[Hidden Class Confirmed: Exploiter]
[Warning: This class is not officially recognized by the system.]
[Some features may be restricted.]
[Do you wish to continue down this path?]
(Yes / No)
The floating text hovered in the air, glowing faint blue. My heart was still racing from the fight with Crow. Blood still clung to my hands. But my mind was clear.
A hidden class. An unrecognized system path.
I didn't know why the system was even giving me a choice.
But I did know one thing:
If this is my only way to survive—
Then hell yes, I'll take it.
I choose: Yes.
[You have chosen: Exploiter.]
[Special Skill Unlocked: Exploit Analysis Lv.1]
[Effect: Temporarily reveals system bugs and inconsistencies—unlocking hidden skills, quests, or items.]
[System Notice: Use of this skill is not encouraged.]
"Not encouraged?"
I snorted. A dry, humorless sound.
"Even better."
I looted Crow's corpse one more time.
In one of his inside pockets, I found a crumpled, sweat-soaked note. The handwriting was rushed, messy:
"Second Gate lies beneath the Hollow Ruins.
Avoid the Watchers.
Don't trust the voice in the wind."
Half of me wanted to toss it. But the other half—my survival instinct—told me this was a piece of the real puzzle.
I stuffed it into my pouch.
[Location: Ashgray Wastes – Eastern Edge]
The sky didn't change. Still gray. Still dead.
No sun. No real wind. Just… the stench of rot and silence.
I found an abandoned stone shelter half-buried in rubble. It wasn't safe—but it was safer than standing out in the open.
I pulled up my skill panel.
Quickstep Invisibility Lv.1
Stunning Backstab Lv.1
Combat Adaptation Lv.1
Exploit Analysis Lv.1 (Class Skill)
I selected Exploit Analysis and activated it.
[Linking to system backend…]
[Nearest anomaly detected: The Cold Vault / Coordinates x: -472, y: +213]
[Warning: This location has been removed from the official system map. High mortality risk.]
"The Cold Vault?"
A place wiped from the map. The kind of place players weren't meant to find.
But I wasn't just a player anymore.
I was an exploiter. And every bug in this system…
Was a door just waiting to be kicked open.
Two Hours Later – At the Cold Vault
It took time to find it. The skill gave no path—just coordinates and a faint sense of pull.
The entrance was buried beneath dead earth, marked by a cracked, faded symbol:
An eye, stabbed through.
Not religious. Not decorative. It was a warning.
I opened the stone door.
Cold wind rushed up like death itself breathing.
[You have entered a hidden zone: The Cold Vault]
[This area is not protected by standard system rules.]
[PvP, theft, and system manipulation are permitted.]
[Warning: Unknown entity is observing you.]
"Well. That's comforting."
The vault was a labyrinth—endless cold stone corridors lined with runes that had been scratched out or defaced. With every step, I felt whispers brush against my ears, like something unseen was crawling along my spine.
I activated Quickstep Invisibility. For a few seconds, I vanished into shadow.
That's when it appeared.
Three meters tall. Humanoid, but covered in thousands of eyes—all blinking in chaotic, uncoordinated rhythm. It made no sound as it moved.
[Watcher – Level: ???]
[Status: Undetectable]
No level. No stats. No limits.
I couldn't kill it.
Only one option:
Don't. Get. Caught.
I moved like smoke through the halls, holding my breath. One wrong step, one pebble out of place, and I'd be erased.
Eventually, I reached a sealed chamber—a shrine made of black stone. On its altar sat a glowing purple orb, swirling like a storm inside glass.
[You've discovered: System Core Fragment]
[Function: Unknown | Origin: System corruption node]
I reached for it.
[Warning: Touching this object will flag you as a "System Parasite."]
[Most NPCs and players will treat you as a threat.]
[Proceed?]
I hesitated.
One move would turn me from player to hunted.
I could turn back. Stay "normal." Level up. Follow the quest lines. Obey the rules.
Or…
I could break the rules that never wanted me to win.
I touched the orb.
[You have absorbed: System Core Fragment.]
[You are now classified as: Low-Level Parasite.]
[New Skill Unlocked: Reality Recode Lv.1]
[Effect: Temporarily distorts system mechanics within a 5m radius.]
[Warning: System Hostility Level has increased.]
It felt like something cracked inside me—and rebuilt itself in a different shape.
Behind me, space shattered.
The Watcher had found me.
No time.
I bolted toward the stairs, activating Reality Recode.
The hallway in front of me flickered, twisted—became an illusion.
The creature faltered, confused for a second.
One second was all I needed.
I escaped.
That night – Back in the stone shelter
I looked at my hand. Faint lines of data pulsed beneath my skin, glowing like veins of code.
I wasn't a player anymore. Not really.
I was outside the system now.
And if this whole world ran on a broken system…
I would bring it crashing down from within.