Holy Sinner: Heir of Life and Death

The Outer Zones fell away behind them like a fading memory.

Ezren and Serena traveled in silence, the wind brushing dust across a lifeless road cracked by centuries of decay. Their destination: an ancient ruin buried in the hills east of Sector 9 — long forgotten by most, but not by Serena.

"Where are we going?" Ezren asked at last, his voice strained from hours of walking.

"To a place even scavengers avoid," she replied. "A training ground for those who walk the path of the dead."

Ezren swallowed hard. The necromancer class still felt foreign to him. The name carried weight — forbidden weight. But if he was to survive, he had to understand it. Control it.

The ruins came into view by midday: a jagged hole in the hillside, overgrown with roots and shadowed by timeworn statues of beasts with empty sockets. The earth around it pulsed faintly with System energy, like veins of light running through a corpse.

"This… is a dungeon?" Ezren asked, eyes wide.

Serena nodded. "An early-generation one. Before the System stabilized. Most were sealed or devoured. But this one remains. Dormant — mostly."

He felt it before stepping in — a tug, like something inside him recognized the place. The air at the entrance was thick, humming with power that brushed against his skin like cold breath.

> [WARNING: Unstable Dungeon Detected]

> Entry: Optional – Danger Level: Unknown

> Suggested Rank: D+ or Higher

> — Necrotic Resonance Identified —

> User Class Matched: NECROMANCER

> Special Entry Granted.

"Did… did the dungeon just scan me?" Ezren blinked.

"It did more than that," Serena said. "It recognized you. Just as it once recognized me."

They entered.

Inside was pitch black, but as Ezren stepped forward, the walls lit with a faint, ghostly blue glow. Symbols danced along the stone like insects of light. The temperature dropped, and his breath became visible.

He heard something — not with his ears, but with his soul.

> You who walk both light and shadow…

> Prove your will… or perish.

He stumbled slightly. "Did you hear that?"

Serena shook her head. "No. But I felt something shift. The dungeon knows you're here. Be careful, Ezren. Some of these places are sentient — twisted by the mana of those who died within."

They pressed deeper.

The first room opened like a shattered cathedral. Bones littered the floor, long turned to ash. Broken weapons hung suspended in the air, unmoving. Then…

> [DUNGEON QUEST INITIATED]

> Trial of the Bound Soul

> Objective: Survive until purification of the room is complete.

> Time Limit: 15 Minutes

> Reward: EXP, Class Skill Unlock

> Penalty: Death

"What?" Ezren backed up. "I haven't even—"

A low growl echoed from above.

From the ceiling dropped creatures made of bone and smoke — their forms barely solid, their eyes flickering with violet fire. Phantom Beasts.

Serena unsheathed a jagged dagger and stepped in front of him.

"Stay behind me. Only strike when you're sure."

The first beast lunged. Serena moved with terrifying precision, carving through it with a blackened slash that scattered its body like sand. Another rose, and she kicked it into the wall.

But one broke past her guard — heading straight for Ezren.

His instincts screamed. He raised his arm.

> [Soul Bind – Instinct Activation]

> Target: Phantom Beast

> Status: Weakened – Bind Successful

> Creating Contract…

Black chains shot from the ground and coiled around the creature. It screeched once — then fell silent, dissolving into a puff of energy that flowed into Ezren's chest.

> [Bound Minion: Phantom Shade – Acquired]

Ezren fell to one knee, gasping.

Serena turned. "What did you do?"

"I… I don't know. I just reacted."

He looked at his palm. It glowed faintly with a rune — like a lock had been undone.

She stared at him, her voice almost reverent. "That was a Soul Bind. Instinctual necromancy. You weren't supposed to learn that until level 10 or higher."

"But I'm level 1."

"Not anymore."

They continued down the dungeon, past murals depicting ancient wars and forgotten kings. In one chamber, a pool of corrupted mana pulsed like a beating heart. Serena explained how dungeons evolved from the trauma of fallen civilizations — living records made of pain and magic.

"I trained here once," she admitted. "Before I fled the factions. Before I tried to seal my class."

Ezren listened quietly. "Why did you stop?"

She hesitated. "Because I almost lost myself. Necromancy takes. From your enemies, from the world… from you. If you're not careful, you become something hollow."

He thought of the phantom wolf from before. The cold that followed his footsteps. "What if I already am?"

"You're not. Not yet. That's why we're here — to make sure you stay Ezren. Not whatever the System wants you to become."

---

They entered a new chamber. The walls flickered — something was wrong.

Serena cursed. "This wasn't here before."

The room trembled.

> [ALERT: Dual-Class Signature Detected]

> Light Affinity: Detected

> Corruption Instability: Critical

> Dungeon Mutation Triggered

"What does that mean?!" Ezren shouted.

"It means the dungeon senses something in you that doesn't belong — something holy. Your father's side."

The floor cracked. A monstrous shape pulled itself from a hole of light and dark — a creature of wings and chains, bound in holy runes and necrotic curses.

> [Mini-Boss: Gatebound Warden – Spawned]

> Level: 12

> Alignment Conflict Detected

> Status: ENRAGED

Serena shoved Ezren toward a glowing pedestal. "That's the dungeon core. It's reacting to you. Finish the trial — I'll hold this thing off!"

She rushed the creature without hesitation, blades drawn.

Ezren stood at the core — the light blinding. It called to him. A mix of light and shadow pulsed from within.

Choose.

Who are you, Ezren Darkmoor?

He reached out.

The dungeon core pulsed beneath Ezren's fingers — light and shadow coiled together like twin serpents, wrestling for control. His breath quickened. He felt it now, deep within his chest, a familiar heat and a chilling pull — two forces, utterly opposed, yet both undeniably part of him.

The System buzzed.

> [SYSTEM CONFLICT DETECTED]

>

> Class Signature: NECROMANCER (Dark)

> Latent Signature: HOLY INHERITANCE (Light)

>

> Initiating Core Trial…

> Align Your Will. Choose What to Become.

A second voice rose, ethereal and ancient — not the System, but the dungeon itself.

> You are bound by death… and yet touched by light. A vessel for contradiction. A sinner. A savior.

> Show us your choice, Heir.

Ezren clenched his fists. Behind him, the sound of steel clashing against chains echoed violently. Serena was still fighting, stalling the boss. But he knew she couldn't hold it forever.

"I didn't ask for this," Ezren whispered. "I didn't want to be cursed… or chosen."

> Want is irrelevant. Will is everything.

Before him, the core split into two distinct spheres — one a swirling vortex of bone-gray smoke and soulflame, the other a radiant orb humming with celestial energy. Between them hovered a third glyph: Undying Balance — a flicker of both.

> [Core Trial: Choose Your Path]

> ☠ Necromancer Path: Gain the skill "Gravecaller's Pact"

> ✨ Holy Path: Gain the skill "Lightborne Blessing"

> ⚖ Balanced Path: Risk unknown — Dual Affinity Trial Initiated

Ezren stared. He thought of his mother, fighting to protect him. Of the whispers in his dreams. Of the glowing handprint that had marked him since birth.

He reached for the third glyph.

> [Undying Balance: Selected]

> WARNING: Dual Affinity Detected — Unstable Choice

>

> Trial Initiated.

---

Suddenly, he was no longer in the dungeon.

The world shifted — he stood on a bridge suspended between light and shadow, the void yawning beneath. On one end stood a skeletal figure cloaked in robes of rotting black, his eye sockets filled with endless night. On the other stood a being of golden fire and wings of glass, radiating purity and judgment.

They spoke in unison.

> "To wield both, you must embrace both. Life and death. Sin and faith. Power… and the burden of choice."

Chains snaked from both ends, latching onto Ezren's arms. His body burned and froze simultaneously. Visions slammed into his mind — entire cities falling to undead armies, temples crumbling under blasphemy, a boy standing alone between two dying gods.

Then came silence.

> [Congratulations. You Have Passed the Trial of the Undying Chosen.]

> You have unlocked:

>

> Class Skill: Soulflare Bind

> ‣ Binds a creature in both radiant light and necrotic flame. Converts enemies into loyal spirits.

>

> Passive Trait: Dual Willed

> ‣ Immune to basic class alignment locks. Increases resistance to both holy and dark-based attacks.

>

> Your Class has begun to evolve…

> [Class Evolution Path: ???]

Ezren collapsed to his knees as the vision faded. The bridge vanished, replaced once again by the dungeon core, now flickering between gold and black. His heartbeat thundered in his ears.

Then he remembered—

"Mother!"

He rushed back into the chamber. Serena was bleeding, pinned against a broken pillar, the Gatebound Warden looming above her, wings cracking the air like thunder.

"Stay back!" she shouted, coughing blood. "You're not ready!"

Ezren didn't listen.

> [Skill Activated: Soulflare Bind]

He raised his hand. A radiant glyph circled his palm, overlapped by a dark sigil of bone. Chains of light erupted from the air, entwined with shadow. They wrapped around the Gatebound Warden, binding its limbs mid-strike.

The creature shrieked, struggling, but Ezren stepped forward, eyes glowing with twin fires.

"Your time's up."

> [Bind Success: 94%]

> [Spirit Assimilation Available]

>

> *Proceed?*

Ezren clenched his jaw. "Yes."

Light and darkness collapsed inward, dragging the creature into a single glowing soul orb — which floated, briefly, before entering his chest.

> [New Minion Acquired: Gatebound Echo (Bound – Limited Use)]

The silence that followed was deafening.

Serena stared at him, wide-eyed. "What… did you just do?"

Ezren helped her up. "I don't know exactly. But I think… I passed the test."

She leaned on him, a mixture of pride and terror in her eyes. "I've never seen anyone bind a mini-boss. You're… something new."

"No," Ezren whispered, looking at the pulsing rune on his hand. "I'm *something impossible*."

---

They exited the dungeon as the sun dipped low on the horizon.

The System pinged again.

> [Dungeon Cleared: Class-Specific Trial — Variant Route]

> EXP +1200

> Skill(s) Unlocked

> Affinity Noted: Dual-Class — Undying Chosen

>

> System Alert: Multiple Factions Notified of Anomalous Awakening

> [Tracking Enabled…]

Ezren's chest tightened. "The System is watching."

Serena nodded. "So are the factions. You've awakened something the world hasn't seen in three millennia."

"And what now?" he asked.

"We keep running. And you keep getting stronger."

He looked back at the dungeon. Its glow had faded.

But something lingered in his mind — a whisper he hadn't heard before, deep and distant.

He walks again… your father. He knows you live.

Ezren froze.

"Ezren?" Serena asked.

He didn't answer. The light in his eyes flickered.

End of Chapter 3