it still is if I bi with Takeover. Fuck... I guess you have my thanks, Nikra, after all.

  Decoy alone was an amazing ability if Leo figured out how to use it correctly. It might only be an illusion incapable of iing with the real world, but even its visual effects had a lot of potential. Now bi with Minor Takeover, and Leo had two abilities that could fuse the hell out of any Voidling he fought against.

  He only o look as far as the fight between the Hounds and the Ruo see how mue Voidling could do against another. With plete trol over the Runner and a e of Leo spreading further fusion on the field, he could only wonder how easier his enters with other monsters would get.

  Although, Leo grimaced. I'm pretty sure that I won't have much Essence left after using those two skills.

  The System gave him enough information about Decoy to uand how taxing the ability was. Which was uandable sidering what it did. As for Minor Takeover, Leo didn't get the same amount of information. However, from what he felt during the knowledge rush, his first teique couldn't be much better than Decoy when it came to Essence.

  Undoubtedly, Leo could be pletely wrong, but the validity of his assumption would remain unanswered until he put the teique to the test.

  Still, I need more points in Soul and Mind. Leo reasoned as he finally rose from the messy roof and sat cross legged. And time to practice... Void knows that apart from the experimentation with Stealth and Kiss, I didn't have many more opportuo mess with Essenot for the ck , of course…

  Yawning, Leo stretched his arms. Without pulling more attribute points out of my ass with some fucked up event, the only way to get more is leveling up... Yeah, no more deying when I get back to the others. I just hope they won't ge their mind about me in the middle of evolution…

  In the end, going through the evolution with other humans on standby was still better than doing it entirely alone. Leo may not have pced full trust in them yet, but if the process took lohan anticipated, he wao have someone proteg him while being so vulnerable.

  A messily calcuted risk, if even that. Leo sighed. Damn, I wish I had more info about evolving, but I'm not risking starting it after making a single choice. I just have to hope that the possibility of healing Laura fully will stop Dyn and Tyler from doing anything stupid.

  And that retty much it. The path was clear, and now all Leo had to do was follow it.

  Might as well…

  Standing up, Leo rolled his shoulders to clear the pains that stuck with him after the forced adva. Only a few minutes have passed sihat, but give it a bit more time, and he should be back to normal.

  Now, do I go back the same way I came here, or should I take a small de- Leo paused as his gaze swept over the area and came upon a particur sight. What in the flying fuck?

  Just to make sure he wasn't halluating or the sunlight wasn't pying with his eyes, Leo sed all the rooftops visible in the distance again. ill there. He frowned, watg as some kind of purple vapor stantly rose just slightly above one of the buildings some distance away.

  Isn't that where the town square should be?

  Despite Wolford's small size, the city indeed had a town square. It was quite small and definitely not in the shape of a square, but the triangle was still a hub for the unity, especially during the weekends. It also helped that it was surrounded from each side by some kind of buildings that housed either shops or restaurants.

  Overall, it robably the best pce to visit in Wolford. As such, Leo shouldn't be even slightly surprised that the Outbreak decided to keep the pce as something special.

  The question is, what exactly happehere.

  Taking a look behind, in the dire leading to his group, Leo sighed. By all means, he should be going back. Even if his trip was almost a plete failure, he still partially discovered what happeo Nick's family.

  Yet now, when no more of the System's notifications were here to distract him, the emptiness in Leo's chest returned, ready to remind him of what he had just lost.

  I mean, I had an evolution ready since I came back to Earth. What will another hour or two hurt…

  Despite the loneliness he faced during most of the Outbreak, Leo didn't want to talk to anybht now — Nikra not included. So if taking a few hours to uncover another secret about the Void could give him time to settle his thoughts, Leo really had no reason to fight this idea.

  That's right. Just qui and out. I will take a look, find out what the Void is trying to throw at us, and then slowly go back. Might as well try out Minor Takeover while I'm at it.

  With the deade, Leo climbed to his feet and darted to the ledge. Like a wind, he sailed through the air, only to drop onto the Vetilim ptform. He grunted as muscles in his legs began to burn ever so slightly.

  Yes, he definitely wasn't fully recovered from whatever Nikra inflicted on his body.

  Doesn't matter. I had worse. Gritting his teeth, Leo ran along the long alien spider web stretg between the buildings. The living matter wobbled a bit but still held firm, just like any other time he used it for traversal.

  Slipping onto another roof, Leo froze mid-step when a hiss reached his ears. He turned slowly, a frown stretg on his face as his gaze nded on a broken ey. Once more, the scratg hiss echoed out of the structure before a creature crawled out of it and stretched zily.

  Upon first ghe new Voidling resembled just another cat, nothing that special. Only, uypical felihis one possessed another pair of hind legs and fur that might as well have been stolen from a hedgehog. However, even that might be an uatement sidering how firm and sharp that spiky fur looked.

  (Voidling) | Rank: F- | LVL: 4

  At the exaent that Leo identified the creature, the flinched, its crimson eyes snapping right to the only other living being on the roof.

  Arg its back, the creature hissed again, fur bristling and now almost fully resembling a scared hedgehog more than ever.

  What will you do? Leo tensed, shadow Essence surging to his hand and f a familiar on.

  In respohe bared its fangs and slowly backed away from Leo, who followed with a step of his own. The feline hissed and, in a move he never expected to see from a Voidling again, it sprio the edge of the roof with its spiky tail tucked.

  There the stopped once mazing at Leo as if daring him to e closer.

  Okay? I will bite. Leo thought with a snort before moving towards the cat again.

  Like before, the Voidlings gave one warning hiss. But when Leo didn't stop, the creature moved too, only in a pletely opposite dire. Without giving a single damn, the jumped off the roof, freefalling toward the ground.

  By the time Leo got to the ledge and sed the area below, he had just a sed to spot the cat's tail disappearing under one of the many broken cars oreet. Evidently, the little Voidliher had nine lives or somehow could hahree-story drop.

  My knees would fug die from this... What a weird guy.

  The st time a Voidling — Cursed Human, to be precise — chose to flee instead of frontihere was at least some rationale behind it. After all, he had just proved himself as an unstoppable force, relentlessly sughtering the creature's brethren in front of its eyes.

  But now? No such thing happened, and from what Leo had seen, the didn't look like a plete pushover.

  Is it because of my ret ge? He shook his head. Nah, there must be something else. Bestiary? Please be useful for once.

  Race: Voidling | Subspecies: Expected Potential: F- to Fon of choice: Fireablespikes, FangsKnown weaknesses: Low physical attributesThe most basic feline Void evolution and, iurn, the weakest. s always live and do everything alone. Creating groups is taboo for those creatures, and to see one in the pany of another is almost impossible. Thanks to their highly developed survival instincts, s only prey on dead creatures and won't fight uhey have to. However, it is essential to hat their spikes leave many hunters heavily injured.

  Leo nodded. Right, so they are sgers, and the little guy reized I was way out of its league. So just like Sgers... Fuck that's gon fusing at some point.

  Willing the Bestiary to disappear, Leed. That was something the future he would have to worry about. For now, he had aask to finish, and he retty close already. Even the purple vapan to glimmer in the distanow fully visible.

  Alright, let's see what you got for me this time, Void.

  Leo ran like a man possessed, jumping behind covers only when the g of Seekers got too close or taking a detour when a Crimson Mirage got in the way. Getting to the town square fast was ohing; being stupid while doing that was another.

  However, the moment only a single line of buildings blocked his vision of the town square, the System annous presence.

  Leo cursed, his foot almost slipping from a particurly thiilim web. Only a few more steps separated him from the st rooftop he o reach, but of course, the powerful entity just couldn't wait.

  This will get annoying at some point... Leo grumbled as he let the notification appear, his current position high above the street notwithstanding.

  Warning! You are nearing Tainted Wastend: Void. Threat asserted and ra level E. Good Luck. More information avaible thanks to the strengthened e. Dispy now?

  Well, shit. Apparently, I was right to worry.

  Chaos65