Power of Runes

Chapter 57 - 57: God Slayer Sword (1)

An unknown person appeared and saved me...?

But why...?

The thought felt like a crack in glass, too absurd and fragile to hold. According to the system, that very person had interfered with his fate and stolen the runes that were meant for him.

If that was true, then why go through the trouble of saving him? Why not let him die there, broken and defeated in the cold jaws of the dungeon?

The contradiction gnawed at his thoughts like a splinter beneath the skin.

Is it because without me, he couldn't obtain the runes? Was I... a necessary piece? A vessel, a medium...?

He clenched his fists under the sheets, fingers trembling slightly as the idea settled in.

Yes, that must be it... otherwise, I can't imagine a reason for him to have saved me.

The thought settled uncomfortably in his chest, like a cold stone dragging down his breath.

Just then, a voice cut through the growing weight in his mind like a needle through silk.

"What are you thinking, brat?" Nichole asked, squinting suspiciously as he noticed the silence dragging on for too long.

Ray blinked out of his thoughts, his lips parting on instinct."Oh... nothing," he muttered, burying the churn of unease beneath a shallow breath.

But that nothing was heavy. It pressed against his chest like a question he wasn't ready to ask aloud.

Instead, he shifted the subject, trying to ground himself in something more tangible. "What about the ancient treasure? What was in the reward room?"

Nichole's expression darkened almost immediately, his jaw tightening. A deep scowl formed across his face like a storm cloud drifting in.

Ray stopped himself from saying anything more. The bruises from earlier still throbbed faintly, and some wisdom had finally kicked in—sometimes, silence was safer than curiosity.

"After defeating the demon...", Nichole began, though his voice held the edge of reluctant memory.

After the demon was finally brought down, the unknown individual—the same one who had saved Ray—had gone ahead into the reward room alone.

No one had dared follow immediately, perhaps out of awe, fear, or the sheer surreal weight of what had just transpired.

But time passed, and when Nathaniel and the others finally stepped into the chamber, the space was empty. No person remained inside.

The only thing left behind was the Sword of the Black Knight resting quietly near the exit portal, along with a few scattered pieces of C-rank equipment—barely scraps in comparison to what they had hoped to find.

"Does that mean he took the ancient treasure?", Ray asked, his voice low but carrying a tight thread of seriousness that hadn't been there before.

"Yeah, that's what everyone believes. The source of the treasure was too trustworthy to be wrong. There's no other explanation."

Ray didn't speak after that. The words curled in his mind like smoke, twisting into something heavier. His thoughts turned inward again, loud and restless.

The ancient treasure must have been the rune.

That bastard... he must have entered the dungeon for that alone. Everything else was just noise. Just obstacles.

He clenched his fists, his nails digging into the skin of his palm without him realizing.

System... do you know the exact location of that person? he asked silently, desperate for a thread—anything to hold on to.

[

His breath caught in his throat. The sword's glow faded back into steel, but something fundamental had shifted.

"HAHAHAHAHA.....I finally have a master after a long time."

And Ray... had just awakened something ancient.

***