Becoming the Dark Lord

Luke woke with a start, his cheek tingling from being pressed against the floor. His head was packed with noise, his thoughts tangled, his memories broken into useless pieces. He pushed himself up slowly and looked around, his heart hammering against his ribs. This wasn’t his house.

He was inside a cave, lit by pale light spilling through an uneven opening high above. The air was warm and damp, thick with the smell of old earth. Luke blinked a few times, trying to force his brain to work.

How the hell did I get here?

He looked down at his clothes. Rough pants, a plain shirt, old-fashioned shoes dusted with dirt. The fabric scratched at his skin, heavy and stiff in a way that felt wrong. None of it belonged to him. He tried to remember the night before, the last week, anything that might explain where he was. Nothing. Only fog where the answers should have been.

Luke drew a deep breath, stood, and stepped out of the small cave. The brightness forced him to squint. When his vision finally adjusted, whatever he was about to say died in his throat.

A green field stretched out before him, dotted with trees heavy with red apples. Farther ahead, a stream cut through the landscape with a low murmur. For a moment, everything seemed too peaceful. Almost beautiful. Then Luke looked up. The “sky” was the cavern ceiling. High above, a colossal crystal glowed like an artificial sun, bathing the entire field in impossible golden light.

What the fuck is this...?

[Welcome, Luke, to the Annual System Integration!]

A translucent screen appeared in front of his eyes.

The System.

The memories came back in pieces, then all at once, violent as an avalanche. Luke remembered. He had accepted. He had been transported to the System Integration Zone, the phenomenon that had changed the world over the past century. The System connected Earth to the multiverse, granting classes, powers, and growth to humanity. Powers weren’t fiction anymore. They were real.

Luke clenched his fists.

“I really made it...” he muttered, staring at the screen. “I’m in the Annual Integration.”

At eighteen, everyone received the invitation. Anyone who refused had to wait another ten years for a second chance. Luke had not hesitated for even a second. Now, looking down at his own hands, clean and steady despite the faint tremor in them, he felt something loosen inside his chest. An old, invisible weight slipping free.

For the first time in years, his mind felt quiet.

“I’m here... I made it.” His eyes burned, and his voice came out low, almost too quiet to hear. “Mom... just hold on. I’m going to save you.”

Ahead, the river wound through the field until it fed into a lake that reflected the crystal’s fake sunlight. But it was the waterfall that caught his attention: a sheet of water plunging into a deep hollow, dark enough to swallow the light. Luke approached carefully, feeling every uneven patch of ground through his shoes.

He stopped at the edge.

A black abyss yawned beneath his feet, deep enough to look endless. A cold current rose from below, silent and sharp, like the pit itself was warning him to stay away.

[You have entered the Training Field]

Another screen appeared.

Training Field

Before beginning your journey, you have been transported to the Training Field. Here, you may choose a class, test weapons, level up, and unlock skills. There is no time limit. Consider this place a lobby, where you may meet other participants. Reach level 5 in your chosen class to begin the Tutorial.

Luke tapped the screen to dismiss it.

But another one popped up immediately, marked with a bright red “!”

[Error!]

[Error!]

[Error!]

[Error!]

[This location is not the Training Field.]

[You have been transported to an unknown location in the multiverse. Routing failure.]

The messages overlapped in a chaotic cascade.

“What...?”

Luke jabbed at the screens, but the interface shook and warped. Notifications flashed out of order, as if the System itself were choking. Then one final window appeared, sharper than the rest.

Ruins of the Forgotten Temple

An ancient temple dedicated to a fallen being. Surrounded by bloodthirsty monsters. The only way out is to locate the temple and recover the key that activates the portal. But beware... this challenge is not for the weak.

Objective: Find the key inside the temple, insert it into the quest statue, and activate the portal.

Difficulty: Hell.

Luke went still. He stared at the message like he could force it to disappear through sheer stubbornness. But it stayed there, faintly pulsing, glowing in front of him.

“No... that can’t be right.”

His body moved before his mind caught up. His legs went tense and automatic, and he started walking fast, almost on instinct. The field that had seemed peaceful a moment ago now felt wrong. Too open. Too quiet. Apples were scattered across the ground like abandoned offerings, and the trees stood motionless, so perfect they looked like they were wearing masks.

Then he saw them. Ruins. Half hidden between the trees, a cluster of ancient structures rose out of the green. Broken stone, collapsed columns, burned houses. The architecture looked like some strange mix of Greek temples and medieval fortresses, all of it broken, burned, and forgotten. There were no other adventurers. No movement. Only silence.

Luke quickened his pace. His heart pounded against his ribs, every beat vibrating through his whole body. The muffled sound of his own footsteps mixed with his breathing, making the wrongness grow stronger with every second.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

This shouldn’t exist. The System is perfect.

But reality seemed to laugh at that certainty. He crossed the wreckage, stepping around broken stones and chunks of charred wood. Dry branches cracked beneath his shoes. The fractured stone was coated in moss, dust, and soot. The destruction looked recent, and the smell of smoke still lingered in the air, faint but present enough to raise the hairs on the back of his neck.

Then Luke saw it. A statue. It was made of stone darkened by time, cracked in several places and overgrown with moss. It did not move, but it gave him the absurd feeling that it was watching everything.

“The quest statue!”

Luke broke into a run, leaping over debris and dodging jagged rocks. His footsteps echoed far too loudly through the dead place. His breath came fast and uneven. Then he tripped. Luke hit the ground face first, his palms scraping over rough dirt. When he tried to get up, his hand touched something cold. Rigid.

He turned his head. And saw what he had fallen on. A body.

“Oh my God!”

Luke scrambled backward in panic, his hands sinking into the dirt. His back slammed against a tree hard enough to shake loose several apples around him. He barely noticed. The corpse lay sprawled on the ground, riddled with arrows, its face locked in terror. It was fresh. Luke’s chest rose and fell in short spasms. The air felt like it did not want to enter his lungs. His shirt clung to his skin, damp with sweat.

What happened here?

He swept his gaze across the area, every part of him on alert. If that man had died here, then whatever had killed him could still be nearby, hidden behind a tree or crouched somewhere among the ruins. Luke swallowed hard. His throat felt raw. Slowly, he crouched and picked up one of the apples from the ground. It was cold, slippery with dew. He turned it in his hand for a second before stuffing it into his pocket. If something attacked him, he could throw the damn thing and run like hell.

Taking a deep breath, he advanced toward the center of the ruins. Every step sounded too loud in the suffocating quiet. Even the leaves crushing beneath his feet felt like a mistake. The statue loomed ahead, tall and imposing. Then it opened its mouth.

A guttural sound vibrated from inside the stone. The voice that followed was strange, both male and female at once, two echoes layered over each other. It had weight. It seemed to come from the ground, the walls, the world itself. The vibration rolled through Luke’s chest and made his heartbeat stumble.

”Two paths lie before you, lost traveler.

The first is the trail of those who fear fate.

Step by step, rung by rung,

they descend into darkness as shadows without courage.

The second is the leap of the brave,

where only those who challenge death itself

surrender to the current that roars and carries them without return.

But be not deceived...

Death awaits you on both paths.

The only question is whether it comes swift or slow.”

The statue’s mouth snapped shut with a dry crack. Luke did not move. Sweat slid down the side of his face as the statue raised one stone arm and pointed. The motion was stiff and deliberate, like a judge passing sentence. There was something solemn about the gesture. Almost cruel.

One trail vanished into the woods ahead, covered in dry leaves. The trees bent inward, their twisted branches like old fingers. A crooked sign stabbed into the ground read: [Dungeon]. It looked less like directions and more like a warning.

The other path followed the river, leading toward the distant waterfall. White foam spilled over the edge and vanished into the dark hole below, disappearing into the earth like a secret too dangerous to be heard.

Luke’s breathing stayed shallow. His thoughts crashed into each other. This place is supposed to be safe. What killed that man? Is it still here?

A sound broke the silence. A branch snapping. Luke spun around, raising his only “weapon”: the apple clenched in his hand. A man stepped out of the brush. His face was pale, smeared with dirt, and his wide eyes carried a fear that did not look fake.

“Kid! For the love of the gods, get away from there!” He was panting, almost tripping over his own words. “They could be back any second!”

Luke froze. The man was holding a sword. Instinctively, he backed away. The stranger’s clothes were stained with blood. When he noticed the tension in Luke’s eyes, the man slowly raised his hands, spreading his fingers.

“My name is Walter. I’m a cop. I’ve been here for a week.”

“A week?!” A chill ran through Luke. The place had already been absurd. Now it was becoming terrifying.

Walter took a step forward. Luke took another step back.

“Listen to me. They went into the dungeon, but they could come back at any moment. They control this area.”

Luke blinked, trying to force the words to make sense.

“What do you mean, a week? That’s impossible. Everyone is supposed to arrive at the Training Field at the same time.”

Walter let out a bitter laugh.

“If you made it to this statue, then you already know.” He spat on the ground. “This isn’t the Training Field. It’s a routing failure. We got dumped into a dead zone.”

Luke slowly turned toward the statue. He already knew, but hearing it from another person made it worse.

Walter continued, his voice low and hard. “You saw the challenge rating, right? That dungeon is huge. And it’s full of things that can kill you before you even realize what hit you.”

Luke looked around, his mind spinning. He needed to get out. He needed answers.

“And the blood?” he asked, steadier than he felt. His voice still cracked at the end. “Whose is it?”

Walter sighed.

“If you saw the body... that was Mike.” His expression hardened. “They killed him yesterday.”

Luke swallowed. “Who are ‘they’?”

Walter’s hand tightened around the sword hilt. “Criminals.”

Luke stopped breathing for a second. “Criminals?!”

Walter shot another uneasy glance at the surrounding trees. “Come on. I’ve been keeping watch near the statue for days, waiting for someone to show up. You’re the only one.” Without waiting for an answer, he slipped between the trees. Luke hesitated. Logic screamed at him not to trust Walter. Being alone screamed louder. He had no idea how long he could survive by himself. No information. No allies. No class. No real weapon. He was vulnerable. And he hated it.

Luke threw one last look at the statue. Somehow, it looked even more sinister now. He swallowed hard and followed Walter. Crouched among the trees, Luke watched the cop’s every move. Walter moved like a cornered animal: fast, careful, ready to bolt. Every step seemed calculated.

“I’ve been hiding in a house nearby,” Walter whispered. “The prisoners stay north, close to the dungeon, but sometimes they come down to the statue.”

Luke frowned. “Back up. What prisoners?”

Walter gave him a quick look before moving toward a ruined stone house. He looked exhausted.

“You just got here, didn’t you?” His voice dropped. “Damn. I’m sorry, kid. You landed in the worst possible place.”

“Explain.”

Walter stayed near the entrance of the ruined house, never taking his eyes off the trees.

“Every year, during the Integration, there’s a risk nobody likes to talk about. Prisoners get invitations too. Nobody can block it. Not even the government.”

Luke stared at him. “What?”

“That’s how they escape prison.”

Luke’s stomach turned.

“The authorities know,” Walter went on. “That’s why they send cops in too. If we’re close enough, we get routed to the same Training Field as them.”

He clenched his fists, anger cutting through the exhaustion for a moment. “We had a full squad. But thanks to this damn routing failure, only two of us ended up here.”

Why don’t they just kill the prisoners, then? The thought came ugly and cold, and Luke shoved it away. There were all kinds of crimes, after all. Walter might be talking about low-risk inmates.

“And the prisoners?” Luke asked.

Walter stared past him. “All of them came in together.”

The blood drained from Luke’s face. “No... don’t tell me I’m trapped here with...”

“Yes,” Walter said. “Serial killers. Terrorists. Psychopaths.”

Cold spread through Luke’s body. Walter moved closer to the entrance of the house, sword still in hand.

“It was supposed to be simple. Contain the inmates before they chose their classes. Then move on to the Tutorial and keep control.” His jaw tightened. “But it went wrong.”

Luke felt his throat close.

“We were separated,” Walter continued. “When I found them in the dungeon... they already had classes. And they had already leveled up.”

For a few seconds, only the wind moved through the trees.

Then Walter whispered, “I’m sorry, kid.” His voice went flat. “You’re dead already.”

Luke’s eyes went wide.

“Don’t say that.” Luke took a step back. “There has to be another way. We can negotiate, or—”

Walter stared at him. His eyes were empty.

“They’re not looking for terms,” he said coldly. “They’re looking for prey.”

Luke tried to answer, but no words came.

This makes no sense! Why the hell would they let people that dangerous into the damn System?!

There were, apparently, far too many things about the world Luke still did not understand. Then a whistle cut through the silence. An arrow hissed through the air and buried itself in Walter’s chest.