Battleforged

When the apocalypse struck, Eric was as shocked as everyone else — but there were no chosen heroes. Just people desperately trying to survive. Hope came in alien vegetative pods: a select few could level up and embrace magic, if the pods didn't kill them first. Eric, along with friends who were rogues long before any System existed, plans to steal a priceless fortune right out from under everyone trying to kill them. All he has to do is outmaneuver a thousand orcs, outfox an army of clever elves, and escape a war-torn city without getting caught.

Miraculously, Eric escaped the war-torn city with a fortune and a companion by his side. Now he just needs to reach Freetown safely, deposit his dangerous fortune before it literally kills him, and find an untainted pod to evolve his class. But staying out of trouble isn't Eric's strong suit. When he discovers his closest friends are about to be swindled out of their own fortune, he acts — sending an entire faction of cutthroat goblin bankers after his head. With high-level assassins hunting him, Eric must use every edge available just to survive, let alone rise as a Contender.

When Eric discovers that the girl he fell for has been taken hostage by his enemies, he swears to rescue her at any cost. But the battleground is politics and intrigue, not the crimson fields he favors. Forced to sheathe his blade and enter the arena his political foes prefer, Eric accepts that sometimes leverage matters as much as power. Before stepping into enemy territory, though, he intends to earn a First Clear title by conquering a dungeon no other Contender would dare — because monsters that spell certain death for others are the perfect tools for a Necromancer's arsenal.