The Rift Beast lunged.
A blur of claws and fangs tore through the fog, its roar splitting the twisted forest like thunder.
Charles barely had time to gasp—
CRASH!!!
Liam flew backward as the beast struck him first, shield and body thrown like a ragdoll.
"LIAM!" Mira screamed.
Kyren dashed forward with his spear.
"BACK—!!"
The beast smashed the ground.
A shockwave burst outward.
BOOM!!!
Mira collapsed instantly.
Jonah slammed into a tree and dropped unconscious.
Kyren stumbled, coughing blood as corruption seeped into his lungs.
Dark mist poured through the air—thick, choking, suffocating.
Every breath burned.
Charles felt his chest tighten.
The Rift pulsed:
[Dark Attribute Suppression Field Detected]
[Non-Light Awakeners: Forced Unconscious State]
[Host: Light Affinity → Partial Resistance]
One by one, his teammates fell.
Kyren reached toward Charles weakly.
"R-Reyes… run…"
Then he collapsed.
Charles stood alone.
His heart pounded so hard he tasted blood.
The Rift Beast turned toward him—slowly, deliberately.
Its glowing red eyes burned with hatred.
Only Light remains.
It roared.
A corrupted, bone-shaking roar that made Charles stumble backward.
"Wh-Why me…?" he whispered.
The Rift pulsed again:
[Reason: Host radiates Holy Energy]
[Dark monsters instinctively target Light-bearers]
Charles clenched his teeth.
"I DIDN'T ASK FOR THIS ENERGY!!"
The beast charged.
Charles dove behind a tree—
the tree exploded.
KRRRSSHH!
Shards of wood slashed his arms.
Blood trickled down.
His legs trembled.
"I can't run… I can't fight this thing alone…"
The beast lunged again.
Claws scraped Charles's chest—
—but didn't cut.
Instead:
SSSHHHH!!!
Smoke hissed from the beast's limbs.
It recoiled in pain.
Charles's eyes widened.
"My passive… it's burning it?"
[Holy Recoil → Auto-activated]
[-35% HP inflicted back to enemy]
The Rift Beast screeched.
It charged again, furious.
Charles raised his trembling hands.
"L-Light… B-Burst…!"
A tiny spark of holy light shot out—
But boosted by Apostle Passive:
BOOOOM!!
A flash of gold tore through the mist, blasting a chunk of flesh from the beast's shoulder.
Blood splattered across the ground—
black and steaming.
Charles staggered, nearly collapsing.
"I… can't keep this up…"
His vision blurred.
His legs buckled.
His mana was almost dry.
But the beast wasn't done.
It hurled itself at him—
Claws open—
Mouth wide—
Blood spilling—
Ready to kill.
Charles whispered,
"…I'm sorry."
He didn't know to who— his friends, his family, or to himself.
He raised his arm weakly.
The beast's claws slammed into him—
And reversed.
CRRRACK!
Holy Reversal auto-triggered.
The beast's bones snapped inward.
Its own strength crushed itself.
Its core cracked.
Blood sprayed.
The Rift Beast screamed—
—and fell.
Dead.
Charles fell to his knees.
His arms shaking violently.
Blood dripping from dozens of shallow wounds.
The forest fell silent.
The Rift pulsed faintly:
[Dungeon Core Broken]
[Exit Unlocked]
[Emergency Ejection Initiated]
[System Reward: +20 Points]
[Host Mana Capacity Increased]
[Summon Condition Achieved: Valkyrie Astrid]
"…finally…" he whispered.
His body collapsed.
Darkness swallowed him just as white light burst around the group—
—and Team Echo, along with a rescue squad who had entered moments earlier but collapsed from corruption, were expelled onto the surface.
---
⭐ Outside the Dungeon
"THEY'RE OUT!!"
Guild rescuers rushed forward.
Six guild members, two instructors—
all fainted, unconscious, covered in residue.
Instructor Ronan arrived seconds later, eyes sharp as blades.
"Check their vitals! Move!"
One medic gasped.
"They're alive… all of them…"
Ronan scanned the students.
His gaze froze on Charles.
Bruised. Bloodstained. Burn marks on his arms.
Ronan's jaw tightened.
"…This boy fought."
He turned to a Guild scout.
"Did your team kill the boss?"
The scout shook his head, horrified.
"No. We tried entering but fainted from the dark mist immediately. We never even reached the boss room."
Ronan stared at the unconscious students.
"Then who killed it?"
His gaze locked onto Charles again.
"…You," he whispered.
"Did you do this?"
---
⭐ Suspicion
Charles slowly opened his eyes.
Everything hurt.
Everyone stared at him.
Ronan.
Guild members.
His teammates.
All confused.
All suspicious.
He swallowed hard.
"A-ah… Instructor…"
Ronan stepped closer, eyes unblinking.
"What happened in that dungeon?"
Charles paused.
His heart raced.
Everyone leaned in.
He forced a shaky breath.
"…I have light affinity."
Ronan raised an eyebrow.
"Explain."
Charles continued, voice trembling but steady:
"Dark monsters… are weak to light.
I-I think… I just lasted longer than the others because of that.
I'm still F-rank. I just had an attribute advantage."
Silence.
Then murmurs.
"That… makes sense."
"Light does counter dark…"
"Beginners sometimes get lucky…"
"So he wasn't strong… just lucky."
Ronan stared deeper—
but the Rift concealed EVERYTHING.
Charles's mana signature stayed perfectly F-rank.
After a long moment…
"…Very well," Ronan said quietly.
"You survived because of affinity. Nothing more."
Charles nodded weakly.
He lied.
But it was a lie the world would believe.
---