Baekno Nuri locked up the convenience store, yawning as he pocketed the keys. It had been a long day, and he was looking forward to a quiet night at home. As he walked out into the cool evening air, he noticed a strange glow emanating from the alleyway beside the store.

Curious, Nuri wandered over to investigate. The glow grew brighter, and he felt a strange energy emanating from it. Suddenly, he was enveloped in a blinding light, and everything went dark.

When Nuri opened his eyes again, he found himself in a completely different world. He was standing in a bustling marketplace, surrounded by towering beastmen with scales, fur, and feathers. They stared at him with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion, and Nuri realized that he had no idea how he got there or how to get back.

"Where am I?" he asked aloud, but the beastmen just growled and snarled in response.

Nuri's heart raced as he tried to make sense of his surroundings. He had never seen anything like this before. The beastmen were unlike anything he had ever imagined, and the strange energy that had brought him here still lingered in the air.

As he tried to wrap his head around what was happening, a group of beastmen approached him, their eyes fixed on him with an unnerving intensity. Nuri's instincts told him to run, but his legs felt heavy and uncoordinated.

"What do you want from me?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

But the beastmen just kept coming, their eyes burning with an otherworldly intensity. Nuri realized that he was in grave danger, and that he had no idea how to escape.

And then, everything went black again.

Baekno Nuri stepped out of the convenience store, the neon lights of the sign overhead casting an eerie glow on the darkening streets. He stretched his lean frame, arching his back and extending his claws - no, not claws, he corrected himself, just his fingers. He wasn't a beastman, after all. Not yet, anyway.

As he walked away from the store, the urban landscape seemed to blur and distort, like a reflection in rippling water. The skyscrapers loomed closer, their windows glowing with an otherworldly energy. Nuri's heart raced with a thrill of excitement and fear. He had seen this before, in his dreams. The Unseen Realm, where the laws of reality were twisted and distorted.

And then, he was through the veil, standing in a marketplace that was both familiar and strange. The beastmen around him were like nothing he had ever seen, their scales and fur glistening in the flickering torchlight. They regarded him with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion, their eyes gleaming with an unnatural intelligence.

Nuri's instincts screamed at him to run, but his legs felt heavy and uncoordinated. He was trapped in this strange new world, with no idea how to escape. And then, a voice whispered in his ear, "Welcome, Baekno Nuri. You are mine now."

The world went black, and Nuri felt himself being pulled into a darkness that was both terrifying and exhilarating. He was about to become a part of something much larger than himself, something that would change him forever.

Nuri's eyes fluttered open, and he found himself in a dimly lit chamber. The air was thick with the scent of incense, and the walls were adorned with strange symbols that seemed to pulse with a malevolent energy. He tried to sit up, but a sharp pain shot through his head, forcing him back onto the cold stone floor.

A gathering of hooded figures surrounded him, their whispers echoing through the room like a dark chant.

"It's said he's an ancient one...a creature of legend..."

"No, that's impossible. We've never seen anything like him..."

"What if he's the key to unlocking the secrets of the ancients?"

As Nuri struggled to regain his bearings, Lyraeus Tharrak emerged from the shadows. His eyes burned with an intense gaze, and Nuri felt a shiver run down his spine.

"Who are you?" Nuri croaked, his throat dry and parched.

Lyraeus regarded him for a moment before responding. "I am Lyraeus Tharrak, General of the Xeridian Army. And you...I'm not quite sure what you are. Your origin is a mystery to me."

The whispers grew louder, more urgent. "It can't be...he's not the one...the prophecy is clear..."

Nuri's mind reeled as he tried to process what was happening. He had no memory of how he got here, no idea how to get back home. And these strangers, with their occult whispers and ancient prophecies, seemed to be hiding secrets of their own.

"What do you want from me?" Nuri asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

Lyraeus's eyes narrowed. "I want to know what you are. What you're capable of. And I will stop at nothing to uncover the truth."

The whispers grew louder still, a cacophony of fear and anticipation. Nuri realized that he was trapped in a dark game, one that he didn't understand. But he knew one thing for certain: he wasn't the ancient creature they were searching for. He was just a mortal, lost in a world beyond his own.

"One of the hooded figures stepped forward, its voice dripping with malice. "We didn't summon him, Lyraeus. He's not the one we sought. He's just a mortal, a mere inconvenience. We should kill him, and be done with it."

Nuri's heart raced as the figure's words were met with a chorus of agreement from the gathered crowd. Lyraeus's eyes narrowed, his gaze fixed on Nuri with an intensity that made his skin crawl.

"I'll decide what to do with him," Lyraeus growled, his voice low and menacing. "Not you, Kaelith Sunshadow. You would do well to remember your place."

Kaelith's eyes flashed with anger, but she bit back her retort, her gaze flicking to Nuri with a calculating intensity. "As you wish, General. But know this: he is a liability. And liabilities are always eliminated."

Nuri's mind raced as the tension in the room escalated. He was trapped, surrounded by enemies who seemed to want him dead. And Lyraeus, the one person who seemed to be holding back the wolves, seemed to be struggling to maintain control.

What did they want from him? And why did they seem so determined to kill him? Nuri's heart raced as he tried to find a way out of this deadly game. But for now, he was at the mercy of Lyraeus and his followers. And that was a terrifying thought indeed."

Kaelith's eyes gleamed with malevolence as she spoke again. "The ritual of summoning a great demon is not to be taken lightly. Any variable that could disrupt the balance must be eliminated. And that includes him."

The hooded figures murmured in agreement, their voices like a dark chant. "Yes, yes, eliminate the variable. Kill him."

Nuri's heart skipped a beat as he realized his fate was all but sealed. And then, in a absurd moment of terror, he felt a hiccup rise up in his chest.

"Hic!" he exclaimed, the sound echoing through the chamber like a silly protest against the darkness that surrounded him.

The hooded figures paused, their eyes fixed on him with a mixture of confusion and annoyance. Lyraeus's gaze narrowed, his expression unreadable.

"Hic!" Nuri exclaimed again, his body trembling with fear and his dignity slipping away with each passing moment.

Kaelith's eyes rolled in exasperation. "Kill him, already. Before he brings any more chaos to our ritual."

The hooded figures moved closer, their hands reaching out like dark tentacles. Nuri's heart raced as he realized his time was running out. And then, in a desperate bid to distract them, he let out another hiccup.

"Hic!" he exclaimed, the sound echoing through the chamber like a last protest against the darkness that was about to consume him.

"Remember, all of you," Lyraeus growled, his eyes sweeping the room. "We are playing with forces beyond our control. If we are not careful, we will unleash a power that cannot be contained. And we will all suffer the consequences."

Nuri's hiccup was caught in his throat as Lyraeus's words hung in the air. He suppressed it with a mighty effort, his eyes fixed on the General with a mixture of fear and awe.

"Let us proceed with caution," Lyraeus continued. "We will uncover the secrets of this mortal, and we will use them to our advantage. But let us not forget the dangers that we face. Let us not forget the price of failure."

The hooded figures nodded in unison, their eyes gleaming with a mixture of excitement and fear. Nuri's heart raced as he realized the gravity of his situation. He was trapped in a web of dark magic and ancient powers, with no escape in sight. And Lyraeus's warning had only made things worse. The General's words had awakened a new fear in him, a fear of the unknown consequences that lurked in the shadows.

Nuri's eyes darted to his wrists and ankles, and his heart skipped a beat as he saw the glowing chains that bound him. He hadn't noticed them before, but now they seemed to pulse with a malevolent energy.

"Oh no," he whispered, his mind racing with the implications. "What have they done to me?"

He thought back to the events of the day, trying to process everything that had happened.

He had closed up the convenience store, walked home, and then...and then he had been summoned here. Wherever "here" was.

He remembered the strange symbols on the wall, the hooded figures, and Lyraeus's menacing gaze.

And now, he was bound with glowing chains, a prisoner in a dark and ancient ritual.

Nuri's heart raced as he realized the extent of his predicament. He was trapped, with no escape in sight. And the ritual was far from over.