System Breaker: Surviving Apocalypse with Nine-Tailed Kitsune

"How did it go?" Ivy asked the moment Damon entered the room.

She was no longer wearing the dress he’d seen her in yesterday. Instead, she wore metal-plated armour that shimmered with an ethereal aura, unmistakably a relic.

Beside him, Kitsune padded into the room in her fox form, her tails swishing as she leapt onto the table and settled near the edge, crimson eyes studying the armour with clear interest.

"Six," Damon answered, his gaze lingering on Ivy’s armour for a moment before shifting to the others present.

Victor sat to Ivy’s right, looking tired but alert. And across from them was a broad-shouldered man Damon didn’t recognise, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed, studying Damon with obvious scepticism.

Suddenly, a loud scoff erupted from that very stranger.

"Six?" The man’s laugh was sharp and dismissive. "And here I thought you were supposed to be some kind of big shot."

Damon raised a brow, his expression unchanging. He pulled out a chair and sat down with slow, deliberate movement, as if the comment held no meaning at all.

"Not everyone recruited anyone who could hold a weapon, Theodore," Victor said. There was an edge to his voice Damon hadn’t heard before.

Theodore waved him off. "I’ve got twenty-one people ready to-"

"Let’s hope they don’t all die in the first ten seconds," Damon cut in smoothly, his tone flat. "It’d be a waste of rations."

Theodore’s jaw tightened, and his eyes narrowed.

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

Damon met his gaze evenly. "It means we need soldiers, people who can make a difference, not civilians running around with kitchen knives."

The silence that followed was telling.

Theodore’s face darkened, but before he could respond, Ivy cut in.

"I recruited nine. Victor has eight." Her tone carried a wave of authority, redirecting the conversation before it could spiral. "I’ve also spoken to the station at large to encourage more people to go out and level up."

Damon nodded, his attention shifting away from Theodore entirely, as if the man had ceased to exist.

The numbers weren’t ideal, but they weren’t terrible either. Forty-four people total, assuming Theodore’s recruits survived their first encounter.

From what they’d seen during their brief visit to the citadel, the Dark Elves’ numbers weren’t overwhelming. They’d fired roughly a dozen arrows per second, which suggested a relatively small force, at least near the teleportation point.

Of course, that was merely an assumption about their numbers.

But even if there were more hidden, logic dictated they’d keep most of their forces concentrated at the teleport. It was the only entrance, and any competent commander would fortify it heavily.

"The deadline is thirty days," Ivy continued, glancing at Theodore specifically, who missed their last meeting. "We’ll meet back here before heading to the citadel. I’ve already shared information about nearby rifts with each of you, so all that’s left is to take your recruits and clear them."

Everyone nodded.

Theodore was the first to stand. His chair scraped loudly across the floor, an unnecessarily harsh sound that made Victor wince slightly.

"I’m off, then." Theodore’s eyes flicked to Damon one last time. "See you around... big shot."

He turned and walked toward the door.

Damon watched him go with the calm, detached expression of someone observing an insect crawl across the table.

The door closed with a heavy thud, and for a moment, no one spoke.

Then Kitsune’s voice echoed in Damon’s head, laced with amusement. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

’Seems like you’ve made another enemy.’

Damon let out a faint, almost disappointed sigh before also rising to his feet.

"He’s... like that with everyone," Victor said weakly, as if trying to smooth over the tension. "Don’t take it personally."

"I won’t. As long as he’s on our side and can bring the numbers, we’ll use him."

Damon didn’t say what would happen if he wasn’t on their side, but he didn’t have to. Both Ivy and Victor had a very good idea of what he would do to someone he considered an enemy.

"I will see you both in thirty days," he added before leaving the room behind.

***

The moment he reached outside the station, Damon was surprised to see all six of his recruits already waiting, almost half an hour before the time of their meeting.

The attire of every one of them had changed slightly. Some wore makeshift armours and held weapons they most likely scavenged when the apocalypse started, while a very few seemed to even own relics, holding weapons that gleamed with mana.

Most notably, Nyla carried a massive golden hammer that looked too heavy for her to wield, though she did so with ease.

Damon took a moment to study each of them, noting the nervous looks on their faces mixed with anticipation as if he was going to tell them something otherworldly.

But rather than giving a long speech or giving them a word of advice, Damon kept their greeting short.

"It seems like you’re all ready... good. Let’s go."

The rift Damon had chosen was probably one of the furthest away in relation to the station. But there was a reason behind this choice. According to the scouts, it was a C Rank rift, meaning it was a perfect opportunity to both push himself and earn a few quick levels for his allies and raise them to a level reasonable enough for them to handle weaker monsters.

Of course, there were risks with that choice. Any monster would be far beyond anything his new companions could handle, so in truth, he would be the only one doing all the work.

It took two hours of walking before they finally reached it.

"Are... are they always this big?" Amber asked, her eyes wide open as she stared at the rift before them.

"No," Damon replied. "This is a C Rank rift. Any monster inside is capable of killing all of you within seconds."

"What?"

"Why would-"

Chaos erupted among the group, but Damon was quick to cut them off.

"You will only watch and learn. I will handle the monsters."

The protests died in their throats.

Damon gave them one last glance before dashing inside the rift.