**Silence.**
It wasn't the absence of sound—it was something deeper. A suffocating stillness, like the world itself was holding its breath.
Kiran **floated** in a void of shifting colors. Blues, purples, and blacks swirled like liquid, forming and dissolving into impossible shapes. His body was weightless, drifting without direction.
(Am I dead this time?)
{Negative.}
The **Akashic Record**'s cold, mechanical voice cut through the void.
{Entity has entered an unstable rift. Calculating outcome…}
(Outcome? What do you mean outcome—?)
Suddenly, the **world twisted.**
---
A **pull.**
A force so strong that Kiran felt his very existence being stretched thin. He was **falling**, but it wasn't a normal fall—it was like he was slipping **between** places.
The colors around him **fractured**, breaking into fragments of light.
{Warning: Dimensional instability detected.}
{Searching for nearest stable exit…}
And then—
**Impact.**
---
Kiran **slammed** into the ground.
Pain shot through his body, knocking the air from his lungs. He lay there, gasping, staring up at a **sky that wasn’t broken anymore.**
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
(I'm… back?)
The air was **thick** with humidity. The scent of damp earth filled his nostrils. He could hear the distant call of **birds**—actual birds. Not void creatures.
Slowly, painfully, he pushed himself up.
He was in a **forest.**
Tall trees stretched into the sky, their leaves glowing faintly as if infused with **mana**. The ground beneath him was covered in dense, overgrown foliage.
And then—
{Level Up!}
{Level: 3 → 4}
{New Title Unlocked: Rift Survivor.}
(…I leveled up just for **escaping?**)
Kiran exhaled, rubbing his face.
"Okay. I'm alive. That's… something."
Now he just had to figure out **where the hell he was.**
---
He checked his **status screen.**
---
**[STATUS]**
**Name:** Kiran
**Level:** 4
**Class:** Cataclysm Survivor
**Subclass:** Pending
**Talent:** Weaver of Ruin
**Titles:** Catalyst of Chaos, Rift Survivor
**Skills:**
- Adaptive Reflexes (Lv 1)
- ??? (Sealed)
- ??? (Sealed)
---
(Still no subclass. And those sealed skills are starting to piss me off.)
But the biggest problem?
{Class Advancement at Level 50. Conditions Required: Unknown.}
{Talent Evolution at Level 50. Conditions Required: Unknown.}
He needed **specific conditions** to evolve his abilities, but he had **no idea what they were.**
He sighed. "Great. Guess I'll just—"
**A branch snapped.**
Kiran **froze.**
Something was **watching him.**
---
A low growl rumbled from the shadows.
A **creature** stepped into view, its eyes glowing like embers in the dim light.
It was **massive**, almost the size of a bear, with thick, jagged fur and elongated limbs ending in **razor-sharp claws.** But the worst part?
Its **teeth** were lined with unnatural, shimmering **crystals**—pulsing with raw **mana.**
{Entity Detected: Mana-Touched Direwolf.}
{Level: 12}
{Threat Level: High.}
Kiran's stomach **dropped.**
(Why is everything always **so much stronger than me?!**)
The wolf **lunged.**
---
Kiran **rolled** to the side, barely dodging the beast’s claws. The ground where he had been standing **exploded**, torn apart by the sheer force of the attack.
His heart pounded. (I can’t outrun this thing. I have to—)
His **bad luck** activated.
The wolf, mid-charge, **stumbled**—its foot catching on an exposed tree root. Its massive form **crashed** forward, slamming headfirst into a fallen log.
For a moment, it didn’t move.
Kiran stared.
(…Did that just happen?)
Then—
The **tree above the wolf snapped.**
A massive branch, already weakened by decay, **collapsed**—right onto the stunned beast’s head.
**CRACK.**
The wolf **twitched once.** Then it went still.
{Level Up!}
{Level: 4 → 5}
Kiran blinked.
Then he started laughing.
"Are you **kidding** me?!"
---
He wiped at his eyes, still chuckling. "Alright. I need to use this luck properly before it **kills** me instead."
First step—**survival.**
He checked the wolf’s body. Those mana-infused **crystals** in its teeth looked valuable. He had no idea what they were, but if he was going to be stuck in this world with **monsters and dungeons**, he needed to learn how to **use** what he found.
Using a sharp stone, he pried a crystal free.
The moment he touched it—
{New Material Acquired: Mana Core (Lesser).}
{New Skill Unlocked: Basic Extraction (Lv 1).}
Kiran’s eyes widened.
"So I can actually **harvest** these things?"
That meant… if he found the **right materials**, he could potentially trigger **skill advancements** or even his **class evolution.**
(Alright. New plan.)
1. **Gather materials.**
2. **Test crafting and extraction.**
3. **Figure out what conditions unlock my subclass and evolutions.**
4. **Try not to die in the process.**
As he stood, a new notification popped up.
{Special Condition Discovered: Gather 5 Mana Cores for Talent Evolution (1/5).}
Kiran grinned.
"Looks like I’m making progress."
For the first time since the world went to hell, he actually felt like he was in **control.**
And knowing his **luck**, that probably meant something was about to go **horribly wrong.**
