Lyra Vale only wanted one thing that afternoon:
a quiet moment to eat her kebab.
Just one moment.
She had been saving money for two days just to buy the big one — the one with double chicken, spicy sauce, and grilled onions. It smelled heavenly. She held it with two hands like it was a treasure.
"This is going to be the best lunch ever," Lyra whispered happily.
She stood in the busy marketplace. People walked around, buying fruit, meat, clothes, charms, crystals — things hunters needed for fighting Gates. The sun was hot. Kids ran around laughing. Music played from a speaker nearby.
Everything was normal.
Until it wasn't.
It started with a strange sound.
A soft crack… crack… crack… like someone was breaking a giant sheet of glass in the sky.
Lyra stopped chewing halfway.
"…Huh?"
She looked up.
Purple lines spread across the blue sky like spiderwebs. The clouds pulled apart. The air change.
People screamed.
Shops shook.
Birds fell out of the sky.
Then the crack tore open.
A giant Gate appeared in the air — huge, swirling with black and violet energy. It was so big it covered half the sky. Wind blasted downward from it, blowing hats, bags, and whole fruit baskets away.
Lyra stared at it, still holding her kebab.
"…Why now?" she whispered. "Can evil things wait until after lunch?"
The ground rumbled. Buildings trembled. Everyone ran, shouting and crying as the Gate grew bigger and brighter.
BOOM!
A shockwave blasted the marketplace. Lyra stumbled but didn't fall. She clutched her kebab like a lifeline.
Then—
A glowing blue screen popped up right in front of her face.
[SYSTEM STARTING…]
[LOADING USER…]
[WELCOME, LYRA VALE.]
She froze.
"…What?"
More words appeared.
[YOU HAVE AWAKENED THE CLASS:
SHADOW ASCENDANT (UNRANKED)]
Lyra blinked.
"Unranked? Does that mean I'm below F-rank? So I'm like… a Z-rank hunter?"
Another screen appeared beside it.
[FIRST QUEST:]
[SURVIVE FOR 3 MINUTES ]
[REWARD: SHADOW CORE ]
[FAILURE: DEATH ]
Lyra made a face.
"What kind of rude system is this? Not even a 'hello' or 'good luck'? Just straight to death?"
Before she could complain more, a deep rumble shook the ground again.
A huge claw — bigger than a car — pushed out of the Gate. It was covered in blue scales and dripping black energy.
Then a long neck.
Then enormous wings.
Then glowing yellow eyes.
A Sky Devourer Wyvern forced its body out of the Gate and let out a roar so loud the ground cracked.
Hunters rushed in wearing armor and carrying weapons.
"S-RANK MONSTER!"
"BACK UP! BACK UP!"
"We need reinforcements!"
People kept running, but Lyra stood there staring at the monster.
Not because she was frozen in fear.
No.
Lyra was angry.
Because the wyvern had smashed her kebab — her beautiful kebab — into the dirt.
"Oh no," she whispered. "You did not just ruin my lunch."
The wyvern roared again, shaking the air.
Lyra rolled her shoulders, cracked her knuckles, and glared at it.
"You know what? I'm going to beat you just for that."
The monster lunged at her with its claws.
Lyra jumped back — and then a strange, cold energy wrapped around her legs.
A new screen appeared.
[NEW SKILL: SHADOW STEP]
Before she could think, her body moved on its own.
WHOOSH!
Lyra vanished and reappeared ten meters to the side.
Her heart raced.
Then she grinned.
"Oh WOW. That was cool! Do it again!"
The wyvern slashed at her.
She used Shadow Step again.
WHOOSH!
She was behind it now.
She couldn't stop laughing.
"This system is so fun!"
Hunters nearby stared with their mouths open.
"Did she just teleport?"
"What rank is she?!"
"She's not even wearing hunter armor!"
The wyvern turned and swung its tail at her.
Lyra ducked — barely — and ran forward.
The system beeped again.
[TEMPORARY SKILL UNLOCKED:
SOUL REAP]
A black blade formed around her right hand. Dark smoke curled around her fingers.
Lyra stared at it.
"Ohhhh. Now THAT looks dangerous. I love it."
She dashed forward, Shadow Step boosting her speed.
The wyvern roared and tried to bite her.
Lyra jumped, stepped on its nose, flipped in the air, and landed on its neck.
She held the dark blade tightly.
"Okay, lizard face," she said with a grin. "Let's dance."
She stabbed the blade into its scales.
The monster screamed.
A black shadow ripped out of its body like smoke rushing toward Lyra. It swirled into her hand and formed a small shadow orb before disappearing into her chest.
The wyvern collapsed.
Everyone froze.
Dust settled.
Silence.
Lyra stood on top of the dead monster, panting but smiling.
A screen appeared.
[SHADOW CAPTURED
NEW SHADOW: WYVERN SHADE (LV. 1)]
Lyra raised her fist in victory.
"Yes! First try! I'm amazing!"
Hunters stared at her like she was a ghost.
"Who… who is she?"
"How did she kill an S-rank alone?!"
"This isn't possible!"
Lyra waved at them cheerfully.
"Hi! I'm Lyra! I'm—"
Before she could finish, the system beeped again.
[NEW QUEST:]
[ENTER THE UNNAMED GATE]
[DANGER LEVEL: UNKNOWN
REWARD: ???]
Lyra stared at the message.
"…Already? I just got here!"
The Gate in the sky grew bigger, glowing with darker energy. Lightning crackled around it.
A second shockwave blasted through the air.
The hunters backed away in fear.
"That Gate…!"
"I've never seen one like that!"
"Is it going to swallow the whole city?"
Lyra looked at the swirling darkness above her, then looked down at her smashed kebab on the ground.
She sighed.
"Fine. I'll go in. But someone better buy me a new kebab when I come back."
The system beeped again.
[ACCEPT QUEST?]
[YES / NO]
Lyra stared at both options.
"Wow… no choice at all. This system is rude."
She tapped YES.
Dark energy wrapped around her body like a vortex. Her feet lifted off the ground. She felt a strong pull toward the sky.
"Wait wait wait—! Not so fast!"
The air around her cracked open like a portal. The world twisted. Colors blurred. Her stomach flipped.
Then everything turned black.
Lyra disappeared into the Gate.
The last thing she heard was a hunter shouting:
"She went inside! Someone call the Association! We need backup NOW!"
And then — silence.
---
Lyra woke up lying on a stone.
Her body ached.
Her head spun.
"Ohhh… that felt like getting thrown in a washing machine."
She pushed herself up and looked around.
She was inside a huge dark room. The ceiling was covered in swirling shadows. Strange purple fire lit the walls. Something dripped from the ceiling — not water, but glowing blue liquid.
She shivered.
"This place feels like a horror movie…"
Then a system message appeared.
[YOU HAVE ENTERED:]
[THE VOID PALACE]
[DANGER: EXTREME]
[RECOMMENDED RANK: SSS+]
[YOUR RANK: UNRANKED]
Lyra blinked.
"S… SSS+? That's a thing?? And I'm unranked? Oh great. I'm basically a baby in a dragon's house."
Another message appeared.
[FIRST DUNGEON QUEST:]
[SURVIVE UNTIL THE SHADOW KING AWAKENS]
Lyra's eyes widened.
"There's a king in here?!"
The ground trembled.
The shadows on the ceiling began moving like alive smoke.
Lyra gulped.
"…Okay. No big deal. I'll just… not die."
She summoned her new shadow.
"Wyvern Shade — come out!"
A dark mist appeared beside her and formed a smaller, shadow version of the wyvern. It bowed its head.
Lyra smiled proudly.
"Nice! I have a cool pet now! Alright, buddy. Let's go not die together."
But then—
Something massive growled in the darkness.
A pair of giant glowing purple eyes opened at the far end of the room.
The shadows shifted, forming a huge humanoid shape.
It spoke.
"Welcome… little Ascendant."
Lyra froze.
"Oh no."
The voice rumbled like thunder.
"I… have been waiting for you."
Lyra cracked a nervous smile.
"…Can I go back outside?"
The Shadow King took one step forward.
The entire room shook.
And the Gate slammed shut behind her.
To be continued....
END OF CHAPTER ONE