---
The world shifted the moment Jin-Soo and the others passed through the Denguen.
It always felt unnatural—like reality itself rejected your body for stepping through. One moment you stood on cracked pavement beneath Seoul's gray sky. The next, you were inside a realm that didn't obey Earth's rules.
The air was thick. Not with heat or cold—but something wrong. Like the pressure you feel just before vomiting or the silence in a room just before someone screams.
This Denguen wasn't like the others Jin-Soo had been in before.
The sky here was a slow-moving swirl of murky crimson and black clouds, as if a storm had been frozen mid-spin. Trees bent at impossible angles, and the soil beneath their feet was sticky—almost like it breathed.
"Why does this place feel... cursed?" Seo-Yeon whispered, stepping closer to him.
Jin-Soo gripped his dagger instinctively.
The B-rank leader of the party, a tall man with shaved sides and a steel jaw implant named Hwan-Tae, laughed.
"Relax, newbies. It's just an intermediate-tier Denguen. Creepy atmosphere, but the readings were stable. We'll get in, clean the place, and get out."
Jin-Soo said nothing, but his stomach twisted. His instincts were screaming.
They ventured forward, passing through dense foliage and warped ruins that resembled half-melted castles and temples. Creatures lurked in the shadows—some watched, some hissed and scuttled away.
But none attacked.
That was unusual.
In most Denguen, the monsters were aggressive from the start. They swarmed. Fought. Died screaming. That was the cycle.
But here… they waited.
Like something was controlling them.
Seo-Yeon stayed close to Jin-Soo. Her fingers brushed his sleeve now and then, as if afraid he'd vanish.
And then… they reached it.
At the heart of the forest, hidden by a ring of thorn-covered monoliths, was a throne.
A massive one—carved from obsidian bones, rising twenty meters high. And seated upon it was the nightmare itself.
The Monarch.
It wasn't a boss-class monster.
It wasn't even in the database.
It was something else entirely.
The moment their eyes locked onto it, everyone froze.
Its body was humanoid, but impossibly tall—with crimson flesh that seemed to melt and reshape itself constantly. Horns coiled back like blades, and six burning eyes stared at them from a face too smooth and too still.
A deep, melodic voice echoed through the forest.
"I welcome you, little flames. Your kind have grown bold… stepping into my sanctum."
The group collectively took a step back.
"W-What the hell is that?" one of the C-rank Hunters gasped.
"It's not supposed to be here," Hwan-Tae muttered, sweat pouring down his neck. "There was no sign of this in the reading—this... this is higher than S-rank."
The Monarch stood. The air cracked.
A single wave of his hand—and an invisible force shattered the trees around them. The earth trembled. A ripple of pressure dropped all of them to their knees.
"Please," he said, almost amused. "I am not so unreasonable."
His next words felt like poison injected into their ears.
"I will let you go. All of you. But only if you leave behind one among you."
Silence.
Then...
He added, "One offering. One sacrifice. That is the price. Leave it behind... and walk free."
No one moved.
For three seconds, they all just stared at one another. Eyes wide. Breathing heavy.
Then slowly—inevitably—their heads turned.
Toward Jin-Soo.
He knew it before he saw it. He felt it. The moment the Monarch said those words… it was already decided.
The weakest among them. The one no one would miss. The one who wouldn't fight back.
Hwan-Tae looked at Jin-Soo and didn't even blink.
"It's the only way," he said calmly. Coldly. "We're not gonna win against that thing. It's a goddamn demon king."
Seo-Yeon stepped in front of Jin-Soo immediately. "No. Over my dead body."
But she was shaking.
Tears welled in her eyes.
Hwan-Tae tilted his head. "Don't be stupid, Seo-Yeon. You want all of us to die for him?"
"He's a person!" she shouted. "He has a family. He fights harder than any of you cowards!"
"He's an E-rank!" spat another hunter. "He should've died already!"
"No!" she screamed again. "You touch him, and I'll—"
A sharp crack.
Seo-Yeon crumpled to the ground, unconscious. One of the C-rank Hunters had struck her from behind with the hilt of his sword.
Jin-Soo caught her before she hit the dirt.
For a moment, he didn't feel pain or fear. He just stared at her face—her eyes closed, lips parted slightly, like she was just sleeping.
His heart shattered.
The others didn't wait. They dragged Seo-Yeon's limp body away, each avoiding Jin-Soo's gaze.
He didn't resist.
He stood there, holding her gently, then slowly laid her down in the moss.
He turned to the Monarch, who grinned.
"You are wise," it said, amused. "Pain teaches us all."
---
Chapter 2 (continued): The Fall
Jin-Soo didn't remember how long he walked after they left.
Monster soldiers surrounded him—twisted beasts wearing bones as armor and eyes that dripped acid. They didn't attack him. They didn't speak.
They just led him deeper.
Into a cavern beneath the throne.
Into the darkness.
There, in a jagged stone prison lit only by the glow of some monstrous fungi, they chained him.
Arms pulled wide. Legs locked down. Body suspended.
And then—the torture began.
It wasn't to kill.
No.
The Monarch had ordered otherwise.
"This one," he had said, "shall be my canvas."
They came in waves. Different creatures. Some intelligent. Some mindless.
They whipped him. Tore his skin. Let it heal. Then burned it again.
They crushed his fingers. Plucked his nails one by one. Sliced shallow cuts into his muscles just to see how long it would take him to scream.
And he did.
He screamed until his voice broke.
Then whimpered until he no longer could.
Then… silence.
But through it all, one thought never left him.
> "Ha-Eun... my little sister... I need to go back. She's waiting for me. She needs me. I can't die here... I can't die yet."
But that thought couldn't stop his bones from breaking.
Couldn't stop his body from decaying.
Couldn't stop his hope from dying.
Until—
A flicker. A glow. A voice.
> [☠ SYSTEM BOOT COMPLETE ☠]
[Welcome, Jin-Soo. You are now the Master of the Forbidden System.]
[This system is invisible to all beings. Not even gods may interfere.]
Jin-Soo blinked.
It wasn't a hallucination.
> [Skill Unlocked: Soul Assimilation]
[Description: Absorb dead or living monsters and convert them into raw power, stats, and currency.]
[Secondary Skill: Self-Heal – Activated]
[Pain Resistance – Maxed]
[Healing in progress...]
For the first time in days, maybe weeks… he smiled.
And the next time a monster walked into the cell, grinning with its black teeth—
Jin-Soo opened his eyes.
And whispered:
"You're mine now."
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