The grin on Rohan’s face slowly faded.

His eyes remained fixed on the colossal serpent towering above the endless black sea, but his attention had already shifted inward. One after another, he examined the Classes resting inside his soul, searching for the quickest combination to end the fight. The result was disappointing.

Stone Shaper was useless. There wasn’t a single piece of earth beneath the water. Swift Runner relied on firm footing, and there was none. Petty Fireman still answered his call, but every spark that appeared around his fingertips was immediately swallowed by the surrounding water before it could grow into a proper fireball.

"So that’s how it is..." Rohan muttered.

The serpent’s massive eyes narrowed. "You expected an easy victory?"

Rohan ignored the question, not wanting to know how it knew what was on his mind.

"I only lost three Classes. That’s still enough."

The serpent’s enormous body shifted beneath the sea. The waves rolled outward in every direction before the water suddenly became still. The silence lasted only a heartbeat before thousands of ripples spread across the surface at once.

"You stand inside my consciousness, little Hunter."

The creature lowered its head until one enormous eye filled Rohan’s vision.

"Everything here belongs to me."

A System notification suddenly flashed before him.

---

Mind Domain Detected

Host: Unknown Ancient Serpent

Active Traits

Dream Dominion – All intruders are constantly exposed to layered mental illusions.

Scale Reflection – Physical force dealt against the serpent is partially reflected back onto the attacker.

Tyrant Constriction – Every successful strike strengthens the serpent’s coils and crushing force.

Abyss Current – The domain itself drags enemies toward the serpent, reducing movement efficiency.

---

Rohan clicked his tongue. "Four traits. A Superior Beast."

None of them were simple to bypass or overpower. Dream Dominion explained the endless loop. Scale Reflection meant brute force would injure him just as much. Tyrant Constriction punished long fights. Abyss Current made escaping almost impossible.

The beast had been built to dominate prolonged battles.

The serpent slowly opened its jaws. "You understand now."

"I do."

"Then kneel."

Rohan smiled faintly. "I’ve killed stronger."

The words had barely left his mouth when the serpent disappeared.

Rohan’s pupils shrank. It was too fast to track, making it almost invisible.

The sea exploded. An enormous black tail erupted beneath him like a spear. Rohan threw his body sideways as the tail carved through the water where he had been floating only moments earlier. The impact split the sea apart for hundreds of meters before the water crashed back together with enough force to shake the entire domain.

The pressure alone almost tore him apart.

Without hesitation, he summoned a round steel shield.

[Shield Bearer.]

The shield appeared just in time.

The serpent’s tail slammed into it, causing a loud bang that was immediately drowned out by the litany of the ravaging storm.

The force launched Rohan through the air like a thrown stone. Pain exploded through both arms as cracks spread across the shield’s surface.

"So that’s Scale Reflection."

The muscles in his shoulders screamed. Half the impact had returned directly to his own body.

He dismissed the damaged shield before another strike arrived.

This time he decided against defending and blurred almost immediately. His body dissolved into a blur of darkness across the water’s surface. The serpent’s jaws snapped shut where he had been standing, sending towering waves rolling across the battlefield.

The beast hissed. "You hide well."

Rohan emerged behind its neck. "I don’t hide," he said, his voice becoming dark and cold.

A spear appeared in his hand as he activated Iron Spearman.

Without wasting a second, he drove the weapon downward toward the scales behind its skull.

The spear struck, and the impact sounded like steel hitting steel.

The serpent didn’t even flinch. Instead, the scales shimmered.

Rohan suddenly felt the same stabbing pain explode through his own shoulder. The wound wasn’t identical, but enough force returned to stagger him.

The serpent whipped its neck backward.

Rohan barely twisted aside as rows of black fangs scraped past his chest, close enough for him to feel their cold surface.

He planted one foot against the serpent’s scales and jumped backward just as another tail strike tore through the air.

The water beneath him suddenly began pulling him downward.

"Abyss Current."

The sea itself was dragging him toward the serpent.

Every movement became heavier and every dodge slower. If anything, it was the beast’s second most terrifying Trait.

Still, Rohan kept his composure and narrowed his eyes.

"So that’s your real battlefield."

The serpent smiled, which looked weird and abnormal for a snake.

"You’re learning."

After saying that, it immediately lunged toward Rohan again. Rohan didn’t retreat but instead stretched one hand forward.

[Light Binder.]

Golden chains burst from the water and wrapped around the serpent’s jaws.

The creature’s momentum slowed, but only for a moment. The chains shattered almost instantly beneath its strength.

But that single second was enough.

"Kinetic Thrower."

Power flooded into Rohan’s right arm.

He caught one broken length of golden chain and hurled it like a spear.

The chain blurred through the water before wrapping tightly around one of the serpent’s horns.

Rohan yanked with everything he had. Instead of pulling the serpent, he pulled himself.

His body shot toward the monster like an arrow. Wasting no time, the serpent opened its jaws to swallow him whole.

Exactly what Rohan wanted.

At the last second, he twisted.

His body slipped along the darkness beneath the serpent’s jaw before reappearing directly beside one glowing eye.

[Frost Channeler.]

Cold spread instantly across his hand, and a sharp spike of ice formed over his fist. He sent a punch directly at the serpent’s face.

The frozen spike exploded against the serpent’s eyelid.

The serpent closed its eye instinctively and roared in pain.

Rohan smiled. "So your eyes aren’t protected."

The serpent’s answer came immediately. Its entire body coiled. Every loop around itself became tighter, and the surrounding sea began collapsing inward.

The pressure in the sea multiplied tenfold. The water itself started crushing Rohan from every direction. His ribs, chest, and whole body groaned, and blood drifted from the corner of his mouth.

"So that’s how you kill."

The serpent’s voice echoed across the sea.

"Every struggle strengthens my embrace."

The pressure increased again. Bones cracked somewhere inside Rohan’s body.

His movements slowed dramatically beneath the weight.

Even Shadow Linger became difficult to maintain. At this point, it was almost certain he might lose the battle.

His breathing became shallow.

The sea closed around him like the grip of an enormous hand.

The serpent watched calmly and spoke. "There is no escape."

Rohan looked down at his trembling hands.

Most of his Classes were restricted. His strongest ones were unavailable. Every direct attack hurt him. The battlefield favored the serpent.

The longer the fight lasted...the stronger the beast became.

’Ah, feels impartial.’

He laughed quietly.

"...Good."

The serpent frowned.

Rohan slowly dismissed the spear, then the shield, and every active Class.

The System notifications disappeared one after another until only Shadow Linger remained quietly inside his soul.

The serpent watched without understanding.

"You surrender?"

Rohan raised his head.

"No."

His red eyes slowly narrowed.

"I’ve just finished gathering the information I need."

Things happened really fast after that.

The instant Rohan dismissed the last active Class, the giant beast shot forward with enough force to split the raging sea. Its enormous jaws closed around where his body should have been, but they found nothing except a faint shadow that dissolved into the surrounding darkness.

Shadow Linger had become his only remaining ability, and without the burden of maintaining multiple Classes, its effect became smoother. He no longer wasted essence on offense. Every bit of his focus shifted toward observing the serpent’s movements.

Each swing of its tail, every adjustment of its neck, and even the slight contraction of the muscles beneath its scales became painfully clear. The beast wasn’t attacking randomly. Every strike followed an exact rhythm, one that repeated after every failed attempt to seize him.

Rohan drifted through the darkness beneath its body, his crimson eyes never leaving the serpent. The grin from earlier had disappeared completely, replaced by a frightening calm. His breathing steadied despite the crushing pressure of the sea, and even the pain spreading through his cracked bones no longer distracted him.

He had stopped looking for a weakness in its scales or its eyes. Instead, he searched for something far more valuable...the habit hidden inside its perfection.

"There you are," he whispered.

The serpent immediately twisted around, its golden eyes narrowing. It clearly heard him despite the violent storm surrounding them. Without hesitation, it struck again, its enormous tail cutting through the water with terrifying speed. Rohan disappeared into another shadow just before the impact reached him, reappearing several meters away with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Even avoiding the attack entirely still subjected him to the immense pressure generated by the serpent’s movements.

"You’ve stopped attacking," the serpent rumbled, its voice shaking the sea. "Have you accepted your inferiority?"

Rohan simply shook his head.

"No."

His gaze remained fixed on the creature’s massive body.

"I’ve accepted something else."

The serpent frowned.

"You aren’t invincible."

The ancient beast remained silent. A faint ripple passed through its enormous pupils before it disappeared almost immediately. It was a tiny reaction, one that most Hunters would never notice.

Rohan noticed it as his lips slowly curled upward.

"So... even you hesitate."