Iron Sovereign: I Hunt the Apex

Aiden Sebastian crouched behind a shattered concrete wall, wiping blood from his forehead. The air inside the rift zone smelled of burnt metal and ozone. Twenty yards ahead, a stone hide beast scraped its heavy claws against the ground. The monster was tall, covered in grey scales that looked like thick rock armor, and its yellow eyes searched the dim alleyway for any sign of life.

Aiden slowed his breathing. His heart pounded against his ribs, but he kept his body still. He was a low-tier porter for the Iron Vanguard guild, hired to carry extra supplies and gear for the raid team. He was not supposed to fight. He was supposed to stay in the back and load heavy crates.

To his right, hidden behind an overturned supply truck, stood Marcus, the raid leader. Marcus wore polished silver armor and held a broadsword that glowed with faint mana. Next to him were three higher-tier mercenaries. They were all supposed to be protecting the perimeter while the main squad cleared the inner rift core.

"Marcus," Aiden whispered, keeping his voice low. "The beast is distracted. If we back away slowly toward the exit gate, we can get out before it calls the rest of the pack."

Marcus turned his head and looked at Aiden. His mouth twisted into a cold smile. "We are not backing away, kid. The contract pays a huge bonus for a dead stone hide beast. But those scales are tough to penetrate from the front."

Aiden felt a cold chill run down his spine. "What are you talking about?"

"We need a distraction," Marcus said smoothly. He raised his hand and signalled to the two guards standing beside him.

Before Aiden could react, one of the guards grabbed his shoulder with a heavy iron glove and dragged him out from behind the wall. The guard shoved Aiden straight into the middle of the open street.

Aiden stumbled forward, his boots skidding across loose gravel. The sudden movement caught the monster's attention. The stone hide beast turned its heavy head, locked its yellow eyes on Aiden, and let out a deep roar that shook the surrounding buildings.

"Run around and keep its attention," Marcus shouted from the alley. "We will hit its soft back while it tears you apart."

Aiden looked back in horror. Marcus and his squad were not moving forward to attack. They were stepping back into the shadow of the alley, retreating toward the exit gate. They were using him as live bait to cover their own escape. They had drawn a high-level monster into the sector by mistake, and now they were sacrificing him to buy time for themselves.

"You bastards!" Aiden yelled, but his voice was swallowed by another roar from the beast.

The monster charged. Its heavy steps cracked the pavement beneath its feet. It moved with surprising speed for its size, closing the gap in seconds.

Aiden did not have a proper weapon. All he had was a standard short hunting blade attached to his belt. He pulled the knife from its sheath and rolled hard to the left just as the beast crashed into the spot where he had been standing. The impact threw dust and broken bricks into the air.

Aiden hit the ground hard, rolling over his shoulder to absorb the shock. He scrambled to his feet, his lungs burning. The beast turned around quickly, sweeping its heavy tail across the street. The tail slammed into Aiden's chest, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending him flying back into a ruined shopfront.

He crashed through a wooden display window and hit the floor hard. Pain shot through his ribs and back. He spat out blood, struggling to get up. Through the broken window frame, he saw Marcus and the squad reach the glowing blue exit portal at the end of the street. Marcus gave a quick glance back, saw Aiden down, and stepped through the portal without hesitating. The blue light flared once and dissolved, closing the gate behind them.

Aiden was trapped inside the rift zone alone.

The stone hide beast stepped through the broken shopfront, its heavy claws crushing the splintered wood beneath it. It lowered its head, opening its wide jaws filled with jagged teeth. Deep growls rumbled in its chest.

Aiden leaned his back against a stone pillar inside the shop. His breath came in short, jagged gasps. He gripped the short hunting knife tightly in his right hand. He was bruised, bleeding, and outmatched, but a hot flame of anger lit up inside his chest. He refused to die quietly in a dark corner just because high-ranked mercenaries thought his life was cheap.

"Come on then," Aiden muttered, staring directly into the monster's eyes.

The beast lunged forward, snapping its jaws toward his neck.

Aiden did not try to dodge backward this time. He ducked under the monster's heavy jaw, sliding along the dusty floor directly beneath its throat. The underside of its neck was the only spot without thick rock scales. Using all the strength remaining in his arms, Aiden thrust the short hunting blade upward with a hard, desperate strike.

The blade sank deep into the soft flesh under the beast's jaw. Thick green blood erupted from the wound, covering Aiden's hands and face. The monster shrieked in pain, thrashing its heavy head side to side. The movement tore the knife from Aiden's grip, but the blade stayed buried deep in its throat.

The beast stumbled backward out of the shopfront, thrashing wildly as it choked on its own blood. It collapsed onto the asphalt outside, its heavy body shaking until it finally went still.

Aiden dragged himself out of the shop, gasping for air. His body trembled from exhaustion and pain. He stared at the dead monster, amazed that he was still breathing.

Suddenly, a strange warmth spread through his chest. It was not pain or heat from a fire, but a clear, steady energy flowing through his veins. The warm light seeped into his tired muscles, replacing his exhaustion with fresh strength. His bruised ribs stopped aching, and his senses sharpened.

In front of his eyes, faint blue letters floated in the air:

Target slain: Stone Hide Beast.

Trait absorbed: Rock Armor Structure.

Physical defense increased.

Aiden stared at the floating letters in shock. Before he could make sense of the strange power awakening inside him, a heavy, wet thump echoed from the top of a nearby building.

He looked up slowly. On the roof above, three more pairs of glowing yellow eyes stared down at him through the dark haze of the rift.