Chapter 1: The First Bite

​Ren was starving.

​It had been three days. Three days since the sky turned purple. Three days since the screams started.

​He was hiding in the university cafeteria closet. It was dark. It smelled like dust and old food.

​Ren touched his stomach. It hurt. It felt like a hole was burning inside him.

​Outside the door, something was moving. He heard heavy footsteps. Thump. Thump.

​It wasn’t a person. People didn’t walk like that.

​Ren looked at the bread knife in his hand. It was shaking. He was shaking.

​He was going to die here. If the monster didn’t kill him, the hunger would.

​Ding.

​A blue screen floated in front of him.

​[Global System Online.]

[Survivors: 3,402,118,922]

​Ren swiped it away. He didn’t care.

​Everyone else got cool powers. Fire. Ice. Super strength.

​Ren checked his status.

​[Name: Ren]

[Class: Civilian]

[Level: 1]

[Skill: Gluttony (F-Rank)]

[Description: You can eat anything without getting sick.]

​”Useless,” Ren whispered. His throat was dry.

​Suddenly, a noise came from the vent.

​Scratch. Scratch.

​The metal grate fell off.

​A rat fell onto a sack of flour.

​It wasn’t a normal rat. It was big. The size of a cat. Its fur was falling out. Its eyes were glowing yellow.

​[Mutated Sewer Rat (Lvl 2)]

​The rat hissed. It saw Ren. It smelled the fear.

​It jumped.

​Ren screamed. He swung the knife blindly.

​The rat bit his arm.

​Pain shot through his body. Teeth hit bone.

​Ren stabbed it. He stabbed it again. Black blood sprayed on his face. It burned.

​He kept stabbing until the rat stopped moving.

​Ren leaned back against the shelves. He was panting. Blood was dripping from his arm. He was dizzy.

​[Warning: Health Critical.]

[Starvation Imminent.]

​The hunger came back. It was worse now. It wasn’t just pain. It was a voice in his head.

​Eat.

​Ren looked at the dead rat. It was gross. It smelled like sewage.

​Eat it.

​Ren didn’t want to die.

​He grabbed the rat. It was still warm.

​He bit into the leg.

​It tasted terrible. Rubber and dirt. He gagged. But he swallowed it.

​Then something happened.

​It didn’t feel like food. It felt like fire.

​Heat rushed through his veins. The pain in his arm stopped.

​[Gluttony Activated.]

[Consumed: Mutated Sewer Rat.]

[Agility +1]

[New Passive: Night Vision]

​Ren blinked. The dark closet wasn’t dark anymore. He could see everything clearly in grey lines.

​He looked at his arm. The bite marks were closing up.

​He felt stronger.

​Ren looked at the half-eaten rat. He didn’t feel sick anymore.

​He picked up the knife. He looked at the door.

​The monster outside was still there.

​But now, Ren wasn’t scared. He was hungry.

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