The Forsaken Awakening

The deeper they ventured into the swamp dungeon, the thicker the mist became. Sunlight barely filtered through the twisted canopy above, casting eerie shadows on the damp ground. The stagnant air carried the faint stench of decayed wood and something else—something foul and metallic.

"Stay alert," Minho warned, raising his shield slightly. "This mist isn't normal."

Jinhyuk agreed. There was a strange pressure in the air, a heavy, almost suffocating presence. He clenched his fists, sensing how his own mana reacted. It felt suppressed—as if something was interfering with it.

"Could be a natural effect of the dungeon," Mirae whispered, scanning their surroundings with an arrow nocked. "Or a monster's ability."

Jinhyuk frowned. If it was a monster, it was intelligent enough to manipulate its environment. That wasn't common for D-Class creatures.

Then, they heard it.

A low, guttural growl.

It echoed through the mist, bouncing off the trees, making it impossible to pinpoint the source.

"Formation," Minho ordered immediately. "Everyone, back-to-back."

The group closed in, forming a tight defensive circle.

A faint shape flickered in the mist. Then another. And another.

Eyes.

Glowing yellow eyes, circling them.

"Hunting pack," Hyesung muttered, gripping his dual swords. "They've been watching us."

Jinhyuk swallowed hard. These weren't ordinary swamp creatures. They were predators.

And they had just become the prey.

---

Ambush! The Miststalkers Strike

Silence.

Then—chaos.

A black blur shot out of the mist, lunging for Mirae.

She dodged just in time, but the creature twisted midair, its long, razor-sharp claws slashing toward her exposed flank.

"Block!" Minho roared, rushing forward with his shield raised.

CLANG!

The impact sent him skidding backward, but he managed to absorb the attack.

More creatures emerged from the mist. Five of them.

They were twisted, panther-like beasts, their dark fur blending into the shadows, long tails ending in jagged, bony protrusions.

Jinhyuk barely had time to react before one rushed at him, fangs bared.

He activated his illusions.

The creature's vision warped—for just a second, it hesitated, its eyes darting around, confused.

But then it snarled and kept coming.

Shit. It wasn't fully fooled.

Jinhyuk leaped back, gathering his mana into his shadows.

A black tendril shot up from the ground, tripping the beast.

Before it could recover, Hyesung was there, blades flashing.

SLASH!

Blood sprayed across the damp ground as the creature collapsed.

But there were still four more.

"Jiwon, fire magic! Now!" Minho shouted.

The magician didn't hesitate.

"Inferno Burst!"

A wave of fire erupted, cutting through the mist, engulfing two of the beasts.

They screeched, their bodies twisting as they vanished into the fog, retreating.

Only two left.

One lunged for Minho—he blocked.

The other lunged for Jinhyuk—he wasn't fast enough.

Sharp claws raked across his side.

Pain exploded through him as he was sent tumbling across the ground, rolling through the mud.

He gasped, feeling warm blood soak his shirt.

"Jinhyuk!" Mirae shouted.

The creature loomed over him, jaws open wide.

He had one shot.

---

The Predator Becomes the Prey

Jinhyuk's mind raced.

He was too slow to dodge.

Too weak to block.

But he could deceive.

As the creature lunged, Jinhyuk forced all his remaining mana into a single illusion—

A copy of himself standing to the side.

The beast snapped its jaws at the illusion—falling for the trick completely.

Jinhyuk rolled away just in time.

Then—he used his shadows.

A black spear formed, rough and unstable, but sharp enough.

He drove it straight into the beast's exposed neck.

CRACK!

The creature gurgled before collapsing.

Jinhyuk panted, his vision swimming from blood loss, but he grinned.

"Got you."

---

Aftermath & Discovery

The last beast tried to flee, but Hyesung and Minho cut it down before it could escape.

The swamp fell silent.

Jinhyuk sat up, pressing a hand to his wound.

"You okay?" Mirae asked, kneeling beside him.

"I'll live," he muttered, wincing.

Minho sighed. "That was not a normal D-Class monster pack."

Jiwon inspected one of the corpses. "They weren't just strong… they were mutated."

Jinhyuk frowned.

"Mutated?"

She nodded. "Their mana signatures are irregular. Someone… or something… altered them."

A chill ran down Jinhyuk's spine.

Dungeon monsters didn't mutate naturally.

That meant someone tampered with them.

And he had a bad feeling about who might be behind it.

---

Next Chapter Preview:

What caused the mutations?

Jinhyuk's injury and its effects.

The mini-boss fight?