The next day began the same way the last one ended: in a mess of rust, sweat, and leftover fear.
Yuuya woke up before dawn, cleaned his gear with a worn cloth, and checked the diver board posted outside the registry wall. Today's gates were listed in chalk: temporary, blue, one purple. Nothing that screamed disaster, but enough that someone might not come back.
He signed up under "Yuu," not wanting to be found. Not that anyone was looking.
---
The gate was already humming when he arrived.
It shimmered like water caught in wind. People were gathered. Other divers. Some waiting, some pacing. A few already wore the broken-down look of people who'd risked their lives for less than a meal.
"Hey, Yuu!" Toma waved him over. "You're late. I thought you bailed."
"Didn't feel like dying early," Yuuya muttered.
Toma laughed, but there was a heaviness to it. Today wasn't like yesterday. This dungeon hadn't been cleared.
They were going in blind.
---
Inside the gate, the air shifted.
Dungeons were weird like that. Sometimes they looked like caves, sometimes ruins. This one? A burned-down church. Ash crunched beneath their feet. Stained glass was shattered along the ground, glowing faintly.
> [Dungeon Type: Flamebound Sanctuary] [Stability Rating: Blue - Decay Rate 5%]
The Bureau had marked it stable, but only barely.
Toma kept his knife drawn. Yuuya held the fire poker like it was a holy relic.
The first corridor was empty. Silent.
Then came the noise.
Screams.
Toma cursed. "Already casualties."
Divers ahead had triggered a trap. Fire burst from floor runes, and two people were already being dragged out, their legs burned to uselessness. Someone shouted for a healer. There wasn't one.
Yuuya pressed forward.
"Are you crazy?" Toma hissed.
"They triggered the trap. That means it's on cooldown. We can move."
Toma blinked. Then followed.
Through the corridor, past the burned tiles, into the main hall.
The dungeon shook.
> [Boss Entity Detected: Flame-Warped Cleric] [Rank: D+]
It descended from the rafters, its limbs too long, its face a melted mess. Fire circled its wrists. Its staff was made of bone.
Divers screamed.
Some fled.
Some fought.
Most died.
Toma backed up. "That's not a normal D-rank! We need to—"
Yuuya stepped forward.
And screamed.
> [Skill Activated: Emotional Echo - Desperation]
The boss staggered.
A few remaining divers turned to watch.
Yuuya dashed forward, rolled under the staff, and slammed his poker into the cleric's leg. It cracked. Not broken. But damaged.
> [Damage Registered - Effective Strike x1.3]
The boss retaliated with a sweep of fire. Yuuya ducked, felt the heat scorch past.
> [True Learning Active - Battle Pattern Acquired: 32%]
He moved again.
This wasn't a clean fight. It wasn't epic. It was a desperate dance of survival. Of dodging, predicting, and getting lucky.
The poker slammed into the cleric's head.
The bone cracked.
It screamed.
Yuuya screamed louder.
> [Emotional Echo Overload – Instability Threshold Passed] [New Trait Acquired – Echo Instincts (Tier E)]
The cleric stumbled.
He struck again.
And again.
Until it collapsed.
> [Boss Defeated – EXP +91] [Loot Acquired: Ashen Cleric Core (Tier D), 1200 Credits Worth of Salvage]
The dungeon began to collapse.
> [Dungeon Timer – 60 seconds until seal breach]
Toma grabbed his arm. "MOVE!"
They ran.
---
Outside, everything was chaos.
Only four divers had made it out.
Yuuya sat down, shaking, his chest heaving.
Toma stared at him. "You were supposed to be F-rank."
Yuuya just looked up at the sky.
> [After-Dungeon Trigger Available – Initiate Trial?]
He tapped it.
---
He appeared in a frozen plain this time.
> [Realm: Silent Verge – Trial: Reflections of Cold] [Objective: Endure Isolation – 10 Minutes]
No monsters.
Just silence.
Snow fell. Time crawled.
Yuuya walked.
Alone.
Thoughts attacked him harder than any boss.
What if this was all he'd ever be?
What if he failed?
What if they were right about him?
But he walked anyway.
> [Trial Completed – Bonus: Mental Resistance +1, Cold Adaptation Unlocked]
> [New Passive: Frozen Focus (Tier E)]
He returned to the rooftop.
This time, he didn't shiver.
---
Days passed. Then weeks.
Yuuya dived again.
And again.
F-rank meant nothing anymore. Not with the system he had.
Every gate was another chance. Another fight. Another trait, another ability.
Sometimes, he went alone.
Sometimes, Toma tagged along.
Sometimes, they came back bruised, battered, barely alive.
But they came back.
And that was what mattered.
---
At the end of the month, the registry called him in.
A woman in a suit waited.
She slid a folder across the table.
"You've cleared six gates in seventeen days. Total confirmed kills: 39. Confirmed loot turnover: 18,000 credits."
She leaned forward.
"You're being watched, Yuuya."
He didn't flinch.
"You have two options. Remain a Diver. Or accept private contractor status under the Bureau's loose affiliation network. You'll be free. But monitored."
Yuuya tapped the table once.
"No contract. Just keep the gates coming."
The woman smiled faintly. "Then keep surviving. Because sooner or later, someone stronger will notice you. And they won't send a folder."
---
That night, he lay in bed, staring at the item on his table.
The Ashen Cleric's Core.
Still glowing. Still waiting.
He reached for it.
> [Absorb Core – Warning: Unstable Trait Integration Possible]
He didn't hesitate.
> [Core Absorbed – Mutation Triggered]
> [New Skill: Ash Pulse – Emits a burst of flame-ash capable of disrupting enemy vision and breathing]
> [Body Resistance Increased – Heat Tolerance Upgraded to Tier D]
He grinned.
F-rank, huh?
Tomorrow, he'd dive again.