The streets grew quieter the deeper Kairis went. The ruins pressed down like tombstones, skeletal towers leaning against one another, windows shattered into black eyes watching his every step. He wasn't a fool—this silence wasn't safety. It was warning.
He paused in the middle of an intersection, his blade resting against his shoulder. The wind carried a foul stench—rotting flesh mixed with iron and ash.
"Something big," he muttered.
The system pulsed in his skull as if agreeing.
[Caution: High-Level Entity Detected]
A low rumble followed, vibrating through the ground, shaking loose rubble from nearby rooftops. Then came the sound—a guttural, wet roar that made the air itself shiver.
Kairis turned just as a shape tore through the side of a building.
The thing was massive. Taller than the stronghold walls, its skin slick and black like tar stretched over bone. A gaping chest cavity revealed a pulsing core of crimson light, beating like a heart too large for its body. Its head was misshapen, three jaws splitting open in different directions, lined with teeth that dripped molten saliva.
Its eyes—if they could be called that—were clusters of glowing red cracks running down its face.
[Name: Abomination of the Rift]
[Rank: ???]
[Threat Level: Catastrophic]
The system didn't bother listing stats.
"Of course," Kairis said under his breath, his voice flat. "Why not."
The monster lunged, one claw the size of a truck slamming down where he'd stood. The street shattered, shockwaves rippling outward. Kairis had already moved, body blurring to the side, his blade flashing as he aimed for its limb.
The Graviton Edge cut deep, space bending around the strike, but the wound barely slowed it. Black ichor hissed from the gash, the stench burning his nose.
The monster shrieked, a sound that shook glass and eardrums alike, then swung its other arm. He raised his blade, distortion meeting flesh—but the impact launched him through a car, metal crushing beneath his body.
Pain lit up his ribs. He coughed blood, forcing himself up, the taste bitter on his tongue.
[HP: 62%]
"Too strong," he admitted, eyes narrowing. "But not impossible."
The beast charged again. Each step cracked the asphalt, each roar a storm. Kairis ducked under a swipe, slashing across its torso—only for the creature to twist unnaturally, slamming its other claw into him. The blow hurled him into the remains of a wall, the stone collapsing around him.
[HP: 39%]
His breathing grew ragged. He pushed the rubble aside, purple glow flickering in his eyes. He wasn't afraid—fear had died with his parents. But he knew one thing: this wasn't a fight he could win head-on.
He gritted his teeth. "System… what are you hiding from me?"
The answer came not in words, but in instinct. A skill—locked until now—scratched at the edge of his mind like claws against stone.
The monster stomped toward him, its massive jaws opening wide, ready to crush him whole.
Something inside Kairis snapped.
The world dimmed. His vision narrowed, black rings forming at the edges of his sight. Space around his outstretched hand warped, twisting unnaturally.
[Skill Unlocked: Micro Black Hole (Active)]
Create a localized singularity to collapse matter within a small radius. Cost: 50% Current HP + 80% MP.
His body screamed in protest. He felt blood vessels burst under his skin, his chest tightening as though gravity itself crushed him. But the void obeyed.
Between him and the beast, reality folded inward. A pitch-black orb, no bigger than a fist, appeared—and everything around it bent. The monster roared in confusion, claws sinking into the ground as it tried to resist. Its skin peeled, its bones cracked, fragments of stone and metal whipping into the singularity.
The shriek was unbearable. The beast thrashed, chunks of its body tearing away, pulled into the void. For a moment, Kairis thought it might actually break free.
But the orb pulsed—and then collapsed, detonating into nothingness.
Silence.
The Abomination was gone. Only fragments remained, scattered across the ruined street, dissolving into black mist.
Kairis staggered forward, vision blurred, blood dripping from his nose. He fell to one knee, his blade keeping him upright.
[HP: 11%]
[MP: 2%]
[Quest Progress: Hunt Awakened Beasts – 8/10]
[Title Gained: The Abyss Walker]
One who peers into the void and survives. Enemies will fear you instinctively.
He exhaled a shaky breath, lips twitching into a grim smile.
"Nearly killed me," he whispered, wiping the blood from his mouth. "But you weren't enough."
The purple glow in his eyes dimmed as exhaustion hit him like a hammer. He stumbled into the shadows of a broken building, collapsing against the wall, his body trembling.
The system pulsed faintly one last time:
[Warning: Repeated use of Micro Black Hole at low levels will damage host body irreversibly.]
Kairis chuckled, a low, tired sound. "Good. Then I'll just get stronger before the next one."
The night swallowed him whole.