L2L - Death Code

The flicker of hope he had felt just moments ago was instantly crushed.

[System: Quest Available]

Objective: Complete 10,000 ten-meter sprints.

Reward: Skill – Dash.

Penalty: Temporary Drop in All Stats.

Time Limit: 48 Hours.

His fingers twitched.

It was a joke.

A cruel, twisted joke.

The system was basically telling him to sprint 100 kilometers in exchange for a skill—when he was already on the verge of starvation. Without food, his stamina would burn out before he even reached halfway.

"Is this some kind of sick test?" he muttered, staring at the quest window in disbelief.

He had two choices. Refuse and die slowly—or accept and die faster.

But doing nothing guaranteed his death. If he was going to die anyway, might as well struggle until the very last second.

Taking a deep breath, he opened his stat page.

He had 10 free stat points.

He dumped all of them into Vitality.

[Vitality +10]

Immediately, a strange warmth spread through his body. His limbs felt a little lighter, his heartbeat steadier. It wasn't a miracle cure, but at least he wouldn't collapse after a few sprints.

"Alright," he exhaled. "Let's do this."

Taking position, he pushed off the ground and sprinted ten meters forward.

1. He turned and sprinted back.

2. His mind blanked, letting his body move on autopilot.

10… 20… 50… 100…

The numbers ticked up. His breathing was steady.

200… 300… 500…

A realization struck him.

Why is this so easy?

His legs should be aching. His lungs should be burning. But instead, he was fine. More than fine.

Then it clicked.

The Beginner's Blessing.

Whatever it was, it had likely boosted his physical recovery temporarily. A hidden buff? A one-time assist? He didn't know, but he wasn't about to waste it.

He kept running.

His Stealth skill activated instinctively as he moved, keeping his presence low just in case any remaining serpents were still lurking. The longer he ran, the more his Stealth skill leveled up.

He pushed himself further.

800… 900… 1000.

Fatigue finally started setting in.

His legs felt heavier. His breathing grew ragged. A new stat appeared in his status window.

[Fatigue: 60/100]

His eyes narrowed.

This stat had shown up after his fight with the serpent too. He hadn't paid attention back then, but now it made sense—Fatigue determined how long his body could push before shutting down. If it hit 100, he'd collapse.

His current limit? 1,000 sprints in one go.

He took a break, lying flat on the ground, feeling his Fatigue slowly reset.

After a few minutes, he got up and started again.

Another 1,000.

This time, he felt exhaustion creeping in faster.

Fatigue recovery wasn't infinite.

It took longer and longer to reset, forcing him to shorten his sprints.

1,000 per set became 700.

Then 500.

Then 200.

The system was ruthless.

He had no choice but to keep going.

His Base Speed stat increased slightly. His Max Stamina grew by +2 points.

But the real problem was hunger.

It hit him like a gut punch.

His hands trembled as he pulled out half a bun and half a bottle of water from his inventory.

One last meal left.

If he didn't finish the quest soon, starvation would kill him before the serpents ever could.

He forced himself to relax, closing his eyes and meditating.

To his surprise, meditation actually reduced his Fatigue.

Another hidden mechanic.

"Alright," he muttered, opening his eyes. "One more push."

He got up.

And he ran.

He kept repeating the cycle.

Run. Activate Stealth. Rest. Meditate. Repeat.

Each time he ran, his body adapted ever so slightly. His base speed crept up point by point. His stamina limit increased by +3.

But it felt endless.

Like he had been doing this for days instead of hours.

The system's countdown told him otherwise. 5 hours left.

The only silver lining? 7,000 sprints down. 3,000 to go.

He exhaled sharply, sitting on the cold cavern floor. His fingers dug into the last half of his bun. He ate it in slow bites, forcing himself to savor it. His last food.

A few gulps of water followed.

That was it.

Now, he had only water left.

His thoughts drifted as he rested. What comes after this?

Even if he completed the quest, he'd still be in the same hopeless situation. No food. No safe way out.

"If the system really wants me to survive, it should've given me food and water instead of a skill."

He let out a dry chuckle. It was ridiculous. He was putting his faith in a system that threw him into this hell in the first place.

But…

If the system truly wanted him dead, it wouldn't have helped him at all.

His survival so far wasn't just luck. It was because the system kept giving him a path forward—however cruel that path was.

So, he chose to believe.

And he ran again.

The Final Push

The last stretch blurred by in a haze of exhaustion.

His mind shut off, letting his body move mechanically.

1,000 more.

Another 1,000.

One final set.

His legs burned as he finished his 10,000th sprint.

Then, the screen flickered.

[System: Quest Complete.]

[Reward: Skill – Dash]

A slow breath left him.

"Finally."

His hands trembled as he opened his Skill Map.

Now, there were two entries.

[

1. Stealth (Lv 5) –

Cooldown - 44 second

Cooldown reduction: -20 seconds.

2. Dash (Lv 1) – Basic skill that allows the user to cover a distance of 3 metres one stride.

Cooldown: 20 seconds.

]

His eyebrows furrowed.

"Three meter?"

It seemed… underwhelming.

Sure, it would let him move faster in short bursts, but would that really change anything in his current situation?

That's what he thought until system did something again.

His thoughts were interrupted by a new notification.

[System – Special Quest Available.]

Accept it?

▶ Yes? ▶ No?