The Wild Zone lay just beyond the outer walls of New Arkvale—an expanse of half-tamed wilderness that had once been part of the city's southern district before the war tore through it. Now it was nothing but broken asphalt, twisted rebar, and dense overgrowth crawling with mutated creatures and unstable energy signatures.
It was also the first proving ground for would-be Hunters.
And a graveyard for the unprepared.
Lyle stood just inside the rusted perimeter gate, eyes narrowed against the early morning light that filtered through the fractured sky. His coat hung damp against his shoulders from dew, and his boots sank slightly into the damp soil beneath the moss-covered road.
To his left, a jagged sign hung from a bent support beam. The words were still legible beneath the grime:
> WARNING: TIER 1–2 THREAT ZONE – ENTER AT OWN RISK
Authorized Combatants Only
Unregistered Awakeners Will Not Be Recovered
A fitting welcome.
> [Quest Active – "First Blood"]
Objective: Defeat a Tier 1 Beast using system-awarded abilities only.
Bonus Reward if completed within 1 hour: +1 Stat Point
> Time Elapsed: 0:03:17
The system was quiet now—its interface hovering cleanly in the edge of his vision, no longer interruptive. The ring pulsed faintly on his finger, feeding him updates, subtle warnings, and environmental data like a second set of instincts.
> Mana: 28/30
Active Ability: Shadow Grasp (F)
Cooldown: 10 seconds
Beast Crystal Storage: 0/10
Status: Healthy
He scanned the environment.
The path ahead was overgrown with thick roots and tall grass, but not impassable. Beyond that, the ruins of apartment towers loomed like skeletal watchmen—glassless, vine-choked, their insides consumed by the wild.
This place used to be a neighborhood.
Now it was a training ground for bloodshed.
> System Tip: Tier 1 Beasts prefer enclosed terrain and low visibility. Expect ambush predators. Standard crystal yield: 1–2.
"Noted," Lyle murmured.
He adjusted the strap on his shoulder bag—nothing inside but a ration bar, a coil of wire, and the empty sheath that once held a short blade. The blade had broken two months ago during a spar. He hadn't replaced it.
Why bother?
Until yesterday, he'd had nothing to fight with.
But now he had something else.
He flexed his hand, calling the power forward.
> [Shadow Grasp: Ready]
Mana Cost: 5
Black energy rippled beneath his feet.
With a breath, he let it go.
From the ground, spectral hands surged upward—twisting shadows with clawed fingers. They reached skyward, then dissipated after a few seconds with a faint hiss.
Controllable. Fast. Just enough to disrupt or hold.
Not a killing skill.
But a start.
He stepped into the brush, boots muffled by moss and damp dirt. A faint trail led toward the ruins. Old tire tracks, long since filled in with weeds. He followed it carefully, senses on high alert.
The further he walked, the thicker the silence became.
And then—movement.
Something rustled in the grass to his right.
Lyle froze.
His ring flared in warning.
> Hostile Entity Detected – Tier: 1
Beast Type: Spined Hound
Level: 3
Aggression: High
Crystal Yield: 1
Status: Hunting
He turned in time to see it leap.
A doglike creature—long, sleek, with patches of exposed bone and flesh laced in hardened scales. Its spine arched unnaturally, bristling with jagged bone-like blades. Its eyes glowed faint red. Its maw was open mid-snarl, saliva sizzling on the ground as it landed.
Lyle dove to the side, rolling behind a rusted streetlamp.
The beast hit the pavement hard, snarled, and turned with unnatural speed.
> HP: 100
Mana: 23/30
Shadow Grasp: Ready
Lyle didn't wait.
He dropped low, extended his left hand, and triggered the skill.
> [Shadow Grasp – Activated]
The shadows beneath the beast exploded upward, clawing into its limbs and yanking it down mid-charge. It yelped, skidding across the concrete. Its legs tangled just long enough for Lyle to move.
He snatched up a loose shard of rebar and sprinted toward it.
"Stay down!"
He drove the rebar into the beast's shoulder. It screeched in pain, flailing as the shadows released. One claw swiped wildly—slicing his coat and drawing a thin line of blood across his ribs.
> HP: 91
Bleeding: Minor
He gritted his teeth, gripped the rebar again, and twisted.
The beast shrieked, then collapsed in a twitching heap.
A moment passed.
Then—
> Beast Defeated: Spined Hound (Tier 1)
Crystal Yield: 1 – Collected
EXP: +10
Bonus Objective Complete – Time: 00:14:32
+1 Stat Point
Suggested Allocation: Vitality / Dexterity
> Beast Crystal Obtained
– Stored: 1/10
– Type: Basic
Lyle collapsed to one knee, panting.
His ribs throbbed. His hands were slick with blood and beast ichor. The rebar clattered to the ground beside him, no longer needed.
But he was alive.
And he'd won.
Not with borrowed power. Not with a lucky relic.
With instinct.
And the will to strike first.
The silence returned, deep and oppressive.
Lyle straightened slowly, wiping the blood from his side with the edge of his coat. The wound wasn't deep, but it stung—a reminder of how close that beast had come. His grip tightened around the rebar still slick with gore.
His heart was still hammering.
But it wasn't fear driving it now.
It was something else.
> [Codex – Stat Allocation Pending]
+1 Free Stat Point
> Suggested Allocation: Vitality (Endurance) or Dexterity (Speed)
> Optional Allocation: Intelligence (Mana Control)
Lyle hesitated, then selected Vitality.
> Stat Point Assigned: Vitality +1
Current HP: 91/110
Stamina Regen: +0.1/sec
A subtle pulse of warmth moved through his limbs. The pain in his side lessened slightly—not gone, but dulled. He straightened, rolling his shoulder and adjusting the strap of his bag again.
"That's more like it," he murmured.
Then something shifted in the air behind him.
He turned, fast—but saw nothing.
The shadows stretched long between the ruins, cast by broken pillars and collapsed rooftops. The Wild Zone didn't sleep. Not really. Even now, distant howls echoed from the deeper ruins, and somewhere overhead, a crow screeched once before vanishing into the sky.
Lyle moved on.
He didn't have a weapon.
But the system had given him something better.
Shadow Grasp wasn't a direct kill skill—but used right, it could disable, disorient, and trap. With the right timing and positioning, it could level the field against beasts far above his weight class.
He had seen it.
Felt it.
And he wanted more.
> New Objective: "Into the Ruins"
Goal: Reach the inner sector of the Wild Zone
Reward: Access to Tier 2 Beast Territory
Warning: Minimum recommended level – 5
Current Level – 1
> Codex Tip: Risk scales with reward. Beasts in the inner ruins drop higher-quality crystals and have a small chance of carrying skill-infused cores.
Skill-infused cores?
That caught his attention.
He pressed forward.
---
By midday, he'd already passed three more patrol zones and one nest area. The remains of lesser beasts littered the cracked concrete—shriveled corpses drained of life, their crystals already harvested by more experienced Hunters.
But something had shifted.
The deeper Lyle walked, the more unnatural it became.
Shadows flickered where they shouldn't.
The air grew heavier.
> [Environmental Warning – Mana Saturation: 57%]
Caution: Prolonged exposure may trigger aberrant behavior in low-tier beasts. Mutations likely.
"Great."
He knelt beside a rusted car, half-swallowed by the earth, and took a moment to scan the surrounding terrain. To the east, a collapsed stairwell led downward—likely into an old metro entrance. To the west, a courtyard of twisted playground equipment sat eerily still beneath overgrown ivy.
And ahead—
A faint, rhythmic sound.
Breathing?
No. Growling.
It was low and slow.
And it was getting louder.
He backed into the shadows beneath a fallen support beam, crouching low. The ring on his finger vibrated faintly, a signal only he could feel.
> Hostile Entity Detected – Tier: 2
Beast Type: Emberjaw Serpent
Level: 6
Aggression: Dormant
Crystal Yield: 3–5
Special Traits: Heat Resistance, Flame Core Carrier (Possible)
Lyle didn't move.
That was not something he could take head-on.
The serpent slithered from the shadows between two buildings. It was massive—easily the length of a bus, its scales glinting faintly with ember-like veins that pulsed red beneath the surface. Its jaw dripped with steaming saliva that hissed when it hit the ground.
He knew what this was.
He'd read about them.
Beasts with cores like that didn't just drop crystals—they dropped abilities. If luck favored him, he might be able to claim his first offensive skill from it. But luck rarely sided with the unprepared.
He needed a plan.
> Mana: 28/30
Shadow Grasp – Ready
Cooldown: 10 seconds after use
Environmental Advantage: Low light, high shadow density
It wasn't enough to kill it.
But maybe…
He looked to the structure beside them—a collapsed fire escape, one floor still intact. Above it, a metal girder hung precariously, its supports rusted through.
A trap.
He could use one.
---
> System Prompt:
Would you like to set a custom trap using terrain + ability?
> Risk Level: HIGH
Estimated Success: 41%
Reward: Skill Core (Randomized) + Beast Crystal (x3–5)
Lyle exhaled.
"Do it."
He moved into position, crouching beneath the remains of a stairwell, then activated Shadow Grasp. The tendrils reached up, curling around the lower supports of the girder.
He waited.
The serpent moved closer.
A few more seconds…
> [Shadow Grasp – Activated]
The supports tore loose.
With a scream of metal, the girder dropped—slamming down directly atop the serpent's midsection. It shrieked, flailing as red smoke erupted from the impact. The shockwave nearly knocked Lyle off his feet.
But it wasn't dead.
Its jaws snapped, flame spewing from its mouth as it twisted violently to free itself.
Lyle surged forward.
He didn't stop to think.
He just acted.
Smoke hung thick in the air, tinged with the acrid stench of scorched flesh. The Emberjaw Serpent writhed, its tail smashing into debris as it thrashed beneath the fallen girder. One of its horns had broken clean off from the impact, and a deep gash ran down its side, seeping molten ichor.
Lyle didn't wait.
His system didn't grant power from distance.
It rewarded action.
He charged, the broken rebar gripped in both hands like a makeshift spear. A glowing eye snapped toward him, rage flashing in its slit pupil. The serpent hissed, mouth splitting open in a blast of flame—
—but Lyle was already moving sideways, ducking under the arc of fire. The heat scorched his coat, turning part of the fabric to ash, but he kept going, feet skidding across rubble.
"Shadow Grasp!"
Tendrils shot up from beneath the serpent's neck, yanking its jaw down into the dirt with a sickening crunch. It struggled violently—but for a moment, it was pinned.
Lyle plunged the rebar into the wounded eye.
The beast screeched.
His muscles screamed from the effort, arms trembling as he drove it deeper. The rebar bent under pressure—but it held just long enough for him to jam it in past the ocular membrane, straight into the brain.
The thrashing stopped.
A twitch.
Then stillness.
> [Beast Slain – Tier 2: Emberjaw Serpent]
XP Gained: +190
Bonus: Trap Execution +20%
Level Up!
Current Level: 2
+1 Free Stat Point
> Loot Dropped:
Beast Crystal (x3)
Flame Core Shard (Skill Core – Incomplete)
Serpent Scale Fragment (Material)
Partial Serpent Fang (Crafting)
Lyle collapsed back onto his elbows, panting hard. His chest heaved with every breath, adrenaline still coursing through him in waves.
He'd done it.
He'd killed a Tier 2 beast.
At Level 2.
> Codex Tip:
Flame Core Shard contains fragments of an elemental skill. Use [Skill Fusion Chamber] or combine with other core shards to form a full ability.
> Would you like to consume the core shard for a chance at skill acquisition?
Warning: Low compatibility – 23%
Failure will destroy the shard.
Lyle stared at the shard—glowing faintly like a dying coal in his palm.
He hesitated… then shook his head.
"Not yet. I'll wait until I have more."
He tucked it away.
Suddenly, he wasn't alone.
A shadow shifted near the edge of the rubble field—silent, composed. A figure stood beneath the cracked archway of a broken temple wall, half-hidden by dust and drifting ash.
She was dressed in a sleek, raven-dark combat suit that clung to her form like a second skin, embroidered with crimson thread. Her long hair billowed behind her in the windless air, impossibly dark.
Her eyes—
Sharp.
Watching.
Lyle tensed, stepping back instinctively.
"You've got guts," she said quietly, voice smooth but edged with curiosity. "Charging a Tier 2 without backup. Most wouldn't even try."
"Didn't have much choice," he replied warily. "You here to take my kill?"
She raised a brow.
"If I wanted it, you'd already be dead."
Fair point.
She stepped forward slowly, eyes scanning the serpent's corpse, then flicked back to him. "I was watching for a while. You set a trap. Used shadows to pin it down. That's not something most rookies can do."
"I'm not most rookies."
Lyle didn't even flinch as he said it.
There was something different about this girl—like a coiled spring beneath her calm expression. She had presence. Power.
And yet she hadn't lifted a finger.
"I'm Juno," she said at last.
She didn't offer a hand. Just a name.
"Lyle."
A brief silence passed between them.
Then she spoke again, softer this time. "You're not from one of the military academies, are you?"
"No."
"Didn't think so. They don't teach shadow manipulation this early."
"I figured it out."
Juno's lips curved slightly—something between a smirk and a secret smile.
> Codex Alert: Hidden Entity Observed You
Status: Unknown
Consequence: Undetermined
Recommend: Caution or Observation
He dismissed the alert mentally.
She already knew he was strong.
But she didn't know how.
And she couldn't see his system.
Only he could.
> Available Stat Point:
Choose one:
Strength
Dexterity
Intelligence
Vitality
Perception
He went with Perception.
Another pulse of awareness opened inside his mind. It wasn't just sight—he felt the shifts in air, the faint tension in her stance, the exact moment her breathing changed.
Juno turned.
"I'll see you again, Lyle. Don't die before then."
And just like that, she was gone.
Slipping into the shadows between ruined pillars.
Lyle stood alone once more.
But something inside him had changed.
The world was watching now.
And so was she.