[Basic Sword Technique]
[Rank: Common]
[Description: The most basic and fundamental sword style taught to beginners. Focuses on clean slashes, basic thrusts, and proper footwork. Easy to use, hard to master. May evolve with enough proficiency.]
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[Shadow Bullets]
[Rank: Common]
[Description: Conjures small, fast-moving bullets formed from condensed shadow energy. They are nearly silent and hard to see.]
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"Hm."
Sam stared at the skill descriptions hovering in front of him, brow furrowed slightly.
These were his first two skills, the foundation of his journey inside the [Forsaken] realm.
Both of them were basic and from the common rank.
The ranks for items and skills in [Forsakened] were spread across six categories: common, uncommon, rare, epic, legendary, and forsaken.
And yet… Sam didn't feel disappointed.
"These'll do," he muttered under his breath. "Let's see what I can make of them."
He opened up his hand and summoned his [Spatial Inventory], watching as a dark rift swirled into existence in the air before him.
Reaching inside, he pulled out the [Primordial Sword].
The moment his fingers closed around the hilt, a low hum echoed through the air.
A pulse of dark energy surged through the blade and wrapped itself around his arm.
The shadow aura didn't just swirl this time, it moved with purpose, almost like it was recognizing him.
Sam blinked, "Is this… resonating with me?"
A soft chime followed his words.
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[Primordial Sword]
[Rank: Forsaken]
[Current Affinities: Shadow]
[Description: An extremely powerful weapon that can only be wielded by a Primordial being. It draws power from your unlocked affinities and grows stronger with each one.]
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"So that's why my first affinity was Shadow…" Sam whispered, thinking back to the list of abilities granted by his class.
As a [Primordial], he didn't just have one affinity, he had the potential to unlock several.
But Shadow was the first one, the starting point. His blade matched that perfectly.
Then another thought came to mind.
If he remembered correctly, he had one more core ability besides [Spatial Inventory] and [Shadow Affinity].
"Right… Primordial Evolution."
He opened his status window and navigated to the class skills section, pulling up the second entry.
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[Primordial Evolution]
[Description: Once per day, you can select one of your skills or items and evolve it to its next stage.]
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This one. This was the one Sam had been waiting for. The skill that gave him a real chance.
Back in the game, and thus probably in this world too, evolving skills was incredibly rare and difficult.
Most people spent months, sometimes years, just trying to raise their proficiency high enough to trigger an upgrade.
It required perfect usage, relentless repetition, and deep understanding of a skill.
But now, with this ability, Sam could bypass all of that, once per day, anyway.
He looked at the two skills he had: [Basic Sword Technique] and [Shadow Bullets].
Between the two, the choice was clear.
'Shadow Bullets will take some getting used to, and I need to get a handle on close-range combat if I want to survive…' he reasoned.
His gaze returned to the [Primordial Sword] resting in his grip.
It was powerful, yes, but it was just a tool. His technique would determine whether he survived or died.
Sam summoned his skill panel again and focused on the glowing square labeled [Basic Sword Technique].
"Alright," he said quietly. "Let's try this out."
A ripple of dark energy spread across his body, then surged toward the skill panel.
The skill icon pulsed once… twice… and then—
Ding!
[Basic Sword Technique (Common) has evolved into Intermediate Sword Technique (Uncommon)]
Sam grinned as the new notification appeared.
He didn't even need to test it, he could already feel the change.
His grip on the sword felt steadier, more natural.
His stance shifted subtly, and muscle memory that hadn't been there a moment ago suddenly began to kick in.
Then he checked the cooldown on his class skill.
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[Primordial Evolution — Next Use: 23:59:59]
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So he would only be able to use it again tomorrow. Fair enough.
Still, even one upgrade like that was a huge head start.
"Alright," Sam muttered as he adjusted his grip on the sword, "Time to move."
He couldn't afford to sit around and overthink.
The longer he waited, the more likely it was that others would make progress, and that the realm itself would shift.
The [Forsaken] realm was notorious for changing its layout and difficulty depending on how many awakeners were inside.
He moved deeper into the ruins, steps light but steady.
The torches flickering on the stone walls gave off a dim, greenish hue, casting shadows that danced as he walked.
This was the [Novice Ruins].
A common spawn zone in the First Layer, but not one to underestimate.
Monsters in hell-mode weren't weak cannon fodder, they were agile, vicious, and fast, in addition to having more health and strength.
And worse… they worked together.
'Shadow affinity as a start is good, but I'll need more if I want to fight off actual threats,' Sam thought, keeping his eyes peeled.
His thoughts drifted again to the other affinities he might unlock later.
Would it come with experience? Combat? Or would he need to find something, like a trial, to trigger them?
There were too many unknowns.
But thinking wasn't going to answer any of them.
"Grrrrrr…"
A growl echoed through the corridor, low and wet.
Sam stopped walking. His hand gripped the sword tighter as he turned toward the noise.
More sounds followed, skittering feet, raspy breathing, weapons clanging softly.
And then he saw them.
Five goblins, crouched low and snarling.
Each one was armed, two had jagged daggers, one a cracked wooden club, another a rusted spear, and the last… a short bow, already drawn.
They were gathered around a corpse.
A human, judging by the boots and blood-soaked uniform. An awakener who had clearly failed.
Sam's expression darkened.
"So this is how it starts."
The goblins noticed him and shrieked.
One pointed at him, letting out a harsh screech as they all turned toward him with glowing eyes and crazed expressions.
Sam stepped forward, adjusting his footing.
He took a breath and exhaled slowly, focusing everything on the battle.
"You little bastards drove me insane in the game," he muttered. "Let's see how you fare now."
---
[Ruin Goblins]
[Level: 1]
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'Here we go,' Sam sighed before taking his stance.
And at that moment, the first goblin lunged with its dagger.
Yet Sam didn't even flinch.
To his surprise… it felt slow. Very slow.
'Why is it moving like that?' he wondered.
In the game, these goblins were notorious for being fast and annoying. But now, as it dashed toward him, it felt sluggish.
Time didn't slow, Sam had simply become faster.
He reacted on instinct, guided by his [Intermediate Sword Technique].
Swish! SLASH!
One clean movement, and the goblin's head flew off its shoulders, hitting the ground with a dull thud.
'!!!' Sam's eyes widened a little, 'One shot?'
Even for the in-game protagonist, it usually took two to three hits to kill.
The fact that he could kill them instantly meant... that his class was extremely powerful.
Sam's gaze landed on the [Primordial Sword], noticing the shadow aura pulsing around it.
The others shrieked, furious. The second and third goblins charged, screaming in unison.
Sam parried one of their attacks and swept low, cutting through their legs and then spinning to finish them both off in a single motion.
Blood sprayed. Bodies dropped. But he wasn't done.
Another goblin was already circling behind him while the one with the bow began to draw its arrow.
Sam's eyes narrowed. He lifted his hand.
"Shadow Bullets."
A pulse of dark aura shot up around his fingers, and in less than a second, a tiny orb of compressed shadow formed above his palm.
He then set his target and aimed.
BANG!
The bullet ripped through the air, almost invisible to the eye.
BOOM!
It pierced the goblin archer right through the forehead, dropping it instantly.
The last goblin screamed and lunged from behind.
But Sam pivoted sharply and drove his sword forward.
CRUNCH!
Steel met bone. The goblin slumped.
And just like that… silence returned to the hallway.
Sam stood alone amidst five fresh corpses, blood seeping into the cracks of the stone beneath his feet.
Breathing calmly, he lowered his weapon.
He had survived his first fight in the [Forsaken] realm.
But he knew better than to celebrate. This was just the beginning.
The real threats hadn't even shown up yet.