The silence after the fight was heavier than the chaos before it.
No more alarms.
No more shouts.
No more footsteps thundering down the corridors.
Just the low hum of the System embedded in Diablo's mind, the faint flicker of the red emergency lights, and the uneven sound of his own breathing.
Grave 9's body lay motionless some distance away, its armor cracked, its plates bent outward like a broken shell. The runes that had once pulsed with a steady, crimson glow had dulled, their light flickering weakly, then fading entirely.
The System in Diablo's vision updated slowly, calmly, as if it had just finished a long, quiet calculation.
" Threat Eliminated. "
" Hostile Signature: Grave 9 "
" Status: Deactivated "
Diablo stood in the center of the ruined corridor, his body leaning slightly forward, one hand pressed against a cracked wall. Crimson streaks ran down his bare arms, the blood thin and mixed with sweat and dust. His legs were trembling, but not from fear. From exhaustion.
He had pushed his body past the edge.
Again.
The System's block shifted.
" Health: 59 / 100 "
" Stamina: 18 / 100 "
" Energy: 42 / 80 "
" Blood Essence: 31 / 40 "
" Evolution Stability: 100% "
For a moment, the last line seemed sharper than the others.
Evolution Stability: 100%.
It was not a warning.
It was a confirmation.
Diablo exhaled slowly, his breath fogging in the cold air, the sterile scent of the lab now tainted with the coppery tang of blood. He pushed himself off the wall, his legs steadying, the System's feedback subtly adjusting.
" Minor Movement Detected. "
" Recovery Rate: Low. "
" Recommend Rest Period. "
Diablo didn't respond.
He didn't argue.
He didn't even pause.
He took a step forward.
Then another.
The System blinked faintly, the block adjusting again.
" Ambulation Confirmed. "
" Blood Essence Regeneration: Active. "
His bare feet dragged across the broken floor, stepping over fragments of shattered glass, twisted metal, and the scattered remnants of the execution unit. The soft thud of his footsteps echoed through the abandoned corridor, the sound oddly heavy in the silence.
Fluorescent panels flickered above him, some still working, others dark, the remaining light creating a jagged, uneven pattern on the floor, like a broken path leading somewhere.
Something on the wall caught his attention.
A sign, half buried under the debris.
The System's frame flickered, recognizing it before Diablo did.
" Exit Route Detected. "
" Corridor Leading to Forest Border. "
Diablo's eyes narrowed.
He didn't know what the "forest" was.
He didn't know what lay beyond the lab.
He only knew the chamber, the glass, the steel, the needles, the syringes, the endless darkness.
But the System's words felt like a map.
He stepped toward the opening in the corridor.
The metal door at the far end had been warped, the reinforced edges bent outward, the security panel to the side hanging by a single wire, its screen cracked and black. A faint line of light seeped through the gap, not the sterile red of the lab, but something paler, faintly green.
Forest light.
The System updated again.
" Boundary Recognized. "
" Approaching Outdoor Zone. "
Diablo hesitated for the first time since the fight.
Outside.
Beyond the lab.
Beyond the System's sterile chamber.
Something stirred in his chest.
Not fear.
Not anticipation.
Something older.
The System's block shifted, the words aligning smoothly.
" Blood Essence Threshold: Satisfied. "
" Recommended Action: First Kill. "
Diablo's eyes narrowed.
The words were not a suggestion.
They were an order.
First Kill.
Not a vague goal.
Not a distant possibility.
A requirement.
He stepped forward.
The warped door groaned under the faint pressure of his hand, the metal creaking, the remaining locking mechanism snapping loose. The door swung open with a dull, metallic clank, the sound echoing into the open air.
Cold wind rushed through the opening, carrying with it a scent Diablo didn't recognize.
Damp earth.
Rotting leaves.
Wood.
Life.
His nostrils flared reflexively.
The System's frame flickered, the words appearing almost instantly.
" Environmental Shift Confirmed. "
" Oxygen Density: Optimal. "
" Traces of Blood: Detected. "
Diablo stepped out of the lab.
The first thing he saw was trees.
Tall, twisted, their trunks dark, their bark rough and cracked. The branches stretched into the sky, forming a dense canopy that blocked out most of the light, leaving only thin, jagged lines of pale blue piercing through. The air was thick, the ground soft under his feet.
He stood on the forest's edge, the lab fading behind him like a half‑remembered nightmare.
The System updated again.
" Forest Zone Entered. "
" Designation: Unknown. "
Diablo took a step forward.
The soft soil shifted under his bare foot, the sensation strange, unfamiliar. He had never walked on dirt. Never felt anything beneath him except steel and glass.
His body swayed slightly, the System's feedback adjusting.
" Posture Adjustment Required. "
He ignored it.
Something moved in the trees.
A faint rustle.
A shift in the air.
The System's frame flickered, the text changing.
" Hostile Signature Detected. "
" Designation: Unknown Wolf. "
Diablo's head turned slowly, his gaze shifting toward the sound.
Through the trees, beyond the twisted trunks, between the hanging vines, something moved.
A pair of glowing eyes, yellow, low to the ground.
A wolf.
Not a lab subject.
Not a genetically engineered creature.
A real wolf.
The System's block flickered again.
" Wild Beast Detected. "
" Prey: Eligible. "
Diablo's eyes narrowed.
The wolf stepped forward, its paws pressing against the damp soil, its head low, its fangs bared. Saliva dripped from its mouth, the scent of blood fresh on its breath. It was hungry.
The System's frame shifted, the words aligning smoothly.
" First Kill Condition: Active. "
" Confirm Engagement: YES / NO "
Diablo didn't hesitate.
He stepped forward.
The System blinked.
" Engagement Confirmed. "
The wolf lunged.
Muscle and instinct drove it forward, its body a blur of fur and teeth. It moved fast, far faster than the personnel in the lab, far faster than the guards.
Diablo didn't try to dodge.
He didn't move out of the way.
He moved through.
His body shifted, the System's feedback racing.
" Adaptive Response: Active. "
" Speed Adjustment: Applied. "
The wolf's fangs passed inches from his throat, the air crackling as it missed. The beast's momentum carried it slightly past him, and in that instant, Diablo's hand reached out.
He didn't grab flesh.
He grabbed air.
The System's frame flickered.
" Blood Essence Channeling: Active. "
" Crimson Predation Initiated. "
A faint, blood‑red aura flared around his hand, the System's text updating rapidly.
" Blood Detection Confirmed. "
" Target: Wolf. "
The wolf cried out, the sound tearing through the forest, the red light reflecting in its eyes. Its body twisted, the muscles in its limbs taut, the System's feedback flickering.
" Target Resistance: Low. "
" Blood Essence Extraction: In Progress. "
The wolf collapsed, its body trembling, the System updating again.
" First Kill Condition: Satisfied. "
" Blood Essence: Received. "
Diablo's fingers tightened around the creature's fur, the System's block in his mind stabilizing.
" Blood Essence: 40 / 40 "
" Energy: 56 / 80 "
" Evolution Stability: 100% "
The wolf's eyes dimmed, the light fading from them, the System's frame flickering one last time.
" First Kill: Recorded. "
Silence returned to the forest, the sound of the wolf's cry fading into the air, the System's frame slowly fading into the background of his mind.
Diablo lowered the creature's body, the blood staining his fingers, the crimson drops dripping onto the damp soil.
The System's block remained, the last line clear.
" Prey Killed. "
" Survival Confirmed. "
Diablo took a slow breath, the cold air filling his lungs, the scent of the forest, the blood, the soil, the life, the death, all of it swirling together.
The System's frame flickered faintly, the words appearing once more.
" Forest Zone: Dangerous. "
" Recommend: Move Deeper. "
Diablo turned his head, the System's words pulling his gaze toward the deeper trees, the darkness beyond the trees, the place where the green light vanished.
His first kill was done.
His first step into the forest had begun.
And the System had already decided his next path.