Yuuya didn't wake up in his bed. Not this time.
He was slumped against the wall of a temporary lodging space provided by the Dungeon Diver Registry. His phone was still buzzing with low-tier mission notifications he had no intention of accepting. The smell of iron, leather, and cheap food filled the place—part hostel, part waiting room for the forgotten awakened. A haven for those barely surviving the new world.
> [You are currently registered as: "Unranked Diver – Provisional"]
A week had passed since the Bureau tested him.
A week since they looked at his numbers and laughed.
"F-rank. That's generous," one agent had muttered.
Another leaned back in his chair, arms folded. "He probably couldn't even catch a pickpocket, let alone survive a D-rank gate."
They didn't even try to sugarcoat it.
"Thank you for your time," they said, but the smirks said everything else.
They gave him a stamped report and a transportation voucher. Not a single credit more.
So now he was here. In this place. With these people.
Dungeon Divers.
They weren't guild members. They weren't fighters.
They were the cleanup crew. The looters. The leftovers.
"Hey, you new?" a voice said beside him.
Yuuya looked up.
A guy maybe two years older than him sat cross-legged on a dusty couch. Messy hair, scar across his cheek, too thin for someone diving into monster nests. "Name's Toma. You solo?"
"Yeah."
"Smart. Less mouths to split the loot."
They shook hands like it was a deal. In a way, it was.
---
Their first dive came the next morning. A temporary gate. Blue-ranked, but the Bureau had already cleared it.
Which meant one thing: open season.
Looters from every direction gathered near the gate perimeter. Some wore mismatched armor. Others just had knives and padded jackets. It was desperation dressed as courage.
Toma led Yuuya through the back. "Stick close. We go in after the wave clears. If you see something glowing, grab it. If you hear something breathing, run."
"Got it."
Yuuya still carried that fire poker.
It felt silly, but it was sturdy.
The dungeon interior was what you'd expect—a mossy ruin filled with weak goblin husks and piles of junk. The main party had cleared it out. Now, all that was left was shattered crystals, burnt corpses, and whatever the Bureau didn't bother tagging.
> [Dungeon Residual Active – 8 minutes until collapse.]
Yuuya's eyes scanned the walls.
Something shimmered faintly in a broken torch holder.
He walked over, pulled it out: a small, red gem.
> [Item Acquired – Fragment of Fire Crystal] [Estimated Market Value: 240 credits]
Not bad.
Toma raised an eyebrow. "Lucky."
They kept moving.
As they rounded a corner, a low growl echoed through the dungeon.
Toma froze.
"That's not normal."
Something limped out of the shadows.
A mutated goblin. Bigger than the others. Its skin was cracked. Its eyes glowed.
> [Variant Detected – "Cracked Ember Goblin"] [Rank: E]
Toma whispered, "That's not supposed to be here. This was cleared."
Yuuya didn't wait.
He remembered how it felt—how to scream, how to release emotion like a weapon.
> [Skill Activated – Emotional Echo: Fear]
The goblin staggered. Just a step.
Yuuya rushed it. Fire poker straight to the throat.
> [Critical Hit – Weak Point Struck]
The goblin gurgled and dropped.
> [EXP Gained – 19] [Progress: 12%]
Toma stared. "You're F-rank?"
Yuuya didn't answer.
He just grabbed the crystal embedded in the goblin's chest and shoved it in his pack.
---
By the time the dungeon collapsed, they'd cleared three more rooms, found two cores, and looted enough salvage to buy two weeks of food.
Yuuya didn't feel proud.
But he felt alive.
That night, he sat alone on the hostel roof.
The sky was clear. Stars out. A cold wind biting at his jacket.
> [After-Dungeon Trigger Detected – Would you like to initiate?]
> [Warning: This mission will transport you temporarily to a non-Earthbound realm. Completion required before return.]
He tapped "Yes."
Everything went white.
---
He stood in a canyon.
The sky above was blood-red.
Ash fell like snow.
He wasn't alone.
Three figures appeared ahead. Humanoid. But wrong.
Too tall. Eyes like lanterns. Skin like dry ink.
> [Realm: Echo Verge – Trial Pathway Activated]
> [Objective: Survive for 5 minutes.]
The first creature charged.
Yuuya didn't hesitate.
He screamed again.
Then he fought.
Not clean. Not skilled. But smart. Every second gave him something to use. A movement. A hesitation. A blink.
> [True Learning Passive Active – Battle Patterns Learned: 17%]
> [Overflow Trait Pulsing… Synchronizing…]
He ducked under a blade.
Countered.
Dodged.
And when the five minutes passed—
> [Trial Completed – Return Initiated]
> [Bonus Gained: Weapon Skill – Improvised Blunt, Tier E]
He was back on the rooftop.
Sweating. Shaking. Smiling.
No one had seen it.
No one knew.
But he'd just leveled up in a world that had already discarded him.
He looked at the horizon.
More dungeons.
More gates.
More opportunities.
Yuuya stood.
Tomorrow, he'd dive again.