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As Kuro stepped through the rift, the world twisted around him. It felt like sinking into water, then being yanked through a drain pipe. When his feet finally touched solid ground again, he found himself in a long, narrow hallway carved from dark stone.
Old torches lined the sides of the walls, casting a flickering orange light across the corridor. The air was dense, damp, and carried a strange metallic smell...blood.
He squinted, adjusting to the dim light as his boots echoed softly against the stone floor. The hallway stretched forward into the dark, too far to see the end.
Something was off.
Maybe it was his instincts, maybe it was just common sense, but this place screamed...death. Every few steps, he felt like something was lightly brushing past his shoulders, like invisible strings were trailing across his skin. The hairs on his arms stood straight. His gut twisted with that all-too-familiar feeling, the one you get when you're faced with death itself.
He tapped his fingers along the hilt of his short sword out of habit. He would've preferred a gun, something simple, clean. Point and pull, and blow these bastards' heads off without all that chakra and hand signs bullshit.
He was a true American...
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[ NOTICE]
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YOU CANNOT LEAVE THIS DUNGEON UNLESS YOU DEFEAT THE BOSS OR USE TELEPORTATION STONE.
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Looking around his surroundings, he saw that the passage stretched in both directions, one forward, one back. There was no sign, no clue, just two paths and a heavy silence pressing down on him. He stood there for a moment, torn between the two.
"Fuck..." he muttered under his breath.
Regret hit him like a weight in his gut.
He was regretting all of this.
Regretting ever becoming a "player" in the first place.
He should've just died back in Haiti. It would've been easier. At least then, he wouldn't be stuck in someone else's body, in a world where survival was next to impossible without plot armor. This wasn't some second chance, this was a punishment.
But… he couldn't change it now.
Life sucks. Everyone knows that. Life is that one person who goes out of their way just to make sure you aren't happy for too long. And even when you are, they'll find a way to take it from you.
'I don't know which way to go…' he thought, staring down both ends of the corridor. They looked the same, but he was sure whatever path he picked, there was a good chance he'd run into something trying to kill him.
Still, standing here wouldn't change anything.
'I might as well go forward. That's the only thing I can do for now.' Making his decision, he shifted his grip on the chipped short sword, his fingers curling tighter around the hilt.
Kuro's footsteps echoed off the damp stone walls, the long corridor stretching out before him, lit only by flickering torches embedded into the walls. It was quiet, too quiet, and every few seconds he'd snap his head back, scanning behind him. His eyes flickered to the corners, the ceiling, the ground, never trusting one direction for too long.
He moved like a shadow, cautious and quiet, his hand always hovering near his weapon. Every few steps, he'd shift, checking his blind spots, never letting his guard down. The deeper he went, the more something about the air started to change. It felt heavier, thicker, as if the dungeon itself was holding his breath.
"!!!..RAAAAAWWWWWRRRR..!!! "
A loud powerful bark, echoed from ahead like a thunderclap.
Kuro froze.
Instantly, his stance shifted. He raised his chipped short sword in his right hand, the blade pressed diagonally across his forearm. His left arm came up to guard his face, a tight, defensive posture straight out of Krav Maga.
Muscle memory.
Years of drills. Years of instinct honed by the army and beat into him during training.
SCREEEEETCCCHHH!!
The sound of claws scraping against the stone resounded through the area.
Then he saw them.
Two pairs of glowing red eyes.
"GRRRRRR..." The growling followed, low and guttural. The kind that you didn't just hear, but felt in your chest.
Kuro's grip tightened on his blade.
Out of the shadows stepped a massive wolf. Its fur was red, matted and soaked in dried blood. But what made Kuro's stomach turn wasn't the size, or even the way it moved.
Bolts and screws held thick iron plates locked around its mouth, forming a brutal mechanical bite that looked strong enough to crush bone like glass. Steam hissed faintly from the sides of its jaw as it snarled.
And the smell…
Blood.
Old, fresh, layered and thick. It clung to the wolf like a second skin. 'Alright,' he thought, swallowing hard. 'Let's see what this shit's got.'
[STEEL-FANGED LYCAN.]
The title hovered above its head in dark orange, pulsing faintly with each breath the creature took.
Kuro flinched, eyes locking onto the text. 'If I remember right… then orange that means this thing's way stronger than me.' He paused, just for a second. 'I'm so fuc—'
Kuro didn't even have a second to finish his thought before the Steel-Fanged Lycan lunged forward, closing the distance. The beast was faster than anything he'd fought before, a blur of muscle, iron, and bloodlust. Its claws scraped against the stone floor with each stride, throwing sparks as it launched forward.
He jumped back just in time, the Lycan's iron-clad jaws snapping shut inches from his face with a loud metallic crunch that echoed through the dungeon corridor. The sound alone was enough to send a jolt of fear through his chest.
"Shit...!" Kuro hissed, pivoting off his right foot to avoid the follow-up swipe. He barely made it, feeling the brush of wind from the Lycan's claw as it whizzed past his torso.
With his back grazing against the cold stone wall, he adjusted his grip on his chipped short sword, raising it slightly. The narrow hallway gave him almost no room to maneuver. One wrong step and he'd be cornered. One mistake, and he'd be eaten.
The Lycan crouched low, bearing its steel fangs, the thick bolts in its jaw glowing. Then it lunged again.
Kuro darted to the left, dropping low and rolling along the floor. He came up to a crouch and immediately turned his body sideways, keeping his blade aligned with his forearm. The closer the monster came the more he could smell the rotting meat on the creature's breath.
It snarled, red eyes flaring with hunger, and leapt into the air.
Time slowed.
Kuro twisted his body and planted his foot. He didn't dodge backward, he shifted to the right, his knees bending low as the Lycan's jaws came down where his head had been.
And in that small opening, that fraction of a second where the Lycan was mid-air and vulnerable.
He drove the chipped blade upward.
Sword met flesh...
The sound was wet and loud. The short sword sliced through thick hide and muscle, piercing straight into the Lycan's gut.
Kuro gritted his teeth, using his full body weight to push deeper.
Blood sprayed out like a burst pipe, splashing across his chest and face. "Graghgrr." the Lycan let out a guttural, rattled howl. Its body twisted, slamming into the wall beside them, claws scratching against stone as it tried to keep itself upright.
Kuro staggered back, yanking his blade free in the process, nearly slipping on the blood-soaked floor.
The Lycan collapsed onto one knee, its intestines slowly uncoiling onto the ground. Its breathing was ragged, but it wasn't dead yet.
Kuro didn't wait. He lunged forward again, using the slick floor to slide in low, then swung his blade across the beast's exposed throat with all the force he had left.
The Lycan gurgled.
Then it fell forward.
Dead.
Kuro backed up slowly, panting, struggling to regain his breathing. Blood dripped from the edge of his blade. He looked at the creature's corpse, the red glow in its eyes finally fading.
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[ NOTICE]
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YOU'VE HAVE KILLED THE [STEEL-FANGED LYCAN.]
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[LEVEL UP!]
From the corner of his eye, a soft glow flickered into view.
The system.
It popped open with a quiet chime, and just like that, a grin broke across his face instantly. "Yes!" he muttered, clenching his fist as he stared at the pop-up. "Finally leveled up..."
'Statu—'
SCREEEEETCCCHHH!!
The high-pitched scrape of claws dragged across stone slammed into his ears like an alarm bell.
His smile dropped.
The grip on his sword handle tightened.
With a sharp breath, he waved the screen away and spun on his heel, just in time to see a massive, gaping jaw lunging straight at him, only inches away from tearing into his face.
Kuro whipped his head hard to the right, the motion fueled by pure instinct. A searing sting carved across his cheek as the Lycan's jagged teeth scraped past his skin, just barely missing their target. Blood trailed down the side of his face, but he didn't slow down. He threw himself back, heels skidding across the stone floor to gain space..
"GRRRRRR..."
A loud growl came from behind.
His eyes snapped over his shoulder.
"Shit—!"
A second Lycan, just as massive and feral, lunged from behind, jaws open wide for his legs. Every nerve in Kuro's body screamed at once. He was already barely keeping up with one of these things, but two?
He was so fucked.
Kuro yanked his leg up just in time, the Lycan's fangs snapping shut on nothing but air. He didn't hesitate. Using the momentum, he brought his foot down like a hammer, stomping on the wolf's skull with enough force to echo. Bones cracked beneath his heel, and before the beast could recover, Kuro drove his chipped short sword straight into the top of its head. A hot spray of blood shot out as the blade pushed through, finding brain.
He ripped it free in one motion.
But there was no time to breathe.
The original Lycan lunged again, jaws clamping forward. Kuro looked back, before he leapt over the still-twitching corpse, just barely avoiding the bite. The creature's teeth tore into the back of his flak jacket, shredding fabric and yanking him slightly off balance.
He hit the ground hard, rolling with the impact, and came up with his blade ready.
The Lycan followed.
But this time, Kuro was ready.
As it lunged again, Kuro slid under the beast, twisted to the side, and slashed at its stomach as it passed overhead. The blade bit deep. A howl ripped out of the Lycan as it stumbled forward, stumbling over its own legs. Kuro didn't stop. He flipped up from the ground and drove his sword into the beast's exposed back with both hands, pushing until the hilt hit flesh.
The Lycan jerked.
Then fell still.
Panting, Kuro stood over its body, sweat dripping off his chin, blood soaking into his sleeves. His sword was drenched in blood, and his arms trembled as he held himself up against the wall.
"Shit... I'm still alive." He let the breath fall out of him, more in surprise than relief if anything.
His eyes wandered, scanning the bodies around him, with the blood still warm on the floor. He didn't relax yet. You never relax after a fight, not until you're damn sure it's over. He gave the corridor one last hard look, turning his head side to side. When he was sure nothing else was breathing besides him, he slid down with his back pressed against the stone wall. It wasn't comfortable, but it cut off any chance of something creeping up behind him.
He sat there, still trying to catch his breathing. Then his eyes narrowed.
'Before I was so rudely interrupted... status.'
The familiar blue glow shimmered into view right in front of him.
━─━─━─≪◈ STATS ◈≫─━─━─━
[NAME] ➤ Kuroshin Kagemura
[AGE] ➤ 13
[LEVEL] ➤ 2
◇───INFO───◇
[JOB] ➤ NONE
[TITLES] ➤ Courage Of The Weak...
[HP] ➤ 304.2/305
[CP] ➤ 680/1000 (GENIN)
[FATIGUE] ➤ 30
[AVAILABLE ABILITY POINTS: 1 ]...
◇───STATS───◇
[STRENGTH] ➤ 26.5
[AGILITY] ➤ 14.5
[SENSE] ➤ 11.5
[HEALTH] ➤ 16.5
[INTELLIGENCE] ➤ 19
◇───SKILLS───◇
[BASIC TAIJUTSU TECHNIQUES] ➤Lv.6 (PASSIVE.) [ Basic Melee attacks inflicted on an opponent is increased by 18%. ]
[BASIC SHURIKENJUTSU TECHNIQUES]Lv.3 (Passive) [ When throwing small concealed weapons, damage inflicted is increased by 10%.]
[WIND AFFINITY] ➤ Lv.1 (PASSIVE.) [ Whenever a Wind Style jutsu is used, its power is increased by 10%.]
[BASIC KUNAI TECHNIQUES]Lv.7 (PASSIVE) [ Basic kunai attacks inflicted on an opponent are increased by 15%.]
◇───JUTSU'S───◇
[TRANSFORMATION JUTSU] ➤ Lv.10
[BASIC CLONE JUTSU] ➤ Lv.10
[SUBSTITUTION JUTSU] ➤ Lv.10
[VACUUM BLADE JUTSU] ➤Lv.1
[GALE PALM JUTSU] ➤Lv.1
━─━─━─━─≪◆≫─━─━─━─━
He licked his lips, his eyes locking onto the glowing number below his name..Level 2.
After a whole damn month stuck on level one, finally seeing that two felt like a breath of air he didn't know he needed. 'For leveling up I only got one shitty-ass ability point…? After all that, just one?' His jaw tightened as he scratched the back of his head.
Still… he let out a slow exhale. 'All my stats went up by one. Not amazing, but it's something.' He gave a half-hearted shrug, trying to play it cool. 'But when I do daily quests, I get three ability points easy… whatever. Points are points at the end of the day.'
With a low grunt, he pushed himself off the wall and wiped the fresh blood off his short sword using the sleeve of his shirt. The blade shimmered dully under the dim torchlight, stained but still intact.
He glanced down both ends of the hallway. 'Which way did I come from…?' the fight had thrown everything off. His sense of direction wasn't the best, and now with both corridors looking exactly the same, there was no way to tell.
He couldn't rely on sunlight here, just a choice between two identical paths. Right or left. One step could lead him deeper into the dungeon, the other? Back the way he came. Which could've been the right way and he was walking further away from the boss room. Either way, it was starting to piss him off.
He sighed, placing his hands on his hips, eyes drifting back to the two mangled corpses behind him. 'Screw it... I'll just use the bodies to mark where I came from,' he thought, the idea half-lazy but better than walking in circles.
His eyes scanned the floor until they landed on the Lycan with its guts spilling out in a thick trail across the stone. "Alright, so it's this wa—" he cut himself off.
Something caught his eye, a glint.
It sparkled beside the Lycan's torn-open stomach. He narrowed his eyes and stepped closer, crouching low as the light danced off the object.
'The hell is that…?'
[ITEM:Lycan Fang]
A large and sharp Lycan's fang. You can store this item or sell it at shop.
He raised a brow. "Huh." he picked it up and gave it a quick once-over. It was jagged, heavy, and still stained with blood. Figuring it was worth selling, he tossed it into his inventory without a second thought.
He also found out the system had a shop, one where he could sell and buy stuff through it. The problem? He couldn't actually buy anything yet. The store was locked behind a level requirement, and all he could do was sell. Not that it mattered before, he never had anything worth selling anyway.
Until now.
"Since I can't leave..." he muttered under his breath, standing back up as he rolled his neck, short sword already tight in his grip, "I might as well start farming these ugly big bad wolves."
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