Leo wasn't just breathing; he was inhaling the darkness. Every lungful of stale, dungeon air seemed to solidify the void in his chest.
[Bloodline Integration: 15%...] [Warning: The process is extremely painful. Do you wish for sedation?]
"No," Leo growled, his fingers clawing at the stone floor until his fingernails cracked. "I want to... feel everything."
If he forgot the pain, he might forget the hate. And hate was the only thing keeping him alive.
[Sedation rejected. Increasing integration rate.]
His muscles twisted like snakes beneath his skin. His bones snapped, shattered, and then fused back together with an inhuman density. The blood leaking from the wound in his back didn't hit the floor anymore; it levitated, swirling around him like a ribbon of black mercury.
Suddenly, a wet, sucking sound echoed in the shadows.
At the far end of the ritual hall, the carcass of a Cave Ghoul—left behind by the Silver Dawn guild—began to twitch. This wasn't a natural resurrection. Shadows were pouring into the corpse, bloating it until the grey skin cracked.
[First Quest: Survive the Betrayal (Part 2)] [Objective: Eliminate the Abyssal Offspring.] [Reward: Active Skill - Monarch's Gaze.]
The creature lunged. It was fast, a blur of claws and teeth.
Leo had never been a fighter. He was a "mule." But as the creature closed in, time seemed to crawl. His new senses could perceive the flow of dark energy inside the ghoul's chest.
He didn't think. He struck.
His fist, reinforced by the Obsidian System, slammed into the creature's skull mid-air. The sound was like a watermelon hitting a brick wall. Shards of bone and black brain matter sprayed across Leo's face.
[Level Up!] [Current Level: 1 -> 2] [You have absorbed the Essence of Fear. Stat Points +5]
Leo stood up, panting. He felt... light. Powerful. But as he wiped the gore from his eyes, he noticed something in the corner of the room.
A silhouette.
It wasn't a monster. It was a woman, chained to an obsidian pillar that the guild had completely overlooked. She was nearly naked, her alabaster skin covered in glowing red runes that pulsed like a beating heart. Her black hair fell in waves over her shoulders, partially hiding eyes of electric violet.
She didn't look afraid. She was watching him with predatory curiosity, her lips curving into a smile that promised both pleasure and ruin.
"A new Monarch?" her voice was a silken whisper that sent a shiver through Leo—not of fear, but of a sudden, violent heat. "And here I thought I'd die of boredom in this hole."
She strained against her chains, the movement accentuating her curves beneath the glowing runes.
"Free me, little king," she purred. "And I'll show you secrets even your System is too afraid to tell you."