"The Silent Ascension"

The deeper I went into the Dungeon, the more I felt like I was walking into something that should not exist.

It wasn't just the eerie silence or the way the blue crystals that lined the walls were thinning, their light barely strong enough to keep the darkness at bay. It was the feeling—the way the air itself pressed down on me, thick and heavy, like the entire Dungeon was holding its breath.

I had felt this before.

The last time I was here, the Shadow Stalker had fought differently than any normal monster. It had healed wounds that should have killed it, and the system had warned me that the anomaly wasn't resolved.

I hadn't understood what that meant then.

I was starting to now.

The golden crystal at my waist pulsed faintly, its hum steady but uneasy. The system was waiting—watching.

Something was wrong here.

And I was walking straight into it.

I moved carefully, my footsteps light on the uneven stone. The Dungeon's terrain was shifting.

The tunnels were no longer the wide, structured pathways near the entrance. Here, the walls were jagged and uneven, the ground warped and cracked like something had reshaped it.

At first, I thought it was natural. The Dungeon changed all the time—that was just how Dungeons worked.

But then I saw the marks.

Long, deep gashes in the stone walls, as if something had torn through them with massive claws. Not smooth cuts from a blade or tool—these were violent, desperate.

Like something had been dragged.

A faint chill ran down my spine, but I pressed forward.

I checked my Inventory.

Rations (3 Days' Worth)

Waterskin (Half-Full)

Lesser Energy Crystal x1

Knife (Dull but Functional)

Not much. I had planned to resupply before heading deeper, but after Byran ambushed me, I had changed my plans.

I sighed through my nose. It would have to do.

The further I went, the less stable the Dungeon felt. I had passed by two collapsed tunnels already, their entrances blocked by fallen stone. Some of the Dungeon crystals were cracked, their blue light flickering weakly.

Like something was draining them.

Then I noticed the glow.

Not blue.

Red.

At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.

A thin, jagged crack ran across the stone floor ahead, its edges glowing faintly red. It pulsed erratically, like a dying ember, casting flickering shadows along the cavern walls.

The moment I saw it, the golden crystal at my waist pulsed violently, its hum rising into a warning vibration against my ribs.

A notification flashed across my vision.

---

[System Priority Alert]

Active Anomaly Detected

Location: Below Current Position

Threat Level: Unknown

---

I stopped breathing.

This was it.

The anomaly the system had been warning me about wasn't a creature. It wasn't something lurking in the shadows, waiting to attack me.

It was this.

A rupture in the Dungeon itself.

I crouched beside the fissure, careful not to touch it. The red light wasn't stable—it flickered in and out, like it was struggling to exist.

And it wasn't just a glow.

The air around it felt wrong.

There was heat, but it wasn't the kind that burned. It was something more suffocating, pressing against my skin like a weight I couldn't shake.

The Dungeon never felt like this.

I swallowed, opening the [Analysis] ability. If the system could read monsters, maybe it could tell me what I was looking at.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—

---

[Analysis Failed]

Error: Data Corrupted. Unable to Identify Source.

---

I stared.

The system didn't know.

I had never seen it fail before. Even if it gave me vague answers, it always had something.

But now? Data corrupted.

The system wasn't just unsure—it couldn't process this at all.

A slow, creeping unease curled in my stomach.

What the hell is this?

I clenched my fists, resisting the urge to touch the fissure. Every instinct in me screamed that doing so would be a mistake.

The golden crystal pulsed again, and another warning notification appeared.

---

[WARNING: ANOMALY INTERFERENCE DETECTED]

System Integrity at Risk. Proceed with Caution.

---

The moment the words appeared, a low chittering sound echoed through the tunnel behind me.

I stiffened.

Not alone.

The sound grew louder, skittering feet against stone, clicking mandibles.

Multiple.

Cave Crawlers.

I had spent enough time watching seasoned adventurers talk about monsters to know exactly what I was dealing with.

A low-tier pack monster, scavengers by nature but deadly in numbers. They weren't powerful alone, but their venom could paralyze their prey long enough for them to overwhelm it.

And I had no idea how many were waiting in the dark.

My grip on the knife tightened. The golden crystal pulsed, as if sensing the shift in tension. My eyes flicked between the anomalous fissure and the approaching monsters.

Damn it.

I had no choice but to fight.

I backed away from the fissure, forcing myself to focus. Whatever this thing was, I didn't have the time to figure it out right now.

The first Crawler emerged from the shadows, its chitinous body reflecting the dim blue light of the Dungeon's crystals. Its segmented legs twitched as it clicked its mandibles, its beady black eyes locking onto me.

Then another.

And another.

My stomach twisted. Five.

Five Cave Crawlers, all staring at me, their bodies tense and ready to strike.

A system notification appeared.

---

[Combat Mode Engaged]

Enemies: Cave Crawlers (x5)

Threat Level: Moderate

---

I exhaled slowly, shifting my stance. My legs were still sore, and my injuries from Byran hadn't fully healed.

But I didn't have a choice.

I rolled my shoulders, ignoring the ache in my muscles. The Cave Crawlers were waiting, watching for an opening.

I had to move first.

Without hesitation, I lunged.

The battle had begun.