A Rat-Dragon System

THE PIT FIGHT

The pit fight

The deeper I walked into the city, the more the air changed.

I clenched the flyer tightly in my hand, my eyes scanning every wall, every corner, every narrow path as I searched for the address.

Every few minutes, I checked my timer, making sure I still had enough time. Hours passed before I finally stopped.

A narrow, dimly lit path stretched ahead, almost abandoned, and at the end of it stood a rusted metal door.

My grip tightened around the flyer. This was it. The address matched.

For a moment, I didn’t move. I just stood there, staring. The faint reflection on the metal showed my bruised face, swollen lip, and tired eyes.

My jaw clenched. “I don’t have a choice,” I muttered under my breath. My hand drifted to my pocket, and it felt like it understood me—like it knew exactly what I was about to do.

My fingers curled into a fist before I finally pushed the door open.

The noise hit me instantly—loud, wild and alive.

Voices clashed from every direction as I stepped inside, my eyes widening slightly at the sight before me.

The place was massive, far bigger than it looked from the outside.

A wide underground arena stretched beneath concrete walls stained with blood and claw marks.

The crowd packed the edges—students, adults, system users. Some laughed, some shouted, others watched with cold expressions while a few were busy placing bets.

At the center, two creatures fought. A wolf-like beast lunged forward, its claws slicing through the air, while a scaled serpent coiled around it, tightening with brutal force.

I froze.

My breathing slowed. This wasn’t like school. This wasn’t controlled. This was real and it felt risky.

“First time?”

The voice snapped me out of it. I turned sharply to see a man leaning against the wall beside me, arms crossed.

A scar ran down the side of his face, disappearing into his collar, and his eyes scanned me with quiet amusement.

“Yeah,” I replied after a moment, keeping my voice steady.

He smirked. “Figures. You’ve got that look.”

“What look?” I asked, narrowing my eyes slightly.

“The ‘I’m about to regret this’ look.”

I didn’t reply to him.

My gaze shifted back to the pit just as a sharp crack echoed.

The serpent tightened, the wolf went limp, and the crowd erupted.

“So,” the man said, pushing himself off the wall, “Are you here to watch… or to fight?”

My hand moved to my pocket where my pet lay weak and barely responsive. “I’m here to fight.”

He raised an eyebrow. “With what?”

His eyes darted right behind me, hoping to see my pet.

I hesitated for only a second before pulling it out—a small, frail rat.

The man stared at it, then at me. Silence lingered for a moment before he burst out laughing.

“You’re serious?” he said, wiping the corner of his eye. “You came here… with that?”

My expression didn’t change. “I need upgrade points.”

His laughter faded as he studied me again, longer this time. “…You’re either brave,” he said quietly, “or completely stupid.”

“Maybe both.”

He exhaled. “Follow me.”

We pushed through the crowd until we reached a metal counter where a woman stood behind it, her sharp eyes lifting as we approached. Her fingers tapped lazily against the surface.

“New fighter?” she asked.

“Yeah,” the man replied, nodding toward me.

Her gaze shifted to me, assessing. “Where is your pet?”

I placed the rat gently on the counter. She stared at it, then at me, a faint smirk forming on her lips. “Is this a joke?”

“No.”

She held my gaze for a moment longer before sighing. “Fine. Your funeral.” She grabbed a small device and scanned something quickly. “Entry f*e is your life or your pet. You lose, you don’t walk out with both.”

My fingers tightened slightly. “I understand.”

She tossed a small metal tag toward me. “Ring three. Five minutes.”

Five minutes. That was all I had.

I moved toward the ring, each step heavier than the last as the noise around me blurred. My focus narrowed. I crouched down and placed the rat gently on the ground in front of me.

“…We’re doing this,” I whispered.

Its tiny eyes flickered open, and for a brief moment, I saw a faint, unnatural glow within them. I swallowed hard. “Just hold on a little longer.” I checked my timer. Four hours. Four hours to change everything. “Don’t die on me.”

“Fighters, step forward!”

The voice boomed across the arena. I stood slowly, my shoulders tense. From the opposite side, my opponent stepped in—a tall boy, older, confident.

A smirk spread across his face as his eyes landed on me, then on my pet.

He laughed. “Is this a joke? They’re letting trash in now?”

I said nothing. My gaze stayed locked on him.

His pet moved forward—a massive armored beetle with a thick, dark shell and sharply clicking mandibles. My chest tightened. That thing could crush my rat instantly.

“Match begins!”

The beetle charged forward, its heavy body slamming against the ground as it rushed toward my pet.

“Move!” I shouted.

My rat didn’t react. It froze, its body cold and still. My heart skipped. “Damn it—!”

The beetle raised one massive leg and brought it down hard.

Then—

Something changed.

A flicker. A blur.

A sudden shift in the air.

A wing.

It sliced through the space in a clean, precise arc.

The beetle froze mid-motion before its body split apart. Green fluid spilled out as it collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

For a second, there was silence.

The whole building went into a deafening silence and then the arena exploded with noise.

" Oh my god."

" Did you see that?"

That ratus have flown!"

I didn’t move. My eyes remained fixed on the creature in front of me.

My rat… had changed.

My arm trembled slightly as I glanced at my timer.

It had stopped.

A faint glow appeared before my eyes.

[ System Reward: New Ability Granted ]

[ System Loot: Rat Wings Unlocked ]

My breath caught as I stared at it, my eyes widening in disbelief.