Zayden sat quietly on the top floor of the tower. The others had already left. Outside the window, the shelter was alive with noise—people hammering, carrying wood, building walls, or talking about the future. The Cascading Starlight Fountain shone at the centre of it all, its glow spreading across the ruins like a silver star.
But Zayden wasn't looking at that.
In his palm was a golden coin. It wasn't normal. Strange symbols pulsed on its surface, glowing faintly like veins of light. He could feel power inside it, heavy and sharp. This was the Heritage Coin.
He had already told the others that he would be leaving soon, but he didn't tell them where. Only that he would return before the dome fell. That was enough for now.
On his shoulder, Kuro shifted. The little dragonling had hatched two days ago. It was still small—like a bulky, two-foot snake with tiny wings tucked against its sides—but its scales gleamed dark with streaks of red, purple, and gold. Its eyes glowed faintly, and Zayden could feel the strange aura of darkness and blood that it carried.
Zayden closed his eyes and exhaled. "It's time."
The coin glowed brighter. A system screen appeared in front of him.
[Heritage Coin Detected.][Would you like to enter the Heritage Planet?][Yes / No]
Zayden pressed Yes.
The coin broke apart into golden light. It twisted in the air, turning into a portal that hummed with energy. Kuro lifted its head and hissed softly.
"Don't worry," Zayden said as he stepped forward. "We'll be fine."
The light swallowed him.
The next moment, he was standing in darkness.
It wasn't complete darkness. The walls glistened faintly, damp with moisture. The air smelled like dirt, wet stone, and something foul. He looked around and saw that the walls were full of holes. Big holes, small holes. Tunnels that went deeper into the ground.
The faint sound of movement came from them—scratches, clicks, the noise of countless legs.
A system screen popped up again.
[Welcome to the Heritage Trial.][Condition: Clear the Anthill Dungeon.][Access to Heritage Planet locked until completion.]
Zayden frowned. "So before the planet… I have to clear this place."
Kuro slid down his arm, coiling on his wrist as if ready to fight.
"Status," Zayden said.
A translucent panel appeared.
[Name: Zayden Vega]
[Race: ??? (Evolved)]
[Level: 15 (100/100%)]
[Rank: Star Born (7th Star)]
[Title: Null Slayer]
[Strength: 50]
[Agility: 50]
[Endurance: 50]
[Soul Power: 2000]
[Ability Points: 29]
[HP: 100%]
[Energy: 100%]
[Constellation Contract: Oblivion Flux]
[Law of Darkness: Tier 3]
[Skills: Dark Spike, Umbra Coat, Umbra Slash, Umbra Blast, Umbra Beam]
He studied it for a moment. All his stats were capped at fifty. He already knew why—his class advancement wasn't complete yet. He needed to devour forty Power Shards and forge two unique weapons. The weapons would have to wait, but this dungeon…
"This place is crawling with enemies. It's the perfect chance to get shards," Zayden muttered.
The sound of scratching grew louder. He dismissed the screen and drew his weapon.
From one of the tunnels, something crawled out.
It was big, nearly as tall as Zayden. Its black shell gleamed in the dim light. Mandibles clicked together, sharp and wet. Its many eyes reflected like dark glass.
The first of many.
[Ant Worker. Lv. 22]
The ant screeched and charged.
Zayden moved. His feet slid across the dirt, his body low, precise. The ant snapped at him with its mandibles, but he twisted aside. His sword slashed across its shell, sparks flying. The blade dug in, but the ant didn't fall. It shrieked, spinning to bite again.
"Persistent."
He stabbed forward, sliding his sword into the joint of its neck. The blade pierced deep. Black ichor sprayed out as the ant convulsed. With one last twitch, it collapsed to the ground.
The system chimed.
[+1 Power Shard]
A faint glow rose from the corpse. The light condensed into a small, red shard, floating in the air. Zayden caught it.
[Power Shard Obtained.]
He rolled it between his fingers before slipping it into his ring. "One down. Thirty-nine to go."
But the noise around him only grew louder. More scratching, more clicking. Dozens of legs moving inside the tunnels.
Zayden's grip on his daggers tightened.
The ground trembled.
Shapes appeared in the holes. Ants crawled out one by one. Bigger than the worker. Stronger. Their mandibles snapped in unison.
[Ant Worker (Lv. 20–25)]
[Ant Warrior (Lv. 27)]
Zayden exhaled slowly, his eyes sharp. Kuro hissed from his shoulder, its small body glowing faintly with dark energy.
The first fight had been a test. Now, the dungeon was waking up.
Zayden raised his weapons. "Come."
The ants rushed forward.
The tunnel shook with the sound of countless legs. Ants poured out like a flood, their shells scraping against the stone walls as they charged.
Zayden's eyes narrowed. "Too many."
The first wave of workers rushed him. He dashed forward to meet them. He sliced across one's face, cracking its mandibles. He turned around and swiftly stabbed into the joint of another, piercing soft flesh. Black ichor splattered across his coat.
An ant leapt from the side wall, mandibles snapping. Zayden tilted his head, letting it bite into empty air, then twisted and slashed upward. Umbra Slash cut it in half, dark energy bursting across its shell.
[+1 Power Shard]
Another shard floated up. Zayden didn't have time to grab it. He ducked as two more ants lunged, their mandibles slicing the air.
Kuro hissed, and a thin veil of shadows spread around Zayden's body.
[Umbra Coat Activated.]
Darkness wrapped around him like armour, absorbing the force of an incoming strike. He had found a way to merge his flux coat and law of darkness, forming this new skill, the umbra coat. But that wasn't all. While others were trying to get the shelter in shape, Zayden was busy training himself in preparation for what might happen in the future.
The mandibles scraped but didn't pierce. Zayden countered instantly, his sword flashing. He stabbed one ant through the head, quickly cutting across the throat of the other. Both dropped at his feet.
The tunnel echoed with his sharp breathing. But the wave wasn't ending.
"Figures," he muttered.
Another worker screeched, but this one wasn't alone. A larger shape emerged from the tunnel behind it. Its shell was thicker, its mandibles longer, sharper. Its steps were heavy, each one shaking the ground slightly.
[Ant Warrior. Lv. 28]
Zayden's eyes sharpened. "Finally."
The warrior moved faster than its size suggested. It charged straight at him, mandibles snapping with enough force to split stone. Zayden jumped sideways, rolling across the dirt, but the warrior immediately turned and followed.
Its front legs stabbed into the ground like spears. Mandibles opened wide.
"Dark Spike."
Shadows erupted from the ground. Dozens of black spikes shot upward, piercing the worker ants behind the warrior.
They shrieked as the spikes skewered them, ichor spraying across the tunnel walls.
The warrior, however, slammed through the attack, its shell only cracking slightly. It lunged, jaws snapping at Zayden's chest.
Zayden held his sword in front of him, in a bid to block the attack. The impact rattled through his arms, forcing him back. His Umbra Coat dimmed slightly, showing cracks of light.
"Tougher than the rest."
The warrior shoved forward. Zayden slid back, boots digging into the dirt. The mandibles pressed harder, sharp edges clashing against his blades.
Kuro hissed, darkness pulsing around it. The little dragon opened its mouth, firing a small burst of shadow. The blast struck the warrior's eye, making it shriek and stagger back.
Zayden seized the opening. Umbra Slash swept across its neck, carving deep. His sword stabbed straight into the wound, piercing through.
The warrior thrashed, its body convulsing, before collapsing in a heap.
[+2 Power Shards]
A glowing shard floated into Zayden's palm. He squeezed it lightly before storing it away.
"That's… four."
He turned his gaze deeper into the tunnels. The scratching noise hadn't stopped. If anything, it had grown louder.
Zayden wiped his sword against the ground and stood tall again. "This dungeon isn't going to clear itself."
Minutes later, the battle turned into a blur of blood, ichor, and steel.
Umbra Blast boomed through the tunnels, a wave of dark energy tearing through a line of ants. The walls shook from the force, dust falling from the ceiling. Worker bodies piled up in heaps.
Zayden's breath grew heavier, his coat stained in black ichor. His movements, however, were sharp and efficient.
A worker lunged from above, cut down.
A warrior charged from the front, stabbed and finished with Umbra Beam, the dark ray punching a hole through its chest.
The system chimed again and again.
[+1 Power Shard]
[+2 Power Shards]
The shards were stacked in his pouch. Ten, then twelve, then fourteen.
Still, no matter how many fell, more ants poured in.
"Endless," Zayden muttered under his breath.
Kuro hissed softly, its golden-red eyes glowing. Its tail flicked, and phantoms of shadowy serpents slithered out, biting at the smaller ants and tearing them apart. Even newborn, it carried an aura that made the lesser ants hesitate.
Zayden glanced at it briefly. "Good work."
He pressed deeper into the tunnels. The deeper he went, the hotter the air grew. The walls were slicker, the sound of movement heavier. This was no small nest, it was an entire hive.