Dawn slowly spread across the horizon. The air carried the scent of moisture and decaying leaves, yet within this smell lay life—rich and fresh, the breath of a new morning.
The village awakened gradually: the chirping of birds, the crackling of fires, the grunting of goblin guards.
But Noa still lay inside the hut.
Within him, voices grew louder—strange whispers emerging from the depths of his heart, giving him no peace.
Noa's thoughts:
"These voices... they've started again. How much longer? These strange sounds torment my soul. They won't even let me sleep, damn it. I need to go outside..."
He rose slowly. His eyes remained in darkness—he still couldn't see anything. Yet he sensed every sound, every movement. As if the world now spoke to him not through his eyes, but through his ears.
Noa stepped out of the hut slowly. Sunlight touched his face. Warmth penetrated his body, heating his heart.
Noa: "The sun... feels like I haven't felt it in ages..."
He walked forward a few steps. Without any purpose. As if merely seeking slight relief from the weight in his heart.
The goblin guards along the path simply watched him.
One guard to another: "He's come outside..."
Another guard: "The chief said: don't touch him. No one touches him."
Noa continued walking. Each step—quiet, yet turbulent emotions churned within.
Suddenly, he stumbled into something.
Noa: "What... what is this now?"
He felt around with his hand. A cage of some sort.
Low voices came from inside. Women.
A woman's voice: "Who's this? White hair... blindfolded... is this a human?"
Another whispered: "He looks only about fifteen... but a human child in a goblin village? That's impossible!"
Noa stood silent. One of the women stepped forward—her voice mixed with hope and caution.
The woman: "Hey, boy... what's your name?"
Noa turned his head slightly.
Noa: "First, tell me who you are."
The woman: "My name is Sara. Listen, boy, if you free me from here, I'll give you a crystal."
Noa's thoughts:
"Crystal? A woman in a cage, among goblins... this is strange. But why is she asking me for help? I can play along..."
Noa responded in a cold tone.
Noa: "What exactly is a crystal?"
Sara: "Something sorcerers use. Very rare and valuable."
Noa shrugged his shoulders.
Noa: "That doesn't interest me."
He turned to walk away.
Sara: "Wait! Alright, this isn't an ordinary crystal. It's a pure crystal. With it, you can bring any object to life."
Noa stood silent for a moment.
His thoughts:
"A woman enslaved in the village... so goblins enslave humans. A woman kept in a cage... I have nothing else to do right now, at least this gives me something to act on."
Noa: "Fine, how do I free you? As you can see, I'm blind."
Sara's thoughts:
So they don't consider him a threat because he's blind...
"Walk three steps forward," Sara said, hope awakening in her voice. "Then twenty-three steps to the left. In that hut, there's a key to the cage. The key will be on the ground, on the right side."
Noa: "Understood."
He set off as instructed. With each step, his ears listened to the subtle sounds around him—the wind, the rustling of leaves, his own breathing.
He reached the hut and opened the door slowly.
Goblins (startled): "Noa-sama!? What are you doing here?"
Noa (in a calm tone): "I need the cage key."
Doubt and fear appeared on their faces, but none dared oppose him. They handed over the key.
Noa walked out without a word and returned to the cage, bumping into it again.
Noa: "Here's the key. Now give me the crystal."
Sara: "Give me the key first."
Noa: "I refuse."
They stood in silence. Stillness between them.
Then Sara retrieved a small crystal from the bottom corner of the cage and tossed it toward Noa.
The crystal landed at Noa's feet.
Noa picked it up and held it in his palm.
For a moment, powerful energy surged through him from his heart—his senses sharpened dramatically. He sensed every sound around him, every tremor in the air, even the woman's heartbeat.
Then the feeling vanished in an instant.
Noa slowly tossed the key toward where the sound had come from.
Sara caught it. At that moment, Noa turned and walked away slowly.
Sara's thoughts:
"This boy... is strange. He can't see anything, yet he senses everything around him. The goblins ignore him—this is my chance." And the black crystal... it's poisonous, hehe.
She was about to insert the key into the cage door when someone firmly grasped her wrist.
A voice: "Trying to escape, fool?"
Sara jumped. The key fell from her hand.
Even without looking, she knew who it was—this voice...
Someone emerged from the shadows.
It was Rion.
He had heard that Noa had left the hut. Following him, he had also overheard the conversation with the woman. Now he stood here, beside the cage.
Rion (in a quiet, cold tone): "So... you've been helping those trying to escape from here..."
His eyes weren't on the woman, but on Noa, who was slowly walking away in the distance.
A strange feeling stirred in Rion's heart—what was changing inside Noa?
Noa: "Someone escort me to my hut!" he shouted.
Gobuto immediately came running.
Gobuto: "Are you alright, Second Master? I'll escort you."
Noa: "No unnecessary words. Just take me."
Gobuto: "Yes, right away..."
Gobuto walked silently, thinking to himself:
"What's happened to this dragon? He doesn't even like kind words anymore..."
He brought Noa to his hut. Noa entered and sat down. He turned the crystal over in his hand.
Noa's thoughts: "This crystal isn't ordinary... When I held it, my senses strengthened for a moment. Things around me appeared clearly in my consciousness. But that state only lasted an instant..."
He took a deep breath.
Noa's thoughts: "If it's not compatible with me, it's useless. But... I need to try absorbing it into myself."
There are such rare crystals in the world—they say those with abilities can absorb them into their bodies. If compatible, they enhance one's power significantly. If this is a sensory crystal...
Noa held the crystal in his palm and clenched his fist tightly.
In an instant, waves of dark energy enveloped the quiet hut.
Dark light emanated from his body, as if burning. His breathing quickened, his heart pounded, then... everything plunged into darkness.
Inside Noa's Consciousness
He opened his eyes—the sky was bottomlessly black, but at its center burned a sun radiating violet light. The clouds seemed to take life from that light, shimmering in flowing violet hues. Below stretched a glistening, water-like surface of the world—like the bottomless reflection of a mirror.
Noa: "This place... I recognize it. I came here when my false aura awakened too... but it was slightly different then, yet somehow the same..."
He looked around and walked. Though his feet touched the water's surface, he didn't sink—only ripples formed.
After walking a bit, he saw a stone standing like a monument. Information about himself glowed like light on the stone's surface:
[Artifact: Stone of the Abyss]
User: Noa S. Dragon
Age: 11
Strength: 10
Endurance: 5
Speed: 12
Intelligence: 120
Mana: None
Ability: False Aura
Level: Beginner — 1
Noa approached the stone and touched it with his hand. The stone was ice-cold.
Noa: "Hardly any change... Only 'Intelligence'—120. What does this mean? Am I actually intelligent, or is this because I've read books since childhood?... There was no 'Intelligence' entry the first time..."
Suddenly, the surroundings trembled. A voice echoed from the darkness—as if thousands of voices were laughing together:
???: "Hahaha... Don't you even know what you're like, Noa?"
Noa: "Who's this?! Come out! If you want my soul, take it! Leave me in peace! You've touched my very soul, you plague!"
He shouted, but the voice drew even closer—cold, piercingly savage to the heart:
???: "You summoned me, boy. Now don't run... hahaha...!!!"
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15 + 20 - 10 = 25