The dawn light barely pierced the jungle canopy as Zane Aldric crouched at the edge of Luminaris's western gate, Skoll pressed against his leg. The Young Fenrir pup's icy fur shimmered, his blue eyes scanning the Monster Dominion with a hunger that mirrored Zane's own. The city's rune-carved walls loomed behind them, a stark line between safety and the wilds where beasts ruled 75% of this bloated, twenty-times-larger Earth. Last night's dire wolf hunt had lit a fire in Zane—an SSS-rank Beast Tamer with a gamer's soul from another Earth, he was ready to exploit the System's rules like a speedrunner chasing a world record. The Crimson Hollow dungeon, a level 5–10 rift teeming with monsters and mana crystals, was his next step. Skoll needed two more kills to hit his evolution threshold, and those crystals were the key to unlocking his true power.
Mira and Toren flanked him, their silhouettes sharp against the jungle's glow. Mira, a B-rank Alchemist, clutched her satchel of potions, her freckled face set in a mix of excitement and nerves. Toren, an A-rank Shield Warden, adjusted his rune-etched shield, his broad frame steady as a rock. The System pinged in Zane's vision, a blue status window flaring to life with their updated stats after last night's level-up:
---
**[Status Panel]**
**Zane Aldric**
- **Class**: Beast Tamer (SSS-rank)
- **Level**: 2
- **Skills**: Beast Command (Enhances control over tamed beasts, increasing reaction speed and precision of orders by 20%)
- **Talent**: Frostfang Pact (Grants Zane and Skoll shared ice-based affinity; boosts ice damage by 15% and grants resistance to cold-based attacks)
- **Beast**: Skoll (Young Fenrir, Level 2)
- **Abilities**: Ice Bite (Deals piercing damage with a 30% chance to freeze the target for 3 seconds), Frost Aura (Reduces enemy movement speed by 10% within a 5-meter radius)
- **Evolution Progress**: 8/10 kills, 1/100 mana crystals
- **Equipment**: Basic Dagger (D-rank, +5 attack)
**Mira Veyne**
- **Class**: Alchemist (B-rank)
- **Level**: 2
- **Skills**: Potion Craft (Creates potions with enhanced effects; current recipes: Acid Bomb, Flame Vial)
- **Talent**: Catalyst Surge (Increases potion potency by 20% and reduces crafting time by 10%)
- **Equipment**: Alchemy Satchel (C-rank, +10 storage capacity for potions)
**Toren Kade**
- **Class**: Shield Warden (A-rank)
- **Level**: 2
- **Skills**: Shield Bash (Deals blunt damage and knocks back enemies, 5-second cooldown)
- **Talent**: Iron Bastion (Increases defense by 25% when guarding allies, reduces damage taken by 15%)
- **Equipment**: Rune Shield (B-rank, +20 defense, +10% resistance to physical attacks)
---
Zane dismissed the window with a thought, his gamer instincts humming. The System was like an RPG, but the stakes were blood and bone. Skoll's *Frostfang Pact* was a game-changer, tying their strengths together—Zane could feel the cold radiating from his own skin, a faint echo of Skoll's aura. Mira's *Catalyst Surge* made her potions hit harder, and Toren's *Iron Bastion* turned him into a walking fortress. Together, they were a balanced party, but the Crimson Hollow would test their limits.
"You sure about this, Zane?" Toren asked, his voice low as he scanned the jungle. "Level 5 dungeon's no joke for level 2s. One wrong move, and we're wolf food."
"Or *we're* the wolves," Zane said, grinning. Skoll yipped, tail wagging, as if endorsing the plan. "Crimson Hollow's got mana crystals. Skoll needs them to evolve, and I need to see what this class can really do."
Mira smirked, pulling a glowing vial from her satchel. "You're gonna get us killed, wolf boy. But I'm in. Those crystals are worth a fortune, and I need funds for better reagents."
Zane nodded, his mind already mapping the dungeon. The System's quest window glowed: *[CLEAR CRIMSON HOLLOW. REWARD: 5 MANA CRYSTALS, RARE EQUIPMENT. RECOMMENDED LEVEL: 5.]* A stretch, but Zane had cleared underleveled content in games before. With Skoll's ice and his party's skills, they could outsmart the odds.
"Let's move," he said, leading the way into the jungle.
---
The Crimson Hollow's entrance was a jagged cave mouth, its edges pulsing with red light like a wound in the earth. The air inside was damp, heavy with the stench of moss and blood. The System pinged: *[DUNGEON: CRIMSON HOLLOW. THREAT: MODERATE. ENEMIES: LEVEL 5–10. BOSS DETECTED: LEVEL 10 CRIMSON BOAR.]* Zane's pulse quickened. A boss meant loot, but a level 10 was no pushover.
The tunnel sloped downward, walls slick with glowing fungi that cast eerie shadows. Skoll's *Frost Aura* chilled the air, his tiny form alert as he padded beside Zane. Mira lit a Flame Vial, its soft glow illuminating their path. Toren took point, shield raised, his *Iron Bastion* Talent making him the perfect tank.
"Keep it tight," Zane whispered. "System says first enemies are close."
The tunnel opened into a cavern, where a pack of level 5 **Crimson Spiders** scuttled across the ceiling—six of them, each the size of a dog, their red eyes glinting. The System flagged their stats: *[WEAKNESS: FIRE, ICE. RESISTANCE: POISON.]* Perfect for Skoll and Mira.
"Plan?" Toren asked, his shield glowing faintly.
"Mira, soften them with fire. Toren, hold the center. Skoll and I flank." Zane sent a mental command via *Beast Command*: *Skoll, left side, Ice Bite.* The pup's eyes flashed, and he darted into the shadows, silent as a ghost.
Mira hurled her Flame Vial, the explosion lighting the cavern in orange. Two spiders screeched, their legs curling as fire ate their carapaces. Toren roared, banging his shield to draw aggro, his *Iron Bastion* absorbing a spider's lunge with a clang. Skoll struck, his *Ice Bite* freezing a spider's leg solid. Zane followed, slashing his dagger into its frozen joint, shattering it. The spider collapsed, a faint glow signaling a kill. *[SKOLL: 9/10 KILLS.]*
The fight was chaos, but Zane's gamer brain thrived in it. He called shots like a raid leader: "Mira, acid on the back two! Toren, bash the big one!" Skoll weaved through the fray, his *Frost Aura* slowing the spiders, giving Toren room to maneuver. Mira's *Catalyst Surge* made her potions devastating—one acid bomb melted a spider into goo. Within minutes, the cavern was silent, six spider corpses littering the floor. The System chimed: *[LEVEL UP: ZANE, LEVEL 3. SKOLL, LEVEL 3. MIRA, LEVEL 3. TOREN, LEVEL 3.]*
Zane grinned, checking the updated panel:
---
**[Status Panel]**
**Zane Aldric**
- **Class**: Beast Tamer (SSS-rank)
- **Level**: 3
- **Skills**: Beast Command (Reaction speed and precision +25%), Tamer's Insight (New: Reveals hidden weaknesses in monsters, 10% chance to identify critical hit points)
- **Talent**: Frostfang Pact (Ice damage +15%, cold resistance +15%)
- **Beast**: Skoll (Young Fenrir, Level 3)
- **Abilities**: Ice Bite (Freeze chance +35%), Frost Aura (Enemy speed reduction +12%)
- **Evolution Progress**: 9/10 kills, 1/100 mana crystals
**Mira Veyne**
- **Class**: Alchemist (B-rank)
- **Level**: 3
- **Skills**: Potion Craft (New recipe: Healing Salve), Explosive Toss (New: Increases potion throw accuracy by 15%)
- **Talent**: Catalyst Surge (Potion potency +20%, crafting time -10%)
**Toren Kade**
- **Class**: Shield Warden (A-rank)
- **Level**: 3
- **Skills**: Shield Bash (Knockback distance +10%), Fortified Stance (New: Increases stability by 20% when blocking)
- **Talent**: Iron Bastion (Defense +25%, damage reduction +15%)
---
"Nice," Zane said, picking up a small mana crystal from a spider's corpse. *[2/100 MANA CRYSTALS.]* "One more kill, and Skoll's ready to evolve."
Mira wiped spider goo from her hands, grimacing. "These things are gross, but that crystal's worth a week's meals. Keep it up, wolf boy."
Toren chuckled, rolling his shoulders. "Level 3 feels good. My shield's humming—*Fortified Stance* is gonna make tanking easier."
Zane nodded, his new skill, *Tamer's Insight*, buzzing in his mind. It was like a cheat code, highlighting weak points in enemies. He tested it, focusing on the cavern. The System pinged: *[HIDDEN PATH DETECTED: EAST WALL. LEADS TO BOSS CHAMBER.]*
"Guys," Zane said, pointing to a moss-covered wall. "Shortcut to the boss. You in?"
Mira groaned. "You're insane. A level 10 boar? We're barely level 3."
"We've got this," Zane said, his gamer's confidence unshaken. "Skoll's ice, your potions, Toren's tanking. We play smart, we win."
Toren clapped his shoulder. "Lead on, crazy."
---
The hidden path led to a massive chamber, its walls pulsing with crimson veins. At its center stood the **Crimson Boar**, a hulking beast with tusks like scythes, its hide glowing like molten iron. The System flagged it: *[LEVEL 10 CRIMSON BOAR. WEAKNESS: ICE, PIERCING. RESISTANCE: FIRE, BLUNT.]* Zane's heart raced. This was a raid boss, and they were underleveled. But he'd cleared worse odds in games.
"Same plan," Zane said. "Toren, tank it. Mira, hit it with acid to weaken its hide. Skoll and I go for the legs—ice and piercing are its weak points."
Toren nodded, charging with a roar. His *Shield Bash* slammed the boar's snout, drawing its aggro. The beast bellowed, shaking the chamber, and charged, its tusks sparking against Toren's shield. Mira hurled an acid bomb, the green liquid sizzling as it softened the boar's hide. Zane activated *Tamer's Insight*, a faint glow highlighting the boar's hind legs as critical points. "Skoll, *Ice Bite*, left leg!"
Skoll lunged, his fangs sinking into the boar's leg, ice spreading. The beast stumbled, its charge faltering. Zane darted in, slashing his dagger into the frozen joint, blood spraying. The boar roared, swinging its tusks, but Toren's *Fortified Stance* held firm, his shield absorbing the blow. Mira tossed a Healing Salve, a mist enveloping Toren to mend his bruises.
The fight was brutal, the boar's slams shaking the ground. Zane's *Beast Command* kept Skoll precise, dodging swipes and landing *Ice Bites*. Mira's *Catalyst Surge* made her acid bombs devastating, stripping the boar's defenses. Toren tanked like a pro, his *Iron Bastion* shrugging off blows that would've crushed a lesser warrior. Zane's dagger found another critical point, and Skoll's final *Ice Bite* froze the boar's front leg. With a shout, Zane plunged his dagger into its neck, and the beast collapsed, its body dissolving into light.
The System erupted: *[CRIMSON BOAR DEFEATED. SKOLL: 10/10 KILLS. EVOLUTION TRIGGERED. LEVEL UP: ZANE, LEVEL 4. SKOLL, LEVEL 4. MIRA, LEVEL 4. TOREN, LEVEL 4. REWARDS: 5 MANA CRYSTALS, B-RANK ICE SPEAR.]*
Skoll howled, his body glowing. His fur lengthened, his frame growing to the size of a large dog. His eyes burned brighter, and his *Frost Aura* chilled the air further. The System updated: *[SKOLL: ADOLESCENT FENRIR. ICE BITE (FREEZE CHANCE +40%), FROST AURA (ENEMY SPEED REDUCTION +15%). NEW ABILITY: GLACIAL HOWL (STUNS ENEMIES IN A 10-METER RADIUS, 10-SECOND COOLDOWN).]*
Zane laughed, grabbing the Ice Spear—a sleek weapon with a blue shaft and a razor-sharp tip. It felt right in his hands, amplifying Skoll's ice affinity. The five mana crystals joined his stash: *[7/100 MANA CRYSTALS.]*
Mira flopped onto the ground, panting. "We're alive. You're officially insane."
Toren grinned, inspecting his shield's new dents. "That was epic. Skoll's a beast now."
Zane knelt, ruffling Skoll's thicker fur. The Adolescent Fenrir nuzzled him, its *Glacial Howl* ready to change the game. But a new System message flashed: *[WARNING: CLASS EVOLUTION OPPORTUNITY DETECTED IN CRIMSON HOLLOW. ACTIVATE HIDDEN ALTAR?]*
Zane froze. Class evolution? Already? His SSS-rank Beast Tamer could become something more—maybe a step toward God Rank. But the altar's glow, deep in the chamber, felt ominous.
"What's that look?" Mira asked, catching his expression.
Zane stood, spear in hand, Skoll at his side. "Something big. You in?"
Toren laughed. "You're gonna kill us one day, man."
Mira smirked. "But not today. Lead on, wolf boy."
Skoll howled, the sound echoing with power, and Zane felt the System's pulse like a heartbeat. The game was just beginning.