The Last Guardian Of The Apocalypse

Chapter 10: Ethan's First Kill

"...Kael was my father."

Sophia's voice was calm.

But those four words exploded inside Ethan's mind like thunder.

"What...?"

Before he could ask another question—

ROOOAAARRR!!

The Abyssal Ghoul let out a deafening roar.

It ripped the silver arrow from its shoulder and crushed it with one hand.

Its blood wasn't red.

It was a thick, black liquid that hissed as it touched the ground.

The grass beneath it instantly withered.

Sophia frowned.

"It regenerated..."

She drew another arrow.

"Looks like this one is stronger than I expected."

The frightened little boy was still frozen behind the monster.

His legs refused to move as he was shaking with fear .

"M-Mom..."

Tears streamed down his cheeks.

The Ghoul slowly turned toward him.

Its tongue stretched from its mouth like a snake.

It licked its lips.

Then...

It charged.

"NO!"

Without thinking—

Ethan ran.

DING!

Guardian Instinct Activated.

Time seemed to slow.

The monster's movements became clearer.

The distance.

The angle.

The timing.

Everything appeared inside Ethan's mind.

"Move left..."

A voice whispered inside his head.

Ethan obeyed instinctively.

The Ghoul's claw missed him by less than an inch.

WHOOSH!

He grabbed the little boy and rolled across the ground.

BOOM!!

The monster's claws slammed into the tree instead.

The trunk snapped in half.

The giant tree crashed onto the playground.

The little boy looked at Ethan with trembling eyes.

"Mister..."

"You came back..."

Ethan smiled.

"I told you not to touch strange lights."

Even in such a dangerous moment...

The boy nodded obediently.

DING!

Mission Progress Updated.

Innocent Successfully Protected.

Reward Available After Battle.

Sophia landed beside Ethan.

She immediately pulled the boy behind her.

"You did well."

Ethan looked at her in surprise.

"You complimented me?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Don't get used to it."

The Ghoul roared again.

This time...

Purple energy gathered around its body.

The Dimensional Crack above them became even larger.

CRACK!!

Another tiny crack appeared beside the first one.

Sophia's expression changed immediately.

"This is bad..."

"What is it?"

"If another monster comes through..."

"We're finished."

The System suddenly spoke.

DING!

First Combat Mission Activated.

Objective: Kill the Abyssal Ghoul.

Reward:

• Guardian Blade (F-Rank)

• 1,000 EXP

• 100 Guardian Coins

• Random Skill Book

Failure:

Death.

A glowing sword materialized before Ethan.

Its silver blade shimmered with faint golden patterns.

He grabbed its handle.

The moment he did...

Countless sword techniques flooded into his mind.

It felt as if he had practiced for years.

Sophia's eyes widened.

"The Guardian Blade..."

"So Father really entrusted everything to you..."

The Ghoul lunged.

Ethan stepped forward.

For the first time...

He didn't run.

CLANG!!

Its claws collided with the Guardian Blade.

Sparks flew everywhere.

The impact numbed Ethan's arms.

"So strong!"

The Ghoul smiled wickedly.

Then punched Ethan in the chest.

BOOM!!

Ethan was thrown several meters across the park.

His back slammed against a stone bench.

CRACK!

The bench shattered.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"Ethan!"

Sophia fired three arrows in quick succession.

WHOOSH!

WHOOSH!

WHOOSH!

The Ghoul dodged all of them.

It was unbelievably fast.

The System's voice became urgent.

Host Vitality: 61%.

Suggestion: Analyze the enemy.

Ethan immediately activated his Appraisal Skill.

A blue screen appeared.

Abyssal Ghoul

Level: 5

Weakness: Heart Core

Location: Center of Chest

Defense: Extremely High

"Its heart..."

"So that's the weak point."

The Ghoul charged again.

Sophia intercepted it.

She slashed its arm with a hidden dagger.

"NOW!"

Ethan gritted his teeth.

He poured every ounce of strength into his legs.

He sprinted.

The Ghoul turned toward him.

Too late.

"Guardian Slash!"

The glowing sword pierced straight through the monster's chest.

SHHHKKK!!

The Ghoul froze.

Its glowing eyes widened.

Then...

A loud cracking sound echoed throughout the park.

CRACK...

Black lines spread across its body.

A second later—

BOOOOOOM!!

The monster exploded into thousands of black crystal fragments.

Silence returned.

DING!

Congratulations!

You have slain your first monster.

Level Up!

Level 2 Reached!

Rewards Received:

• Guardian Blade (Bound)

• 100 Guardian Coins

• 1,000 EXP

• Skill Book: Flash Step

Ethan smiled weakly.

"I... actually did it."

Before anyone could celebrate...

The Dimensional Crack in the sky suddenly stopped expanding.

Instead...

It slowly closed.

Within seconds...

The sky became perfectly normal again.

The dark clouds disappeared.

The birds returned.

Sunlight filled the park.

It was as if nothing had happened.

The little boy looked around in confusion.

"...Did I have a bad dream?"

His mother came running into the park.

"There you are!"

She hugged him tightly.

Neither she nor the nearby pedestrians seemed to remember the monster.

Sophia whispered,

"The world erased the event..."

Ethan frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Before she could answer—

DING!

The System projected a new crimson notification.

Congratulations, Host.

You have survived the First Crack.

However...

The First Crack was only a test.

Then another line appeared.

Remaining Time Until Global Apocalypse:

70 Hours, 58 Minutes.

Ethan's heart tightened.

He looked up at the peaceful blue sky.

People laughed.

Cars passed by.

Children played.

No one knew their world would end in less than three days.

Then, beneath the countdown, one final message appeared:

The next Dimensional Crack will appear... inside Ethan Cole's apartment building.

Ethan's face went pale.

"...My home?"

End of Chapter 10

Ethan has won his first battle, but the victory is short-lived. The next Dimensional Crack will open at his own apartment building, where hundreds of unsuspecting residents—including people he knows—are about to face the first true wave of the coming apocalypse.