The cavern trembled.
Before the Goblin Boss advanced again, Farhan's vision sharpened—and translucent panels unfolded silently before him.
---
**Status Window**
**Name:** Farhan
**Tier:** 0
**Stats:**
* Strength: **12**
* Agility: **13**
* Endurance: **12**
* Will: **11**
* Perception: **12**
**Power Points:** **18**
**Active Affinities:**
⚡ Lightning
🌑 Shadow
**Dormant Affinities:**
🌀 Space *(Locked)*
🌱 Life *(Locked)*
---
The panels faded.
Farhan's breathing slowed. His heartbeat steadied.
"C-Rank," he said quietly, eyes fixed on the towering Goblin Boss. "Too strong for this dungeon… but not unbeatable."
The creature roared and charged.
Its claw tore through the air, heavy enough to split stone. Farhan didn't panic. He moved with intent—twisting his body just enough to let the attack graze past him. The impact shattered the wall behind him.
Pain flared along his side.
He ignored it.
Lightning snapped across his arm as he countered, slamming his fist into the boss's ribs. The impact echoed, but the creature didn't fall. Thick green blood splashed across the stone.
No panel appeared.
Farhan noticed immediately.
"So it really is kill-only," he muttered. "Good."
The Goblin Boss adapted faster than expected. It slammed both fists into the ground, sending a violent shockwave through the chamber.
The floor buckled.
Farhan was thrown backward, his body crashing into stone. Something in his back cracked. Air tore from his lungs. He slid to the ground, vision dimming.
He tried to stand.
His legs failed.
The dungeon fell silent—unnaturally so.
> **Life State: Critical**
The Goblin Boss advanced, slow and deliberate now. It had learned. It knew he was finished.
Farhan tasted blood.
"So this is where I die…" he whispered. "In an F-Rank hole."
Something answered him.
---
> **Emergency Condition Met**
> **Dormant Authorities Temporarily Unsealed**
---
Pain dulled.
Life surged through his body—not healing fully, but *stabilizing*. Torn muscle reconnected just enough. Breathing returned.
Space folded violently around him, stopping his collapse inches above the ground.
Farhan gasped.
This power was wrong.
It didn't respond to intent.
It responded to **survival**.
He rose.
Lightning detonated outward as shadows tore across the stone. Space compressed brutally, collapsing distance into a single instant.
Farhan appeared in front of the Goblin Boss.
He struck.
There was no roar.
The boss's skull imploded inward, force traveling through its massive frame. The body collapsed like a felled tower, shaking the dungeon to its core.
Silence followed.
Then—
---
> **Enemy Eliminated: Goblin Boss (C-Rank)**
> **Power Points Acquired: +58**
---
The foreign power vanished instantly.
Life receded.
Space snapped back into its locked state.
Pain returned—but controlled.
---
> **Emergency Authority Period Ended**
> **Dormant Affinities Resealed**
---
The panels resurfaced.
---
**Power Points:** **76**
A cluster of glowing **"+"** icons appeared beside multiple stats.
Farhan stared at them for a long second.
Then he began allocating—methodical, precise.
Strength first.
Then Agility.
Then Endurance.
Each touch burned.
Each increase felt *real*.
When it was done, the icons vanished.
The dungeon groaned.
The ground beneath Farhan fractured without warning.
He fell.
Darkness swallowed him whole.
Stone tore past his body as he plunged deeper than the dungeon should have allowed. His consciousness stretched thin—
And in that darkness, something **else** awakened.
Not an element.
Not an affinity.
Something colder.
Older.
---
> **RE-AWAKENING CONFIRMED**
> **Hidden System Authority Detected**
> **Initialization Beginning**
---
Farhan's eyes widened as awareness was dragged beyond flesh, beyond instinct.
And the dungeon went completely silent.
---
### **End of Chapter Three**