The boy at the bottom
The city of Asteric was unusually crowded that morning.
Hunters moved through the streets wearing combat gear, while giant screens displayed the latest Hunter rankings.
S-Rank.
A-Rank.
B-Rank.
C-Rank.
D-Rank.
E-Rank.
And finally—
F-Rank.
At the very bottom stood one name.
Samuel.
For three years, Samuel had remained an F-Rank Hunter.
Three years of training.
Three years of missions.
Three years of watching everyone else grow stronger while he remained exactly where he started.
People had already stopped expecting anything from him.
Some even called him useless.
Samuel ignored them.
He had learned a long time ago that words didn't matter.
Only strength did.
That afternoon, a strange alarm suddenly echoed across the city.
WOOOOOOOON!
People stopped walking.
Everyone looked toward the sky.
A massive glowing gate had appeared above the city.
The Hunter Association immediately began evacuating civilians.
"Everyone move away from the area!"
"All available Hunters, report immediately!"
Samuel looked up at the enormous gate.
His expression became serious.
Another gate.
He tightened his grip on his old Hunter bag.
Maybe this mission would finally be different.
---
Inside the Gate
The moment Samuel stepped through, the world changed.
The bright city disappeared.
In its place was a dark, ruined section of the city.
Broken buildings surrounded the Hunters.
Dust floated through the air.
The strongest Hunters moved toward the front.
Samuel stayed near the back.
"Why is that F-Rank here?"
A Hunter glanced at him.
"Don't worry about him. Just make sure he doesn't get in the way."
Samuel said nothing.
He continued walking.
Then—
GROOOOOOAR!
A terrifying roar shook the entire area.
Everyone stopped.
Something enormous stepped out from behind a ruined building.
A gigantic monster covered in dark armor.
Its eyes glowed with a terrifying light.
One Hunter swallowed hard.
"What... is that?"
The monster raised its arm.
BOOM!
The ground exploded.
"ATTACK!"
The Hunters charged.
Swords flashed.
Magic exploded.
The monster fought back with overwhelming strength.
BOOM!
SLASH!
CRASH!
One Hunter was thrown across the battlefield.
Another barely escaped a crushing attack.
Samuel watched everything carefully.
He wasn't looking at the monster's strength.
He was looking at its movements.
Something caught his attention.
Beneath the monster's left shoulder...
A tiny glowing mark.
Samuel's eyes widened.
"Wait."
The glowing mark became brighter every time the monster moved.
Samuel suddenly understood.
"There's a weakness!"
Nobody listened.
The Hunters continued attacking.
Samuel shouted louder.
"UNDER ITS LEFT SHOULDER!"
A Hunter turned toward him.
"What?"
"The armor is weakest there! Attack that spot!"
The monster suddenly swung its massive arm.
WHOOSH!
The Hunters scattered.
Then one of the strongest Hunters noticed the glowing mark.
His eyes narrowed.
"He's right."
He raised his sword.
"Everyone!"
The other Hunters looked at him.
"Create an opening!"
They attacked together.
BOOM!
The monster staggered.
Samuel watched carefully.
The glowing weakness beneath its shoulder was getting brighter.
Then—
SLASH!
The strongest Hunter drove his sword into the glowing mark.
The monster froze.
Cracks spread across its dark armor.
CRACK.
CRACK.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!
Its body shattered into black particles.
Silence.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then the crowd erupted in cheers.
Samuel stood among them, stunned.
Something strange happened.
A mysterious blue notification appeared before his eyes.
DING!
[Quest Completed.]
[Contribution recognized.]
[Rewards have been calculated.]
Samuel's eyes widened.
Another notification appeared.
[You received: 350 EXP.]
[Level Up!]
LEVEL 1 → LEVEL 4
Samuel stared at the words.
"Four...?"
For three years, his ability had never improved.
Now, in less than ten minutes, he had jumped four levels.
But the system wasn't finished.
DING!
[Special reward unlocked.]
[You have obtained: UNKNOWN CORE.]
Samuel froze.
A tiny black crystal appeared in his palm.
He stared at it.
"What is this?"
The moment his fingers touched the crystal—
BOOOOOOM!
A strange wave of energy rushed through his body.
Samuel dropped to one knee.
"AAAGH!"
His vision blurred.
The world around him disappeared.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Then—
Samuel opened his eyes.
He was standing in an endless black void.
In front of him stood a gigantic black throne.
Samuel stared at it.
He couldn't explain why...
But something about the throne felt familiar.
Seven mysterious figures stood before it.
Their faces were hidden in darkness.
Samuel took a step forward.
"Who... are you?"
Nobody answered.
Then—
Behind the throne...
Two enormous ancient eyes slowly opened.
DUM.
DUM.
DUM.
Samuel's heart stopped for a moment.
He didn't know what he was looking at.
He didn't know why the system had chosen him.
And he certainly didn't know why the ancient eyes seemed to recognize him.
But one thing was certain.
His life had just changed forever.
And somewhere in the darkness...
Something that had been sleeping for thousands of years...
Had finally begun to awaken.
THE LAST GOD.
TO BE CONTINUED...
hm , the story was to pridectable