Before the Dungeon It was morning when we arrived at the dungeon.
The sky was still pale, and the air was cold enough to sting my skin, but none of us paid attention to that.
In front of us stood the dungeon gate a giant metal structure embedded in the ground like it had always been there.
Its surface was dark and scratched, covered in strange symbols I couldn't read. Even without entering, I could feel pressure coming from it.
This was an A-rank dungeon.
There were twelve people in the team.
Eleven of them stood behind me.
I was in the front.
I wasn't there because I was brave.
I was there because I was weak.
Before we entered, the team captain had called me aside.
No one else heard the conversation, but they didn't need to.
They already knew how things worked.
"You're an F-rank hunter," he told me calmly. "You won't survive anyway."
He said it like it was a fact, not an insult.
Then he talked about my aunt.
She was the one who raised me after my parents died. The one who trained me since I was two years old. The only family I had left.
The captain promised that if I sacrificed myself inside the dungeon, the guild would take care of her.
A monthly allowance. Lifetime support.
An A-rank dungeon usually meant rare gems.
And rare gems meant money.
Enough money to keep my aunt safe for the rest of her life.
That was the deal.
I stood in front of the gate wearing cheap, worn-out gear that barely fit me.
Some of it had been repaired so many times that the metal was thinner than it should've been.
I didn't even know how long it would last in real combat.
I held an old, broken weapon in my hand. It wasn't sharp, and it wasn't strong.
But as a poor poor orphan and an F-rank hunter, this was all I could afford.
My body felt stiff.
I was afraid.
I kept staring at the gate, wondering what would come out of it once we entered.
Monsters. Death. Or maybe something worse.
But more than anything else, I feared one thing.
Dying weak.
"Move."
The voice belonged to the team leader.
Captain Krik.
He looked at me like I was already dead.
"You're the weakest here," he said.
"Do this for your aunt. This is the only way you can repay her."
His words were calm, almost gentle.
That made them worse.
Before I could respond, someone stepped forward.
"Stop."
It was Anaya, the D-rank healer.
"This is wrong," she said.
"Sending him in first is basically killing him."
For a moment, I almost believed things might change.
But Captain Krik didn't even look at her.
I turned toward Anaya and forced myself to speak.
"I have to do this," I said.
"This is the only way I can pay my aunt back."
The words hurt as they left my mouth.
Inside, my thoughts were screaming.
Dying without achieving anything.
Dying before my dreams even start.
But I didn't say any of that.
Captain Krik nodded, satisfied.
To him, this was normal. The weak always went first.
The weak always died.
The others didn't react.
They didn't care.
Only Anaya looked at me, her fists clenched, eyes full of anger and helplessness.
Was this normal for me?
Yes.
In this world, the weak didn't survive.
I stepped closer to the gate gate anyway.
I did it because I owed my aunt everything.
Because she trained me when no one else cared.
Because if my death could protect her, then maybe it was worth it.
And somewhere deep inside my chest, buried under fear and resignation, there was still a small hope.
That maybe… just maybe…
I could change my fate.
The moment I stepped into the dungeon, my senses were assaulted.
The smell hit me first.
It was thick and heavy, like something rotten mixed with blood.
I didn't need anyone to tell me what it was.
It was the smell of monsters. Of things that killed humans and didn't bother cleaning up after.
My body reacted immediately.
My legs felt heavier, like every step was draining my strength.
I could feel my stamina wearing down even though I had just entered.
This place wasn't normal. Just standing here felt exhausting.
The dungeon was warm.
Too warm.
It was the kind of of heat that clung to your skin and made it hard to breathe.
The air smelled strongly of blood, old and fresh mixed together, as if countless people had died here over time.
Then I heard it.
Screams.
Not monsters.
Human voices.
The sounds of people being slaughtered echoed faintly through the dungeon corridors.
I didn't know if they were memories, illusions, or something worse, but they sent chills down my spine.
I could see very far ahead.
The path stretched deeper into the dungeon, wide and open, almost inviting.
That made it even more terrifying.
I moved slowly.
Very slowly.
I didn't want to wake whatever was inside.
I tightened my grip around my weapon,
holding onto it like it was the only thing keeping me alive.
I am weak.
The thought repeated over and over in my head, refusing to go away.
To calm myself, I whispered silently,
I must die for the sake of my aunt.
That thought hurt, but it also gave me strength.
If this was how it ended, then at least it would mean something.
I hadn't gone far when I noticed something that made my stomach twist.
Bones.
Human skulls and broken remains were scattered across the ground.
They weren't hidden. They weren't buried.
They were everywhere.
As I looked closer, I realized they were spread around a large shadow ahead around the monster.
My breath caught in my throat.
I had never seen anything like this before.
What terrified me wasn't just the bones.
It was the armor.
The corpses were wearing A-rank gear.
Expensive.
Reinforced.
Protective.
Hunters who should have survived… didn't.
That realization sent a cold shiver through me.
This wasn't just an A-rank dungeon.
I turned back and raised my voice.
"We should be careful. This is more than an A-rank dungeon. It might even be S-rank."
For a brief moment, I hoped they would listen.
"Keep moving," Captain Krik said coldly.
That was it.
No discussion.
The others reacted casually, like this was nothing new. Some of them even looked bored.
Only Anaya looked tense, her eyes fixed on the bones with clear worry.
The one who ignored me the most was Theon.
A B-rank hunter.
Proud.
Strong.
He didn't even glance in my direction.
At that moment, something became very clear to me.
Only the strong survive in this world.
The weak die.
I swallowed hard and turned back toward the monster.
If no one else would act, then I would.
I tightened my grip on my broken weapon.
And I stepped forward to attack.
The monster came from the front.
There was no warning.
No signal.
One moment the path ahead was quiet, and the next, something massive burst forward with overwhelming force.
It looked like a bear but twisted.
Horns curved out from the sides of its head, thick and jagged, and its long claws scraped against the ground as it charged.
Its body was huge.
When it stood upright, my height didn't even reach its waist.
The sound it made shook the dungeon.
A roar, deep and violent, like a lion announcing death.
Before I could fully react, it moved.
Fast.
Almost like lightning.
Its target was clear.
Me.
I barely managed to dodge as its claws tore through the space where I had been standing.
The wind pressure from its movement alone was enough to send me flying.
My body slammed into the wall.
Pain exploded through my spine.
I couldn't breathe.
My vision blurred as I dropped to one knee, my weapon almost slipping from my hand.
Every nerve screamed, and for a moment, I wondered if my back had snapped.
I forced myself to look up.
The monster turned toward me again, eyes locked, saliva dripping from its mouth.
"Anaya!" I shouted.
My voice echoed through the dungeon, desperate and raw.
Nothing happened.
I waited for spells.
For arrows.
For anything.
Instead, there was silence.
I saw Anaya try to rush forward, panic written all over her face but hands grabbed her arms and pulled her back.
She struggled, screaming my name, but they didn't let her move.
The others stood still.
Watching.
They hesitated.
Not for a second.
Not for two.
Long enough to let me die.
That hesitation told me everything I needed to know.
No one was coming to save me.
Except me.
Is this how I will die?
The thought struck hard, sharp enough to hurt more than the pain in my spine.
Fear was there but anger burned hotter.
I saw my aunt's face in my mind.
The way she smiled when I came home injured.
The way she told me to stand back up no matter how many times I fell.
I heard Anaya crying, calling my name.
She was the only one looking at me.
In her eyes, I didn't see pity.
I saw betrayal.
Not hers.
Theirs.
In that moment, I understood my fate.
If I stayed weak, this was all my life would ever be.
If I wanted to live…
I had to change it.
The monster raised its claws for another strike.
And then
Something happened.
Something not normal.
The air around me shifted.
The ground beneath my hand felt warm.
The dungeon trembled.
There was only one monster.
But that was enough.
I forced myself to stand and swung my weapon with everything I had left.
The moment it collided with the monster's claws, my weapon shattered into pieces.
Metal fragments flew through the air.
I froze.
I was still standing but barely.
Pain shot through my body, sharp and intense, spreading from my arms to my chest.
Blood filled my mouth, warm and metallic, and when I spat, it splashed onto the dungeon floor.
My vision blurred.
The monster roared again, stepping closer, confident.
What scared me most wasn't dying.
It was the thought that burned in my head.
If they could betray me like this… how can I be sure they'll keep their promise to take care of my aunt?
The thought made my chest ache more than my wounds.
I have to survive.
The words repeated again and again in my mind.
Anger surged through me anger at their betrayal, at their lies, at being treated like something disposable.
That anger kept me on my feet.
But anger wasn't enough.
My strength finally ran out.
My legs gave way, and I fell face-down onto the warm dungeon floor.
My body refused to move no matter how hard I tried.
I could still hear the monster clearly.
Its heavy steps.
Its breathing.
It was coming.
The ground beneath me felt strangely warm against my skin.
I didn't even try to crawl away.
There was nothing left in me.
"Kael!"
Anaya's voice echoed through the dungeon.
Hearing my name hurt more than anything else.
Fear faded.
Only anger remained.
I regretted one thing above all else dying without changing my fate.
As the monster closed in, I accepted something I never thought I would.
Hope.
Even as death approached, a small part of me still believed things could change.
But I expected only one outcome.
Death.
As I lay there, my hand moved forward without thinking.
My fingers brushed against something rough.
A seal.
The stone felt cold beneath my palm, carved into a simple circular shape, like an "O."
The moment I touched it, the seal reacted.
A sharp sound echoed like a notification.
A bright yellow light burst from the carving, flooding the chamber.
The monster froze.
Its roar cut off mid-sound as it recoiled, backing away from the light.
I didn't understand what was happening.
I didn't care.
I touched the seal because my body moved on its own.
Because I refused to die like this.
Because I wanted only one thing.
To change my fate.
A voice appeared in my head.
A female voice.
Artificial.
Quiet.
"Welcome, Host."
My eyes widened.
Text appeared before me.
Host Status: Critical
Life Signs: Failing
A number burned into my vision.
99.8
I didn't know what it meant but my instincts screamed danger.
The voice didn't ask for permission.
It simply continued.
"Rule One: Survive."
The monster stood frozen, unable to move.
My consciousness began to fade, darkness creeping in from the edges of my vision.
As everything went black, one final thought burned deep into my mind.
I will make them regret it.