Chapter 2: Small Revenge and Gwalior

Previous chapter recap...

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[New Mission: Small Revenge]

Objective: Take revenge on the people who attacked you in the alley.

Rewards: Basic Knife Skills, Strength +2, Knowledge about the town of Gwalior

Failure: Death

[Accept] [Reject]

With a newfound resolve to make something of his life and pursue greatness, he set out from his shack, ready to take on his first mission toward eventual world dominance.

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Sreet walked back to the same dimly lit alley where he had ended up after waking, retracing steps, through memories of the previous owner of the body. Still approaching him stood the very same two ruffians who had beaten him, the first time around, hanging around in that same alley.

His gaze latched on one who jeered while jabbing a shoulder with a nudge

"Oi, look! The little rat's still alive. We didn't hit hard enough. Let's fix that."

The thug cracked his knuckles and swaggered toward Sreet, a grin spreading across his face. He raised a fist ready to drop the blow, but Sreet was quicker. He flicked off his wrist, opened his inventory, and pulled out a rusted knife.

The blade plunged into the thug's chest with a squelch. The man's eyes went wide with shock before he collapsed to the ground, his body hitting the ground with a dull thud.

The second ruffian paused for a second as he stared at the fallen ruffian.

"You-you killed him?" he spat, his voice incredulity and shock mixed. "Have you any idea who we are? We are with the Axiom Gang! You've just signed your death warrant!"

Snarling, the other gangster threw himself at Sreet with a crude weapon. But Sreet was ready. For one thing, he had become stronger since he'd finished his mission for the day and was stronger than an average adult in this world. He dodged aside, grabbing at the thug's arm, then twisting him off balance, using the agility gained by his enhancement. A slash across the neck ended it.

The gangster dropped to his buttocks, grabbing at the wound, which was gushing, before dying.

The adrenaline was wearing off now, and Sreet's stomach turned over in horror at the sight of the dead bodies splayed about him in an ever-growing pool of blood. It stank. He took a step back, clutching at his stomach as he doubled over to vomit.

"Urgh…".

Wiping his mouth, he made himself look at the slaughter one more time. His legs felt weak but he steeled himself, fists clenched.

"If I'm going to make it through. if I'm going to have any kind of future in this. I have to learn to be with this."

A soft chime echoed in his mind, breaking the oppressive silence.

[Mission Completed.]

Collect Rewards: [Yes] [No]

Sreet waved a dismissive hand, mumbling to himself. "Later. Loot first."

He crouched by the bodies, riffing through their belongings with efficiency. Collecting everything of value, he threw a wary glance around the alley. Streets were quiet, but his movements were quick and deliberate as he into the shadows, going back to his shack unseen.

After reaching the shack, Sreet checked his inventory for the loot and found only a knife and a few coins. "tch what a poor bunch" he said, 'Collect Rewards' he said internally to the system

[Rewards Granted]

[ Strength+2

Basic Knife Skills Acquired

Knowledge about the town of Gwalior Granted]

With this Sreets status window looked something like this

__________________

[Name: Sreet Shresth]

[Age: 19]

[Class: None]

[Current Training Method: None]

[System Level: 0]

[system Perks: None]

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[Strength:5.2

Agility: 2.1

Stamina: 3.3

Intelligence:2

Charisma:0.5]

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Skills: Basic Knife Skills (1/10)

Sreet suddenly winced as a sharp pain shot through his mind, followed by an unfamiliar flood of knowledge. Images and details came, forming a vivid picture of the town of Gwalior.

Gwalior, he realized, was a small, impoverished settlement located to the east of Bhramavati City. It lay within the struggling kingdom of Driftmare, a realm barely holding itself together under the weight of its misfortunes. A mayor ruled the town itself, but this figure held little authority. Instead, Gwalior's strings were pulled by two opposing forces: the Axiom Gang and the Raze Gang. These rival factions dominated the town, extending their influence into its security and administration.

The gang leaders were no ordinary criminals. Each commanded a small cadre of apprentice knights, warriors trained in the basic, yet potent, techniques of their craft. These techniques, closely guarded secrets, formed the foundation of their power. The gangs used this knowledge to maintain control over the town and intimidate its beleaguered citizens.

Tensions between the Axiom and Raze gangs had escalated to a boiling point. Poverty in the town was worsening, leaving both factions with dwindling profits and fueling their enmity. With resources stretched thin, the gangs were on the brink of open war. Yet, amid this chaos, Gwalior continued to pay a staggering tribute—60% of its meagre revenue—to the distant city of Bhramavati, further bleeding the town dry.

The air of desperation and simmering conflict painted Gwalior as a town on the edge of collapse, its future uncertain and its people trapped between two merciless forces.

After this, he tried to check out his basic knife skills and found out that the moves were Imprinted in his mind, then practised his knife skills and after some time a notification came in

[Knife Proficiency Increased +1

Basic Knife Skills: (2/10)]

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Sreet had just finished his day's exercise, gearing up to go out when a pop-up window suddenly popped up before him:

[New Missions]

Eliminate the Axiom Gang

Reward: Knight Cultivation Technique

Loss Result: Death

Eliminate the Raze Gang

Reward: Shadow Phantom Path Technique( Bounded )

Loss Result: None

Become the Lord of Gwalior City

Reward: Territory Management System

Loss Result: System shutdown for 999 years.

Sreet stared at the missions, his head working overtime. In a moment, he gripped his fists and accepted all three.

By dusk, he was ready. He walked through Gwalior's dirty alleys, his eyes as cold as ice. At last, he caught a glimpse of a man leaning against a broken-down house, taking puffs from a smoking object. The emblem of the Axiom Gang was attached to this man's hip belt.

The smoker looked around when Sreet approached him. He narrowed his eyes.

"Yo, whatcha staring at? You want something?" he snarled, clearly irritated.

"Nothing," Sreet responded quietly.

In one motion, Sreet struck. His hand rammed the smoking device into the man's mouth, shutting him up before his blade slid across the man's throat. Blood spurted, spattering across the crumbling walls of the house.

Within minutes, Sreet was scratching out a mysterious scribble on the wall. Then he disappeared into darkness. Later, Sreet returned to his lair, wheezing for breath. He flopped onto his cot and sank into uncomfortable slumber.

West Side of Gwalior

A dimly lit room on the west side of town. A man named West leaned over a stack of documents. His sharp eyes scanned the pages detailing the activities of Raze Gang in recent times.

The numbers simply weren't adding up, though. Their profits were dwindling, and the encroachment on their territory by the Axiom Gang was turning into a problem.

"This can't continue," West muttered, tapping his fingers on the desk.

His train of thought stopped when he was interrupted by a knock on the door. A person attired with insignia of the Raze Gang walked into the room.

"One of our people got killed last night," the messenger reported. "Word has it that the Axiom Gang was behind it."

West's face darkened. He rose from his chair and crumpled the document in his hand and threw it aside.

"Call the other executives at once," he ordered in a cold, commanding tone.

The subordinate nodded and hurried off, leaving West sitting by himself, staring out into the faint light of a lantern.

"This is a war that had to happen," he whispered. "Let's be sure it ends in our favour.".

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End of Chapter