"Ugh..."
Zane groaned in pain, slowly waking up from his apparent slumber. When he slowly opened his eyes, what met him was the dimly lit ceiling of the cave.
"What...?" he mumbled, confused. "The hell just happened...?"
He tried to push himself up from where he was lying... but found it difficult.
"...!"
Only to be struck by the cold realization that... only his right arm was responding to his will.
He managed to sit up using that 'right arm' alone, because the rest of his limbs... were already gone.
And that 'right arm'?
It was now a scaly, glowing ember-like limb that was slowly emitting heat.
It was something that looked like it belonged to a monster.
Because indeed... it was one.
"...Salamander's arm..."
An actual monster's body part... now attached to him, replacing his missing right arm.
Zane stared at the new 'appendage,' another dreadful realization creeping in.
"...It wasn't a bad dream, huh?"
This was no 'nightmare.'
This was all... real.
And now here he was... stuck inside what was supposedly the hardest dungeon in the world.
Without his original 'human' limbs anymore.
Speaking of those missing limbs, Zane tried to feel again of what was left of them.
"...Not much left."
As he'd suspected, they had all become short stumps—a grim reminder that he'd lost them for good.
However—
"They're... already healed...?"
He blinked in confusion. The edges of each stump were rough but sealed—no open wounds, no blood.
He was oddly curious about how they had become 'proper' stumps to begin with.
He'd read about this before; about how when someone lost a limb, they would have to quickly stop the bleeding first... then cauterize it to seal the wound for good, turning it into a stump that wouldn't bleed them dry.
Yet... his stumps—
They were already healed up nicely... as if...
They had regenerated by themselves.
Zane looked back at the 'Salamander's Arm' attached to his right shoulder.
"...Don't tell me..." he whispered to himself, a faint disbelief curling his lips, "does this arm... grant me some kind of regeneration ability...?"
His mind raced to the possibility.
'If this is truly the other world... then maybe...'
He needed to confirm it.
Zane narrowed his eyes at the dark, damp cave around him... to this 'other world' that he'd been summoned into.
And his memory drifted back to the recent event... with those damn "holy" figures.
For a split moment, he could feel his blood boil.
But... he had to focus.
He now remembered how that... old bastard of a priest had opened up some kind of 'status window' for him and his classmates.
Something akin to those that came from games... or even novels.
Thus... it was possible that he could access one by himself.
He clenched his monster-like right fist, taking a breath... before his lips parted.
"...Open... Status...?"
Then all of a sudden—!
"Whoa...!"
—A giant, floating holographic-like window appeared before him!
"What in the world..."
He really was in 'another world,' proven by the unmistakable 'status window' that flickered into existence right in front of him...
Zane tried to at least read it thoroughly, and... he was honestly speechless.
===============================
STATUS WINDOW
===============================
Name: Zane Ashfield
Level: 33
Job-Class: Chimera King
Title: None
EXP: 4,890 / 9,479
Total EXP: 125,000
-------------------------------
MAIN STATS
STR: 106 (+5%) → 111
DEX: 72 (-40%) → 43
VIT: 106 (+10%) → 117
INT: 71
PER: 72
Unassigned Stat Points: 30
-------------------------------
PERFORMANCE STATS
HP: 1,270
MP: 405
Physical Attack: 265
Physical Defense: 231
Magic Attack: 178
Magic Defense: 165
-------------------------------
ABILITIES
- [U] Graft (Active)
- [T3] Flame Mastery (Active)
- [T2] Fire Resistance (Passive)
- [T1] Regeneration (Passive)
-------------------------------
STATUS EFFECTS
- Limbless (3/4 Limb Loss): -40% DEX
-------------------------------
CHIMERA SYSTEM
- Current Armament:
o Right Arm of the Inferno Salamander
→ STR +5%, VIT +10%
→ Grants: [T3] Flame Mastery, [T2] Fire Resistance, [T1] Regeneration
-------------------------------
INVENTORY
- None
===============================
"...What the hell..."
He was overwhelmed by the sheer flood of information. But even so... he couldn't help but marvel at it all.
A status window... a system that laid bare everything about him.
His stats, his level, the abilities he had gained. Even his status of being 'limbless.'
But more importantly—
His eyes drifted to the section that stood out like a brand on his soul.
"...Chimera System?"
And right there... it clearly listed:
'Right Arm of the Inferno Salamander.'
He glanced back at the monstrous, glowing arm attached to his right shoulder—scales pulsing like smoldering coals.
It was almost an alien feeling... yet he could feel how natural it was to use it, as if it had always been his.
And the Chimera System confirmed it.
It was now attached to him; integrated.
A part of him now.
His gaze flicked to the abilities tied to it—
'[T3] Flame Mastery.'
'[T2] Fire Resistance.'
'[T1] Regeneration.'
All from this one grafted limb.
And especially the last skill itself—
"Regeneration, huh..."
He subconsciously focused on that single word—
And the system obeyed—!
A small text box popped up beside it:
===============================
[T1] Regeneration (Passive): Restores 1% of Max HP every 1 minute. Minor acceleration of wound closure.
===============================
Zane let out a dry laugh.
"So that's why these stumps aren't bleeding me dry..."
The dull ache in what was left of his limbs suddenly made sense.
It wasn't some miracle—it was his new arm's doing.
It gave him just enough regeneration to keep him alive. Yet... not enough to grow the rest back.
He squinted at the 'T1' beside it.
"...It's a tier, isn't it?" he muttered in resignation. "The lowest rank, I imagine."
Salamanders, or at least the ones from his world, were well-known for amazing regeneration; capable of restoring missing limbs entirely.
But...
"I only got its single arm, so... not much to get from, huh."
...It only gave him the bare minimum—just enough to patch him up.
Zane stared at his new arm... and wondered.
'What if I get more of this thing...? Will I be able to get my missing limbs back?'
Yet... at the same time...
"...Will I even be human by then?"
He shook his head, pushing that thought to the back of his mind.
His eyes then shifted to his level—
'Level: 33.'
And the number under his EXP—
'Total EXP: 125,000.'
"When did I even get that much experience...?"
He got his answer... when a sudden acrid stench hit his nose.
He turned to it, his gaze trailing farther down the cavern, where the dim glow of embers flickered against the cave walls.
"That's right... you."
The massive, charred husk of the serpent.