The parasitic brood was dead.
Their acidic innards steamed on Kael's blade as he stood motionless, backlit by the quivering, dying walls of the dungeon. The pulsating growths on the fleshy ceiling let out one last spasm of movement before going still. The silence was deafening, broken only by the low hum of the System's voice in his mind:
[Dungeon Anomaly Eliminated.]
[Experience Gained: 12,800]
[Passive Skill Acquired: Plague Resistance (Tier I)]
[Reaper Path Progress: 67% to Rank-Up.]
Kael sheathed his sword, watching as the HUD flickered with translucent red text, tracking stats and mapping data only he could see. He stepped forward, boots squelching in corrupted tissue, and quietly muttered, "Another one down."
From the archway, Lysette Alvaro leaned against the crumbled wall of the dungeon entrance, one hand on her sword hilt, the other toying with a communication crystal that hadn't left her ear in hours. Her silver eyes narrowed at the blood-slicked figure of Kael as he emerged from the corrupted nest.
She wasn't sure what disturbed her more—the efficiency of his kill, or the lack of emotion in his face.
"You took that job off the board three hours ago. No backup. No request for hazard reassessment. Just you. Alone." She kicked off the wall and approached. "And yet… here you are."
Kael glanced at her, his face unreadable beneath the scarring across his jawline. "You said you were watching."
"I was," she admitted. "You didn't leave anything for cleanup."
"I didn't intend to."
Lysette hesitated, then asked flatly, "Why do you keep taking these contracts? Low-pay, high-risk, no support. You could've moved up by now—joined a proper guild. Gotten promoted to B-Rank. Hell, maybe A."
Kael tilted his head. "You want a real answer?"
"No. I want to understand."
Kael's eyes turned distant—haunted, even.
[FLASHBACK – FOUR YEARS AGO]
The sky was gray when they entered the Verdant Hollow.
Kael remembered it clearly: the warm laughter of Cassian, their healer, echoing off the trees. Marell, the tank, boisterous and confident, smacking his shield as if daring anything to try him. Nira, the scout, light on her feet and always one bad joke away from cracking Kael's stoic shell.
They were just a team of nobodies, fresh off a D-Rank success, cocky enough to challenge their first C-Rank dungeon.
It wasn't supposed to think.
The Hollow shifted halfway through. The map twisted. Monsters weren't in the same places anymore. The traps evolved. One by one, they fell—Nira taken by vines, screaming until her voice choked on blood. Marell held the line too long. Cassian's barrier failed.
Kael ran. Not because he was a coward. But because Cassian made him. Forced a teleport sigil into Kael's hand, begging him to live—"Someone has to remember us. Survive. Please."
He woke three days later in a healer's tent. No one believed him when he said the dungeon changed. That it watched them. That it wanted them to die.
But something did.
[FLASHBACK ENDS]
"I keep taking them," Kael said quietly, voice flat, "because they don't warn people. The Guild doesn't investigate. And dungeons don't stop evolving."
Lysette crossed her arms. "You think they're alive?"
Kael's eyes gleamed. "No. I know they are."
The HUD flickered again:
[Warning: Dungeon Activity Detected.]
[Classification: SLEEPER CLASSIFIED - LIVING DUNGEON (Rank: BLACK).]
[Distance: 4.7 km Southwest of Guild District.]
Kael paused, eyes narrowing.
"Something just woke up."
Lysette's comm-crystal buzzed violently, and for once, her face lost composure. "That's… impossible. That area is sealed. It's off the books—has been for years."
Kael's hand dropped to his weapon. "Let me guess. No Guild response team yet?"
"No," she whispered. "They're sending scouts."
"Then they're already dead."
He stepped forward, brushing past her.
Lysette grabbed his arm. "You can't keep doing this alone."
Kael didn't stop walking. "There's no one else."
[System Notice: New Priority Mission Assigned.]
["Devour the Sleeper."]
[Reward: ??? | Failure: Death.]
And in his mind, for the first time in days, the System's voice changed—less mechanical. Almost… eager.
"Feast begins at dusk, Reaper. Let the sleeper dream no more."