The moment Derek stepped into the Netherworld, an eerie silence wrapped around him like a shroud. The sky stretched endlessly in a sea of deep orange, the horizon blurred where the land met the heavens. The air was thick, heavy with a scent he couldn't quite place—something ancient, something dead. Beneath his boots, the ground was dry and cracked, dust rising with each step. Bones littered the landscape, some as small as a human's, others the size of hills, their shapes gnarled and twisted, eroded by time. The sheer scale of the skeletal remains made his mind churn with questions.
What in the real hell kind of creatures left these behind?
Derek swallowed hard, his eyes darting across the wasteland. He had read about this place through the system's vague explanations, but seeing it firsthand was an entirely different experience. The Netherworld was a graveyard for beings beyond comprehension.
He rolled his shoulders, feeling the unfamiliar weight of the Glock 19 in his grip. It felt unnatural compared to a sword, yet its compactness gave him a strange sense of control. The XM25 airburst grenade launcher rested within his inventory, along with the rest of his arsenal, but he wasn't ready to touch that just yet.
Alright, let's get a feel for this first.
He exhaled, tightening his grip on the pistol. He looked around curiously.
Then the growls started.
Low, guttural, almost reverberating through the bones scattered around him. The dry wind carried a stench of rot and sulfur, sending a chill down his spine. Out of the thick, orange haze, four creatures emerged.
[Nether Hounds.]
They were unlike any hounds he had seen before. Their skeletal frames were wrapped in thin layers of black sinew, their eyes glowing like molten embers. Spines jutted out from their backs like exposed ribs, and their elongated skulls parted into grins of jagged fangs, dripping with thick, black ichor. Their movements were unnatural, like something gliding rather than running, their claws scraping against the cracked earth with a bone-chilling screech.
A warning flashed across his vision.
[Nether Hounds detected. Rank: F+][Hostile intent confirmed. Escape is ill-advised.]
Derek lifted the Glock, his muscles tensing. He aimed at the lead hound, steadying his breath. Then he hesitated.
These weren't human enemies. They weren't like the thugs or even the zombies he had fought before. They moved too fast, too erratically. What if he missed? What if the bullets weren't strong enough? What if—
A snarl cut through his thoughts, and the first hound lunged.
BANG!
His first shot cracked through the air, missing entirely as the recoil jerked his aim off-course. His heart jumped. He pulled the trigger again. The second shot scraped the hound's shoulder, but it barely staggered, its molten gaze locked onto him.
[Wow. You're actually missing in point-blank range.][Perhaps you should've practiced before coming here?]
"Not the time, system!" Derek hissed, stepping back as the hound pounced again.
My Virtual Library Empire (*)
He forced himself to focus. His muscles screamed at him to react faster. Another shot—this time, he aimed lower. The bullet tore into the hound's front leg. It collapsed mid-air, rolling across the ground with a sickening crunch.
[Congratulations. You hit something. Barely.]
The other three hounds wasted no time, closing in with disturbing speed. Derek gritted his teeth and moved, forcing himself to trust his instincts rather than second-guess. He fired again. Another shot hit the second hound's head—a clean kill.
[Nether Hound slain.][EXP +25.]
The last two weren't giving him time to celebrate. The third beast swiped at him. He ducked, rolling to the side, dirt kicking up as he landed on one knee. Another shot—direct hit to the chest. The hound snarled, stumbling but not going down.
The fourth was already mid-leap.
Derek didn't think. His free hand grabbed a bone shard from the ground, and as the hound lunged, he drove it straight into its eye socket. The creature let out a hellish screech before falling limp.
[Nether Hound slain.][EXP +25.]
Panting, Derek turned to the last one. His Glock was already raised.
Bang.
A single shot to the head. The beast crumpled.
[Nether Hound slain.][EXP +25.]
[Nether Hound slain.][EXP +25.]
[Total EXP: 100/100. Level Up Available.]
A wave of heat rushed through Derek's body, his muscles tightening with newfound strength. His vision briefly flickered as a system notification popped up.
[Level Up!][All Attributes +10.]
Derek clenched his fist, feeling the difference immediately. His breathing steadied, his movements felt sharper, and the fatigue that had started creeping in was gone.
[Decent improvement. Still pathetic, but at least you're learning.]
Derek exhaled sharply. Indeed Grinding through killing was the fastest. And next time, he wouldn't hesitate.