Chapter 34: The Fallen Engineer

The shrill scream of twisting metal echoed through the chamber. The Engineering Mech’s enormous body convulsed violently.

"Maintenance protocol... failure..." It spoke fragmented maintenance commands before its massive body froze, finally collapsing onto the railway tracks with a thunderous crash.

BOOM!

Its core lights flickered... Then they went dark.

With a deafening crash, the towering construct collapsed, its body dissolving into countless streams of shimmering data.

[Successfully defeated Level 6 Boss: Out-of-Control Engineering Mech!]

[Reward: +800 EXP]

["Greed" activated!]

Obtained:

[Thick Bearing] ×2

[Broken Hydraulic Rod] ×1

[Soul Essence absorbed!]

[Constitution +2 acquired from Out-of-Control Engineering Mech.]

[First Boss Kill Reward!]

[Tough Combat Suit (Uncommon)]

[Power Gauntlets (Rare Grade.)]

[Gold +20]

The cascade of rewards sent a surge of excitement through Aiden.

But among the notifications, one thing drew his full attention..A brilliant flash of blue.

’Rare equipment!’

His heart thumped wildly. Without hesitation, he strode toward the fallen loot and picked up the two pieces of equipment.

[Tough Combat Suit (Torso)]

[Quality: Uncommon]

[Requirements: Level 5 • Constitution 10]

[Attributes:]

[Physical Defense +8]

[HP +30]

[Durability: 25/25]

[Power Gauntlets (Weapon)]

[Quality: Rare]

[Requirements: Level 5 • Strength 12]

[Attributes:]

[Physical Attack: 15–20]

[Strength +2]

[Special Effect: Charged Strike (Active): Consumes 20 Mana. Your next basic attack deals 150% Physical Damage.]

[Cooldown: 30 seconds]

[Durability: 30/30]

A Rare-grade weapon.

And one that came with an active skill.

Aiden Cross didn’t waste a second.

He immediately equipped the [Tough Combat Suit].

Although he was still slightly below the level requirement, his attributes met the minimum threshold, allowing him to wear it. The reinforced armor settled comfortably over his body, and a noticeable surge of vitality coursed through him as his health and defenses increased.

Next came the [Power Gauntlets], replacing the battered kitchen knife that had carried him through the dungeon.

The gauntlets felt satisfyingly heavy.

Cold steel wrapped around his forearms, while intricate pressure mechanisms surrounded each knuckle.

As he flexed his fingers, faint mechanical clicks echoed through the chamber.

’I can feel it! Power! Raw, tangible power!’

He was filled with excitement.

The +2 Strength bonus flowed through his muscles, and the increase in attack power made every movement feel sharper and more explosive.

Aiden’s confidence rose accordingly.

Yet instead of advancing toward the control room where the dungeon’s final boss awaited, he did something that seemed utterly meaningless.

He walked back to the fallen Engineering Mech.

Bending down, he picked up the nearly ruined kitchen knife.

Then he carefully folded the worn clothes he had discarded earlier.

Without the slightest hesitation, he placed both items atop a faded symbol engraved at the center of the maintenance platform.

Most players would have overlooked the mark entirely.

But Aiden knew better.

In his previous life, dedicated lore hunters had uncovered forgotten development notes after a major version update that updated the world itself.

Hidden within the background story was the symbol of the Subway Engineers’ Brotherhood, a memorial honoring those who died maintaining the city’s underground rail system.

Only by offering both the starting weapon and the starting clothing upon that symbol could the dungeon’s true master be awakened on Normal difficulty.

The instant the offerings touched the emblem, the entire maintenance platform trembled.

Then the vibration spread.

The tunnel...

The walls...

No, not just that.

The entire dungeon shook.

A deep azure light burst from the engraved symbol before racing across every groove and pattern carved into the platform, illuminating them like flowing veins.

The kitchen knife and old clothes dissolved into countless particles of blue light, vanishing without a trace.

A heartbeat later, a low, distorted roar echoed from the depths of the tunnel ahead.

It was a cry filled with agony...

Hatred...

And endless resentment.

The sound of twisting steel and crackling electricity accompanied the roar, creating a suffocating pressure that dwarfed anything the Engineering Mech had produced.

[Hidden Condition Fulfilled!]

[Hidden Boss Unlocked: Fallen Engineer · Alan’s Resentment]

[Dungeon Difficulty Increased!]

[Completion Rewards Significantly Increased!]

Aiden’s eyes narrowed.

’Finally!’

He tightened his grip on the [Power Gauntlets], every muscle in his body tensing for the battle ahead.

From the darkness, a figure slowly emerged.

It retained the outline of a man...

But only barely.

The left half of its body had fused grotesquely with a shattered maintenance mech.

Twisted steel, broken gears, and exposed hydraulic lines protruded from its flesh like a malignant metallic tumor, growing in unnatural directions.

The other half remained ghostly and translucent.

Within that spectral visage was an expression frozen between unbearable suffering and boundless hatred.

In its hand, it dragged an enormous engineer’s wrench wrapped in writhing arcs of black electricity, each scrape against the floor sending showers of sparks across the platform.

A rusted identification badge hung from his ruined chest.

The name engraved on it was almost unreadable.

It was:

[Alan Mercer - Chief Engineer.]

[Fallen Engineer · Alan’s Resentment (Hidden Boss)]

[Level: 8]

[Traits:]

[Wraith Shriek (Mental Attack)]

[Heavy Mechanical Swing]

[Overload Field (Continuous Area Damage)]

[Summon Maintenance Robots]

[Level 8]

It was a Hidden Boss!

And a terrifying fusion of machine and vengeful spirit!

The pressure was overwhelming.

The air itself seemed to grow heavier.

Neither side moved.

For one tense heartbeat, the platform fell deathly silent.

Then it disappeared. No, It lunged. Its speed far surpassed that of the Out-of-Control Engineering Mech.

It was as if the previous boss had been stripped of all its sluggishness and given the speed of a predator.

The massive wrench howled through the air, wrapped in writhing black lightning as it crashed toward Aiden’s skull.

BOOM!

The wrench smashed into the platform where he had stood a heartbeat earlier, blasting chunks of concrete and twisted steel into the air.

Aiden had already slipped to the side.

His eyes narrowed as thermal Perception activated.

The world immediately gained another layer. Unlike the Engineering Mech, the Fallen Engineer wasn’t completely synchronized with its surroundings.

A faint heat signature radiated from its mechanical half, slightly warmer than the surrounding metal and concrete.

It was subtle. But it was enough.

Aiden could see the heat shifting through its body as its muscles and mechanical components prepared for movement.

’Good.’

He could read it. But then the Fallen Engineer moved again.

Aiden’s pupils contracted. ’Too fast!’

The creature was already in front of him. The wrench swept horizontally.

Aiden bent backward. The electrified weapon passed barely inches above his face.

He immediately countered by stepping inside its reach.

But before he could attack, the Fallen Engineer opened its mouth.

No sound emerged. Yet an invisible scream erupted directly inside his mind.