Reincarnated with a lucky draw system

Aaron, hidden beneath his disguise as Retribution, stood silently above the restless ocean. Waves rolled beneath his feet, the water churning as though it sensed the presence of something far beyond mortal. Right below him, buried deep beneath the pressure and darkness, was his true destination—the abyss.

Without hesitation, Aaron dived into the cold waters, his body cutting through the surface like a blade. The crushing weight of the sea pressed against him as he swam deeper and deeper, yet his breathing remained steady and calm. The suffocating ocean was no obstacle to him; long ago, he had consumed the blood of the merfolk, and with it gained the ability to breathe freely beneath the waves.

The journey was long, the descent seemingly endless. Darkness closed in around him, and silence pressed like a heavy blanket. Finally, after pushing through the eternal gloom, Aaron arrived before the ancient arc of stone that marked the entrance to the abyss dungeon. Its colossal frame loomed like the jaw of a beast waiting to devour intruders.

And there, standing guard in front of it, was Mediaeval.

Her gaze flickered toward the old man who approached, eyes narrowing as she sized him up. "What are you doing here? This isn't a place for you." Her voice was cold, carrying the confidence of someone who believed themselves in control. To her, the wrinkled figure before her was nothing more than a low-level tanker who had bitten off far more than he could chew.

The thought made her shake her head. Even if this man had managed to swim all the way to the bottom of the ocean—an achievement requiring some strength to resist the immense pressure—it did little to change her judgment. Beyond that feat, he radiated weakness in her eyes. A fool about to march into death.

But Aaron's expression was calm, his voice steady and unyielding. "Actually, this is exactly where I belong. The so-called Abyssal God, or whatever title he hides behind, owes me. I'm here to collect my interest."

Mediaeval blinked, then scoffed as though she'd misheard. "Perhaps old age has made you senile. Turn back now, before you end up killing yourself." It was her final warning, her tone one of dismissal.

Aaron tilted his head slightly, eyes gleaming with quiet authority. "So, are you going to stop me? Or not? Be clear with your intentions."

Mediaeval's lip curled. Then, with a roll of her eyes, she stepped aside. "Why would I care? I'm an outcast of my people. If some old fool wants to wander into his grave, so be it."

A faint chuckle left Aaron's lips as he walked past her. "Wise choice. Without realizing it, you've just saved your own life."

His words were dismissed, Mediaeval already writing him off as all bark and no bite. She turned away, unwilling to waste another thought on him.

Aaron, meanwhile, stepped through the arc.

At once, the world shifted.

He emerged into the abyss—an expanse of pitch-black nothingness, so absolute that even the faintest trace of light seemed swallowed whole. The air was heavy, thick with a primal darkness that clung to the skin like oil. Yet Aaron's sharpened senses cut through it with ease, piercing what others would find suffocating.

Stretching out his perception, Aaron quickly realized this place was far vaster than he had anticipated. His senses traveled farther and farther, yet even with his reach, no boundaries revealed themselves. It was unlike any dungeon he had entered before.

Aaron's voice echoed through the void, steady and unhurried. "Are you going to welcome me? Or should I introduce myself?"

With that, Excalibur manifested in his grasp, cloaked in the guise of a simple walking cane. Its weight was familiar, comforting.

A crackle split the silence as Aaron activated his Lightning Domain. Sparks leapt from his body, forming an expanding sphere of shimmering light that tore through the oppressive darkness. The abyss groaned in protest as a glow of raw energy blossomed within it.

Drawn to the sudden illumination, shapes began to stir. Abyssal monsters, grotesque in form, slithered and stalked toward the only source of light in their world. Their cries echoed—a cacophony of hunger and madness.

Aaron's gaze sharpened. "Like moths to a flame… all of you rush to your deaths."

Power surged into Excalibur as he channeled lightning through the cane, the weapon humming with both holy radiance and raw destructive force. With a single brutal swing, Aaron unleashed devastation.

Light exploded outward. Holy aura, fused with lightning, roared across the abyss like a tidal wave. Screams filled the air as monsters disintegrated, their twisted flesh burning away under the purity of Excalibur's strike. The stench of charred remains spread quickly, acrid and choking, yet Aaron stood unmoved, his face calm as stone.

Hundreds of abyssal creatures fell in an instant, reduced to nothing more than ash scattered on the black winds.

"Consider that an introduction," Aaron muttered, his voice echoing coldly through the silence. "Or shall I reintroduce myself?"

His words drew the attention he had been waiting for.

"Human! How dare you act so arrogantly within our domain?!" A voice thundered in fury. From the shadows, an abyss kin emerged, its body twisted and brimming with darkness. Behind it, dozens more appeared, their eyes burning with hatred.

Aaron ignored their outrage. His tone was calm, cutting through their roars. "Where is your god? He owes me. I'm here to ensure he pays."

"You dare—!" one abyss kin screeched, leaping forward, claws poised to tear him apart. But before it could reach him, its body convulsed. With a shriek, it was incinerated into nothingness.

A rift split the air behind Aaron. From it, a dragon emerged, its body wreathed in flames. Flameborn.

The dragon perched on Aaron's shoulder, its scaled head gleaming in the glow of lightning.

Aaron exhaled softly. "Little one, there was no need to be so impatient." He reached up and patted Flameborn's head gently.

The surrounding abyss kin froze, their hatred deepening. Another of their kind had been destroyed, and the insult now burned twice as deep.

"You fools! How can you stand idle while he desecrates our god's name?" A new voice boomed. An Abyssal Demigod strode forward, his form towering and grotesque, the air bending with his power. Two others followed close behind, their presence suffocating.

"Lord Delish, Lord Hakos, Lord Jhais!" The abyss kin bowed in unison, voices filled with reverence.

"You heard him," Jhais snarled. His glare locked onto Aaron, fury dripping from every word. "Deal with the arrogant mortal this instant!"

The command was met with fanatic obedience. Abyssal kin surged forward, their frenzy filling the abyss like a tidal wave of shadows.

Aaron's lips curved faintly. "Little one, they're all yours. Show me what you can do." He stepped back, giving Flameborn room to act.

The dragon leapt from his shoulder, twisting midair before morphing into his humanoid form. His young frame radiated a quiet, fiery confidence, his eyes fixed on the charging horde without a hint of fear.

He raised both hands skyward. Mana surged. In an instant, streams of water intertwined with roaring fire, fusing into a single devastating force. Superheated steam burst forth, hissing as it devoured everything in its path.

The abyss kin screamed as their flesh melted from their bones, steam searing through them mercilessly. Those who had once rushed forward now fell in heaps, their bodies reduced to charred husks.

Aaron's eyes narrowed slightly in satisfaction. So he's mastered it. Flameborn had grown. After becoming a hybrid, he had forcibly triggered his first growth phase ahead of its natural time, unlocking the water element. Now, fusing fire and water, he wielded superheated steam as a weapon of pure annihilation.

The horde fell one after another, until nothing remained but smoke, the reek of cooked flesh, and the three Demigods who still stood. Protected by the dense abyssal energy surrounding them, they had weathered the storm.

Hakos's eyes burned with hatred. His voice rose in a roar. "You damned bastards! You'll regret this!" His chest heaved as he sucked in abyssal energy. Four eyes began to shift, merging slowly into one enormous cyclopean orb that gleamed with malignant light.

His four arms twisted grotesquely, fusing into two massive, heavily muscled limbs. His body swelled in size, dark armor of abyssal essence coating his frame like a shell of living night.

The ground trembled beneath him. A true monster stood revealed.