I Hate Systems

Rawrrr!

The shawl-draped man let out a guttural roar in pain as the worms had grown many times bigger as compared to before due to the sheer volume of lifeforce they had consumed. They burst out of his skin and began to nibble away on his flesh.

Moreover, unlike before, they developed an exoskeleton that gave them better immunity to his attacks. It was not to mention they possessed two mouths, at each end of their serpentine body. One devoured the flesh on the surface while the other at the deep within.

Even when he yanked them out, ignoring the patch of flesh that had come off as a result, one end of the worm bit onto his fingers or palm, ensuring to latch onto him without letting go.

Without using his lifeforce, he would lose his life in a matter of seconds. But that very same lifeforce acted as the elixir that fuelled the growth of the worms that ate away at his life literally.

Bam!

The shawl-draped man collapsed to the floor as he observed a thin stream of coloured water touching his skin on the floor. The rain had dissolved the poison and when it came into contact with his skin, it caused more worms to form in his body.

The shawl-draped man intended to leave the location and treat himself with the help of someone from the Essencer Guild when a net fell on him, trapping him. The sounds of footsteps resounded before him as the rain stopped.

The shawl-draped man had run out of the faith stored in his stomach, gasping in shock as he stared at the hooded figure before him, "H-How are you alive? I killed you…"

He turned around, staring at the diced-up pieces to see them deflate rapidly as something resembling shadow flowed back into the hooded figure. All that was left within the diced-up clothes was meat that seemed to originate from a goat or something. It was what let out the charred stench when the lightning hit the figure.

"You…monster!" The shawl-draped man grunted as he condensed a spear and thrust it into the stomach of the hooded man, watching it produce a clang as if it had hit metal.

It was his last-ditched effort as the shawl-draped man no longer had the strength to fight. The worms continued to gnaw at his body as all the hooded man did was watch in silence while this happened.

"How many humans did you kill to amass such a frightening amount of lifeforce?" The hooded man expressed rage right as the shawl-draped man breathed his last, now a whisk of his original self, mummified remains of a terrifying entity.

"The entirety of the Essencer Guild would similarly face its end." The hooded figure muttered as he stared at the wormy figures that began to crawl towards him next, lured by his lifeforce.

But, as they neared him, they fell flat, twitching for a few seconds before withering rapidly. "A creature akin to a virus, unable to birth offspring, short-lived, and feeds on lifeforce. It's what I created to kill you freaks of nature."

The corpse of the shawl-draped man and the remains of the wormy creatures suddenly fell into the mouth of a massive shadow that crunched them before compressing them into a tiny sphere the size of his fist.

The hooded man secured the compressed sphere within a container and began to walk away from the region. Soon after, a group arrived at the scene, scouring for any traces but failing to find any.

"Lord Spirit's signal was last felt here." One of the figures muttered, disguised as residents of the place casually passing by.

One of them scooped some water from the ground and smelled it, "There are faint traces of flesh and blood mixed into this. There's also an odd distaste like ash was mixed into it."

"Who the heck could kill our Spirit? He might have been the weakest among the spirits, but he was still a Spirit." The group huddled and discussed, their expression solemn.

The loss of a Spirit came as a blow to the Essencer Guild, especially since it created a vacuum of power. The collection of faith and lifeforce for the Essencer Guild took a hit as a result. It would take some time before another Spirit took up the void.

What the group was unaware of was a shadowy ear hiding nearby, listening in on their conversation stealthily.

"Who's there?" One of them shouted and turned around to slam a bolt of lightning towards a corner, quickly moving to the spot, failing to find anything of notice.

"Don't recklessly use their power, idiot." Another among the group chided, and spoke in a hurry, "It seems the priests of the God of Rain have sensed something is amiss. Let's lay low for the time being until they relax. If our actions are discovered, we'll have to face the God of Rain."

Following that, the group dispersed in their respective direction as silence ensued in the region.

As for the hooded man, he was currently standing next to a path, acting like he was waiting for someone as a thin stream of shadow retreated into his body. 'There are seven more belonging to the Essencer Guild in this city.'

He thought, clenching his hand into a fist as he walked away, beginning to follow one of the members of the Essence Guild. That was his next target.

"Hah…I can't believe it." The lady gasped in shock once she returned to the house she had rented for the day. There was fear in her expression, but contained beneath that was excitement, 'A Spirit died! So, this means a slot has opened for me to take over!'

'I need to make a significant contribution to become a Spirit!' She was the lady from before, giddy from excitement.

Before, she wished to save up the money in her hands and take things a bit slow. But now that a Spirit died, it implied an opportunity. Hence, she couldn't take things slow anymore, 'The others in the city like me too would become more active after this.'

"It seems I have one option to gain a lead." She only hesitated for a moment before thrusting her fingers in her mouth, gagging, as a result, to vomit out a tiny badge. She picked it up, cleaned it, and then exited the house while carrying with her all the money in her possession, 'I hope that unscrupulous merchant is still in the city.'