Markus stepped into the swirling portal of the Nightmare Arcane Spire, the world around him shifting in an instant. The moment his feet touched the ground, the sensation of space twisting around him made his instincts flare. He was no longer in the real world. This dungeon was different.
The environment before him was an endless corridor of shifting stone and floating symbols, walls pulsing with faint energy, and a sky of pure void stretching endlessly overhead. Unlike normal dungeons, where the rules of reality remained intact, this place bent space and mana itself to its own will.
A notification from the System appeared before his eyes, detailing the dungeon's mechanics.
Nightmare Arcane Spire Rules:
The dungeon consists of twenty floors, each progressively warping the laws of magic and space. Markus can only exit every fifth floor, at which point the lower floors reset upon re-entry.
Time within the dungeon moves four times faster than in the outside world, meaning one full day inside equals only six hours outside.
Boss floors contain high-tier magical entities that must be defeated to advance.
No external healing items function inside;
Markus must rely on his Greater Heal, Regeneration and mana reserves.
The moment he finished reading, the pathway ahead of him changed. The stone beneath his feet shifted, forming intricate runic patterns glowing with an eerie blue light. A low hum filled the air as the first enemies materialized.
Emerging from the shifting walls were Arcane Phantoms, floating beings of condensed mana with no physical form, their entire existence radiating unstable energy. Their movements were erratic, flickering in and out of existence. Alongside them, Sentient Runes drifted through the air like glowing sigils, altering the very nature of the dungeon space.
Markus analyzed the situation quickly. Unlike regular creatures, these enemies weren't bound by physical limits. The Arcane Phantoms phased in and out of reality, while the Sentient Runes constantly shifted the flow of mana, interfering with normal spellcasting.
His first attempt at using Blazing Execution proved useless. The moment he cast the fire projectile, a Sentient Rune shifted its structure, rewriting the spell mid-flight and dispersing it harmlessly. The Phantoms remained untouchable, passing through attacks like mist.
This wasn't a battle of brute force. This was a battle of magic control.
Markus activated Arcane Perception, immediately noticing something, the phantoms didn't just disappear randomly. They moved between specific pockets of mana instability, flickering between phases in a predictable rhythm. The runes, meanwhile, were reactive, only countering spells that entered their influence.
Markus adjusted his strategy. Instead of casting directly, he infused the battlefield itself.
With a thought, he expanded his mana, forcing the unstable pockets to spread wider. This disrupted the Arcane Phantoms, locking them into a single phase for longer than usual. At the same time, he stopped casting direct spells and instead shaped raw mana into environmental attacks, collapsing the space where the runes hovered, cutting off their ability to react.
The first Phantom shrieked as it failed to phase out in time, caught in the gravitational shift he created. The Sentient Runes, unable to overwrite a force that wasn't a spell, shattered as he directed his magic to crush them between the very walls of the dungeon.
It took time, but one by one, the creatures fell, leaving behind floating skill cards.
The System prompted him to select three skills from the strongest defeated enemies.
Available Skills:
Arcane Phase Shift (Passive) – Grants limited intangibility, allowing Markus to temporarily phase through attacks and non-magical barriers.
Mana Surge (Active) – Releases a high-damage burst of raw arcane energy, scaling in power based on his Intelligence.
Runic Overwrite (Passive) – Allows Markus to alter active spells mid-cast, changing their properties for adaptive combat. Mana
Disruption (Active) – Creates an anti-magic field in a localized area, disabling enemy spellcasting for a short duration.
Markus considered his options. He needed abilities that enhanced both his survivability and combat adaptability in this highly unstable dungeon.
He selected Arcane Phase Shift, Runic Overwrite, and Mana Surge.
The knowledge integrated into his body instantly. He could feel the difference as his body subtly adjusted to the Phase Shift, his spellcasting instincts sharpening with the new Runic Overwrite technique, and raw energy building up within him from Mana Surge.
With the first five floors cleared, the dungeon allowed him the option to exit temporarily or proceed deeper.
Markus chose to leave for the day. There was no need to rush, and he had already secured three new abilities.
The moment he stepped out, the space around him folded back into reality, the dark portal depositing him exactly where he had entered outside the city.
He smirked. The first day was a success. Now, he had six more to go.
The outskirts of Seoul had a different kind of nightlife. Away from the elite, away from the prying eyes of the high society clubs, the bars here were smaller, more intimate, filled with people who weren't trying to impress, just trying to escape.
Markus liked that.
It was a change of pace.
The bar he walked into was dimly lit, the scent of whiskey and cigarettes lingering in the air. It wasn't the kind of place for expensive cocktails or designer fashion, it was where people drank because they wanted to.
He took a seat at the counter, ordering a neat whiskey. Unlike the larger clubs, there was no instant attention, no whispers following his every move. Here, he could just exist for a moment.
That's when he noticed her.
A small, curvy woman sat at the other end of the bar, nursing a cocktail. She barely came up to 1.50 meters, her frame petite, yet perfectly built in all the right ways. She had dark, wavy hair, large expressive eyes, and the kind of soft curves that made a man want to pull her onto his lap and see just how well she fit.
Markus smirked. He always trusted his luck.
Tonight, it had delivered again.
She noticed his gaze and tilted her head, lips curling in amusement. "You're staring."
Markus took a slow sip of his whiskey. "You're interesting to look at."
She raised an eyebrow, turning her stool toward him. "Is that so?"
Markus nodded. "Small but impossible to ignore."
She laughed, shaking her head. "That's a new one."
He studied her for a moment, then smirked. "I tend to be original."
She tapped her fingers against her glass, clearly intrigued. "That so?"
Markus leaned forward slightly, towering over her even when seated. "Why don't you find out?"
A pause. A playful challenge in her eyes.
Then, she smirked.
"I just might."
Markus hadn't expected her to be this bold.
The moment they got back to his penthouse, she was all over him, and he let her be. There was something undeniably amusing about the contrast between them.
He was a giant of a man, over 2.15 meters, broad and muscled like a war machine. She was tiny, barely reaching his chest, her small hands pressing against his abs as she stood on her toes to reach his lips.
He let her take control for a while, because it was adorable. The way she tried to press against him, the way her small body moved against his.
But Markus was a monster of a man, and she was his for the night.
Sunlight filtered through the penthouse curtains, casting golden streaks across the bed. Markus blinked awake, stretching his arms before glancing down at the small form curled against his chest.
She was tiny, practically buried in the sheets, clinging to him like he was the only source of warmth in the world.
His arm alone was almost as thick as her waist, his hand easily spanning the small of her back. Even in sleep, she pressed herself against him, her soft body completely lost against his towering frame.
Markus exhaled, running a lazy hand through his hair.
He was in a good mood.
There was something undeniably satisfying about waking up like this, about knowing that, despite his size, his strength, his overwhelming presence, she had wrapped herself around him so easily.
She stirred slightly, blinking up at him with still-sleepy eyes.
"...You're too damn big," she mumbled, pressing her face back against his chest.
Markus chuckled, running a hand down her bare back. "And you're too damn small."
She sighed dramatically, still half-asleep. "Not my fault you're built like a beast."
He smirked. "Didn't seem to bother you last night."
She grumbled something unintelligible and buried herself deeper into the sheets.
Markus lay back for a few more moments, simply enjoying the view.
But eventually, reality called.
A Leisurely Morning
Markus took his time in the shower, letting the steaming water wash away the remnants of the night. When he stepped out, towel slung around his hips, she was still sprawled on the bed, watching him with lazy amusement.
"You're really leaving already?"
Markus smirked, walking over to the dresser. "Duty calls."
She stretched, the sheets slipping slightly as she sat up. "You make it sound so serious."
He threw on a dark button-down shirt, rolling up the sleeves. "Because it is."
She tilted her head, clearly curious, but didn't press. Instead, she got up, wrapping the sheet around herself as she padded toward the kitchen.
"Fine. But you owe me breakfast."
Markus chuckled. "Deal."
A simple breakfast followed, eggs, toast, coffee. Light conversation. Easy laughter.
It was nice. But Markus never lingered.
As he stepped out of the penthouse, fully dressed, fully prepared for the day ahead, he activated Silent Phantom, disappearing from the sight of the waking city.
His Card Copy ability had reset.
It was time to return to the Nightmare Arcane Spire.
The location of the dungeon portal hadn't changed. Nestled deep within an abandoned district, hidden from prying eyes, the swirling dark gateway pulsed with raw, arcane instability.
Markus stood before it, cracking his neck as he calculated his next move.
Markus advanced deeper into the Nightmare Arcane Spire, the air thick with pulsating mana, warping the space around him. The further he descended, the more unnatural the environment became, corridors stretching and twisting as if responding to his presence.
There was no doubt about it. The dungeon was aware.
As he reached the next chamber, an ominous stillness filled the air. Stone platforms floated, shifting unpredictably, making even the ground unstable. Then, the horrors came.
First came the Mindclad Sentinels, levitating humanoid figures wrapped in flickering veils of shifting energy. Their movements were fluid, unnatural, as if their limbs weren't bound by normal physics.
Without lifting a finger, debris scattered across the chamber rose into the air, twisting and bending to their will.
Then, the Void Maw Fiends emerged, distorted, multi-eyed monstrosities floating through the chamber, their very presence devouring ambient mana. The moment they arrived, Markus felt a shift, his spells weakened, their potency drained.
Finally, towering above them all, the Celestial Wardens, massive constructs adorned with ancient runes, floating effortlessly despite their heavy, stone-like composition. The second Markus stepped forward, the force of gravity doubled, crushing pressure settling on his body.
"A gravity trap, a mana-siphoning monster, and living telekinetic nightmares," Markus muttered, cracking his neck. "They're really rolling out the welcome wagon."
The Void Maw Fiends were the first to react.
The moment Markus prepared a spell, his mana twisted, siphoned away before he could even shape it. Fire flickered and died in his hands. Ice melted into mist before forming. Even Arcane Perception dimmed slightly in response.
Markus exhaled, rolling his shoulders.
"Oh, so this is how we're playing it?"
Teleporting directly behind one of the Void Maw Fiends, he grabbed its writhing body in midair and slammed it into the ground. A second fiend lunged toward him, he caught a piece of fallen debris and hurled it straight through its core, tearing it apart.
"No mana? No problem."
The Mindclad Sentinels responded instantly. With a simple shift of their hands, Markus froze in midair, his limbs bound by invisible force.
His feet lifted off the ground. The pressure around his throat tightened.
A telekinetic chokehold.
"Nice trick," Markus smirked, even as the force constricted further.
The Sentinels began crushing his body, but they had made one mistake.
The moment their grip faltered even slightly,
Markus disappeared, reappearing behind them in an instant. The force holding him shattered, and before the Sentinels could react, his fist slammed through one of them, obliterating its core.
The remaining Sentinels recoiled, attempting to focus again,
But it was already too late.
Markus dashed through them, breaking their concentration, overwhelming them with sheer physical dominance. The Doom Knights finished the rest, cleaving through the floating horrors with relentless efficiency.
As the final Sentinel fell, three ability cards materialized before him.
Markus activated Card Copy, extracting the strongest abilities from his defeated foes.
Telekinetic Dominion – Allowed him to manipulate objects, enemies, and forces with sheer mental energy.
Void Disruption – Created a localized anti-magic field, shutting down spells within a controlled radius.
Gravitational Flux – Allowed him to alter gravity in an area, either increasing weight to slow enemies or decreasing it for enhanced mobility.
He clenched his fist as a pulse of unseen force rippled through the air.
Lifting a fallen stone pillar with just a thought, he twisted his fingers, sending it flying across the chamber at breakneck speed.
"Telekinesis," Markus murmured with a grin.
His progress in the dungeon was steady. But before returning, he had another priority.
Markus didn't return to his hotel immediately. Instead, he made his way to one of the upscale clubs on the outskirts of Seoul, the kind where the elite mingled with those seeking a night of excitement.
The atmosphere was thick with perfume, alcohol, and pulsing music. A perfect contrast to the battles he fought hours ago.
Then he saw her.
A petite, curvy college girl, barely standing at 1.50 meters, nursing a drink with an amused expression. She was tiny, yet something about her presence caught his attention.
The contrast was almost comical.
Markus, towering at 2.15 meters, a monolithic figure of muscle and power.
Her, small, lively, and full of confidence, barely reaching his chest.
She noticed him immediately.
"Wow," she laughed, tilting her head up. "You're huge."
Markus smirked. "You're not exactly tall yourself."
She grinned. "You here alone?"
"For now."
They talked, they drank, and before long, she was pressed against him, clinging to his arm as if claiming her prize for the night.
Markus woke to warmth curled against his chest.
Her head rested against him, breathing softly, completely enveloped in his much larger frame. One of her small hands still clung to his forearm, her body curled into his side like she belonged there.
She barely took up any space on the bed. The contrast was ridiculous.
Markus smirked, enjoying the peaceful moment before finally slipping out of bed.
A shower, a quiet breakfast, and an unhurried farewell later, he was ready to return to the dungeon.
It was time to conquer the next set of floors.
Markus returned to the Nightmare Arcane Spire, stepping through the glowing gateway and into the shifting corridors of magic-infused stone. Unlike before, the air itself felt denser, as if the dungeon had awakened to his presence.
With every floor he conquered, the laws of physics twisted further. Walls flickered between solid and intangible. The gravity shifted at random intervals. Echoes of past spells reverberated through the corridors, as if reality itself was unraveling.
This was not a normal dungeon. It was an arcane anomaly, a living experiment in magical chaos.
Markus smirked.
"Now we're getting somewhere."
As he descended deeper, new enemies emerged, more specialized and intelligent than before.
Spectral beings wreathed in fractured light, their forms flickering as if existing in multiple timelines at once. They warped speed and reaction time, making it impossible to track their movements through normal perception.
One moment, they were standing before him. The next, they had rewound time, undoing damage and repositioning themselves before he could react.
Markus tested Void Blink, but the moment he activated it,
A Wraith appeared where he was supposed to land.
"They're predicting my movements," he realized.
Instead of relying on teleportation, Markus activated Telekinetic Dominion, grabbing the nearest Chrono Wraith and slamming it into the floor. Before it could react, he crushed it with sheer force.
If they wanted to play with time, he would simply overpower them.
Hunched figures, their elongated fingers inscribed with glowing runes. Unlike other monsters, they did not attack physically. Instead, the moment Markus cast a spell, they absorbed and redirected it back at him.
He sent Blazing Execution forward, only for it to be reflected right back.
"Ah, so we're playing that game?"
Markus closed his fist, activating Void Disruption, creating a dead zone where no magic could function. The Savants screeched in pain, their very essence tied to magic itself.
With no defense left, Markus let his Death Guards carve them apart.
Obsidian Sentinels – Anti-Teleportation Golems
Massive, four-armed constructs with glowing cores embedded in their chests. These were different. Not only did they negate teleportation abilities, but they actively trapped Markus in localized dimensional locks, preventing movement beyond a few feet.
When Markus tried to teleport, nothing happened.
The Sentinels rushed forward, swinging colossal stone blades, their speed unnatural for their size.
Markus exhaled.
"No teleportation? Fine."
He activated Gravitational Flux, reversing gravity in the chamber. Suddenly, the Sentinels were weightless, their attacks thrown off balance.
Markus leaped forward, gripping one with Telekinetic Dominion, and sent it hurtling into the other with enough force to shatter both their cores.
With the Sentinels destroyed, his teleportation abilities returned.
The chamber beyond the slain Sentinels was different.
The walls pulsed with raw energy. Floating spellbooks turned their pages without a reader. The moment Markus stepped inside, an unnatural roar shook the room.
Descending from above, the Arcane Chimera emerged.
A monstrous fusion of multiple magical creatures, each of its three heads possessing a different ability.
Left Head – Mana Devourer: Absorbed ambient magic, weakening spells.
Right Head – Chrono Serpent: Manipulated time, predicting movement.
Central Head – Arcane Tyrant: Could cast any spell it had ever seen, instantly.
Markus' eyes narrowed.
"This is going to be interesting."
The Chimera moved first.
Before Markus could react, mana in the chamber drained, his spells weakening as the Mana Devourer inhaled raw energy from the air.
The Chrono Serpent hissed, and time itself fractured, Markus' movements slowing unnaturally, as if reality was trying to keep him in place.
Then, the Arcane Tyrant cast Blazing Execution, Markus' own spell, against him, stronger than he had ever used it.
He barely activated Arcane Aegis in time, the flames shattering against his defenses.
"So it steals magic, slows time, and casts copied spells?"
"Fine. Let's see if it can handle raw power."
Markus activated Telekinetic Dominion, grabbing the Chrono Serpent by the throat before it could warp time again, and twisted.
The left head screeched, its time-altering abilities interrupted. Gravitational Flux sent it crashing to the floor, pinned under its own weight.
The Mana Devourer tried to drain more power, but Markus activated Void Disruption, creating an anti-magic zone. The Chimera roared in frustration, suddenly unable to absorb mana.
With its abilities neutralized, the beast tried to escape,
Markus didn't let it.
With a single hand raised, he sent a crushing wave of telekinetic force, slamming the Chimera's body into the ground, keeping it there.
Then, Death's Grasp.
A massive necrotic wave ripped the life from the creature's body, leaving it convulsing.
One last Blazing Execution and the Chimera fell silent.
New Arcane Powers Acquired
From the Arcane Chimera, Markus extracted three new abilities:
Arcane Assimilation – Allows Markus to instantly learn and replicate spells cast in his presence.
Chrono Lock – Freezes enemies in localized time fields, rendering them unable to act.
Mana Overdrive – Temporarily removes mana costs for all spells for 15 seconds.
Markus smirked as he absorbed the final skill.
"This just keeps getting better."
With Floor 10 cleared, he gathered his loot, feeling the dungeon pulse as if preparing for even greater challenges ahead.
It was time to press onward.