Sieg dreamt of being adrift between two celestial omens — above him hung a bleeding crescent moon, its crimson spill obscuring his visage, and beneath him loomed the mirrored image of a vast black hole.
He was bestowed with a muted voice; as he floated, the boy wandered in soundless silence, facing the eerie emptiness of the void.
The terror of the unknown was aggravated by the myriad opening of eyes, gazing at him from every known cardinal direction.
A waning sanity — a slum boy pushed to the brink of madness. He begged without words, without emotions or facial expressions, for the nightmare to finally end.
The king would grant his wish in the form of a gargantuan serpent with serrated fangs, resembling a deep-sea monstrosity. It had an antenna made of a dying star.
The vast void was like its ocean, slithering through it with the clear intention of devouring him whole.
Sieg couldn't escape — there was no space to swim through, no ground to run on, and no one to hear his screams.
All he could do was wait for it to swallow him, closing his eyes and accepting his inevitable fate.
The serpent drew closer, its impossible size revealed in horrifying detail, comparable to an entire celestial body.
Sieg was nothing more than an ant—no, a single microscopic cell, before its abyssal maw.
The serpent's jaws closed in, and the void splintered into nothingness.
Did I finally die?
Sieg's ability to think had returned. He felt grass beneath him… then opened his eyes to a starless sky.
The lingering pain from the cosmic ordeal overwhelmed him completely — he lay there for a few moments, devoid of thought, devoid of anything resembling a human.
Just a blank stare, that of someone trying to recover from a incomprehensible experience.
› [Welcome! You are one of one million people worldwide who dared to witness the Sanity's Eclipse. You have qualified for the 'Red' Ascendant Trial. Compared to a standard Tribunal Eclipse, success here grants a significantly higher chance of manifesting a special Origin Arts.]
› [However, 988,987 have already perished, leaving only 11,013 remaining. The trial now bears a 98% fatality rate. You are among the rare few who survived the King's gaze and have made it this far.]
Sieg saw a pale, white interface appear in front of him, glowing softly like frosted glass.
What am I looking at — some sort of game screen…
Despite the grim information about a mass genocide, he was too mentally defeated to even care.
I hope Eisen was one of the people who died… He smirked.
Sigh… if he succeeds and the trial ends… there's a chance we might emerge at the same time. And we'll have to face each other again — as completely different people.
› [Warning! You have been idle for too long — continue your journey or risk disqualification.]
"Fine, fine." Sieg leaned up, realizing that even when he had been spaghettified and turned into a black orb, everything about him was still intact — same rugged clothes, much to his pleasant surprise.
"My injuries are gone? Huh, the trial must've healed them. How nice of them."
He surveyed his surroundings — looming trees stretched around him, forming a bleak forest.
Sieg had one thing going for him: the ability to cope within extreme situations. Massaging his head and rubbing his eyes, he cast a careful glance toward the distant woods — and whatever he saw jolted him upright into a fight-or-flight response.
"What the heck is that!" So many human-like eyes were gazing at him… and even the skies were full of them.
More lurked behind the trees — a clear warning not to venture beyond, and to stick only to the path given to him by whatever creatures were watching.
"Oh come on…"
› [Please pick up the trial weapon in front of you.]
And in front of him — was a sword in a stone.
Sieg shook his head, forcing himself to stay calm. The staring eyes posed no real threat, and the boy once again reminded himself of the reason he was here.
He didn't know the difference between this and a normal Tribunal Eclipse Ascendant Trial, other than this one's higher fatality rate.
But the reward at the end was far too enticing—a 'Special' Origin Arts, giving him even more reason to survive.
The fact that I'm still alive means I have a chance to win… he thought internally as he walked toward the sword.
Shortly after, the boy stood before the long-forgotten longsword. It wasn't fancy by any means; its design resembled a standard-issue blade straight out of medieval times.
› [Special Longsword — Within this trial, this longsword has been bestowed with abnormal levels of toughness and sharpness.]
"Harvesting my organs… and my mother still in a coma." His hand gripped the handle.
Anger and frustration empowered him. He tried to pull the sword from the stone, but it wouldn't budge.
"I have far too many reasons to win!" His grip tightened, pouring every ounce of strength into the pull. Veins bulged, sweat dripped, cheeks clenched — he was summoning all the power his slum-born body could muster.
"DAMN IT!"
"AUGHHHHH!"
Power wasn't free — and eventually, with a tremendous usage of force, he pulled the sword free, losing his footing and landing hard on his buttocks.
OUCH!
But in his hand, the sword had accepted him.
He caught his breath and stood up, with a waning confidence from this small achievement — the countless eyes watching him from every direction no longer bothered him; he stared back at each and every one of them.
"Watch me… ME, the fuckass twig, WE'LL WIN!"
› [Quest Accepted — Please walk down the designated path ahead and face every tribulation this trial may place in your way, Ascendant Candidate. Reward for Completion: An Origin Arts.]
An Origin Arts… I wonder what I'll get.
› [Your starting stats have been calibrated.]
› [Please open and check your status menu.]
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—[ Sieg Ravel ]—
Elite Level: 0
Origin Arts: ??
Orbs: ??
Requirement for the next Elite Level — Obtain an Origin arts…
[Stats: Strength 0/0, Endurance 0/0, Dexterity 0/0, Toughness 0/0, Sanity 3/3, Spell Power 0/0, Accuracy 0/0, Lethality 0/0.]
---
"Wow, aren't I pathetic?!"
Chapter End.