"Your mistakes make you stronger." Rain had hated this phrase.
If that were true, this one would make him a god.
He looked down and… he saw a hole in his stomach.
Not a cut. Not a wound. A hole.
"… … …fuck."
Crimson liquid poured out like a waterfall, no matter how hard his fingers pressed down.
The entire city of Las Fortaleza was gone. It was engulfed in a sea of flames, a McDonald's logo could be seen collapsed on the floor, and corpses were strewn across the entire skyline. Monsters and things that weren't human were basically all that was left breathing in the city.
And one of them was right in front of him.
It had no eyes.
It didn't need them to see.
Its jagged teeth were wet with blood and viscera that looked to come from a mammal.
And the only thing it did was drool with its mouth perpetually shaped into a smile.
Rain did nothing else but laugh a bit. It was his own weakness that got him into this situation after all.
Joining the army just to be kicked out in three weeks wasn't the peak of his life.
In this scenario, there wasn't anything for Rain to really do but curse.
The creature took a step.
"What a way to go…"
And then it took another.
"…Killed by a fucking demonbeast."
Mustering all his strength to curl his fingers, Rain threw a punch.
The creature took another step feeling a slight tickle.
"Worth a shot."
The monster picked him up by the shirt effortlessly as if playing with a doll, filling Rain's black eyes with despair.
His vision blurred as the maws of the creature opened unnaturally wide.
'…Goddamn it. …I don't wanna die.'
This was it for Rain.
A hole to the stomach already had slim chances of survival that being chewed up wouldn't add to.
He closed his eyes and waited to fall into the furry thing's mouth, at least hoping for a quick death.
And nothing.
He pried open his eyes and saw the creature in all its terror.
Frozen.
[Critical Failure Registered]
[Date: 14/04/2XXX]
[Time: 19:06]
[Host: Rain Lamper]
[Sufficient Failures Accumulated]
[Would you like to activate the Adaptive Failure Index?]
[Y/N]
'What?'
[Warning: not accepting within 0.56 seconds will lead to the offer expiring and time resuming.]
'Shit.'
Without given time to think Rain led his finger to the button and—
[Offer Expired]
'The hell is wrong with me!'
[Time will now resum—]
[Critical Failure Registered]
'Huh?'
[Adaptive Failure Index has been activated.]
[Failure Index Points: 12.3111]
Time had resumed, and Rain was still facing imminent death, though his wounds had miraculously healed.
'What the fuck's even happening!'
[Survival Chance: 0.19%]
[Would you like to use index points to increase survival odds?]
[Y/N]
With newfound energy Rain struggled vehemently.
"Yes! Yes damn it!"
[8 Index points consumed, stats will be increased.]
[Muscle Output+] [Reaction Speed+] [Pain Tolerance+]
[Survival Chance: 8%]
Although Rain cursed this number projected into his mind, he could feel his body well up with power.
Slipping his shirt off, Rain fell to the ground barely missing the demonbeast's jaws as it bit the air.
Observing the surroundings, there was one thing Rain was certain he could do to survive.
He prepared to use the new power in his legs, charging up force.
And with every instinct in his body telling him to, he sprinted, running away from the beast.
[Minor Failure Registered]
[0.004 Index Points acquired]
Thankfully, the demonbeast that nearly took his life wasn't too fast, meaning that it probably mutated from something like a dog. Its extra weight probably didn't help in its case either.
Rain scurried towards a crumbled area of land, what used to be Mall Fortaleza.
'Ironic what this city was named given its current state.'
This mall was a decent hiding spot for now, if he could get to the upper floors, the elevation would kill ground vibrations making and the sealed interior would minimize his smell.
Perfect for hiding from the demonbeast.
He ran straight in without batting an eye and ran up several flights.
His breathing was jagged but at least now out of harm's way.
Now that Rain was out of immediate danger, he paid attention to the constant pinging in his mind.
[Failure Index Points: 4.3151]
'What is this thing? A warden ability?'
[Host uncertainty detected. Operating introduction…]
[Error: Host has insufficient privileges, must be LV5, to access.]
'Great.'
[The index will relay all available information to the host.]
[#%}… First sighting of a 'demonbeast' took place ~80 years ago, when society was still functional—]
'…and now a history lesson.'
Rain skipped all the basic stuff, the Index only rehashed what he already knew.
Rain skimmed through the knowledge pouring into his mind until he found some interesting things near the end.
[…The development of the Adaptive Failure Index was meant to [?] and sustain survival of [?].]
A lot of the information was redacted, which made Rain believe that this was a CoW related ability.
'Well at least it's in English.'
[Information about the Index]
[Failure will lead to the accumulation of Failure Index Points, which can be used to [Increase Stats], [Exchange for Skills], [?], [?] and [?]]
'Thank god there's some useful info.'
It seemed pretty basic, even if a bit confusing. Rain thought back to the standard abilities used by the coalition he knew and made some more connections to them.
He was an aspiring soldier in the past after all.
But no matter how basic the ability was, he knew that all he needed to do was survive.
At least for the next 12 hours.
The wardens are coming.
In the army, he remembered being taught a word.
'Status.'
===
Host: Rain Lamper
Level: 0
Health: 63%
Skills: N/A
Condition for Level Up: [?]
Failure Index Points: 4.3151
===
[Would you like to use points?]
After a few moments of deliberation, Rain decided on his next move.