The silence was heavier now.
It pressed in like a second skin, thick with the scent of blood, dust, and something older—decay woven with memories.
Cain staggered to his feet, one hand clutching the wall for support. Every nerve still burned from the fusion, but beneath the pain was something new. A low hum, deep inside his bones.
Power.
Raw. Unstable. Hungry.
"Your shell is weak," Nyx whispered from somewhere behind his heartbeat. "But it will do. For now."
Cain didn't answer. He was too focused on the shadows shifting around him—no longer obstacles, but whispers of guidance. His right eye saw them clearly now, as if darkness itself bent to him.
[Skill: Umbral Sight (Lv. 1) – Active]Perception in total darkness enabled. Detection of residual heat, shadow signatures, and soul traces.
He turned, scanning the chamber.
The pit was larger than he'd realized. Cracked ruins littered the floor—remnants of old altars, forgotten restraints, bone piles long picked clean. There, in the far wall—a tunnel, half-collapsed, but wide enough to crawl through.
Footsteps echoed above.
Cain froze.
"Check the body.""You saw the light. He triggered something.""No matter. Dead or alive, we finish this."
Three voices. Men. Armed.
Cain's pulse quickened.
"Kill them," Nyx growled. "One soul would complete our bond. Three would elevate us."
"No," Cain hissed under his breath. "Not yet."
He limped toward the tunnel, forcing his body to move. The torchlight above flickered as figures approached the rim. Dust rained down from their boots.
"He's gone—""Tracks in the blood. Down that path!""Seal the exit!"
Panic clawed at Cain's throat. He dragged himself into the tunnel and began crawling, every breath a fire in his ribs. The passage was tight, damp, cold. And it stank—moss, rusted iron, rot.
But behind him came voices.
Shouting.
Then magic.
A blast of light surged through the chamber, heating the air. Stone cracked. The entrance behind him caved in.
He didn't look back.
The tunnel opened into a crypt—or what was left of one.
Stone coffins lined the walls, shattered by time and looters. Roots crept through the cracks, curling like claws. Cain stumbled into the room, nearly collapsing.
He needed rest. But the System didn't care.
[System Alert: Survival Quest Active]Objective: Escape the Pit Ruins.Bonus Objective: First Kill – Feed the Bound Beast.Reward: +1 Stat Point, +1 Skill Fragment, Beast Familiar Progress Unlocked.
Cain's breath hitched.
"First kill," he murmured. "Of course."
A low growl answered him—not Nyx this time, but real. From the dark beyond the crypt, something moved.
Red eyes blinked.
A scavenger. Dog-sized. Four-legged, mangy. Fangs too long for its snout. No fur—just sickly, pulsing skin.
It wasn't natural.
[Feral Scornhound – LVL 2]Status: Starving. Aggression: High.Beast Core: Fragmented.
It lunged.
Cain barely rolled aside, slamming into a coffin. Pain bloomed in his ribs. The beast hissed, then pounced again.
"Use me," Nyx snarled. "Call the fusion. Let me run."
"I—I can't—!"
[Fusion Channeling – 32% Risk]Proceed with Partial Merge?
Cain's hands trembled.
But fear gave way to something deeper—rage. Not just at this beast. At everything.
Darius. The Order. The lies.
He stood.
"I am not prey," he whispered.
[Partial Fusion Initiated: Nyx – Shadow Wolf]
The world shifted.
Cain's limbs lightened, his breath deepened. His muscles screamed as they changed—barely visible, but enough. Claws tipped his fingers. His pupils slit. Faint wisps of shadow clung to his back like a phantom cloak.
The Scornhound lunged a third time.
Cain met it head-on.
He ducked under its jaw, slashed with shadow claws across its neck. It yelped—reared back.
Cain followed through—his body moving too fast, too smooth. He grabbed the beast by the scruff and slammed it against the wall. It whimpered once. Then he drove his claws into its throat.
It didn't rise.
[Target Slain.][Beast Core Absorbed: 1 Fragment Acquired.][Stat Boost: +1 STR, +1 AGI][Beast Instinct +2%][Nyx's Bond Progress: 6%]
Cain stood over the corpse, chest heaving.
His hands were still clawed. His eyes still gleamed. The power hadn't faded yet.
And gods help him… he didn't want it to.
"Not bad, little shadow." Nyx's voice purred in his mind. "But we'll need more. Much more."
He nodded.
They had tried to bury him.
But they hadn't buried him deep enough.