> System: Congratulations. You are now Level 5.
Jinra opened her eyes.
A pale breath escaped her lips. The ground beneath her trembled faintly, as if it were breathing. She had landed.
The mist had thinned slightly, but the air was heavier now—thicker. Oppressive. The atmosphere felt soaked in silent screams.
All around her stretched the ruins of a village twisted by the abyss. Crumbled houses, shattered bones frozen in time, and corpses locked in eternal agony. Strange symbols were etched into stone walls, like prayers choked and long forgotten.
The Abyssal Village.
> System: All monsters on this floor are Level 10.
Floor Boss: Level 20.
System: Your selected skill [Shadow Dimension — Level 1] is now activatable.
Ability: Access a resting space outside of time.
Maximum duration: 2 hours.
Would you like to enter?
She nodded slowly.
— Yes. I need it.
---
[Entering Shadow Dimension]
A breath passed through her—as if reality exhaled—and then, everything vanished.
She reappeared in a shifting void, liquid darkness flowing around her. A dense mist floated like broken wings in still air. Nothing moved. Nothing made a sound.
She sat down.
Her fingers trembled slightly. She stared at her single hand, the joints raw from overuse, the empty space where her other arm should have been aching in memory. Then, quietly:
— System… can I… get a different weapon?
The bow… it's too slow. Too heavy… especially with one arm.
> System: Calculating…
Result: Affirmative. Requires the sacrifice of your Spectral Bow.
She didn't hesitate.
— I sacrifice it.
> System: Available weapons:
— Short Sword
— Twin Daggers
She frowned.
— That's not what I want.
Her eyes closed. She took a deep breath.
— I want something fluid. Precise. Alive. Something I can manipulate—extend and control. Not brute force. Not ordinary.
A long silence followed. Then:
> System: Unique request detected.
Weapon: Strings of the Puppeteer
Description: Invisible spectral threads—sharp, durable, and deadly. Controlled by intent, gravity, intelligence, and elemental mastery.
Manipulation Mode: Advanced — One-handed use possible.
Her heart skipped a beat. A grin tugged at her lips.
— Perfect.
She lifted her hand. The strings responded—dancing around her in subtle arcs. Thin as shadow, sharper than blades, almost invisible in the void. The air seemed to bend with their presence.
She spent over an hour mastering their movements—learning their rhythm, their hunger. Her arm adapted slowly, painfully, but precisely.
And then… a thought sparked.
She froze.
— Gravity… Elemental control… Weapon mastery…
Her eyes lit up with wild realization.
— I can make them dance. In the air… in the dark… in the void.
She lifted her head.
And smiled.
— I will become… The Puppeteer of Chaos.
---
[Exiting the Dimension]
The world returned.
But it had changed.
Towering goblins stood before her—massive, hulking brutes with twisted muscles and jagged scars. Their black eyes burned with primal hatred.
Each held brutal weapons: rusted greatswords, crude hammers the size of tree trunks. One snarled. Another slammed its weapon to the ground, shaking the earth.
Jinra didn't move.
The threads floated around her—silent, sharp, hungry.
She smiled. Not with joy. With intent.
Then whispered:
— Be honored.
A thread snapped in the air. A soundless ripple tore through the silence like a hidden blade.
— You're about to witness the birth of a dragon.
She stepped back. Her fingers tensed. The threads twisted and coiled like unseen fangs.
— Now come.