Azer awoke on the dungeon floor, sunlight—or what passed for light in this place—filtering faintly through cracks in the stone.
He flexed his fingers. Shadow moved with him like a loyal hound; lightning crackled faintly along his arm. His body felt different—sharper, heavier, honed. Alive in a way he had not been before.
[System Notification – Class Evolution Complete: Shadowbound Initiate → Void Fang Assassin]
The name echoed in his mind. He flexed, testing the new skills. Shadow Step moved faster, more fluidly. Tendrils of darkness could now strike and retract with purpose. Lightning was no longer just destructive—it was precise, surgical. He could see the path of currents along muscles and nerves, the hidden weaknesses in living things.
The chamber was crumbling around him. The Hollow Throne had noticed his evolution. The dungeon shifted, stones grinding and walls collapsing slowly.
Azer rose, unafraid.
"Guess I'll have to move fast," he muttered.
He reached for the next corridor, shadows stretching to guide his steps. Behind him, the relic shard pulsed one last time before dissolving entirely, leaving him stronger, sharper, and marked by the dungeon itself.
The Survival Arc had begun. And the Hollow Throne would test him further.