"Hey, Adal," Gaige called out. [Yes, Purger Gaige.] Gaige couldn't help but feel a twinge of annoyance every time he was addressed as a "Purger." It was a label he couldn't embrace, as he held a deep aversion to it. His ultimate goal was to avenge the returnees who had suffered and perished during the hunt, and he longed to return to the peaceful life they had once known. The injustice of their plight, forced into multiple lives of suffering, was something he could never comprehend. His resentment momentarily sidetracked him, his thoughts lingering on the Earth system's injustices and the purger designation before he redirected his attention to his conversation with Adal. "Adal, why does my rank remain at 548? Many purgers have perished, and others have risen and fallen in the hunt. Shouldn’t my rank have moved at least a little?" Gaige queried, curious. [Rank updates in real-time, but due to the system error, ranks remain unchanged.] "So, when will my rank be updated?" Gaige inq
Gaige had grossly underestimated the spirits he was targeting. His impulsive killing spree was taking him perilously close to his own demise. He once believed that spirits would be easy prey, but that assumption had nearly proven fatal. The pamphlet that had come dangerously close to striking him was unexpectedly razor-sharp, capable of splitting a car in two. Dazed for only a moment, Gaige quickly refocused on the spirit that should have been dead, wondering how it had survived his direct shot. Before he could ponder this further, the spirit calmly revealed its secret. It rose from its prone position as if waking from a nap, demonstrating its body's unique ability. It was encased in a thin, glass-like paper that it could manipulate to both defend and attack. "Adal, is there a way to abandon a mission?" Gaige inquired, hoping for a way out. [You can't abandon a mission in the middle of a fight. You can respawn if you die on a mission, but there will be penalties. However, the syste
The revelation hit Gaige like a thunderbolt. As he stared at the screen, the weight of its words pressed down on him, leaving him in a stunned silence. It was a chilling truth he hadn't fully comprehended until now. "One-lifers or all the creatures living on Earth cannot reincarnate and will completely lose their soul, so ghosts and the undead are meant not to exist on Earth. If they do, they are meant to be extinguished." It was a profound realization that shattered the boundaries of his understanding. Until this moment, Gaige had assumed that a purger's sole duty was to eliminate returnees—those who came back from the dead. But the system's message revealed the grim extent of their responsibilities. The eradication of returnees was just one facet of their grim task.“Are you a ghost or a ghoul?” he asked again. “Aren’t you going to answer me?” his tone laced with frustration and impatience. He tightened his grip on the firearm, determined to make this shot count. Confidence surged
The woman's voice broke the silence like a gentle whisper. "Hey, I can give you whatever you want, but you only have to read bedtime stories every night." She spoke fluently in Earth's language, her eyes shimmering with an inexplicable otherworldly allure that transcended words. Gaige's response came in the form of an incredulous, "What?" Yet, his question was met with an unsettling moan from the woman, and a disgusted grimace twisted his features. As he roughly yanked his hand away from her ample chest, the woman emitted a strange and scandalous sound. He had assumed she wouldn't permit his escape, causing her bosom to bounce enticingly as she released an intoxicating aphrodisiac scent. With his nose covered, Gaige extended his middle finger toward her before bolting away. He sprinted as though his life depended on it, determined to avoid the woman who seemed to exude trouble. However, curiosity gnawed at him. Was her scarlet hair merely a coincidence, matching his own? What kno
Gaige stared at the bullet placed in his palm. It should have been empty and spent, but the one resting in his hand appeared clean and brand new. His gaze shifted to Ellise, who smiled brightly at him even after his attempt to kill her. It wasn't her smile but her unfathomable power that made her truly remarkable. Gaige's curiosity about her race and strength intensified after witnessing the miraculous healing of the hole in her head and the blood returning inside her. The bullet that had struck her wasn't ordinary; it was a purging bullet. He couldn't help but wonder how she had survived, or if his power of purging was truly so feeble that someone like Ellise could casually shrug off his bullets as if they were nothing. Clenching his fist, he couldn't help but reflect on his own weakness at this moment. "Are you manipulating time, or do you possess exceptional regenerative abilities?" Ellise shrugged her shoulders and replied, "Don't bother trying to learn anything about me; I won'
Gaige's eyes remained closed. He remembered how he had fainted, the result of losing so much blood. He didn't feel any pain or any other bodily discomfort, but the sight of the blood flowing from his mouth still alarmed him. Recalling how his warm blood had turned cold in his palms just before blacking out, he softly called out, "Adal." However, there was no response, leading him to conclude that he was still in the midst of a dream. His eyes remained tightly shut, rendering him unable to perceive anything, and he couldn't exert control over his own body. "Wake up! Get up!" he yelled in his mind, but it proved futile. He remained trapped within the dream, biding his time for the moment when he'd awaken. Later, Gaige heard his own voice, reciting the same bedtime story Ellise had hired him to read. "Once upon a time, there was a newborn child, born with less beauty and intelligence than everyone else." Gaige paid little attention to the story's content, reading it merely because h
"Bring me back to Earth!" Gaige shouted internally. Gaige awoke in a cold sweat, his heart racing within the confines of his ribcage as he vividly recalled the sensation of a sword piercing his neck. He tried to rise, but he realized he still had no control over his body. It felt as if all his energy had been drained, leaving him unable to even move his neck to look around. His gaze remained fixed on the white ceiling above him. He wondered about his whereabouts, and the only clue was the rhythmic beeping sound of a machine connected to him. "Congratulations on gaining consciousness!" Adal's voice resonated in Gaige's ears. "Am I back?" Gaige asked eagerly. "Yes," Adal replied. "Where am I?" he asked. He had missed the convenience of having Adal by his side. It felt unfair that he couldn't take Adal and the system with him if he were to die here. "You are at Adermodna General Hospital," Adal informed him. "Adermodna? How did I return? What happened while I was unconscious, and
Ellise Thom remained an enigmatic figure in Gaige's eyes. She was a woman of mystery, an entity that he couldn't fully trust. Her true identity remained a puzzle, and Gaige couldn't help but wonder about her origins. "What race is she, and what kind of creature is she?" Gaige pondered. His uncertainty regarding Ellise was rooted in the fact that she seemed to possess knowledge and abilities that defied easy explanation. She was wealthy, a billionaire, and her presence alone held considerable power in the country. Gaige had been granted an identity that made him her son, a name that carried significant weight and influence. "Ellise Thom," Gaige mused. "Is that even her real name?" While Gaige felt a surge of excitement about his acquiredidentity, he kept a stoic expression as he regarded Ellise. He remained unconvinced, silently urging her to reveal more about herself and the nature of her association with him. Ellise, however, didn't seem willing to disclose much. She smiled but r