Kaelen's feet pressed into the strange, warm earth beneath him. The land pulsed faintly, like the heartbeat of some slumbering titan. It wasn't just alive—it was aware.
> [Core Connection Detected: Proximity Level - Primary]
[Dungeon Node: "Forgotten Veil" - Status: Dormant]
"What… is this place?" Kaelen whispered.
The little fire imp, Ravi, had been fluttering beside him since the night before. The imp, no taller than a child, with ember-red skin and a perpetually smug grin, crossed his arms. "You're standing on top of a sleeping dungeon. One of the oldest. One of the first. It should've collapsed centuries ago. But you…"
"I reactivated it?" Kaelen asked.
Ravi smirked. "You didn't just wake it. You claimed it."
Kaelen turned back toward the gaping mouth of the cave they had exited. Veins of glowing blue light stretched from the cavern entrance deep into the surrounding cliffs. The very rocks hummed softly, like ancient hymns sung in stone.
He looked down at his hands. The glowing silver lines on his skin pulsed in sync with the veins in the earth.
"So this is what being Halfborn means?"
"No," Ravi replied, hovering upside-down now. "Being Halfborn means you're a bridge. Between the old world of monsters… and the chaotic, greedy world of humans. You're neither. You're both. A Core with a conscience."
Kaelen exhaled, struggling to take it all in. Yesterday, he was a dying human in a dead city. Today, he was a Coreborn hybrid who owned a dormant dungeon. Talk about reincarnation with a twist.
> [New Skill Gained: Core Management (Basic)]
[Dungeon Ownership Level: 1]
[Available Functions: Scan, Spawn Room, Absorb Material, Basic Defense]
He closed his eyes. The world inside him responded.
Images—no, blueprints—flooded his mind. The dungeon had hallways, chambers, magic veins. Traps could be formed. Creatures summoned. Resources absorbed. He could reshape the dungeon with thought and will.
But something else stirred beneath.
Far below the dungeon's deepest layer… a sealed chamber. No access. No light.
Just a name.
> [Unknown Core Signature Detected: "Ava'Thuun – The World Splitter"]
[Status: Bound. Dormant. Dangerous.]
Kaelen opened his eyes with a gasp. "There's something sealed beneath."
Ravi floated beside him, suddenly serious. "Every old dungeon has its sins buried in the bedrock. You'd do well not to poke too hard, Kaelen."
Kaelen nodded, but curiosity had already taken root. He had to know more.
From the edge of the cliff, a howl pierced the silence.
Ravi's eyes widened. "Uh oh."
A pack of four-legged beasts emerged from the tree line—gray hides, bones showing through cracked flesh, and green-glowing eyes filled with hunger.
> [Feral Hounds – Corrupted Beasts – Rank: E-Core]
One growled and stepped forward, its breath steaming in the cool air. It lunged.
Kaelen moved without thinking. He sidestepped, hand raised—instinct guiding him.
> [Skill Activated: Absorb Touch]
His hand met the creature's head. The moment of contact was electric. The beast howled as its form twisted, faded, and shattered into shimmering dust.
> [Feral Hound Absorbed. Temporary Trait Gained: Bone Reinforcement – 5 min.]
Another beast lunged, and Kaelen ducked low, landing a punch that cracked ribs—his ribs. The trait had transferred partially. He winced.
The remaining three beasts surrounded him.
A massive roar cut the air like a blade.
A shadow descended.
Gronth.
The ogre-like warrior, green-skinned with a third eye glowing red, slammed into the hounds like a meteor. One flew into a tree. Another tried to flee, but Gronth grabbed it mid-leap and crushed its neck with one hand.
Kaelen blinked. "You followed us?"
"I was watching," Gronth grunted. "Testing."
Ravi grinned. "Told ya he'd show up eventually. Big softie."
The final hound whimpered and turned, trying to run.
Kaelen narrowed his eyes. "No mercy for corrupted beasts."
> [Skill Activated: Element Shaping – Basic: Earth Bind]
A ring of stone shot up around the creature's legs, trapping it. With a wave of Kaelen's hand, spikes of stone erupted from the earth, piercing the beast clean through.
Silence returned.
Kaelen stood, panting, surrounded by glowing ashes and broken ground.
Gronth grunted approval. "You fight like one born in the dark."
"I was born from it," Kaelen said quietly.
He looked toward the dungeon.
"I need to grow stronger. Fast. Something's coming. I can feel it."
Ravi cackled. "Then let's build a dungeon they'll never forget."