The city's rain fell in cold sheets, turning the streets into mirrors reflecting neon and despair. Gabriel moved through the shadows, blending effortlessly with the crowds — unnoticed, unseen. The False Monarch's aura hummed faintly beneath his skin, a silent command to those who glanced his way: stay away.
But power was a slow game.
He couldn't rush. Not yet.
The system screen glowed faintly in his mind's eye.
[Current Status]
Level: 0
Shadows: 0/10
Skill Slots: 0/5
Credits: 0
Domain Radius: 5 meters (Dormant)
His eyes scanned the cityscape. Information flowed through his thoughts like digital currents.
Dungeons, like wounds in the world, opened randomly and violently. Governments scrambled to contain the chaos. But deep below the city, hidden in forgotten tunnels, lay the secret Gabriel sought.
A chance to steal the God-ranked katana — the first step in his rise.
⸻
His boots echoed through the hollow subway entrance. The air was stale, thick with the scent of rust and decay. Dim emergency lights flickered, casting long shadows that danced like specters.
This was no ordinary dungeon.
It was a test.
A trap.
A promise.
Gabriel stepped forward, senses heightened. The Domain within him stirred faintly, a whisper of untapped power.
Ahead, monstrous growls echoed from the darkness. The rift pulsed, a swirling tear of shadow and flame.
He wasn't afraid.
⸻
His hand brushed the hilt of an imaginary sword at his side — a habit from his first life. No weapon yet, but soon.
The first battle was always the hardest.
The monsters that emerged were grotesque — twisted amalgamations of flesh and shadow, eyes burning with hunger and malice.
Gabriel's mind raced, analyzing weaknesses, predicting patterns.
His fist cracked against the nearest beast's skull, sending it crashing back. The creature snarled, claws flashing, but he was faster — a blur of calculated strikes and dodges.
No flair. No hesitation.
Only efficiency.
⸻
He could feel the Domain pressing outward, ready to expand with every kill. Every monster reduced to a shadow under his control would strengthen him.
But the secret was this: no one could know. Shadows were forbidden, feared.
Gabriel's power was a secret he would guard with ruthless precision.
⸻
Hours later, battered but victorious, Gabriel's fingers closed around the katana's hilt. The sword hummed with latent energy, alive and waiting.
As he gripped it, the system responded.
[Item Acquired: God-Ranked Katana "Eclipse"]
[Soulbound: Yes]
[Evolutionary: Yes]
[Skill Unlocked: Sword Art - Domain Edge]
[Domain Radius Increased to 5 meters]
A smirk cracked his lips.
The first move had been made.
The path ahead was long. Dangerous. But for Gabriel, that was the only way.
He would train. He would grow. He would become a god in his Domain.
And when the city fell to chaos—
He would be the king in the shadows.