[Wave 2 Active – Time Remaining: 19:58]
[Primary Threat Identified: Named Aberration – Harrowborne]
[Platform Integrity: 85% → 81%]
[Catalyst Core Status: Yellow → Orange]
[Survivors Remaining: 18]
The fog coiled around the station like choking smoke. Every lamp flickered and died as the creature's distorted form stepped forward—man-shaped, yet utterly wrong. Its joints clicked when it moved. Its arms were too long, fingers like sharp needles twitching in slow rhythm.
And that mouth…
It stretched from forehead to chest. A long vertical slit filled with wet, glistening teeth, flexing as if tasting the fear in the air.
[Harrowborne - Prototype Aberration]
– Level: ???
– Instability: 92%
– Adaptive Mutation Trait Detected
– Immune to Standard Suppression Skills
– Warning: Not bound by normal scenario rules
"Impossible…" Noah whispered. "This thing wasn't in Endgame Protocol. It's a deviant…"
He wasn't the only one frozen.
Even the Watchers were quiet.
[The Watchers are observing with interest.]
[Some have placed private wagers.]
[Your decision will influence future Scenario integrity.]
Ashtiel hovered low beside Noah, voice tense for once. "You drew attention from Veil of the Pale Choir. That… is a Host-class Watcher. Their interference bends story structure."
"You mean it rewrites the story," Noah said.
"Correct. And this Harrowborne? It's not supposed to exist. But now it does—because you do."
The weight of that hit harder than he expected.
He wasn't just replacing Lucien anymore.
He was breaking the narrative entirely.
Then I need to win this. I need to prove I belong in this world—even if I was never written into it.
The Harrowborne twitched and let out a sound—no, a pulse. Not a scream, not a roar. Just a wave of silence that hit the chest like a hammer.
Half the survivors dropped to their knees, clutching their heads.
[Mental Suppression Field Detected.]
– Debuff: Courage -2
– Status Effect: Mind Dissonance (10s)
Noah grimaced as static buzzed behind his eyes.
Even he felt the pressure. Barely.
[Passive Trait: Lesser Despair Immunity – Resisted.]
[Insight of the End – Analyzing unknown entity… 11%]
"Seraphine!" Noah barked. "Get those people up! Keep them away from the Core!"
She nodded and sprinted toward the fallen group, flames igniting her fists once more.
But Noah didn't move yet.
His eyes scanned Harrowborne, waiting for a pattern.
The mouth... it hasn't fully opened yet. That means its main attack isn't active.
It's still in observation phase. Like it's... learning.
He needed to act before it adapted.
"Hey, teeth-for-a-face," Noah muttered. "You want to eat something?"
[Ruin Step Activated.]
He launched himself forward, the floor exploding behind him as his foot slammed down.
In a blink, he was in front of the creature—faster than anyone expected.
And he struck.
A full-force side kick straight into Harrowborne's exposed ribs.
CRACK!
The shockwave tore concrete from the platform. Chunks flew. A rail snapped.
The Harrowborne didn't move.
Instead, its vertical mouth slowly opened.
Inside was another mouth, smaller, spinning like a grinder.
[Alert: Harrowborne's Core Anatomy Detected.]
– Mutation Response Triggered
– Adaptive Trait Unlocked: Kinetic Absorption Lv.1
– Your skill has been absorbed. Ruin Step effectiveness reduced by 20% against this target.
"What?!"
Harrowborne lifted one arm and swatted Noah.
He flew like a ragdoll, slammed into a pillar, and crashed down in a heap. Pain erupted across his chest.
[HP -34]
[Temporary Status: Fractured Rib (Light)]
[Cooldown Extension: Ruin Step +5s due to internal damage]
"Noah!" Seraphine shouted.
She turned, flames surging, and hurled a searing blast toward the Aberration's face.
It hit. Smoke rose.
But the Harrowborne's mouth merely tilted open wider, devouring the fire as if sipping wine.
[Trait Activated: Thermal Reconfiguration – Fire Immunity Acquired.]
Seraphine's hands lowered.
"...Oh no."
Noah forced himself up, coughing blood.
"He's copying us."
Ashtiel appeared beside him. "He's not just copying. He's learning. Every time you use a technique, he converts the energy into a countermeasure."
"So what the hell do we do?"
"Give him something he can't adapt to," Ashtiel said, grinning. "Or die."
The odds were tipping. Survivors screamed as smaller Riftlings flooded through secondary rifts. Three died instantly. Blood painted the edge of the Catalyst Core chamber.
[Survivors Remaining: 15]
[Catalyst Core Integrity: 41% – Status: CRITICAL]
I need to break the loop. Use something he hasn't seen. Something even Lucien never did...
Noah's eyes darted toward the railing, toward the collapsing scaffolding just above the tracks.
Then toward himself.
He can copy skills... but not thoughts.
He grabbed a bent metal beam.
[Improvised Weapon Acquired: Reinforced Iron Rod (Wrecked)]
[Item Class: Junk / Destructible]
[No Affinity. No enhancement. No energy signature.]
Perfect.
He sprinted at Harrowborne again.
The creature raised a hand—ready to counter another Ruin Step. But Noah didn't use it.
Instead, he slid beneath the creature and jammed the metal rod deep into its second mouth.
The Harrowborne spasmed.
The mouth convulsed—unable to close fully with the foreign object inside.
[Enemy Staggered.]
[Opportunity: Weak Point Exposed – Core Mouth Disrupted.]
Seraphine didn't wait.
She screamed—her flames growing brighter, hotter. The temperature spiked.
Her aura condensed into a single stream of white-blue fire. She leapt.
[Flame Baptism: Overheat Mode Initiated.]
[Active Trait: Combustion Core Strike – Critical Hit Chance 100%]
Her foot collided with Harrowborne's jaw.
BOOM.
The explosion rocked the station. Light and flame roared across the platform. The Aberration's upper jaw cracked. Its body reeled.
Noah forced himself to his feet just as the second mouth shrieked.
"NOW!"
[Ruin Step Activated – Stacked Momentum: +2]
Noah dashed, spun, and drove his foot into the cracked jaw.
CRACK!
The core shattered.
The Harrowborne staggered backward… and dissolved into dust.
[Enemy Defeated: Harrowborne]
[Named Threat Eliminated – Difficulty Bonus Applied]
[Coins +2,000]
[Catalyst Core Stabilizing…]
[System Reward: Trait Evolution Opportunity Available]
Silence.
Noah collapsed to one knee, gasping. Blood ran down his ribs. His shirt was torn, ash coating his arms.
But it was done.
They'd won.
[Wave 2: COMPLETE]
[Time Remaining: 00:00]
[Platform Integrity: 62%]
[Catalyst Core Status: Stabilized – Green]
[You are currently Ranked #1 in Danton Sector]
Cheers erupted behind him. The remaining survivors began crying, hugging, trembling in exhausted disbelief.
Seraphine dropped beside him, coughing.
"You okay?" she asked.
"I'll live," Noah rasped.
"You fought like you'd seen that monster before."
"I hadn't," he said. "But I've read worse."
She stared at him.
"You're not like the rest of us."
"I was just a reader," Noah said quietly. "Now I'm part of the story."