Chapter 5 – The Wild Within

  Nix sat cross-legged in his workshop, surrounded by piles of scrap, gears, and spare wires. His hands were covered in grease as he carefully adjusted a small metal plate, securing it onto the turtle-shaped backpack he had spent the last few days building.

  His tablet screen facing at him, while Vix watching him work with mild curiosity.

  “You’ve been at this for hours. What exactly is this monstrosity supposed to be?”

  Nix smirked, wiping sweat from his brow. “A solution.”

  He tapped the metal backpack, which looked like a small turtle shell. “This is just the carrying case. The real deal is inside.”

  He flipped open a reinforced latch, revealing a small drone nestled inside a custom docking port. The drone was fully rebuilt from scavenged parts, upgraded with three cameras placed strategically around its body to allow for a complete 360-degree view.

  Vix’s projection blinked. “Wait… those are cameras.”

  Nix nodded. “Yeah. I found them in the scrapyard. Rewired everything, optimized the battery, and extended its operational range to five kilometers. Now you can actually go out and explore.”

  Vix was silent for a moment. Then, her voice softened.

  “You… built me my own independent medium.”

  Nix scratched his cheek, a little awkward. “Well, you’ve always been stuck in my tablet. Figured if we’re doing this whole ‘Adventurer’ thing, you should at least get to see the world for yourself.”

  Vix chuckled, but there was an unusual warmth in her tone. “I’ll admit… that’s actually really sweet. But also, holy hell, Nix, you turned a pile of garbage into a high-functioning surveillance drone.”

  Nix grinned and shrugged. “Hey, you know me. Trash into treasure.”

  He activated the drone, and it silently lifted off from its docking spot, hovering smoothly in the air. The cameras rotated independently, scanning the surroundings in real-time.

  Vix let out a small, excited gasp. “I can see everything!”

  She paused. “I love this feeling of freedom, although limited, I can move around.”

  Nix smirked. “Told you. Now let’s go. Training doesn’t wait.”

  Morning training started the usual way. Dodging. Rolling. Evasion drills.

  But now? Rolling down the hill.

  Nix ran up a dirt slope, reached the top, and launched himself into a roll.

  Vix screamed.

  “WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS?!”

  Nix tumbled wildly, flipping over rocks, spinning at unnatural angles,

  Then, just before reaching the bottom, he kicked off the ground and landed in a sprint.

  Vix groaned. “That’s still horrifying.”

  Nix stretched his arms, unfazed. “Brain needs to adjust to dizziness. If I can dodge while rolling, I can react even if I get thrown.”

  Vix muttered, “You are literally a human bowling ball.”

  Nix ignored her and grabbed his bow. Time for his real training.

  Yesterday, Nix had stumbled upon the Stormcrest by accident.

  And nearly lost his life.

  Today, he was hunting it on purpose.

  If he wanted to challenge it again, he had to find it on his own first.

  This was the first real hunt.

  And once he found it, then the real training would begin.

  “Alright, Vix, let’s do this. Where’s our fine-feathered friend?”

  Vix sighed. “How about we actually check before—”

  “No need.”

  Nix sniffed the air and pointed. “That way.”

  Vix froze.

  “…Excuse me?”

  “I remember its scent,” Nix didn't wven realize it, but said like it was the most normal thing in the world.

  Vix deadpanned. “Okay. Nope. You’ve lost it. You need sleep. Or therapy. Maybe both.”

  Nix ignored her. He inhaled deeply, catching that musky, feathery scent, slightly damp, a hint of ozone, like a storm about to break—

  There.

  He bolted.

  “WAIT, WAIT, WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!” Vix screeched.

  “To find my training partner.”

  Vix groaned but launched the Quad drone anyway to prove him wrong.

  Thirty seconds later…

  “…Oh my god.”

  Vix confirmed personally by using the quad drone as a medium.

  The Stormcrest was exactly where Nix was heading.

  No hesitation. No recalculations.

  Vix stared at Nix.

  “Nix… What are you?”

  Nix smirked, sprinting forward. “Time to challenge it again.”

  As he approached the ridge, he spotted the Stormcrest perched on a high rock, wings folded, head held high like a proud warrior.

  It radiated arrogance.

  Like a damn sky king.

  Nix nocked a dull-headed arrow and took aim.

  “Alright, big guy. Let’s dance.”

  THWIP!

  The arrow shot forward,

  WHOOSH!

  Before it even got close, the Stormcrest flicked its tail feathers, shifting its body angle mid-air.

  The arrow sailed past harmlessly.

  Nix blinked. “…That was just rude.”

  The Stormcrest let out a low, rumbling screech.

  Mocking him.

  Nix’s eye twitched. “Oh, it’s on.”

  For the next hour, Nix fired arrow after arrow, trying every possible angle, high shots, low shots, even trick shots.

  Every. Single. One.

  Dodged. Deflected. Countered.

  At one point, Nix tried an overhead lob.

  The Stormcrest angled its wings, adjusting its lift, and drifted a few inches to the left, making the arrow miss by a hair.

  Nix’s jaw clenched.

  “Damn it.”

  Vix cackled. “Oh wow, you’re getting humiliated by a bird.”

  The Stormcrest spread its wings slightly, and its eyes locked onto him.

  Nix froze.

  Vix’s tone shifted. “Uh…Nix? I think it’s done playing.”

  Then the Stormcrest unfurled its wings fully.

  The air pressure shifted.

  Nix froze.

  Vix’s tone shifted. “Uh… Nix? I think it’s done playing.”

  Then the Stormcrest unfurled its wings fully. The air pressure shifted.

  Vix’s sensors spiked.

  “Uhh… Nix?”

  The Stormcrest leaned forward. Its muscles coiled.

  Then—

  IT LAUNCHED INTO THE AIR.

  “OH SHIT”

  Nix turned and ran for his life.

  The Stormcrest didn’t just chase him.

  It hunted him.

  From above. From the sides.

  Every time Nix changed directions, the Stormcrest swooped down with a burst of speed, cutting off his escape.

  “WHY IS IT SO FAST?!” Nix screamed, weaving through the trees.

  Vix was laughing hysterically.

  “OH, YOU WANTED A REMATCH, RIGHT? WELL, HERE IT IS!”

  Then, Nix felt something.

  Not from his eyes. Not from his ears.

  From his skin.

  A pressure shift.

  The Stormcrest’s approach.

  It was about to strike.

  Without thinking, he performed a side dodge roll.

  A fraction of a second later,

  WHOOSH!

  The Stormcrest’s talons sliced through the space where Nix’s head had been.

  He hit the ground rolling, scrambling on all fours, diving for cover.

  And then, instinct took over.

  Something clicked.

  A survival mechanism. A realization.

  He wasn't just running.

  He was hunting his own survival.

  For years, he'd trained his legs, his core, his balance, his body an engine of endurance and explosive power. He wasn’t built like an ordinary runner. He had stability, spring-loaded power, and a low center of gravity.

  And now, he leaned into it.

  Instead of just getting up, he launched forward on all fours.

  His fingers dug into the dirt, his arms and legs moving in perfect synchronization, his spine arching and flexing like a big cat in full pursuit.

  His movements were fluid, natural, like his body had always been meant to run this way. No wasted motion. No resistance.

  And his speed exploded.

  30 km/h? Gone.

  40 km/h? Reached.

  The wind howled past his ears as his body coiled and released with each motion, driving him forward like a predator unleashed.

  Vix’s laughter died.

  “…Nix? What the hell are you doing?”

  “I’M MOVING!”

  “**LIKE A DAMN JAGUAR,**OH MY GOD, YOU LOOK TERRIFYING!”

  The Stormcrest hesitated.

  A fraction of a second.

  But enough to prove something was different.

  Nix was no longer prey blindly fleeing.

  He was a creature adapting.

  And it could tell.

  The jungle blurred around him as his body slid into a new rhythm, his legs pushing off with power, his arms stabilizing and propelling him forward.

  He wasn’t crawling.

  He was flowing.

  Like a wolf closing in on a kill.

  Like a raptor lunging forward.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  Like something that had no business being human.

  His balance, perfect.

  His momentum, unstoppable.

  His body, an organic machine, built for movement.

  And for the first time,

  The Stormcrest faltered.

  It flapped its wings, breaking its dive, recalculating its approach.

  Like it suddenly wasn’t sure if this was chasing prey…

  Or challenging a fellow predator.

  Nix spotted a narrow gap between two boulders.

  Without thinking, he dove through it, twisting mid-air, scraping his back against the stone.

  The Stormcrest slammed to a stop, unable to fit through.

  It hovered just outside, talons scraping the ground in frustration.

  Nix, now safely out of reach, collapsed against the rock.

  Breathing hard.

  Sweating.

  Completely outclassed.

  Vix, still processing what she had just witnessed, finally spoke.

  “…Nix. Buddy. Brother.”

  He coughed. “Yeah?”

  “I have no idea if I should be impressed… or scared.”

  Nix, still catching his breath, grinned.

  Nix was still panting hard, sprawled against the rock, his chest rising and falling rapidly. His arms burned. His legs burned. His everything burned. But despite all that, he felt amazing.

  Vix, however, was losing her mind.

  “Okay, we need to talk.”

  Nix, barely able to move, let out a wheeze. “About… what?”

  “Oh, I don’t know, maybe the fact that you just broke every known human locomotion rule and hit freaking 40 kilometers per hour ON ALL FOURS!”

  Nix chuckled. “So, I was fast, huh?”

  “Fast?! You were one step away from becoming a damn jungle predator!” Vix huffed. “Listen, buddy, I ran the calculations while you were out there pulling your best ‘feral creature’ impression, and I figured out how this worked.”

  Nix’s eyebrow twitched. “Wait… it actually makes sense?”

  Vix made an exaggerated scoffing noise. “Of course, it does! And the answer is, you’ve turned yourself into a damn apex sprinter.”

  Nix blinked. “…Explain.”

  “Fine. First off, let’s talk about cheetahs.”

  “Oh, hell yes. I love cheetahs.”

  “Shut up and listen.” Vix continued, her tone switching to professor mode. “Cheetahs can hit speeds of up to 120 km/h, but only for a few seconds. Why? Because their muscles are built for explosive bursts of speed, NOT endurance. Their entire structure is optimized for rapid acceleration, but after a short sprint, they overheat and slow down.”

  Nix frowned. “Wait… are you saying I,”

  “You, my dear idiot, have accidentally replicated the same principle.”

  Nix's brain lagged. “…What?”

  “Think about it!” Vix said, her voice now excited. “You’ve been training your core, legs, and stability for years. Not for sprinting, but for balance, strength, and explosive movement. All that weight training, endurance work, and body control means your muscles can generate sudden bursts of power, which is EXACTLY what you just did.”

  Nix was still trying to process.

  Vix sighed. “Let me dumb it down, your legs are too damn strong. Your core is too damn stable. And your body has too much damn power coiled up in it. So, when you dropped to all fours, you stopped running like a human and started running like an apex predator. Your speed shot up because your body finally had the proper mechanics to use all that explosive power at once!”

  Nix sat up slowly. “Wait, so if I train more,”

  “NO.”

  Nix flinched. “W-What?!”

  “I mean, yes, you can train more, but listen!” Vix said, exasperated. “**Your human body wasn’t built for quadrupedal movement long-term! Just like big cats, you can only maintain that speed for short bursts. You can sprint like a beast for a few seconds, but if you try to keep it up, you’ll either, one, burn out and collapse; two, wreck your joints; or three, die looking like a really determined jungle cat.”

  Nix processed that grim reality.

  Then he grinned.

  “So… basically, I just unlocked a brand-new technique.”

  Vix groaned. “Oh no. Oh no, I should NOT have told you this.”

  “Too late! This is now part of my arsenal.” Nix stretched his arms, rolling his shoulders. “I can just imagine it now… The Stormcrest goes in for the kill, and BOOM, Burst Mode engaged.”

  Vix gasped in horror. “NO. DO NOT CALL IT THAT.”

  “Burst Mode.”

  “NIX, I SWEAR TO ALL THAT IS HOLY,”

  “Burst Mode: Short Sprint.”

  Vix fake-crashed her own system. “I hate this. I hate everything about this.”

  But Nix was already smirking, eyes glinting with dangerous excitement.

  “…Tomorrow,” he muttered.

  Vix sighed. “Oh, here we go. Tomorrow, what?”

  Nix’s eyes sharpened.

  “…Tomorrow, I’m going to land a hit.”

  Forgetting about winning.

  Forgetting about beating it.

  Step one: Just land a single hit.

  From that moment on, hunting and dueling the Stormcrest became his new daily routine.

  And Burst Mode?

  That was officially a combat strategy.

  From that moment on, hunting and dueling the Stormcrest became his new daily routine.

  For the first time, the Stormcrest started attacking back.

  Dodge left. Roll back. Shield up. Leap forward.

  For two weeks straight, this became their daily battle.

  Nix would shoot. Miss.

  The Stormcrest would attack. Miss.

  But something changed.

  Nix was getting faster. Stronger. More precise.

  And most importantly,

  He was lasting longer than the Stormcrest.

  Vix noticed it first.

  “Nix… you’re outlasting a Monster Beast. That shouldn’t be happening.”

  Then, one day, something unexpected happened.

  The Stormcrest stopped attacking.

  It wobbled slightly.

  Vix spoke up. “Nix… I think it’s too tired to fight back.”

  Nix raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

  Vix sighed. “I ran the numbers. You’ve been forcing it to fight every day. It’s burning too much energy.”

  Nix exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “Didn’t think about that.”

  So, he reached into his pack.

  And pulled out food.

  The Stormcrest tilted its head.

  Nix smirked. “What? You thought I was just gonna let you starve? We’re rivals now, buddy.”

  A new bond was formed.

  And on the final day of their game,

  THWIP!

  The arrow connected.

  A dull hit against the Stormcrest’s wing.

  It stared at him.

  The air went silent.

  Then,

  The bird let out a single, approving screech.

  Nix smirked.

  The next day,

  Nix stood under the fading sunlight, bow slung over his shoulder, watching the Stormcrest perch on its usual giant tree branch. The massive bird fluffed its feathers, looking down at him expectantly.

  He exhaled through his nose, shaking his head. “Sorry, big guy. I won’t be showing up for a while.”

  The Stormcrest tilted its head.

  Nix smirked. “Got something important coming up.”

  Vix’s voice chimed in from his back. “Yeah, like the most important thing since you decided to become an Adventurer. You have one week left before your test.”

  Nix stretched his arms, rolling his shoulders. “Exactly. That means I need to rest. No more training. No more dodging giant claws or running for my life.”

  He looked back at the Stormcrest, expecting its usual indifference. But instead,

  SQUAAAAWK!

  A loud screech rang through the hills, so powerful that it made Nix’s ribs vibrate.

  He blinked.

  Vix gasped. “Whoa… did it just understand you?”

  The Stormcrest fluffed its wings, staring directly into Nix’s eyes. There was no aggression, no irritation. Just acknowledgment.

  Nix chuckled. “Guess that means we’re good, huh?”

  The Stormcrest didn’t move.

  Nix took a step back. “Alright then. See you in a week.”

  He turned and started walking away, but not before giving one last glance over his shoulder.

  For the first time, he realized, this wasn’t just a training partner.

  This was the first close to a real friend he ever made.

  Nix's plan now is to rest for a week, to be in his top performance for the Adventurer’s test.

  Resting wasn’t something Nix was used to.

  His entire life had been built around pushing forward, climbing, fighting, scavenging, training. The idea of doing nothing felt unnatural.

  But he knew better.

  Rest was just as important as training.

  And if he wanted to be in peak condition for the test, his body needed to fully recover.

  Even though he stopped training, he still went out every day to hunt for food.

  ? More meat. Always meat. His body had already shown unnatural improvements, and he wasn’t about to stop now.

  ? He still checked his traps but didn’t overexert himself.

  ? No dodging. No heavy lifting. Just movement to keep his body active without strain.

  But the biggest difference this week?

  He actually had time, time to spend with the two most important people in his life.

  Nix sat at the small wooden table, chewing his roasted meat in silence. The fire crackled softly, casting a dim light over the cramped kitchen. Across from him, Granny Laurie ate quietly, but her sharp eyes flicked toward him every so often.

  She had been watching him closely these past few days. He wasn’t running off at sunrise. He wasn’t coming back covered in dirt and bruises. He was around.

  At first, she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

  “Did you finally break something in your body?”

  Nix smirked. “Nope. Just resting before the test.”

  She scoffed, stabbing her fork into her food. “Hmph. Smart for once.”

  The silence stretched again, but this time, Nix spoke first.

  “Granny, something weird’s been happening to me.”

  Laurie glanced up, chewing. “Weird how? I told you to stop looking at the mirror. Sigh*”

  Nix's almost fell off his chair. He sighed and leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. “I think my body’s changing. I’m stronger than before. Faster. My senses are sharper. I don’t get tired as easily.”

  Granny Laurie frowned, setting her fork down. “You sick?”

  Nix shook his head. “No. I feel fine. Actually, I feel better than ever.”

  Laurie rubbed her chin, thinking. “Hmph… You weren’t born with anything special, if that’s what you’re wondering. You were just a normal baby. First time I got you checked was a year after I registered you as my grandson. Reason?” She snorted. “Because you drank too damn much milk.”

  Nix blinked. “What?”

  Laurie leaned back in her chair. “You were always hungry. Non-stop. Thought something was wrong with you at first, but the doctor said you were just a growing boy. But now that I think about it… you started running at one year old. Never crawled. Just straight to running.”

  Nix raised an eyebrow.

  Laurie continued, thinking out loud. “By the time you were four, you were already stronger than most kids your age. Sharper, too. But the doctor didn’t think anything of it. Just said you were ‘developing fast.’” She shook her head. “But you were always hungry.”

  Nix didn’t respond right away. He stared at the fire, the words stirring something buried deep in his memory.

  He remembered being four years old.

  He remembered watching Granny Laurie come home late, her shoulders sagging, her hands shaking from exhaustion.

  He remembered hearing her cry one night, thinking he was asleep.

  “If this keeps up, I won’t be able to feed him…”

  That was the night he made his decision.

  He stopped asking for food. He forced himself to sleep on an empty stomach. He learned to ignore the hunger.

  It had taken years to master, but eventually, he got used to it.

  Nix kept his expression neutral. He had never told Granny Laurie about that night. And he never would.

  Instead, he leaned back, stretching. “Well, whatever’s happening, I figured you should know.”

  Granny Laurie grunted. “Hmph. You always were a weird brat. Guess you’re just getting weirder.”

  Nix smirked, then grabbed a nearby metal pipe. “Wanna see something cool?”

  Laurie squinted. “That better not involve breaking my table.”

  Nix lifted his arm and swung the pipe against it.

  CRACK.

  The metal bent, but his arm? Completely fine.

  Laurie’s eyes widened slightly. “...Huh.”

  Without a word, Nix grabbed both ends of the bent pipe and, with a casual motion, straightened it back out.

  Laurie let out a low whistle. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

  Nix grinned. “Told you.”

  For the first time in weeks, Granny Laurie’s shoulders seemed to relax.

  She had been tense ever since he started this journey. Even though she never said it, Nix could see the worry in her eyes.

  But now?

  Now, she looked a little less afraid.

  And that was enough for him.

  -

  With less time spent fighting for his life, Nix had more time to talk with Vix.

  She had always been there, an ever-present voice in his ear. But now, without distractions, they actually had meaningful conversations.

  That night, as Nix lay in bed staring at the ceiling, he asked,

  “Hey, Vix… do you ever want anything?”

  Vix hesitated. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, I get that you’re an AI. You process data, analyze things, whatever. But do you ever wish for something?”

  Vix went quiet for a long moment.

  Then, softly,

  “…I wish I had a Vessel.”

  Nix turned his head toward his tablet. “Huh?”

  Vix’s voice was different this time. Not sarcastic, not teasing.

  “I know I’m just a program, and I’m fine with that. But sometimes, I wonder what it would be like to move around on my own. To feel things not just through your senses, but my own. To interact with the world instead of just watching it through a screen.”

  Nix stared at the ceiling.

  He had never thought about that before.

  Vix had always been part of his life, but he never once considered how limited her existence was.

  He sighed, stretching his arms behind his head. “Well, I guess I’ll just have to make enough coins to buy you a fancy vessel, huh?”

  Vix chuckled. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll believe it when I see it.”

  But for the first time, there was something else in her voice.

  Hope.

  The week passed faster than Nix expected.

  His body was fully recovered. His strength felt sharper. His mind clearer.

  He spent the last evening before his test watching the sunset with Granny Laurie.

  No words were needed.

  She sat in her old chair, working on her sewing.

  Nix leaned against the wall, arms crossed, staring at the horizon.

  For a moment, he let himself enjoy the peace.

  Tomorrow, everything changed.

  The morning air was crisp as Nix adjusted the final straps on his homemade armor. It had taken years of scavenging and refining, but finally, he had something durable enough to protect him.

  The armor was built from stainless scrap metal he had been collecting since childhood, reforged into thin but tough chainmail that covered his body without restricting movement. It wasn’t elegant, nor was it polished, but it did the job.

  Over the armor, he wore a loose, green cloak, stitched together from old fabric and burlap. It concealed his metal plating, making him look more like a wandering vagrant than a fully armored fighter. His reasoning? Blending in. The jungle was unpredictable, and standing out wasn’t an option.

  Behind him, his turtle-shaped backpack shield was secured tightly against his back, looking like an ordinary storage case. Inside, his tools and supplies were neatly packed, including the drone, which had been a core part of his setup for weeks now.

  Vix’s cameras were no longer confined to just a tablet screen. With three lenses attached to the drone, she had full 360-degree vision and could now fly ahead to scout while staying connected to Nix through their system.

  She had used it multiple times during training, helping him track his movements, measure his dodging speed, and even record his battles against the Stormcrest.

  Now, as Nix ran his final equipment check, Vix’s voice echoed from his tablet.

  "All systems functional. Cameras running. Drone at 95% charge. You’re good to go, tin man."

  Nix smirked, rolling his shoulders to test the weight. “Hey, at least it work. And it’s way better than running around unprotected.”

  Granny Laurie stepped outside, eyeing him with a raised brow. "You look ridiculous."

  Nix gave a mock bow. "Glad you approve."

  She sighed, shaking her head before handing him a packed meal. “At least eat properly before you go embarrassing yourself.”

  Nix chuckled but took the meal gratefully.

  Then, it was time to head out.

  The Adventurer’s Entrance Test wasn’t held in a fixed location. Instead, each candidate was given cryptic clues and had to track down the meeting site on their own. This was the first part of the exam. If you couldn’t find the testing site, you weren’t fit to be an Adventurer.

  As Nix walked through the outskirts of the settlement, he tapped his wrist-mounted tablet. Vix pulled up the encrypted message sent to all applicants.

  "The heart of steel, where beasts once roamed, now sleeps beneath the stars. Seek the ruins and prove you are worthy."

  Nix narrowed his eyes. “Could they be any more dramatic?”

  Vix hummed. “If I had to guess, it’s probably referring to the Old Machinery District just outside the settlement. The area used to be a hunting ground before the Sentinel patrols cleared it out."

  Most applicants would probably try to ask around, form groups, and follow rumors.

  Nix? He wasn’t experienced in tracking, but after his recent discoveries about his senses, he figured he might as well try.

  Rather than relying on secondhand information, he decided to test his instincts.

  Nix crouched low, running his fingers over the dirt road leading out of the settlement. He had spent his whole life scavenging, learning how to read the land. But lately? Something had changed.

  His sense of smell, already sharp, had grown five times stronger since he started eating more meat. Before, he had always been able to notice things others missed, subtle shifts in the wind, the faintest scent of food cooking miles away, but now?

  Now, he could distinguish individual scents by instinct with almost unnatural precision.

  And that’s when he noticed it.

  A faint but familiar scent.

  Nix took a deep breath, filtering out the distractions.

  **There,**a lingering trail, barely noticeable to anyone else, but to him? It was as clear as a guiding thread.

  Vix, who had been quietly observing through her drone, finally spoke up.

  “Nix… you can actually track by scent, can’t you?”

  Nix frowned. “I mean… I guess? I’ve always had a sharp nose, and lately gottena lot stronger.”

  Vix processed the data. “we should try to measure your ability.”

  Nix shrugged. “Didn’t think it was that special.”

  Vix sighed. “No, Nix. This isn’t normal. Your sense of smell shouldn’t be this refined. I don’t have the tools to analyze it properly, but even before, I always thought you were just ‘sensitive’ to smell because of where we lived.”

  She continued, “Now, I’m certain. Your body has adapted, your instincts, your perception. This isn’t just a habit. It’s something else.”

  Nix smirked, brushing dirt off his hands. “I haven’t been normal lately.”

  Vix was quiet for a moment. Then she huffed. “Understatement of the year.”

  Rather than overthinking it, Nix decided to trust his instincts.

  He followed the faintest of footprints, the shifts in soil, and the lingering scent trail.

  Nix took a deep breath and scanned his surroundings. His eyes swept over the dirt roads, picking up the faintest disturbances in the soil.

  Most people would overlook subtle footprints, but to Nix, the patterns were obvious.

  The indentations in the dirt, the depth of the prints, the direction they were facing, it all told a story.

  He crouched low, running his fingers over the ground.

  These prints were fresh. At least a few hours old.

  Not only that… he could smell a familar scent.

  It was faint, almost imperceptible, but there was a lingering scent in the air. A mix of oil, parchment, and something floral.

  His eyes narrowed.

  He had smelled this before.

  The receptionist who scheduled my test.

  A grin tugged at his lips.

  "Gotcha."

  Vix’s voice was wary. “Uh… what do you mean, ‘gotcha?’”

  Nix stood, following the trail of faint scent and footprints.

  “Simple. I’m tracking the lady who scheduled my test.”

  Vix was silent for a moment. Then,

  “…You can smell people?”

  Nix shrugged. “Not on purpose. It’s just… one of the recent changes in my body ”

  Vix muttered. “And here I thought your dumbest ability was annoying birds.”

  Nix smirked. "Hey, it’s a talent."

  With his senses locked onto the trail, Nix moved with confidence. His eyes picked up the smallest changes in the soil, tracking every subtle shift left behind by those who had walked before him.

  The faint odor of machine grease and ink grew stronger as he moved closer to the right location.

  Other applicants were still wandering aimlessly, asking random merchants or blindly following the largest groups.

  Nix? He already knew exactly where to go.

  It didn’t take long for him to reach the destination.

  A massive steel gate stood before him, partially rusted but still sturdy. Beyond it, a large clearing with scattered ruins of an old factory.

  A group of armored figures stood at the entrance, official Adventurers, serving as exam proctors.

  Vix whistled. “Damn, you found it in record time.”

  Nix smirked. “Told you. Guess I really can track.”

  As he approached the gate, a few other applicants finally stumbled in behind him, panting from the effort.

  Some looked surprised to see Nix already there.

  One of them muttered, “Did this guy just get here first?”

  Nix ignored them. He had bigger things to focus on.

  Upon arrival, each applicant had to check in and register their weapons.

  Unlike regular settlements, only official Adventurer Halls allowed weapons to be added to a person’s registered status.

  When it was Nix’s turn, a stern-looking official glanced at his armor, barely hiding an amused expression.

  “Name?”

  “Nix Grimwald.”

  The official typed into his console, pulling up Nix’s Adventurer Candidate profile.

  Then, the man glanced at the weapon strapped to Nix’s back.

  “Do you wish to register your weapon?”

  Nix nodded, unstrapping his custom longbow and placing it on the counter.

  Weapon Registered:

  "Kindness" (Longbow / Spear Hybrid).

  The official stared at the name.

  “…Kindness?”

  Nix grinned. “It’s poetic.”

  The man sighed and finalized the registration.

  With his weapon officially linked to his status, Nix was now one step closer to becoming an Adventurer.

  Now, all that was left…

  Was to pass the test.