Hidden Upgrades

The body was getting stiff. Perhaps from rigour mortis, or maybe just from the blistering cold wind racing across the rooftops. It was wedged around a chimney, and the exposed skin was so white that it looked blue in the pale light filtering through the clouds.

Two large punctures were visible on the neck. The head was twisted sideways in an awkward angle, and there was no movement except the rustling of the uniform in the wind, and the quiet approach of a few large blackbirds. They had been circling for a while.

The sky grew darker, as the clouds gathered for a winter storm.

[Upgrade to Level 8?]

[Assassin is unresponsive. Initiating Upgrade via executive authority.]

Nothing happened to the cold dead body. The clouds gathered more, until the area was nearly as dark as night.

Then the body twitched.

The birds squawked and flew away, frightened by the sudden movement, but the corpse went still once again. … though the puncture marks at the neck looked like they were getting smaller…

[Upgrade in progress…]

[Structural changes detected… vampire poison has damaged tissues…]

[Poison resistance impeded the Vampirisation process…]

[Initiating repairs]

Hours passed, and snow began to fall, covering the cold body in a deep drift.

[Reboot in 3..]

[2]

[1]

The body sat bolt upright in the deep, white dark of the snowy winter night. The suddenness of the movement was instantly followed by loud snaps and cracks. The spine, tendons and muscles of the cold flesh were not ready for movement, and had been in unnatural positions until now.

"What the hell!" Shinra said, looking around in confusion and fear. He quieted himself when he heard the volume of his cry echo back to him. 'Where am I? The last thing I remember was Selena kissing me…' Well, he knew it wasn't a kiss, but that is still how he thought of it. He felt a deep longing from his loins, and a pain in his neck at the thought of her.

'Am I on a roof? She has a lot of explaining to do.'

He tried to stand, but his legs didn't seem to want to move. He felt sluggish, like there was no energy within him at all.

[Congratulations, you have upgraded successfully to Assassin Level 8]

[You have dangerously low health and blood levels]

'Will I die from exposure then?' Suddenly the snow, and his lethargy, made him worried about hyperthermia.

[Congratulations. The damage from the vampire poison has made you less susceptible to the elements. You will still need to replenish your energy and heal, but the cold will not kill you.]

'Vampire poison? Is that why it felt so good when she was biting me? Are all women monsters?' Shinra was confused by women at the best of times, but this was sort of his first kiss and she had tried to kill him. Confusing.

[Assassin poison resistance kept you from dying and becoming a vampire acolyte. The changes the poison wrought were extensive. The system recovered most of your normal human function.]

'Most of my normal human function? What does that mean?'

[Congratulations, you have achieved level 8]

[Status]

[Shinra: Death Walker: Assassin Level 8]

[20,000 Experience Points: 7500 to level 9 | 9 Skill Points]

[Skills: Fade 2 | Silence 1 | Knife Mastery 1 | Night Vision 1 | Assassin Kata 1]

[Hidden Path: Critical Strike 2 | Daemon Prediction ]

Shinra's vision was filled by the system, so fully that he couldn't even see the rooftop or the snow any longer

[New Title Awarded for surviving vampirism process: Night Stalker]

[5 Skill points awarded]

[Surviving the process has improved your strength and provides a boost to abilities related to darkness]

[10% improvement to Fade, Silence, Night Vision]

[2 Skill points awarded]

[Poison damaged you and has introduced a weakness to light and fire based attacks]

[-10% resistance to fire and light damage]

[1 Skill point removed]

'Yes! 6 skill points! I can get Fade 3.' After today, Shinra realised that disappearing and striking unexpectedly was his greatest strength. Sure, Shadow strike sounded interesting, but he would rather count on his ability, not some unknown attack.

'Ok System, I think we should look at the skill tree again!'

But the system ignored Shinra, it wasn't finished with its current task.

[Title upgrade! You came back from death again]

[Death Walker → Death Squire]

[5 Skill points awarded]

'Holy… holy $hit! 20 points! 20! I can get Shadow Strike!' Shinra couldn't hold back his curiosity and desire about the skill. It was the only one that sounded like an attack, maybe magical!

[Update]

[System user Shinra holds 2 titles before level 20]

[Combine titles?]

'Huh? Uh, sure System. Combine them, I don't care. I want to go to the skill tree please.'

[Dual title holder achieved ]

[Title combination: unlocked]

[New Title: Death Stalker]

[10 Skill points awarded]

If Shinra had the energy, he'd be jumping up and down. As it was, he was almost numb from all this fortune. It made him wonder if the System was making up reasons to reward him since he almost died again. 'I am just not strong enough in a world with mages and vampires… but I will be,' he vowed.

'System, I want to unlock Shadow Strike, Night Vision 2, and Sprint.'

[Yes, Death Stalker]

[Initiating multi-skill unlock]

Shinra only had a moment to think, 'Multi-skill… does that mean it will hurt worse than usual? Maybe I could have gone one at a time.'

Then it was too late though. His eyes rolled up into his head, and it felt like he was simultaneously on fire and being struck by lightning. He writhed uncontrollably, and only had the presence of mind to grab the chimney tightly before he fell from the roof.

The only sounds were his muffled screams, as he buried his face in the snow and clung for his life. He couldn't think, but his deep subconscious knew it was worth it.

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