With the ceiling hole far above and hunger gnawing at his belly, the choice felt stark—do nothing and grow weaker, or try the only passage left. He steeled himself and, heart pounding, slipped into the cold, briny water, wading in until his feet could no longer touch the bottom.

  The tight, submerged tunnel yawned blackly beneath the surface; taking the deepest breath he could, John dove, awkwardly kicking as he tried to swim. The water swallowed sound and light, turning the world to chilled darkness. Panic rose fast as he fought to keep his bearings—he battled currents and the stinging cold, struggling for every stroke.

  Suddenly, his hand brushed against something yielding, not stone. He jerked back, but in the pitch black, he couldn’t tell what it was—until his trembling fingertips found a wide, glassy sphere, a ruined orb staring blankly into the void. John jolted as realization struck: an enormous, wounded eye, softer than coral, flooded with slow-moving warmth.

  Fear nearly froze him, but he kicked wildly away, accidentally scraping the eye again. For an instant, nothing happened. The water trembled, but there was no rush, no bite, no crushing jaws. Only faint, shallow bubbling from the wreck of the titan shark he'd seen at the mountain’s edge.

  A sudden, bright flash illuminated John’s vision displaying the whole monstrosity others would have called a giant shark but John did not know what it was—another system window. Even as he scrambled upward, half-drowning, air burning in his lungs, the display followed:

  John broke the surface, gasping and spluttering as the cave’s air rushed to fill his chest. His mind reeled: Had he, by pure luck, killed the monstrous beast that none could face? He peered at the swirling surface, the water below now eerily still.

  As he caught his breath on the rocky ledge, the system shimmered with anticipation, countless reward windows readying to spill forth.

  As John gasped for air on the rocky ledge, the system’s glow flared brighter than ever. His impossible feat—the defeat of the colossal deep-sea leviathan—had unlocked something profound. A new series of windows shimmered into existence before his wide eyes:

  John was stunned at his good fortune. He could now escape, maybe. At least he would not drown.

  He saw his level ups. They added less stats than his level 0 to 1 level ups. That increase was special, maybe broken. Most levels increased some attributes and not others but looking at all windows, in sum, he was still balanced in his attributes.

  He also saw that after level up, his XP bar reset and gathered interesting information about how much XP he needed to reach what level:

  His XP bar was at 0/10’000 and greyed out like it could not advance further. He had reached level 10.

  The kill of the almost dead shark that the system had attributed to him had given him more XP than what he needed but it seems, some XP was lost.

  John’s heart thundered as the system infused his very essence with power far beyond the fragile boy who had fled Cloudroot’s fields. His body felt stronger, limbs firmer and more capable; the scars of earlier struggles seemed to fade beneath a shimmering glow. The suffocating caps that had limited his growth vanished like mist, leaving open potential he could scarcely comprehend.

  Yet the system’s message was clear and unwavering: though he had surged to Level 10 in a leap few could imagine, his journey was far from over. He could not yet choose a class—his youth barred him from that rite until he reached the age of ten. Until then, progression would pause at this new summit.

  The newly granted Water Breathing skill buzzed faintly in his senses, offering a silent promise of mastery below the waves—the realm where his victory had drawn mysterious new strength.

  John blinked, feeling the weight of this transformation settle deep within. Though his stats had soared, the path ahead was no easier—the mystery of magic circles still awaited, classes would come with age, and the forest, mountains, and ocean all held secrets he had yet to unlock.

  For now, a silent, growing power pulsed in his veins—the ancient bloodline of the ocean’s depths, reborn in a boy who had faced the impossible and lived.

  John took a deep breath and slipped back into the cold sea water, the newfound water breathing skill immediately sharpening his senses and clearing his vision beneath the surface. The murky darkness was less daunting now; shapes slowly took form through the filtered light, and currents whispered softly around him.

  He approached the monstrous leviathan’s massive form, its pale, scarred skin tough and unyielding to his fingers. John tried scraping and clawing, but the leathery hide resisted completely. Instead, he sought out the creature’s deep wounds—the ragged gashes where the mountain rocks had torn flesh and exposed softer parts.

  With cautious determination, John tore away a chunk of raw meat from one of these injuries. Hunger gnawed sharply at him, and despite the unfamiliar, bloody taste, he quickly swallowed the flesh. The cold saltwater filled his mouth, but the nourishment warmed him like no fire.

  Almost immediately, a new system notification flickered before his eyes:

  John felt a lightness in his limbs, as if the water around him whispered in harmony with his heartbeat. Movement grew fluid and effortless; each stroke of his arms and legs propelled him forward with newfound grace.

  In that moment, beneath the waves and close to the ancient giant’s battered body, John realized his bond with the ocean’s mysteries deepened—turning survival into power, fear into potential.

  John swam cautiously through the submerged cave, every stroke measured and deliberate. The darkness pressed close around him, but his water breathing and enhanced vision in the murky depths kept his nerves steadier than before. He dared not push toward the open sea where the tempestuous waves churned and the thought of lurking monsters tightened a cold knot in his stomach. Instead, he scoured the labyrinthine underwater passages, hoping for a secret route back to the mountains and the familiar rugged cliffs.

  Despite the eerie silence and shadowed corners, no terrifying predators crossed his path. The absence of danger eased a breath from deep within him. John’s small, steady pulses of movement guided him deeper into the unknown, his youthful curiosity tempered by a growing caution born from days in the wild.

  Ahead, a faint azure glow blossomed within the darkness, beckoning like a distant star. As John approached, the source revealed itself: a vast crystal embedded in the cave wall, shimmering with an otherworldly energy. The gem pulsed softly, casting dancing blue lights across the slick stone and the swirling sediments below.

  As he stared in wonder, John’s stat window flickered and then brightened unusually—a new surge flicked through his unseen attributes. His gaze snapped to the Mana stat:

  | Mana | 1 / 0 |

  An impossible reading: his mana was now 1 despite the cap still resting at zero. The numbers shimmered with a subtle glow, hinting at the mysterious power the crystal was affording him. Energy flowed from the glowing stone into him, as if something fundamental within was awakening and transcending the limits the system had imposed.

  John’s heart raced—this unexpected breakthrough whispered promise and danger all at once. Beyond the mountain walls, within the depths of this submerged cave, he had touched magic itself—and whatever came next, his journey had already stepped into uncharted waters.

  John lingered near the glowing blue crystal, mesmerized as its gentle pulses sent ripples of energy through the chilling water. Each moment he spent in its presence, his body tingled—the sensation less like warmth and more like purpose, something inside aligning with the strange current that flowed from the gem. He didn’t yet understand how to command magic, but he felt his very being growing attuned to it: senses sharpening, spirit quickening, a subtle awareness blooming where there had only been emptiness before.

  As he floated there, the system window updated in sync with his heartbeat:

  | Mana | 2 / 0 |

  | Mana | 3 / 0 |

  And on—numbers defying the cap, the crystal’s energy suffusing him in quiet, insistent waves. He felt less weary, more nimble and focused even deep below the mountain. His movements through the cold water grew easier; when he pushed off from rocks to swim, the current seemed to part for him. There was a clarity in his mind, as if he could sense every contour of the submerged cave and feel the faint traces of magic in the earth around him.

  Guided by this mounting affinity, John navigated twisting underwater tunnels with almost instinctive confidence, sensing where the currents shifted and which paths curved gently upward. At each fork, some faint vibration from the crystal’s power nudged his intuition, steering him away from dead ends and ever closer to the promise of higher ground. Even the cold felt less biting, as though an invisible shield hummed beneath his skin, softening the icy bite of the meltwater.

  After what felt like hours but might have been mere moments in this enchanted state, John spotted a faint patch of silvery light ahead—a break in the cave roof, shining with the pale hue of dawn. With newfound stamina and grace, he surged toward it, breaking the surface in a hidden mountain pool not far from where he first entered the depths.

  As he stumbled ashore, water streaming off his lean, energized frame, John realized just how far he’d come: not only across space, but in spirit. He had not yet learned to wield magic—but already, the affinity awakened by the crystal had transformed him, guiding him through darkness and whispering of powers yet to be claimed. For now, he was back amidst mountain stone and sky, but with an unseen thread of magic forever woven through his veins.