It had been a week since the Ninth Dungeon was cleared. Everyone celebrated, but my head still buzzed with echoes of clashing steel and the screams of things I couldn't forget. I realized I needed distance. I needed air. I needed silence. So, I left Arkanos City and bought a small cottage at Tempest Gulf. It wasn't much, just four walls, a slanted roof, and a crooked porch. One merchant had warned me it was a bad spot to settle, but I didn't care. The cottage sat where the land met the beach, its pale walls worn thin by years of wind and salt spray, its windows catching the sunlight like tired eyes opening. It looked like a peasant's house, but I didn't mind. I had always loved the smell of the sea and the sound of waves breaking against the shore. There was a kind of peace there—a quiet that made me feel… comfortable.
Morning light spilled across the sand as I climbed the narrow path toward the cottage. With every step, the sea murmured against the dark rocks below, and gulls wheeled and called overhead. The closer I got, the stronger the smell of salt and wet pine became, wrapping the path in a sharp, familiar scent. I stepped onto the porch, and the boards creaked under my boots, each sound marking the moment. Inside, dust hung in slow ribbons through the beams of sunlight. A wooden table, a narrow bed, and scattered objects that were untouched for months stood like quiet witnesses. The air carried the scent of old wood and sea, a calm I hadn't felt in a long time.
I breathed in deeply, letting the tight ache in my chest ease a little. "This will do," I said, exhaling a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.
From my inventory, I selected the Easter Egg and then the vial of Ambrosia, a golden liquid that shimmered with every tiny movement. I set them gently on the table, the soft light of the cottage bending and flickering around their shapes.
"We'll finally meet again, Sekhmet," I said as the waves crashed just beyond the walls.
I uncorked the vial of Ambrosia. A single drop slid from its rim and landed on the Easter Egg's shell. Light rippled outward, and a soft hum began in the cottage, growing steadily until the windows rattled. White cracks raced across the shell, glowing brighter with every second. I shielded my eyes and stepped back as a pulse of brilliance washed over the room. When the light faded, the Easter Egg was gone. In its place sat a small yellow cat, fur warm and soft as sunlight. Each of its legs bore tiny white wings, fluttering with gentle curiosity. It blinked up at me, tilting its head, as if trying to understand the world it had just been born into.
A system window appeared above the cat's head:
[EASTER EGG HATCHED]:
[FAMILIAR NAME]: [SEKHMET] — (LEVEL 0)
[RARITY]: [DIVINE]
[STATUS]: [FLEDGLING]
[SKILL/S]: [???]
"Fledgling," I said. "I guess that explains why you're just a little cat right now."
In Etherveil, familiars evolve through four stages. Fledgling is the starting stage, where a familiar gains its first ability and appears in its base form. Juvenile is the second stage, adding a second ability as the familiar begins to mature. Prime is the third stage, where it fully matures and learns a third ability. The final stage, Apex, grants a familiar its true form, a passive ability, and its third core ability.
Sekhmet meowed, leaping onto my shoulder with a weight as gentle as breath. Warmth spread down my neck as she curled around, purring softly.
"So you're Sekhmet, huh?" I said, gently patting her head.
By midday, we were making our way toward Arkanos City for the special event that promised a random mystery item. Sekhmet perched on my shoulder, her tail brushing my chin with every step. The city rose gradually ahead of us—first just a pale shape on the horizon, then a sharper silhouette against the sky as we drew nearer. The sound of voices grew louder, carried on the wind, and soon we could see crowds gathering near the gates, anticipation buzzing through the air.
Glowing red letters tore across the sky like fire across parchment above the crown of Arkanos City.
[SPECIAL EVENT]: [MONSTER ENCORE]
[LOCATION]: [NEAR THE GATES OF ARKANOS CITY]
[MISSION]: [DESTROY THE DARK TOWERS OF AKRAM]
[REWARD]: [???]
[EVENT STARTS]: [00:01:16]
"I got here just in time…" I said, panting as I reached the gates.
Then, as the timer ticked down to zero, the world changed.
Now, we were standing in a vast, empty grassland. A dry wind swept across the plains, bending the tall grass into long, rolling waves. One by one, players began to appear across the field—hundreds of them, weapons already drawn, armor glinting beneath the bright sky. The air buzzed with tension, every player ready for whatever challenge had just begun.
Then came a system ping, projecting across the dungeon:
[WORLD RANK PLAYER DETECTED]:
[PLAYER 25]: [DERKA DOSUNMU] — (LEVEL 96) — [WORLD RANK 8]
"It's the protector, Derka!" a female healer said as she conversed with her guildmates. "I've heard that he's the reason why nobody died during the seventh dungeon clearing!"
"Seriously??!!" the female healer's guildmates responded. "We're in good hands then!"
Sekhmet trembled on my shoulder, her tiny wings fluffing in alarm.
"It's alright," I whispered, patting Sekhmet's soft fur.
Then, the ground vibrated. A low hum rippled beneath my boots. It was soft at first, strange, almost like the heartbeat of something buried beneath the plain. The long grass rustled even though the wind had slowed to nothing.
"What the hell is going on…?" a player behind me muttered.
Five columns of bright violet light suddenly shot up from the soil. The air warped in their wake, heat and pressure bending it like glass. The brilliance forced everyone to take a step back. Some shielded their eyes, others cursed as the ground shuddered beneath our feet. When the brilliance faded, five crystal-like towers revealed themselves in a perfect pentagon. Glowing runes ran across their surfaces, and thin black roots crept from their bases, sinking into the ground like living veins.
A chill raced through the crowd as a system window appeared on each tower:
[DARK TOWER OF AKRAM] — (LEVEL 100)
[HP]: [200/200]
"L-Level 100?!" a female mage shouted from a distance. "Each of them?!"
My pulse quickened. "The same level as Oberon..." I said, tightly gripping my dagger's hilt. "A lot of low-level players have gathered here... thinking it was just a normal event. This is bad news."
My eyes widened as I remembered that if the towers remained alive, they would keep spawning monsters, and the towers could only be hit once the monsters they spawned were dead. Then, the first tower flared violently. A spectral shape formed above it: The Eye of Akram. Its body shimmered with violet energy, impossibly precise, its blank face exuding something that should not exist. The second tower lit immediately afterward, spawning another Eye.
A system window appeared above their heads:
[EYE OF AKRAM] — (LEVEL 80)
[HP]: [160/160]
The Eyes of Akram hovered across the battlefield, scanning the crowd like a hawk scouting its prey.
I crouched low, pressing my dagger into my palm. "Stay with me, Sekhmet," I whispered. Sekhmet meowed softly in response, curling closer.
The first Eye of Akram suddenly froze midair. Its wide pupil locked onto us, and then sharp arcs of purple energy burst outward from its eye, spinning in unpredictable patterns.
I felt a sudden rush of heat and light behind me. The glowing streak cut through the air in a curved line, leaving a faint trail as it closed the distance fast.
"WATCH OUT!" a male warrior shouted just as the purple arc rushed toward my back.
As soon as my feet hit the ground, I struck back. Using my copied skill, Primal Water, I summoned a strong surge from below. Water burst from the stone floor in a rising torrent and slammed into the first Eye of Akram, knocking it hard through the air.
My eyes finally found Derka Dimitris as he rushed forward to follow up with an attack. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with rough bronze skin streaked with moss, dirt, and old scars. Messy dark green hair fell over his face, and a pair of black, stone-like horns twisted from the sides of his head. One arm was covered in bark, with glowing green veins pulsing like living wood. He wore a white cloth wrap across his torso, dark green pants, and worn sandals. In his hand, he held a large sword that glowed with gold and green, wrapped in vines. Beside him hovered a dryad in orange-lit leafy armor.
Derka activated a skill: Veridian Storm. Sharpened emerald shards formed at the tip of his sword, and then it homed in and pierced through the first Eye of Akram's body, applying a debuff: Paralysis.
As the first Eye fell from the sky, I leapt, piercing it with my dagger into its eye. It cracked, fragmented, and dissolved. My hands trembled slightly from the effort.
"Oy! Good assist!" Derka shouted at me, lifting his right hand in a quick wave, his voice loud and full of energy even in the middle of the fight.
I wanted to answer back, but I couldn't. The job was not done yet. The second Eye of Akram was still attacking low-level players. In Etherveil, the high-level monsters go for the weakest players as long as they are in their range. And that's just one of the reasons why I hated this game. It was just unfair.
"Wait, what?" I thought, staring at the towers. "The name 'Akram' is weirdly familiar..."
In less than a millisecond, a bright purple beam shot straight into my vision, filling my sight through my pupil. The first tower had fired at me. It was far too fast to dodge. There was no time to think, no time to move. But then something slammed hard into my back. The impact sent me flying to the side. Pain shot through my body as I hit the ground, but the purple beam missed where I had just been standing. It hurt, but whatever hit me had pushed me out of the way and saved my life.
"Don't zone out next time, lackey!" a familiar voice shouted. "Yer gonna get yourself killed!"
"That voice…" I muttered as I pushed myself onto my knees and lifted my head. "Are you—ALBERKA?!"
The woman standing a few steps away was Vladimir Alberka, the Russian woman I had met at the edge of the broken watchtower. The same one who stole my loot. I never expected to see her here.
"Hell yeah!" Vladimir said with a grin. "Oh… and how much damage did I inflict on you?"
"Damage?" I blinked. "What damage?"
"Uh… I kicked you," she replied casually. "You should drink a health potion before jumping back in."
"And stop calling me 'Alberka', it sounds awful," she said just before she charged forward to battle.
"There's no way a kick could hurt me that bad, right?" I muttered to myself as I tapped the health status button to check my HP. "Now let's see…"
A system window appeared in front of me:
[HP]: [60/100]
[MP]: [100/100]
"WHAT THE HELL?!" I yelled mentally. "HOW DID THAT KICK DO THAT MUCH DAMAGE? WHAT THE HELL IS SHE?! AND HOW STRONG HAS SHE GOTTEN?!"