[Brace yourself for appraisal...]
The instant lvin disintegrated into shards of light, he disappeared. Finally, he was able to open his shut eyes, but when he did, he found himself in a vast space that didn’t look anything real. Not even close to the reality behind the cosmos of the Silver Spire.
He wasn’t even sure if he had a body. Yet, for so unexplainable reason, he was fully aware of his surroundings.
All around him stretched an endless void filled with soft green light, moving slowly like rivers flowing through the air. Scattered everywhere were lights like stars. So were bright, and so were dim. Connecting these stars were thin silver-green lines that tied them to one another, creating webs that looked like a giant net made of light.
Everywhere, the scenery was lit.
Sohow, lvin felt that this was a physical depiction of the system, or sothing behind it. The fact that what was happening took effect after the system asked him to prepare for appraisal even made his guess more valid.
Although, in his previous life, lvin hadn’t been privileged to possess a system or beco one of the Awakeners. But ever since he had the ability to read fantastical stories that ntioned "systems," he had always wanted to see how one really looked.
More to that curiosity, he even wanted to know what that bigger sothing behind the system is. Can I... find it here sowhere?
lvin continued to think and look around him. But before he could think deeper about it, the space shifted and several lights flared brighter.
lvin paused and stared for a while. However, nothing else happened.
’Phew,’ he sighed.
The best answer he could co up with was that there was no way to know what that bigger sothing is. It was even more mysterious how those systems ca about—gacha systems, get-rich systems, ascension systems, and all the other lots of them.
It was just better to accept it when it ca to you. Nothing more. He had even read in a certain book where it was classified as a "function rather than a creature".
However, lvin dismissed these mysterious thoughts. He wanted to know what his appraisal entailed.
As if reacting to his will, the reaction that had stopped earlier continued. The green currents in the void slowed, and then, a voice spoke.
’Let’s go!’
The sweet, feminine voice of the system began.
[You have received four Soul Signatures: Aftertick; Seven Keys-1; Brinewrough Aegis; Hollow’s Shroud.]
’Huh?’
Although happy the process he had waited for was finally beginning, lvin was partially unsatisfied. Why call up the three Soul Signatures he had received as a gift from the whip wielder and from slaying the Sea Slug King?
’And that key, isn’t it ant to have been destroyed after serving its use? Is there more to it? What else will I use it for?’
He couldn’t reach a suitable answer, since he knew quite well that after appraisal, his trial would finally be counted a success. So, why was he also supposed to live with the key?
’Mhm, mhm. Don’t dwell on it, lvin. But... wait, didn’t it say four Soul Signatures?’
lvin’s eyes widened as he glanced at the fourth Soul Signature. He couldn’t recount any of his deeds that should grant him that. In that case, he was losing his patience to take a look at the Hollow’s Shroud, but the voice of the system returned and shattered his montary curiosity.
[Carrier! Your trial has ended.]
As the system spoke, images began to flash around him...
[You have slain a Mythic Creature: Sea Slug King.]
Image of the abomination being crushed under the stone pillar.
[You have crossed the Opening Bastion.]
The disgusting image of salt soaking into his flesh... of himself crawling for survival... of himself approaching the monolithic door.
[You have received the will of the god of ti.]
The image of him sliding a key into the altar and all others that followed in the open hall.
lvin remained calm, but he had a certain question that would now begin to haunt him until he found the answer. He could let other mysteries off his mind, but not this. Nothing but a burden of a god he now bears.
What was the god’s will?
[Evaluating achievent...]
The lights around him flickered. The dimd beca dimr while the bright ones grew brighter.
His virtual, illusive, or whatever form he was now taking was engulfed with awareness, as if he was being asured. After a long mont, the voice resounded once again.
[Final appraisal: exceptional. Your survival instinct defies reason.]
Of course, his performance to survive up until now truly should be exceptional. But why was the system further ntioning his survival instinct, defying reason? Although this was an appraisal, he felt that the system was giving him a warning beforehand. Or perhaps, telling him what would happen in the future.
If it was what he was thinking, then it was not really necessary to ntion it. As far as he was concerned, it shouldn’t be bound to happen.
[Climber lvin, receive your boon!]
lvin grinned in understanding. The system had switched from addressing him as a re Carrier to a Climber. He was now almost on the sa page as the other awakened out there. All that remained now was to know his magical affinity.
One of the bright points near him exploded with light, and energy rushed into him.
[You have been bestowed an Origin: Aeon’s Eye.]
lvin blinked his eyes. He was yet to understand so terms used by the system, and the stunning lady hadn’t ntioned anything about being bestowed an Origin among much other information she provided. He was surely going to beco a bookworm... a researcher... He would gather as much knowledge as he could before climbing the next step.
Hence, he ignored that information and focused on the rewards that kept coming.
[Your Affinity is ready to awaken. Aw...]
’Don’t even ask that question. Be about it imdiately!’
He imdiately felt pressure at his core. Everything went still for a mont.
Then—
[Affinity awakened.]
[Affinity Rank: Ascendant.]
The word echoed through him. The entire giant net seed to tremble at that announcent. Then, the runes changed directly into his affinity.
[Affinity: Ti.]
***
’Ascendant?’
lvin was suspended in this vast expanse, stupefied. He felt the weight of the tremble return to him.
He wanted to move, maybe even raise his hands or just do sothing that could make him believe he wasn’t hallucinating. The stiffness and inability to do so, due to the force behind his suspension, cleared his mind.
’Didn’t that stunning lady say that Ascendant was the last rank? No, there’s an unknown one, but still...’
There was no use pondering over this now. lvin simply summoned the runes so that he could see what attuned him to that affinity.
[Affinity]: Ti
[Affinity Rank]: Ascendant
[Affinity Description]: Your existence does not fully follow normal rules. What has happened can still affect you. What might happen can whisper to you. However, you have the will of your predecessor and wish to fulfill it.
’Fulfill what exactly?’
But the system didn’t respond to that question. Instead, another piece of information replaced the forr.
[Affinity Ability]: Fixed Point.
[Ability Description]: You may change and declare a single, forward mont within your perception as immutable. For a brief duration, cause, effect, and probabilities that influence your physical state are rejected, taking you to the designated point in ti. A fixed point cannot be moved by external force.
That was... a lot to digest.
First of all, lvin felt his heart beating faster. He had thought he was going to receive an ability that had sothing to do with, maybe, a temporal shear. He thought with an affinity for ti, he was going to be able to return himself to how he was a few monts ago.
Anyway, the affinity still had a very rare and high rank. And, if he understood the ability so well, it ant he could sohow respawn. No, that was not the right way to put it. The description had made him understand it can be a forward designation and immutable change.
What should he call that ability to make it simpler to understand? Sothing like teleportation? Or apparition?
’Hmm. Whatever,’ lvin thought with a smirk.
But a sudden comprehension crossed his mind, and his eyes widened in realization.
Although he couldn’t control ti, he could select a future state of himself within his perception, for instance, by declaring statents like, "At this mont, I will be this."
He sighed.
So, it ant that for a short duration, causality bends so that his declared outco becos unavoidable. However, it doesn’t an he was rewriting reality but is anchoring a possible version of himself to existence.
’That sounds nice, though. I wonder how this will work for ,’ lvin mused.
Having understood what his ability entailed, he looked around to see if that was all he should be appraised with. There should be more, right?
Just then, the green web around him pulsed stronger. And the lights flickered once again.
lvin felt himself breaking apart again as everything around him collapsed into brightness. Then, what seed to be the final words of the system followed him:
[Trial Zone is conquered.]
[Prepare for Ascension.]
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