Regressor

Wave of Kobolds

"Shit! Shit! Shit!"

Merrick was in the midsts of the spectators as Tyler made quick work of the waiters showcasing his new strengths.

His legs shook and he gasped in shock.

"What did I just see? He's... a monster!" he exclaimed, sweating heavily.

"Wait, what will that crazy guy do if he sees me? I can't fight him now, he'll definitely want revenge for messing with him in the original timeline."

Merrick turned and ran away from the group, giving up on reaching the food area.

"What's the use of getting food if I won't live long enough to eat it?"

But Tyler had already seen Merrick among the crowd. Merrick was the only one moving while everyone else stayed frozen in shock. A small smile appeared on Tyler's face, which was unusual for him.

"Where do you think you're going, you worthless jerk?" Dealing with Merrick would be easy, especially with Tyler's new speed and strength.

The idea of stopping Merrick's mischief and finally getting revenge felt good.

But just as he was about to move forward, a system notification appeared in his vision.

"SKILL ON COOL DOWN!"

Tyler sighed softly, his smile disappearing. "What the? Of all the time!"

The cooldown for his Blitz Skill meant he couldn't use it again for another ten minutes.

Tyler dismissed the cooldown inconvenience with a nonchalant shrug. "It's irrelevant. I have the strength to deal with that scoundrel without relying on Blitz."

Seizing the opportunity, Tyler swiftly grabbed the loot before vaulting over the counter. All eyes were fixed on him as he landed on the opposite side with a resounding thud, causing the serving area to tremble beneath his feet.

Without hesitation, Tyler traversed the room in a blink, effectively obstructing Merrick's intended path.

"And just where do you think you're scurrying off to, Merr?" he questioned, a menacing crack resonating from his knuckles. "We have unfinished business."

Merrick stumbled back, startled by Tyler's sudden appearance. He widened his eyes in shock.

"Tyler!" Merrick exclaimed. "How did you get here so fast?" He frowned, then gasped as he realized something. "You got a gift from a divine!" That was the only plausible reason.

"Yeah, and now... I shall unleash the fury of payback upon you for your sins. Are you truly prepared to face the consequences of your actions and repent?"

Suddenly, a bright blue light beamed down behind them, it was the means of transportation for the Streaming imps.

Emerging from the portal was Streaming Imp Ferahn.   

" Huh? Something interesting is happening here. " Her voice rang with distortion.

Tyler clicked his tongue, "If an Imp is here that could only mean the Divines are watching..."

True to his words, Ferahn came  accompanied by several camera-like system windows. She turned to the camera and smiled, "It's show time."

"Ferahn here, broadcasting live from Planet Delta-Seven."

"I'm saved," Merrick exclaimed, a glimmer of hope igniting in his eyes as he looked to Ferahn for potential salvation.

"Streaming Imp Ferahn!" Merrick cried out, pointing an accusing finger at Tyler. "This individual manipulated the system, acquiring a class prematurely! Justice must be served!"

"Regrettably, our system indicates that Tyler is not affiliated with any class," Ferahn replied, extinguishing Merrick's flicker of hope with her stark declaration.

Tyler shook his head disdainfully, a sardonic smirk curling his lips. "Save your breath. No one is coming to rescue you."

Before Merrick could muster a response, Tyler delivered a devastating blow to his abdomen, the force of which shattered his insides.

 With a sickening thud, Merrick's lifeless body collided with the wall, bringing an abrupt end to his existence.

Tyler stood over him, emotionless.

"He's dead," Tyler said, finality in his voice. "Good."

The onlookers were wide-eyed with shock and fear. Even Ferahn was surprised.

"Such power..."

"YOUR ACTIONS HAVE DRAWN THE ATTENTION OF SOME DIVINES"

"THE DIVINE ARTHUR IS WATCHING YOU CLOSELY"

"THE DIVINE GARUDA IS WATCHING YOU CLOSELY"

"THE DIVINE LITCHT IS WATCHING YOU CLOSELY"

The stream of messages was not unexpected.

"In one way or another, I was bound to attract their attention," Tyler reflected, his recent display of lethal force leaving his opponent incapacitated with a single decisive blow.

"Tsk," Tyler clicked his tongue disapprovingly. "Those individuals treat us like mere pawns in their twisted game."

"Well, I suppose it's not entirely unwelcome," Tyler admitted, aware of the Divines' penchant for rewarding acts of chaos and disruption to the established order.

The Divines reveled in the spectacle of turmoil, and Tyler had certainly delivered.

Ferahn's whistle interrupted the contemplative silence. "Would you look at that! Your chat feed is buzzing with activity. You're already garnering quite the following, particularly among the more sinister factions of the Divine hierarchy. They're eager to learn more about you."

"YOU HAVE RECEIVED A LOT OF COINS." 

"Good," Tyler muttered as he checked how many coins he had.

The more coins Tyler accumulated, the more resources and skills he could unlock.

Tyler scanned the area for Liz, "There you are."

"COOL DOWN FOR BLITZ REFRESHED."

"Blitz!"

In a split second he appeared in front of her startling her momentarily.

"Ty-Ty, you got the supplies?"

"Yeah, unfortunately I drew attention to myself."

"I saw the beam, a streaming Imp is here."

"On the bright side, I got alot of coins, now we can proceed, let's leave."

Liz smiled nervously. "Okay, Ty-Ty."

Suddenly, A loud scream rang out, drawing their attention.

"What was that?"

"They're here..."

As in on cue, everybody received a system notification...

"THE MONSTERS ARE HERE, KILL OR BE KILLED."

Tyler used his heightened sense to find the source of the scream.

"What do you see?"

"Kobolds..."

The gruesome scene unfolded as the Kobolds advanced, the Monsters invaded the ball room, they were armed and moved incredibly fast.

"Tch, we have no choice but to fight." One of the students stated.

"Get ready!" a student shouted, wielding a chair. "Defend yourselves!"

The clash threw the campus into chaos, watched by the Divines.

Tyler punched a kobold that came charging at him knocking him out with a single strike.

"This is odd..." He said as he kicked another one away while grabbing Liz's hand. "Kobolds are level 5 monsters, they're way too dangerous for this trial. What's happening?"

"True," Said Liz. "The first trial usually had weaker monsters like goblins."

"Could it be... Because of me?"

Tyler's abilities had caused an uproar with the Divines. They blasted Ferahn's channel for cheating so to avoid accusations and to calm the Divines, Ferahn raised the difficulty of the trial.

"But fighting monsters without skills or weapons seemed impossible!"

Tyler focused on the Kobold attack. "There's only one thing we can do now... We're kill monsters to earn coins and find a way out. Stay close. We don't want to get separated."

"Yes Ty-Ty!"

Together, they charged at nearby Kobolds. The battle was completely one-sided. Tyler kept knocking out the Kobolds with single blows.

The other students watched with awe as the regressor kept sending bodies of the monsters flying in different directions.

Liz did her best, using a Kobold's sword to defend herself. Though not as strong as Tyler, she held her own.

"This is too easy... I don't even need to use any of my skills."

Tyler's physical strength allowed him to make quick work of the Kobolds without so much as breaking a sweat.

It took them less than 10 minutes to clear the area.