Purple lightning came from the sky over Lyra City as yet another dungeon gate strained to explode. Masses of civilian onlookers stampeded, tripping over each other in fear. Neon billboards above the panic glowed with a single flashing message:
> "A-Rank Dungeon Outbreak Detected. All Active Hunters Report to Zone 3."
Ren Veyor, however, was no Hunter.
He wasn't even considered human by some. At seventeen, his Hunter rank scanner had registered nothing but blank data. No Soul Core. No abilities. Zero potential. A walking ghost.
"Ren! Move, idiot!" his classmate shouted as another portal ripple split the sky.
He didn't flinch. His gray eyes stared upward, half-resentful, half-empty. What was the point of running when the world had already abandoned you?
---
Inside the Dungeon Monitoring Center
"Sir, we have an unknown energy signature!" a technician exclaimed, voice strained with fear.
"Where?" snapped Guild Leader Thalan.
"Zone 3. but it doesn't correlate with any recognized Hunter rank. It's coming up as. 'Void.'"
The room went quiet.
---
On the street
A shockwave exploded from the gate, shattering glass shards from skyscrapers. Ren just stood there, paralyzed, until a flash of pure black materialized beside him.
Small, shapeless thing. No eyes, no mouth—only one pale ring where its face would be.
And Ren. saw it.
"What. are you?" he breathed.
The creature replied by melting into his chest like liquid darkness.
---
[System Initiated]
You have formed a bond with the First Void Beast: Nyx-Eater.
Void Beast System Online.
Rank: Null (Unregistered).
Begin Assimilation? [Yes] [No]
Ren didn't hesitate.
Yes.
His form shook, darkness curling off his flesh. Purple lightning seeped into the air around him as his mere presence started distorting the space.
---
Dungeon Monitoring Center
"Sir. the energy signature. it's increasing. It's consuming the dungeon gate."
Thalan gawked, his brow slick with sweat. "What in the. is that kid?"
---
Ren Veyor - First Human Void Beast User
As the portal imploded inward, engulfed by nothingness, Ren made his first step forward.
Not a Hunter. Not a civilian.
Something else entirely.
"Let's see who really holds power in this world."