The morning sun cast golden light across the cracked stones of the eastern quarter. Kian stood quietly outside the small house where he and his siblings lived. The warm scent of bread lingered from breakfast. Nyla and Dael had already left for school, their laughter still echoing faintly in the alleys behind him. The calm of the morning masked the decision he had made last night.
He would ascend the Dungeon Tower.
For weeks, the Hollow Banner had moved through Draegor's underworld, growing stronger, more feared. But Kian knew that to challenge the Guilds directly—to reshape the future—he would need power far beyond what he currently possessed. And there was only one place left that could give him that edge.
The Dungeon Tower stood on the edge of the Scar District, where civilization frayed into wilderness. It had risen from the earth centuries ago after the First Collapse, a massive spire of obsidian stone and shifting magic. Each floor was a trial, each success a reward. Hunters called it the Tower of Becoming.
No one had cleared it in generations.
Clad in a cloak of dull grey and reinforced leather, Kian moved through the crowds. The market stalls faded behind him, replaced by cracked pillars and silent statues—monuments to those who had fallen in the Tower. Even from a distance, the structure loomed like a monolith of ambition, its surface etched with ancient runes that pulsed with dark violet light.
He reached the gate.
A voice echoed without source, ancient and layered.
"Do you seek power?"
"I do," Kian answered.
"Will you offer memory, flesh, and soul to claim it?"
"I will offer what I must."
The gates parted.
Floor One: Trial of Beasts
Kian stepped into a wide chamber, its floor of moss and cracked marble. From the shadows emerged twisted creatures—wolf-like monsters with molten eyes. No room for subtlety here.
He drew twin daggers and moved.
Kian fought not with brute strength, but with timing, precision. Each creature that lunged met a parry, a slash, or a counterstrike. He moved like a phantom, using shadows as cover. When the last beast fell, a ring of light opened ahead.
Reward: Enhanced Reflex (Passive)
He felt the change immediately. Every nerve fired faster. The world slowed for him.
Floor Two: Trial of Fire
A dome of obsidian, with rivers of magma below. Floating platforms, spinning columns, and fire elementals that hurled burning spears.
Kian summoned a skeletal mage, using Soul Stitching to stabilize its core. It channeled a cold aura that weakened the fire projectiles. Kian used momentum and positioning to cross the maze, deconstructing one elemental with a burst of necrotic energy from his palm.
Reward: Spell—Necrobind Flame
Floor Three: Trial of Mirrors
A hall of polished crystal, where reflections came alive. Each mirror birthed a clone of Kian—same strength, same speed, same tactics.
Kian understood immediately. He couldn't win by mirroring them. He had to change.
He dropped his stance entirely, let one clone strike him. As he fell, he activated Phantom Merge, slipping through the clone's strike and appearing behind it. The rest fell like dominos.
Reward: Trait—Mirrorbreaker (Illusion Resistance)
Floor Four: Trial of Echoes
The chamber was filled with whispers. Lost souls, memories from his childhood, fears he had buried.
Nyla crying after their parents disappeared.
Dael asking if they were going to die.
Kian clenched his fists. "No."
He stepped forward, and the illusions shattered.
Reward: Mindfort Ward (Mental Defense)
Floor Five: Trial of Judgment
Three paths. Three doors. Each led to a different enemy. One was weaker. One equal. One stronger.
No hints. No signs.
Kian chose the left door.
The enemy inside was faster, deadlier, clever.
But Kian did not retreat. He let the battle teach him.
Wounds bled. Muscles tore. He smiled through it.
In the end, he stood victorious.
Reward: Rank Increase—D to C-Class
His mana surged. Codex threads rewove themselves.
Kian collapsed beside the gate to the sixth floor. Time meant nothing here. He didn't know how many days had passed. But the hunger inside him—to protect his siblings, to rise above the rot of Draegor—burned brighter with every floor.
He looked at his palm. The Codex glyph now shimmered with silver threads.
"I will not stop."
The gate to the next floor pulsed open.
Elsewhere…
In a hidden guild hall near the Draegor Archives, a man in black robes sipped tea.
"He's in the Tower?"
A shadowed figure nodded. "Fifth floor cleared. Alone."
The man chuckled. "So the ghost rises."
"Shall we intervene?"
"No. Let him climb. The higher he goes…the more valuable he becomes."
Back at home, Dael was fixing the window latch. "He said he'd be back in two days."
Nyla frowned at the quiet hearth. "He always comes back."
But she looked at the closed door and shivered.
Because this time, it felt different.
End of Chapter 7