The golden marker didn't move.
It pulsed—slow, deliberate—like a heartbeat buried deep in stone.
I followed it.
The tunnel narrowed as I descended, forcing me to duck beneath jagged rock and squeeze past collapsed sections. The air grew heavier, carrying a faint, sour smell that made my stomach tighten. Not rot.
Something older. Something that had been sealed away for a reason.
The system map adjusted as I moved.
ENVIRONMENT UPDATE
ZONE: SUBTERRANEAN RUINS – DEEP TIER
DIFFICULTY: HIGH FOR CURRENT LEVEL
"High," I muttered. "That's comforting."
The golden marker brightened as the tunnel opened into a vast underground hall. Massive stone pillars rose from the floor, cracked and leaning, their surfaces etched with faded symbols. The ceiling vanished into darkness above, the only light coming from bioluminescent moss clinging to the walls.
And the bodies.
They were everywhere.
Humans. Or what had once been human.
Some lay slumped against pillars, weapons rusted in their hands. Others were piled near a broken gate, bones twisted, armor shattered. Their faces were frozen in expressions of terror, mouths open in silent screams.
The system chimed softly, almost reverently
.
HISTORICAL DATA FRAGMENT DETECTED
STATUS: PARTIALLY RECOVERABLE
Text scrolled faintly across my vision—blurred, incomplete.
"…the empire sealed the lower levels… the price was survival… those who could not adapt were consumed…"
I swallowed.
This place hadn't been destroyed by the creatures alone.
It had been abandoned.
A faint sound echoed through the hall—a wet, dragging noise. I froze, sliding behind a pillar just as something massive moved into view.
It was wrong.
Humanoid, but stretched, its limbs too long, joints bending in directions they shouldn't. Patches of armor were fused into its flesh, as if it had grown around them. Its eyes glowed a dull yellow, scanning the hall with slow, deliberate movements.
The system reacted instantly.
ENTITY IDENTIFIED: FORSAKEN GUARD (CORRUPTED)
LEVEL: 6
THREAT RATING: EXTREME
RECOMMENDED ACTION: EVADE
Level 6.
I was Level 3.
Every instinct screamed at me to run.
The golden marker hovered behind the creature, beyond a broken gate partially buried under rubble.
Of course it did.
I crouched lower, barely breathing, activating Shadow Step without thinking. My movements became softer, more controlled, like the darkness itself was helping me hide.
The Forsaken Guard dragged its blade along the stone floor, sparks flashing with each step. It paused near one of the corpses and tilted its head, as if listening to something only it could hear.
I edged sideways, inch by agonizing inch, using pillars and debris as cover. Sweat trickled down my spine despite the cold.
Then—
A crunch.
My boot came down on a brittle bone.
The sound echoed like a gunshot.
The Guard's head snapped toward me.
The system screamed.
DANGER!
ENEMY LOCK-ON DETECTED
The creature roared, a deep, hollow sound that shook the pillars. It charged.
I ran.
Stone blurred past as I sprinted toward the broken gate, heart pounding, lungs burning. Behind me, the Guard thundered forward, each step cracking the floor.
The system map flashed rapidly.
SURVIVAL PROBABILITY: 9%
"Shut up," I gasped.
The gate loomed ahead—a massive stone archway etched with symbols similar to the ones on the pillars. The golden marker pulsed violently now, urging me forward.
I dove through just as the Guard's blade slammed down where I'd been.
The floor collapsed.
I fell.
Darkness swallowed me as I tumbled down a sloping shaft, smashing into stone, skin scraping raw. Pain exploded through my body, then—
I hit water.
Cold. Shockingly cold.
I flailed, gulping air as I surfaced in a vast underground pool. Faint light shimmered from glowing crystals embedded in the cavern walls.
The shaft above collapsed completely, sealing shut.
Silence fell.
The system chimed weakly.
HOST STATUS: CRITICAL
MULTIPLE INJURIES DETECTED
EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE UNAVAILABLE
I floated there, gasping, staring at the sealed ceiling.
No way back.
No easy escape.
The bodies. The Guard. The sealed levels.
This world didn't care if you were brave or kind or smart.
It devoured the weak.
I dragged myself to the pool's edge and lay there, shaking, water dripping from my clothes. Every muscle screamed in protest.
The system pulsed again, slower this time.
QUEST UPDATE: DISCOVER THE HIDDEN PATH
STATUS: SUCCESS
NEW ZONE UNLOCKED
A new name appeared in glowing text.
ZONE: THE SUNKEN VAULT
I laughed—soft, broken.
"Of course," I whispered. "A vault."
The empire hadn't hidden these depths to protect its people.
It had hidden them to protect itself.
I pushed myself to my feet, dagger still in hand, eyes scanning the shadows of the vault.
Whatever waited here, it was meant to break me.
I stepped forward anyway.
Because in a world that devours the weak, standing still is just another way to die.