The crimson moon loomed overhead, casting a malevolent glow across the broken landscape. Crumbling skyscrapers, remnants of a once-advanced civilization, now lay scattered like bones of the forgotten. Shrieking horrors—eldritch abominations with too many eyes and writhing tendrils—prowled the shadows, their whispers echoing through the hollow minds of the damned, like acid on flesh, each syllable a scar.
"System online. Initializing transfer… Host found."
Jin-Su's eyes snapped open, his breath ragged. He had been dead—of that, he was certain. Betrayed by his closest friend, the one he trusted most, and thrust into the Abyss where madness had eaten away at him for eons. Yet here he stood. Back from the void.
As Jin-Su regained his bearings, he felt the pull of an ancient power rippling through him. He raised his hand, marveling at the defined muscles and scars etched across his skin, each one a ghostly reminder of countless battles fought and lost. His skin was pale but resilient, as if the Abyss itself had carved him out of its own twisted substance. A faint, unearthly glow clung to his fingers, tracing the network of veins along his forearms, casting an eerie, ethereal light that flickered in the shadow of the crimson moon. His hair, dark as midnight, flowed wild and untamed past his shoulders, mirroring the quiet fury brewing within him. And in his eyes—a reflection of distant galaxies, an endless void laced with fragments of starlight—eyes that had seen the edge of sanity and died a thousand times.
[Reincarnation complete: Candidate has been found.]
[Only ONE Candidate available.]
[Promotion to Forgotten One.]
"Where… am I?" he muttered, surveying the decimated cityscape. His muscles ached, yet his body felt different. Stronger. Faster. His memories swam, a fragmented haze that refused to settle, and yet an overwhelming sense of déjà vu gripped him. The bitter taste of betrayal lingered on his tongue.
[Welcome to the World of Terraxinus. You have been selected by the Forgotten System.]
"System?!" Jin-Su's heart raced. A voice, as cold and detached as the void, filled his mind.
[You have been granted unique abilities: Leveling, Martial Arts Mastery, Lovecraftian Insight. All stats will increase with each victory.]
A menu materialized before him, listing his abilities and powers:
Name: Jin-Su
Class: Eternal Monarch
Level: 1
Skills:
Soul Cleaver Swordsmanship (SSS)Ancient Magic of the Abyss (EX)Void Step (A)
"I've heard of this place…" he murmured. Terraxinus—the world of warriors, wizards, and abominations beyond mortal comprehension. A world of grim horrors where the line between life and death blurred. And now, he was here. A rumored "afterlife."
Then, as if summoned by the system itself, a figure appeared from the shadows, her form coalescing from nothingness. Her silver hair flowed like frost in the moonlight, her violet eyes piercing and merciless, untouched by the decay around her. Althara, the Ice Witch of a Thousand Winters. She was a vision of cold beauty, her skin smooth as marble, her gown glittering like frozen starlight. When she moved, her breath left mist in the air, as if she carried the essence of winter itself. His heart twisted at the sight of her; in his past life, she had been his lover—until the betrayal.
"I… I never thought I'd see your face again, Jin-Su," she murmured, sorrow lacing her words as her gaze swept over him. "It seems death was all it took to set us free… didn't it?"
"I'm not the same man I was, Althara, Neither are you, nor is anyone." Jin-Su replied, his voice low and hollow, haunted by memories he'd buried.
[Hidden Quest: Confront the Betrayer]
A flashback seized him—Althara driving a blade of ice into his chest, her smile twisted with malice, her eyes dark with madness. "Goodbye, my love," she had whispered, and the agony of that moment throbbed anew in his heart. A bluish silver blade, through his throat. Blood pooling in his eyes. All he remembers after that is....cold.
But she wasn't alone. Figures emerged from the shadows, each one bound to him by the ghosts of his past.
Aelis, the elven assassin who had once been his most trusted ally, crept forward, her movements silent, deadly. Her dark autumn hair framed a face marked by elegance and danger, her emerald eyes absorbing the darkness as though it were hers to command. Black leather armor clung to her, perfectly crafted, every seam designed for silence and speed. Twin daggers rested at her hips, their hilts inscribed with elven runes.
"I… I wasn't in control," Aelis stammered, her eyes flashing with regret. "You were so strong. I thought maybe… maybe you could bear it all, that you could fix everything. I… I never imagined it would end like this." Her voice wavered, each word a plea for forgiveness, a confession burdened by remorse.
Then came Kara, the warrior from beyond the sands, a fierce and imposing figure. It stood tall, a humanoid creature whose scales shimmered under the crimson moonlight in hues of deep cobalt and obsidian, each one a work of primal beauty that defied the light. The scales were not uniform but patterned, with rippling lines of darker midnight blue flowing along its torso and limbs like a river of shadow, broken occasionally by jagged streaks of silver that glinted like hidden stars. Around its neck and shoulders, the scales were thicker and ridged, forming a natural armor that seemed both organic and ancient, as if it had been forged in the fires of a long-lost world.
Its eyes, vertical slits of molten amber, were surrounded by flecks of copper that radiated outward, creating an unsettling, hypnotic contrast against the dark blues and blacks of its scaled face. A web of thin, nearly invisible scars crossed its brow and cheekbones, remnants of countless battles fought and survived. Its jawline was strong yet angular, the scales there sharper and more pronounced, suggesting both strength and adaptability, as if it could unhinge at will to unleash something far deadlier.
Its arms and legs were marked with faint tribal patterns in shades of rust and crimson, tattoo-like designs that spiraled down its limbs, each curve and line a declaration of its heritage, stories embedded into its very flesh. It wore armor that seemed to blend seamlessly with the scales, forming an almost organic second skin. The armor plates were carved with intricate sigils, ancient symbols that told of battles, victories, and ancestors long forgotten. The edges of each plate glowed faintly with an ethereal green, a sickly light that pulsed in time with its heartbeat, casting shadows that danced across the ground.
A forked tongue flicked out for a brief moment, tasting the air as if sensing Jin-Su's presence. "Forgiveness is for the weak," it rasped, voice low and guttural, each word a slithering accusation. "Nor should you beg for it. Neither of us are who we were."
The creature's hands ended in claw-tipped fingers, each claw sharpened to a deadly point, glistening in the faint light like obsidian blades. When it moved, there was a slight hissing sound, as if sand were sliding against stone—a reminder of the harsh, unforgiving desert it hailed from.
Finally, Daemon appeared, the brooding mage cloaked in shadows that seemed to cling to him as if he commanded the very night. His face was sharp, angular, a map of forgotten spells etched in silver along his skin, each marking the price of knowledge stolen from forbidden realms. His eyes held the coldness of distant stars, his mouth twisted in a deranged grin as he whispered to himself, eyes darting with frenzied hunger.
"Yes… yes… this is where it was written! This is what I was meant for!" His voice turned softer, pleading.
"No! I never wanted this! I only wanted to glimpse the beyond! A mere sliver of knowledge!"
"Why should I be satisfied with a glimpse?" he snarled back to himself, his eyes glinting with dark purpose. "Why shouldn't I embrace it all?"
His left eye bulged, bloodshot and unblinking, glowing with an unnatural green light that seeped madness, a fractured mind arguing with itself, each side desperate to prevail.
[Skill Activated: Abyssal Perception – See through all lies.]
Jin-Su could feel it—the guilt, the fear, the festering hatred beneath their words. They were tainted, lost in a madness that clung to their souls like rot. But it wasn't only revenge he sought. There was a mystery here, a darker purpose that bound them all, lurking beyond even their betrayal.
A tremor shook the earth, and above, the sky tore open, revealing a monstrous shape writhing against the heavens. The Eldritch Colossus descended, a hulking nightmare that twisted reality around it, its tentacles whipping through the air, warping the world with each lash.
"They're coming," Daemon whispered, his face a mask of fearful awe. Yet his eyes gleamed with anticipation, as though he had awaited this moment all his life. "The god of the Abyss…!"
"IT WILL DESTROY US!" he shrieked, his voice a jarring screech that grated against his earlier calm. "YOU KNOW IT! FIGHT IT!"
One of his eyes was wide, unseeing, and leaking an unnatural ichor that trailed down his cheek like a tear. The iris glowed an ominous green, a single glance enough to unhinge the mind.
As the Colossus loomed, all of them fell into their stances, their bodies moving instinctively, each one braced for the unknowable terror bearing down upon them.
[System Update: Catastrophic Event Detected – Abyssal Invasion Imminent.]
Jin-Su's instincts flared to life. His body moved with lethal grace, adopting a stance honed over lifetimes, his Soul Cleaver Swordsmanship crackling with dark energy. Power surged through him as his level spiked, the system feeding him strength in preparation for the imminent onslaught. His hand summoned his sword, a blade of pitch-black metal, pulsing with the Abyss's dark essence.
He could feel it—the gaze of a god, vast and incomprehensible, bearing down upon him. A presence so profound, it threatened to unmake him, to drown him in its madness. But he fought the pull, a defiance borne from a soul tempered in the fire of despair. Not again.
In the chaos, a voice echoed within his mind, an eldritch whisper both maddening and soothing, a promise and a curse all at once.
"You will become us, Jin-Su… The Eternal Monarch of the Void."
He gritted his teeth, a surge of fierce determination igniting within him. No more being a pawn. No more betrayal.
"This time," he snarled, the defiance blazing in his eyes, "I control my fate. You will not claim my mind!" And with a surge of magic, he leapt into the air, sword raised, ready to carve his path through gods, monsters, and the ghosts of those who had turned against him.