The night was cold and biting.
Raon moved through the dead subway tunnels beneath Seoul, his footsteps echoing faintly over rusted tracks. Above ground, the city was still alive—but down here, nothing had breathed for decades.
The map in his HUD blinked steadily. Coordinates sent by Kang Ha-Joon pointed to an abandoned military bunker beneath the Mapo District. Supposedly, it was a safe house. Or a trap.
He didn't care.
[New Threat Detected – 80 meters. Signature: Human. Evolutionary Rank: Level 9]
[Name: Ji Hwan – Class: Soul Hunter]
[Status: Kill Order Authorized – Target: Lee Raon]
Raon stopped in his tracks.
A figure emerged from the mist—a tall man in a long black coat, twin crescent daggers glinting in his hands. His eyes burned red, and wisps of black smoke danced around his shoulders like restless spirits.
"Lee Raon," the man said calmly. "You've grown too fast."
Raon lifted a hand, blue fire flickering to life in his palm. "Too bad you're too slow."
Ji Hwan smiled faintly. "I'm not here to talk."
He moved like a ghost.
One moment he was standing still, and the next, Raon was parrying a deadly arc of blades. The Soul Hunter attacked in silence, each strike aiming for a fatal blow. Raon blocked the first two, dodged the third, but the fourth grazed his ribs.
[Warning: Shadow Step Activated – Tier II Skill Detected]
[System Suggestion: Engage Core Ability – Predator's Instinct]
The world slowed down.
Raon could suddenly see the subtle pauses in Ji Hwan's movement—a fraction of a second before the next teleport, a delay in his left shoulder signaling a feint. He adjusted his stance, reading the rhythm.
When Ji Hwan blinked behind him, Raon was already turning.
He grabbed the hunter's wrist mid-slash and slammed him into a rusted steel pillar.
"You're fast," Raon growled. "But I'm faster."
And then, he released Dragon Roar.
A shockwave of pressure exploded from his chest—pure draconic force, raw and furious. Ji Hwan staggered, shadows flickering and dissipating as the mental blast overwhelmed his senses.
[Enemy Debuffed – Agility -12%, Reflex -10%]
Raon pressed the advantage.
A fiery punch caught Ji Hwan in the jaw, followed by a brutal kick to the gut. But the Soul Hunter recovered fast. With a flick of his dagger, he unleashed Soul Bind—a chain of shadow wrapping around Raon's legs and yanking him to the ground.
"I've killed ten freaks like you," Ji Hwan hissed. "Fancy systems mean nothing if your mind is weak."
Raon coughed, blood staining his lips. But the system chimed again.
[Critical Damage Threshold Reached – Emergency Evolution Triggered]
[Level Up: 6 → 7]
[New Skill Unlocked: Flame Step – Fire-powered propulsion. Enables short-range aerial bursts.]
[New Mutation: Scaled Nerves – Increases pain resistance and reaction speed]
He grinned.
"Too late."
Flame Step.
A burst of blue fire exploded from his heels, propelling him upward. The shadow chains snapped. In a single motion, Raon spun midair and dive-kicked Ji Hwan straight in the chest.
The impact shattered part of the tunnel wall. Ji Hwan's body crumpled against the steel, unconscious.
Raon landed, breathing hard, vision spinning.
Then—a voice.
Cold. Feminine. Calm.
"Impressive," it said. "Most don't survive a Soul Hunter."
Raon turned.
A woman stood at the far end of the tunnel, half-shadowed by flickering emergency lights. White shoulder-length hair, pale skin, and piercing ice-blue eyes. She wore a long black coat, and in her hand, a crystalline spear hovered an inch above the ground.
[Warning: Unknown Entity Detected]
[System Scan Failed – Data Blocked]
[Name: ???]
[Classification: Unknown]
Raon straightened up, fists clenched. "Friend or enemy?"
She tilted her head slightly. "That depends. Are you still human?"
He didn't answer.
Because deep down, he knew the truth.
To survive, he couldn't stay human much longer.