Smith Carrot Upgrade

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Inside the factory, the M4A1 kept firing. Every shot dropped another S.W.A.T officer. No matter where they hid or how sturdy their cover was, the bullets pierced everything and struck them squarely in the head.

One S.W.A.T officer clearly saw his teammate get shot in the head and collapse beside him. What he could not believe was that the bullet had come through the steel plate behind them—a plate at least five centimeters thick.

Bang!

The stunned officer fell as well, never understanding what had happened even as he died.

They said cheating was fun while it lasted, and Russell had to agree. It really was exhilarating. So what if S.W.A.T was famous? What did their fine equipment, seamless coordination, and superior tactical training matter? Before a cheater, they were still nothing more than one shot each.

Russell did not even need to aim. He only had to casually pull the trigger through an obstacle in the target's general direction, and the bullets automatically corrected their trajectories to deliver headshots.

Russell thought it was a waste. Character Card: Swart's ability was far too powerful; he should have saved it for the Brotherhood's assassins and shown them what a real cheater looked like. The thought passed in an instant. He had no other useful cards, and if he did not use it, he would not even survive today—let alone face the Brotherhood.

"Retreat! I repeat, retreat!"

The three S.W.A.T squads had numbered fifteen men in total, and more than half had already been lost. The squad leader ordered a retreat. He had no idea where the enemy was; he only knew his men kept dying. If they did not leave now, they would all be wiped out.

The squad leader threw Smoke Bombs and led his team away once the smoke spread. Then something terrifying happened: the smoke did not obstruct vision in the slightest, and his men continued falling one after another.

At that point, no matter how strong someone's mental fortitude was, fear would inevitably take root. The final three officers beside the squad leader ignored all orders beneath the shadow of death and wildly fired into the smoke.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three shots rang out. The three officers' heads exploded, and they fell stiffly to the ground.

Only the squad leader remained. He stopped his pointless escape, raised his gun, and sprayed bullets madly into the smoke. When he emptied one magazine, he immediately loaded another and kept his finger locked on the trigger until that one was empty too.

As the squad leader loaded his third magazine, there was movement in the smoke. Russell, dressed in S.W.A.T combat gear, strode out.

The squad leader silently thanked God. It was fine if he showed himself. The only thing to fear was him staying hidden. He raised both hands and fired rapidly at Russell. The bullets slammed into Russell's body, driving him back step by step and straight into the smoke.

The next second, Russell strode back out!

"Damn it, what kind of monster is that?!"

The squad leader's nerves had already been stretched to their limit, and the sight made them snap. He screamed and emptied his magazine.

A burst of bullets swept out. Due to the recoil, only a few struck Russell. His body swayed slightly, but he continued walking toward the squad leader. Helmet, Goggles, face mask—he was like Death itself, his face impossible to see as he spread suffocating terror and darkness.

Click! Click! Click!

The assault rifle ran dry. The squad leader drew the M1911 from his holster and emptied all seven rounds in one go. The 11.43mm bullets, which could blow huge holes through anyone they hit, did not even leave a mark on Russell. He merely swayed before arriving in front of the squad leader.

"Monster, die!"

The squad leader completely broke down. He pulled out grenades, removed the safety pin, and hurled one at Russell with all his strength. Had he been thinking clearly, he never would have done it. They were too close, and he would be caught in the blast as well.

Russell glanced at the remaining sixty seconds before the effect expired. He raised a hand and caught the grenades flying toward him, then pressed it against his own face beneath the squad leader's ghostly stare.

Boom!!!

A deafening explosion erupted, and flames roared. The squad leader was blasted into the air and smashed heavily into a concrete wall. Shrapnel pierced his abdomen and legs. Even through his dizziness, he could clearly feel the bone-deep pain, and he wailed without stopping after hitting the ground.

As he cried out, his voice gradually fell silent from overwhelming terror. A pair of large boots stopped before him. Looking up, he saw Russell standing there without a scratch.

"Monster..."

Crack!

After killing the entire S.W.A.T squad, Russell walked out of the factory gates. He raised the M1911 he had picked up and reloaded, then casually fired several shots at five locations. The seemingly careless shots took out all five members of the sniper squad. S.W.A.T was now completely wiped out.

Russell opened an armored riot-control vehicle. The communications officer inside had already been dealt with while Russell was still in the factory—through-wall vision, wall penetration, and a headshot. He sorted through the usable equipment, took a box of 9mm rounds for the M9, and used grenades to destroy the three riot-control vehicles.

By the time Russell entered the factory, the Character Card: Swart countdown had ended. The character skin vanished, and his build and appearance returned to normal.

"Only three minutes is such a shame. If it were permanent, I could keep cheating and enjoying it forever. And Swart's cheat isn't good enough. It can't even fly or burrow underground, and it doesn't have infinite ammo. That would put me at a huge disadvantage against bioweapons."

When Russell pushed open the room where Smith was hiding, his heart suddenly lurched. He hurriedly twisted aside as Quintana swung down a fire axe from somewhere—a rusty one—at the instant the door opened.

Russell had dodged in advance, so the axe missed. Quintana stumbled two steps forward. He rolled his eyes speechlessly, then kicked the goddess in the backside, sending Quintana sprawling face-first onto the ground.

Quintana climbed up from the floor looking disheveled. Rather than getting angry over Russell's kick, she excitedly threw her arms around him. "That's great, you're alive! That's so great! I kept hearing gunshots outside, then explosions afterward. I thought you were dead!"

"Yeah, I almost got chopped to death by you." Russell glanced fearfully at the rusty axe on the floor. Damn it, even if he had not died, he would have gotten tetanus.

Embarrassment flashed across Quintana's face. "Uh, sorry. I thought the one opening the door was..."

"Enough. Save the apology for later. This place isn't safe. We need to leave quickly."

Russell supported Smith while Quintana held the baby. The four of them got into the Ford Pickup, and Russell drove away from the troubled place. Being the kind man he was, he had picked up an M1911 and three magazines for Smith. If they ran into enemies next, it would be up to Smith to perform.

Among his stored cards, the only one usable in combat was Skill Card: Bullet Time. Russell, who suffered from insufficient-firepower anxiety, felt a little panicked as he considered how to expand his stockpile.

The Ford drove onto the highway leading to a small town outside the city. Highways in America were like that—aside from urban areas, there were hardly any cars on the road. Quintana fell asleep in the back seat with the baby in her arms. After being on edge for half a day, she was exhausted.

Russell was tired too. He wanted to toss away the steering wheel and get some proper sleep, but he needed a cigarette to stay awake. Unfortunately, none of the three adults in the vehicle smoked, and the baby was obviously out of the question.

Russell pursed his lips and muttered, "System, use Item Card: Carrot!"

There were no cigarettes, but there was a carrot. Russell reached into his clothes and calmly pulled one out. Before he could bring it to his mouth, Smith's nose twitched, and he suddenly opened his eyes.

"You're awake?"

Smith said nothing. He snatched the carrot from Russell's hand and shoved it into his own mouth.

Russell: "..."

"Not bad. Where'd you buy it?"

Smith finished the carrot in no time, smacked his lips, and still looked unsatisfied. Russell did not know whether it was an illusion, but he felt that carrot had a healing effect. Otherwise, it was hard to explain the sudden rosy color in Smith's face.

Ding!

The host has come into contact with plot character Smith Carrot Upgrade, triggering the Lottery Draw and receiving two draw chances. Draw now?

What the hell? He only ate a carrot. He didn't even transform. How did that make him an upgrade?

Russell did not understand why Smith could trigger the Lottery Draw again. Based on his previous experience, each person should only be able to trigger it once.

Or perhaps a carrot was equipment? Was Smith with a carrot and Smith without one actually two different people?

It was all a lie. Those rumors were fake. The cover did not come from being laid-back; after signing the contract, I made it myself based on prompts from Writer Assistant.

This newbie feels deceived... Sure enough, life is coming for this little kitty.

A flop begs for support!