The first thing Alex learned about the Dungeon was that it breathed.
Not in the way living things do—but in a slow, steady rhythm, like the world itself pulsed with hunger. The walls shimmered faintly, veins of magic running through the stone. He could hear faint echoes, the drip of something distant, and the whisper of monsters waiting to be born from the walls.
The second thing he learned was that the air smelled like metal.
He drew his scavenged sword. The blade was chipped, the grip rough, but it was something.
> [System Tip: Monsters drop magic stones. Exchange for valis.]
[Warning: Dying here means permanent death.]
"Yeah," he muttered. "I figured that part out."
The first goblin came fast—small, green, and screeching. He swung low, too slow, and the thing's claws raked his arm.
Pain. Real, sharp, wet pain.
Blood ran down his forearm. His mind screamed. This isn't a show. This isn't respawn time.
He countered clumsily, driving the blade into its chest. The goblin convulsed, then dissolved into ash, leaving behind a faintly glowing stone.
Alex stared at it, chest heaving. His hands were shaking. He'd killed before—in games, simulations—but this? The heat, the smell, the weight of it? It carved something into him.
He kept moving. Step by step, kill by kill.
By the third floor, his arm was throbbing, and he'd burned through most of his stamina. His sword felt heavier. The Dungeon didn't care. It never did.
The next pack came from behind—a kobold lunged from the wall, followed by two more. He turned, blocked, but one claw ripped open his shoulder. He dropped to a knee, bleeding hard now.
> [Health Critical. Suggest Activation: Limit Breaker.]
He didn't think. He just shouted, "Activate!"
The world exploded.
Every nerve in his body lit up—pain turning into white heat, exhaustion into focus. He moved before he realized it. The blade sang through air and bone. The kobolds fell one by one, fast and brutal.
Then the skill ended. The strength left with it. He hit the ground, gasping, his vision flickering.
He stayed there for a long time, breathing hard, staring at the stone ceiling.
> I almost died.
The thought didn't scare him. It grounded him. It reminded him what was real.
When he finally climbed back to the surface, his clothes were soaked with blood, his face pale. The crowd near Babel barely noticed him—until someone did.
Ais Wallenstein stood by the steps, her eyes flicking toward him. Just for a second, something shifted in her calm expression—curiosity, maybe even concern.
He met her gaze. Didn't say a word. Just walked past, dragging his sword behind him.
But her eyes followed him as he went.
Later that night, as he cleaned his wounds in a cheap inn room, the system chimed again.
> [Quest Complete: Survive the Dungeon — Floor 1]
Reward: 2 Gacha Tokens.]
He stared at the screen, then at his reflection in the cracked mirror.
"Life or death, huh?" he murmured. "Guess I'll have to treat it that way."
Outside, the moonlight spilled across the streets of Orario. Somewhere out there, the Sword Princess slept—untouched by fear, unbroken by the Dungeon.
Alex closed his eyes, feeling the ache in his body and the fire in his chest.
> I'll get there. No gods, no Falna, no shortcuts. Just me.
The system flickered.
> [Gacha Ready.]
Spin?
He smiled, blood still drying on his skin.
"Yeah. Let's roll."