That night, I couldn't sleep.
Even after I left the gate—after the area was sealed and the investigation team finally arrived—I couldn't shut my eyes without seeing Rikard's final moments. The look of betrayal. The blood. The sword sliding through him.
My mind replayed it over and over.
They killed him. One of his own.Why?
And why did I see it?
I sat alone on my apartment floor, staring at the dim system window hovering in front of me.
It hadn't disappeared.
[SYSTEM: WATCHER OF DEATH – ACTIVE][ACCESS: GRANTED TO USER YUN HASEO][LEVEL: 0][DEATH ECHOES ABSORBED: 1][UNLOCKED ABILITY: Shadow Blink (Lv. 1)]
That last part made me pause.
"Shadow Blink?"
I blinked, and a second window popped up.
Shadow Blink (Lv. 1)Instantly move up to 2 meters in the direction of your gaze. Cooldown: 10 seconds.Origin: Rikard's spatial adjustment skill, corrupted and mutated through death.
I swallowed.
It wasn't just visions. I actually absorbed his skill.
This system… gives me the powers of the dead?
A chill crept down my spine.If I could see how someone died... and take their skills... what else could I gain?
No. That's too dangerous to think about.
But curiosity clawed at the edge of my thoughts. If I could piece together more Death Echoes, maybe I could figure out what really happened in that dungeon.
Maybe I could even find out who betrayed them.
Suddenly, the window shimmered again. New text appeared.
[DEATH ECHOES DETECTED NEARBY.][Distance: 0.3 km. Source: Deceased Hunter - C-Rank.]
Another one?
My heart skipped.
I threw on a hoodie and rushed out the door, ignoring the late hour. The streets of the outer districts were quiet, only the occasional passing patrol drone humming overhead.
My footsteps echoed as I followed the pulsing arrow on the system display, leading me through narrow alleys and into the fenced-off perimeter behind an abandoned Hunter clinic.
There it was.
A body.Cold.Twisted.Eyes wide open.
I recognized him—Taejin. A C-rank Hunter who'd gone missing last week. Officially declared dead in a dungeon collapse. But here he was, far from any dungeon.
[Death Echo: Taejin – Ready for viewing.]
I hesitated.
The last time I watched one, I felt like my mind was being torn open.
But if this one died outside the dungeon, what else was being covered up?
I tapped the air.
[Final Echo: Playing Now.]
Darkness.A struggle.Taejin gasping, running through these very alleys.A shadow chasing him.He cried out, "Please! I won't say anything! I deleted the footage!"
Then—A gloved hand grabbing his mouth.A blade through his spine.
The killer's face never showed.But I saw the ring.
Gold.Etched with the Hunter Association's crest.
The world snapped back.
I stumbled backward, bile rising in my throat.
The Association… is killing its own people.
I don't know why.I don't know how deep this goes.
But now I knew one thing for sure.
This isn't just about monsters in dungeons.Something far worse is happening behind closed doors.
And the System chose me to see it.