Pain. That was all Kaelen knew. It vibrated from his cracked ribs, through his empty belly, and ended in his bleeding fingernails. He was buried under rocks.
Kaelen was twelve years old, but he was small. He had been too slow. The foreman's whip had cracked near his ear, he had flinched, and then the mine ceiling collapsed on him.
Slaves were cheap in the Silverblood Mines. A child slave was worth nothing. No one was coming for him.
If I stay here, I die, he thought.
His left hand brushed something cold. It was a perfect, round, black stone.
As his fingers closed around it, the stone felt alive. It melted into his hand.
[System initialized.]
[User: Kaelen. Current Status: Dying.]
[Absorbing Artifact... Phase 1 complete.]
Blue screens flashed in front of Kaelen's eyes. They were blurry, like looking through thick water.
The pain didn't stop. It got worse. It felt like cold liquid fire was being pumped into his veins.
[Current Host Level: 1.]
[Critical Condition (HP 2/50). Survival protocols engaged.]
His broken arm moved by itself. He slammed it into the rocks. Granite cracked. He didn't feel the pain, only the command to move. He clawed his way toward the dim light of the tunnel. He was covered in ash and blood.
[HP: 11/50 (Recovering slowly).]
[New Quest: Escape.]
[Exit the area before guards arrive (Time: 14:00 minutes).]
[Reward: Skill: 'Lesser Shadow Step.']
[Failure: Death.]
Kaelen stared at the screens. He understood 'Escape' and 'Death.'
He pushed himself up. His body was numb, but he was good at moving in the dark. Slaves learned the shape of shadows before they learned to read.
A red timer counted down in the corner of his vision.
11:30…
He reached the main corridor. He needed to get to a ventilation shaft that went up to the surface.
"The collapse was here!" A loud voice boomed.
A foreman and a guard turned the corner. The guard carried a spear. They had a bright magic light.
"More dead slaves," the foreman spat. "At least we don't have to feed them."
The light swept right over Kaelen.
[Stealth increased (Lv. 2).]
The men didn't see him. They walked past.
9:14…
Kaelen ran. He ignored his broken ribs. The mines were a maze, but he knew them.
He reached the ventilation ladder. It was long and wet. The shaft itself was small—just big enough for a child. Adults could not fit. He was the perfect size.
He started climbing. The timer hit 2:00. His muscles were failing. The pain was coming back.
1:15…
He saw twilight at the top. The exit grate. He reached it and pulled.
It was locked from the outside.
Kaelen froze. He pulled again. It wouldn't move.
0:30…
[Failure Imminent.]
A sudden, cold anger filled him. He wouldn't die in this hole. He wouldn't die for a king he had never seen.
He locked both hands together into a hammer.
[Emergency Protocol: Power Surge.]
[WARNING: This will damage you.]
An icy shock hit him. He screamed and slammed his fists upward.
CLANG!
The entire metal grate exploded outward, torn from the stone.
Kaelen tumbled onto the dry grass of the ravine, gasping for air. The wide, evening sky opened up above him.
[Quest: Escape—Success!]
[Reward: A-Rank Skill: 'Lesser Shadow Step'.]
A shadow fell over him. Kaelen looked up.
It was an Overseer. These were mages who kept order in the mines. He was tall, wearing a heavy blue robe. The hood hid his face.
"A Class-0 artifact," the Overseer said. His voice rasped like old paper. "I wondered where it went. And it was found by… this."
He kicked Kaelen indifference, but Kaelen felt the power. It was heavy and crushed his lungs. This man was powerful.
The Overseer raised a hand. He didn't say a word. Purple light gathered above his palm, forming a sharp crystal shard.
"It will be annoying to take the artifact from your body," the Overseer noted. "But necessary."
Kaelen stared at the crystal. He had escaped the dark just to die in the twilight.
This is the world, the cold voice of the System told him. Those with power take. Those without are taken.
The Overseer flicked his wrist. The amethyst shard flew.
Kaelen closed his eyes.
Snap!
The sound was sharp, like a whip.
Kaelen opened his eyes. The amethyst crystal was gone.
A new man stood between Kaelen and the Overseer.
He wore simple leather armor and had a long sword on his back. His hair was messy and dark. His eyes were bright silver. He was holding a simple walking stick, which he had used to hit the magic shard.
"Manners, Alistair," the man with silver eyes said. His voice was happy. "We aren't in your dark pit anymore."
The Overseer froze. "You. You do not belong here."
"I belong wherever I stand," the man said. He glanced down at Kaelen. He didn't look sorry. He looked interested.
"You're a mess, kid," the man said. "But you have a strange aura. You smell like forgotten history. I like that."
Overseer Alistair hissed, his robes flying around him as he raised both hands. More purple energy gathered. "Move, or be crushed."
"Alas," the man sighed, shrugging. "I hate it when they don't listen."
The man shifted his feet. In that instant, he changed. The happy attitude vanished. A new aura filled the air—it was sharp and absolutely devastating. It felt like a master swordsman.
Blue text flashed in Kaelen's vision.
[Alert! Power level exceeds current System parameters. Class: ???]
"I'm Silas," the man said, winking at Kaelen. "And I don't believe in Kings. But I do believe in making an entrance."
Silas didn't draw his sword. He raised his simple wooden walking stick.
The world went white.
A massive explosion of raw mana shook the ground. Dust and debris blinded Kaelen as the titanic forces clashed, signaling the start of a battle that would reshape his very destiny.