Chapter 6:Reaper

The ground trembled beneath Zane's feet.

The distant roar echoed through the ruins again, reverberating through the shattered buildings of Sector F. A thick tension filled the air, pressing down like an invisible weight.

The girl in the tattered cloak tensed, eyes scanning the horizon. "Damn it… that thing's way too close."

Zane barely moved. He could already feel it approaching—his Domain Perception stretched outward, catching the massive presence heading straight for them.

It wasn't just big. It was fast.

Zane turned his gaze toward the girl. "What is it?"

She didn't look at him. "Something that shouldn't be here."

That wasn't an answer.

Zane's fingers curled slightly. "If you're expecting me to run—"

The girl scoffed, cutting him off. "You're not running. You wouldn't make it three blocks."

She wasn't wrong.

Whatever was coming was moving at an impossible speed for something its size. Too coordinated, too direct. It wasn't wandering—it was hunting.

And that meant only one thing.

"It's not a normal monster," Zane said, voice calm. "It's been sent."

The girl turned toward him, her expression unreadable. "Took you long enough to figure it out."

Zane narrowed his eyes. He wasn't sure what was more unsettling—the fact that she already knew what was going on, or that she wasn't panicking.

Another roar split the night, closer this time.

Zane's mind raced. Who had sent it? The guilds? The government? Something else?

None of that mattered right now.

What mattered was surviving.

---

The air grew thick with mana. The energy pressing against Zane's skin was different from the dungeon beasts he had fought before—this was controlled.

Then, out of the darkness, it appeared.

A towering beast, nearly four meters tall, its body covered in black chitinous armor that gleamed under the moonlight. Its muscular limbs flexed, each movement disturbingly smooth, like a predator built for the sole purpose of hunting down and eliminating targets.

Its head was vaguely humanoid, but its face was featureless, except for three glowing red slits running vertically down its forehead. Long, blade-like claws extended from its forearms, pulsing with residual energy.

Zane didn't recognize it.

This wasn't a normal dungeon creature.

The girl beside him muttered a curse. "A Reaper-class construct. They really aren't holding back."

Zane glanced at her. "You know what this thing is?"

She didn't answer.

The Reaper stepped forward. Despite its size, it moved silently, the ruined ground beneath it barely shifting.

Then, without warning—

It vanished.

Zane's instincts screamed.

He didn't hesitate—he dropped low just as something blurred past his head. A razor-sharp claw sliced through the air where his neck had been a second ago.

Fast.

Zane spun on instinct, catching a glimpse of the Reaper's afterimage, its body phasing in and out of sight.

It was using high-speed spatial movement.

Zane's pulse quickened. This wasn't just a monster—it had abilities similar to his own.

The Reaper reappeared, standing completely still just a few meters away. Studying him.

Testing him.

A low, distorted voice echoed from its core.

"Target confirmed. Execute."

The moment the words left its mouth, it vanished again.

Zane's body moved before he could think.

His perception stretched, his senses locking onto the Reaper's movements. It was coming from the left—high angle.

His body twisted just as the second attack came. This time, he was ready.

Domain Perception activated.

The moment the Reaper entered his range, the air around it shifted, slowing just enough for Zane to react.

He pivoted, barely avoiding the claw strike aimed at his ribs. The sheer force of the attack sent a shockwave through the air, cracking the ground beneath them.

One clean hit would be fatal.

Zane's mind raced. The Reaper wasn't just fast—it was precise. No wasted movements. No unnecessary attacks.

It had been engineered for execution.

And that meant—

It wouldn't stop.

---

Zane exhaled, steadying himself. Running wasn't an option.

Testing Absolute Domain was risky, but…

No better time than now.

He focused, willing the ability to activate.

The air froze.

The world within a ten-meter radius shifted under his control.

The Reaper lunged—only for its movement to slow.

It wasn't much—barely a fraction of a second—but it was enough.

Zane sidestepped, pivoting behind it. His reaction speed was still slower than its raw movement, but inside his domain, the rules were different.

The Reaper twisted midair, adjusting instantly. It adapted too quickly.

It was learning.

Zane clenched his jaw. Of course it is.

The Reaper turned, its glowing red slits locking onto him. This time, it didn't teleport.

Instead, it raised one clawed hand. A ripple of energy coursed through its arm.

Then, suddenly—

The space between them collapsed.

Zane barely had time to react before an invisible force slammed into his chest.

He was launched backward, crashing through a half-destroyed wall. Debris rained down around him as he skidded across the ruined ground.

Pain flared through his body, but it was dull, distant. His Vitality stat was high.

He pushed himself up, coughing once.

The Reaper didn't pursue. It stood where it was, tilting its head slightly.

Analyzing.

Adapting.

Zane exhaled, rolling his shoulders. That attack… it had manipulated space itself.

Just like him.

A slow smirk spread across his lips.

Alright, then.

If it wanted to play with spatial control…

Then he'd show it what real control looked like.

---

Zane took a slow step forward, flexing his fingers. His mana surged through his body, and for the first time, he pushed.

The world around him shifted.

His Domain expanded.

And for the first time, the Reaper hesitated.

The air was thick with tension.

The Reaper-class construct stood still, its glowing red slits locked onto Zane. It wasn't just a mindless beast—it was studying him, recalibrating its next move.

Zane's Domain Perception pulsed outward, stretching to its maximum range. He could feel everything within a twenty-meter radius—the way the wind shifted, the uneven cracks in the pavement, the residual energy humming in the air.

But more than anything, he could feel the Reaper.

It was too precise. Too controlled.

This wasn't a dungeon beast.

It was a designed killer.

Zane exhaled slowly, flexing his fingers. His mana surged, his mind calculating.

He had already proven he could hit it. But hitting wasn't enough.

He had to end this fight.

---

Zane closed his eyes for a fraction of a second.

Then—he pushed.

His Domain expanded, stretching out further than before. The air inside his sphere of influence froze, the very space within it bending to his will.

For the first time in the fight—the Reaper hesitated.

It wasn't fear.

It was uncertainty.

This creature had been programmed to adapt to all combat situations. But Absolute Domain didn't follow normal combat rules.

Inside this space—Zane was in control.

The Reaper moved. Instantaneous. Precise.

It vanished, reappearing behind him—its claws slashing toward his spine.

But Zane was already there.

He didn't dodge.

He simply changed the space between them.

A microsecond before impact, the distance stretched, sending the Reaper's attack into empty air.

Zane pivoted, his body moving faster than before. His foot lashed out—a kick aimed at the Reaper's exposed side.

It reacted instantly, twisting midair—

But it was too late.

Zane's strike connected.

The force of the impact sent the Reaper flying, slamming it into the ruins.

A deep, mechanical groan echoed from its core.

Zane's eyes narrowed.

It had taken damage.

Not enough to kill it. But enough to confirm one thing.

His Absolute Domain could counter its speed.

The Reaper pushed itself up, its red slits flickering. Its movements were different now—less aggressive, more calculated.

It was learning.

Zane's smirk didn't fade.

Then let's see if you can keep up.

---

The construct moved differently this time.

No more reckless teleportation.

Instead, it raised one clawed hand.

The air around it distorted.

Zane's instincts screamed.

He moved—but not fast enough.

A sudden gravitational force slammed into him.

The ground beneath him shattered, cracks spiderwebbing outward from where he stood. His limbs felt like lead, the weight pressing down on his entire body.

The Reaper had figured it out.

It was using Spatial Compression to collapse the space around him—disrupting his control.

Zane gritted his teeth.

The weight increased. His Domain flickered, struggling against the sheer force of the attack.

But he wasn't going to let this thing win.

He forced himself to move.

The moment he took a step forward—he felt it.

A shift.

Not just in the fight, but within himself.

Zane exhaled.

Then—he stopped resisting.

Instead of pushing back against the compression, he let go.

For a single instant—he allowed space to collapse around him.

And then—he rewrote it.

The gravitational force shattered. The weight vanished.

Zane was free.

He lifted his hand, fingers outstretched.

His Domain expanded—this time, not just to contain the Reaper, but to rewrite the battlefield entirely.

The Reaper took a step back.

It recognized the change.

It wasn't hunting anymore.

It was trapped.

Zane clenched his fist—and space itself folded.

The Reaper's body twisted, the reality around it shifting unnaturally. It tried to teleport—but the space was no longer its own to move through.

For the first time, the Reaper-class construct had no escape.

And Zane saw it.

A flickering glow, deep inside its armored chest—its core.

Zane didn't hesitate.

He moved.

A single step forward—and then he was there.

Right in front of the Reaper.

His fist shot forward, his Force stat surging with everything he had.

The blow connected.

A deafening shockwave tore through the ruins.

The Reaper's chest caved in, its glowing core cracking violently.

For a single moment, the construct stood completely still.

Then—its body collapsed inward.

Its red slits flickered one last time.

Then—darkness.

The Reaper was dead.