Arin gazed into the darkness. Something was coming. The footsteps grew louder.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
Arin tightened his grip on his sword. Then there was a figure. A girl. She looked to be around Arin’s age. Long black hair hung over her shoulders. Two small black horns came out from her forehead. Her eyes were red. She wore dark armor that covered her entire body. Behind her was a black cloak.
Arin looked at her. "A demon?" Arin muttered. The girl stopped and looked at him. They locked eyes for a few seconds. Then her eyes turned to where the dragon went. It was already gone. The demon girl turned back to Arin. "Human." The girl said coldly. Arin raised his sword. "I’m not looking for trouble." The girl said nothing.
Arin took a step back. "I just want to leave." Suddenly, the demon girl vanished. Arin’s eyes widened. "What?!" Arin shouted. A fist flew into his stomach.
BOOM!
Arin was sent flying back. He hit the wall with a loud thud. "Ugh!" Arin groaned as he fell to the floor. The demon girl stood where Arin had been..Arin looked at her. "Okay." Arin muttered as he pushed himself up. "Definitely looking for trouble." The demon girl charged at him. Arin raised his sword.
CLANG!
Her fist met his sword and sent him flying back. Arin attacked her. She dodged. Arin swung again. She ducked and slid past him. Arin turned around. Too late. Her foot slammed into his side.
BOOM!
Arin was sent flying into the ground. "She’s fast!" Arin groaned as he rolled away. The demon girl was above him. She brought her fist down. Arin raised his sword.
CLANG!
Arin’s sword cracked. His eyes widened. "You’re kidding!" Arin yelled. The demon girl grabbed his sword and snapped it in two. Arin looked at his broken weapon. "My sword..." The demon girl threw the broken weapon at Arin. Arin looked at her. "Did you have to destroy it?" Arin asked. The demon girl attacked again.
Arin jumped back and grabbed a rock from the ground. The demon girl punched, but Arin moved to the side. Her fist broke the wall.
BOOM!
Arin kicked her leg, but she didn’t move..She looked at him. Arin gulped. "Right." Arin said as he jumped back. "That didn’t work." The demon girl attacked again. Arin ran, but he had no sword. He had no chance of winning. He needed to survive.
Arin ran into a tunnel. The demon girl followed. Arin looked around. There was a large rock above them. He grabbed it. "Come on." Arin said. The demon girl appeared. Arin pushed the rock down. It crashed down on the demon girl.
BOOM!
Dust filled the tunnel. Arin ran. He didn’t look back. Then something grabbed his shirt. Arin stopped. The demon girl pulled him back. "How?!" Arin yelled. She threw him across the room. Arin flew and landed on the ground. His vision was blurry.
He tried to get up, but his body refused. The demon girl walked up to him. Arin clenched his fists. "Fine." Arin muttered as he pushed himself up. "If I can’t beat you..." Arin looked around. "...I’ll at least survive." He charged at the demon girl. She stood her ground. Arin punched, but she caught his fist.
Arin kicked, but she blocked it. She pushed him back and he stumbled. She appeared behind him. She punched him in the back.
BOOM!
Arin fell to the floor. He tried to move, but his body was completely drained. The demon girl stood over him. Arin looked up at her. "So..." Arin said. He took a deep breath. "That’s it?" Arin asked. The demon girl raised her hand. Arin closed his eyes. Then
[Experience Gained.]
Arin’s eyes opened.
[Level Up!]
[Level: 10]
Everything stopped. The pain. The tiredness. For a moment, Arin couldn’t think. Then a large blue window appeared before his eyes.
[Level 10 reached.]
[Major System Functions unlocking.]
Arin looked at the window.
"What?" Arin muttered.
More windows appeared.
[Status System: Unlocked.]
[Skill System: Unlocked.]
[Inventory System: Unlocked.]
[Quest System: Unlocked.]
[Dungeon System: Unlocked.]
Arin’s eyes widened. "There’s more?" Arin said. The System continued.
[Level 10 Achievement Reward.]
[New Skills Acquired.]
[Skill: Basic Mana Control.]
[Skill: Monster Appraisal.]
[Skill: Dungeon Mapping.]
Arin looked at the messages. He had spent all this time thinking the System was nothing more than a Status window. It was much more than that.NIt was much more powerful than he had ever imagined. Then another message appeared.
[Dungeon Master Blessing recognized.]
[Dungeon Master Authority: Locked.]
[Requirement: Unknown.]
Arin frowned.
"Locked?" Arin muttered. Before he could think about it, the demon girl attacked. She grabbed him by the collar and lifted him off the ground. Arin struggled. "Let go!" Arin shouted. The demon girl looked into his eyes. Then her expression changed. Her red eyes widened slightly. She wasn’t looking at the strange blue windows. She was looking at his right hand.
The Dungeon Master’s Mark was glowing. A black light surrounded his hand. The demon girl’s grip on him loosened. Arin looked at his hand. "What..." Arin muttered. The black light grew stronger. The demon girl took a step back. For the first time since the battle had begun, she looked shocked.
She whispered something Arin couldn’t understand. Then she looked at him again. Her cold expression was gone. She lowered her head. And with a voice filled with something Arin couldn’t understand, she said one word.
"Master."