Cold.
That was Ethan’s first thought as the world reassembled itself around him.
The sensation wasn’t merely physical.
It felt as though something had reached inside his chest and wrapped icy fingers around his heart.
His vision blurred briefly before stabilizing.
He was standing beneath a gray sky.
The city was gone.
In its place stretched an endless plain littered with broken weapons and ancient bones.
Spears taller than trees jutted from the earth at impossible angles.
Rusted swords lay half-buried in the dirt, their blades worn smooth by time.
Far in the distance, mountains rose like the jagged teeth of some sleeping beast.
A notification appeared immediately.
[Welcome to Bronze Gate #7713.] [Dungeon Name: The Graveyard of Broken Spears.] [Objective: Survive and reach the central mausoleum.] [Participants Remaining: 12/43] [Warning: This Gate has exceeded its expected lifespan.] Twelve?
Ethan reread the number.
Forty-three people had entered.
Only twelve remained.
“Well,” he said quietly, “that’s encouraging.” The shadow beneath his feet stirred.
“This place remembers death.” “I was hoping for something less ominous.” “There is nothing less ominous.” Fair enough.
Ethan turned in a slow circle, taking in his surroundings.
The plain stretched endlessly in every direction, interrupted only by fields of ancient weapons and the occasional pile of bones.
Human bones.
At least, most of them appeared human.
Others belonged to things with too many limbs or skulls crowned with horns.
“Any idea where we are?” “A memory.” That answer raised significantly more questions than it answered.
Before Ethan could ask another, a scream echoed across the plain.
Not far away.
Instinct took over.
He ducked behind the nearest spear just as something massive crashed into the ground fifty meters away.
Dust exploded into the air.
When it settled, Ethan found himself staring at a creature that resembled a wolf stitched together from shadows and exposed bone.
Its body stood nearly three meters tall, with six glowing eyes and a mouth that split all the way down its neck.
Three people ran before it.
One man in a torn business suit.
A teenage girl carrying a kitchen knife.
And a woman in military fatigues whose left arm ended just below the elbow.
The wolf caught the businessman first.
He didn’t even have time to scream.
One moment he was running.
The next, half of him wasn’t.
The remaining survivors froze in horror.
The creature’s eyes turned toward them.
[Bone Hound.] [Level: 7.] [Threat Assessment: Moderate.] Moderate.
Ethan was beginning to suspect the system had a very different definition of that word.
“Should we help them?” he whispered.
“No.” “That’s not very heroic.” “You are not a hero.” The shadow’s response was immediate.
The military woman raised a pistol and fired three times.
The bullets struck the creature’s skull.
It barely noticed.
The teenage girl attempted to stab it as it lunged.
That went about as well as Ethan expected.
The Bone Hound swatted her aside with enough force to send her rolling across the dirt.
Something cracked.
Probably several things.
The creature prepared to finish her.
Ethan sighed.
“Of course.” “You are an idiot.” “I’ve been informed.” He picked up a rusted spear from the ground.
It was surprisingly light.
A notification appeared.
[Ancient Soldier’s Spear.] [Condition: Poor.] [Durability: 3/20.] [Description: One of countless weapons abandoned in this place.] “Better than nothing.” He stepped out from behind the broken pillar.
“Hey!” The Bone Hound turned.
All six eyes fixed on him.
Immediately, Ethan regretted every decision that had led him to this moment.
“On second thought, let’s discuss this.” The creature charged.
Fast.
Far too fast.
Ethan barely managed to dive aside as claws tore through the spot where he’d been standing.
The impact left a crater in the earth.
“Oh, that’s unfair.” The Bone Hound lunged again.
Ethan thrust the spear instinctively.
By sheer luck, the rusted tip found its way into one of the creature’s eyes.
The beast howled.
[Critical Hit.] [Bone Hound has suffered severe damage.] “I did that?” “You accidentally succeeded.” “I’ll take it.” The creature snapped the spear in half with a movement of its head.
So much for durability.
The military woman appeared beside him.
“Run!” She fired another shot into the creature’s remaining eyes.
“Way ahead of you!” They ran.
The Bone Hound followed.
“This happens to me a lot,” Ethan shouted.
“This is happening to me for the first time!” the woman yelled back.
“Honestly, that’s probably healthier!” The teenage girl stumbled beside them, clutching her side.
“My name is Sarah!” she said suddenly.
Ethan blinked.
“Is this really the time?” “I don’t want to die without introducing myself!” “Fair point!
Ethan!” “Captain Elena Reyes!” the woman added.
The Bone Hound closed the distance.
Its jaws snapped inches from Ethan’s shoulder.
“This feels like an inappropriate time for networking!” Ahead, the field of broken weapons abruptly ended.
Beyond it stood hundreds of stone statues arranged in perfect rows.
Warriors.
Kings.
Things that had never been human.
Each held a different weapon.
Each appeared to be watching them.
The moment Ethan crossed into the field of statues, the system chimed.
[Safe Zone Discovered.] [The Dead Respect Their Own.] The Bone Hound stopped immediately.
It paced at the edge of the field, growling softly.
“Oh, thank God.” “There are no gods here,” the shadow whispered.
“Metaphorically.” The creature watched them for several moments before retreating into the distance.
Only then did Ethan collapse against the nearest statue.
Captain Reyes lowered her pistol.
“You have terrible timing.” “I get that a lot.” She studied him carefully.
The woman appeared to be in her mid-thirties, with short black hair and the posture of someone accustomed to giving orders.
“What level are you?” “That’s an excellent question.” “…You don’t know?” “I’ve had a very busy twenty-four hours.” Sarah sat heavily on the ground.
She couldn’t have been older than sixteen.
“Thank you,” she said quietly.
Ethan looked away.
“It wasn’t a big deal.” “You almost died.” “That happens occasionally.” “No, it doesn’t.” “Fair point.” Captain Reyes crossed her arms.
“Let’s start over.
Captain Elena Reyes.
Twenty-third Infantry Division.” “Ethan Vale.
Professional disappointment.” Sarah laughed despite herself.
“Sarah Kim.
High school student.” The captain frowned.
“That’s not a class.” “A what?” “You don’t know?” Apparently, Ethan had missed more than he thought.
Captain Reyes extended her hand.
A ball of flame appeared above her palm.
Ethan stared.
“Pyrokinesis?” “Rare Talent.
B-Rank.” Of course.
“Sarah?” The girl hesitated before touching the ground.
Vines erupted from the dirt around her fingers.
“Nature Affinity.
C-Rank.” Both of them looked at Ethan.
“Oh.” Right.
“Consume.” Silence.
Captain Reyes blinked.
“That’s it?” “Apparently.” “What does it do?” “No idea.” “What’s its rank?” “Unknown.” That earned him a very strange look.
Before anyone could say more, the statues surrounding them moved.
Stone cracked.
Ancient eyes opened.
Every weapon in the graveyard began to hum.
A voice echoed across the plain.
“Another age.
Another war.” The largest statue stepped forward.
Unlike the others, this one wore a crown of broken iron.
Half its face was missing.
Its remaining eye burned with pale blue fire.
[Gate Guardian Detected.] [The Last Spear King.] [Level: ???] [Warning: Entity exceeds Bronze classification.] “Oh, come on.” The Spear King looked directly at Ethan.
For the first time since entering the Gate, the shadow beneath his feet recoiled.
Impossible.
“You carry its scent,” the king said.
His voice sounded like grinding stone.
The other statues knelt.
Even the wind stopped.
“What scent?” Ethan asked cautiously.
The king raised one skeletal hand.
“The Hunger That Ends All Things.” Captain Reyes slowly lowered her weapon.
“You know what he’s talking about?” “Not even slightly.” The Spear King descended from his pedestal.
Each step shook the earth.
“Billions of years ago, my people stood against the Devourer.” Ethan’s stomach dropped.
“Ah.” “We lost.” “That sounds unfortunate.” “The stars themselves screamed as it fed.” The shadow beneath Ethan’s feet became perfectly still.
“Yet here you stand.” The king’s burning eye narrowed.
“Wearing its mark.” “I can explain.” “No, you cannot.” “That’s fair.” The Spear King stopped several meters away.
Then, unexpectedly, he drove his spear into the ground and knelt.
Every statue in the graveyard followed.
Captain Reyes nearly dropped her pistol.
Sarah looked seconds away from fainting.
The ancient king lowered his head.
“The dead remember their debts.” A new notification appeared.
[Hidden Quest Discovered.] [The Oath of Broken Spears.] [Objective: Inherit the Spear King’s legacy.] [Reward: Unknown.] [Failure Penalty: Death.] Ethan stared at the message.
“Why is death always the failure condition?” “Because life is the exception,” the shadow replied.
The Spear King raised his head once more.
“Prove yourself, Heir of Hunger.” The sky split open above the graveyard.
Something began descending from the darkness beyond.
Something vast.
Something with wings.
And for the second time in two days, Ethan heard his shadow speak with unmistakable fear.
“It found us.” The system notifications erupted across his vision.
[Emergency Event Triggered.] [Divine Beast Detected.] [Entity: The Seventh Messenger.] [Threat Level: Catastrophic.] [Survival Probability: 0.4%.] The thing in the sky opened its eyes.
There were hundreds of them.
And every single one was staring directly at Ethan Vale.
“Well,” Ethan said softly, “I appear to be having a very bad week.”