[SYSTEM NOTICE]
Threshold: 38.2%
Bloodline Awakening: Partial
Adrenaline Surge: Expended
Current Status: Candidate in Recovery
---
Kitae woke up on the cold, damp floor of the cage. His hands trembled.
It wasn't from fear.
His muscles twitched, each fiber aching, his body still half-locked in that temporary surge—the Instinctive Flow.
For one brief moment, he had been more than a street fighter. More than the kid who got bullied by every second-rate thug. For that moment, he had been the blood of lions.
But it had worn off. His vision cleared. The world crashed back in with painful clarity.
> "You alive?" A voice called from the shadows.
It was Do-jun, struggling to push himself up from the ground, clutching his neck with a hand that was stained crimson.
Kitae didn't answer right away.
He felt the weight of his actions, the wreckage of the fight. The System had unlocked new abilities—temporary as they were—but that wasn't what concerned him. What concerned him was the feeling that hadn't left him since the surge.
The hunger.
> "You..." Do-jun coughed, his voice hoarse, shaking with disbelief. "You're insane."
Kitae wiped his mouth, feeling the sticky taste of blood mix with the rain that pelted him. His fingers twitched again, almost as if his body was begging for more.
> I need more.
He slowly stood, legs wobbling. Every inch of his body screamed in protest, but the hunger... the hunger pulsed in his veins. The Lion's bloodline stirred beneath his skin, taunting him, burning him with a demand he didn't understand.
> Is this what it means? he thought, to be a monster?
---
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
Status Update:
Candidate: Kitae Kim
Threshold Progression: 41.7%
Pain Tolerance: Rising
Warning: Body approaching a critical state. Further strain may result in collapse.
---
He took a slow, steadying breath.
One step at a time.
The crowd, which had been silent since the fight's end, began to murmur again. Their eyes gleamed with excitement.
Kitae ignored them. He turned to Do-jun, who was still kneeling, the fight clearly draining from him. He had the chance to finish him off right then, but something in the back of his mind pulled him back. A growing unease gnawed at him.
> "You're lucky," Kitae muttered. "I'm not a killer."
---
The sound of clapping echoed through the room.
Kitae froze.
A tall figure stepped from the shadows at the edge of the cage, bathed in the dull light. His presence was immediate, commanding, like a predator emerging from the dark to take his prize.
Cynthia.
But it wasn't the Cynthia he was used to—the girl who whispered cryptic words and barely blinked when people died.
This time, she was different.
Her eyes glowed—almost golden, just like when she first watched him fight. But now there was something else in her gaze. A recognition. A catalyst.
> "You've crossed into the next phase." Her voice was calm, but there was an edge to it. "Congratulations. But this is where it gets... dangerous."
Kitae's heart skipped a beat.
"What do you mean?"
She tilted her head, studying him, almost as if the answers were written on his skin.
> "The System sees potential, but it doesn't just give. It takes, too. The more you fight, the more you strain that body, the more it asks from you. You'll be pushed to the edge. And if you go too far..." Her eyes flickered. "You'll break. Not just physically, but in ways you can't imagine."
Kitae clenched his fists. He already felt the fracture, the pressure of his bloodline just waiting to burst—but the System kept him tethered, constantly teetering on the edge.
And then she spoke again, each word deliberate, as if marking a turning point:
> "But you're not alone in this anymore."
---
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
Status Update:
New Objective: Break the Threshold.
Unlocking Targeted Challenge: Hidden Foe Approaching.
---
Before Kitae could respond, Cynthia stepped back, her eyes narrowing as she glanced towards the exit. Her fingers flexed, and the air seemed to shift.
There was something coming. Someone.
> "You need to prepare," she said. "If you can survive this, you'll know what you really are."
She turned, disappearing into the shadows.
---
Kitae stayed frozen for a long moment.
The tension in the air grew thick as footsteps echoed outside the cage. He felt it before he saw the figure: an overwhelming presence, a weight pressing down on him.
The door creaked open.
A man stepped inside. Tall, broad-shouldered, and dressed in a black, military-style jacket. His eyes gleamed with an intensity that immediately set the hairs on the back of Kitae's neck on edge.
> "So you're the one they call the Lion's cub," the man's voice was rough, thick with disdain. "Kitae Kim. You've drawn my attention. How convenient."
Kitae's breath hitched. His bloodline flared in response to the strange man's presence.
---
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
Hostile Encounter Incoming
Threat Class: A-Rank
Entity: Unknown—Designation: Apex Hunter
Warning: Extreme Strength—Awakening Required.
---
The man grinned, sensing Kitae's reaction.
> "I've been sent to test you. If you pass... Well, maybe we can have a real fight."
Kitae tightened his fists, adrenaline surging again. This is the moment. The second surge. His body was still barely holding together, but the System was pushing him toward something even greater. Cynthia had said it.
If he survived this... he would know what he was.
Kitae met the man's gaze, his voice low.
"Then come at me."
---