I dragged the heavy crate of enchanted ammunition across the dusty staging yard, my shoulders burning under the straps. The metal edges dug into my palms, already raw from hours of hauling gear for people who barely glanced my way."Move it faster, porter!" a voice barked from somewhere behind me. I didn't even turn to see who it was, just kept dragging.A group of elite hunters clustered near the gate's massive arch, their armor gleaming under the harsh floodlights. They laughed loud, voices carrying easy over the chaos."Did you hear? Once we clear this Abyss Gate, the rewards alone will set us up for life," one said, a tall woman with a scar across her cheek. "Headlines in every guild feed. 'Veridian Team Conquers the Unconquerable.'"Her buddy, a burly guy loading his own pack, snorted. "Forget the money. The Association will throw S-Rank promotions at us. Imagine the contracts rolling in after this. No more scraping by on C-Rank trash.""Yeah, and the girls," another chimed in, g

The whisper still rang in my skull as we pushed forward, six hours deep now with no monsters, no traps, nothing but that heavy, breathing quiet.Kain raised a hand at the front. "Hold up. This silence is wrong. Should’ve hit something by now."Lira shifted her rifle, eyes darting to the pulsing walls. "Yeah. No ambushes. No screams from the dark. It’s like the dungeon forgot how to fight."Marcus wiped sweat from his neck. "Or it’s saving it all for one big punch. My system’s still glitching. Gravity keeps flipping every few minutes. Feels like it’s herding us."I stayed in the middle, legs burning from the endless march. The fleshy corridors had given way to sharper crystal veins that glowed faint blue, lighting our path just enough to see the next twist. Every step echoed too loud in the stillness."You think it’s broken?" Lira asked Kain, voice low but carrying back to me. "Some gates go haywire after too many failed runs."Kain shook his head, boots squelching on the soft floor. "

The chamber shrank around us like a closing fist.Another hunter screamed as the walls pulsed and gravity folded in on him from every side. His body twisted, bones snapping like dry twigs. Blood sprayed hot across my face before the dungeon seemed to swallow the mist.“Fall back!” Kain roared, his gravity field flaring brighter around the group. “Stay inside my bubble!”Lira grabbed my arm, dragging me closer. “Kid, don’t move! It’s picking us off one by one!”Marcus fired wildly at the ceiling, trying to break the crystal ribs. “My shots are slowing down mid-air! The dungeon’s reading every move!”I tried to help. I really did. I grabbed one of the fallen charges from the floor and hurled it toward the seal, hoping to crack it. The charge flew true… then stopped dead six feet away, hovering in the air before dropping harmlessly.“Why isn’t it attacking me?” I shouted, voice cracking. “I’m right here!”Lira spun toward me, eyes wild. “Shut up and stay close! Maybe it hasn’t noticed yo

The white light swallowed everything.It poured into me like liquid fire, flooding straight through my skin, my veins, my bones. My nerves ignited all at once, burning white-hot from the inside out. Every inch of me lit up with pain so pure it felt like my body was being rewritten line by line.I screamed, but the sound came out choked, raw. “It hurts… make it stop!”The energy didn’t listen. It kept rushing in, thick and endless, pressing against the inside of my skull until I thought my head would split. My bones vibrated, humming like they were tuning to a frequency they were never built for. I could feel them shifting, cracking, trying to grow stronger and failing at the same time.“Stop… please…” I gasped, curling tighter on the cold floor. “I can’t… I’m not strong enough for this.”Memories that weren’t mine slammed into my mind next. Not gentle. Not slow. They crashed through like a flood.I saw cities made of crystal and light collapsing into dust. Towers taller than mountains

The doctors whispered right outside my door, their voices low and urgent like they thought the walls couldn’t hear.I caught pieces anyway. “...only survivor... Abyss Gate... name on the core seal...” One of them sounded nervous. “We need to keep him isolated. Director Ashcroft is on his way.”Two security guards stood inside the room now, rifles ready, eyes locked on me like I was a bomb that might go off. No more kind nurses checking my vitals. No gentle smiles. I wasn’t a patient anymore.I was a risk.I lay there in the hospital bed, tubes still taped to my arm, machines beeping steadily beside me. My body felt off. Too sensitive. Every breath pulled at muscles that didn’t quite feel like mine anymore. The sheets scratched against skin that tingled like it had been remade while I slept.One guard shifted his weight, muttering to the other. “You believe the reports? Whole S-Rank team wiped out and this kid walks out untouched. Something’s not right with him.”The second guard kept