The first dungeon loomed ahead like a cathedral of steel and shadow. Kaito—Kael in the game—stood at the threshold, staring up at its jagged gates. Above, glowing runes shifted with an eerie rhythm, pulsing as if the dungeon itself were alive. Players swarmed the entrance, some nervously chatting, others flexing their abilities. Every eye was on the first dungeon run, and cameras across the world were broadcasting every move.
"Relax," Ren's voice echoed in his earpiece. "It's just a game… mostly."
Kaito ignored him. His fingers hovered over the skill wheel, adrenaline thrumming in his veins. Mostly. That warning had already sunk deep. In Deathrun, one wrong move didn't just cost points—it cost lives.
As the countdown began, Kaito's HUD lit up. Dungeon Entry: 3… 2… 1…
The gates groaned, opening to reveal the abyss beyond. Darkness stretched infinitely, broken only by the flicker of torches and the distant roar of unseen beasts. Kaito stepped forward. The moment his boots hit the dungeon floor, the air seemed to thrum with power. Mana flowed differently here—heavier, sharper, as if aware of him.
The first enemy appeared before anyone could react: a skeletal knight wielding a jagged greatsword, its eyes burning blue. Players scattered, some freezing in panic.
Kaito gritted his teeth and dashed forward. His first skill—a dagger strike empowered by a sliver of mana—hit the skeleton squarely in the chest. The bones shattered with a satisfying crunch, and experience points streamed into his HUD.
"Beginner's luck," he muttered. But the thrill coursing through him was undeniable. Every sense was alive, every movement crucial.
A second wave surged forward: goblins with crude axes, a hulking troll swinging a spiked club. Players screamed, dodged, and attacked, many falling immediately. Kael moved instinctively, striking, dodging, weaving through chaos.
And then he saw it—a shimmer in the corner of the dungeon. A special spawn. Its health bar pulsed gold, unlike any normal enemy. The whispers in his mind told him instantly: this wasn't just another mob. This was a boss.
"First one already?" Ren's voice came through, tight with disbelief.
Kaito's fingers danced across his controls, activating a combination skill chain. The golden boss snarled, swinging massive claws. Kael rolled beneath them, striking weak points in rhythm with his heartbeat. His HUD exploded with notifications: Critical Hit! Combo Streak! Boss Enraged!
The fight drew every eye. The live stream chat exploded, viewers around the globe holding their breath. "Is he—he's soloing it!" one comment read.
The boss staggered. Kaito's heart hammered. One more perfect chain, one more instinctive strike, and it would fall. The world seemed to blur around him, sound fading into the rhythm of his attacks.
Then, a misstep—a flicker of overconfidence. His foot caught a rune trap, sending him sprawling. Pain flared in real life as neural feedback stabbed him through the headset. A warning flashed across his HUD: Physical Trauma Detected.
"Stay calm!" he yelled, teeth gritted. The boss's claw swung down with horrifying precision. Kael rolled again, narrowly evading death.
Instinct, skill, and sheer luck collided. With one final strike, the golden boss let out a shriek that echoed through the dungeon and the broadcast feeds worldwide. It collapsed in a shower of gold particles. Experience points skyrocketed, loot glimmered around him.
Kael gasped, sweat dripping, body trembling, but alive. The chat exploded with praise, disbelief, and sheer excitement.
Ren's voice came through, shaky but exhilarated. "You… you survived."
Kaito ripped off the VR headset for a second, blinking at the real world, heart still pounding. This is only the beginning, he thought.
The dungeon had tested him—and the world had watched. But somewhere in the shadows, deeper within Deathrun, something even larger stirred. Special bosses weren't meant to be taken lightly, and Kael's arrival hadn't gone unnoticed.
The game was far from over. And Kael knew that for every victory, the stakes would only get higher.
The line between game and life had already begun to blur.