His knuckles tightened around the A-rank sword. This wasn’t just a fight anymore.
It was war.
Round Two. Begin.
A group of low-level gods and admins huddled around projection screens like they were watching a championship match.
“Place your bets!”
“Five soul coins says the dog bites his head off again.”
“Nah, I’m betting he rage-quits and throws himself back into the Safe Zone.”
“Bro’s scared of the Safe Zone more than Cerberus at this point.”
Even the higher-ups joined in:
“Should we tell him he’s still not reading the damn instructions?”
“Let him suffer. It’s more entertaining.”
Kyle dodged left, rolled under a claw swipe, and slashed upward. Sparks flew, but barely a scratch.
Cerberus roared, its chains rattling, lunging forward with terrifying speed.
Kyle muttered through gritted teeth, “I’m not doing this to clear the floor. I’m doing this… to not go back to that damn safe zone.”
[Tower Notification: “Safe Zone Available”]
Kyle: “NO THANK YOU!!”
The gods burst into laughter.
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Days. Weeks. Maybe longer?
Time inside the Hell Gate moved differently—slower, crueler.
Kyle had no broken skill. No cheat item. No second life.
He only had pain. And persistence.
Each battle left him bleeding.
Each loss sent him crawling back to the so-called “Safe Zone”—which might as well be called “Pain Enhancement Chamber.”
Still, he never stopped.
Kyle discovered the lake inside the zone—its waters soothing, and more importantly… nourishing.
He never once felt hunger.
But the mental toll?
Different story.
After the fifth trip to the Safe Zone, Kyle stood dripping wet and twitching.
Kyle: “I swear… if I have to scream like that one more time, I’m gonna stab myself before Cerberus can.”
The more he fought, the more he learned.
Every pattern. Every tell.
Cerberus would swing twice with the right head, then bite from the left.
Kyle started to see it—like a dance, brutal and monstrous.
Weeks turned to months.
He wasn’t surviving anymore.
He was improving.
Kyle leapt back, dodged a triple swipe, and countered with a spin.
His blade scraped Cerberus’s neck—first real wound.
Kyle’s heart pounded.
“This is it… I can feel it…”
He waited.
Watched.
Dodged.
Then…
Opening.
The middle head roared too soon. Kyle slipped under the chain swing, stepped in deep, and swung with everything he had.
The sound echoed like thunder.
Blood sprayed.
Time froze.
Even the gods leaned forward.
“…He did it.”
“One head. HE TOOK OFF ONE HEAD!”
“Wait—only one?! It has three!”
Kyle stared, dumbfounded.
Panting. Bleeding.
“…Wait, you’re telling me I only killed one?!”
The remaining two heads howled in rage.
Its eyes turned red.
Flames erupted from its mouth.
Chains rattled wildly.
[Tower Notice: “Phase Two – Berserk State Initiated”]
Kyle’s expression?
Pure panic.
Kyle: “Oh. Great. Now it’s mad.”
A cloaked figure stirred once again.
“…He actually drew blood from Cerberus.”
Another voice, distant and deep:
“This is no longer just survival…”