The wind carried the stench of blood and ash across the ruins of the outpost.
By dawn, the fires had dimmed to embers. The world looked quiet again, but it was a silence born of death.
Riven sat alone on the cliff overlooking the valley. His armor was cracked, his sword dull, and his heartbeat faintly out of sync with the ticking in his ears.
He had counted it, three ticks for every breath, each one echoing like sand slipping through an unseen hourglass.
The System pulsed quietly inside his mind, waiting.
[Main Quest: Ascension Path — Phase 1 Active.]
[Objective: Slay 10 Class-B Monsters.]
[Reward: Stat Upgrade +1 (All).]
[Cost: 1 Month Lifespan per Kill.]
Ten monsters. Ten months. Ten steps closer to death.
He closed his eyes. "You couldn't even pretend this is mercy, could you?"
[Correction: System does not simulate morality.]
Riven laughed bitterly. "Figures."
He looked toward the dawn. The sun was thin, pale, not golden like he remembered as a boy. Maybe it was him that had dimmed.
He thought of the captain who'd shielded him from the Behemoth's claws.
Of the soldiers who'd followed him even when they knew they wouldn't return.
If their lives had been the price for humanity's survival, then what right did he have to hesitate?
The thought settled like iron in his chest.
He rose. "All right, Hero System. Let's hunt."
[Acknowledged.]
[Activating Field Interface.]
A holographic map unfolded in front of him, etched in silver-blue lines that hovered in the air. Pulsing red markers dotted the surrounding regions, monster nests, blighted zones, rifts.
The nearest was less than a day's march away: The Hollow Basin, a sinkhole teeming with creatures mutated by divine radiation.
Riven set off before the others woke.
The march was long, the landscape scarred.
Where forests once stood, skeletal trees jutted from the earth like blackened ribs. Where rivers once ran, only dust and ash flowed.
Everywhere he walked, the air hummed faintly, the remnants of divine energy that had torn the world apart centuries ago.
[Environmental Warning: Blight saturation level — 68%. Recommend purification skill acquisition.]
"I'll add that to my to-do list," he muttered.
The System responded with silence. It was efficient, but never empathetic.
That made it easier and lonelier.
By sunset, he reached the Hollow Basin.
It was worse than he expected. The land dipped into a massive crater filled with shifting shadows and whispers that crawled under his skin. Bones littered the edges, human and beast alike.
The System pulsed.
[Target Detected: Class-B Entity — Blight Hound.]
[Estimated Combat Power: 3x User's current level.]
[Suggested Action: Engage with Divine Surge.]
Riven's hand went to his chest. The faint silver glow beneath his skin flared in response, the Hero's Heart pulsing, ready to burn again.
Three months gone for a single skill.
One month per kill.
He wondered how much he'd have left when the quest was done.
Still, he drew his blade. "Let's finish this fast."
[Skill Activation Confirmed: Divine Surge.]
[-3 Months Lifespan.]
Blue flame erupted around him. The Blight Hound leapt from the shadows, its body warped, eyes glowing with divine corruption.
Riven moved faster than thought, his sword a streak of silver. The beast countered with claws like blades, tearing the ground apart.
He ducked, slashed, rolled, and drove his blade through its chest.
It howled, and the System's voice cut through the chaos.
[Weak Point Exposed.]
He shifted, twisting the blade and pouring every remaining ounce of light into it. The explosion of energy scattered the basin in a wave of blue fire.
When the dust cleared, only Riven stood. His breath was ragged. His arms trembled.
[Mission Progress: 2/10.]
[Lifespan Remaining: 4 Years, 5 Months.]
He dropped to one knee.
The exhaustion wasn't physical, it was spiritual. Each activation felt like tearing away a piece of himself and feeding it to a hungry god.
Still… he felt stronger.
He could feel the power humming deeper now, faster regeneration, sharper senses, enhanced reflexes.
It was intoxicating.
He looked down at the beast's remains. Its blood shimmered like mercury. For a moment, he saw something strange, faint strands of light flowing from its corpse toward him, absorbed by the System.
[Data Assimilated: +0.1 years Lifespan Restored.]
He froze. "Wait… I can take time back?"
[Correction: Absorption efficiency — 0.3%. Only divine creatures contain recoverable life essence.]
He stared at the data. If he killed enough divine monsters… he could delay the inevitable.
Maybe even cheat death itself.
A dangerous thought and a tempting one.
By the third day, his kills had climbed to six.
Each battle was easier and yet, each one left him paler, colder, more detached.
He caught his reflection in a pool of water: faint gray streaks in his hair, dark circles under his eyes, and a faint halo of light under his skin.
He was changing. Not just physically.
His heartbeat no longer matched the rhythm of life, it beat to the pulse of the System.
[New Skill Unlocked: Chronoblade (Rank F).]
"Cuts through time itself for a single instant."
[Activation Cost: 1 Month Lifespan per strike.]
He tested it once.
The world froze for a heartbeat, then shattered like glass. The monster's head fell before it realized it had been hit.
One month gone.
It was beautiful and horrifying.
On the fifth day, he returned to the ruins of a human village.
No one remained. Only shattered homes, burnt altars, and a few scattered bones.
Yet the System flickered again.
[Optional Sub-Quest Available: "Echoes of the Fallen."]
[Objective: Purify the lingering souls.]
[Reward: 2 Days Lifespan Restoration.]
Riven hesitated. "Purify… how?"
[Channel Hero's Heart and release accumulated energy.]
He followed the instruction, placing his palm against the scorched ground.
Light spread slowly through the ruins, washing over the shadows.
The whispers faded. The wind calmed.
And for the first time since his awakening, he felt peace.
[Sub-Quest Complete.]
[Lifespan Restored: +2 Days.]
Two days.
A small gift, but proof that maybe, just maybe, not every use of power had to drain him.
That night, as he camped under the stars, the System spoke again, unprompted.
[Hero Candidate Progress: 65%.]
[Warning: Deviation from Hero Path may result in corruption.]
"Corruption?" he murmured. "You mean… if I stop following orders?"
[Affirmative.]
[Deviation = System Instability.]
"So if I think for myself, you'll kill me."
[Clarification: Termination is a failsafe to prevent divergence.]
Riven chuckled darkly. "Right. A hero on a leash."
He lay back, staring at the stars, or what was left of them.
He could feel time slipping away, grain by grain.
And yet, every fight, every mission, every surge of power brought him closer to something greater, something he couldn't name yet.
Was it salvation? Revenge? Freedom?
He didn't know.
But he knew one thing:
He couldn't stop now.
Morning came cold and gray. The System pulsed as he stood at the edge of the next battlefield, a forest overtaken by crystalline roots and glowing mist.
[Target Detected: Class-B Entity — Blight Hydra.]
[Estimated Combat Power: 5x User's Level.]
[Estimated Cost of Victory: 6 Months Lifespan.]
He inhaled slowly.
Six months for one kill.
Half a year of time… or half a year of freedom bought for mankind.
He gripped his sword tighter.
"Let's burn it," he whispered. "Let's burn it all."
[Skill Activation Confirmed.]
[Divine Surge x Chronoblade Combination Detected.]
[Temporal Overload: Approved.]
The world erupted into light.
When it was over, the forest was gone, reduced to dust and silent embers.
Riven knelt at the center, his sword buried in the earth. His body trembled violently. The System's voice cut through the static of his fading consciousness.
[Main Quest Progress: 10/10 Complete.]
[Reward: Stat Upgrade +1 (All).]
[Remaining Lifespan: 3 Years, 8 Months.]
He looked up at the horizon, the faint dawn filtering through the smoke.
His heart was pounding too fast. His veins burned. His body screamed, but inside that agony was clarity.
He finally understood what kind of world he was standing in.
Not one that needed gods.
Not one that needed mercy.
But one that needed someone willing to pay the price.
He rose slowly, every movement like tearing time apart.
"Then that's what I'll be," he whispered.
"Not their hero. Not their weapon. Mine."
The System flickered uncertainly, almost as if it hesitated.
[Hero Path: Divergence Level — 3%. Monitoring.]
Riven smirked. "Good. Keep watching."
He turned away from the ruins, the faint ticking echoing behind every step.