Chapter 73: A Path Forward
Seo-jin sat behind the scarred desk and tried to breathe like a man who hadn't been hollowed out. The office smelled of salt and smoke; moonlight cut a pale slit across the floor. He cursed at the system, teeth on edge.
[User would be better served listening rather than flinging impotent threats.]
"Why the fuck should I listen? You lie like it's breathing. What use are you? Why were you in Hell and not on Earth? How the hell does a demon use a shard when everything says that can't happen?! Answer!"
Silence held for two ticks.
[Finished?]
He felt ridiculous for a second, then angrier.
[There are unknowns. Example: shard origin in Hell — unknown. Demon using shard — unknown.]
"As usual, you don't know shit."
[Some are known. System purpose: alter User fate. Shards attune to User's dreams and desires. Through trials the System provides a path.]
"So you did manipulate me. Before I met you I didn't have any dreams, I only had one desire — to eat. You showed me green. Yet there is none. Why give me a dream that I can't fulfill?"
[Data stale. System archive predates the Convergence. With Network access, data files update can—]
"When we don't know how long that'll take? Yeah, fuck you, and fuck the Network."
Frustration coiled hot beneath his ribs. He could tear the thing out of himself for lying and eat it raw, and part of him wanted to. If it was telling the truth, if it really hadn't known, then raging at it was nothing but childish thrashing. He knew that. But the thought didn't cool him.
He scowled, jaw tight. The system was a tether he hated and needed in equal measure, having it shut down for an unknown period of time to perform an update just didnt sit well—
Then something else crawled up his spine, a tingle, small and sharp. A different excitement. He straightened, appreciating the distraction.
"They're back."
He pushed open the window. Night wind brought salt and the distant groan of the docks. Three shapes slipped through the frame like stains: Pain, Panic, Snare. They landed as if gravity had agreed to bow, then dropped to one knee and lowered their heads.
"Broodfather."
"Broodfather."
"Broodfather."
Their voices matched in rhythm, a low, raw chord that made something in his chest unclench. He let the word settle, let it slide over him. For now, at least, the system could wait.
Then his brow twitched. A swipe brought his panel to life. He read, and began to laugh, low and hollow.
"You got a class and I wasn't there to see it. Tell me, Panic—how did it feel?"
Panic's head jerked, his eyes wide.
"Sticky. Like something was licking my ribs, but the tongue was all broken glass. Yeah—broken glass."
Seo-jin's face stayed flat, he should've known better than to ask, but pride swelled sharp under his ribs nonetheless.
[Class Profile // Vivisector]
[Role // Precision Dissector / Sadistic Skirmisher]
[Rank // D]
[Critical Stat // AGI (all class abilities scale strongest with Agility)]
[Core Class Mechanic // Incision Points]
[Each successful critical hit or skill hit generates 1 Incision Point (max 3) // Certain abilities consume Incision Points for stronger bleed or debuff effects]
[Class Skills]
[Name // Precision Cut]
[Type // Active]
[Rank // D]
[Cast Time // Instant]
[Cooldown // 8s]
[Effect]
[A deliberate slash. Deals 110% weapon damage. If target is bleeding, consume 1 Incision Point to refresh bleed and double its tick rate for 4 seconds.]
[Name // Dissector's Eye]
[Type // Passive]
[Rank // D]
[Effect]
[+5% Crit Chance when striking the same target. Each consecutive hit adds +2% damage (max +10%). Resets if an attack misses or target is switched.]
[Name // Organ Spill]
[Type // Active]
[Sub-type // Finisher]
[Rank // D]
[Cost // 3 Incision Points]
[Cast Time // 1s]
[Cooldown // 30s]
[Effect]
[A precision strike. Deals 150% weapon damage. Applies Massive Bleed (15% max HP over 10s). If target already bleeding, triggers Hemorrhage—instantly deals +10% of total bleed damage.]
["Truth lies hidden in muscle and marrow, waiting to be exposed."]
He studied his second-born. No twisted mutation, no grotesque change in body like Pain's. The shift was inside. Still manic, still twitching with hunger, but sharper. More deliberate.
"Show me Gnarled Fang."
Panic nearly vibrated.
"Yes, yes–Oh! Broodfather must hear—inside humans, they glow, like…like…"
"Like the sweetest warmth you've ever tasted."
All eyes turned to Snare. Even Panic froze, but quickly laughed.
"Little brother's seen it! Snare sees everything!"
Seo-jin let the corner of his mouth twitch. His broodlings pleased him. He turned Panic's dagger in his grip, weighing more than steel in the motion. The older two showed their growth plain—stronger, sharper, more certain. But even Snare carried himself different now. Firmer. Anchored. A place carved in the Brood. Pain and Panic stood a step behind without thinking, their deference loud as any vow.
With a thought, the weapon's panel opened, and he quickly confirmed what he'd guessed back in the dungeon, when Panic seemed to strike once but the air screamed with three. His weapon had birthed a skill.
[Weapon Profile // Gnarled Fang]
[Rank // D → Evolvable (Max Rank Unknown)]
[Type // Melee / Dagger]
[Material // Hardened high-tier demon beast tooth (awakened)]
[Description]
[Once dull and dormant, the tooth now glows faintly when held. Its enamel ridges have deepened, serrations sharper than bone saws. A faint vibration follows each swing, as if the weapon remembers the motion and repeats it.]
[Damage // 12–16 Slicing / Piercing]
[Durability // 71 / 71]
[Special Properties]
[Evolutionary Weapon // Grows with its bonded user, unlocking abilities as rank increases.]
[Bonded // Permanently bound to [Panic] Will not function for another unless bond is broken by death or destruction.]
[Abilities]
[Name // Echo Strike]
[Type // Active]
[Cost // Consumes stamina equal to two additional strikes]
[Cooldown // 10sec]
[Effect]
[A single stab triggers two additional phantom strikes that follow instantly. Each echo repeats the original damage at reduced strength (75% base per echo).]
[Note]
[Echo strikes bypass parry timing but can still be blocked by solid defense.]
[Scaling]
[Damage increases with wielder's core stats once bonded. Strength and Agility favored in calculations.]
["The fang of a great predator—still hungry."]
Seo-jin tossed the dagger back. Panic's tongue snapped it from the air, the broodling swallowing it down like meat.
"Stab, stab, stab!"
"Yes..."
Seo-jin said flat, though his voice carried the weight of approval.
"But don't get comfortable. Always claw for more, Panic. You'll never run out of flesh to practice on."
The praise nearly sent the broodling reeling. His eyes rolled, his limbs twitched, drunk on it. Seo-jin bit down on his own grin.
'It's like an artisan's class, wrapped in mania. If I can grind his madness into focus, there's no telling what kind of blade he'll become.'
[Recommendation: allow Panic to work unchained. Innovation will carve his path forward.]
Still salty, Seo-jin ignored the system's hum and shifted to his eldest.
"Pain. Yours will be slower. Your mutation grows ugly, but it will bring its own teeth. Patience will be your test for now."
Pain's jaw was clenched. Jealousy, sharp and fresh, had been rolling off him. Seo-jin's words weren't comfort—they were leash and collar.
Snare watched, wide-eyed, devouring every exchange. To him, each word from the Broodfather landed like scripture, carved perfect for each brother's flaw. He memorized every line, worship swelling hotter in his chest.
"Report."
Snare twitched, snapping upright when he realized the order had landed on him.
"Yes, Broodfather. The raid was absolute. All four objectives executed without flaw. Pain anchored the front, his bulk broke their line. Most were E-rank trash—he tore through their defenses like they weren't even there."
The office thickened with heat as Pain straightened, pride leaking through his restraint.
"Panic carried out your order to leave a message. Any human that stumbles into that place will choke on the reminder. Even I was unsettled by his… artistry."
Panic squealed through his hands, peeking between fingers, his grin sharp even as his face flushed. His voice dripped with satisfaction.
"Snare was scary, Broodfather. He knew their every move before they twitched. Spooky."
Even Pain stepped forward, his skin crackling, voice low.
"Without him… we would've drowned in the killing. We would have failed you."
Seo-jin froze. Shock wasn't in his nature, but the admission cracked through him like a stray blade.
[Observation: strong possibility broodling Pain is developing what humans would define as a code.]
'He admitted fault, knowing punishment might follow. A demon clinging to honor… strange.'
Realizing he'd fallen silent, Seo-jin cleared his throat.
"Continue."
Snare squared himself.
"No survivors. No witnesses. Tracks burned clean. I also gathered the intel you asked for."
"And?"
The broodling hesitated, words weighing on his tongue.
"...This world is dog-shit."
"Explain."
Snare's jaw tightened. He flicked a glance at his eldest brother, drew strength from his example, then forced it out.
"This place isn't worthy of you, Broodfather. Forgive me if I presume—but why stay? These humans are vile. Diseased. Not fit to feed upon. They soil everything they touch. You deserve purer souls."
Heat curled in Seo-jin's black chest. Whether born of the brood-link or the broodling's own conviction, it cut deep all the same. For once, he felt understood. The urge to reward them itched at him, but he held it back.
'Praise is cheap. Better to carve their devotion into something harder.'
Not just servants...but hellfire, blade, and eyes. A creed. A doctrine. A way for the Brood to become more than beasts that obeyed. They needed vision.
"You've made me proud—all of you. And you're right. This world is rot. But here, starting with these Dead Hands, we'll change that."
Hearing the change in their father's voice, the broodlings stiffened. Tails whipped. Hunger trembled through their spines. Bloodlight leaked off them in threads that thickened with every word.
"We take everything. Pain, be hellfire. Scorch the world raw so it can be reborn."
Horns glowing, Pain bared his teeth as his claws burned trenches through the floorboards, heat bleeding from his bulk.
"I'll grow the Brood. We'll rip down every false order, every rotten pillar. Panic—you'll be my blade. Terror sharpened. They'll drown in fear and kneel to the Broodfather."
Giggles bubbled through clenched teeth as Panic rocked on his heels, his bloodlight hissing like boiling fat.
"Snare. I command you to be my eyes. You must see every path, expose every weakness. And when you find them, you'll watch them rot. Clear the way and make my spread inevitable."
Snare's spine bowed, skull tilted, gaze locked like scripture being carved into bone. Bloodlight rose off him in heavy waves, pressing silence over the room more so than his brothers.
"We'll drag the green from the bones of this world—and when it blooms—"
Azakh-Tur's voice sharpened, his words final.
"—we'll feast."
System light detonated.
Crimson flared and slammed against bloodlight.
Panic jolted back, squealing.
"Glass tongue! Glass tongue!"
Seo-jin's eyes burned, wide with awe and hunger. His chest hammered, breath ragged, but he didn't dare blink.
Snare was burning alive in light. His class was taking root.