Ed has been in this room for hours. He doesn't know how long he's been here. By now, he had gotten used to being injected with a hypnotizing serum and seeing the system try its best to keep him sane.
At first, there would be three to four guards that would enter the room for the dose, but now it was one.
Eventually, the guard noticed the change in Ed's expression, especially his eyes. It was as if he had the soul sucked out of him.
"Who are you?" Asked the guard.
Ed didn't answer. Or rather, he couldn't. He was too tired to think. He hadn't eaten or drank anything except for a weird pill they made him swallow every now and then.
He closed his eyes.
The serum wasn't only hypnotizing. Since it had some magical components, the system was able to extract and absorb that magic.
The guard sighed.
"That's the last shot of the day. Finally we can get some rest." He mumbled.
As he left the room, Ed was greeted with a message.
[Quest "Zero to Hero" failed]
[Transporting to penalty zone]
He found himself, still strapped onto the same bed, in a hell-like atmosphere filled with lava and broken down buildings.
Large creatures could be seen in the distance. They were painted black, had demonic horns, and lava for eyes.
Ed struggled to get out of the shackles in a horror panic, but ended up accidentally attracting the attention of one of the demons. He then hurriedly remembered the feeling of the magic flowing out of his body to release him from the shackles. He repeated the same thing. The shackles were beginning to feel lighter, so he started pushing out with his raw strength simultaneously.
The demon was so close that its stomps would vibrate the air around Ed, but thanks to that, he was able to free himself of the shackles.
Ed propped himself up and started thinking of how to deal with the situation.
[Freed from shackles]
[Strength returning to normal]
[Optimal environment]
[+20 all stats]
He had gotten a massive boost from the system once again. It was similar to berserk mode, except he still had his mind.
Ed jumped up towards the demon, but was smacked away as soon as he got close.
-10
It was not the time to be so risky. Ed coughed up blood. His adrenaline began to sky-rocket.
[HP below 35%]
[+20 all stats]
The system was trying its best to keep him alive. He picked himself up and waited for the demon to strike.
He was thrown quite far away, so he had to approach it. When he got close to air-vibration distance, he lowered his stance and prepared to explosively dodge.
It rapidly stomped towards Ed, but he had moved out of the way. He then sent himself flying and kicked the demon's leg. It crumbled and lava poured out of it. Ed hopped backwards.
The demon began to lighten up with an orange hue. It looked as if it was about to implode, but it was actually preparing for a breath attack.
[Warning: Fatal attack incoming]
Ed saw this and panickingly sent himself flying once again. He didn't have to use combat assist because his body was moving on its own. It was as if the system was controlling it.
He formed ice on his palms mid-air.
Just as it looked like the demon was about to unleash its attack, Ed raised his hands and pulled them down, shattering the ice all over the demon's face and solidifying the lava.
[Lavn defeated]
[+200XP]
(255/150)