The wind across the northern hills felt wrong.
Not colder.
Not stronger.
Just… wrong.
Ryuji Kuroda stood at the edge of the rocky ridge with his hands resting casually in his pockets as he stared down at the massive cave below.
Black fog rolled out of the dungeon entrance like smoke from a burning furnace.
It curled across the ground in thick waves, slowly spreading through the surrounding grassland.
The plants closest to the cave had turned dark and brittle, like they were slowly rotting.
And every few seconds, faint streaks of purple lightning flickered across the sky above the cave mouth.
Darek whistled quietly.
"…Yeah."
"That's not normal."
Beside him, Kaelina narrowed her eyes.
Her armored gauntlet rested on the hilt of her sword.
"This is worse than I expected."
Elrica gripped her staff nervously.
"I can feel the mana from here."
Her voice trembled slightly.
"It's… corrupted."
Ryuji tilted his head while examining the cave entrance.
"Looks cool."
Three people turned toward him.
Kaelina blinked.
"…Cool?"
"Yeah."
He gestured toward the swirling fog.
"Very dramatic dungeon entrance."
Darek laughed.
"You're insane."
Lumi floated lazily beside Ryuji's shoulder.
"See?"
"They're finally catching on."
Ryuji shrugged.
"Monsters, weird energy, dungeon loot."
He cracked his knuckles.
"I'm having a great day."
Kaelina stared at him like she was reconsidering every decision that had led her to join this expedition.
"You are disturbingly enthusiastic about danger."
"Comes with the job."
---
They descended the ridge slowly.
The closer they got to the dungeon, the stranger the environment became.
The grass turned darker.
The soil cracked like dried mud.
And the air grew heavy.
Almost suffocating.
Elrica winced slightly.
"The mana corruption is getting stronger."
Darek sniffed the air.
"Smells like something died in there."
Ryuji shrugged.
"Probably monsters."
The cave entrance loomed ahead of them now.
Massive.
Tall enough for a small building to fit inside.
Black fog rolled out in thick waves, spilling across the ground like ink in water.
Ryuji stepped forward.
The moment his foot crossed into the fog—
A blue system notification appeared in front of his eyes.
---
Corrupted Dungeon Detected
Difficulty Increased
Rare Rewards Possible
---
Ryuji's grin widened immediately.
"Oh hell yes."
Lumi facepalmed.
"You are not supposed to be excited about that!"
"Rare rewards."
She groaned.
"You're hopeless."
Behind him, Kaelina frowned.
"What did you just say?"
"Dungeon difficulty increased."
Elrica blinked.
"You can see that?"
Ryuji scratched his cheek.
"…Lucky guess."
Darek laughed.
"Man's got instincts."
Kaelina wasn't convinced.
But she didn't argue.
Instead she stepped forward and drew her sword.
"Everyone stay alert."
"The corruption could make the monsters unpredictable."
Ryuji cracked his neck.
"Good."
---
The interior of the dungeon was even worse than the outside.
The moment they stepped inside, the temperature dropped several degrees.
Cold air drifted through the cavern.
The stone walls were covered in strange dark veins.
Not cracks.
Not moss.
Actual veins.
Thin purple lines pulsing slowly through the rock like something alive was buried beneath the stone.
Elrica shivered.
"That's corrupted mana channels."
Darek frowned.
"Meaning?"
"The dungeon itself is infected."
Ryuji leaned closer to the wall and tapped one of the purple veins.
"…Weird."
Lumi immediately smacked his hand.
"Stop touching cursed dungeon walls!"
"What?"
"You don't poke magical corruption!"
"It didn't bite me."
"YET."
Kaelina looked around the chamber carefully.
The dungeon opened into a large cavern.
Broken stone pillars lay scattered across the floor.
Bones littered the ground.
Animal bones.
Monster bones.
And a few human skeletons.
Darek grimaced.
"…People died here."
Ryuji shrugged.
"Typical dungeon stuff."
Then something moved in the darkness.
A low growl echoed from deeper inside the cavern.
Kaelina raised her sword instantly.
"Positions."
The group spread out slightly.
Darek moved to the front.
Kaelina beside him.
Elrica behind them.
Ryuji stood slightly off to the side with his arms loose.
Then the creatures emerged.
Four goblins stumbled out of the darkness.
But they weren't normal goblins.
Their skin was dark purple.
Black veins crawled across their bodies.
Their eyes glowed bright red.
And their movements were erratic.
Almost animalistic.
Elrica whispered,
"Mutated goblins…"
One goblin screamed and charged.
Ryuji grinned.
"Oh good."
"Combat."
---
The fight began instantly.
The first goblin lunged toward Darek.
He swung his massive sword.
The blade cut through the creature's chest.
But the goblin didn't fall.
It kept moving.
Even with a massive wound.
Darek blinked.
"…What the hell?"
Elrica shouted,
"The corruption keeps them moving!"
Kaelina stepped forward and stabbed another goblin through the throat.
The creature dropped.
But two more charged.
One leaped toward Ryuji.
He stepped forward and punched.
BOOM.
Shockwave Punch exploded outward.
The goblin flew across the cavern and slammed into a stone pillar.
It collapsed instantly.
Darek stared.
"…I'm never getting used to that."
Another goblin lunged toward Elrica.
Ryuji moved before anyone else.
He grabbed the goblin mid-air.
Twisted.
SNAP.
Bone Breaker activated.
The creature screamed as its arm snapped.
Then Ryuji punched it once.
The goblin crumpled.
Elrica blinked.
"…Thank you."
"No problem."
Darek laughed.
"This guy's ridiculous."
Kaelina finished the last goblin with a clean sword strike.
The chamber fell quiet again.
Ryuji stretched his arms.
"Easy."
But before anyone could relax—
A long howl echoed through the dungeon tunnels.
Darek groaned.
"…That sounds bad."
Elrica whispered,
"Shadow wolves."
Ryuji grinned.
"Round two."
---
Three wolves burst into the chamber.
But like the goblins, they were corrupted.
Their fur was dark purple.
Their bodies were lean and twisted.
Their eyes glowed bright red.
They moved faster than normal wolves.
Much faster.
One leaped toward Kaelina.
She blocked with her shield.
The impact forced her back a step.
"Stronger than normal wolves!"
Darek charged the second wolf.
His sword crashed down.
But the creature dodged.
Elrica raised her staff.
"Fire bolt!"
A blast of flame struck one wolf.
It howled in pain.
Ryuji cracked his knuckles.
"My turn."
A wolf lunged at him.
He stepped forward.
Shockwave Punch.
BOOM.
The creature flew across the cavern.
The shockwave knocked the other two wolves off balance.
Darek blinked.
"…That skill is stupid."
Kaelina nodded.
"Extremely effective though."
Ryuji rushed forward.
He grabbed one wolf by the neck.
Then slammed it into the ground.
Bone Breaker triggered again.
CRACK.
The wolf's ribs shattered.
The creature collapsed.
Darek finished the final wolf with a heavy swing of his sword.
Silence returned to the cavern.
Elrica lowered her staff slowly.
"That was… intense."
Ryuji shrugged.
"Pretty fun."
Kaelina studied him again.
"You fight like a barbarian."
"Thanks."
"That wasn't a compliment."
"Still counts."
Darek laughed loudly.
"I like this team."
---
They moved deeper into the dungeon.
The corruption grew stronger.
The purple veins along the walls grew thicker.
More twisted.
The air felt heavier.
And the monsters became more aggressive.
But something else began appearing too.
Symbols.
Strange carvings etched into the dungeon walls.
Ryuji noticed the first one near a broken pillar.
"…Hey."
"Anyone know what that is?"
Kaelina walked over.
The symbol looked like a circle with jagged lines branching outward.
Almost like claws.
Elrica frowned.
"I've never seen that rune before."
Darek scratched his beard.
"Looks creepy."
Ryuji shrugged.
"Probably decoration."
Lumi floated closer to the wall.
Then she froze.
Her eyes widened.
"…Oh no."
Ryuji glanced up.
"What?"
She pointed at the symbol.
"That's not decoration."
"What is it?"
Lumi's voice dropped.
"That's an Abyss mark."
Ryuji blinked.
"…Come again?"
Her expression turned serious.
"That symbol means something very bad is behind this dungeon."