The System Awakens: Rise of the Champion

"The Guild Master is very busy," the receptionist said hesitantly.

"May I take a message to deliver to him?"

Before Damian could reply, he felt a firm hand land on his shoulder.

Damian ignored the receptionist and turned his head to face the man who had dared to interrupt his conversation.

It was a burly man with a sword hanging on his back, and from his expression, it was clear he wasn't friendly.

"Who the hell are you? What business do you have with the guild master?" the man demanded, narrowing his eyes dangerously.

"Like you said, I have business with your guild master, not you. So why don't you go fetch him for me instead of trying to intimidate me? Which, by the way, isn't working." Damian patted the man's shoulder, smiling lightly.

The man's eyes widened in fury.

He did not appreciate Damian's casual, dismissive tone.

Right then, as if unable to restrain his hot-headedness, the burly man reached for the sword hanging by his waist and slashed at Damian without warning.

His intent to cut Damian into pieces was clear.

However, instead of his blade striking flesh, it collided with another sword, one that had swiftly blocked the attack and then shoved him back.

Not stopping there, Damian stepped forward and slashed again, sending the man crashing to the ground.

"You bastard…" the man exclaimed in shock.

In terms of pure physical strength, he was far from weak.

In fact, he was considered above average and was next in line to join the first-rate raid party of the United Swords Guild.

Yet, just now, when he attacked, it felt as if he had struck a solid brick wall.

His hands throbbed, his nerves felt as if they were on fire, and the force of the clash had left him trembling.

"Why is it so hard for people like you to listen?" Damian said, shaking his head in displeasure.

"I said I just wanted to meet your guild master. It's a simple thing; it wouldn't even take five minutes. Why do you guys have to make it so complicated?"

"You bastard! You're not leaving here in one piece," the burly man growled.

It seemed Damian's words had offended all the guild members present.

One by one, they simultaneously drew their swords and began to advance on him.

"Seriously?" Damian sighed, genuinely baffled.

He didn't understand what he had done wrong.

He had entered the guild office respectfully through the front door, gone to the receptionist, and politely asked to meet the guild master.

If the receptionist had said the guild master was busy, he would have left quietly.

After all, he remembered something that could help him with a Qi cultivation technique, and he didn't need to go to Asian countries to find it.

But did things go smoothly?

Of course not.

Instead, they escalated into chaos.

And now, swords were being pointed at him.

Damian was not someone who actively sought trouble, but that didn't mean he would back down when trouble came for him.

Six men, all armed and clearly intent on hurting him, rushed toward Damian.

He narrowed his eyes in irritation.

The moment their swords entered his reach, Damian made a simple horizontal slash.

Though it was a basic attack, the six men felt as though they had been struck by a speeding car.

Their blades shattered all at once, their arms trembling and breaking under the force.

Unable to withstand the impact, they stumbled back in shock.

"This guy is strong."

"He might be as strong as the guild master," murmured some of the guild members who had been watching and chose not to interfere.

Two months had passed since the day of the Awakening.

Many of the Awakened had already surpassed level 30.

The guild master of the United Swords Guild was one of them, though most high-level Awakened belonged to major organizations or guilds.

Looking at Damian, however, it was clear he was not affiliated with any organization, guild, or martial arts family from the Asian countries.

The fact that someone like him had grown so strong, seemingly on his own, was shocking.

It should be noted that compared to the monsters found in the tower realms, the monsters invading Earth were little more than playthings.

The highest-level monsters that appeared in the six months following the Awakening ranged from levels 50 to 60.

As monsters grew stronger and gained more abilities with each level, they became significantly tougher to defeat.

This made leveling up increasingly difficult for the Awakened.

Low-level monsters were nearing extinction, and hunting them yielded diminishing returns.

Awakened individuals were forced to seek out high-level monsters, which were far more dangerous.

Facing such creatures alone was almost impossible.

This challenge was one of the main reasons guilds were formed in the first place, to help Awakened individuals hunt high-level monsters more effectively.

Even then, the system was strict about distributing experience points among group members, with contribution determining the share of experience each person received.

For Awakened individuals without high-level abilities or talents, joining a guild was essential for leveling up.

Even the guild master of the United Swords Guild, despite leading hunting parties, had only reached level 35.

That was why it was so astonishing for the guild members to witness Damian's strength.

He exhibited power on par with their guild master, a feat almost unheard of for someone seemingly unaffiliated with any major group.

Damian didn't care about what the bystanders were saying about him.

"I've had enough of this nonsense. I'd rather be out hunting monsters than wasting time fighting with a bunch of Awakeners who wouldn't even force me to use my full power," Damian said with a frown, glancing at the men struggling to stand on trembling legs after enduring his attack.

Make no mistake, he wasn't belittling or ridiculing them. He was merely stating a fact.

There was no benefit in fighting them, especially when the reasons they used to point their swords at him were both senseless and wrong.

Damian turned toward the front door he had used to enter and was about to leave when he suddenly sensed a strong presence appearing a short distance away.

His perception stat was the second highest after his mana, and ever since he began practicing magic, it had only grown sharper.

His heightened senses immediately registered that this new presence was powerful, far stronger than the weaklings he had just defeated.

"I wonder if I'm strong enough to give you a proper fight," came a confident voice.

Damian turned his head, spotting a man stepping out of the elevator.

He was dressed in a sharp red suit, a long sword hanging by his waist.

"It's the guild master!"

"The guild master is here!"

"He's going to teach this guy a lesson for messing with our guild!"

Hearing the guild members' excited chatter, Damian's expression changed.

"So, he's the guild master, huh?" Damian muttered, observing the man carefully.

"And what the fuck do they mean I messed with them? They messed with me first. I've been respectful from the start."

Irritation flickered across his face as Damian focused on the guild master of the United Sword Guild. "What the fuck do you want? I was just leaving."

"A battle, of course," the guild master replied with a grin.

"You said no one here is strong enough to make you use your full power, didn't you? I'd like to see how much of that is true."

He grabbed the hilt of his sword, pointing it at Damian. "Now let me ask you something. Do you have the guts to prove it, or are you all talk and no dick?"

The guild master didn't even wait for an answer.

But before he could react further, Damian's figure blurred and appeared right in front of him, sword slashing toward his target.

"That's more like it," the guild master grinned, meeting Damian's attack.