The rain came down in cold sheets, blurring the neon lights of the city like tears smearing across broken glass.
Adam stood beneath a flickering streetlamp, drenched to the bone, gripping the rusted handle of a chipped longsword — one he'd borrowed from the guild's junk pile. The digital display on the hilt blinked red: [Durability: 2%]. One more swing, and it'd probably snap.
"Figures," he muttered.
Around him, the rest of the E-rank hunting team gathered at the gate's entrance, their chatter filled with nervous energy.
> Gate Classification: Low Threat - Class E
Estimated Monster Count: 12-15
Reward per Confirmed Kill: 150 credits
Nothing impressive. Nothing dangerous. Nothing worth remembering.
That was Adam's life in a sentence.
He stared at the blue shimmering portal, listening to the hum it gave off — the sound of another world pressing against this one.
His breath fogged in the cold air. His heartbeat was steady. Too steady.
"You really gonna walk in with that?" came a familiar voice.
He turned. A girl in a crimson raincoat stood just behind him, her arms crossed.
It took him a moment. Then his eyes widened slightly.
"...Ivy?"
She tilted her head. "So you do remember."
It had been years. Since the accident. Since the day everything broke.
She looked older now. Sharper. Her silver hair was tied up in a short ponytail, and a guild-issued short sword hung at her hip. But her eyes — cold and stormy — hadn't changed.
"You're hunting now?" Adam asked, almost too softly.
"I'm not here for small talk," she replied, brushing past him.
And just like that, she was gone — swallowed into the crowd of better-ranked hunters preparing to enter the gate. Adam stood frozen a moment longer, staring at the place she had stood.
She hadn't recognized who he was to her.
Or maybe she had… and chose not to care.
---
The dungeon was darker than expected.
The usual eerie glow of dungeon crystals was absent. Only the flicker of torchlight lit the damp, narrow corridors. It smelled of sulfur and old blood. The air was thick and wrong.
"Stay close," the squad leader said. "Stick to formation. E-rank or not, monsters in packs can tear through you like paper."
Adam walked near the back, ignored, forgotten. His fingers trembled slightly, gripping the sword.
Then came the sound.
Clink. Clink. Clink.
Metal chains dragging across stone.
The first monster leapt from the shadows — a lizard-like beast with crimson scales and jagged teeth. Two others followed. Screams echoed as the formation broke. The front line was overwhelmed in seconds.
"They're too fast!" someone shouted.
"Help me! PLEASE!"
Blood sprayed. A head rolled. Panic set in.
The "low-threat" classification was a lie.
Adam stumbled back, breathing heavily. His team was dying — torn apart like animals. He could see Ivy on the far side of the corridor, slashing through one of the beasts with clean precision. She was fast. Efficient. But surrounded.
She turned for just a second, her eyes meeting his.
He didn't move.
He couldn't.
His legs refused to obey. His heart thudded so loud he thought it would explode. And then—
CHOMP!
A massive fanged maw clamped down on his shoulder, throwing him to the ground. His scream echoed through the corridor. The monster raised a claw for the finishing blow.
SLASH!
A sword pierced the creature's head — not Adam's. Ivy stood over him, face expressionless, blood splattering her raincoat.
"Tch," she clicked her tongue. "Still useless."
She turned to fight the others.
Adam's vision blurred. His hand reached for his shattered sword, now broken in two. He coughed blood. The pain was unbearable. His heartbeat slowed.
Thump.
Thump.
...
> [Vital signs critical. Initiating emergency protocol.]
His eyes widened.
Wait... what was that voice?
> [System initializing... Connecting to Divine Authority: HADES.]
[You have been chosen as a Vessel.]
[Do you wish to inherit the Power of the Underworld?]
His vision flickered.
Above him, the world froze.
Time itself slowed — or perhaps shattered. Shadows surged from the cracks in the floor, forming a throne of obsidian behind him. A cold hand touched his chest. A whisper curled into his ear:
> "Rise, mortal. Your death is but the beginning."
> [Accept? Y/N]
Adam's lips barely moved. "Y—yes..."
The pain vanished. His body began to rise — not by muscle, but by something ancient. His eyes snapped open.
> [You have inherited: HADES - Lord of the Dead]
[New Stats Unlocked. System Online.]
[Welcome, Mythborn.]
---
A pale aura wrapped around his hands. The broken sword at his side reformed — blackened steel wrapped in ethereal fire.
> [Skill Unlocked: Soulrender Blade]
[Skill Unlocked: Death's Gaze - Rank F]
[Skill Unlocked: Harbinger Form - Locked]
The monsters turned toward him, growling low.
Adam stepped forward, gaze cold.
One came at him — fast.
SLASH.
The creature's body split in half before it even touched him.
Gasps echoed behind him — Ivy's among them.
"You..." she whispered. "What… are you?"
Adam stood tall, eyes glowing a brilliant, unnatural blue.
"I don't know," he said. "But I think... I just stopped being weak."