Rise Of The Hoarder
Chapter 18 A New Encounter

Standing among the pile of bloodied corpses, I grinned satisfactorily. The dead Demons faded away, turning into EXP for me, as well as leaving behind their cores.r

I leveled up 6 times, that was less than I wanted. It seemed the higher my level, the more difficult it was to advance. It was a given fact, even in RPGs and the Novels I read.r

I looked around me and saw the glowing purple stones littering the ground.r

“Over 50 Cores… To think I’ll have to pick them manually… What a bother” I muttered.r

Paying attention to my surrounding, I hurriedly picked up my spoils of war.r

“56. 57. 58… 58 Demon Cores… That’s a lot!” I mumbled.r

When added to the ones I have already, that’ll make them over 70. It’s not too bad.r

I placed the newly acquired collection of cores within [Subspace] among the others. I also took in my metal rods and heavy artillery, when suddenly my senses picked something.r

“…skeeerrrr…” A low sound emanated from the top floor.r

“Looks like they’re close by already…”r

The sound of the just-concluded fight must have attracted the Demons. I’ll have to replace somewhere to stay, for now.r

Fortunately, there are quite a few houses to pick from.r

I looked down the hallway and saw one, some distance from the stairs, and just within my range.r

Racing through, I closed the gap between myself and the door in no time. Since my Level increased, I was even faster now.r

I hurriedly used [Subspace] to remove the handle and enter the home, placing the Freezer as a barricade in no time.r

The drapes of the house had already been shut, so the hallway had been entirely removed from my line of sight.r_.

“It’s dark…” I said, noticing the room was without any form of illumination.r

Surprisingly, it hardly affected me, since my eyes immediately adjusted to the darkness. While it wasn’t as clear as daytime, my vision had certainly improved compared to my previous self.r

“I just can’t get enough of this” I smiled.r

Looking at the current state of this house, dark, rough, dirty, smelly… Quiet. It seemed the owner of the house was not currently at home.r

That doesn’t matter to me, anyway. I’ll be taking any useful thing I replace here for myself. However, something had to come first.r

Now that I’m in a safe place, it’s a perfect place to once again strategize and take a good look at my [Stats].r

“Status Window” I muttered.r

The Golden screen flickered and appeared in front of me to display its new information which made me anticipate my new growth.r

[STATUS INFORMATION]r

-tName: Jeremy Lewisr

-tLevel: 16 r

– Exp: 67.78r

-tRace: Human r

– Job: Noner

-tAge: 16 Yearsr

-tSex: Maler

-tHeight: 5″ 3. r

– Weight: 115 poundsr

-tAlignment: Chaotic Neutralr

-tKarma Points: 100r

-t(G) Karma Points: 5r

[Stats]r

-tHP: 850/850r

-tMP: – -r

-tStrength: 200r

-tAgility: 1,050r

-tVitality: 900r

-tIntelligence: 2,500r

-t(G) Factor: 90r

[Gift: [Subspace]]r

-tItems Equipped: Noner

-tAllies: Noner

Skills Possessed: <1>r

[Status Condition]r

<None>r

[Additional Information]r

A human with the last Gift. Possesses the interest of God.r

[End Of Information]r

…..r

I smiled when I looked at the information. My [Subspace] and [Skills] information would practically still be the same, so I won’t bother with them.r

“Now then… Since I’m done with this… Why don’t you show yourself?”r

My voice echoed throughout the empty room, filling the eerie silence around.r

It seems they’re quite shy, aren’t they? No way. If I was to use a word… They’re scared…?r

I rose from the sofa where I previously sat at the time I entered this house. Taking light steps, I carefully walked, passing through the other chairs, and headed toward the bedroom.r

I pulled the doorknob, but it refused to budge.r

“It’s locked? Like that’s going to stop me…” I smiled.r

Using Subspace, I swallowed the entire door, leaving a gaping hole open before me.r

The bedroom became visible, a small and cozy spot, with many objects littering the ground.r

Knives, sharpened sticks, grated edges, and makeshift weapons all gathered at a single spot.r

“These are well made… Interesting…” I mumbled, venturing within the room.r

Suddenly, as soon as I entered the room, a silhouette appeared beside me. The shadow person’s arms were both raised as the stranger tried to hit me with something.r

“Hayaaaaa!!!” A masculine voice let out, with a wavering pitch.r

Using my quick reflexes and high-end stats, I easily avoided the hit, taking a step back.r

As the attack fell, the body of the assaulter leaned forward.r

He must have put his whole weight into that strike.r

I immediately launched my leg and gave him a forward kick.r

“Ah!” The man yelped as he was pushed forward, falling flat on his face.r

His body trembled as he struggled to stand, and I observed him from where I stayed.r

Quickly, he grabbed one of the weapons crafted on the ground and threw the sharp blade toward me.r

Despite his surprise attack, I easily evaded the aerial assault since my speed was quite high.r

“N-No!” The man’s voice came out in a shaky, and scared manner.r

Before he could gather enough strength to launch any other attack or initiate a futile attempt to take my life, I rushed to where he lay and grabbed his neck instantly.r

“Gurghhh…” He let out choking sounds.r

“You’re too loud!” I whispered to him.r

He still struggled to break free from my grip, a futile attempt. Tears flowed from his eyes, and the look of terror he gave me had the connotation that he was immensely afraid of my presence.r

“I can’t reason with this guy… At least not in this state”r

I tightened my hold on him and drove my fist into his stomach, causing him to lose consciousness.r

Since I practiced well with my [Stats], I properly learned how to control my strength.r

“He’ll wake up soon… Ah, such a lousy fellow” I groaned to myself.r

The fuss he’d made could have resulted in the Demons noticing our presence within this house.r

Of course, if they were just a few, they won’t be able to break in… But as long as those numbers continue to increase, that could end up being terrible.r

I’m not certain I would even be able to win against them in such an enclosed space.r

If not for my quick thinking and rapid actions, this idiot could have exposed both of us. Fortunately, I silenced him.r

Still though… To think the owner of this house was still present here, it’s a good thing I noticed on time.r

Well, he gave himself away too easily as well.r

“What a noob” I smiled.r

Even from his desperate struggle against me and his attempts at my life, it was clear that this guy was a total amateur, almost like he was still at Level 1!r

My eyes bulged as I considered the possibility of my theory. A large grin formed on my face and I laughed quietly.r

“How cute… To think that even this kind of person existed in this new world”r