The world had ended once before.
No one knew the exact day it began, only that the skies cracked open with violet scars of lightning, and from those wounds poured nightmares clothed in flesh. Dragons whose wings blotted out the sun, titans whose steps shook mountains, serpents that swallowed cities whole—beasts pulled from humanity's most ancient myths and darkest fears.
The old world burned within weeks. Nations crumbled within months. Humanity was pushed to the brink of extinction.
Yet, humanity did not perish.
From the ashes rose the Shelters—fortified bastions of survival. Colossal walls of steel and stone, humming with defensive barriers. Cannons forged from relic technology mounted on spires. Patrols of gifted warriors stalking the ramparts. Within their boundaries, a fragile spark of civilization endured.
Beyond those walls stretched the Savage Expanse: wilderness claimed by monsters, a land where humanity was prey.
But in this world of ruin, one miracle remained.
At sixteen, every human awakened their Blessing of the World—a gift etched into their very soul. Elemental command, telekinesis, regeneration, enhanced senses—abilities ranked from F to S. Most were mundane, granting nothing more than a fragile chance at survival. A rare few ascended to greatness, their names etched into epics.
And then there were the legends—the S-rankers, men and women who stood alone against hordes, holding back destruction with their bare hands.
But none could guess that one day, a boy from the forgotten alleys of Blackhawk Shelter would awaken something beyond S rank. Something forbidden.
Blackhawk Shelter slumbered beneath a starless sky. The outer district was quiet, its broken streetlamps casting pale light over crumbling tenements and weed-choked playgrounds.
In the ruins of an abandoned park, Sirius Starblade sat alone on a rusted swing. His figure was a thin shadow against the distant glow of the inner city's towers. He looked down at his wrist, at the cracked glass of an old watch. The second hand ticked steadily—each tick carrying him closer to fate.
The watch was the last relic of his father. A man who had vanished one night beyond the walls, leaving only whispers behind.
Sirius traced a finger over the watch face, exhaling slowly. His neighbor's children had awakened in years past: most with F-rank or E-rank talents. Beast fodder. Factory laborers. Lives chained by weakness.
But Sirius was different.
He could feel it in his blood—a gnawing hunger that stirred whenever his eyes lingered on the colossal gates of the Shelter, the yawning threshold to the Savage Expanse.
He didn't want peace. He didn't want safety.
He wanted power.
Because in this world, only power survived.
The second hand crept toward midnight. Sirius stood, breath sharp in the cold air. The silence of the night pressed around him like a living thing. And then—
Tick. Midnight.
Heat surged through his veins. A tide of energy swallowed him, burning and exalting, terrifying and exhilarating all at once. His chest constricted. His pulse thundered. He gasped as something inside him opened.
And then, in the stillness, light unfurled before his eyes.
A semi-transparent screen hovered in the air, letters glowing faintly as if carved by the world itself.
Awakening Panel
Talents:
Void Storage (F): Access to a pocket dimension for storing and retrieving items. Current capacity: small room.
Heightened Focus (F): Enhanced senses, reflexes, and concentration.
Orion's Eye (A): 360° vision, X-ray vision, and the ability to perceive talents, stats, strengths, and weaknesses.
Predation (SSS – Hidden): Acquire the talents of defeated entities.
Sirius's breath caught.
Three… no, four talents?
Most awakened with one. Two was already considered rare. Three was nearly unheard of. But it wasn't the quantity that made his heart slam against his ribs.
It was the last one.
Predation. SSS rank. A classification that shouldn't exist. Even S rank was considered godlike.
His throat went dry. He had never heard of such a thing—not even in the annals of hunters, not in the records whispered about legendary awakenings.
The implications were staggering. Power without limit. Growth through devouring.
And danger.
If anyone discovered this, he would be dissected, hunted, or worse. This wasn't just a gift—it was a threat to the balance of power itself.
Sirius clenched his fists, forcing his racing thoughts into silence. He would keep it hidden. Even if it meant pretending to be nothing more than an ordinary F-rank.
Still trembling, he drew in a breath. "I need to test it."
The city's outskirts, abandoned after the first dungeon outbreaks, would be the perfect place. Few ventured there, and the ruins beyond the shelter's walls had become a haven for twisted creatures lurking in the remnants of the old world. His path led him through a forgotten sewer tunnel, its once-bustling corridors now damp, crumbling, and crawling with vines.
The stench of decay filled the air as Sirius moved cautiously, a flashlight in one hand and an obsidian dagger in the other. The tunnel stretched ahead, dark and foreboding, like the throat of some long-dead beast. He navigated its twists and turns, his heightened senses attuned to every subtle sound and shift in the air. Each drip of water echoed like a drumbeat. Each breeze of foul stentch was like the death itself.
His nerves screamed at him to turn back, but another voice within whispered hunger.
And Then— Skitter. A faint sound scraped against the stone. Sirius froze, every sense sharpened.
The beam of his flashlight revealed a shadow crawling toward him: a black ant the size of his hand, its mandibles clacking rhythmically. Its glossy exoskeleton reflected the light like armor.
Sirius's heart pounded, but he forced himself to focus. He activated Orion's Eye, and instantly, the creature's stats appeared before him:
Giant Black AntStrength: 2Agility: 1.5Endurance: 2.5Talent: Strength of Ten (F)Weakness: Neck joint; poor eyesight.
A grim smile tugged at his lips. Perfect.
He lunged, dagger flashing. He knew exactly where to strike. With practiced precision, he lunged, his dagger aimed at the vulnerable joint. The blade sliced through, severing the ant's head in one swift motion. The creature convulsed before collapsing in a heap.
At once, heat surged through Sirius's body. His vision darkened briefly as the Predation talent awoke. He felt something foreign, struggling, then folding into himself.
The Awakening Panel updated.
Acquired Talent:Strength of Ten (F).
Sirius's arm flexed. His muscles tightened, denser, stronger. A faint thrill licked through him. Proof. It worked.
Bending, he pried open the ant's skull with the dagger. Inside gleamed a faintly glowing crystal—a beast core, pulsing with weak energy. He slipped it into his Void Storage. The gem vanished in a ripple of air.
A laugh almost escaped his throat. It's real. All of it.
The deeper he ventured, the more ants appeared. Some rushed him in swarms, but their weaknesses shone clearly under Orion's Eye. Blade arcing, he struck precisely, one after another falling.
A pile of beast cores glittered in his Void Storage. His movements became smoother, sharper, almost instinctive. Combat was intoxicating, a rhythm his body seemed born to follow.
And then—
A flicker of red caught his flashlight's edge.
Suddenly, something small and red caught the edge of his flashlight's beam. Sirius paused, intrigued. A tiny red ant scurried across the floor, nibbling on a beast core. It was insignificant compared to the larger ants, yet something about it piqued his curiosity. He activated Orion's Eye again.
Tiny Red Blood AntStrength: 0.03Speed: 0.05Talent: Essence Devour (A).
Sirius's eyes widened. His breath hitched. An A-rank talent… in a creature so small?
Without hesitation, he crushed the ant beneath his boot. The moment it died, his Predation talent absorbed its talent, and a new line appeared on his panel:
The panel flickered.
Acquired Talent:Essence Devour (A).
Sirius froze, staring. His hands trembled.
Essence Devour… the ability to consume beast cores for direct growth. A talent most hunters would slaughter armies for.
Heart racing, he drew out a core from Void Storage, the dim crystal pulsing faintly in his palm. For a moment he hesitated—then pressed it to his lips.
The crystal dissolved into energy, flooding his body like fire. His muscles convulsed, senses sharpening until the world seemed painfully vivid.
His stats shifted upward.
Another core. Another rush. He devoured them all, each one transforming him further. By the time the last crystal faded into ash, his body thrummed with raw strength.
The panel shimmered again.
Sirius Starblade
Talents:
Void Storage (F)
Heightened Focus (F)
Orion's Eye (A)
Predation (SSS – Hidden)
Strength of Ten (F)
Essence Devour (A)
Stats:
Strength: 9
Agility: 8
Endurance: 9
Vitality: 7
Physique: 13
Mental Power: 11
Mana: 15
Sirius lowered the screen slowly, a smirk tugging at his lips. His heart hammered—not with fear, but exhilaration.
In a single night, he had gone from a boy on the brink of weakness to something else. Something dangerous.
He looked down the dark tunnel, the echoes of monsters stirring beyond.
"This is just the beginning."
The hunger in his veins pulsed, and Sirius Starblade took his first step toward becoming the greatest hunter of all.