“They said I was too weak to survive. So they left me to die.”

In a world scarred by dimensional rifts, humanity’s only hope lies in Veilwalkers—elite hunters gifted with power by ancient relics. But not everyone is chosen.
Kael Verin wasn’t.

Labeled a failure. Mocked. Dragged through every dungeon as nothing more than bait.

Until one day, his own team—people he trusted—left him bleeding on the floor of a cursed ruin.

That should have been the end.

But something buried deep in the darkness heard him. And it offered a choice.

Not salvation.

Rebirth.

Now bound to an ancient and forbidden relic, Kael rises—not as a hero, not as a savior—but as the first Shadow Ranker, walking a path carved by pain, vengeance, and a power no human was ever meant to wield.

They took everything from him.

Now, he’ll take everything back.

Even if he becomes the monster they always feared he would.

Chapter 3 – They Came Back For the Loot


Outside the dungeon's core chamber, the mood was casual.


Three Rankers—Keiran, Vess, and Damos—sat around a small fire, chewing dried rations and laughing about the easy score.


"He's probably dead by now," Vess muttered, licking salt off her fingers.


"Doesn't matter," Keiran said, smirking. "He slowed down the traps long enough for us to grab the Shadow Crystal. That was his role."


"More like bait," Damos chuckled. "Unregistered, solo-level freak. No guild. No protection."


Damos felt it first. That subtle chill in the spine, the kind you don't talk about because it feels childish. Like something's watching you but there's nothing there.


"You feel that?" he muttered, glancing into the dark hallway behind them.


Vess barely had time to draw her dagger.


Not like mist. Not like wind. They moved—like they chose to be where they were.


His eyes had no light in them, only black.


His voice was flat. No anger. No hate. Just truth.


Keiran's sword was already drawn. "Stay back, Kael! We thought you were—"


The shadows leapt from Kael's back like wolves. Snapping, swirling. Vess screamed as one shadow wrapped around her throat, yanking her into the dark.


Keiran swung wildly. His blade passed through smoke. It hit nothing.


> "I'm the one who crawled out of death."


The shadows dragged him back screaming.


When it was over, Kael stood alone again. The fire still burned behind him, flickering in the cold dungeon air.


— Your presence is erased from memory. Survivors will forget you were ever there.


Kael looked at his hands. Still human. But not really.


From here on… he would earn every shadow that bent before him.


Chapter 3 - "They Came Back For the Loot"