[Lee Joon – Status Panel]
Level: 13
Class: ???
Title: None
HP: 520
MP: 380
Strength: 26
Agility: 34
Vitality: 24
Perception: 26
Intelligence: 20
Luck: 11
Unused Stat Points: 12
Active Skills:
Phantom Blink (Lv. 1) – Dash up to 5 meters, leaves afterimage for 2 seconds (CD: 10s)
Shadow Step (Lv. 3) – Silent movement with momentary speed burst
Piercing Thrust (Lv. 2) – A high-speed, armor-penetrating stab
Passive Skills:
Hunter's Instinct (Lv. 1) – Enhances combat reflexes and danger sense
Ghost Sense (Lv. 1) – Detects cursed energy, stealth enemies, and spiritual anomalies
Special Item:
Memory Shard: Soulbound Champion – A fragment of an ancient warrior's will
Early Morning – Seoul Warehouse District
The moon hung high above me as I stood in front of a rusty metal door, hidden behind an abandoned warehouse. According to my memory, this place shouldn't have a Gate.
And yet...
[Gate Detected: ???]
[Status: Unstable. Unregistered. Classifying...]
[Warning: Dimensional irregularity detected.]
[Gate Type: Unknown – Possible Red Variant]
A cold wind blew through the cracks of the warehouse.
A Red Gate…? At my level?
No.
Not a true Red Gate. Not yet.
But something was definitely wrong.
I checked my inventory. I had one mana potion, reinforced gloves, and a newly sharpened dagger coated in paralyzing extract. I also wore a second-layer chest guard I salvaged from the last dungeon.
This wasn't about EXP anymore.
This was about discovery.
I stepped forward—and passed through.
Inside the Gate – Cracked Twilight Realm
The sky above was blood-red. The ground was made of broken gray tiles, floating in fragments over an endless abyss. Islands drifted like shattered memories. I could barely sense the dungeon boundary.
This… wasn't a normal space.
[Special Quest: Survive the Rogue Gate]
[Objective: Locate the Anchor Crystal and Escape]
[Time Limit: 1 hour]
[Reward: ???]
A timer appeared above my interface: 60:00
Then I heard it.
Howling.
Three figures leapt from a distant ledge — humanoid, but twisted, their bodies veiled in crimson fog and cracked masks.
[Enemy: Phantom Wraith (E-Rank Variant)]
[HP: 310]
[Affliction: Bleed / Disorient]
[Aggression Level: Extreme]
One lunged without hesitation.
I rolled back, slashing as it passed.
[Hunter's Instinct – Activated]
[Ghost Sense – Activated]
Everything slowed.
I saw its second movement coming before it even twitched.
I side-stepped, struck cleanly through its side, then followed up with a Piercing Thrust into the torso.
It exploded in black mist.
[+65 EXP.]
The other two circled, shrieking.
I took them down in a flurry of shadows and steel. One tried to vanish mid-combat—but Ghost Sense lit it up like a beacon in my vision.
After three minutes of dancing between strikes, they were gone.
And I kept moving.
35 Minutes Left
I navigated floating ruins and leaping tiles, sometimes sprinting full speed across shattering walkways.
Eventually, I reached a central platform — a circular temple surrounded by flame-lit braziers.
In its center hovered a crystal pulsing with unstable mana.
The Anchor.
But it wasn't alone.
A figure stood before it — 10 feet tall, wearing a tattered black cloak and helm of bone. A massive scythe rested in its hand.
[Warden of the Gate – ???]
[Level: Unknown]
[Classification: Incomplete Monarch Fragment]
[Affliction: Dimensional Anchor]
[Warning: This entity exists outside normal combat balance.]
My system trembled.
The screen glitched for half a second.
And yet… it didn't attack.
The Warden stared at me, unmoving. Studying.
"You are not of this timeline," a voice whispered.
"You bleed memory, not fate."
I gripped my dagger tighter.
"You can talk?"
The Warden lifted its scythe an inch.
"One day, your name will stain our records. But not today."
It turned its head slightly, toward the crystal.
"Take it. Before I change my mind."
I didn't hesitate.
I lunged forward and grabbed the Anchor Crystal.
[Quest Complete.]
[You have stabilized a rogue dimensional breach.]
[You have absorbed residual Monarch Energy.]
[Reward: Trait Unlocked – Dimensional Resistance (Lv. 1)]
[Bonus: +1 to all Stats | +1 Skill Point]
[You have gained an unknown enemy's attention.]
The Warden vanished in black smoke.
And the Gate collapsed in on itself.
Outside – 4:17 A.M.
I reappeared just outside the warehouse. A crack in space sealed behind me.
I dropped to one knee, panting, heart hammering.
Dimensional Resistance (Lv. 1):
Grants passive resistance against space-manipulation, displacement magic, and time-altering effects.
Something was changing.
Faster than expected.
The Monarchs were testing the waters.
And I was walking directly into the storm.
Somewhere Else – A Shadow Monarch's Realm
A different voice now stirred.
"He stepped into a broken Gate and returned intact."
"No mortal should have passed the Warden."
A glint of interest shimmered in the dark.
"Mark him. Watch him. If he rises too fast… bring him to me."