CHAPTER 4:Shadows of the Abyss

**Chapter 4: Shadows of the Abyss**

Darren stood over the fallen monster, his hands still trembling from the rush of Abyssal energy. The dungeon was eerily silent, except for the labored breathing of the hunters who had barely survived the battle. All eyes were on him—on the F-Rank who had just done the impossible.

"What… what was that?" Captain Hwang asked, his voice thick with disbelief. He glanced from Darren to the twitching corpse of the monster, as if trying to make sense of what he had just witnessed.

Darren himself had no clear answer. He looked down at his hands, still crackling with faint traces of dark energy. It felt alien yet familiar, as if it had always been there, lurking beneath the surface, waiting to be unleashed. But why now? Why *him*?

"I… don't know," Darren replied softly. His gaze fell on the system window floating before him, still showing the details of his newfound power.

[Skill: Abyssal Awakening (Level 1)]

It wasn't just a one-time event. The skill was real, and it was now part of him. But as he stared at the message, another notification flashed across his vision.

[Warning: Abyssal Corruption Detected. Using Abyssal powers will accelerate corruption. Proceed with caution.]

Darren's breath caught in his throat. *Corruption?* What did that mean? He instinctively reached for more information, but the system didn't offer any. He was left with a chilling realization: this power wasn't just a gift—it was dangerous.

"Kim," Joon's voice broke the tension. His usual arrogance was gone, replaced by a cold, wary tone. "What the hell did you just do? Are you some kind of monster now?"

The accusation stung, but Darren couldn't blame him. Even he didn't understand what had happened. The darkness inside him didn't feel like the usual abilities granted by the System. It was something deeper, older, and far more menacing.

"I'm not a monster," Darren said, though he wasn't entirely sure of that himself. "I don't know how this happened."

Joon's eyes narrowed. "Yeah? Well, that power doesn't look natural. We don't know what you've turned into."

Before the conversation could escalate further, Captain Hwang raised a hand. "Enough, both of you. We'll figure this out later. Right now, we still need to get out of here alive. This dungeon is far more dangerous than we thought."

The other hunters nodded in agreement, though their glances toward Darren were filled with a mixture of fear and suspicion. They resumed their formation, cautiously moving deeper into the dungeon, but Darren felt their eyes on him the whole time.

As they ventured further, Darren's thoughts raced. What was this Abyssal power? Why had it awakened inside him now? And what was the "corruption" the system had warned him about?

His mind flashed back to the moment it happened—the moment when he thought he was about to die. Was it desperation that had triggered the power? Or something else entirely?

The group continued to move in silence, the dungeon's dark halls growing narrower and more oppressive with each step. Darren's senses were on high alert, the Abyssal energy still simmering just beneath the surface, ready to be unleashed again. But there was something else too—a creeping sense of unease, like the dungeon itself was watching him.

[Danger Detected.]

Darren's system pinged again, but this time, it wasn't a warning about monsters. It was something different, something *deeper*. He could feel it—an oppressive presence lingering just beyond his awareness, pulling at the edges of his mind.

Suddenly, the shadows around them began to shift.

"Everyone, stop!" Darren shouted, his voice sharp with urgency.

The hunters froze, their weapons drawn. They followed Darren's gaze, looking into the darkness ahead, where something was moving. The shadows themselves seemed to writhe and twist, forming grotesque shapes that slithered along the walls and floor.

"What the hell…?" one of the hunters muttered, backing up.

The shadows coalesced, forming into humanoid figures—tall, thin, and menacing. Their eyes glowed with an eerie red light, much like the monster they had just fought. But these weren't physical beings. They were *something else*—creatures made of pure darkness.

The hunters braced themselves, weapons raised, but Darren could feel the truth: conventional attacks wouldn't work on these things.

"This is no normal dungeon," Captain Hwang muttered, gripping his sword tighter. "Everyone, prepare for—"

Before he could finish, the shadow creatures lunged, moving with unnatural speed. The hunters swung their weapons, but the blades passed right through the figures as if slicing through smoke.

"It's no use!" Joon shouted, panic creeping into his voice. "We can't hit them!"

Darren's heart raced as he watched the futile attempts to fend off the creatures. But then, deep inside him, the Abyssal power stirred again, stronger this time. It was as if the darkness recognized its own.

Without hesitation, Darren stepped forward, extending his hand toward the approaching shadows. Dark energy surged out from him, spiraling through the air like tendrils. The shadow creatures recoiled, as if the Abyssal energy was burning them.

Darren didn't stop. He focused all his will into the power, feeling it pulse through him. The tendrils of darkness wrapped around the shadow creatures, pulling them apart, dissolving them back into the void from which they had come.

The room fell silent once more.

The other hunters stared at him, their faces pale. Darren could feel the weight of their fear. He had just wielded a power they didn't understand, a power that even he barely controlled.

"Darren…" Captain Hwang began, his voice cautious. "What… are you?"

Darren didn't have an answer. All he knew was that something had changed inside him—something tied to the Abyss. And whatever it was, it wasn't done with him yet.

[Corruption Level: 1%]

A new notification appeared in front of him, and with it, a chilling certainty settled over Darren.

This power came with a price.