A figure lay asleep on the ground, its body large and quadrupedal, with six limbs—four arms and two legs—and a long tail ending in a sharp point. Its fingers carried knife-like claws meant for tearing flesh.
The beast's eyes snapped open suddenly, the jolt forcing it upright.
'What the hell?' the beast thought—or rather, whatever was inside the beast did.
'Where am I?' it wondered as it observed its surroundings, noticing it was in a rocky cave. Although everything was wrapped in shadows, it could see clearly.
Lowering its head, it noticed its body.
"What the—?" it shouted, but only a roar came out of its mouth.
Closing its jaws, it frowned. After taking several breaths, it managed to recall the events of the day. Not too long ago, he had been staying up late finishing his final project to pass the semester. He hadn't slept in days, making sure everything was perfect.
He had only closed his eyes for a few seconds, and suddenly found himself in this place.
'Okay, calm down. Obviously this is a dream—if I cause myself some pain, I'll wake up.'
He looked at his sharp claws, hesitated for a moment, then dug them into his own skin, sinking them several centimeters.
Immediately, he felt the pain and yanked the claws out of his forearm.
'That hurt,' he muttered in a low growl.
Moving his massive body, he tried standing on his two hind legs, which he managed to do—barely. After a few minutes of practice, he was standing upright with decent balance.
Two of his four hands were crossed while the other two arms hung freely. He noticed he could move each pair independently, even unconsciously, though it felt strange to have four arms instead of two.
Walking toward the cave entrance, he noticed the sunlight pouring in. He lifted a hand to shield his eyes as the brightness struck his face. His vision adjusted after a moment, allowing him to see where he was.
It was a huge forest, and in the distance stood a massive wall of a city still under construction.
The environment was far too fantastical to be real, which confirmed his suspicions: he was inside a dream. A very strange one.
'If I remember correctly, these kinds of things always come with some kind of system or support…' he thought.
Trying several keywords, he finally saw something appear. The language was strange, resembling golden runes, but he could understand what they meant effortlessly.
After reading the text, he sighed.
'I'm screwed…' was his only thought.
---
Name: Lumian
True Name: —
Soul Core: Sleeper
Memories: —
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Hard Skin] [Mark of Divinity] [Savage Fury]
Aspect: [Final Assault]
Aspect Description: A suicidal attack where you strike without thinking about consequences, assaulting everything that moves until nothing remains but a massacre.
---
Another sigh left Lumian's monstrous mouth.
"Of all worlds… why did it have to be this cursed one? Why not Attack on Titan or Tokyo Ghoul? Those worlds are better compared to this mess…" he thought bitterly.
He liked the story and had only reached the Ariel's Tomb arc from Volume Five. He didn't know many things, and many mysteries remained unsolved, but he at least understood the early parts well.
However, none of that would help him if he died in his first Nightmare.
To add to his bad luck, he didn't even have a human body—he had the body of a beast. He would have to fight against recreations of Nightmare Spells formed from fused worlds of dead gods.
Lumian wondered why he had arrived in this world. How was it possible for his soul to leave his original world and come here—and even stranger, how had he arrived inside a Nightmare Spell?
Lumian didn't know, and the mounting questions were starting to give him a headache, so he simply shoved them aside.
He needed to find a way to survive his first Nightmare and become Awakened. With luck, he could rise to Master and live peacefully as an instructor in the Awakened Academy.
Lumian grinned—though with his monstrous face, it was more of a terrifying grimace that would scare even the bravest warrior. After all, his body stood over three meters tall.
A crack sounded to his left.
Lumian tensed instantly. The forest shadows shivered, as if something had just noticed his presence. His instinct—or rather, his [Savage Fury] attribute—roared inside his chest, demanding battle, blood, destruction.
Lumian swallowed hard.
"Calm down… just breathe. You have a huge monstrous body, yes, but no combat runes. Just attributes. You can't fight whatever is—"
Another crack. Closer.
Lumian stepped back. His claws scraped the dirt.
His heart—or whatever he had now—froze.
From between the trees came a figure. Tall. Too tall. Covered in black leaves and gray skin. Two twisted horns protruded from its head.
It was a nightmare creature—if Lumian had to guess, it must have been an Awakened beast.
The monster opened its mouth—
and the forest filled with an inhuman shriek.
Lumian didn't decide to attack.
He didn't think.
He didn't plan.
The attribute [Savage Fury] chose for him.
His body lunged forward like a crimson bolt.
---
The Lower Shadowwood Beast leaped forward, its four limbs striking the ground with a dull thud. Its body was angular, made of hardened gray hide and fragments of blackened bark. Eyes like empty pits stared at him.
Lumian had no time to think.
The attribute [Savage Fury] roared inside him, and his body reacted with ruthless ferocity.
CRASH!
His three-meter mass slammed into the creature like a living battering ram. The impact sent the Shadowwood Beast flying, though it wasn't dead.
The aberration rose almost immediately.
And smiled.
A thin, twisted smile—as if its jaw wasn't meant to make that expression.
Lumian felt a chill.
The Shadowwood raised an arm covered in spikes and drove it into his side.
CRUNCH!
Lumian roared in pain. Black blood—his blood?—gushed out.
Shit—!
He tried to pull away, but the creature used its weight to drive the spikes deeper.
The fury roared.
All four of Lumian's hands dug into the aberration.
Two claws pierced its chest.
Another tore off part of its shoulder.
The fourth shredded its neck as if trying to rip it clean off.
Chunks of bark and rotting flesh rained down.
The monster screeched.
Lumian shoved with all his strength, and the two rolled across the forest floor, breaking brush and snapping branches.
The creature tried to rise first, but Lumian bit into its arm—ripped it off in one brutal motion—and spat it aside.
The aberration staggered back, still alive.
Its hollow eyes burned with hatred.
Lumian panted heavily, his side throbbing, hot and sticky.
The forest spun slightly around him.
Blood kept pouring out.
I can't let it hit me again…
The creature charged.
Lumian lowered his weight, claws digging into the earth, and his entire body trembled as he triggered his aspect.
The world turned red.
Silence.
Pure instinct.
Pain turned into strength.
Reason turned into fury.
Only one intention remained:
Kill.
Lumian hurled himself forward with no regard for safety, ignoring the blood loss and the spikes still lodged in his flesh.
A brutal, suicidal strike—
perfect for his aspect.
BOOM!
He tore through the Shadowwood like a raging bull.
His claws gutted it.
His fangs pierced its skull.
His arms ripped off limbs.
When its grotesque body hit the ground, it was no longer a creature—
just a mutilated heap.
Lumian collapsed to his knees, panting.
His side kept bleeding.
His vision flickered.
But the monster was dead.
A golden glow drifted from the ruined corpse into Lumian's forehead.
A memory appeared before him, written in golden runes.
---
[You have obtained a Memory]
MEMORY: [Graveyard Punishment]
Awakened Weapon: Level II
Memory Type: Utility
Memory Description:
If you receive a fatal wound, you may activate this memory to return that exact same wound to the enemy who inflicted it. Regardless of their strength or defenses, the wound will be identical to the one dealt to you.
---
Lumian swallowed.
"Great… something that works when I'm already dying."
His humor was acidic, but he still felt lucky.
Getting a memory of that level this early was extremely rare.
---
The sound of hurried footsteps echoed among the trees.
Lumian tensed immediately.
His body wanted to fight, but his injured side throbbed and he could barely stand.
Three figures emerged from the forest—humans wearing dark leather armor and bone masks.
They carried shadow lances, and each bore a symbol on their chest: a black fox with two tails.
Forest Hunters.
Lower Awakened specialized in tracking mutated creatures.
The leader raised a hand toward Lumian.
"There it is," he said in a deep voice. "The aberration that destabilized the region."
Lumian growled, stepping back.
He knew exactly what these people did: they killed first and asked later.
"It's wounded," another said. "We just have to finish the job."
"Stay back. If it charges, you won't survive," warned the leader.
Lumian felt a chill crawl across his back.
His body demanded combat…
but one look told him he was far too weakened.
His breathing was heavy.
His vision darkened with every pulse of pain.
The leader raised his lance.
"Secure the area. Kill the beast."
Lumian clenched his claws.
A single-use memory floated in his mind.
Graveyard Punishment.
He could take one of them with him…
But he didn't want to use it. It might be useful later.
But even then—he would die.
He had two choices:
---
1) Fight
Trigger [Final Assault] again.
Use the memory to kill the leader.
High chance of death.
2) Run
Use his size and adrenaline to escape through the forest.
If he failed, he'd be hunted like an animal.
---
The three hunters approached, spears ready.
Lumian gritted his teeth.
His time was running out.
---
Lumian growled and ran in the opposite direction. His heart pumped blood furiously through his wounded body. He wouldn't risk his life fighting. He needed to rest and recover.
"After the beast! Don't let it escape!" he heard the leader shout.
One of the hunters began shooting arrows, several slicing open his skin. Lumian felt each one clearly.
"Die, monster!" yelled a hunter.
Using one of his hands, Lumian hurled the hunter's body with terrifying strength. He didn't look back—he plunged deeper into the dense forest.
Minutes passed before the Nightmare Spell's voice rang in his mind.
[You have killed a human Sleeper, name unknown]
Lumian froze at the thought of killing a human.
But he convinced himself they weren't real—just illusions created by the Nightmare Spell.
Lumian reached a deeper part of the forest and collapsed onto the ground, exhausted. His breathing was heavy and deep from the life-or-death sprint.