Dawn arrived quietly after the night of blood and rain.
Mist clung to the ground like a lingering memory of violence. The village moved slowly, cautiously, as if afraid that any loud sound might summon another wave of disaster.
Ren stood alone at the edge of the forest.
He had not slept.
Instead, he spent the night staring into the darkness beyond the trees, listening to distant echoes of fleeing bandits and the faint growls of monsters roaming their territory. His mind remained restless — not from fear, but from anticipation.
Something was changing.
He could feel it inside the rifle.
The weapon resting in his hands no longer felt like simple steel. A subtle vibration pulsed through its frame, synchronized with his heartbeat. The glowing runes along the barrel flickered more intensely than before, responding to emotions he barely understood himself.
"…You're evolving," he murmured.
Or perhaps he was.
The system panel appeared once again, shimmering faintly in the cool morning air.
—COMBAT EXPERIENCE THRESHOLD REACHED.
—WEAPON SYNCHRONIZATION INITIATED.
Ren frowned.
"What does that mean?"
The answer came not as words, but as sensation.
Heat surged through his arm, racing toward the rifle like lightning seeking ground. The runes ignited in brilliant silver light. A sharp pressure built behind his eyes, flooding his mind with unfamiliar knowledge — battle strategies, firing techniques, even glimpses of weapons that did not yet exist.
He staggered forward.
The world around him blurred.
Images flashed through his consciousness: endless battlefields, collapsing fortresses, warriors falling beneath thunderous gunfire. It felt like memories… yet they did not belong to him.
This was the legacy of the weapon.
Or perhaps the destiny tied to his title — Hero Who Died.
He gritted his teeth as the power continued to pour into him.
"Stop…!"
The rifle responded.
Its form began to change.
Dark metal shifted like liquid shadow. The long barrel shortened slightly while new mechanical structures unfolded along its sides. A faint halo of energy formed near the muzzle, humming with restrained force.
Ren stared in shock.
"…A transformation?"
He raised the weapon instinctively.
It felt faster.
Deadlier.
As if it could fire not just bullets, but pieces of his will.
The system confirmed his realization.
—WEAPON FORM UNLOCKED: PHANTOM RIFLE.
—SPECIAL EFFECT: BULLETS IGNORE PHYSICAL DEFENSE.
A slow breath escaped his lips.
"This power… is meant to kill heroes."
The thought chilled him.
Was that what he was becoming? A hunter of the very legends people prayed for?
A sudden roar shattered his reflection.
From deeper within the forest, a massive monster burst into the clearing. Its body was armored in thick black scales, its jaws dripping venom that sizzled upon the earth. Drawn by the surge of energy, it attacked without hesitation.
Ren did not retreat.
He aimed.
The new rifle form glowed intensely, as if eager to prove its existence. When he pulled the trigger, the shot was almost silent — yet the impact was devastating.
The bullet passed through the creature as though it were made of mist.
A heartbeat later, the monster split apart.
Ren lowered the weapon slowly.
Smoke curled from the barrel like the breath of something alive.
"I see… This is only the beginning."
Behind him, hidden among the trees, several villagers who had followed out of concern watched in stunned silence.
They were witnessing the birth of something far beyond an ordinary warrior.
And Ren himself was beginning to understand that the path he had chosen would lead him away from humanity… and toward legend.