Lucien walked through the silent crypt, the air cold against his bones. Something felt different.
His steps were heavier now. His arms looked thicker, more solid. His fingers didn't look like normal bones anymore—they had dark lines, like veins, crawling through them.
"What... is happening to me?" he whispered.
Then—movement.
Three cave rats skittered from the shadows, sharp teeth ready to bite.
Lucien gritted his teeth. "Let's end this."
He raised his bone blade and charged. The first rat lunged at him but got sliced in one clean swing. The second tried to circle him, but Lucien stomped it down and stabbed it through. The third rat bit into his leg, but he didn't feel pain. He grabbed it by the tail and smashed it into the wall.
Silence returned.
[ You have slain Cave Rats ×3 ]
[ +90 EXP ]
[ Skill Gained: Bone Slash Lv.1 ]
[ Bone Slash: Strengthens your attack using bone weapons. ]
Lucien blinked. "Again with this... system?" he muttered. He still didn't understand it. He had never heard of skills, EXP, or levels back in his village.
But now, he had no choice but to live with it.
He continued deeper into the crypt. The walls felt tighter, darker. Strange whispers echoed, but no one was there.
At the end of the hallway, he found something glowing—an altar made of black stone. Runes covered it. His hand moved on its own. As soon as he touched it, a sharp pain hit his chest.
"AGH!"
His body cracked and twisted. Bones shifted. His skull felt like it was burning from the inside. Then—it stopped.
[ Crypt-Core Absorbed ]
[ Race Evolution: Skeletal Ghoul ]
[ New Skill: Undead Hunger ]
[ Undead Hunger: Absorb energy from fallen enemies to regain health. ]
[ +500 EXP ]
[ Level Up! Current Level: 5 ]
[ Title Gained: Unholy Reborn ]
Lucien gasped. He looked down at himself. His bones were darker now. His arms were longer, claws sharper.
He didn't feel dead anymore.
He felt... alive in a strange, cursed way.
"No turning back now," he said quietly.
He moved forward and found a large iron gate. It was old and covered in dust, but it opened with a push. Behind it—a staircase leading up.
Light leaked in from the cracks above.
Lucien froze. "Is this... the way out?"
[ Hidden Exit Discovered ]
[ Location: Crypt - Upper Level Passage Unlocked ]
He didn't move yet.
Lucien sat on the stone floor. For the first time, he rested. His mind wandered back to the past. His village. His clan. Darren's face as he drove the blade into Lucien's back.
"I'm not dead," Lucien whispered. "Not really."
He clenched his fists. "You'll pay, Darren."
The cold air moved across his face, but he didn't feel it. His undead body was quiet now—but the fire inside him burned strong.
Lucien stood.
And with one last look at the dark crypt behind him, he began to climb the stairs toward the world above.