Yun stood before the remnants of the gate. It was no longer glowing with energy, no longer humming with life. Just charred rocks, twisted metal, and dried blood. The remains of the S-Rank party had vanished without a trace. And the Watcher of Death system had shown him only fragments.
But tonight, Yun couldn't sleep.
He had replayed their final moments again and again, trying to find something—anything—he had missed.
He sat in the silence of his cramped room behind the checkpoint, the screen of the system floating faintly in front of him. He activated the replay of the last vision: a shattered blade, a scream, and then… static.
But this time, something changed.
[System Notice: New data acquired.]
Yun's eyes widened. "What?"
[Fragment Recovered: Audio Log – Unregistered Source Detected.]
The system screen shimmered, then a voice echoed in his mind.
"They lied to us. The system isn't a gift—it's a leash. And the real gate... it's not behind us. It's beneath us."
Yun's heart thudded in his chest. It was a woman's voice—calm, yet laced with fear. One of the Hunters? No, this didn't sound like any of them.
"The Watchers are waking. If anyone hears this, run. Leave the cities. Destroy your system before it—"
The message cut off.
Yun froze. "Destroy the system? What… what are the Watchers?"
He checked the system log again. The voice wasn't tied to any known identity. A hidden layer? A ghost file?
[New Quest Unlocked: Beneath the Gate – Seek the True Entrance.]
The screen flashed red for a moment. Then another line appeared:
[Warning: Quest completion may result in global system disruption.]
Yun clenched his fists. This was more than just a glitch in the dungeon. This was deliberate. Someone—something—was hiding the truth.
And the system had chosen him to uncover it.
He stepped outside. The checkpoint was quiet. No one had come since the incident. Most assumed he'd be transferred or questioned. But no one asked. No one cared about a gatekeeper.
Perfect.
Yun walked toward the cracked earth near the old gate, where the ground had shifted slightly. He knelt, brushing away dust. Beneath, a circular pattern shimmered faintly—runes glowing in pulses.
He tapped it with his hand.
Nothing.
He touched it again—this time focusing.
[Watcher of Death Protocol Activated.]
A pulse of dark blue energy surged from the rune, revealing a spiral staircase descending into blackness. The air turned cold.
And then… he heard it.
A whisper.
His name.
"Yun."
He stumbled back, heart racing. The voice wasn't coming from the system. It came from below.
Shaking, he peered down into the darkness. The world above him had forgotten him. But something below remembered.
And it was calling.
He took a breath.
And descended.