As Rael focused on the rustling leaves, a strange and unexpected sight emerged from the dense foliage. It was a rabbit, but not just any rabbit; this one was as big as a dog. Its fur had a rich blend of colors, mirroring the surreal landscape around them. The creature hopped out into the open, its large, expressive eyes fixed on Rael.
Initially, Rael was taken aback by the unusual sight, but he quickly realized that this world was unlike any he had known. Everything here seemed to defy normality.
'This is surely a monster... no, a ranked lifeform. I wonder what rank this seemingly big rabbit is.'
The oversized rabbit didn't appear aggressive, but Rael remained cautious. As he observed the creature, it suddenly lunged at him with unexpected speed and agility, its teeth bared menacingly.
Rael reacted swiftly, drawing his Rare Black Spider Sword in a blur of motion. With a well-practiced strike, he deftly parried the rabbit's attack, causing it to recoil. It was clear that this seemingly harmless creature was not to be underestimated.
"Hehe, I could swear. I knew you were going to be like this, little rabbit."
The battle between Rael and the giant rabbit raged on. Despite its size, the rabbit possessed remarkable agility and a set of sharp teeth and claws that posed a genuine threat. Rael's Chaos Adept abilities came into play, allowing him to use his Chaotic Flux to deliver unpredictable bursts of power in his attacks.
Even Rael was surprised by his class abilities, as his strikes seemed to be slower than usual; but the power was more than he could have imagined.
From what Rael saw, it wasn't impossible for Chaotic Flux to increase his Strength Attribute by over 10.
As the fight continued, Rael gradually gained the upper hand, utilizing his newfound strength, skills, and the element of surprise. He struck a deadly blow, incapacitating one of the oversized rabbit's legs.
The creature lay on the ground, seriously injured from the sudden loss of its leg. It was probably very confident in its own speed, which is why it didn't expect Rael to cut its leg.
Hearing the rabbit squealing, Rael took advantage of the situation and used Dash to get closer to it, before swiftly cutting the rabbit's head.
(Congratulations! You just slew an F Rank Lifeform!)
(Achievement Points Received: 2)
Rael was satisfied with his new powers; he didn't even break a sweat while fighting the F Rank Rabbit.
"If I'm lucky enough to find some more ranked lifeforms, maybe I could also find a way to level up again," muttered Rael before trying to depart.
But before he could do that, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. This was because he saw something shining coming out from the rabbit's head.
It looked like a white crystal of some sort; quickly approaching the crystal, Rael took it in his hand and transferred it to his Inventory.
[F Grade White Crystal]: Valuable resource for ranked lifeforms. Could be used to evolve your Rank.
Rael's pupils suddenly constricted thinking of something, 'This is my new experience points.' This was an F-Grade White Crystal, so it meant that every crystal had a grade, from F-, F, to F+.
Wearing a huge grin on his face, Rael left the rabbit's body behind and continued to explore the world of Ceria.
About fifteen minutes later, Rael encountered another rabbit; this one was exactly the same as the last one, with the single difference that it was a bit smaller in size.
The fight didn't even last for a minute after Rael's sword found its way into the small rabbit's body.
Once again, he found a white crystal resembling the one he had.
"I wonder if I should eat it, otherwise, how am I supposed to use this crystal?" Looking at the palm-sized white crystal in his hand, Rael hesitated for a bit.
'System, use the White Crystal in my Inventory,' Thinking so, much to Rael's surprise, the White Crystal in his Inventory disappeared.
(Ding! F Grade White Crystal was used!)
"So it's like this, huh." Waiting for a bit, Rael was disappointed to see that nothing happened, even when checking his attributes; they remained the same.
So he came up with a new theory: after absorbing enough Crystals, maybe he would automatically advance to the next Rank.
'I'm not 100% sure, but it should be like this.'
Rael's theory seemed plausible as he continued his exploration of the strange world of Ceria. The landscape continued to shift and twist, and with each encounter, he became more adept at dispatching the oversized rabbits and other ranked lifeforms, like deers, raccoons, even bird-type monsters. He collected their white crystals and absorbed them without a problem.
It was a pity that most of them were only F-Grade White Crystals, with a single one reaching F Grade White Crystal.
As time passed, Rael began to accumulate quite a collection of these F- and F Grade White Crystals in his Inventory. He couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation about what would happen when he had enough of them.
Minutes turned into hours as Rael tirelessly honed his combat skills and collected more crystals. He battled other peculiar creatures, encountered mysterious plants, and even tried to scout the area around him.
His skills improved with each fight, and his collection of crystals grew steadily.
One thing somewhat frustrated Rael; he didn't encounter any humans even after so many hours passed.
Soon, it was close to getting darker, and Rael began to slow down his hunt. Since most ranked lifeforms were active during the day, they too sought their own place and tried to rest.
'Wait a bit, I'm pretty sure there must be other predators that are active during the night. If that is so... doesn't it mean that I can't drop my guard?'
This was indeed a problem for Rael. While it was true that his stamina was a bit used during the fights he had, it hadn't dropped to dangerous levels yet.
But if he couldn't get some rest during the night and was instead forced to fight other beasts and monsters, how would he fare the next day?
'Maybe I will be lucky enough, and no one will bother me...?'