What's going on…?
Jael's lungs burned as icy air tore through his throat. Each breath felt like glass scraping his chest as he ran blindly through the forest, branches lashing at his face, roots clawing at his feet. Snow crunched beneath him, loud—too loud.
Behind him, something moved.
Not fast.
Not slow.
Just… inevitable.
What is that thing? Jael thought desperately. Why is it after me?
He dared a glance over his shoulder.
Darkness.
Not the absence of light—but a presence. A distortion, as if the shadows themselves had learned how to breathe.
"No… no, no…" he muttered, panic tightening his voice.
Suddenly, his vision flickered.
A translucent screen snapped into existence before his eyes, floating midair as he ran. Ancient symbols shimmered across it before rearranging themselves into words he could somehow understand.
Beware.
Due to the First Seal being partially broken, both the Gods and the beings of Nether have taken notice of your existence.
Mission: Survive the Emissary of Nether.
The words pulsed faintly, radiating a cold pressure that made his scalp prickle.
"Nether…?" Jael whispered. "What's Nether?"
Only the gods existed. Everyone knew that. Myths spoke of divine realms, ascended beings, blessings and curses—but Nether?
The screen vanished.
At the same time, Jael skidded to a halt.
His instincts screamed.
The forest fell silent.
No wind. No crunch of snow. No distant howls.
The darkness behind him stopped moving.
Slowly—deliberately—it separated itself from the shadows.
Jael turned fully.
And froze.
A humanoid figure stepped into the pale moonlight.
It stood slightly taller than a man, its body lean and unnaturally proportioned. Its skin was dark, not black but ash-like, as if scorched by fire long ago. Two curved horns rose from its head, jagged and uneven, etched with faint crimson veins that pulsed like a heartbeat.
Its eyes opened.
Red.
Cold.
Empty.
"W-Why does it have horns…?" Jael whispered, his voice trembling. "It… it moves like a human…"
The thing tilted its head.
As if hearing him.
Jael's heart slammed violently against his ribs.
"So this is an Emissary of Nether…" he muttered hoarsely. "I just awakened my powers…"
His fingers curled into fists, nails biting into his palms.
"…let's see what it can do."
He focused.
Hard.
The world seemed to dim around him as his thoughts sharpened. A strange pressure built behind his eyes, deep and heavy, like sinking into water. His vision blurred—
Then snapped into clarity.
His eyes shifted.
Lemon green drained away, replaced by a dull, eerie violet glow.
Dream Walk.
He locked onto the creature, willing his consciousness forward, trying to pierce its mind—its dream—anything.
For a split second, something answered him.
A vast, burning void.
Then—
(Target Failed)
The system's mechanical voice echoed coldly in his mind.
Jael staggered backward.
"Failed…?" he gasped. "Why—?"
Pain lanced through his skull, sharp and disorienting, forcing him to drop to one knee. The pressure vanished as suddenly as it came.
The creature stepped closer.
Crunch.
Crunch.
Each step pressed into the snow without urgency, as if it knew escape was impossible.
Jael scrambled backward, fear tightening his chest.
"It's too strong…" he realized. "Its mental resistance—no… it doesn't even dream like a human…"
The Emissary stopped a few meters away.
Its mouth opened.
A sound emerged—not a voice, but something deeper. Like scorched air being forced through cracked stone.
"Bearer… of the Fallen Echo."
Jael's blood ran cold.
"You can speak…?" he whispered.
The creature's head tilted again.
"The dead god stirs.
The seal weakens.
You do not belong."
A surge of killing intent slammed into Jael, so heavy it felt physical.
The Emissary lunged.
Too fast.
Jael barely had time to react before a clawed hand sliced through the air where his head had been a moment earlier. He rolled desperately, snow spraying as the ground exploded behind him.
Move! his mind screamed.
He ran.
The forest blurred as adrenaline flooded his body. Trees flashed past, his legs screaming in protest, but fear kept him upright.
Behind him—
The Emissary leapt.
It landed ahead of him.
Jael skidded to a stop, barely avoiding crashing straight into it.
Trapped.
The creature raised one clawed hand. Dark energy coiled around its fingers, crackling like dying embers.
Jael's chest heaved.
"Survive…" he muttered, recalling the mission. "It didn't say defeat…"
His eyes flickered violet again.
If Dream Walk wouldn't work—
Then hallucinations might.
He focused on the forest, the snow, the shadows.
False reality.
The world twisted.
Suddenly, dozens of Jaels scattered in every direction, sprinting through the trees, each one panicked, each one real enough to breathe.
The Emissary froze.
Its red eyes flicked rapidly from one illusion to another.
"…Now!" Jael shouted, diving sideways as the creature struck—its attack ripping through nothing but empty snow.
Jael didn't stop running.
Not when his lungs felt like they would collapse.
Not when blood soaked his boots.
Not when the forest seemed endless.
Because he understood something now.
This wasn't a nightmare.
This was the beginning.
And death—
Was already walking behind him.