The world was dark. Not the kind of darkness that comes with nightfall—but a deeper, heavier void. It clung to Seo Joon like a second skin, pressing in from every direction. Silence reigned, but it wasn't peaceful. It was suffocating.
Then, breath.
Sharp, sudden, desperate.
His eyes snapped open, and he found himself lying on cold, obsidian stone. The sky above him shimmered like liquid starlight, swirling in hues of violet and blue. It wasn't Earth. It wasn't anything like Earth.
Seo Joon pushed himself up slowly, every muscle in his body aching as if he had been shattered and pieced back together. The last thing he remembered was the collapse—The Oathbound Eclipse breaking apart in screams and betrayal. He remembered the light, the chains… and then, nothing.
Now, this.
He stood in the center of a circular platform, surrounded by towering stone monoliths etched with ancient runes. In the distance, endless staircases spiraled into the sky and descended into the abyss, connecting floating islands suspended in midair.
A massive obsidian gate loomed behind him, half-buried in mist. Words shimmered above it in silver flame:
"Welcome, Challenger. You have entered the Tower."
The Tower?
The name echoed in his mind like an old memory trying to surface. Seo Joon's fingers curled into a fist. He wasn't here by choice. Something—or someone—brought him.
Suddenly, a voice spoke. Not from around him, but within him.
> "You have been chosen. Your soul is marked. Your oath is shattered."
Seo Joon froze. "Who's there?"
> "Climb, Seo Joon. Ascend, or be forgotten."
The voice faded. He was alone again.
Only then did he notice it—burning faintly on the back of his right hand—a mark. A black eclipse, chained by thorns. The crest of the Oathbound Eclipse. But the chains were broken.
"What… does this mean?" he whispered.
Before he could ponder further, a panel blinked into existence in front of him—a translucent screen of blue light.
[Name: Seo Joon]
Class: Undefined
Origin: Lost Realm
Status: Incomplete
Floor: 1 – Awakening Grounds]
Another line appeared:
[First Task: Survive the Trial of the Forgotten.]
The ground trembled.
The platform shook violently as cracks webbed across the stone. From the shadows beyond the gate, figures emerged—twisted things, half-human, half-shadow, with empty eyes and snarling mouths. They hissed, sensing his presence.
No weapon. No allies. No clear way out.
Seo Joon's heartbeat quickened, but his eyes didn't waver. Fear tried to claw its way in—but something deeper stirred. Rage. Grief. Purpose.
He wasn't the same person he was before.
His fingers tightened. A memory pulsed—an echo of a time before the fall, when he stood proud among legends.
He took a breath and stepped forward, facing the oncoming monsters.
"If this Tower wants to test me…" Seo Joon muttered, his voice steady, "then let it."
And for the second time in his life, Seo Joon awakened.