"Hey, it's Sung Minwoo here. Another mission. If I survive this one, I can finally rank up to C in the guild," he muttered to himself, pulling his hood tighter around his head as he scanned the mission scroll again. His breath curled in the chilly early morning air, mist rising from the stones of the quiet Tokyo alleyway he was walking through.
There it was—the first real shot he had at leaving the dreaded D-rank behind.
There was excitement in his chest, but also tension. The last D-rank adventurer who took this mission… didn't make it out. A squad of B-rankers had to retrieve the guy's body. They came back, silent and grim, the weight of death in their eyes. Still, they managed to recover some loot—enough to repay the dead adventurer's family and even bring back a whisper of the treasure hidden within.
Now, it was his turn.
"It's okay. I will do this," he said to himself, shaking off the doubt.
Before he left, the guild receptionist pulled him aside. Her name was Rin, a calm and collected woman who had seen too many adventurers march off never to return.
"Minwoo," she said, holding a warm drink in her hands. "This place is far. You'll need to conserve your mana and stamina before entering. Take rest when you reach the perimeter. Don't go in exhausted."
"Thanks, Rin. I'll remember," he replied with a nod.
He walked for hours, the urban sprawl of Tokyo giving way to dense woods and ancient ruins. His mind was buzzing. Would there be valuable weapons? Artifacts that could make him stronger? Could this be the break he was waiting for?
By midday, he found himself in front of a ruined stone gate, half-buried in vines and time. Its surface was etched with glowing runes. He took a deep breath and stepped through.
Almost immediately, a beast leapt out of the shadows—a grotesque, six-limbed creature with eyes glowing red.
He drew his dagger instinctively.
Clang!
Its claws met his blade with a burst of sparks. He dodged low, twisted around its flank, and plunged the dagger into its side. The creature howled and thrashed—but he finished it off. More came. He fought hard, drawing on every scrap of training he had. He was faster, more focused, and maybe… just a little lucky.
By the time the dust settled, he was bloodied, but standing. His path led him deeper into the dungeon until he found himself in front of a massive gate. Unlike the others, this one pulsed with a strange energy. It needed a key.
He was about to turn back when he noticed something glinting in the remains of one of the monsters he had slain. A key—ornate and humming with power. Fate? Or something else?
He slid the key into the gate.
Click.
The doors creaked open.
What lay beyond stole the breath from his lungs.
It was a giant chamber, lit by floating crystals. Two SS-rank dragons towered before him—one crimson and crackling with fire, the other black as night with glowing blue eyes.
They saw him. And they attacked.
The crimson one roared, a wall of flame erupting toward him. He rolled aside, barely missing instant death. The black dragon struck with a tail whip that sent him crashing against the wall. Pain tore through him. His body wouldn't move. He coughed blood. His mana… was nearly gone. He was going to die.
No—not yet.
Something inside him screamed. A desperate spark of life surged through his veins. He screamed and stood up. Shadows burst from his body in all directions.
His vision darkened as the Shadow Domain activated for the first time.
The world around him twisted—time slowed. The crimson dragon, caught within the domain, was engulfed by black tendrils that impaled it mid-roar. It let out a death cry and fell with a thunderous crash.
The black dragon staggered back, shrinking—its form twisted, and when the light returned, it was no larger than a housecat. He collapsed, but not before seeing a shimmering item near the crimson dragon's corpse—a dark dagger embedded with red gems: the Bakura Dagger, a legendary weapon said to consume souls to increase in strength.
The small dragon fluttered over to him and rested on his chest. Its gaze was intelligent, calm.
"You… want to come with me?" he whispered.
It let out a soft chirp and nuzzled his neck.
"I'll call you… Kinro."
He awoke hours later. His wounds screamed, but Kinro had grown large enough to carry him. The dragon flew him across the skies back toward the city. He clutched the Bakura Dagger and his loot bag tightly. The wind on his face was a reminder—he had survived. No, more than that—he had changed.
At the guild, Rin rushed to meet him as he collapsed at the entrance.
"He needs healing—now!" she shouted.
He handed her the loot. "Take it… and report what happened," he mumbled before blacking out.
He woke up in the hospital two days later. His body was bandaged, sore beyond words, but he was alive.
The news had already spread. Two A-rankers arrived that afternoon to speak with him. One of them was Kael, known as the Thunder Fist, and the other, Lira, a high-ranking healer and tactician.
"We reviewed your mana profile," Kael said, holding up a glowing crystal. "It's... unusual. Someone of your rank should not have survived that encounter."
"I got lucky," he said weakly.
"No," Lira corrected, her eyes narrowing. "You awakened a unique domain-type ability. Those only occur once every few generations. You didn't just survive—you changed the course of your destiny."
Kael smiled. "Ever considered starting your own guild? If you do, I'll be the first to join."
He blinked. "You'd join my guild?"
He nodded. "People follow strength. And from what I hear… you've got a long way to go."
The next two weeks passed in a blur. Kinro stayed by his side, never leaving. Sometimes the dragon curled up on the hospital bed, small and warm. Other times, he'd grow into his mid-sized form and let neighborhood kids pet him from the hospital windows.
Rin visited often, bringing news. The Bakura Dagger was confirmed as a high-tier artifact. The guild elders were debating whether to elevate him directly to B-rank given his performance. Adventurers had already begun whispering his name—"Shadow Fang", they called him.
And for the first time, he started thinking about more than just survival. Maybe it was time to form something new. A guild of his own. A place for outcasts, for the underestimated. A place to belong.
"Kinro," he said one night, stroking the dragon's snout as it purred. "You ready for the next chapter?"
Kinro chirped and flapped his wings.
"Good," he whispered. "Because we're just getting started."