Chapter 3: Monarchs and Vessels
[Narration Box]
In this world, there are only seven International Players.
The strongest from each of the seven nations—warriors so powerful that they stand above all others.
Yet the world does not know their full truth.
Each one of them… is a Vessel.
Chosen not by the people, but by ancient beings sealed within the Tower—the Monarchs.
Monarch of Flames.
Monarch of Ice.
Monarch of Shadows.
Monarch of Beasts.
Monarch of Steel.
Monarch of Storms.
And at the top of them all...
The Dragon Monarch.
The first. The strongest. The ruler of all Monarchs.
And now, after a thousand years of silence, the Dragon Monarch has finally chosen a Vessel.
Not from the United States.
Not from China.
Not from Japan.
But from Korea.
A boy who had nothing.
A boy the world had forgotten.
His name—Lee Hwan.
The cavern had become silent once more, but Lee Hwan's heart was still thundering. He leaned against the stone wall, trying to calm his breathing. The power of the Dragon Aura still lingered in the air like the echo of a lion's roar.
The revelation from the status screen had left him stunned.
Eye of the Dragon, Dragon Summon, Dragon Aura… and a Class labeled "Unknown Monarch."
That wasn't just any title. Monarchs were beings that only the most elite Players whispered about. But he had something even more shocking in his memory—the voice that had spoken to him during the merge.
That voice…
That presence…
It wasn't human.
Lee Hwan swallowed hard.
"What did I just become?" he muttered to himself.
The screen still hovered faintly before his eyes. His fingers hesitated, but then tapped again, opening a new tab—Monarch Resonance.
[Monarch Resonance – Dragon Monarch]
Name: Rath'Zel, The Dragon Monarch
Status: Sealed (Vessel Found)
Personality State: Dormant
Connection Strength: 3%
Power Limit: 1% (Locked)
"Rath'Zel…" Lee Hwan whispered. Just saying the name made his chest tighten. It was like invoking a force of nature.
But more importantly, this confirmed one thing: the Monarch was still inside him. Dormant… for now.
He wondered about the other International Players. People called them the world's strongest—superhumans who had cleared the highest floors of the Tower. If they were all Vessels too, then…
"...I'm not just a Player anymore," Lee Hwan realized. "I'm one of them."
But he also knew something else.
The others had time. Training. Support from their countries. Secret awakenings carefully guided by elite organizations.
He had none of that.
He had started from zero.
No money. No fame. No teacher. Only a secret—and the most dangerous Monarch of them all sleeping inside him.
Lee Hwan stood slowly. The ground under his feet was cracked from his earlier use of Dragon Aura. And yet… he felt steady now. The shock was fading, replaced by a strange calm.
"I don't need them."
"I have this power for a reason."
As he walked deeper into the cave, the darkness parted before him. His eyes gleamed faintly gold—Eye of the Dragon had activated passively. The skill allowed him to see through shadows, spot weaknesses in stone walls, and even detect hidden mana traces in the air.
There—behind that wall.
He placed a hand on the rock. With a light push, a section of the wall crumbled, revealing a narrow tunnel. Faint blue crystals lined the path ahead.
A secret dungeon. Even the Tower's First Floor had hidden places.
But he was no longer afraid.
He walked forward, determined.
The dungeon was silent, but Lee Hwan's senses were sharper than ever. A beast moved in the shadows—lurking, watching. When it pounced, Lee didn't flinch.
A horned wolf, its fur laced with mana, lunged at him with a growl. But Lee Hwan simply stared.
"Dragon Aura," he whispered.
A wave of raw pressure exploded from him.
The wolf froze mid-air, eyes wide. Its legs buckled mid-jump, and it collapsed to the ground, whimpering, unable to breathe under the weight of the aura.
Lee Hwan calmly walked past it, not even needing to fight. The aura had done everything.
This power… it's real.
This is the Monarch's strength.
He reached a glowing pedestal at the end of the chamber. On it rested a scroll—old, ancient, and laced with red-gold energy.
Lee Hwan reached out and picked it up.
[You have acquired: Dragon Monarch's Legacy – Part I]
+1 Level Up
+Skill Acquired: Flame Breath (Sealed)
Requirement to unlock: Defeat a Dungeon Boss with Dragon Aura Active.
So this was how he would grow.
Through hidden quests.
Through strength.
Through the path only a Monarch's Vessel could walk.
Lee Hwan smiled for the first time in years.
He wasn't afraid of the Tower anymore.
He wasn't going to chase others. He was going to surpass them.
And one day, when the world finally looked at Korea…
They wouldn't see a forgotten country with no International Player.
They would see him.