Sphinx Street—a name notorious across New Dall City, infamous for its chaos.
It was a slum packed with dingy taverns, sketchy casinos, smoke-filled cabarets, and grimy pool halls. Naturally, street gangs and lowlifes flourished here, and violent brawls broke out nearly every night.
Take now, for instance.
A body was hurled through the glass facade of a pool hall, crashing onto the street, bloodied and barely conscious.
Following him out of the shattered window came a massive figure.
Nearly two meters tall, his boot landed with a crack, snapping a wooden board underfoot. He was no ordinary thug—broad-shouldered and muscular, his build alone radiated oppressive force. This man wasn't fat. He was power incarnate.
He stomped on the fallen man's back, pinning him in place beneath the buzzing neon lights. The glow lit up his face—sharp features, thick brows, fierce eyes. At first glance, he looked like a brute, but a second look betrayed something… noble. Commanding.
Without sparing another glance at the chaos still echoing inside the pool hall, the man casually sat on the poor bastard he'd just floored.
That unlucky guy might've coughed up blood if he'd still been conscious.
The man, now casually seated atop his victim, picked up a crumpled newspaper lying on the ground, not even bothering to wipe off the grime before flipping it open.
"Sodis Resistance Crushed! Empire's Westward Push Succeeds Again!"
"Another Unknown Rift Opens in the Capital – Entire Recon Squad Lost! Gate Expected to Collapse in Three Days."
"Terrifying Cannibal Attacks in Vandir City Linked to Unstable Dimensional Breach Six Months Ago!"
Bane shook his head with a dry chuckle. "The world's really going to hell, huh?"
Yes—Bane, the man now known as a local powerhouse, hadn't been born in this world.
He'd arrived just two weeks ago—through some inexplicable twist of fate.
Every time he thought about it, he felt a wave of bitter frustration.
Back in his original world, Bane had it all—charming looks, a sharp tongue, and a few "unique talents" that made life go quite well. He'd just won over a young, wealthy, gorgeous landlady and was living rent-free in her luxurious villa.
He had plans. Big ones.
Then he blinked—and found himself in a stranger's body, brawling in the backstreets like a thug.
The body he now inhabited was certainly strong. Imposingly so. But going from mansion life to street-level chaos? The downgrade was... traumatic.
Yeah, his reincarnation—or whatever this was—was definitely a bad deal.
Still, Bane had always had a decent mindset. After two weeks of bruises and broken knuckles, he'd mostly come to terms with reality.
The body's previous owner had died in a gang brawl. A faint scar behind the ear hadn't yet fully healed.
But the guy wasn't ordinary. He was a registered ability user under the Empire's Bureau of Special Capabilities—Grade E.
His ability? Physical reinforcement.
In simple terms—superhuman body stats. Greater strength, denser muscle, tougher bones. The complete musclehead package.
Not bad at all.
But still—only Grade E. In an empire with a thousand-year legacy of gifted individuals, E-ranks were a dime a dozen. Not exactly special.
Especially now—after the mysterious rifts called Dimensional Gates had started opening around the world. Strange powers from other realms were bleeding into this one, breaking the old order apart.
In that kind of world, even ability users like Bane weren't considered big shots. His E-rank status had earned him a low-level gang leader position, nothing more.
"Yeah… this reincarnation sucks," he muttered, half-laughing at himself.
Behind him, the noise in the pool hall was finally dying down.
A few moments later, a wiry-looking underling emerged from the doorway, dragging a man who'd clearly been beaten within an inch of his life. A crew of Bane's thugs followed close behind.
"Boss! Got the money back!" the small-time enforcer grinned.
He held up a paper bag stuffed with cash and handed it over. Bane didn't bother counting it. He glanced at the broken door and the unconscious bodies inside.
Just another night.
He casually ruffled the bloodied man's head like a scolding parent and sneered."This is Sphinx Street. Nobody dodges my debts. You think grabbing a few street rats means you get to skip payment?"
The guy didn't respond. Unconscious, or worse.
Bane frowned. He leaned in, checked the man's breathing… and scowled.
"Damn it, I told you idiots to go easy. Now he's dead! People are gonna think I'm some kind of ruthless psycho."
The lackeys looked mildly surprised, but one of them shrugged. "Boss, this is New Dall. People die all the time. Nobody cares."
"That was before," Bane snapped. "The paper said it—the Sodis rebels are crushed. The Empire's expanding west. This place won't stay lawless for long. Once it becomes a supply station, order's gonna return. You think we'll still be free to play gangsters then?"
He trailed off. Explaining this kind of thing to them felt pointless.
Instead, he grabbed two stacks of bills from the bag and tossed them at one of the more annoying thugs."You just earned yourself a corpse. Take twenty thousand and lay low. If it's not enough, go hustle more on the street. Come back when things cool off."
"Y-Yes, boss!" the guy said happily—but then hesitated. "Uh… boss, what do you mean 'hustle more on the street'?"
"Figure it out yourself," Bane said, waving him off.
He was done playing the street thug.
This whole gang boss thing—it had no future. These past two weeks were just reconnaissance. Time to learn the world, earn some quick cash.
Now it was time to aim higher.
After dismissing the crew, Bane headed home.
That's right—he actually had a place. Being a mid-tier gang leader came with perks.
But he planned to sell it off soon. Get out of New Dall and start over.
Too many people here knew his face. Everywhere he went, someone called him "Boss." Or worse, old enemies came out of the woodwork looking for revenge.
Not the kind of place to start fresh.
As he mulled this over and entered the stairwell, he turned the corner—and then suddenly froze.
A strange energy pulsed from his chest, flooding outward.
His breath caught. His legs went weak.
Before he could figure out what was happening, a glowing portal opened right in front of him—shimmering with rainbow light, hovering in the air like a doorway made of stars.
Eyes wide, Bane gasped.
"...A Dimensional Gate!?"