The New Hunt Begins

Chapter 9: Trial by Fire

Location: The Infernal Pit – Sector 5's Underground Arena

The invitation came without a sender.

A digital card etched in crimson:

"Trial by Fire. One Night Only. Survive, and you'll never be hunted again."— The Crimson Reaper

Ryo held the card under the moonlight. It pulsed like a living ember, glowing with ancient Protocol runes he couldn't yet decipher.

He didn't care who sent it.

He only knew one thing: this trial… was a trap.

And he was walking straight into it.

Arrival

The arena was buried in Sector 5's collapsed zone—once a metro station, now a brutal coliseum where Protocol users fought for currency, rank, or pure bloodlust.

Steel walls dripped with old data and dry blood. Chains hung from broken lights. Thousands stood in the shadows, masked and nameless, their cheers echoing like thunder.

The announcer's voice crackled through the speakers:

"Tonight, a newcomer dares the Infernal Pit!""They say he killed Echo.""They say his Protocol is unbound.""But will he survive… The Trial by Fire?"

A gate slammed open.

Ryo stepped forward, wearing a hood and the weight of every decision that led him here.

He wasn't here to fight.

He was here to make a statement.

The Trial

A giant pit ringed with fire.

In the center: a monstrous man, twice Ryo's size, skin armored with living data code, eyes red with Protocol corruption.

Name: GarruxClass: Berserker UserThreat Level: A-RankTitle: "The Arena's Butcher"

"Heh. They're feeding me children now?" Garrux laughed, twirling his data axe. "This won't take long."

Ryo didn't answer.

He activated Shadow Clone, sending a decoy forward to bait the beast.

Boom!

The clone shattered under Garrux's charge.

Ryo flipped back, dragging a hand across the arena floor, siphoning code into a new ability:

New Skill Assimilated: [Shadow Spike]Impale enemies from below using terrain-embedded shadows. Scales with user emotion.

He slammed his fist down.

KRAK!

Spikes erupted beneath Garrux, piercing his leg—but he laughed through the blood.

"Good. You've got spite. I love that."

The berserker roared, unleashing a Protocol Rage Burst—a forbidden move that traded health for triple power.

Ryo was blown back, ribs cracking on impact.

"You're not strong enough yet," his mind whispered."You still hesitate."

Flashback: The Basement Lab

In a haze, Ryo saw his mother, Ayaka.

"They'll try to break you in places you didn't know could hurt," she once said."But when that moment comes… you have to choose what kind of monster you'll become."

Back in the Arena

Blood dripping from his mouth, Ryo stood.

He looked Garrux in the eyes and let go.

A deep surge answered his call. The Shadow Protocol glitched.

SYSTEM OVERRIDE: REAPER STATE ACTIVATED

Ryo's aura exploded—shadows writhed around him like spectral wolves, his eyes glowing void black.

New Form: REAPER MODE [Unlocked – 1 minute duration]Speed, strength, perception: x5Drawback: Overload risk. Memory instability.

The crowd fell silent.

Even Garrux paused.

"...What the hell are you?"

Ryo vanished—reappearing behind him, blades of shadow piercing clean through his back.

SLICK. CRACK.

With one smooth motion, Garrux fell.

Dead before he could even scream.

Silence… Then Chaos

The crowd roared. Masked figures leaned forward in awe or terror.

From the box seats above, a tall figure stood—cloaked in crimson.

The Crimson Reaper.

"So, the rumors were true," he murmured. "He's ready."

He snapped his fingers.

And Ryo's Protocol pinged with a system message:

NEW QUEST UNLOCKED:

"Reaper's Invitation"Join the Crimson Circle. Accept or Decline.Reward: Forbidden Knowledge. Protocol Rank Access: Tier S.

Backstage

Ryo leaned against a cold wall, heart racing, Reaper Mode fading.

He coughed blood and whispered, "One minute… and it almost killed me."

But he smiled.

He was changing. Fast.

Too fast.

A shadow stepped out beside him—a girl, no older than him, with silver eyes and Protocol runes glowing on her arms.

"That was reckless," she said."But impressive."

Ryo blinked. "Who are you?"

She grinned.

"Name's Nova. I'm the Crimson Reaper's heir.""And if you want to survive what's coming, Kazen... you'll train with me."

End of Chapter 9