Darkness swallowed me.
Not the absence of light—
But the absence of existence itself.
No ground.
No sky.
No direction.
Even my thoughts felt… delayed.
Like something had already processed them—
Before I even finished thinking.
---
Then—
A tear split the void.
Red.
Sharp.
Absolute.
---
> [ STAGE ONE INITIATED ]
🔥 FLOOR 1 — THE MIND HUNTER
---
> Opponent: Equal Strength
Intelligence: 2× Yours
Ability: Knows all your weaknesses
---
> Purpose: Break your confidence
Lesson: Strategy > Raw Power
---
> [ NOTE: If you fight normally… you lose. ]
---
I read that line again.
Slowly.
Carefully.
"…Then this isn't a fight."
---
Reality formed.
Not gradually—
But forcefully.
Like existence was being rewritten around me.
Black ground stretched beneath my feet, cracked like the bones of a dead world.
The air followed—
Thick.
Burning.
Each breath tasted like ash and ruin.
Then—
The sky.
Red.
Endless.
Watching.
---
Mountains rose in the distance, forming a perfect circular prison.
No escape.
No blind spots.
No variables.
---
Only me.
And it.
---
Space ahead distorted.
Not violently—
But precisely.
Controlled.
Intentional.
A rift opened.
Black smoke poured out—
Not chaotic.
But obedient.
---
Then—
It stepped out.
---
Me.
---
Perfect.
Every detail replicated.
Every movement identical.
Even the rhythm of my breathing—
Matched.
---
Except—
Those eyes.
Black.
Depthless.
With a crimson glow buried inside—
Like something ancient was staring through them.
---
He smiled.
Slowly.
Calmly.
Cruelly.
---
"Disappointed?" he asked.
---
His voice wasn't mocking.
That made it worse.
It was… certain.
---
I said nothing.
Because I understood.
Immediately.
---
This wasn't a clone.
This wasn't an illusion.
---
This was me—
Stripped of hesitation.
Stripped of doubt.
Stripped of mercy.
---
And given something I didn't have—
Clarity.
---
BOOM!!!
He moved.
No warning.
No build-up.
No wasted motion.
---
DANGER!!!
---
I crossed my arms—
Too late.
---
BAM!!!
His fist drove into my gut.
---
The impact didn't just hurt—
It silenced my body.
Air vanished from my lungs.
My vision blurred.
---
DANGER!!!
---
Second attack—
Incoming—
Left—
No—
---
It never came.
---
DANGER!!!
---
BAM!!!
An uppercut from below.
---
My head snapped back violently.
Teeth clenched.
Mind spinning.
---
He changed trajectory mid-action.
No wasted motion.
No readable pattern.
---
"…So that's it…"
---
He wasn't faster.
He wasn't stronger.
---
He was thinking ahead.
---
My instincts screamed.
My body reacted—
But every reaction was already expected.
---
His figure flickered.
Gone.
---
DANGER!!!
---
Heat.
Behind me.
---
BOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!
---
A crimson explosion devoured my back.
---
Lightning tore through my nerves.
Pain exploded across my spine.
My body was launched—
---
CRASH!!!
---
I slammed deep into the mountain wall.
Stone shattered.
My body embedded inside rock.
---
For a moment—
Everything went silent.
---
Then—
Pain returned.
Burning.
Sharp.
Real.
---
My back was charred black.
Flesh trying to regenerate—
Slowly.
Too slowly.
---
"…He could've finished me."
---
That realization hit harder than the attack.
---
He didn't kill me.
---
Because this wasn't about winning.
---
It was about breaking me.
---
BOOM!!!
I tore myself free from the mountain.
Aura exploding outward.
Dust scattering.
---
I turned.
---
He stood exactly where I had been earlier.
Palm still raised.
Still smoking.
---
Watching.
---
Studying.
---
Like a scientist observing a failing experiment.
---
"…What poor soul…" he muttered.
"…sent here… to suffer."
---
His voice echoed.
Not loud—
But heavy.
---
I clenched my fists.
Blue lightning crackling violently around my body.
---
"Then come try again."
---
BOOM!!!
I launched forward.
Full speed.
No hesitation.
---
But this time—
I wasn't attacking.
---
I was watching.
---
DANGER!!!
---
He appeared in front of me—
Exactly as expected.
---
But instead of striking—
I stopped.
---
Mid-motion.
---
His fist cut through empty air.
---
For the first time—
He paused.
---
Just slightly.
---
"…Good," he whispered.
---
That single word—
Confirmed everything.
---
He wasn't just predicting my actions.
---
He was guiding them.
---
Leading me.
Breaking me.
Rebuilding me—
Into something sharper.
---
I exhaled slowly.
---
"…So that's the game."
---
No anger.
No frustration.
---
Only clarity.
---
If I fought like myself—
I lose.
---
If I reacted—
I lose.
---
If I followed instinct—
I lose.
---
So—
I stopped being predictable.
---
I stepped forward.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
---
No stance.
No guard.
---
Just walked.
---
His eyes narrowed.
---
For the first time—
Uncertainty.
---
"…What are you doing?" he asked.
---
I smiled.
---
"Something you can't predict."
---
Silence.
---
Then—
For the first time since the battle began—
---
He attacked without certainty.
---
And that—
Was my opening.
---
BOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!!
---
The battlefield exploded.
---
But this time—
Not according to his plan.