Smoke curled off Kael's arm, where the Hellfire Barrier had erupted just moments ago. He stared at his hand as the flames slowly receded, flickering like angry spirits around his fingers before vanishing into glowing embers.
His pulse raced—not with fear, but something else.
Power.
It coursed through his veins like molten fire, sharp and heavy. Not borrowed. Not gifted.
Claimed.
But there was no time to think.
The beast roared again from across the cracked street—a hulking mass of bone, shadow, and steel. Its twisted limbs scraped the ground as it prepared to charge. Kael's HUD blinked with red warnings:
> [Threat Level: B-Rank+]
[Reclaimer Recommended Level: 34+]
[User Level: 1]
[Estimated Survival Time: 0:23]
"Perfect," Kael muttered, stepping forward. "Let's make it quick."
The creature lunged.
Kael dived to the side, barely avoiding a sweeping claw that shattered the pavement. He rolled, came up on one knee, and called again:
> "Hellfire Barrier!"
A wall of fire roared into existence between them. The beast rammed into it, shrieking as its flesh burned. Kael felt his core flare, his mana bar draining fast.
Too fast.
The system chimed again.
> [Skill Usage: 4x Mana Drain due to Incompatibility]
[Warning: Flame Valkyrie Class is not optimized for current User Body]
His head throbbed. His vision doubled.
> "Dammit—"
The beast crashed through the flame, ablaze but undeterred. It swiped at him with blistered claws.
Kael ducked, twisted, and grabbed a broken metal rod from the ground—sharpened at one end. A poor excuse for a weapon.
But he wasn't trying to kill it.
Not yet.
As the beast came for him again, Kael slid beneath it, driving the rod deep into its hind leg. It howled and bucked, crashing into the ruins behind them.
> [Enemy Status: Bleeding. Target Weak Point Exposed.]
[Absorption Possible Upon Kill.]
Kael froze.
"…Absorption?"
> [Optional Protocol Available]
[Do you wish to initiate: Class Fragment Drain – "Ash Gate Beast"?]
[Warning: Class is Corrupted. Success may cause Instability.]
He looked at the beast struggling to stand, its wounds steaming. Its eye glowed with unnatural hunger. He remembered Lyra's face—how she smiled despite the pain.
"No hesitation."
> "Do it."
A black pulse rippled from his chest. The metal rod glowed with system glyphs—Kael's first weapon, forged by desperation and System error.
He sprinted forward, leapt, and plunged the rod into the beast's eye.
> [Fatal Blow Delivered.]
[Target Killed.]
[Initiating Drain—Ash Gate Beast Fragment (33%)]
[Skill Acquired: Adaptive Hide (Passive)]
[Mutation Detected: Beast Instinct - Suppressed]
Kael stumbled back as dark smoke coiled around his body, seeping into his skin like venom. He gritted his teeth, holding on to his mind as the fragment tried to take root.
Then… silence.
The beast was dead. The fires were out. Kael stood alone in the ruins.
But not the same.
> [Level Up: 1 → 5]
[Stats Increased]
[Unique Class Trait Updated: Multi-Class Node Unlocked (2/99)]
[Warning: Unstable System Core. External Observation Detected.]
His breath caught.
> "…Observation?"
The HUD flickered.
For a second, a foreign screen appeared. Not part of the Reclaimer network. Not human-made.
> [System Core Echo: "Reclaimer Potential Unlocked. Tracking..."]
[Project Origin: Oblivion Seed Detected.]
Kael blinked—and the message was gone.
Far above, where the sky once was, the Ash Gate pulsed again—its swirling vortex of energy flashing crimson.
And deep within it… something watched.