**Chapter 9: The Shadow's Silhouette**
The heavy stone doors behind Zayne slammed shut, sealing the Labyrinth of Floor 1.
He stood in a tranquil garden. Sunlight—real, warm sunlight—filtered down from a crystal dome high above. Birds chirped. A fountain bubbled with clear water in the center of the room.
[Welcome to the Rest Area: The Garden of Respite.]
[You are the first player to arrive.]
[Rank 1 Reward: +1 Skill Point.]
Zayne walked to the fountain and splashed water on his face, washing away the stone dust. He didn't relax. The Rest Area was safe, but time was still currency.
He looked at the massive stone monolith standing next to the exit. It was the **Hall of Fame**.
Currently, it was blank.
Zayne touched the stone.
[Recording Results...]
[Rank 1: Zayne. Time: 00:03:12.]
"Three minutes," Zayne muttered. "Acceptable, given the lack of mana."
He turned away from the monolith. Most players would rush to Floor 2. But Zayne walked toward the back of the garden, where a statue of a weeping angel stood against the wall.
This statue had a secret.
In the lore, the "Weeping Angel" only reacted to players who had cleared Floor 1 without taking a single point of damage *and* possessed Agility over 35.
It was a hidden requirement so strict that in his previous life, it wasn't discovered until three years after the Tower opened.
Zayne stood before the angel.
"I see you," he whispered.
He released his stealth aura, flaring his mana intentionally.
*Cr-crack.*
The stone angel moved. It didn't attack; it slowly lowered its hands, revealing a hollow cavity in its chest. inside rested a small, dark gemstone pulsating with violet light.
[Item Discovered: Eye of the Void (Quest Item)]
[Class Requirement: ???]
Zayne grinned. This was the key. The first step toward the **Hidden Class: Void Walker**. He snatched the gem and stashed it in his inventory.
*Creak.*
The sound of the entrance door opening echoed through the garden.
Zayne paused.
*Already?*
It had been ten minutes since he cleared the floor. For someone else to arrive this quickly meant they were either incredibly lucky or... a genius.
Zayne pulled his hood up, casting his face in shadow. He stepped into the shade of a large oak tree, activating *Stealth*.
A figure stumbled into the garden.
It was a woman. She wore gleaming silver armor with the crest of a blue phoenix on the breastplate. She held a rapier that hummed with wind magic. Her blonde hair was matted with sweat, and her breathing was ragged.
[Target: Elara vance (Human)]
[Level: 8]
[Class: Spell-Blade (Rare)]
"Elara," Zayne recognized her.
In his past life, she was the "Valkyrie of the West." A top-tier ranker. A hero who saved millions.
Right now, she looked like she was about to collapse.
"I... I made it," Elara gasped, leaning on her sword. She wiped blood from a cut on her cheek. "That maze... it was insane. But I did it."
She looked around the empty garden. Her eyes brightened.
"Empty," she laughed breathlessly. "I'm the first. I knew it. Father was wrong."
She limped toward the fountain, pride swelling in her chest. She drank greedily, then turned to the Hall of Fame to etch her name into history as the First Clearer.
She froze.
Her eyes locked onto the single name glowing at the top of the stone.
**[Rank 1: Zayne. Time: 00:03:12.]**
Elara blinked. She rubbed her eyes.
"Three... minutes?" Her voice trembled.
She looked at her own timer. *00:58:45.*
She had fought for an hour, nearly dying twice to the Stone Sentinels. She was a prodigy of the Vance family. She had awakened with a Rare Class.
And someone had beaten her by fifty-five minutes?
"Impossible," she whispered, stepping back. "Is it a glitch?"
"It's not a glitch."
The voice came from the shadows.
Elara spun around, raising her rapier. "Who's there?!"
Zayne stepped out from under the tree. He didn't draw a weapon. He stood with his hands in his pockets, his black cloak absorbing the light.
"You're fast," Zayne said, his tone indifferent. "For a Spell-Blade."
Elara stared at him. She couldn't see his face, only the cold curve of his jaw. She tried to use her *Observe* skill.
[Name: ???]
[Level: ???]
"You..." Elara lowered her sword slightly, her hand shaking. "You did the maze in three minutes? How? The walls shift every ten minutes. The Golems are resistant to physical damage!"
"The walls have a pattern," Zayne said, walking past her toward the exit portal. "And everything breaks if you hit it hard enough."
He didn't stop to chat. He didn't ask for her name. He treated her like part of the scenery.
Elara felt a spike of humiliation she had never known before. She was a Vance. People bowed to her.
"Wait!" she called out.
Zayne stopped, his hand on the portal frame.
"Who are you?" she asked, her voice hardening. "Are you a Beta Tester? A Cheater?"
Zayne glanced back over his shoulder. One violet eye glowed from beneath the hood.
"I'm the reason you'll always be second," he said calmly.
He stepped through the portal.
*Whoosh.*
He was gone.
Elara stood alone in the silent garden. She looked at the leaderboard again.
*Zayne.*
She clenched her fist until her knuckles turned white. The pride of the "Valkyrie" had been shattered before it could even fully form.
"I'll catch you," she hissed to the empty air. "Next time, I won't lose."
***
**[Location: Floor 2 - The Poisoned Wetlands]**
Zayne stepped out onto squelching mud.
The air was thick, humid, and smelled of rot. Massive trees with purple leaves blocked out the sky. The water was a toxic green.
[Environmental Debuff: Toxic Fumes.]
[Health Recovery reduced by 50%.]
[Stamina drains 20% faster.]
Zayne took a deep breath. To him, the toxicity was just data.
He pulled up his quest log.
[Class Quest: The Path of the Void.]
[Step 1: Obtain the Eye of the Void (Complete).]
[Step 2: Hunt the "Swamp Hydra" on Floor 2 and bathe the Eye in its blood.]
"Hydra," Zayne sighed. "I hate multiple heads."
He adjusted his gloves.
"Let's speedrun this."