Kurai opened his eyes to a world drowned in darkness.
There was no moon, no stars—only an endless black sky stretching above a silent sea. He sat on a cold stone platform, surrounded by still, ink-like water. Yet, thanks to his attribute, the darkness meant nothing to him. He could see as clearly as if it were day.
Slowly, he stood and scanned the horizon.
Nothing.
No land. No structures.
Then—
A dot.
Far away, something was moving toward him at terrifying speed.
Kurai's eyes narrowed. Instinct took over.
[The ARMOR] wrapped around his body in an instant, forming a protective shell. In the same motion, he summoned [Moon Blade], its edge faintly gleaming in the darkness.
"…Come," he muttered.
The dot grew rapidly.
A humanoid figure—barely visible against the night—but behind it, cutting through the water with brutal force, was a massive fin.
A predator.
The water split violently as it chased.
"…You've got to be kidding me," Kurai said under his breath.
As the figure came closer, its face became clear.
Sunless.
Kurai shifted his stance, muscles tensing—
'Did he really wake up straight into something like that?'
"Wait! It's me—Sunless! Don't attack!"
Kurai didn't lower his weapon until Sunless dragged himself onto the platform, soaked and gasping.
But before either of them could speak—
The platform shook.
A deep, thunderous impact came from below.
The water exploded upward.
A colossal maw burst from the depths—rows of jagged teeth snapping shut with enough force to shatter bone like dust. The creature lunged straight for them.
Kurai moved instantly.
Darkness surged along his blade, coiling like living smoke.
He stepped forward—
Then stopped.
Something else had arrived.
A massive tentacle erupted from the abyss, thicker than a tower. It whipped through the air with a deafening crack and slammed into the shark-like monster.
The impact alone distorted the water.
The tentacle wrapped around the creature, its grip tightening with monstrous strength. The shark thrashed violently, its tail splitting the sea, its jaws snapping wildly—
Then it was dragged down.
Slowly.
Relentlessly.
Until both vanished beneath the black surface.
Silence.
Sunless collapsed, his legs giving out beneath him. His entire body trembled violently, breath uneven, eyes wide with shock.
Kurai remained standing, blade still in hand, watching the water.
Even he didn't relax.
Not fully.
---
The next day, when the sea vanished, Kurai descended to explore.
Hours later, he returned to the statue—now clearly a massive, headless figure.
Sunless sat quietly.
"There's nothing out there," Kurai said. "I think the monsters only come at—"
"No."
Kurai stopped.
"You're wrong."
Sunless described what his shadow had seen—the corpse, the scavengers, the feeding frenzy.
Hundreds of monsters tearing flesh apart.
"…They're all there," Sunless finished.
Kurai exhaled slowly.
"Then tomorrow," he said, "we go the other way."
---
When they finally set out, the world felt wrong.
Too quiet.
Too still.
Until—
Movement.
A group of Carapace Scavengers.
Sunless immediately lowered his voice. "We avoid them."
Kurai stepped forward.
"No. We don't."
Before Sunless could stop him, Kurai vanished into the shadows.
The darkness around him deepened, wrapping his body like a cloak.
He circled behind the monsters.
Waited.
Watched.
The scavengers clicked and hissed, their segmented legs scraping against the ground. Their pincers tore chunks of rotten flesh from something unseen.
Then—
Kurai moved.
A blur.
Darkness exploded from his blade as he swung.
The first strike didn't just cut—it 'bound'.
Black tendrils erupted from the slash, wrapping around the creature's limbs, locking it in place mid-motion.
The scavenger screeched, its mandibles snapping wildly—
Too late.
Kurai clenched his fist.
The darkness tightened—
Then with another slash.
The creature's body ruptured, fragments scattering across the ground.
Before the others could react—
Kurai was already moving again.
Second target.
This time, the scavenger raised its pincers, slashing downward—
Kurai stepped inside its reach.
Too fast.
His blade carved across its torso—
Darkness flooded into the wound—
And cut from within.
The creature was torn apart from the inside, its armored shell cracking open like glass under pressure.
The remaining scavengers shrieked, turning toward him—
But Sunless moved.
From the side, he lunged with [Ghostly Sword], striking at one of the distracted monsters. The blade pierced through a joint in its armor.
The creature twisted violently, trying to grab him—
Sunless pulled back just in time.
"Too close…" he muttered.
Meanwhile, Kurai stood surrounded.
Three monsters.
All charging.
He didn't retreat.
Darkness gathered beneath his feet, spreading outward like a living pool.
The moment they stepped into it—
It reacted.
The ground itself seemed to grab them.
Their legs slowed, movements dragged down as if wading through thick tar.
Kurai raised his blade.
One breath.
One step.
Then—
A sweeping strike.
A wave of darkness surged outward, slamming into all three.
The impact lifted them off the ground—
Then crushed them back down.
The force shattered their limbs, cracking their armor.
Before they could recover—
Kurai dashed forward and finished them, each strike precise, each explosion controlled.
Silence returned.
Only the faint echo of the Spell remained:
[You have slain awakened beasts: Carapace Scavengers]
[Your darkness grows stronger]
---
Sunless stared at the remains.
"…You're not just fighting," he said slowly. "You're overwhelming them."
Kurai flicked his blade, dispersing the remaining darkness.
"If you give monsters time to act," he replied, "you've already made a mistake."
Sunless exhaled.
"…Remind me not to stand on your bad side."
---
They continued forward, fighting more groups.
Each battle grew smoother.
More efficient.
More brutal.
Kurai's control over darkness sharpened with every kill—his attacks faster, his bindings stronger, his explosions more precise.
Sunless adapted too, striking at openings, learning when to engage and when to pull back.
By the time they reached the hill—
They were no longer just survivors.
They were fighters.
---
And when they finally met Nephis and Cassie—
They weren't the same
people who had woken up on that platform.
---