The ruined street fell silent except for the crackling of burning cars and the distant screams still echoing from side alleys.
Park Ji-han floated three meters above the cracked asphalt, golden sword resting lazily on his shoulder. His white hunter coat fluttered in the wind created by his own skill. Level 12. Legendary title glowing above his head like a crown. He looked like the main character of this apocalypse.
Min-joon looked like a blood-soaked demon who had already decided the main character was dead.
Lee Seo-yoon stepped up beside Min-joon, dual blades still drawn. "That's Park Ji-han," she whispered, voice tight. "He cleared three dungeons solo before the rest of us even got classes. Guild masters are calling him the hope of Seoul."
Min-joon didn't blink. "Hope dies today."
[Global Announcement – Sector 7!]
[Two Overlord Candidates detected in same location!]
[Automatic PvP Zone activated for the next 30 minutes!]
[Winner receives bonus Nexus Shard + 5,000 EXP + random Legendary loot from loser's inventory.]
The System's voice boomed across the sky for every player in Seoul to hear. Red barriers snapped into place around the entire block, trapping the three of them inside.
Park Ji-han laughed, loud and mocking. "Look at that. Even the System wants me to stomp you, trash. Kang Min-joon, right? Level 10 with a stolen boss skill. Cute. I was level 12 before I left my apartment this morning."
He pointed the golden sword straight at Min-joon's chest. "Hand over the World Boss loot, the girl, and that pretty red authority in your soul. I'll let you die with some dignity."
Min-joon rolled his shoulders once. The Butcher's Bane title aura flared, making the air around him feel heavier. "Dignity? You talk too much for a dead man."
He activated **Butcher's Roar** without warning.
The sonic boom slammed into Park Ji-han mid-laugh. The hero staggered in the air, stunned for the full three seconds. Min-joon exploded forward, new Agility carrying him like a bullet. He leaped twenty meters in one bound and drove the rusty goblin dagger straight at Ji-han's heart.
Clang!
The golden sword moved faster than it should have, blocking at the last instant. Sparks flew. Park Ji-han's eyes widened in genuine surprise as he was knocked backward through the air.
-340 HP
"You actually hurt me?" Ji-han snarled, stun breaking early thanks to his Legendary title resistance. "Fine. Playtime over."
He activated his class skill.
**Hero's Descent (Legendary)**
Golden light exploded around him. His stats visibly doubled in Min-joon's vision for a brief second. The sword blazed like a miniature sun.
Ji-han dove downward in a blazing arc, sword leading like a comet.
Min-joon barely twisted aside. The blade carved a ten-meter trench through the street where he had been standing. Asphalt melted from the heat.
Lee Seo-yoon moved like lightning, blades flashing in a **Blade Storm** that targeted Ji-han's back. The hero spun mid-air and backhanded her with the flat of his sword. She flew thirty meters and crashed through a storefront, HP dropping hard.
Min-joon's eyes narrowed. *She bought me time. Good.*
He charged again, dagger flashing in a frenzy of slashes. Every hit landed harder than the last thanks to his stacked Strength. Ji-han parried most of them, but not all.
-189 HP
-156 HP
-212 HP (Critical!)
Park Ji-han's perfect face twisted in rage. Blood trickled from a cut on his cheek—the first time he had bled since the System arrived.
"You piece of shit!" he roared. "I am the Hero of Seoul! I was chosen!"
He slammed his sword into the ground.
**Light of Judgment!**
A pillar of holy fire erupted beneath Min-joon's feet. Pain like molten iron swallowed him.
-478 HP
His HP bar plummeted to 31%. The System screamed warnings in red. But Min-joon was smiling.
Because the skill had locked Ji-han in place for two full seconds while channeling.
[Dimensional Theft (Lv.1) – Target Acquired: Park Ji-han]
[Stealing one random skill…]
[Success! Rarity upgraded due to Nexus Overlord Authority!]
[You have stolen "Hero's Descent" (Legendary → Overlord Variant)!]
[New Skill: Overlord's Descent (Lv.1)]
[Effect: Triple all base stats for 15 seconds. All damage dealt increased by 50%. Cooldown: 10 minutes. Mana Cost: 120.]
Power—raw, godlike power—flooded Min-joon's body like a dam breaking.
**Strength: 18 → 54**
**Agility: 14 → 42**
**Vitality: 13 → 39**
His eyes burned blood-red. The rusty dagger in his hand cracked and reformed into a jagged black blade pulsing with Nexus energy.
Park Ji-han's face went pale. "What the—how did you—"
Min-joon moved.
He was behind Ji-han before the hero could even turn. The black blade slashed across the man's back in a perfect horizontal cut.
-1,240 HP (Critical! Overlord Multiplier!)
Ji-han screamed. His golden coat shredded. Blood sprayed across the ruined street. He spun and tried to counter, but Min-joon was already gone—appearing on his left, then right, then above.
Slash. Slash. Slash.
Each strike carved away chunks of HP faster than the System could display them. Lee Seo-yoon climbed out of the rubble just in time to watch, eyes wide in awe.
Min-joon's inner voice was ice-cold and perfectly calm.
*This is what it feels like to be at the top. No more waiting. No more begging. The System made the wrong guy a nobody for twenty-four years. Now it's paying interest.*
Park Ji-han dropped to one knee, HP at 18%. His Legendary title flickered like a dying lightbulb.
"Impossible…" he gasped. "I'm supposed to be the strongest in Seoul… the System promised—"
Min-joon landed in front of him, black blade resting on the hero's shoulder.
"The System doesn't promise anything," he said quietly. "It just gives tools. I'm the one who breaks the rules."
He raised the blade for the finishing blow.
That was when the sky tore open again—this time directly above them. Not a portal. A full-on dimensional rift the size of a building. Black lightning crackled. A single line of red text appeared for every player on the planet.
[WARNING: FIRST NEXUS OVERLORD CANDIDATE HAS REACHED KILL THRESHOLD ON ANOTHER CANDIDATE!]
[Multiversal Attention drawn!]
[An emissary from the Nexus Hub has been dispatched to observe.]
A figure stepped out of the rift.
It wasn't human.
Seven feet tall, skin like shifting galaxies, four arms, and eyes that were literal burning stars. No level tag. Just a single floating title in blood-red letters:
**Nexus Observer – Rank 9**
The being spoke without moving its mouth, voice echoing inside every skull in Seoul.
"Player Kang Min-joon. You have been marked for the Throne Trials. Continue. The multiverse is watching."
It raised one hand. A single black shard floated down and hovered in front of Min-joon.
[Nexus Shard (Epic) received as observer's gift.]
[Effect: Permanently increases one random stat by 10. Cannot be refused.]
Min-joon felt the shard sink into his chest before he could even touch it.
**Intelligence: 11 → 21**
Knowledge—impossible, ancient knowledge—flooded his mind. He understood now. The System wasn't just on Earth. It was everywhere. And he had just rung the dinner bell for every monster across the multiverse.
Park Ji-han looked up at the Observer, face drained of all color. "Wait… I'm the hero… I'm supposed to—"
Min-joon didn't let him finish.
The black blade flashed once.
[You have killed Player Park Ji-han!]
[You have absorbed 4,800 EXP!]
[Level Up!]
[You are now Level 15!]
[You are now Level 16!]
[You are now Level 17!]
Fifteen unallocated points. Min-joon dumped ten into Strength and five into Agility without hesitation. The power spike made the air around him distort.
[Title Upgraded: "Butcher's Bane" → "Candidate Slayer" (Unique)]
[Effect: +25% damage against all other Overlord Candidates. Hidden skills of defeated candidates become available for theft.]
The golden sword and coat of the fallen hero dissolved into light and flowed into Min-joon's inventory.
Lee Seo-yoon walked over slowly, blades lowered. She looked at the Observer still floating above them, then at Min-joon.
"You're not just strong," she said, voice almost reverent. "You're the disaster they warned us about."
Min-joon wiped the black blade on his torn sleeve. The red authority in his chest burned hotter than ever.
The Observer inclined its head once, then vanished back into the rift. The dimensional barriers shattered.
Min-joon stared at the loot window still floating in front of him. Inside was the first piece of true multiversal gear:
**Hero's Golden Sword (Legendary)**
**Nexus Overlord Compatible – Evolution Path Unlocked**
He equipped it. The sword reshaped itself into a jagged black-and-gold greatsword that fit his new style perfectly.
Sirens wailed in the distance. More players—hundreds of them—were converging on their location now that the barriers were gone. The Global Announcement had painted a target on his back the size of Korea.
Lee Seo-yoon sheathed her blades. "What now?"
Min-joon looked up at the fractured sky where the rift had been. His voice was low, cold, and final.
"Now we stop hiding."
He took one step forward, and the ground cracked beneath his boot.
"Starting with every rival who thinks they can take what's mine."