Becoming the Dark Lord

The pugilist was dead, just like the rest of the camp. Luke had fought with everything he had, pushed himself to the limit. But deep down, something still felt off. He didn’t enjoy killing people. Not really.

Forcing himself to breathe, he steadied his thoughts. These weren’t good people. They wouldn’t have hesitated to hurt someone else. They wouldn’t have thought twice about killing, stealing, or ruining someone’s life just to get what they wanted. So he wouldn’t hesitate to stop them. Simple as that.

Luke opened his system interface and clicked on the new item sitting in his inventory. His eyes widened in surprise, a helmet. Slowly, his gaze shifted back to the pugilist’s corpse.

“The system gives loot when you kill people too?” he muttered.

It made sense. Monsters dropped items—so why wouldn’t humans?

Driven by curiosity, he opened the system panel and clicked on the item.

[Pugilist Knight’s Helmet (Uncommon)

Description: A pugilist once trusted in nothing but his fists—until, in a clash against a demon, the demon’s clever servant tore off his helmet. Exposed, the pugilist was finished with a single, fatal blow. All his strength meant nothing in the face of a single careless moment.

Enchantments:

[Iron Shell (Uncommon)]: Reinforced against blunt force trauma. Reduces physical impact damage from punches, strikes, and concussive blows. Offers increased protection in close-quarters combat.

Requirements: Level 8+ in any Fighter-class.]

Luke raised a brow. Not for him.

Without hesitation, he dragged the helmet into Princess Charlie’s inventory.

A moment later, the item materialized on her.

“Wow… now you actually look like a real knight.”

The helmet had the classic look of medieval armor—regal, solid, timeless. But what caught Luke off guard wasn’t the style. It was what he didn’t see.

The skeletal face was gone.

Standing before him was a tall, imposing woman in full armor. Not a trace of bone.

Charlie gave her sword a proud swing, her new form radiating confidence. Then she stepped forward and gently tapped Luke on the shoulder, pointing at the ring on his hand.

“Oh… that’s what you wanted?” Luke said, catching on.

She extended her ring finger.

Luke slipped the ring onto it.

And through their bond—servant and master—he felt it. A soft wave of warmth. Her happiness washing over him like sunlight.

“I don’t really use it much,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “But hey, could be useful in combat. Like, I don’t know… tossing a small flame into someone’s eyes to distract them or something.”

He laughed softly.

“But if it makes you happy…” His smile deepened. “Then I’m happy too.”

For some reason, every time Charlie glanced at the ring on her finger, a wave of happiness radiated through the master-servant bond, strong, unfiltered, impossible to ignore.

Luke opened his system interface, but his eyes drifted sideways.

She was still staring at it. Her posture stiff. The way her fingers fidgeted with the band wasn’t subtle. Pure joy poured off her like heat off stone, tangled with something else, embarrassment and maybe something even more complicated.

He let out a quiet breath.

“Right, whatever this is.”

Shaking his head, Luke forced himself to focus back on the interface. Charlie’s weirdness could wait.

Five skills were waiting.

But something felt off.

He recognized them. Old choices—skills he had once passed over.

“So they can come back…” he murmured. “Good. I let go of some decent ones.”

*Choose one of the following Class Skills*

[Sharp Eye (Common)]

[Perfect Throw (Common)]

[Silent Step (Common)]

[Basic Chameleon Skin (Uncommon)]

[Assassin’s Mark (Rare)]

His eyes stopped on the last one.

He remembered it clearly.

A damn good skill.

He tapped it.

[Assassin’s Mark (Rare)]: Mark a target. Lock your perception onto them. No matter where they flee, if they remain within your hunting grounds, you will find them. No prey can hide. The mark lasts until removed or expired.

“This one’s perfect.”

He didn’t hesitate.

He selected it.

[You have acquired the Class Skill: Assassin’s Mark]

***

A week had passed.

Luke sat in silence, eyes locked on the crackling fire. It had been almost a month, or maybe even more, since he agreed to take part in the System Integration. His time inside the Forgotten Temple dungeon had completely thrown off his sense of time. Either way, he had been stuck in this tutorial for close to a month now.

Around him were a few now-familiar faces: Anna, Cecília, Johnny... and Jonathan, along with others he’d gotten to know better thanks to Anna’s quiet persistence—and Allison, who had somehow warmed up to the group faster than he expected.

Johnny, of course, was mid-story, as usual.

“So there I was… alone, absolutely hammered, pissing off the edge of a rooftop when I look down and suddenly…” He paused dramatically, holding the group’s attention. “I saw a Midnight Warden.”

“What happened?” Henry asked, wide-eyed.

Johnny burst into laughter. “Let’s just say… I didn’t just piss myself.”

The group erupted into laughter.

Then, a shadow approached from the dark. A mug was snatched from Johnny’s hand.

“You’re already so drunk you’ve started talking complete nonsense.”

It was Angelica. She took a swig from his mug and sat down beside the fire.

“Hey!” Johnny protested, scandalized.

Across the fire, Cecília was tending to chunks of meat roasting over the flames.

Angelica glanced around the circle, eyes lingering on each face. “So?” she asked. “How’s everyone adjusting to the first few weeks?”

Henry answered first. “I’ve come to terms with it. I think the best move now is to get stronger. As fast as possible.”

“That’s the spirit,” Angelica replied with a faint smile, then turned to Luke and Allison. “And you two?”

“I’m doing the same,” Allison said. “Getting stronger’s the top priority. But I’ve also started mapping the area out, bit by bit.”

Angelica nodded thoughtfully. “It gets easier once you get the lay of the land. The ruined city’s crawling with beasts during the day, and Midnight Guards own the streets after sunset. Farther out in the forests, it’s orc territory. I’ve never gone deep enough to see what it’s like near the castle ruins, but… if I had to guess, it’s probably swarming with Guards. Stronger ones, too.”

A hush settled over the group, broken only by the soft hiss and crackle of burning wood.

Angelica began sharing stories from her first year in the tutorial. Half of them sounded more like urban legends than actual memories—rumors passed from survivor to survivor, twisted by time and trauma.

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Later, as the fire dimmed and the others drifted off to their tents, Luke and Allison stood. Angelica, now clearly tipsy, waved at them lazily.

“If you two need anything,” she said with a crooked smile, “don’t hesitate. Me and Paul—we’ve got your backs.”

“We won’t,” Allison replied, smiling. “And… thanks. For watching out for us.”

They reached the small tent and slipped inside.

“Need more ice?” Allison asked, glancing at him.

Luke pulled a flask from his pack—something he’d managed to trade for using wild boar meat and hide. “Obviously.”

Allison took the flask and began filling it with ice, one shimmering shard at a time, until it was full. That was how they got clean water.

Bartholomew allowed people to draw from the river, but only in exchange for tribute—monster meat, bones, hides, anything remotely useful. Luke sometimes fetched water from the Wild Zone’s springs, but it always needed boiling first.

Allison’s ice? Instant. Clean. Reliable.

“I picked up a few items,” she said, materializing a chestplate between them. “What about you?”

Luke gave a small smile. “Everything I get, I pass on to Princess Charlie. So... I’ve got basically nothing.”

The two wanted to head into the Wild Zone to search for the mechanism, but first, they needed to get stronger. And that also meant getting better gear.

“She’s fully equipped now?” Allison asked.

“Yeah. Honestly, she could walk around camp and no one would even notice.”

Allison raised an eyebrow, clearly impressed.

A few moments later, she lay down and pulled the wolf pelt over herself. Luke did the same.

They slept back to back, sometimes with the fabric divider left open, no longer splitting the tent into two separate spaces.

“You really think we’ll find this mechanism?” Luke asked, eyes fixed on the ceiling of the tent.

“Find something we don’t even know what it looks like?” She let out a soft laugh. “I hope so.”

Luke couldn’t help but smile faintly. “How’s leveling going for you in the Safe Zone?”

“I’ve been grouping up with Anna and Cecília. They head out from time to time.”

“Any bandits in the Safe Zone?”

“From what I’ve heard, they stick to the Wild Zone. They’re scared of Bartholomew’s men.” She paused. “But if any of them tries to rob me… I’ll kill them. Even if I have to use my ice magic.”

Luke nodded silently in the dark. “I ran into a few already. But... they won’t be robbing anyone else.”

Allison was quiet for a moment. Then she said softly, “It’s dangerous out there… Be careful.”

Luke shifted under the covers. His voice was calm. “I’ve got Princess Charlie. Don’t worry.”

Allison chuckled. “Right. Your girlfriend would terrify anyone.”

“She’s not my girlfriend!” Luke shot back.

Allison muffled a laugh. “Well, well… We’ve got ourselves a tsundere.”

Luke frowned. “What? You know what a tsundere is?”

“Of course I do,” she said, as if it were obvious. “I’m a normal person, you know.”

Luke sighed and rolled over, settling into the blankets.

Then, breaking the quiet:

“By the way… why are you still pretending to be a guy?”

He didn’t say it accusingly—his tone was thoughtful. Curious.

“It’s hurting you. You can’t use your spells properly because the disguise drains your mana. And I have this feeling it’s messing with your class too… maybe even stopping it from mutating.”

Allison sat up slowly, thoughtful. “You think… that’s what it is?”

“Maybe,” Luke said, still staring at the ceiling. “My mutation only happened when I embraced… whatever the hell my ‘inner nature’ is. So yeah, I think it’s tied to accepting what your class really wants to be.”

He paused. “You came straight here from Earth, right? No Training Field?”

She nodded quietly.

Luke turned slightly in bed, voice firmer. “That means even after your System lock got removed, you’ve never really used your powers freely. Not like they’re meant to be used.”

Another pause.

“Could be that it’s keeping you from fully evolving. Like… putting a wild animal in a cage. It just doesn’t grow right.”

Allison stayed quiet for a few seconds.

“You might be onto something,” she said eventually.

Then she lay back down, rolling onto her side, facing away from him.

“I’ve thought about ditching the disguise before… thinking maybe that was the problem.”

Luke turned toward her slightly, curiosity in his voice.

“Then why not just stop? Go back to your original form. What, are you wanted by the police or something?”

“What? No!” she said—too quickly.

Luke raised an eyebrow, even though she couldn’t see it.

“…Wait. You actually are a fugitive?”

“N-not like that!”

Luke chuckled and rolled back to his side.

“Uh-huh. Sure.”

Silence lingered for a few seconds.

Then Allison’s voice broke it—quiet, hesitant.

“My father…”

She paused.

Then continued, voice steadier.

“He’s someone important in the World Government.”

Luke slowly turned to face her. “You mean… those guys? The ones with absolute authority because of the System?”

She nodded, visibly uneasy. “Yeah. My family’s part of one of the major guilds.”

Suddenly, it all clicked. Her talent, the rare bloodline since childhood, the latent strength...

She wasn’t just anyone.

Allison rolled over to look at him. “What about you?”

Luke furrowed his brow. “What about me?”

“Well, I just told you one of my secrets. Partner rules—you owe me one.”

He scratched his head, confused. “Didn’t know that was a thing.”

“It is now,” she said, grinning.

He sighed. “Fine. But one condition: anything… except my bloodline.”

“Fair enough,” Allison replied.

A moment passed as she picked her question carefully.

“What guild is your family from?”

Luke turned to meet her eyes. “None.”

She blinked. Then blinked again.

He rolled back over, tugging the wolf pelt over his shoulder. “Well… you used your question.”

He closed his eyes. “Good night.”

“Oh, come on,” Allison said, pulling the covers off him. “That doesn’t count. What do you mean none? You didn’t get training? They’re not part of anything?”

Luke went quiet for a second.

He thought of Clara and Martin.

The woman who loved baking on weekends. The man who read mystery novels and cheered for the Portland Sea Dogs.

“I came from a normal family,” he said.

Well... I was adopted by one, he thought, but didn’t say it aloud.

He wasn’t the kind of person who shared too much too fast.

Allison studied him for a few seconds, then sighed. “You don’t seem like you’re lying…”

She stared up at the ceiling. “But I swore you were one of those kids raised for the Integration. Like, trained from birth. What country are you from?”

“United States,” Luke answered. “You?”

“Somewhere in Europe,” she said with a mischievous smile.

Luke narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you speaking English right now, or is the System translating?”

He knew the System handled translation, but something made him ask.

Allison laughed. “I speak six languages fluently. Without the System.”

She stretched and rolled onto her side. “I mix things up sometimes when I talk, but the System cleans it up for you.”

“Six languages? What are you, a super genius?”

“Did you forget I’ve had the System since I was born?” she said. “Even with my system’s progression locked, I have a Race Skill that boosts memory. Makes studying easier.”

They both fell quiet.

The conversation drifted to Earth. To small things—memories, stories, fragments of normal life.

It had been so long since Luke had shared a moment like that.

And for the first time in weeks…

It felt like home wasn’t so far away.

The distance between them had shrunk.

“Good night, tsundere,” Allison said with a grin.

Luke smirked. “Good night, Mulan.”

Allison sat up, frowning. “I don’t get the reference.”

Luke rolled over. “When we’re back on Earth, look it up.”

She went quiet.

He smiled faintly.

And drifted off to sleep.

***

A shrill sound tore through the silence of early morning.

Luke and Allison bolted upright, weapons already in hand.

They burst out of the tent.

The camp was chaos barely held together—people running in every direction, panic in their eyes, voices shouting orders and warnings over the noise.

Some banged on pots. Others rang makeshift bells.

“Wake up! MOVE!” someone yelled through the crowd.

Luke spotted Angelica and Paul sprinting through the mess.

Allison rushed to meet them.

“What’s going on?!”

People with weapons gathered into formation. Those without gear were herded toward the old hotel, guided by others—sent to makeshift shelters.

“Orcs!” Angelica shouted, breath ragged. “A warband crossed the border! They’re coming fast—riding wolves!”

Paul stepped in beside her, expression grim and razor-focused.

“If we don’t act now, they’ll destroy everything. They’ll kill as many as they can.”

Angelica raised a double-headed axe, eyes blazing.

“You want to know why it’s so damn hard to progress the tutorial missions?” she growled. “This is why. The Orc Lord lives for war. For blood. For chaos.”

They turned and sprinted toward the large command tent. Other senior members rushed to follow.

Allison turned to Luke, urgency in her voice.

“We don’t have a choice. We need to help.”

Luke nodded. “I know.”

He ran back to the tent without hesitation.

“I called reinforcements.”

A moment later, a tall figure stepped out from the tent behind him.

A knight in full armor.

Princess Charlie.

At that exact moment, a system window shimmered into view before his eyes.

**Special Event Triggered**

The Orc Lord has deployed part of his warband against your camp.

[Main Event Mission]

: Survive until dawn against the Orc Lord’s forces

: Or perish in the attempt

[Bonus Objective]

: Defeat the Orc Captain

[Calculating Special Reward...]

Luke’s eyes widened as the reward details appeared.

It was better than he expected.

Far better.