The shadow did not leave.
It circled.
Slow. Patient. Certain.
Kang Seo-jun pressed his back against the rough stone of the trench wall, keeping his breathing steady as dust drifted down from above. The air was hotter here, thick with the scent of scorched earth and something deeper, something ancient that hadn't belonged to the old world. The wyvern's presence lingered overhead, its wings cutting through the sky in wide arcs, never straying too far from the place where he had fallen.
It wasn't giving up.
That alone confirmed what he had begun to suspect.
This wasn't random aggression.
It had chosen him.
Seo-jun closed his eyes briefly, letting his senses expand rather than relying on sight alone. The newly evolved Predator's Instinct responded immediately, feeding him fragments of awareness that didn't come from vision. Pressure. Direction. Intent. The wyvern's killing intent brushed against his mind like a distant storm, never fully striking, but always there, always watching.
"…so you're waiting."
He opened his eyes again, gaze sharpening as he looked deeper into the trench.
If he climbed back up, he would die. Not instantly, but soon enough. The wyvern had already adjusted once. It would not make the same mistake twice. It would strike faster, burn wider, crush harder.
Going up was death.
Which meant.
He turned his body slightly and looked downward instead.
The trench did not end where he stood. It stretched further, descending into darkness where the light from above could no longer reach. Smoke rose from below in thin streams, carrying heat and the faint scent of something alive.
Seo-jun's expression stilled.
In his previous life, terrain changes like this had always meant one thing.
A dungeon.
Or something close enough.
He shifted his weight carefully and began moving along the narrow ledge, keeping one hand against the wall for balance. Small stones broke loose beneath his boots and fell into the depths below, disappearing without sound. The drop was deeper than it looked.
Good.
That meant fewer things would follow him blindly.
Above, the wyvern let out a low rumble, as if sensing his movement even without direct sight. Its shadow passed again, slower this time, more deliberate.
Seo-jun didn't look up.
Instead, he focused on moving forward, step by step, letting his body adjust to the uneven terrain. His muscles responded more smoothly than before, each motion more efficient, more controlled. The Abyss Adaptation passive was working continuously, sharpening him through exposure to danger.
He could feel it now.
Not just strength.
Growth.
Real growth.
"This is different."
In the past, improvement came slowly, tied to levels and equipment. Now, every second under pressure seemed to refine him, pushing his limits outward in ways the system had never allowed before.
That alone was dangerous.
Because power that came too quickly often came with consequences.
The ledge narrowed.
Seo-jun slowed, adjusting his footing as the stone beneath him grew more brittle. A single mistake here would send him falling into whatever waited below.
And something was waiting.
He could feel it.
Not like the wyvern.
Not overwhelming.
But present.
Watching.
His steps grew quieter.
Deliberate.
The trench curved slightly, opening into a wider section where broken rock formed a natural slope downward. The heat intensified here, rising in waves that distorted the air itself. Faint sounds echoed from below, irregular and sharp, like claws scraping against stone.
Seo-jun stopped.
Listened.
Then moved again.
Slowly.
Carefully.
As he descended, the light from above faded, replaced by a dim, flickering glow coming from deeper within the trench. It wasn't fire. It was something softer. Pulsing. Alive.
His grip tightened around the rusted iron shard.
"Not goblins."
Different sound.
Different presence.
He reached the base.
The ground here was uneven, scattered with jagged stone and dark patches that looked almost wet. The air felt heavier, thicker, as if it carried weight beyond heat alone.
Seo-jun stepped forward.
The glow intensified.
And then he saw it.
A creature crouched near the center of the trench, its body low and tense, its skin dark and slick like it had been pulled from the depths of something far below the surface. Its limbs were longer than a goblin's, joints bending at unnatural angles, claws digging into the ground as it fed on something that no longer resembled a human body.
It stopped.
Slowly.
Its head turned.
Eyes locked onto him.
They were not yellow.
They were black.
Completely black.
Seo-jun felt it immediately.
A shift.
The air grew colder despite the heat surrounding them.
"…an evolved type."
Not strong.
Not compared to what he had faced before.
But different enough to matter.
The creature let out a low, distorted hiss, its body rising slightly as it prepared to move. Its muscles tensed, coiling with unnatural elasticity.
Seo-jun adjusted his stance.
This time, he didn't rush.
Didn't overwhelm.
He observed.
The creature lunged.
Fast.
Faster than the goblins.
Seo-jun moved at the same moment, stepping to the side as the claws sliced through the space where he had been. The creature twisted mid-motion, its body bending in a way that shouldn't have been possible, redirecting its attack toward his flank.
Seo-jun blocked.
Barely.
The impact pushed him back a step, the force behind it heavier than expected.
"Stronger."
Good.
That's what he needed.
He countered immediately, driving the rusted shard toward its side. The blade cut into its flesh, but not deeply. The resistance was thicker, tougher than a goblin's.
The creature shrieked and retaliated instantly, its claws tearing across his shoulder. Pain flared, sharp and immediate, but Seo-jun didn't retreat.
Instead, he stepped in closer.
Inside its reach.
His free hand shot forward, grabbing its arm before it could pull back. The creature struggled violently, its strength surprising, but Seo-jun held firm.
Then he drove the shard upward.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Until the resistance gave way.
The creature's movements slowed.
Then stopped.
Its body went limp in his grasp.
Seo-jun released it and stepped back, breathing steady despite the fresh blood running down his arm.
A glow appeared.
Stronger than before.
[You have defeated a mutated creature.]
[Experience gained.]
[Level increased.]
[Skill triggered: Abyss Adaptation.]
[Stat growth accelerated.]
Seo-jun's eyes sharpened as the warmth surged through him again, stronger this time, more defined. It spread through his limbs, reinforcing muscle, tightening reflexes, sharpening awareness.
He opened his status without hesitation.
Name: Kang Seo-junLevel: 5
Class: Player
Profession: Abyssal Regressor (Hidden)
Stats:
Strength (STR): 27Agility (AGI): 26Vitality (VIT): 24Intelligence (INT): 19Perception (PER): 31
Skills:
• Regression Memory (Passive)• Abyss Adaptation (Passive)• Predator's Instinct (Enhanced)
Inventory:
• Rusted Iron Shard (Common)• Goblin Core (Uncommon) x2• Mutated Core (Rare) x1
Seo-jun stared at the new item.
"…rare already."
That confirmed it.
This place.
This trench.
It wasn't normal.
Not for the beginning.
Not for day one.
Which meant.
His gaze lifted slowly.
Something deeper was connected to this.
Something that shouldn't have been here yet.
Above.
The shadow passed again.
Closer this time.
The wyvern hadn't left.
It was still waiting.
But now.
Seo-jun wasn't alone in the dark anymore.
Because from deeper within the trench.
Something else moved.
And whatever it was.
It made the creature he had just killed feel insignificant.