Spirit Hunting Union

As soon as Quinn stepped inside, the scent of fried meat wrapped around him. Alongside other dishes like pancakes and boiled rice.

Out of curiosity, he opened the door to the dining room.

But what he saw next left him agape.

Before he could process that much, he heard a popping sound from behind him. Then golden confetti rained down all over him.

Quinn glanced back.

While holding the cannon, Silas clapped with a big grin.

"Congratulations on your first summoning!" He sang it a couple more times.

In an instant, Lady Maya zoomed closer to Quinn. And grabbed him inside, where she seated him before a table of thousand dishes.

What a heck of a celebration.

Quinn clenched his jaw lightly.

Why must they be so nice?

And a celebration over the fact that he almost died? Tch… how ironical!

But Quinn stayed calm. He won't want to mess things up. And turn an ingrate in everyone's eyes.

The woman went here and there to fetch different things into a bowl. She placed rice, chicken breast, pancakes, salad… a small mountain of dishes before him.

She then persuaded him with a big smile,

"Eat up, eat up. You deserve the best today."

That line…

Quinn's heart ached.

But he told himself off falling for that. People either disappoint or betray him when he starts trusting them. And these ones weren't so far from doing the same either.

The small party went on.

To cut it short, Silas later got drunk. Suits him well when he keeps chugging glasses after glasses like a fish.

Geez.

Quinn sat in a corner. Watching as Lady Maya and River tried persistently to get the team leader into his room.

But damn… that man could be a total lunatic once he's drunk. No one could make him bulge. And the craziest thing was that he kept spouting nonsense.

To that, he once bit a Spirit's ear.

Who would have done that? Definitely just gibberish.

The teammates had no other choice but to knock Silas out.

Quinn almost choked on his chilled soda.

Did they just do that to their leader? That's some insane gut right there!

In the aftermath, they took Silas upstairs. But only River came back to the dining room.

While packing the plates on the table, Quinn glanced toward the door as it groaned. River entered. But not with Lady Maya.

Quinn pondered,

'Not thinking of making out with a drunk man, is she?'

River walked past him. And quietly got the balloons off the wall. She popped them one after the other.

Quinn stayed silent as well.

Meanwhile, as he stretched to grab a bottle across the table, he tripped a little. His fingertip brushed over the bottle's rim. And pushed it towards the floor.

But it didn't even meet the ground.

River caught it in time.

Quinn raised his brows.

She tossed it at him, and he caught it.

"Thanks…"

But he saw her staring at a bottle not so far from him. Surprisingly, it moved on its own. Slipping off the table.

Quinn's instincts sharpened.

With a momentary burst of speed, he reached for it. And successfully grabbed it mid-air.

He glanced at River.

What was that for?

The lady then concluded,

"It's what you can do as well. So, there's no need to thank me."

Quinn couldn't resist asking a question.

"Were you testing me just now?"

River nodded slowly.

"Kind of. But you passed."

Right at that moment, she headed towards the door. Quinn frowned. Because…

But she paused without warning. Then turned around. With a gentle tone, she told Quinn,

"It wasn't nonsense. The team leader had once done that."

Quinn's saliva grew sour.

"What?"

River swiftly stared at the ceiling. Before responding.

"Think of it as survival. A human fetching herbs in the forest. But attacked by an experienced Spirit. Of course, he was powerless. But his instincts pushed him to do that…"

Quinn crossed his arms slowly. He smirked a little.

Never had he imagined that this man was a real lunatic.

"What then? He still didn't survive, did he? If so, the Curse won't have chosen him. Correct me if I'm wrong."

River's stare sharpened.

"No. But I guess your manners have gone now." She then turned around to leave.

Quinn was confused about why she said that. But it was after she left that he realized.

Why did he suddenly talk that way? He would have never joked about a person's tragedy. Or was death just another common thing for him now?

Quinn was clueless.

***

Days flew by quickly. And Quinn had spent a whole week training in the gym.

Maybe it was that his entire focus on his stats distracted him.

But truthfully, they had been increasing fast.

It wasn't an automatic ascension, though. But Quinn's careful reasoning of which stat mattered most. And investing his Stat Points (SP) in them.

Fetching these points wasn't hard—they were rewards for working out.

Quinn stepped away from the punching bag. His body covered in sweat. He pant hard.

Then he sat on the floor and leaned against the boxing ring's wall.

That was when he mumbled,

"Open window."

The red light from the screen cast a glow on his face. It displayed:

[Name: Quinn Vale

Level: 10

HP: 430 / 432

MP: 360 / 360

Fatigue: 10

Strength: 15

Agility: 18

Intelligence: 12

Sense: 10

Vitality: 14

Available Stat Points: 0

Abilities: (1) Dance of Fart 'Skunk'

(2) Evil god's Oreal

True Title: Disciple of the Evil god

Sub-Title: Son of the Flame

Divinity Path: Dark Divinity

Status: Active]

[Your growth journey is remarked… Overpowered!]

Quinn's face lit up with an arrogant smile.

"Tch… I love the sound of that. Overpowered!"

Minutes later, he left the room. Having realized something crucial over the past couple of days about his stats.

Whenever he gets Stat Points, he only invests in the five stats.

Strength, Agility, Intelligence, Sense, and Vitality.

Clearly, he spent the most points on [Agility]. Because he would need increased readiness to dodge attacks in real combat. While considering his impulsive nature - being reborn by flames - he couldn't live without brute force.

So, he spent more on [Strength].

The others were crucial too. But for him, those two were super essential.

However, he spent nothing on Mana Points (MP) and Health Packs (HP). Yet, they always increased.

It took him about two days to realize. That they increase whenever he invests in [Intelligence] and [Vitality].

Quinn had given it a closer watch. And finally verified his inklings.

Hence, Mana Points automatically increase with an increase in [Intelligence].

And Health Packs spike up together with [Vitality].

… Quinn proceeded into the living room to meet Silas.

The man had already told him that he would soon have to enrol in the academy. Provided for new Spirit Hunters. That makes it one week from now.

But Quinn had something to discuss with him first.

And… a plan only he knew to himself. If the team leader approves his request, his goal is just halfway done.

Quinn had a conversation with the man thereafter. About what he saw in his possessed teacher's memory.

Legs crossed, Silas asked,

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

Without wasting time, Quinn proceeded with seriousness,

"I saw something in his memory. Those guys were trying to make a serum, sort of. And ordinary humans were their test subjects. I heard him say, "that serum could turn humans into superhumans." Isn't that crazy?"

Silas frowned.

His shoulders stiffened a little.

"Not just crazy. Frightening. What do you now propose?"

Quinn liked the fact that he was matching his serious mood today.

He then leaned closer.

"From what I heard, I presume someone paid them to do it. The principal knows about it too. Don't you think it's a wise decision to go and get him? We'll get to the bottom of everything once we've got the principal."

After a bit of thinking, Silas nodded back.

"Yeah, we should. But if a higher-up is in charge, as you said, then that person would probably not be safe. That makes this step of ours a bit risky."

… Quinn nodded, agreeing.

Silas continued,

"But doing nothing isn't an option either. We really should get to the bottom of this, as you said. If their experiment hasn't yet been a success."

Quinn felt that resound in his chest. It would really be a mess if it were.

In the aftermath, everyone got in their red uniform. And filled inside the car.

The air was thick. Tensive.

Silas started the car.

Fitting a black handkerchief around her neck, Lady Maya proclaimed,

"On another mission to save the world."

As Silas set the car in reverse, he added,

"That's what we're born for. No?"

"Right."

Seated with River in the back seat, Quinn secretly checked his wristwatch.

Then he thought,

'Just in time.'