The southern road was quieter than Vale remembered.
In his previous life, caravans and miners traveled this route daily, hauling ore from the mines near Stonefall Ridge. Now the road lay nearly empty, morning mist curling across abandoned wagon tracks.
Too early.
Everything was happening too early.
Vale walked with steady pace, cloak pulled tight against the cold dawn wind. His pack weighed heavily against sore shoulders. His body still protested yesterday’s battle, muscles aching from mana overuse.
Weak flesh.
Strong memory.
That was the balance he walked now.
He needed to fix that.
Fast.
A system notification shimmered faintly at the edge of his sight.
SYSTEM DESCENT: 33 DAYS REMAINING
Another day gone.
Vale frowned.
The acceleration hadn’t slowed.
If anything, it was getting worse.
He replayed events in his mind. Rift Beast appearance. Global notice. Timeline shifts. Someone else was pushing events forward — intentionally or not.
Another regressor acting recklessly?
Or something bigger?
His Predator Instinct tingled faintly.
Someone dangerous existed in this timeline now.
He didn’t know where.
But he knew they would collide eventually.
And when they did…
Only one hunter would walk away.
Stonefall Ridge rose slowly in the distance, jagged cliffs cutting into the morning sky.
Vale remembered the chaos there vividly.
In the original timeline, miners accidentally opened a mana fissure deep underground. Monsters poured out before authorities responded. Hundreds died trapped in tunnels.
He’d arrived later with an adventurer squad.
Too late to save most.
He remembered pulling survivors from rubble.
Remembered screams echoing underground.
Remembered the smell of blood and stone dust.
Now…
The mines should still be open.
Normal.
Peaceful.
But not for long.
He adjusted his pace.
If he reached the mine before the dungeon stabilized, he could clear its core early.
Massive reward.
Huge progression boost.
Dangerous.
But worth it.
By midday, warning signs appeared.
Dead birds littered roadside grass.
Animals avoided the area.
The air felt heavier.
Mana distortion.
Vale stopped walking.
Closed his eyes.
Focused.
Mana moved strangely here.
Swirling currents beneath reality.
Like pressure building underground.
Yes.
The fissure was already forming.
Which meant…
The dungeon might already be partially active.
He exhaled slowly.
Good.
More dangerous.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
But more rewarding.
He crested the final hill.
Stonefall Mine lay below.
And chaos had already begun.
Workers ran frantically between buildings.
Carts overturned.
Miners shouted.
A section of the mountain entrance had collapsed inward, dust still rising from the cave mouth.
Vale cursed under his breath.
Too soon.
Again.
He jogged downhill, grabbing a passing miner.
“What happened?”
The man’s face was pale with terror.
“The tunnels collapsed! Something… something moved inside!”
Vale released him.
Already happening.
Workers were evacuating survivors.
Some injured.
Some bleeding.
Some screaming about shadows moving underground.
Good.
Fear spread faster than monsters.
It made people predictable.
A foreman barked orders nearby.
“No one goes back in! We wait for city guards!”
Vale approached.
“How many trapped?”
The foreman stared at him, annoyed.
“Who are you?”
“How many?”
The man hesitated.
“…Maybe twenty still inside.”
Vale clenched his jaw.
Twenty.
Dead soon.
Unless he intervened.
The foreman continued.
“We’ll send rescue teams once guards arrive.”
Too late.
They didn’t understand.
Vale did.
The dungeon core was forming.
Monsters spawning.
Tunnels becoming labyrinthine.
Anyone still inside would die within hours.
He made his decision.
“I’m going in.”
The foreman grabbed his arm.
“Are you insane? Something killed the last rescue group!”
Vale pulled free.
“Then they need someone who knows how to kill it.”
He didn’t wait for argument.
He walked toward the collapsed entrance.
Miners shouted behind him.
Someone cursed.
Someone prayed.
None followed.
Good.
Less distraction.
Inside, darkness swallowed sound.
Dust hung thick in the air.
Broken support beams and collapsed stone blocked much of the original tunnel.
Vale stepped carefully over rubble.
His new trait stirred faintly.
Echo of the Godslayer.
Combat intuition.
Threat awareness.
Something moved deeper inside.
He could feel it.
Mana currents pulsed unnaturally.
The dungeon core was stabilizing.
Reality rewriting itself underground.
Stone walls twisted slightly.
Passages shifting.
Soon the mine wouldn’t exist.
Only dungeon.
And monsters.
A distant scream echoed.
Still alive.
Vale quickened his pace.
He ignited faint mana light in his palm.
Weak glow illuminated bloody drag marks across stone.
People fleeing.
Something chasing.
His grip tightened on his knife.
Predator Instinct triggered.
Danger ahead.
He advanced silently.
Turned a corner.
And froze.
Bodies lay torn across tunnel walls.
Three miners.
Dead.
Something fed on one corpse.
A creature crouched low, skin pale and translucent, limbs elongated unnaturally.
Tunnel Stalker.
Early dungeon predator.
Fast.
Ambush hunter.
It lifted its head.
Eyes locking onto Vale.
Silence stretched.
Then it shrieked.
And lunged.
Vale dove sideways as claws slashed through air where his throat had been.
Too fast.
Tunnel Stalkers were faster than Rift Beasts.
Designed for confined killing.
He rolled, came up with knife ready.
The creature skittered along tunnel walls like an insect, repositioning instantly.
Vale’s heart pounded.
He needed environment control.
Open combat meant death.
The monster leapt again.
Vale threw himself backward through a narrow side passage.
The creature followed—
And slammed into low rock ceiling.
Perfect.
Too large to maneuver easily.
Vale surged forward.
Knife drove into its throat.
It shrieked, thrashing violently.
Claws tore across his side.
Pain exploded.
He grit his teeth, pushing blade deeper.
Twisting.
Blood sprayed.
The creature convulsed.
Then collapsed.
Vale staggered back, breathing hard.
His side burned.
Claws cut through clothing.
Blood seeped.
Not fatal.
But close.
Blue light appeared.
TUNNEL STALKER TERMINATED
EXPERIENCE GAINED
LEVEL UP AVAILABLE
His body strengthened slightly.
Not enough.
But something.
Another notification followed.
SKILL UNLOCKED
Dungeon Adaptation – Level 1
Improved awareness and endurance within dungeon environments.
Good.
He needed every advantage.
A faint cry echoed deeper.
Survivors.
Still alive.
Vale moved.
He found them barricaded behind overturned carts.
Six miners.
Terrified.
One injured badly.
A man nearly cried seeing him.
“You came back?”
Vale nodded.
“Move. Quietly.”
They followed instantly.
Fear made obedience easy.
He guided them through tunnels, avoiding shifting passages.
But dungeon formation accelerated.
Walls twisted.
Paths closed.
New corridors opened.
Reality unstable.
Vale cursed internally.
Too fast.
Again.
Everything too fast.
Predator Instinct screamed.
Ambush.
He shoved survivors aside as another Tunnel Stalker burst from ceiling.
Claws ripped past his face.
He tackled creature mid-lunge.
Knife plunged repeatedly.
Blood sprayed.
The monster died thrashing.
But another shriek echoed.
And another.
Three more.
Vale’s stomach dropped.
Pack hunters.
They’d followed survivors.
Bad.
Very bad.
He turned to miners.
“Run. Follow tunnel until daylight.”
“What about you?”
Vale forced calm.
“I’ll slow them.”
They didn’t argue.
Survival instincts won.
They fled.
Vale turned.
Three Stalkers crept forward.
Smarter now.
Cautious.
He exhaled slowly.
This body couldn’t handle prolonged combat.
But killing them here…
Massive experience.
Potential skill evolution.
And if they escaped—
More civilians would die.
Decision made.
Mana surged into his legs.
Pain flared.
He charged.
The tunnel exploded into chaos.
He dodged first strike.
Slashed second.
Third knocked him into wall.
Air vanished from lungs.
Claws descended
Echo of the Godslayer triggered.
Instinct took over.
His body moved without conscious thought.
Knife drove upward through jaw.
Monster died instantly.
He rolled, kicked second creature into stone.
Grabbed fallen pickaxe.
Crushed skull.
Third leapt.
Vale caught it mid-air.
Both crashed.
Teeth snapped inches from his face.
He shoved knife through its eye.
Silence fell.
Vale lay gasping.
Every muscle screaming.
Blood soaked his clothes.
Vision swam.
System notifications flooded his sight.
MULTIPLE HOSTILES TERMINATED
EXPERIENCE DISTRIBUTED
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
Heat surged through him.
Strength returning.
Still weak.
But less fragile.
Then
Authority resonance intensified.
GODSLAYER AUTHORITY STABILITY INCREASED
Current Stability: 5%
New Function Unlocking…
Vale’s heart pounded.
New function?
Text formed slowly.
Authority Fragment: Execution Insight
When striking lethal points, damage significantly increases.
Limited activation.
Vale laughed weakly.
Useful.
Very useful.
Then dungeon shook violently.
Stone cracked.
Mana surged.
Core formation complete.
A massive presence awakened deeper below.
Vale’s smile vanished.
Boss monster.
Already?
That should take days.
Not hours.
System alert appeared.
DUNGEON CORE STABILIZED
BOSS ENTITY AWAKENING
Vale staggered upright.
Miners might escape.
But if boss emerged
Everything nearby would die.
He wiped blood from his eyes.
Looked deeper into darkness.
He had two options.
Leave.
Or descend further.
His grip tightened on knife.
Godslayer instincts whispered.
Hunters move toward danger.
Not away.
Vale stepped deeper underground.
Toward the awakening core.
And somewhere far away…
Another regressor smiled.
Because the hunt was finally beginning.
