The underground training room fell silent.
Rey stood frozen, eyes locked onto the floating panels before him, his mind still catching up to what had just happened.
A path had opened.
Not one given by chance, nor handed down by luck, but forged through repetition, failure, and stubborn insistence.
[Detected, a certain condition has been met.]
[Through repeated actions, host has gained a new skill: True Aim (F).]
[Through host corrupted Skill space, you've gained skill: Predator's Gaze (F+).]
───◈◈◈───
Predator's Gaze [Tier 0 | F+ | Active]
Proficiency: 6%
───◈ Skill Description ◈───
A darkness-mutated perception skill that activates latent hunting instincts. It sharpens vision into a predatory focus, enhancing clarity of distance, movement, and trajectory. The skill subtly aligns sight, intent, and motion, correcting minor deviations in aim.
───◈◈◈───
Rey swallowed.
This wasn't what he expected.
The ability he'd been forcing, struggling to stabilise, hadn't just improved. It had crossed a line. It had crystallised into something real. Something recognised.
A skill.
And not just one.
His heart beat faster as he reread the description, slowly this time. The words felt heavy, like they carried intent behind them.
Predator.
Gaze.
This wasn't a simple enhancement. This was instinct. Alignment. Correction without thought.
A dangerous kind of growth.
Just as his fingers twitched, tempted to activate it—
"Don't even think about using it."
Rey flinched.
He spun around, nearly stumbling back a step.
"Aiden! Are you trying to kill me?" Rey snapped, clutching his chest. "Don't appear like that!"
Aiden stood behind him, expression unreadable, eyes darker than usual.
"I'm serious," he said calmly. "Don't use it."
Rey frowned. "What do you mean, don't use it? I just got it."
"This isn't the stage where you rely on skills," Aiden replied, as if stating a fact. "You have time. More than enough. Master the foundation first."
Rey's mouth opened, then closed.
A cat caught with its tongue stolen.
"…But I can at least level it up," Rey tried. "I won't spam it. Just a little."
Aiden shook his head.
"Look at the proficiency—six percent. You haven't used it. You created it. Train your base ability, and it will grow on its own. Faster than forcing activation."
Rey clenched his fists.
"But why—"
"No."
The single word cut cleanly.
Aiden's tone sharpened. "This is for your safety. You won't understand now. Later, you'll realise it saved your life."
Rey scoffed under his breath. "You and your mysterious warnings. It's just a skill. What kind of danger—"
The air shifted.
Aiden turned.
His gaze pinned Rey in place.
"Oh? Then let's remove the temptation."
Rey felt a chill crawl up his spine.
"I wasn't planning to do this yet," Aiden continued, voice firm, almost cold. "But your stubbornness leaves me no choice."
The room seemed to tighten.
"From today onward, until the competition ends, you will not use any skills or relic abilities."
Rey's eyes widened.
"Except Darkness itself and your arsenal," Aiden finished. "Everything else—sealed until the competition ends."
"What?" Rey blurted. "Wait, Aiden—"
Too late.
System windows exploded into existence.
Not notifications.
Locks.
Rey tried to open his status—
A dark screen slammed shut in front of his vision.
"Hey—! This isn't funny!" Rey said, panic creeping in. "Stop joking around!"
"I'm not joking," Aiden replied quietly. "Trust me."
Then he vanished.
The training room felt emptier than it ever had.
Rey stood alone, heart pounding, staring into nothing.
"What the hell…" he whispered.
After several seconds, the system responded.
Recalibrating.
Ten seconds passed like an eternity.
Then—
───◈◈◈◈◈───
Name: Rey Shadowthrone
Age: 18
Race: Human (Fully Dark-Attributed)
Physique: Darkness Physique (Upgradable)
Class: None
Level: 19 [9,260/25,000]
[Attributes]
HP: 2,920/2,920 (Reserve Energy: +2,920)
MP: 2,765/2,765(Mana Overload: +2,765)
Stats:
Strength (STR): 511 [C+] (↑4)
Agility (AGI): 510 [C+] (↑2)
Vitality (VIT): 584 [C+] (↑1)
Intelligence (INT): 553 [C+] (↑364)
Stamina (STA): 527 [C+] (↑1)
Endurance (END): 503 [C+] (↑4)
Luck (LUK): F+ (Dependent on Core)
Free Stat Points: 298 (280↑)
Derived Stats:
Attack Power (ATK): 612.6 [(STR + AGI) * 1.2] (Potential Strength: +612.6)
Magical Power (MGL): 331.8 [INT * 1.2] (Arcane Potential: +331.8)
Defence (DEF): 515 [(END + STA) * 1] (Reinforcement Reserve: +515)
[Skills] [🔒]
Art/Technique(s):
Veil of the Unseen Abyss {Stage 0 – Concealment of Shadows} [44.8%]
Abilities:
Tier 0: DARKNESS (EX+)
[God's Relic(S)]
1. Victor [🔒]
2. Aiden [🔒]
3. Zero [🔒]
───◈ Arsenal Mastery ◈───
Sword: E+ ↑ (99%)
Dagger/Knives: E+ ↑ (99%)
Spear: E+ ↑ (99%)
Shield: E+ ↑ (78%)
Bow: E+ ↑ (99%)
Greatsword: D- ↑ (76%)
Hand-to-Hand: E+ ↑ (18%)
Gun: E (11%)
Hammer: E+ ↑ (2%)
Katana: E+ (94%)
───◈◈◈◈◈───
Rey stared.
His skills were sealed.
Victor. Sealed.
Zero. Gone.
Even Aiden—locked out.
The hum he'd grown used to, that constant presence inside his body, was gone.
For the first time in a long while—
He felt alone.
A hollow sensation lingered in his chest, subtle but unmistakable.
"…You've got to be kidding me," Rey muttered.
He clenched his fists.
Nothing answered.
No voice.
No presence.
Only the quiet pulse of his own Darkness.
Whatever Aiden had done, there was no undoing it now.
And somehow—
Deep down—
Rey understood.
This wasn't punishment.
This was a trial.
...
Inside the white space, silence carried weight.
Aiden lounged back as if nothing mattered, one arm draped lazily over the side of the couch. Yet his eyes were sharp, flicking once toward Victor, then settling on Zero.
"What do you want?" he asked casually. "You're staring holes through me."
Victor stepped forward first, brows drawn tight.
"You know exactly why," he said. "Why would you do something like that? Do you even realise the kid's situation? He's been surviving with our help. With our abilities. And you just stripped that away."
Aiden let out a slow breath and leaned deeper into the cushions.
"And now you're worried?" he replied. "I've handled his training from the start. You didn't complain then. So don't start acting sentimental now."
Victor opened his mouth to argue again, but stopped.
Zero had not said a word.
She was staring.
And that stare alone made the space feel colder.
Before Aiden could notice the shift—
The couch beneath him moved.
Not fell. Not broke.
It wrapped.
Dark matter twisted like living coils, snaring his waist, arms, and shoulders, lifting him clean off the ground. The pressure tightened in precise increments, not crushing, but threatening.
"Ack—! Zero, what are you doing?" Aiden snapped. "Release me. Now."
Her expression did not change.
Her voice entered the space directly, calm and flat.
[I will ask once.
This is your spiritual body.
Next time, it won't be just this.]
The coils tightened.
Aiden hissed and raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright! Stop. I'll talk."
The pressure eased, but did not disappear.
Victor let out an awkward laugh. "Looks like you don't get to dodge this one. Go on. Explain. Slowly."
Zero's gaze flicked to him.
Victor instantly shut up.
Aiden sighed, finally sitting upright as the coils loosened just enough for him to breathe.
"You both said he's nothing without us," Aiden began, voice quieter now. "So let me ask you something."
"What happens when he faces someone who can block relic influence?"
Silence followed.
"There are ways," Aiden continued. "Methods. Fields. Authority zones. If he encounters one of those and relies only on us, he dies. Plain and simple."
Victor frowned.
"But sealing everything—"
"He's holding too much," Aiden cut in. "That's the real problem. My power. Yours. Zero's. Darkness. Any one of them is enough to turn a normal human into a Candidate. Yet he's trying to balance all of them at once."
His eyes narrowed.
"He's hardworking, yes. But scattered. He hasn't truly mastered even one."
Zero listened without interruption.
"In my view," Aiden said, "it's better to be a master of one path than a half-baked god of many. If he can't stand without us, then all this power is meaningless."
Victor exhaled slowly. "So what? You plan to seal everything forever?"
"I was considering it," Aiden replied.
A new voice entered the white space.
Calm. Detached.
"If you do that," Veylen said from his seat in the shadows, "leave Darkness untouched."
Aiden clicked his tongue in irritation. "You're the last one whose opinion I need."
"But you know I'm right," Veylen continued. "With Darkness alone, he can climb tiers without your interference. It makes his growth… cleaner. Defined. You interfering constantly only blurs his path."
Aiden glared at him. "I'd seal you too if I could."
"You can't," Veylen replied calmly. "Oblivion outranks you. The system cannot interfere with it."
That truth stung more than Aiden liked.
Veylen closed his eyes, his presence dimming slightly. "We'll see what path he chooses in a month. The one you forced may drag him closer to my domain than you intend."
Aiden's jaw tightened.
"I won't let him end up like your kind," he said coldly. "He'll crush that curse. I'll make sure of it."
Victor stepped between the tension.
"Enough," he said. "What matters now is growth. If this trial sharpens him, it works. If it breaks him… then we rethink."
Aiden's expression slowly shifted.
A smirk formed.
"That's where you're wrong," he said, eyes turning toward the endless wall of white. "This kid doesn't break that easily."
Victor followed his gaze.
Somewhere beyond the space, Rey was already moving.
Victor shook his head with a faint smile. "Maybe you're right."
The white space grew quiet again.
From this point on, Rey's path would no longer be supported.
It would be earned.
And whether it would elevate him—
Or bury him—
None of them could say.