I no longer felt the breeze from the fall.
But what had happened? He had no idea. His eyelids were heavy, and he struggled to open them.
— !
"Where am I?"
He was in a place that looked more like a turquoise limbo. He slowly got up and searched for a way out.
"Just a little while ago, I was about to die..."
Before he could finish his thoughts, he quickly looked at the leg that had been bitten by the red-furred wolf.
"But what?"
It was intact—not even a scratch. He checked his injured foot—the same thing.
"What is going on?"
He heard a faint noise and immediately turned around. A large gate had appeared in the limbo. Kaen walked toward it.
"Maybe I'll find the answers to this."
When he placed his palm on it, hesitation flickered in his gaze.
"Should I?"
He remembered Mirella calling his name. She was, perhaps, the only person who had ever truly treated him well. He felt like an idiot for how he sometimes acted toward her.
"Mirella, wait for me a little longer."
He opened the gate and was immediately teleported somewhere else.
The gate made no sound as it opened. Kaen expected a gust of wind, a pull... but he was swallowed by damp silence.
When he stepped through, the texture of the air changed—now it smelled of old rain and packed earth, like the village where he was born.
It was a deserted village. It was as if ancient and modern architecture had fused together. He could see some kind of glitch in some of the doors.
Something deep in his heart seemed to recognize this place. It was a strange feeling.
— Boy...
Kaen couldn't find the source of the whisper.
— Who's there?
In front of him, small spiders began gathering together. Soon, a faint light appeared, revealing an emaciated man dressed in tattered Rank C hunter's garb.
— What do you think of the place? Beautiful, isn't it?
His Rank C rags weren't made of fabric—they were compressed webs. Where his mouth should have been, chitinous mandibles moved in sync with his words.
Kaen focused more on that face. It was so gaunt it looked like a skull, and the eyes... empty?!
— Who are you, and what am I doing here?!
— No need to shout, poor child... You've suffered so much, haven't you?
— What are you talking about?
The man laughed as if coughing up blood.
— It's not time yet.
— What do you mean?
— You'll know soon.
The emaciated man's eyes began to glow. But before he disappeared, he said something:
— Be prepared, young master...
A bright flash consumed Kaen's vision.
...
"Where am I?"
His head ached, as if he'd been hit with a baseball bat.
— Are you okay?
His vision was slightly blurred.
— Who are you? A hunter?
— I'm Luce. Let's say I am.
The tank of the group interrupted:
— Hey, are you two gonna stand there doing a BL scene or are we hunting?!
That's when Kaen realized where he was: in the arms of a tall man with long white hair.
He quickly pulled away, stumbled, and hit his head on a pole.
— Hahaha!
Luce laughed like an old man watching silly videos.
— Who are you guys, anyway?
Another member stepped in front of Luce. His smile was painfully bright.
— My name is Jace Wils, warrior class, Rank B.
"Rank B?! So I really ended up in a Rank B Shadow Zone?!"
"Such bad luck!"
— This is Silas, our attack mage and also a healer.
"Dual class? That's cool."
— This is Lira, our archer. And lastly...
He pointed at the scowling figure.
— This is Doran, our tank.
— And him? Who is he?
Kaen pointed at Luce.
— That's Luce Van Hell. The legendary Rank S hunter.
"Rank S?!"
It was the first time he'd seen a hunter of that level in person.
— We're going to defeat the boss, so don't be afraid. I live to protect innocent civilians.
His smile remained dazzling.
— But I'm not a civilian. I'm a hunter.
Jace's smile seemed to shine even brighter.
— Then reinforcements have arrived. This raid will be much easier with another Rank B.
— But, I...
It was embarrassing for Kaen to admit his rank was so much lower. Every time he told the truth, people looked at him like trash. Especially when they found out no one wanted him in their group.
— Did you say something?
Jace inquired.
— I'm Rank...
He hung his head, as if a stone were lodged in his throat. But before he could say anything, Luce interrupted with light pats on his shoulder.
— Hey, hey, no need to push yourself so hard. Take a break.
Kaen had no choice but to lower his head.
Jace was still smiling, but his gaze sharpened slightly at Kaen's hesitation.
— "Rank...?" He tilted his head as if deciphering a code.
Doran crossed his arms impatiently:
— If you're not Rank B, at least you're C, right? Don't tell me you're a D...
Lira, the archer, smacked the tank lightly on the back of the head:
— Shut up, Doran. Not everyone is born holding a legendary sword.
Silas, the mage/healer, observed Kaen with clinical interest:
— Hmm. Recent wounds... but none open. Did you die today?
— WHAT?!
Kaen choked.
Luce laughed as if the question were about the weather:
— Ah, Silas always asks stuff like that. Just ignore him.
But the damage was done. The group fell silent for a second. Until...
A strong smell of rotting flesh filled the air.
— Red-furred wolves?
Doran muttered. Before they could react, they were quickly surrounded by them.
— I'm excited. — Jace said with that dazzling smile.
Silas opened his book and began reciting something in Latin.
The wolves emerged from the mist like scarlet ghosts. Their eyes glowed with supernatural intelligence. Kaen's legs trembled—they were exactly like the one that had nearly killed him before.
Luce whistled softly:
— Well, that explains the smell. Someone forgot to bathe the puppies.
Doran was already in position, his shield radiating a golden aura:
— Delta formation! And the rookie... don't get in the way!
Before Kaen could respond, the first wolf attacked. Jace intercepted it with an impossible leap, his sword drawing a silver arc in the air.
— Dance with me, darling! — he shouted, almost singing.
SILAS (flipping pages frantically):
— If anyone's about to die, give me a five-minute heads-up. My rituals need prep time.
LIRA (firing three arrows simultaneously):
— Silas, you bargain-bin mage, this is HELP DPS!
Kaen tried to move, but his legs felt rooted. Then he noticed—the largest wolf was staring straight at him, and in its eyes... they were the same empty eyes as that emaciated man.
A voice echoed in his mind:
— You brought them here... young master.
...
FRAGMENTED FLASHBACK:
A village in flames. Screams. Mirella pulling his arm.
— Kaen, we have to GO!
...
The alpha wolf leaped. Kaen closed his eyes, bracing for impact...
...but it never came.
When he opened them, Luce stood before him, gripping the monster's jaws with one hand while holding a pistol in the other.
Bang!
Blood splattered lightly on Luce's face. He turned and said:
— You didn't get hurt, right?
"Why are you grinning like an idiot?!"
Kaen thought at that moment. How could he act so carefree while killing? He really is insanely strong, Kaen concluded.
The group of hunters seemed to be having fun as they decapitated the wolves.
That's when the feeling of inferiority struck him again.
He realized he was incapable of saving Mirella. He'd have to rely on these hunters. Relying on others always bothered him. He always depended...
Always!
...
— Whew... I'm tired. — Jace said as he planted his sword in the ground.
Around the group, a grotesque garden of wolf corpses had formed.
— Don't relax, Jace. The boss will be here any second.
Doran warned.
— Okay... okay! — His dazzling smile returned.
— Let's move.
Silas said, making his book disappear with magic.
The group advanced through the ruins of the old village, now covered in mist and the metallic scent of dead wolves.
Kaen walked slightly behind, his mind racing—Mirella, the spider-man, the alpha wolf's eyes... everything seemed connected, but how?
Then he felt it.
A pressure in the air. As if something invisible were squeezing his spine.
The ground shook violently, cracks snaking across the stone floor. Beneath them, something enormous moved—this wasn't just a Rank B boss. It was something much worse.
Doran slammed his shield into the ground, creating a magical barrier:
— Emergency formation! Silas, buffs NOW!
But it was too late.
With a roar that made the air vibrate, the monster emerged—an aberration of flesh and scales, so massive it blocked out the sun. Its eyes burned with the same hollow darkness Kaen recognized... identical to the spider-man's.
Jace, ever confident, charged forward with his trademark smile:
— Let's make this quick, guys! Silas, piercing buff on my swor-!
The monster moved faster than the eye could follow. A fleshy tentacle wrapped around Jace mid-air, squeezing him like a grape. The sound of ribs cracking echoed through the empty square.
— Help me!!! HELP ME!!!
His smile faded as a second tentacle speared through his stomach.
— Jace!
Lira screamed, running to help, but Silas held her back.
Luce stared at the monster with deep eyes. He considered ways to stop it without using "the eye." Meanwhile, Kaen began hearing voices. It was as if the monster was communicating with him, but he couldn't understand a single word.
This definitely had something to do with him, Kaen thought. He slowly approached the monster.
— Get away, rookie! — Doran shouted.
The monster stared at Kaen as he drew closer. It showed no signs of aggression.
Luce was curious about his actions but still couldn't trust him. He touched his eyepatch but hesitated to remove it—something in his past had scarred him deeply.
The voices in Kaen's head grew clearer—whispers in an ancient tongue his body understood but his mind didn't. His feet moved almost on their own toward the monster.
— Stop, idiot! — Lira yelled, pulling a special arrow from her quiver.
But Kaen had already reached out. His fingers touched the pulsating flesh of the creature...
And nothing happened.
For a moment, the monster froze. Its hollow eyes reflected Kaen like a distorted mirror. The silence was deafening.
— Did it work...? — Doran gasped, still holding his cracked shield.
Then the ground beneath Kaen collapsed.
...
Kaen fell into an endless void before landing softly in a circular room bathed in the same turquoise light as the initial limbo. The air smelled of fresh ink and rotting flesh.
— Fool.
The voice came from all directions at once. In the center of the room, a spider the size of a carriage slowly wove a glowing cocoon. Inside it, Kaen recognized the silhouette of a girl.
— Did you really think you could deceive an Ancient God with theatrical gestures?
The spider's mandibles moved in sync with the voice of the spider-man Kaen had met earlier. Its eight eyes reflected scenes of the burning village, repeating endlessly.
Kaen tried to move, but invisible webs held him in place.
— Who are you?!
The spider approached, its legs tracing hypnotic patterns on the floor.
— You're more foolish than the previous bearers.
— Bearer? Explain this crap properly.
— I can't explain everything right now.
The cocoon rotated, revealing Mirella. Her eyes were open—completely black.
— What did you do to her?!
— Why are you shouting? If it weren't for me, she'd already be dead.
Kaen bit his lip.
— What do you want?
The spider studied him closely.
— If you want to save her, you'll have to make a contract.
— A contract? What the hell are you talking about?!
— A blood contract, my young master.
— Young master?
It spoke just like the spider-man. But what did he have to do with all this? What was going on?
— I know you're not just being nice, so just tell me the terms of the contract.
— Not as dumb as you look... hehehe.
Its laughter was unsettling.
The spider raised its front legs. The air distorted, forming floating runes that burned in turquoise-green:
"WEAVER'S INHERITANCE SYSTEM"
(Requirement: Bloodline Bearer)
EYE OF PERCEPTION (Stage I)
"See the truth behind reality's webs"
Abilities:
▶ Death Vision: See "weak points" on enemies (vulnerable to your attacks)
▶ Stolen Memories: Read the last moments of a corpse's memory upon touch
EYE OF DOMINION (Stage II - Locked)
Unlock Condition: Defeat 10 Marked Creatures
"Control what should be impossible"
EYE OF REALITY (Stage III - Locked)
Condition: ???
Mirella, inside the cocoon, screamed as black webs covered her eyes.
— What did you do to her?! — Kaen roared, feeling unnatural heat in his own left eye.
The spider laughed, echoing the spider-man's voice:
— This is your first test. Defeat the marked monster to activate the System... or she dies.
Without a second thought, he accepted the contract. He felt a cut on his arm as blood dripped, signing the agreement.
Kaen stared at Mirella, suspended like an insect awaiting death. Her eyes, now black as pitch, trembled behind the webs. There was still consciousness there—fear, pain... and trust in him.
Kaen's eyes began to burn violently, his fingertips wet with blood.
He screamed.
— AAAAAAHHHH!!
The floating runes collapsed and exploded into green flames, plunging the room into darkness for a second.
The sound of distorted chimes echoed in the distance, as if something inside him was awakening.
Kaen fell to his knees, clutching his face. The heat was unbearable, as if his eye were being carved from within. When he looked up, a web-shaped mark pulsed in the center of his iris.
[EYE OF PERCEPTION: UNLOCKED]
The spider recoiled, surprised—perhaps by the pain, perhaps by his success.
— Heh... you really are the heir.
Now, Kaen's eyes glowed turquoise.
— I'll save her!
— Then go. — The spider replied.
With a sharp snap, the floor vanished beneath his feet once more.