Chapter 31: Offers, Upgrades, and New Beginnings
"Let's not waste time, Leon. Name your price, we want you in ARES."
The next morning after the incident had been going well only for a steam transport to pull up in front of his house, with hunters from Ares guild and their director showing up at his doorstep and bringing him directly to their guild.
To avoid any trouble he had quietly followed thinking he had been caught.
The Ares Guild's director sits across from Leon in his office that screams luxury. A marble table, leather chairs and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city's financial district create an atmosphere of opulence.
Two bodyguards flank the door while the director, leans forward with predatory confidence.
Leon studies the man's face: cold eyes and a calculating smile, the kind of person who measures everything in greedy and corrupt margins.
"Any price," the director continues. "Signing bonus, equipment allowance, luxury housing. We can make you wealthy beyond imagination."
Leon listens without expression. The offer is generous—obscenely generous. It's the kind of deal that sets someone up for life.
He stands slowly.
"Even if you were the last guild on earth, I wouldn't join."
The director's face hardens like setting concrete. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me."
Leon walks toward the door. The bodyguards tense but don't move—a wise choice.
"You're making a mistake," the director calls after him. "Ares doesn't make offers twice."
"Good."
Leon leaves them in their expensive room, surrounded by their lavish furniture and their worthless offer.
Hunters and servants alike whisper in the hallway as he passes. Word travels fast in the hunter community. Refusing Ares is either brilliant or suicidal.
Leon doesn't care which.
Back home, he opens his hunter tab and contacts Elise.
He needs a challenge. Something worthy of his upgrades.
His tab buzzes immediately.
I hid when that thing came out … I thought I'd die. Glad you finished it. I'm D-Rank now, by the way.
Leon smiles. She's earned it.
Congrats! Want to clear a C-rank with me tomorrow?
Hell yes! Let's pick up three more and go.
Her excitement is contagious, and Leon looks forward to working with someone who understands the thrill of progress.
Next he needs to change his living condition but that will wait for now, moving into the middle districts next day after a big kill is another distraction he wants to avoid.
His mother deserves better than the Shadow Quarter's peeling paint and broken dreams. She deserves windows that don't leak and neighbors who don't deal drugs in the hallways.
A knock sounds on his door, an hunter official stands at the door with a container which has his loots from the fight. He dips his head to him and leaves.
The Champion's remains yield incredible materials: armor fragments that hum with residual power, crystallized manna cores worth small fortunes, and a chain artifact pulsing with dark energy.
Leon picks up the chain. The spectral metal feels warm—perfect for his assassin zombie.
He summons her with a flicker of thought. The undead killer appears in silence, her head tilting in curiosity.
"New equipment," Leon says, holding up the chain.
She accepts it with a nod. The artifact wraps around her waist like a living thing, absorbing into her spectral form. Her outline sharpens instantly.
His system interface pings:
[Assassin Zombie – Equipment Updated]
[Shadow-chain Equipped: +25 Agility, +15 Stealth]
[New Ability: Phase Strike – Ignores armor for 3 seconds]
The Champion's skin and secondary weapon go into storage—Leon plans to sell them later. No point hoarding what he doesn't use.
He opens the system market. His accumulated tokens offer serious purchasing power now.
A crystalline staff catches his attention. It radiates concentrated mana.
[Void-star Staff – Rare]
[+40 Magic Damage, +20 Manna Regeneration]
[Special: Spell Amplification – All magic effects +15%]
Perfect for the mage zombie. Leon buys it.
Next come three scrolls—advanced undead skills meant for battlefield advantage:
[Frost Nova] – Area ice damage and crowd control
[Spectral Armor] – Damage reduction for all friendly undead
[Mana Burn] – Drains enemy magical energy
He assigns them. His mage zombie flickers as the new data integrates into its consciousness.
For his warrior zombie, Leon selects something more brutal:
[Berserker's Fury – Combat Skill]
[+50% damage when health drops below 30%]
[+25% attack speed during extended combat]
[Warning: May cause uncontrolled aggression]
He accepts the risk. The trade-off is worth it.
His system interface updates:
[System Credits: 180/350]
[New Abilities Unlocked:]
Zombie Coordination – All undead gain +10% effectiveness together
Threat Adaptation – +3% stats per enemy level above Leon's
Leon grins. "Nice."
Next comes stat point allocation. He's earned two hundred points—his biggest haul yet.
[Strength: 32 → 45]
[Vitality: 38 → 50]
[Agility: 41 → 53]
[Magic: 47 → 62]
[Luck: 12 → 20]
Power rushes through him like electricity. His muscles feel denser, reflexes sharper, and his manna capacity swells until his chest feels ready to explode.
He flexes his fingers. His body moves in perfect sync with thought. The upgrades are more than numbers—they're instinct now.
He closes the system interface and starts cleaning. Tomorrow brings new challenges, but tonight, his family's future is safe.
The apartment feels different—like a temporary shelter he's already outgrown. His mother will love the new place.
Leon changes into clean clothes and lies on the bed. Exhaustion sets in, deeper than the thrill of leveling. Boss fights take more out of him than anything else.
Fame. Power. Choices.
This is just the beginning.