Amadeus leaned against the cave wall, exhaustion weighing down on him.
He opened his status panel, the faint glow lighting up the dark cavern.
[ User Level: 67 ]
[ HP: Lv. 12 ]
[ STM: Lv. 12 ]
[ Mana: Lv. 0 ]
[ STR: Lv. 22 ]
[ AGI: Lv. 21 ]
[ INT: Lv. 0 ]
Crown's voice echoed, calm but edged with curiosity.
Crown.
"Not bad. To think you were once Level 0."
" But… you didn't forget something important, did you?"
Amadeus narrowed his eyes.
"If you're talking about that red panel that popped up mid-battle, no. I didn't forget."
He exhaled.
"It wasn't the right time or place to check it. Can you bring it up again?"
Crown.
"Of course."
A crimson panel flashed into existence.
[ User Level reached 50 ]
[ Skill Unlocked: Signal of the End ]
/ You can sense your end approaching. Whether you stop it or not… depends on you.
Amadeus frowned.
" Omega's skill?"
Crown.
"Yup. Don't tell me you don't understand it."
Amadeus tapped his chin.
"A danger warning, right?"
Crown.
"Exactly. Could've helpt you when you fought Arex."
Amadeus.
"Not like I had time to read while trying not to die."
Before Crown could reply, Lio approached, holding an apple.
"Big bro… I got this for you. Please eat."
He hadn't realized how long it had been since he last ate.
Was I too focused on power? Or… did I just lose the appetite for living?
He accepted it, forcing a smile.
"Thanks, Lio."
As he bit into the apple, the boy's eyes softened.
"I know I've said this before, but… thank you. If not for you, I'd still be in the Quarry. Working till I die."
"Big bro, I'll never stop being thankful."
Amadeus sighed.
"I just did what i had to do. That's all. So stop—"
[ Signal of the End ]
A sudden flash of dread tore through him.
His vision warped—he saw the cave crumbling, burying him alive.
Amadeus dropped the apple. His instincts screamed.
"Everyone out! Now!"
He snatched Lio into his arms and dashed for the exit.
Stone groaned and split apart, the cave collapsing in waves behind him.
They barely made it into a canyon, the narrow walls echoing with falling debris.
But before he could breathe—
[ Signal of the End ]
A second vision. This time, death by something massive, descending from above.
Amadeus moved back—just as a colossal figure slammed into the canyon floor, shaking the earth.
Dust swallowed the path, but the outline was monstrous.
A towering warrior, broad as a mountain.
From the Dust, words where visible.
[ Boss ]
Amadeus's heart pounded. He had never seen difficulty like this before.
The figure raised an enormous axe, its edge glinting through the haze.
[ Signal of the End ]
A vision of his body split clean in two.
The axe flew and the canyon roared with a shockwave.
Amadeus twisted away, barely escaping.
Another flash. Another end.
This time, a second axe soaring straight at him—inescapable unless he sacrificed something.
Amadeus clenched his jaw.
"Lio—hold on!"
He hurled the boy into a crevice in the canyon wall. Lio was Safe.
The price? Amadeus lost his arm.
Blood sprayed as the axe shredded through flesh and bone.
Pain ripped through him, but he bit his lip until it bled, refusing to scream.
The canyon walls shock, collapsing from the sheer force of the twin strikes.
Amadeus leapt onto falling debris, climbing higher.
When he glanced back, his blood froze.
The giant figure was calmly striding through the falling debris, axes in hand.
Amadeus.
his like a walking earthquake.
By the time Amadeus escaped onto a cliff edge.
And yet—
He followed.
[Signal of the End].
Every move promised death. He dodged, blocked, and endured until his body gave in.
A single punch shattered him, crushing bone and earth alike.
The ground collapsed beneath him.
He blacked out.
When his eyes opened again, he was in a hidden cave. Rocks rained from above, but none touched him—his skill ensured it.
Crown appeared, hovering faintly.
"Amadeus… your condition is beyond saving."
He lost his arm, ever bone in his body was broken, and he had internal bleeding.
Amadeus staggered to his feet.
"You think… I don't know that?"
But soon he fell on his knees unable to stand.
A healing potion dulled the pain, but barely.
His body was still failing.
That… thing. It was a human. right ?
His memories spoke in turn.
Knight Memory spoke first, his voice steady and grave.
" What you faced was human. I have met such monsters before… and worse."
Assassin Memory laughed bitterly.
"Exactly. There will always be someone stronger."
" No matter how much power you claw for, there's always another shadow above you."
"You'd better learn that now."
Slave Memory cut in sharply, desperate.
"Enough! Can't you see his state? This isn't the time for lessons—he's dying!"
Mage Memory trembled, his voice high and frantic.
"He was too fast… too overwhelming."
" he couldn't follow his movements. To him, he wasn't a man—he was a calamity."
Noble Memory coldly.
"Amadeus, you already know the truth."
" You had zero chance from the very beginning."
" Against a foe like that, you are nothing."
Silence lingered—until a ragged chuckle broke through.
Beggar Memory smirked, his voice calm."Why so afraid? Death is no stranger to us."
" Remember, our most peaceful moment"
" is the moment of death itself."
Amadeus listened them.
then he pushed on, dragging himself toward the exit.
Outside, Lio waited. The boy's eyes lit up.
"Big bro! You're alive, I knew it!"
Amadeus legs give out and he fell to his knees.
"I told you to leave… why are you still here?"
Lio came running to him.
"To help you. You saved me. Now it's my turn."
Lio reached out his hand.
In that moment—his head was severed.
Blood sprayed. His body collapsed.
Amadeus froze, mind blank, staring at the lifeless corpse of lio.
Then came that voice. A voice he would never forget.
Xera.
" We finally met Arex killer."
Amadeus's eyes burned red with rage.
"Xera!! You bastard!!"
Xera tilted his head.
"Strange. How do you know my name? "
" No matter. A dead man's words don't matter."
Amadeus coughed blood.
"How did you find me?"
Xera smirked.
"This entire area is mine."
" I've been watching you since you killed that Fake messenger."
" And you moved exactly how I wanted. Like a good little dog."
Amadeus realised.
" Lio. The guards. It was all your plan."
Xera's grin widened.
"Exactly. And thanks to you, Arex is gone."
" Now my boss, Atlan, think your the one who killed him."
" lets say you served your purpose."
Amadeus's blood boiled.
But before he could act, Xera stepped back, smiling.
"Our time's up."
The ground split as the giant figure landed behind Amadeus once more.
[ Signal of the End ]
A vision of the axe, cleaving him in two. No escape.
Crown's voice trembled.
"…Amadeus, at least… we had fun, didn't we?"
The axe fell.
Amadeus's last sight was Xera's twisted smile as he whispered.
"Thank you for your help "
" my little dog."
A glitched panel appeared.
[ You Failed ]
[ Rewriting Chapter 1 ]
To be continued.