Chef in the Apocalypse

The sounds of footsteps crunching on the forest floor filled the ears of the party members as they made their way through the thicket. Despite the tough conditions, the 6 people did not complain and continued to push forward.

The group was led by a Large man with a bushy beard whose eyes were continuously scanning their surroundings.

"Keep your eye out for anything out of the ordinary." His deep voice cut through the sound of their footsteps.

"Yes leader." A man answered. He was garbed in some sorry looking swordsman gear trailed behind the large bearded man, shadowing him.

"Jayce, why don’t you give Leader some space." A blond man chuckled before quipping.

A few laughs sounded, breaking through the tense atmosphere. "Luke, don’t pick on him. We all know that Leader secretly likes having such a disciple."

The laughter increased as the party continued to tread through the thicket.

Jayce flushed red, feeling a little embarrassed at the jokes being thrown his way. "Hey, you’re meant to be keeping an eye out for signs of the boss monster. If we don’t find it Fath— I mean, Leader will get into trouble."

"Hahaha!" This time, no one was able to keep their composure, breaking out into raucous laughter. It was like that embarrassing moment when a kid called their teacher mom or dad, leading to the whole class erupting in hysterics.

The bearded man stopped for a moment, his dull eyes showing a flash of emotion for an instant. He turned around to the young man and placed his hand on his head, ruffling his hair a little.

"Jayce is right. Archer, Helen, Luke, Darren, keep it down. You all know what will happen if we alert the beast. This is something that we can’t take down with just us."

Jayce’s eyes sparkled and his expression was one of contentment as his hair was ruffled affectionately. The man in front of him was Heath, someone who had taken him under his wing and treated him with great kindness.

After moving from pillar to post over the past 3 years, finding the bushy bearded man had given him a fresh lease on life. Therefore he didn’t care too much about what the others were saying, after all, he didn’t feel any malice in their words.

Archer sighed, before sending a wink at Jayce. "Leader is right, we need to be on our guard."

The group moved off again, in high spirits yet with an added vigilance.

They continued as such for another hour, before Heath crouched down and gave a signal to the others to stop. The group complied, lowering their postures.

A pungent smell of smoke assaulted them, coming from the east. Heath gestured once more, moving towards the smoke.

As the group emerged from the thicket into the heart of the forest, they were met with a grim sight. The once serene landscape had transformed into a chaotic canvas of destruction.

Fires raged with an unrestrained fury, casting an eerie glow upon the twisted remnants of trees. The air was thick with the acrid scent of burnt wood and the lingering aftermath of powerful spells.

Monsters, once proud denizens of the forest, lay scattered like discarded toys. Some were burnt to crisp husks, their forms contorted in the throes of their painful demise. Others lay bisected, reduced to pitiful fragments strewn across the ashen ground. It was as if Armageddon had descended upon this place specifically.

The group, tense and breathless, gazed upon the scene with a mix of awe and terror. It was as if the gods themselves had unleashed their wrath upon this land, leaving nothing but death and destruction in their wake.

In the midst of the devastation, the group felt an overwhelming sense of insignificance and powerlessness. The forest, which was once teeming with life, was now left in such a state.

"W-What could have done such a thing?" Helen covered her face in horror, seeing the wanton destruction that spanned almost as far as the eye could see.

Heath’s face had a serious expression, surveying the scene intently. "This was done by a human, no doubt. I can feel the traces of mana within the flames."

"But who could be so strong as to cause such destruction?" Jayce asked, his words laced with anxiety.

As if to answer his question, a hooded man walked through the flames that littered the ground, heading towards their party. Instantly, the party tensed up, not sure if the man was a friend or foe.

He casually walked towards them with his hands in his pockets, seemingly unbothered by the vestiges of destruction that surrounded him. Step by step, he made his way towards them.

Heath stood up to his full height, moving slowly in front of Jayce who was frozen in place. This gesture alone had served to remove some of the anxiety within his heart, however he couldn’t help but feel a little useless.

The man stopped a few feet in front of the towering figure of Heath, his facial features partially hidden by his hood.

"What Faction are you guys from?" The hooded man asked, tilting his head to look at the gigantic man in front of him.

"Avalanche." Heath’s responded, his deep voice seemingly lowered a few octaves.

The hooded man tilted his head for a moment, as if he was trying to remember the name. After a few moments he responded. "Ah. That cosplayer Cloud with the giant greatsword right?"

Not waiting for an answer, the hooded man let out a harsh laugh, clearly looking down on their faction leader. With that, he turned around and walked back in the other direction as if he had lost interest.

The groups eyes followed the man as he walked away, breathing a sigh of relief. That was until Heath spoke up once more.

"What happened here?"

The man stopped on the spot, turning his body only halfway.

"What else? I came and killed the boss." He responded simply.

Heath’s eyes opened wide after hearing those words. "Just you?"

An arrogant grin crept onto the man’s face, exposed under his hood. The sight was creepy and seemed to be filled with bloodlust, filling the party with trepidation.

"Hehe, who else would it be?" The man opened his arms wide, looking in each direction despite knowing there was no one else.

Seeing the facial expressions of the group, the hooded man was satisfied, retrieving his hands back into his pockets. "Tell that cosplay bastard that the boss kill was taken by me. That should get you out of trouble."

While the others still felt as if their hearts were gripped with anxiety, Heath responded with a question. "And what is your name?"

"Voidwalker."

***

Jayce’s glazed eyes once again returned to the present as the image of the two figures began to overlap in front of him.

There was no doubt about it, the man in front of him was the same one that had such a frightening capability in his past life. If he was left to his own devices, there was no doubt that he would achieve the same level of strength given enough time.

The only issue was, it would not be quick enough.

Not only that, he was still distrustful of the system. Especially after Rubick’s warning to all the supporters.

"Voidwalker... The warlock huh?"

Dave and Sophie’s eyes simultaneously opened wide upon hearing those words. As if they were in sync, they both looked at each other with surprise and confusion, before looking to their leader.

From their knowledge, their leader had not disclosed his class to anyone but themselves. This included their whole faction. Which was why they were so surprised hearing these words from a complete stranger.

However, their leader did not seem distressed or even surprised that Jayce knew what class he was, almost as if he had expected him to know after revealing his name.

"That’s me." He said matter-of-factly.

Jayce nodded, understanding the reason why Victor would challenge his questioning of the system. In his previous life, the strongest person in the world was without a doubt... Voidwalker.

The Warlock class was so powerful that he probably could have taken over the world by himself. Therefore, why should he search for another power outside the system when his class was so broken overpowered already?

"In answer to your question, you heard it yourself right? Don’t rely on the system. This power that I offer is something that I believe Humans had held in the past." Jayce said, keeping his gaze focused on Victor.

Those in the crowd who were listening in dared not interrupt, afraid that the two powerful individuals would look their way.

"Is that so? Do you have proof?" Victor asked expressionlessly.

Jayce’s face turned up in a grin. "What do you know about Martial Arts and Chinese Medicine?"

Victor frowned for a moment, mulling the question over in his head for a while.

"Are you referring to Qi?"

"Bingo!"