It took a few tense minutes to finally drive off the pursuing Graywolves. When the last of them scattered, Ryan exhaled sharply and glanced at his belt—still a dozen Quick-Toss Grenades left.
He bounced on his feet a few times, trying to shake off the adrenaline, then sprinted toward the fallen Guardian, Senya. His heart thudded with raw exhilaration. That thrill again—the feeling of rewriting history—was back.
At the top of the loot interface, one item pulsed with a faint green glow.
"Blood Hollow" Dungeon Scroll.
Excellent quality.
Ryan's eyes widened. Gear of this level was practically unheard of in the starter zone.
Blood Hollow Dungeon Scroll:
Quality: Excellent
Function: Use at the Altar of Blood to create the "Blood Hollow" dungeon. Generous rewards await from Warden Nard.
He clenched his fist and gave a sharp, silent pump of victory. As soon as the scroll slid into his inventory, he swept up the rest of the loot from Senya's corpse and moved on to meticulously strip the battlefield clean.
One by one, he looted every fallen Graywolf. Twenty-six heads total. So, there had been twenty-six of them circling Senya before the fight.
---
He opened his quest log and checked the status.
Most of Paladin Instructor Harnel's mission was complete. His current experience was sitting at 8280 out of 16000—a big leap, thanks to both the Graywolves and the Guardian. Just under 8,000 XP to Level 4.
Several quests in the log were tied to the starter zone. He had to finish them here—they were key to unlocking the main storyline.
Ryan smirked to himself.
'Once I wrap these up—and clear the dungeon—I'll definitely hit Level 4.'
He eyed the glowing sliver on his XP bar with quiet pride. If Kingdom Forge had level rankings, he'd be at the top. No question.
He pulled up his mini-map, found his location, and turned toward the Altar of Blood.
Even though he was likely the first to grab a Dungeon Scroll, there were six starter zones. Someone else might stumble across theirs too. He couldn't afford to lose the lead.
With a rush of excitement, he broke into a full sprint.
Graywolves prowled in the distance—dozens of them. He ignored them. Let them come. He wasn't stopping.
The mini-map fed him new discoveries as he ran, but he didn't slow until a notification finally popped up. He stopped dead in his tracks, heart racing, as the Graywolves caught up.
The entire pack surged forward and leapt.
Ryan closed his eyes and stood still.
'Take me.'
—
You discovered the Altar of Blood!
You died!
You released your spirit!
—
When a player died, they had two options: wait by their corpse in the hopes someone would resurrect them, or release their spirit. Ryan chose the latter.
His soul reappeared in the wilderness at the nearest graveyard—conveniently, the very one that served the Altar of Blood.
Before Level 10, resurrecting directly at the graveyard carried no penalties. In fact, many early-game players used this "death travel" trick to skip long treks.
The Altar itself sat in a shallow valley, surrounded by a ring of gray, wolf-infested hills. A towering earthen platform rose at the center, crawling with Level 4 Graywolves.
From the graveyard, Ryan began his second approach—this time on foot and with purpose.
By the time he reached the platform, he'd carved through enough Graywolves to complete Harnel's quest once and for all.
Reaching the top of the platform, Ryan pulled the Dungeon Scroll from his inventory. He took a steadying breath and activated it.
—
You have earned the Glorious Achievement [Dungeon Opener]!
—
A burst of light exploded in front of him, almost blinding. The screen shimmered with continuous flashes, making it hard for Ryan to even read the system messages piling up.
Then, across the entire server, a line of golden text scrolled across the chat interface:
—
Featherlight has earned the Glorious Achievement [Dungeon Opener]!
—
Even in the early game, when most chat features were still locked or limited by level, a system-wide announcement like this broke through everything. Players everywhere paused in confusion and awe.
Glorious Achievement? What's that?
Curious, players tapped the new notification.
—
Featherlight was the first to use a "Dungeon Scroll" to open the Human starter dungeon, "Blood Hollow"!
—
Those few lines sparked a frenzy.
Guilds scrambled. Players whispered in guild chats, asked around in party voice channels, and immediately started digging for any trace of this so-called Dungeon Scroll. Where did it come from? How could they get one?
Human players erupted in excitement. They were the first race to unlock a dungeon. Pride surged through their community channels, while the other Alliance races shared in the celebration—if one won, they all won.
But on the opposite side, players of the three major races of Dark Horde were anything but thrilled.
Their chats filled with frustration and questions. Why hadn't their guilds found anything like this yet? Horde guild leaders were flooded with pressure, forced into action by their own people. Many began spamming starter zone NPCs with interactions, desperate for any clue. Some even disrupted guard patrols with their persistence.
---
Somewhere else, in a quiet glade deep within the Orc starter zone, the leader of Ironblood Covenant listened calmly as a scout delivered a report.
"We're sure it's a Boss. All signs point to the Dungeon Scroll being on it."
Ironblood Blade gave a nod, eyes sharp with resolve. "Then we move now."
He led the guild's elite team toward the Guardian's rumored location. They might've lost the honor of opening the first dungeon—but they wouldn't lose the second.
Their sudden mobilization didn't go unnoticed. Dozens of other Orc players, curious and cautious, trailed behind at a distance. Scouts from rival guilds stayed hidden in the brush, watching and waiting.
---
Back at the Altar of Blood, Ryan was frozen in place, staring at the deluge of system notifications.
His mouth slowly dropped open.
"You've got to be kidding me... These rewards are insane."
He could barely believe what he was seeing. His hand hovered over the panel for a long moment before he finally exhaled, whispering:
"This... is actually happening."