Just then, the creature's eyes shot open, glowing faintly with life. Before he could grasp what was happening, a chill spread through his body.
A sharp wave of pain surged through his chest—so strong it felt like he was being torn apart. He couldn't make sense of what was happening. His eyes dropped to his chest.
There was a big hole there—his heart was gone. And then he realized.
One of the tentacles, unlike the others, red and black, had appeared and pierced through his chest in less than a second.
And just at that critical moment, his vision began to blur, his mind went blank, and his body froze...
Followed by the darkness swallowing him slowly and completely.
But at that very moment, he found himself sinking into a deep sea of consciousness.
He was drowning.
He saw a light above the surface—so far, yet so close. It felt special, as if it was calling out to him, but he didn't care. He was confused.
'Where am I?'
'Did I die?'
He kept sinking deeper.
The light seemed to drift farther away, yet somehow closer—too close. None of it made sense.
He shut his eyes and thought, 'Is this my end? Did I lose… just like that?'
And he felt something getting attracted from his body toward the seemless light, something awakening or maybe originating.
He felt the attraction of light growing and growing with each seconds.
Then, suddenly, his eyes snapped open. With all his strength, he reached toward the light.
'No… I'm not losing like this. That light is calling me—it's giving me a chance. And I can't let it slip away.'
He pushed the water behind him with all his strength, crawling toward the light—but it kept drifting farther away. This time, it was too far… farther than far itself. It felt unreachable, but nothing was impossible for him.
Even in that sea of consciousness, tears still formed on his cheeks, sinking into the depths below.
'I must reach it… I must.' Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself harder.
He didn't give up—no matter how distant the goal seemed.
…
This time, the seconds didn't feel like eternity.
He reached the light—and at that very moment, in the hall of the mysterious tower, the ground trembled. The hole in his chest vanished, the wound completely healed.
But then, his human form began to change. From his back, a dark reddish tail emerged. His eyes turned completely red, his hair shifted to blonde, and two small horns pushed out from his head.
Just then, he vanished from his spot—reappearing just inches away from the creature.
The red tentacle shot toward him at terrifying speed, but his tail blocked the strike.
The tail was scratched and bleeding slightly, but he stood firm. As the other tentacles lunged at him all at once, he vanished again—appearing beside, above, beneath—cutting through each one in a blur. But no one could have guessed what would happen next.
His eyes widened. His left arm was gone. Blood poured from the shoulder joint, staining the floor.
Yet his eyes showed no emotion. His mind was blank, but he understood—he had fallen into a trap. The creature had wanted to distract him.
He looked up. The creature was shaking violently, its mouth wide open—and from that darkness, something began to emerge.
It was another tentacle, unlike the rest—covered in razor-sharp spikes, spinning at a speed too fast to follow. Its tip was thin, splitting like a blade.
Then it shot forward—fast, deadly.
He swung his sword, cutting through the other tentacles, shattering them apart with immense force.
He dodged aside, thanks to the Morrveil Vision. The spiked tentacle sliced the air just millimeters away, tearing through his shirt. The rush of wind blasted across the hall.
But it twisted back, changing direction in an instant—then struck him from behind, piercing through his back and out his chest.
Blood burst from his mouth. The tail began to fade, the horns shrank, and the red in his eyes vanished.
Blood splattered across the hall.
Just then his right hand slowly lifted toward the creature automatically, gripping the sword as his form began to change back to normal. His eyes were about to close—and then, in a flash, his arm was sliced off by a tentacle moving at terrifying speed.
The hall shook violently. Something massive emerged from above and was swallowed whole by the creature.
Thick, sticky liquid splattered everywhere as it swallowed the bald creature completely.
The last thing he saw was a familiar being wrapping around the enemy, devouring it as if it were nothing more than a cockroach.
Then, his body gave out. He fell unconscious.
…
Suddenly, his eyes shot open. A loud noise echoed in his head, mixed with the flickering hum of panels.
He found himself in darkness. And just then from the distance—no, from everywhere—countless empty eyes began to appear, closing in on him.
He caught his breath, trying to steady himself.
'Where am I?'
He looked around, but all he could see were those hollow eyes.
Then, placing a hand on his chest, he froze.
'It healed?' His eyes widened.
'Didn't I die? I don't remember anything after that…'
He tried recalling the moment—the first time that creature had torn a hole through his body—but beyond that, his memory was blank and last memory was the second creature that had entered in him, swallowing the enemy.
He had no idea what happened before.
Then suddenly, to his shock, glowing panels appeared before his eyes:
[You have slaughtered: Splein Octod]
[You have received: Splein Genetics]
…
[Congratulations! You have advanced to: Apprentice Branch]
[Your branch extends]
[You have received: Sixth Sense – Inevitable Sense]
[Description]: Inevitable Sense allows you to perceive unavoidable futures, locate lost things, and detect lies or truths.
And just after that critical juncture, the emtpy eyes started closing starting from infinity. And then he found himself back on the edge of bedroom. Staring at the ceilings.