......…Far beneath Galaxies
Alternate Earth........
"Hurry up, trash! Crystals don't carry themselves!"
Hang Young's shoulders burned as he struggled to keep up with the D-rank hunters, the empty crystal collection bags digging into his skin. He gasped for air, sweat drenching his tattered hunter uniform despite the crisp morning chill. Ahead, the portal loomed—a rift in space, glowing ominously with blue energy.
Park Min-ho, the C-rank leader of the team, sneered over his shoulder. "Remember, carrier: you get 5% of the crystal value, if you survive. Try not to die; I hate dealing with paperwork."
As if you care about paperwork, Hang Young thought but said nothing. F-rank hunters, especially crystal carriers, knew better than to talk back. Silence was survival.
The six-person team approached the portal. According to the Hunter Association, it was a standard C-rank gate—a routine job likely involving enhanced wolves or, at worst, a lesser drake. Easy work for a C-rank leader and four D-ranks.
So why did dread twist Hang Young's stomach?
"Formation!" Min-ho barked. The D-ranks moved into place: Lee Jin-soo with his massive sword at the front, the Kim twins flanking with their daggers, and Han Mi-young aiming her bow from the rear. "Carrier, center position. Don't drop a single crystal."
Hang Young nodded, hands trembling as he clutched the collection bags. Just another run, he told himself. Think of Mi-jin. Think of her hospital bills. Think of the healing flower.
They stepped through.
The portal was supposed to lead to a forest clearing. Instead, the team emerged into a vast temple chamber. Towering obsidian pillars stretched into an endless void. The floor, polished black stone, absorbed their flashlight beams, casting no reflections.
"What the hell?" Jin-soo muttered. "This isn't—"
CRACK.
The sound echoed like a gunshot. Hairline fractures snaked across the obsidian pillars, spreading like spiderwebs. Within the cracks, something moved.
"Formation!" Min-ho shouted, though his voice faltered. "This isn't right—we need to—"
From the pillar, a creature emerged, moving as though stepping through water. Nine feet tall, its body rippled with muscle, encased in midnight-black scales. Its face was a nightmare—a grotesque mix of dragon and demon. Golden eyes burned with insatiable hunger.
Naga. The word surfaced in Hang Young's mind from old mythology lessons. But Nagas are SS-rank creatures. This doesn't make sense—
The Naga struck. In one fluid motion, it moved from the pillar to the Kim twins. Its claws, wreathed in void-black energy, sliced through their barrier spells like paper. Their bodies crumpled without a sound.
"RETREAT!" Min-ho screamed. "GET BACK TO THE—"
Three more Nagas emerged from the pillars, followed by something far worse—a colossal serpentine form with multiple heads. Hydra. SSS-rank.
Han Mi-young loosed an arrow crackling with lightning, powerful enough to destroy a building. One of the Hydra's heads caught it mid-air and crunched. The energy dissipated like a spark extinguished in water.
"Run!" Jin-soo shoved Hang Young toward a side passage. "Get to the—"
The Hydra's tail whipped through the air, erasing Jin-soo's upper body.
Hang Young ran. The crystal bags forgotten, he sprinted blindly into the darkness. His heart thundered, and his lungs burned. Behind him, Min-ho's screams cut off abruptly.
Why did the portal change? From C-rank to SSS? That's impossible! The Association's ratings never
—
A sharp pain tore across his back as claws raked through his flesh. Fire surged through his nerves. He stumbled, collapsing against a wall encrusted with crystals—not the yellow glow of C-rank portals but void-black stones pulsating with alien energy.
"Mi-jin," he whispered, blood bubbling from his lips. "I'm sorry... I couldn't..."
[Warning: Abnormal Energy Detected]
[Portal Rank Assessment: ERROR]
[Dimensional Stability: Critical]
[Unknown Variable Detected]
System notifications flickered across his vision, but Hang Young barely registered them. The darkness around him shifted and coalesced. A figure emerged from the void—not solid, but more real than anything else in the chamber. Its presence radiated power that dwarfed even the Hydra.
"You are dying," the figure intoned, its voice echoing across dimensions.
"Y-yeah," Hang Young coughed, blood staining his lips.
"Your final thoughts were of your sister, not yourself. Rare, even among mortals."
"She's... all I have," he rasped. "Needs the flower. The healing flower... from SS-rank portals..."
"A noble soul," the figure mused. "I offer you a choice, Hang Young. Your life force fades. Let me take your body. In return, I will save your sister."
Hang Young tried to laugh but choked on blood. "Not... much choice. Already dead. But... you'll save her?"
"I swear it. Though my vengeance will shake the heavens, your sister will be protected."
"Then... yes..."
The void surged forward, consuming him as his consciousness began to fade. Just before everything went dark, unfamiliar notifications flashed before his eyes:
[Divine Soul Detected]
[Void Sovereign Protocol Initiated]
[Recalibrating Reality Parameters...]
[Warning: Class SSS+ Entity Detected]
[Universal Constants Under Reconstruction]
The last thing Hang Young saw was his own hand, now wreathed in void energy, crushing a Naga's skull with ease.
Then, nothing. Darkness enveloped him completely.