CHAPTER 3: The First Hunt
Darkness swallowed him whole.
For a brief moment —
There was nothing.
No sound. No light. No sensation. Just a complete and perfect absence, like the space between one heartbeat and the next.
Then
The world returned.
Cold air filled his lungs. Stone touched his feet. The darkness gave way to something dim and blue and alive.
Lucius opened his eyes.
A cavern stretched before him, its ceiling lost somewhere above in shadow. The only light came from crystals embedded in the walls — pale blue, pulsing faintly, like something breathing slowly in its sleep.
Water dripped from somewhere overhead, each drop hitting stone with a clarity that made the silence around it feel even deeper.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
"…So this is a dungeon."
His voice was calm.
Too calm, perhaps, for someone standing alone in an underground passage for the first time.
But inside, his mind was already working. His eyes moved across the cavern in slow, methodical sweeps — ceiling, walls, floor, shadows. The ground was uneven, covered in damp stone and scattered debris. Some of it was bone. The shape of a hand visible in one pile near the wall.
So people really did die here.
Interesting.
The air was heavy with mana. Far denser than anything he had felt above ground — a thick, almost tangible pressure that settled against his skin. He could feel it more clearly now that he was inside. And beneath that awareness, something else.
His own body.
Weak. Fragile. Unstable.
His muscles trembled slightly just from standing still. Not from cold or fear — simply from the basic effort of existing in a form that had spent years doing nothing but deteriorate.
This is what I have to work with.
Lucius exhaled slowly.
This wasn't unexpected. The real Lucius had been sickly his entire life. A body that had never trained, never fought, never been asked to endure anything more demanding than walking from one room to another. Years of illness had carved it hollow.
Now it had to survive a dungeon.
His eyes narrowed.
He began walking deeper.
Each step was slow. Deliberate. Quiet. He kept close to the wall, watching the shadows ahead, listening to the silence between the dripping water. The crystals cast everything in pale blue — beautiful in a way that had nothing to do with safety.
Then
A sound.
Low. Guttural. Hungry.
Lucius stopped instantly.
His gaze shifted toward the darkness ahead.
Movement — subtle at first. Something crawling along the upper wall, limbs moving in a way that wasn't quite right. Too many joints. Too fluid.
It dropped.
The creature landed without a sound and straightened slowly. Small frame. Grey skin stretched tightly over a skeletal body. Long, crooked limbs. Claws that scraped lightly against the stone as it shifted its weight.
Yellow eyes glowed in the dim light.
A Skarnling.
It stared at him.
Lucius stared back.
For a moment — neither moved. The creature tilted its head slightly, as if uncertain what it was looking at.
Then it screeched.
And lunged.
Fast. Far faster than its thin frame suggested.
Step.
The word formed in his mind like a reflex — clean, silent, instinctive.
Space distorted.
He vanished.
A split second later he reappeared behind the creature, the displaced air settling around him like a held breath finally released.
His chest tightened immediately. A sharp, draining pull radiated outward from somewhere beneath his ribs — his mana reserves contracting visibly, like a candle burning down several hours in a single second.
"…That cost more than expected."
The Skarnling twisted violently, reacting faster than he had anticipated. It didn't need to see him — it felt the shift in air pressure and responded on pure instinct.
Claws shot backward.
Pain flared across his chest.
Lucius stepped back sharply. A thin line of blood appeared beneath his shirt. Not deep — but enough to remind him exactly what kind of body he was working with.
His breathing grew heavier.
"…This body really is trash."
The Skarnling screeched again and rushed him.
This time, Lucius didn't move with his Talent.
He watched instead.
The creature's approach was direct. No feinting, no variation — just a straight line driven entirely by instinct and hunger. It had one mode. Forward.
He waited.
At the final moment he sidestepped barely, just enough — and the creature stumbled past him, momentum carrying it forward.
That was the opening.
Lucius moved immediately. His hand shot forward and seized the back of the creature's head. It thrashed violently, claws slashing wild arcs through the air, close enough that he felt the displacement against his forearm.
His grip tightened.
CRACK.
The creature went still.
Its body collapsed onto the stone without ceremony.
Silence filled the dungeon again.
Lucius stood over it, breathing slowly. Sweat had formed at his temples. His hands were steady but only just.
"…Pathetic."
He wasn't sure if he meant the monster or himself.
Then —
[You have slain a Skarnling]
[+10 EXP]
[+1 Stat Point]
Lucius went still.
His eyes moved across the notification carefully.
"…So it's real."
Another line appeared.
[Reward Acquired]
[Blunt Iron Sword Obtained]
A sword materialized beside him and dropped onto the ground with a dull, heavy sound. He crouched and picked it up. The blade was rough — poorly balanced, the edge uneven, the grip wrapped in something that had dried out long ago.
But it was better than his bare hands.
"…This will do."
He straightened and let the status window open.
---
[Status Window]
Name: Lucius van Venus
Title: Overlord of the Abyss
Level: 1
Talents: Teleportation (God Tier) Law of One (God Tier)
Strength: 4
Agility: 6
Mana: 8
Sensitivity: 6
Endurance: 5
Available Stat Points: 1
---
Lucius stared at the numbers in silence.
Low. Pathetically low. A trained soldier — even a young one — would surpass this without effort. The god-tier Talents sitting at the top of the window felt almost ironic against the stats beneath them.
"…So even with god-tier talents."
He closed his eyes briefly.
"…I'm still at the bottom."
That was fine.
Power wasn't given. It was built — choice by choice, fight by fight, until the gap between what you were and what you needed to be finally closed.
His gaze settled on the available point.
He considered each stat methodically. Strength would help, but not enough to change his situation immediately.
Agility was useful — but he could compensate for speed with awareness and positioning. Sensitivity would sharpen his perception, but experience could develop that over time.
Endurance would ease the burden on his failing body.
But it wouldn't solve his core problem.
His eyes returned to one number.
Mana.
Teleportation was his strongest advantage — and right now, it was also his most dangerous liability. One use in a simple skirmish had already drained him noticeably.
In a real fight, against multiple opponents, running dry meant dying. No complexity to it. No alternative outcome.
If I run out of mana — I die.
Simple. Clean. Certain.
"Mana."
[+1 Point Allocated to Mana]
A faint warmth spread through him — subtle, but real. His breathing steadied slightly. The tight, drained feeling behind his ribs eased just enough to notice.
"…Better."
Not enough to change everything. But enough to matter right now.
He closed the window and tightened his grip around the sword.
Then he raised his head.
A sound reached him from the deeper dark. Not one set of footsteps. Not two.
Multiple.
From the shadows ahead, three pairs of yellow eyes appeared. Then the shapes around them — grey, skeletal, patient. They had been there for a while. Watching. Waiting for the right moment.
Lucius looked at them.
Then — a faint smile.
"Good."
His stance shifted. Sword raised. Mana circulating slowly and carefully within him, conserved now, held like a resource he couldn't afford to waste.
His eyes turned cold.
"Let's test it."
The Skarnlings screeched —
And charged.
Lucius stepped forward to meet them.
His first hunt had only just begun.
---
To Be Continued…..