A vast chamber lay shrouded in darkness, so deep that even the torches along the walls seemed swallowed whole by the void. At the center of the blackened hall, upon a throne carved from obsidian, sat a figure. His presence alone weighed on the air, heavy and suffocating, as though even shadows bent to his will.
CLACK. CLACK.
The echo of boots striking the cold stone floor broke the silence. A man stepped into the faint circle of torchlight, dropped to one knee, and bowed his head.
"My lord," his voice was steady but laced with unease. "We didn't find any trace of the Lukas family in the whole kingdom. Now, only Handol Village remains to be searched. What should we do, my lord?"
The figure on the throne slowly rose to his feet. His towering silhouette loomed above, sharp and domineering. For a moment, he said nothing—the silence itself more terrifying than any word. Then his deep, resonant voice rolled through the chamber like thunder.
"Search everywhere you can."
He stepped forward, the floor trembling under his weight.
"Do not miss a single area."
The kneeling man bowed even lower, sweat trickling down his temple.
"As you command, my lord."
---
GASP!
Jun's eyes shot open. His body lurched upright from the bed, chest heaving, drenched in cold sweat. For a moment, he couldn't even breathe, his ears still ringing with the echoes of statues' blades and his own dying scream.
He looked around.
The familiar wooden walls of his small room… the dim light of morning slipping through the cracks in the curtains… the faint smell of herbs and woodsmoke.
"…My room?"
Jun quickly threw aside his blanket and stared down at his legs. Whole. Intact. He bent them, flexed them. No pain. No blood. His heart hammered in disbelief.
"No way… Didn't I…"
He slapped his own cheek. SLAP!
"Ow!" He winced, feeling the sting bloom across his skin. "This isn't a dream."
And then—
DING!
A glowing screen blinked into existence before his eyes, faint symbols flickering like ripples of light across water.
[PLAYER SYSTEM ACTIVATED.]
Jun's breath hitched. "What… what is this floating thing?"
Before he could reach for it, the door to his room burst open.
"Brother!"
A small figure rushed inside. Lucian Jina—his younger sister, her long black hair tumbling over her shoulders, eyes red and swollen from crying. She threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly as though she would never let go.
"Why do you do things like this, brother?" she sobbed against his chest. "Can't you do some safe jobs? Why do you need to be a hunter? You always… always make me worry so much!"
Jun felt a heavy pang in his chest. His arms wrapped gently around her trembling frame.
"It's okay, Jina," he whispered softly, forcing a small smile. "I'm fine now. You see? Nothing happened."
Jina pulled back just enough to look him in the eye, her tears still falling.
"Nothing happened? What do you mean nothing happened?" Her voice cracked with both relief and anger. "You slept for four whole days!"
"…Four days?" Jun blinked in surprise, his mind reeling.
Four days had passed since… since that hell.
But he smiled again, this time more gently, brushing a strand of her hair from her face.
"From now on, I won't make you worry. Okay?"
Her lip trembled. She hugged him even tighter, burying her face in his chest.
Jun held her close, eyes lingering on the glowing system screen still hovering silently in front of him.
The sun was already leaning west when Jun made his way down the narrow dirt path toward Mira's house. The quiet village of Handol seemed unchanged—children's laughter in the distance, smoke rising from chimneys, merchants calling faintly in the square. Yet, for Jun, everything felt… different.
When he reached Mira's house, he froze. The wooden sign on the gate was gone. The flowerpots she used to line up neatly on the porch had vanished. Instead, a stranger was stacking crates near the doorway.
Jun frowned. "Excuse me… does Mira live here?"
The man wiped his hands on his trousers and gave Jun a puzzled look. "Mira? Ah—you mean the young healer? No, she doesn't live here anymore. She sold this house and left the village."
Jun's breath caught, but only for a moment. His gaze lingered on the familiar walls before he gave a slow nod.
"…I see."
As he turned away, his thoughts whispered bitterly. It's understandable she abandoned the village. After all that happened in that place… She must still be in trauma. He exhaled quietly. Maybe it's better for her. Maybe leaving was the only way she could survive.
Jun shoved his hands into his pockets and started walking home. But as he moved along the dirt road, his eyes kept flicking upward to the glowing panel that had followed him since morning.
"This thing…" he muttered. "It's floating in front of me the whole time. And no one else seems to notice it. If they could, Jina or the others I met today would've asked about it already." He narrowed his eyes at the strange glyphs hovering before him. "What is this thing, anyway?"
DING!
The panel flickered, then new words etched themselves into existence.
[DAILY QUEST NO. 1.][CLEAR THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE TRAINING TOWER.]
Jun stopped in his tracks, blinking at the message.
"…What the—"
Before he could finish, another notification popped up.
[THE PLAYER WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO THE TRAINING TOWER IN 5 SECONDS.]
Jun let out a short, disbelieving laugh. "Is this some kind of prank… or what?"
BEEP!
[5]
Jun snorted and continued walking. "Tch, whatever."
[4]
[3]
[2]
Jun glanced down when the ground beneath his feet began glowing with radiant light, runes spreading outward in a circular pattern. His eyes widened.
"…Wait—!"
[1]
SHOOOM!
A brilliant flash erupted from the earth, swallowing Jun whole. In the next heartbeat—
—he vanished.