Chapter 3 - The Rise of the Hidden God

Coker no longer walk the same way, breathe the same way, or even think the same way like before. That weak boy who cry after being called E-Rank trash, who was throw away like broken glass, who beg for answers and dream of becoming just a hero that boy was gone. What remain now was something different. Something sharp. Something quiet and deadly. Something that hunger. The city still don't know his name, but they already whisper about him. The ghost in the alley. The flame that walk. The shadow that broke the guild scanner. Some say he's a fallen god reborn. Some say he's the end of the world. But Coker don't care about their fear or talk. He only care about his path. And the next step was simple—grow stronger and find the truth about the seal inside his soul. He hide inside a ruined temple just outside the border of Flame Town. It's an abandoned place that once belong to the old faith, the Church of the Star God. Now it's broken and forgotten, perfect place to train and stay hidden. Every night, Coker meditate in the middle of the cracked floor, listening to the sound of his own heartbeat and the voice that whisper from deep inside his chest. The seal was still there. Still tight. But it was breaking. \[Seal Progress: 14%] \[Next Unlock: ???] The system don't show the next reward anymore. It only show question mark like it scared to reveal what's inside. That make him smile. He know he holding something the world can't handle. Every morning he go hunt monsters from the nearby forest. He already clean out the dungeon near Flame Mountain, but the world was full of other zones. He target dark creatures, ancient beasts, and corrupted spirits. Every kill make him faster, colder, and better. He absorb their skills, their knowledge, even their pain. Sometimes it hurt. Sometimes he scream at night because the souls he devour try to fight back. But he don't stop. He never stop. The hunger of the God Core don't let him stop. One day while moving through the shadow side of the city, Coker hear some adventurers talking about a hidden cave south of the Red Mist Lake. They say it's a ancient ruin, with monsters that even S-Ranks avoid. They say there's a guardian beast inside that can bend time. That catch Coker's attention. He leave that night, wearing his dark cloak, and vanish into the mist. The journey take two days of fast moving. On the way he meet a group of bandits who try to rob him, not knowing who he was. He don't speak to them. He just point his hand and absorb their skills in one second. They fall like puppets, and their fire magic and sword mastery become part of his soul. He keep moving. The Red Mist Lake was creepy and thick with fog, and the entrance to the cave was hidden under the water. Coker dive down, breathless, and find a stone tunnel glowing faint red. When he enter, the system react. \[Danger Zone: Time Rift Chamber] \[Warning: Beast of Ages Detected] Coker grin. "Perfect," he whisper. The beast inside was huge. Bigger than any he face before. A silver panther with four tails and glowing eyes that shift between past and future. It roar and time slow down. But Coker was ready. His skill "Fate Sense" activate and allow him to move even when time freeze. He fight for hours, using every trick, every skill, every drop of rage inside him. Finally he defeat it. When he absorb the beast's core, the system go wild. \[New Passive Acquired: Time Veil] \[Active Skill Gained: Temporal Slash] \[Rank Boost: God Vessel Level 2] His veins glow gold. His eyes burn black and red. And the seal inside crack more. \[Seal Progress: 20%] This time something else unlock. \[Awakened Title: Fatebreaker] He don't know what it mean yet, but the world will soon find out. After leaving the cave, he don't go back to the city. Not yet. He travel north toward the Black Iron Kingdom, a place where only strong adventurers survive. He know he need to test himself more, push the limit, find others who hold power, and crush them if needed. But even while hiding, his name begin to spread. Not "Coker" yet, but "The Fatebreaker." A hunter who destroy monsters in silence, who fight without getting hurt, who vanish like smoke and appear behind enemies like a ghost. The guilds send spies to catch him. They fail. One noble family offer reward for his capture. They vanish. A S-Rank known as Flame Killer go out to challenge him. He come back without his fire magic, walking like zombie, eyes full of fear. "He looked into me… and I felt like nothing," the Flame Killer say before going mad. Back in the Flame Town, Coker's old guild still laugh and drink, but deep inside, some of them begin to fear. The symbol of the six wings and broken crown appear again, this time on the wall of their training room, burning with golden fire. The leader, Guildmaster Trevon, look at it and remember the trash boy they sent to die. "No… it can't be him… he's dead," Trevon say. But he know the truth in his gut. The trash has returned. Coker now study more about the gods. He meet an old blind librarian in a hidden tower who tell him about the lost history. Long ago, the gods created the system. Not to help humans—but to control them. They put seals on some children, hoping they never awaken. "But you… you are a mistake in their plan," the old man say, even while shaking. "You carry something that wasn't meant to return." Coker don't speak. He just nod and walk away. That night, the seal shake again. He scream as power burst through his skin. A memory return. A battlefield. A broken god fall from sky and scream Coker's name. "YOU… ARE… ME." Then darkness. Then silence. He wake up stronger. His cloak torn. His power leaking out like fire and black smoke. His hands glowing. And the voice speak again. "Soon… the seal will break completely. And then… no one will stop you." He smile. Not a happy smile. A smile of truth. Of hunger. Of war. He look at the sky and whisper one word. "Soon."