Zar breathed heavily, bone blade clenched in his hand, body trembling from exertion.
Kael watched from a stone ledge, eyes unblinking.
Every swing, every grunt, every scratch the goblin endured — it echoed inside Kael's chest like a mirror. Weak. Unrefined. But… determined.
[Zar – Named Goblin | Rank: F+ | Progress to Rank E: 62%]
"Physical coordination improving. Combat awareness: evolving."
SAGE's voice flickered through Kael's mind like static wrapped in intelligence.
He didn't smile. Not outwardly. But something in him approved.
He's growing. Like me.
The tunnel ahead whispered.
Kael rose to his feet, the shadows curling up his arms like living tattoos. The cave's walls had changed — now marked with ancient sigils pulsing faint purple. Magic residue... old magic.
Zar sniffed the air. "Master... I sense blood. And fear."
"Good."
Kael stepped forward.
They arrived at a clearing in the cavern — bones scattered across the black moss, small flames floating eerily in the corners. At the center stood a horned beast the size of a bear.
"Threat Detected: Horned Cavefiend – Rank E.""Estimated Victory: 38% (Solo). 64% (With Ally)."
Its breath steamed. Its claws gleamed.
Kael stepped forward without hesitation.
[Skill Activated: Shadow Step Lv.1]
He vanished. Reappeared above the beast, slashing downward with fingers cloaked in darkness.
[Skill: Abyss Claw Lv.1 – Critical Hit!]
The creature roared, shaking the cavern. Kael landed with a roll.
Zar charged from the side, blade sinking into its hind leg.
They danced around it — predator and prey shifting by the second.
Until Kael raised both hands. Shadows answered.
[New Skill Activated: Abyss Bind Lv.1]
Chains of darkness burst from the ground, wrapping around the beast's limbs. Kael rushed in.
[Combo Bonus Achieved!][EXP Gained: +180]
With a final slash across the neck, the beast dropped.
Dead. Heavy. Silent.
Zar dropped to one knee, exhausted. "We won…"
Kael stared at the corpse.
"Naming available. Corpse contains high-mana potential."
"No," he said. "Not this one. This one's a message."
He carved a rune into the beast's chest using his claw.
Abyssborn. Remember that.
Later that night, beside a faint fire of mana-fueled moss, Kael opened his hand.
Shadow danced there again, responding faster than before.
[Kael – Rank: E– | Title: The Abyssborn][New Passive Unlocked: Commander's Presence Lv.1][Followers: 1][Dungeon Zone Progress: 12%]
He looked over at Zar — asleep, wounded, but peaceful.
"SAGE."
"Yes?"
"How many monsters like him are out there?"
"Thousands. Perhaps millions. Forgotten. Feared. Broken."
Kael closed his eyes.
Then I'll find them. All of them. And we will rise.
[Title Progress: Lord of the Fallen – 39%][Hidden Trait Developing: Monarch Instinct]