Nightfall covered the city in a veil of darkness, while a line of streetlights lit the highway. Any other day and the journey would been a beautiful and peaceful travel under the stars. However, the eerie silence accompanied by an apocalyptic scenario where danger lurked in every corner made the journey less romantic.

  Uruvi was a bit surprised that the streetlights were still working, but she would gladly take it over traveling in pitch black. The cold metal of the axe head sent shivers every time it touched the back of her head. She had carefully slipped it between her back and the jacket. The sharp blade made her doubt if it was a good idea, but Arya assured her that her weapon would not hurt until it was wielded by another individual.

  She looked at the map and saw that she was still halfway to her destination. Her eyes constantly kept a watch on her surroundings, making sure no creature of the night ambushed her from the darkness that hugged the fringes of the street.

  “It is awfully quiet, Arya. After all that chaos, I expected at least a few to be roaming the streets,” she said.

  “Suggestion. Monsters could have a sleep pattern.”

  “Could have? You are not even sure of that?”

  “Affirmative. Database incomplete. Suggestion. Help Arya gather information about enemies.”

  “How do I do that?”

  “By killing them.”

  “Oh. That sounds straightforward enough. Anyways, I haven’t yet upgraded my stats. I thought I would go home and do it. But, since we have time, can you help me assign them?”

  “Affirmative. Tell me the attributes to upgrade, and I will update for you.”

  “Wonderful! Right then. How many points do I have?”

  “You have 15 Attribute points, 3 skill points, and 3 spell points.”

  “Damn! That is a lot of points.”

  “Affirmative. Leveling up thrice gives a lot of points. Suggestion. Level up to 10 to get more points.”

  “Oh really?” She felt a tad annoyed by how dense Arya was. ‘Then again, it is just a robot... I think.’

  “Affirmative.”

  “Never mind that. 15 is a lot of points. If I remember, except serenity, all the other 5 attributes were at 16.”

  “Affirmative.”

  “Hmm… four points each can take my root chakra to the next level. That would leave three points for the rest. What do you say? Is it a good idea, Arya?”

  “Analyzing… Affirmative. Increase in a Chakra level will increase stats and introduce new skills and spells.”

  “Okay then, do it! Four points to all three associated with the Root Chakra and one to each associated with the Navel Chakra.”

  “Affirmative. Your points have been assigned. Your Root Chakra is now level 2.”

  She felt a surge of energy radiate from the tip of her spine. It felt refreshing, making her feel energetic and a tad bit powerful. “What was that!”

  “The upgrade in Chakra reflects in the physical transformation of the position associated with the Chakra.”

  “Wait. That was my real Chakra?”

  “Affirmative.”

  She recalled where each Chakra sat on the spine. The Root was associated with the base, and it was where she felt a surge. “Incredible! What new Skills and Spells have I unlocked?”

  The screen flashed before her with the Skills and Spells tab open. She saw that there were a lot of icons highlighted in white. “Whoa! Talk about options! What do you suggest I do, Arya?”

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  “Suggestion. With an increase in strength and toughness from the Chakra level up. Focus on speed and defense. Suggestion, unlock the Soul Skill tree.”

  She quickly glanced at the aforementioned Soul Skill tree. The Body and Mind Skills were straightforward. But Soul didn’t make any sense to her. “Arya, what does Soul Tree even provide? How does that even work?”

  “The Soul Tree focuses on the spiritual part of the human body. Investing in the tree helps the Contestant connect their Body and Mind, empowering the two aspects.”

  “Oh. So, it is like a bridge between the two. Are there any classes that specialize in it?”

  “The Cleric (Purohit), Sage (Rishi), and Bard (Kusilava) primarily focus on the Spirit Tree.”

  Things kind of clicked into place in her mind, though she was still unsure how its inner mechanics worked. “What does the first skill give me? Empower, was it?”

  “Affirmative. Empower strengthens the Contestant the body and mind. It increases the stamina by 20 percent.”

  “Oh yeah! I remember now. I didn’t think much about it back then, but after the sequence of battles… Yeah. We are definitely going with that one.”

  “Affirmative. You have 2 Skill Points and 3 Spell Points remaining.”

  “Right. Let’s see then.” She noticed the street before her was empty enough for her to take a look at her screen. “You suggested Defense and Speed. I like that.”

  After a good chunk of time spent thinking, she had made her picks.

  Her new set of skills consisted of – Empower, Fleet Footing, and Counter.

  Fleet Footing – Increase dash speed by 15 percent. After dodging, increase speed by 25 percent.

  Counter – A successful dodge or parry will increase the next attack by 20 percent.

  While her new spells had Barricade, which she immediately upgraded to the next level, and a new spell called Sharpen.

  Barricade – Create a shield that absorbs 250 times the damage for 25 seconds.

  Sharpen – Increase sensory sensitivity for 30 seconds.

  “Not bad, huh? I think I have created an excellent build for myself.”

  “Affirmative. Your build is well designed for a beginner.”

  “Arya, you need to learn to tell the difference between a compliment and an insult.”

  “Affirmative. I will download the requested pack for the system when available.”

  ‘Hmm… Maybe I am treating it a little too much like a human,’ She wondered.

  Just as it seemed like the night was going to be smooth sailing, she found herself approaching a rather odd situation. Her eyes caught sight of a bus, thrashed and totaled, blocking the road ahead of her. She slowly came to a stop, maintaining a good distance between her and the bus. Her eyes darted around, looking for any troublemakers. The odd placement of the bus and the empty roads made it very obvious that it was a trap. The only problem was that she had not met any monsters intelligent enough to plan traps.

  ‘Am I finally facing off a smart opponent?’ She wondered.

  The road before her was suddenly lit up by an orange hue, while the silence was replaced by the loud humming of the engine. She turned back to see a car on fire charging at her at top speed. “What the…!” Her instincts kicked in as she grabbed onto her axe and leapt into the air. The car smashed through her bike and continued on before colliding with the side of the bus. A fireball erupted from the collision, sending out a wave of heat that slammed into her.

  She landed back on her feet and looked up to see that the whole bus was on fire. The twisted metal of the car began to move before a hand appeared to protrude out of it. The broken door bent open, and from it emerged a skeleton that was on fire.

  “Arya… what the fuck is that?” she asked.

  “Analyzing. Enemy type – Bhootha. They are restless spirits of dead humans who turn malevolent upon a dying. To defeat a Bhootha, you must destroy their body.”

  “Their body? You mean the one that is burning in front of me?” she asked.

  “Affirmative. This Bhootha bound itself to the body, and its spirit is preventing the body from being burnt.”

  “Ghak! Soak! Krack!” The Bhootha began to spout nonsense. There appeared to be no skin or flesh on it, so with each word, it simply moved its lower jaw.

  Several Pisacha began to crawl out of the burning bus, screaming in pain as they too were set on fire. They almost immediately turned towards the Bhootha and began to gang up on it. A cloud of fire erupted from the Bhootha, throwing the Pisacha off it. It began to engage with them, striking each one down with a single swipe.

  Uruvi quietly stood by the side and watched the mayhem unfold. ‘Well. I guess that saves me some trouble. Wait…’ “My XP!” She shouted.

  Before she could even move a muscle, the battle was over. The Pisacha were lying on the ground, their corpses were burning down to their bones. The Bhootha turned towards her, its hollows appearing to stare down at her.

  A full health bar appeared above it, along with the number 7.

  “Damn. One level lower? That is disappointing,” she said.

  “Ghak! Thuk! Trak!” It uttered more nonsense.

  “I guess the heat fried your brain, huh?” She chuckled at her own joke, like a madwoman. “You'd better give me all the XP you took from them,” she said, pointing the axe up towards it.

  The Bhootha let out a roar when another cloud of fire erupted from its body. The fire arrived at her in an instant, catching her by surprise.

  “Barricade!” she shouted as she covered her face with her hand. A glass-like tint appeared before her, blocking the fire from reaching her. When the fire retreated, she saw that the ground around her was covered in burning asphalt. She could feel the heat rising from them, making her sweat. “Damn… this is hot…”

  The Bhootha spouted more nonsense.

  “Save your nonsense. I am here to fight,” she said as she prepared to lunge forward for an attack.

  The Bhootha appeared to roar in laughter. “Brikk… on…!”