He crouched low over the fading shimmer where the rat’s body had collapsed.

  The jungle was alive with sound—buzzing insects, distant bird calls, leaves whispering high in the canopy—but Elias barely heard any of it.

  All of his focus was on the glowing scrap of fur lying in the dirt.

  It pulsed faintly.

  As if inviting him to pick it up.

  Elias hesitated for half a second.

  Then he grabbed it.

  A system message flashed into view.

  New Crafting Recipe Unlocked: Simple Cloth Robe

  Armor +2

  Elias froze.

  The message hung in his vision, crisp and undeniable.

  Then a slow grin spread across his face.

  “Oh, hell yes.”

  A crafting panel opened automatically.

  It was simple.

  Recipe: Simple Cloth Robe

  Materials Required: Rat Fur ×1

  Result: Armor +2

  “That’s it?” Elias muttered. “Just one piece?”

  He opened his inventory and dragged the glowing scrap of fur into the material slot.

  The Craft button flared.

  He focused on it.

  Instantly heat washed over his hands.

  The rat fur twisted and stretched as threads of pale blue light stitched invisible seams through the material.

  The smell of singed hide filled the clearing.

  Seconds later the light faded.

  Elias stared down at what he was holding.

  A robe.

  It was ugly.

  The stitching was crooked and uneven, like something a bored kid might make in a bad summer camp workshop.

  But it was whole.

  And it hadn’t existed five seconds ago.

  Crafted: Simple Cloth Robe (Common)

  Armor +2

  Elias blinked.

  “That’s… instant.”

  He turned the robe over in his hands.

  No tools.

  No crafting station.

  Just materials and a button.

  “Instant crafting,” he whispered.

  He pulled the robe over his head.

  It was stiff.

  Scratchy.

  And smelled faintly like damp animal.

  But he didn’t care.

  His UI confirmed the change.

  Armor: 2

  Elias laughed out loud.

  “Look at me,” he muttered, tugging the sleeves straight.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “High fashion.”

  He gestured dramatically at himself.

  “Rat couture.”

  He glanced at the imp hovering beside him.

  “Eat your heart out, Milan.”

  The imp tilted its ugly head.

  Its wings buzzed softly like a pair of angry insects.

  “Don’t give me that look,” Elias said.

  “You’re naked.”

  The imp hissed.

  Elias smirked and pulled up his status screen.

  The interface expanded smoothly in front of him.

  Elias Ward

  Level: 2

  Health: 30 / 30

  Armor: 2

  Weapon: Rock (1–2 Damage)

  Summon

  Imp — 10 HP

  Fireball — 3–5 Damage

  His eyes flicked over the numbers.

  The robe hadn’t just changed his appearance.

  It had changed the math.

  Two armor wasn’t much.

  But it meant he was slightly harder to kill.

  “Okay,” Elias murmured.

  “Crafting matters.”

  This world wasn’t just about drops.

  Materials mattered.

  Recipes mattered.

  If he had the ingredients, he could make gear instantly.

  That was… powerful.

  Before he could explore the idea further, another message appeared.

  Loot Acquired: Rat Meat

  A second notification followed.

  New Recipe Unlocked: Cooked Rat Skewer

  Restores +2 Health

  Elias wrinkled his nose.

  “Oh good.”

  “Gourmet dining.”

  Still, curiosity got the better of him.

  He dragged the meat into the crafting slot.

  Craft.

  This time the glow was warmer.

  Golden.

  Like coals flaring beneath an invisible fire.

  The meat blackened slightly as the smell of cooked protein filled the clearing.

  Seconds later the light faded.

  Elias was holding a wooden skewer with a steaming chunk of meat.

  He stared at it.

  “That took… two seconds.”

  “No prep.”

  “No tools.”

  “Just done.”

  He sniffed cautiously.

  It smelled like burnt jerky.

  “Well,” he muttered.

  “When in Rome.”

  He took a bite.

  The taste was awful.

  Chewy.

  Gamey.

  Slightly burnt.

  But edible.

  His UI chimed.

  +2 Health Restored

  Elias grimaced while chewing.

  “Fantastic.”

  “I can clothe myself and feed myself with rats.”

  “Living the dream.”

  The imp suddenly hissed.

  Its wings buzzed sharply.

  Elias turned.

  The bushes rustled.

  Two rats burst from the undergrowth.

  The imp shrieked and hurled a fireball.

  The blast slammed into the nearest rat.

  Both rodents immediately turned their glowing eyes toward Elias.

  “Oh come on!”

  They charged.

  The first rat lunged at his ankle.

  Elias swung the rock.

  Rock Strike — 2 Damage

  The rat squealed.

  Claws raked his shin.

  HP -3

  The second rat leapt for his chest.

  Another fireball hit it midair.

  The smell of burning fur filled Elias’s nose.

  He gagged but kept swinging.

  The injured rat staggered.

  Another fireball struck it.

  The creature collapsed.

  Enemy Defeated: Jungle Rat

  +12 XP

  The second rat was still gnawing on his leg.

  Elias cursed and smashed it with the rock.

  The imp blasted it again.

  The rat finally collapsed.

  Enemy Defeated: Jungle Rat

  +12 XP

  Loot Acquired:

  Rat Fur ×2

  Rat Meat ×2

  Elias staggered back, breathing hard.

  His shin burned.

  His arm throbbed.

  His brand new robe was already torn at the hem.

  Then the system chimed.

  Level Up! Level 3

  Warmth surged through him.

  Pain vanished.

  Cuts sealed.

  His health bar jumped back to full.

  Another notification appeared.

  New Passive Unlocked: Shared Vitality

  Your health pool is combined with your familiars.

  Damage to either the summoner or summons reduces this shared pool.

  Elias blinked.

  He read it again.

  Then a third time.

  “No way.”

  He opened his stats again.

  Health Calculation

  Base HP: 30

  Imp HP: +10

  Shared Pool: 40 HP

  His jaw dropped.

  “So your health adds to mine?”

  He looked at the imp.

  The little demon grinned.

  Elias’ brain started racing.

  “One imp equals ten extra HP.”

  “If I get two imps…”

  Fifty.

  Three?

  Sixty.

  The numbers stacked perfectly.

  Most summoners would build intelligence.

  Spell damage.

  Glass cannons.

  But this?

  This was different.

  “If every summon adds to the pool…”

  Elias began laughing.

  “I don’t need intelligence.”

  “I need health.”

  He imagined it.

  Five imps.

  Ten.

  Twenty.

  An army adding their health to his own.

  Enemies trying to kill him would have to chew through an entire squad’s worth of hit points.

  “That’s busted,” he said.

  “Absolutely busted.”

  The imp cackled.

  Elias bent down and patted its ugly little head.

  “You and me, buddy.”

  He stood and picked up his rock again.

  “We’re going to break this world wide open.”

  Tik.

  The sound was faint.

  Sharp.

  Like a fingernail tapping glass.

  Elias frowned.

  He looked down at the rock in his hand.

  “Did that just crack?”

  He turned it over.

  The stone was perfectly intact.

  “…No.”

  Nothing.

  Just a rock.

  The system chimed.

  ERROR

  Unrecognized Command Detected

  Elias stared at the notification.

  “Huh.”

  He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

  System errors weren’t normal.

  Not in any game he’d ever played.

  Where there were errors…

  There were usually bugs.

  And where there were bugs…

  There were opportunities.

  A slow grin spread across his face.

  “Mmm.”

  “I definitely need to figure that out.”

  He dismissed the notification.

  The jungle buzzed around him again.

  Elias tightened the rat-fur robe around his shoulders and glanced deeper into the wilderness.

  Back home his life had been predictable.

  Wake up.

  Code.

  Test macros.

  Sleep.

  Repeat.

  Safe.

  Comfortable.

  Boring.

  Now?

  Now he had a living system floating in front of his eyes.

  Stats.

  Skills.

  Crafting.

  Summons.

  An entire world built on rules waiting to be understood.

  Waiting to be explored.

  Elias felt a grin spread across his face.

  “This…”

  He glanced at the imp.

  “…is way more interesting than my old life.”

  The imp chirped approvingly.

  Elias adjusted his grip on the rock and stepped toward the jungle.

  “Alright, Khal’thara.”

  “Let’s see what you’ve got.”

  And with that, Elias Ward walked deeper into the unknown.