The night sky spun above him, dark and cracked with lightning.
Helicopters hovered low, their beams slicing through dust and smoke. The ground where the dungeon gate once stood was now a crater — deep, black, and silent.
Axel Kaiser sat in the middle of it, trembling.
The scent of ash filled his lungs. His vision blurred as red and blue lights flashed across the ruins. Rescue teams — Hunters, not regular medics — moved around with glowing hands, their healing auras flickering like green fireflies.
"We've got a survivor!"
"He's breathing—barely!"
A Healer knelt beside him, chanting softly. Warm energy flowed through his body, mending the shredded flesh and cracked bones.
But Axel didn't feel healed. He felt wrong.
His heartbeat echoed in his ears, louder than the rotors above.
The memory came back like a flood — Markus. The abomination. The screams. The pain. The moment everything went black.
I died.
He knew it. He remembered the sound of his bones breaking, the cold of his own blood. So how was he…?
[System Reboot Complete.]
[Cheat Code Protocol Activated.]
The voice wasn't human. It echoed inside his skull — calm, digital, absolute.
Axel's breath hitched. "...What the hell?"
A faint blue panel flickered to life before his eyes. He jerked back instinctively, but it followed his movement.
[Name: Axel Kaiser]
[Level: 1]
[Awakening Rank: None]
[Status: Alive — Reconstructed]
Strength: 4
Agility: 3
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 6
Mana Control: 1
[Warning: Host body integrity unstable. Training recommended.]
He blinked, panic creeping up his spine.
"No… this isn't real. I'm hallucinating." He shut his eyes tight, shaking his head. "I'm dead. I died in there."
But when he opened them again, the glowing text was still there — unwavering, waiting.
The Healer leaned closer. "Hey, stay with me! Don't close your eyes again."
Her light intensified, sealing the last of his surface wounds. She didn't notice the blue panel hovering inches from his face.
Hours blurred.
When Axel next woke, he was in a white room that smelled faintly of mana herbs and disinfectant.
Hospital? No—this was a Healing Center. The difference was clear in the glowing mana circuits carved into the walls, feeding the enchantments that sustained recovering Hunters.
He lay there silently, listening to the hum of the mana machines.
Healers walked past his room. Association agents murmured in the hall.
Then the voice returned.
[Welcome back, Host.]
[Initializing system synchronization…]
[Sync complete.]
"You again," he muttered under his breath. "What are you?"
[System: 'Cheat Code Interface' — designed for adaptive growth and survival enhancement.]
[Purpose: Ensure the Host never dies again.]
His pulse quickened. "Never… dies again?"
[Affirmative.]
He sat up, heart pounding. His body still ached, but it felt different — lighter, almost new. He hesitated, then whispered:
"Show me my stats again."
The blue panel shimmered to life.
Name: Axel Kaiser
Level: 1
Rank: —
Strength: 4
Agility: 3
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 6
Mana Control: 1
[System Analysis: Potential—Locked.]
[Condition: Fragile Recovery.]
[Recommendation: Training required to unlock cheat potential.]
He exhaled shakily. "...Cheat potential?"
[Affirmative. To optimize Host survival, training routines will be generated based on physiological and mana metrics.]
[Would you like to initialize the first training protocol?]
Axel hesitated. He should've called for a healer, a mental specialist — someone who could tell him if he'd gone insane. But some part of him believed this. That thing in the dungeon hadn't just killed him — it had changed him.
"...Yeah," he whispered. "Do it."
[Initializing...]
[Training Protocol Created.]
A scroll of glowing text appeared before his eyes:
System Routine — Phase 1: Reconstruction
– Physical training: 200 pushups, 200 squats, 3 km run (daily)
– Mana meditation: 1 hour minimum
– Energy control exercise: 'Flow Sense' (guided)
– Nutrient intake optimization: Consume high-mana foods
– Sleep cycle regulation: 6–8 hours per day
[Warning: Missing one day may result in stat regression.]
Axel swallowed. "That's… insane."
[Do you wish to begin?]
He sighed. "...Yeah. Why not? It's not like my life can get weirder."
The system pulsed once — like it was pleased.
[Routine saved.]
[Motivational Setting: Enabled.]
[Daily Reminder: Survive, Adapt, Rise.]
Axel chuckled weakly. "Cheesy."
Still, the words echoed in his chest longer than he expected.
Three days later.
He was discharged from the Healing Center. His physical wounds were gone, but his core readings were strange — inconsistent, unreadable. The healers called it "mana interference."
No one else from his party had been recovered.
No corpses. No mana residue. Nothing.
He was the only one.
And that's what scared the Association.
As he stepped through the exit doors, the sun burned harsh against his skin. A black vehicle waited nearby, its windows tinted.
Two figures stood beside it — both wearing the insignia of the Hunter Association's Special Investigation Division.
"Axel Kaiser?"
"Yes," he answered quietly.
The taller one nodded. "You're coming with us. We have questions about what happened inside that dungeon."
Axel's stomach tightened.
The blue system panel flickered faintly in his vision.
[New Quest Generated: "Interrogation"]
Objective: Survive questioning without revealing the System.
Reward: Hidden Skill — "Mental Fortitude (Lv. 1)"
Axel's pulse quickened. He didn't know if he should laugh or panic.
He looked up at the agents and forced a calm smile.
"Sure," he said, stepping into the car.
"Let's talk."
As the door closed, the faint hum of the engine mixed with the whisper of the system's voice in his head.
[Beginning adaptive monitoring...]
[Stay alert, Host. Not all enemies carry weapons.]
The city lights faded behind him as the car drove off into the night —
and somewhere deep inside, the Cheat System stirred awake completely.