The moment Yun Jin and Merlin stepped into the guild hall, heads turned.

  By now, most adventurers in the town knew who he was.

  The man who had cleared the Red Rift gate that even seasoned parties rarely made it out.

  The same man who had openly challenged one of the wealthiest groups in the city and walked away.

  And, recently, the rumored wielder of a replica of the Hero Sword itself.

  “What did you do?” Merlin whispered, shifting closer to Yun Jin as a fresh wave of stares followed them across the floor.

  “I went shopping while you were asleep,” Yun Jin replied with a small, amused chuckle. “Nothing major.”

  He led the way to the mission board, brushing off the attention like it was nothing.

  Since Merlin had just recently recovered, they decided on a rank D mission—challenging enough for training, but not overwhelming.

  To maximize the learning experience, Yun Jin insisted on going as a duo.

  “No extra teammates,” he said. “Just us.”

  Merlin agreed. They had grown stronger and now it was time to test it.

  “A demon lair, huh?” Yun Jin studied the listing for their chosen gate.

  It had already been partially scouted. The environment was described as an ancient altar site, guarded by demonic creatures. Strangely, the demons inside had shown little aggression so far. No attacks. No signs of ritual activity. The area was quiet.

  Which made it the perfect training ground.

  According to the scout report, the demons included imps, gargoyles, and a few banshees. However, the gate’s boss or even the true purpose of the dimension had yet to be located.

  “I remember reading in Ardent’s library that light magic is naturally strong against demons,” Yun Jin said. “So, to make our bet fair, I’ll stick to ice.”

  Lately, he had been experimenting more with his Ice Affinity. It looked elegant, and while he already had techniques like [Aura Surge] and [Sword Wave] tied to light, his control over ice was more rudimentary—mostly conjuring shapes like swords or spikes.

  “It’s okay,” Merlin said firmly. “Use light if you need to. I want to fight at full strength too.”

  Yun Jin tilted his head, smiling. “If you insist. I’ve already chosen my favor anyway.”

  The grin on his face made Merlin shudder involuntarily.

  “You’ll see. I’ve prepared a favor for you too,” Merlin countered, smirking with confidence. He hadn’t shown much progress during their training in Ardent’s garden, but he’d been holding something back.

  A plan.

  One that could let him overcome Yun Jin’s speed.

  “We’ll see,” Yun Jin replied.

  As the two of them departed from the guild, unaware of the figures watching from afar, a quiet tension began to stir behind them.

  Dressed in humble robes, a group of individuals stood clustered near the stairwell—nuns, by appearance, blending seamlessly with the locals. But there was a coldness to them, an unnatural stillness that hinted at something darker beneath the surface.

  At their center stood a girl whose face was all too familiar.

  Seraphine.

  Her hair had grown long. Her once-innocent eyes now gleamed faint crimson in the low light.

  “The little boy is one of Mother’s favorites,” she murmured, voice gentle. “As for the other… Mother wishes to invite him before anything else.”

  A tall figure beside her—clad in black, face lined with calm—smiled at her words.

  “Have you tried persuading them, little sister?” Pastor Yomu asked, his tone soft but laced with something colder.

  “I… no, Brother Yomu,” Seraphine replied, voice faltering. “I’ve been trying to blend in.”

  Another figure stepped forward—a short woman with a porcelain smile and a voice like honey. “Since our last offering failed, we need either quantity… or quality. We know you’re new, but it’s time to repay our Lord and Savior.”

  Seraphine stiffened.

  “I hope you do your part well, sister,” the woman said with a bow of her head.

  “Because you know what price we must pay for failure.”

  The words were soft, but they lingered in the air like a curse.

  And then, without a sound, they vanished.

  Seraphine remained, alone in the stairwell, her face pale, her breath caught in her throat. The air felt heavier now. Her heart thudded painfully beneath her ribs.

  Then, with trembling hands, she straightened her robes and began to follow the two.

  Her payment was already overdue.

  And failure was no longer an option.

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  The gate wasn’t far from the city, so the two chose to walk, treating the journey as a light warm-up.

  When they arrived, both sat down to rest until their mana had fully recovered.

  “Do you need my buffs?” Merlin asked, adjusting his cloak and looking toward Yun Jin.

  Yun Jin shook his head. “No. I want to fight using my own power first. The point of this quest is to master what we’ve learned.”

  Merlin nodded. “Fine by me. You can go ahead. I need a few moments to prepare something.”

  “Are you sure?” Yun Jin tilted his head. “By the time you get in there, there might not be anything left.”

  Merlin grinned. “Just think of it as a head start. A token of our partnership.”

  Yun Jin smiled, already intrigued. “Now you’ve piqued my interest.”

  Without further delay, he stepped into the rift.

  The moment he crossed through, the sensation returned. That same strange warping of space.

  But something felt different this time.

  This feels more fragile...

  Compared to the clean, precise sensation of his own teleportation, the dimensional rift felt chaotic, frayed at the edges. Even his first arrival into this world hadn’t felt like this.

  Yun Jin wasn’t sure if it was because of his newfound spatial affinity, but he could clearly sense the difference between this rift and every teleportation he had experienced before.

  He looked up toward the crimson sky.

  What truly are these rifts, and where do they come from?

  But this wasn’t the time for answers.

  He activated [Mana Eyes] and scanned the ruins ahead.

  There—floating clusters of condensed mana. Some weak, some noticeably stronger.

  As he moved toward the ancient altar, dozens of red-skinned creatures turned to meet him. Sharp claws. Pointed tails. Teeth that seemed too large for their mouths.

  [Imp LV.14]

  They shrieked in response to his presence, but Yun Jin was already prepared.

  Ten blades of ice hovered behind him, glimmering like predatory birds.

  Release.

  The blades shot forward.

  Eight of them found their mark, piercing skulls with chilling precision. Screeches rang through the ruin as the creatures dissolved into black dust.

  The rest charged.

  Though not intelligent, imps possessed unnaturally high physical endurance. Resistant to magic. Dangerous in numbers. The kind of foe most adventurers would struggle to cleanly dispatch.

  But Yun Jin wasn’t most adventurers.

  [Aura Blade]

  The light flared across his sword as he stepped into their formation.

  His blade danced.

  Light Blade Sovereign Style, Third Form: Dance of the Firefly

  With swift arcs and pinpoint strikes, he moved through the horde like a phantom. The replica sword in his hand cut through the demons like silk.

  This sword is too good... he thought. It felt almost unfair.

  Even as the numbers dwindled, the remaining imps continued to lunge at him, mindless and feral. But Yun Jin never faltered.

  Many who watched him fight might say his style lacked depth, that it was too aggressive or straightforward.

  But they didn’t understand.

  His "normal" was their "too fast".

  Full Control Territory.

  A realm only the most refined warriors could enter. The area of control varied from person to person. Baek Tianjun, for example, could stand before a thousand enemies and deflect every strike—not because of overwhelming power, but because he remained fully in tune with the world around him.

  Even ranged attacks couldn’t touch him.

  A stone arrow suddenly whistled through the air from the dark.

  Yun Jin didn’t flinch.

  He twisted his wrist, and the blade angled just right. The arrow deflected harmlessly, shattering into shards a breath away from his face.

  He turned toward the source.

  [Gargoyle LV.18]

  A group of flying stone demons hovered above the ruins with jagged bows in their hands and glowing eyes locked on him.

  Yun Jin smiled faintly.

  Light Blade Sovereign Style, First Form: Arc Lightning.

  Yun Jin’s dash tore through a line of imps. In a single breath, he reached the first gargoyle and closed the distance.

  The others were already airborne.

  Stone wings beat against the air as arrows rained down in waves. Imps took the distraction as their chance, leaping toward him in unison.

  He was surrounded.

  “Hm.”

  At the last moment, Yun Jin vanished.

  The imps, mid-pounce, were caught by friendly fire. Arrows pierced them from above, dropping several to the ground.

  Yun Jin reappeared behind the lead gargoyle—right in the center of the formation.

  The air shifted.

  Dense energy gathered into the blade, its glow sharp against the red sky.

  Light Blade Sovereign Style, Forth Form: Gale Rend.

  [Sword Wave]

  A spiral of light swept downward.

  Blades shimmered in rotation, cutting through wings and stone flesh. Gargoyles fell from the sky. Injured imps were caught in the crossfire.

  Yun Jin landed among the wreckage. Dust rolled across the battlefield, thick with the fading remnants of broken demons.

  “This was too easy. I guess next time we really do need to try a rank C ri—”

  AHHHH!

  The scream hit him like a shockwave.

  A bombastic burst of sound tore through the air, invisible but crushing. The vibration rattled through his chest, knocking his balance. For a second, his Qi slipped out of alignment, surging wild through his limbs.

  [Aura Surge]

  Yun Jin forced the flow back into control, gripping his sword tight as energy roared through him. He slashed through the rolling sound and threw himself out of its path.

  He landed hard and turned toward the source.

  Even with [Mana Eyes], the figure was barely visible. Mist wrapped around its form, the air around it distorted like a haze.

  It reminded him of Selene—the way shadow demons melted into darkness.

  Still, in that flicker of clarity, the system responded.

  [Banshee Lv. 21]

  Kaiser Dios didn’t just reject weakness — he declared war on it.

  To him, mediocrity wasn’t failure. It was betrayal. The world worshiped comfort; Kaiser brought fire.

  He didn’t rise above the weak — he erased them.

  And behind him: fallen kingdoms, silenced legends, and the ashes of those who once dared to call themselves kings.

  Sabel Stoorm.

  More than a rival — he was a reflection. They trained together, bled together, believed in the same dream.

  But while Kaiser built his strength on conviction, Sabel built his on control. When his mask slipped, it wasn’t a man beneath — it was ambition sharpened into cruelty.

  He stabbed Kaiser in the heart — not for justice, but to prove he’d outgrown the dream they once shared.

  Now Kaiser walks a world far crueler than the one he left behind.

  A world where the skies scream with unnatural life. Where the seas drown themselves in corpses. Where the gods no longer rule with wisdom, but with appetite—carving their names into the bones of creation.

  They will summon their horrors.

  They will cast him down a thousand times.

  And a thousand times, he will rise.

  “FATE CRACKED. HISTORY WEPT. AND I WALKED THROUGH BOTH.”