Kaitos fists were shaking badly. His knuckles turned white because of the rain that was pouring down on him. It felt like the rain was cutting him with edges. The mud on his knees was really sticky. It felt like the mud wanted to pull Kaito down into the ground.. Kaito stood up anyway. He was not wearing any shoes and his clothes were all torn. He was out in the open with no protection, from the rain.. Still Kaito stood.

  The Ironjaw leaned its head to the side its six dead eyes moving a little like it was trying to figure something out. It was really hungry. This nasty liquid was dripping from its mouth making holes in the ground. The Ironjaws body was really scary, with fur all messy and stuck together with pieces of metal that looked like someone had melted them on. The Ironjaws feet had claws that scratched the ground sounding like old metal scraping against something.

  Kaitos heart was beating fast in his chest. It was like each beat was telling him to get out of there to hide, to yell for help.. The thing is, there was no one to help him. He did not have his phone to call for a ride. He did not have any friends around to make him feel better. It was Kaito, the rain and this thing that could hurt him really badly with just one move.

  The status window flickered again which was not helpful, at all:

  【Combat Initiated: Starved Ironjaw (Lvl 14) vs. Kaito Amamiya (Lvl 1)】

  【Win Probability: 0.7%】

  【Recommendation: Flee or Negotiate】

  Negotiate? Kaito thought to himself a funny feeling was making him want to laugh. What could he possibly use to negotiate with? The Kaito negotiation would have to be done with something. He did not have much. He thought about using his smile but that was not likely to work. The other option was the money, in his pockets. They were empty so that was not going to help the Kaito negotiation either.

  The Ironjaw made a mean noise it was like when you hear machinery grinding and an engine that is about to stop working. The Ironjaw took another step forward you could see the muscles moving under the scrap metal that covered its body the Ironjaw looked really tough with this scrap metal armor.

  Kaitos mind was over the place thinking about all the nights he stayed up late playing games in his penthouse. He remembered that tutorials usually had some kind of trick to them. A spot, a pattern, something like that. Kaito looked closely at the beast. Maybe it was the eyes?. There were too many of them. What, about the drool? It was probably acidic or something. Then he saw the metal bits. Wait a minute rust. Kaito thought about this for a second. Rust meant that something was weak right? It meant that it was corroding.

  He looked around him. The forest was really messy with a lot of thorn bushes and trees that were all twisted. The bark on these trees looked like cracked concrete. There were also lots of puddles of water from the rain. He did not have any weapons or tools with him. All he could see was mud and sticks, in the forest. The forest was full of mud and sticks.

  A branch was stuck in the mud. This thing caught his eye. The branch was really thick. It had lots of knots in it. It was pretty long too three feet. It was not a sword or anything. It was better, than having nothing at all.

  The Ironjaw came at me fast. It was a movement the Ironjaw lunged.

  Kaito dove sideways. Splashed into the mud. Claws whistled past his ear. He quickly grabbed the branch. Yanked it free with a wet sound. The branch felt heavy in Kaitos hands. It felt real, to Kaito in a way that nothing had since the glitch happened to Kaito.

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  He swung the branch wildly as the Ironjaw beast wheeled around him. The branch connected with a crack against one of the metal plates, on the Ironjaws shoulder. Sparks actually flew everywhere just like he had hit a wire. The Ironjaw let out a loud yelp, staggering back quickly and a big chunk of its Ironjaw armor flaked right off.

  【Damage Dealt: Minor (Exploited Weakness: Corrosion)】

  【EXP Gained: 5】

  Kaito blinked at the popup. What did it mean by exploited weakness? He thought about it for a moment. Okay he had an idea. Rust was the key, to this. He needed to hit the metal parts. That was how he was going to do it. Kaito was going to hit the metal parts with rust.

  The beast got better fast. It shook off the hit like it did not even feel it. The beast charged at me again. Its jaws were wide open. Drool was flying everywhere. The beast was coming for me with its jaws open.

  Kaito rolled on the ground. The mud helped him because it stopped him from getting hurt too much. He slid under a bush that was really low, to the ground. The bush had thorns that cut his clothes and made him bleed.. Kaito did not pay attention to the pain. He got up behind the Ironjaw. He had a branch in his hand. He was holding it like it was a baseball bat that he was ready to swing.

  Swing for the fences, rich boy.

  He hit the beast hard on its back leg, where this big old rusty joint was sticking out. When he did that it shook his arms badly but the metal bent and made a nice crunching sound. The beast had a rusty joint on its hind leg and that is where he brought it down making the metal buckle, with a satisfying crunch.

  The Ironjaw let out a loud howl and its leg gave way under it. The Ironjaw spun around. Snapped at Kaito but Kaito was already moving away, from the Ironjaw. Kaito was breathing hard.

  【Damage Dealt: Moderate】

  【EXP Gained: 12】

  【Status Effect Applied: Hindered Mobility (Ironjaw)】

  The rain was coming down hard making the ground all muddy and slippery. Kaitos feet slipped, but he did not stop he just kept moving around the beast. The beast was limping now it was hurting because of its leg and its eyes were shining really bright, with anger. Kaito was still circling the beast trying to get from it. The rain and the mud were making it hard for Kaito to see and to stay on his feet. He was not giving up he was still moving around the beast.

  One more hit. Maybe.

  The Ironjaw made a move to the left and then quickly jumped to the right. Kaito was not able to react in time. The Ironjaws claws scratched his arm. It felt like his skin was, on fire. Kaito let out a cry of pain and he dropped the branch he was holding. Blood started coming out of the scratch. It mixed with the rain that was falling on him. The Ironjaws attack had left Kaito hurt and scared.

  【Damage Taken: Severe (Laceration)】

  【HP: 47/100】

  What is my Health Points? He had not even checked his stats. That was really stupid of him. His Health Points were a mystery, to him now.

  The beast was right over Kaito, its drool sizzling close, to his face. Kaitos hand was digging around in the mud. His fingers found something. A sharp rock. It was not a stick or a branch. It was pointy.

  He let out a yell that came from deep, inside him. Then he quickly pushed it up into one of those eyes that were moving back and forth.

  The Ironjaw reared back it let out a screech, as black ichor sprayed everywhere. Kaito quickly got up he grabbed the branch again. Kaito did not think about what he was doing he just kept swinging the branch over. Kaito was aiming for every rusted spot that he could see on the Ironjaw.

  Crack. Crunch. Thud.

  The beast fell down its body shaking over. The beast was not moving anymore. The beasts body was still twitching.

  【Enemy Defeated: Starved Ironjaw (Lvl 14)】

  【EXP Gained: 280】

  【Level Up! Level 1 → Level 3】

  I just got a skill. It is called Basic Appraisal. This skill is passive. Basic Appraisal helps me learn more about the things I am looking at. Basic Appraisal shows me details, on the things I target.

  【Loot Acquired: Ironjaw Fang x2, Rusted Scrap x4, Beast Hide (Damaged)】

  Kaito fell to his knees really struggling to catch his breath. The rain came down. Washed away all the blood. Kaitos blood and the beasts blood. His arm hurt a lot. When he looked at the status window it showed:

  【HP: 32/120 (Regenerating slowly)】

  He laughed again. This time it was a real laugh. It was not a laugh. It was a laugh. He felt victorious when he laughed like that. The laugh was raw. It felt amazing. He was really happy. That is why he laughed like that.

  The victory did not last long. His stomach was making a lot of noise it was empty. It hurt, which reminded him that he had no food and no place to stay. And that debt of 847 million dollars was still there it was, like a threat hanging over him the debt of 847 million dollars was really scary.

  In the distance, more rustles in the bushes. More eyes?

  Kaito picked up all the stuff he found. The fangs were super sharp, like knives. He also found some scrap metal that might be useful to make something.. There was this animal hide that could be used for something. Kaito put the hide around his shoulders like a cloak. The hide was around Kaitos shoulders now like a cloak. It did not look very good. Kaito had the loot, including the fangs and the scrap metal and the hide that was, around his shoulders.

  Stand up boy. The voice inside him was not quiet now. It was loud and clear the voice, in his chest was speaking up.

  He walked slowly forward into the storm towards whatever Layer 0 had in store for him. The mud was making every step hard. He was really hungry. Layer 0 was not making things easy, for him. He just had to keep going and see what Layer 0 had next .