lvin had five days.
Five days before the Crimson Moon would appear and every Climber would be seen venturing into the Silver Spire.
Five days was not much ti to prepare for sothing that could very well kill him. Still, lvin did not waste a single hour of it.
He had purposely postponed the notion of "The Silver Spire" story writing until he returned, at least after conquering the second step.
During the mornings, he visited the Academy library. He read anything that could help him survive, ranging from battle notes, monster descriptions, training thods to even journals written by people who had entered the Spire long ago.
Most of them would never return.
During the afternoons, lvin moved to the training grounds. There, he pushed his body until his muscles trembled and his mind until it went beyond his limits.
His practice went from flexibility training to movent drills and balance exercises. Alas, lvin began to make use of other training halls he thought were going to offer benefits to his skills honing. Other tis, he focused on controlling his whip, repeating the sa strike again and again until his arms felt numb.
Yet, despite all that he had gone through during those days, he felt sothing strange happen every ti. Just like his first ti in training, he never felt the after-effects that always ca once his training ended.
His body... adapted.
No matter how hard the training beca, his muscles seed to adjust quickly, as if they had been prepared for the strain beforehand. This was sothing lvin knew was beyond his control since he already knew his capabilities.
It was during one of these exhausting sessions that lvin finally rembered a mark he carried, and his suspicion of it grew stronger.
When he returned to his room one night, he had summoned the runic description again and read it carefully.
[Mark]: Hollow
[Description]: Aeon survived by cutting away what made survival difficult. Fear was inconvenient. Pain was distracting. Hope was dangerous. And emotions were abstract. So, he buried them.
lvin stared at the description for a long ti.
"...So that’s how it works."
He had imagined the mark passively granted him raw strength or visible power. However, after much training, he realized that whenever he trained or fought against the shooting orbs, the mark only helped him ignore distractions. Pain dulled. Fear faded. Even doubt seed to disappear.
With each motion he established, his mind always remained clear, sharp, and focused on only one thing—his goal.
Because of this, his instincts beca faster. His reaction cleaner. His movents more efficient.
As long as lvin did not drown himself in unnecessary thoughts like he had on the first day, the mark would continue to refine him.
In battle, that kind of calm could an the difference between life and death. Or perhaps... it could make him sothing far more dangerous.
’Possibly, Aeon was a god that was nicknad "Hollow." Maybe his actions resulted in such an awkward na.’ lvin had wondered.
He felt like he needed to find out more about his predecessor. What was it that changed the life of such a god? Or was it his normal way of living?
Whatever the case might be, lvin thought that even emotions were never going to stop him one day. When the day cos, how will things turn out to be? How mind-boggling can making a decision in such a situation be?
All these and many more were what troubled his mind after he found out about the effects of [Hollow]. Perhaps, he should even embrace the effects since they are going to make him more invincible.
He thought of a future where he would live as "the Hollow."
Still, there might be so troubling monts toward achieving such a feat. lvin did not spend all five days alone.
During that ti, he kept an eye on the ash-brown-haired girl.
Her na was Keth.
Eventually, he learned that the girl was the special case the principal had ntioned before. Just like lvin, she had sohow awakened an Origin without going through a Trial Zone.
’What was it called again?’ lvin tried to rember.
Perhaps, because she already saw herself as soone exceptional, she never trained as intensely as he did. Quite often, she visited the training grounds, watching him quietly. Sotis she leaned against a corner wall with her arms folded. Other tis she sat on the bench near the dressing room.
Occasionally, she even offered a few short pointers. lvin did not know whether to be annoyed or grateful, but he took her advice so of the tis and it provided good results.
During those tis, lvin understood that there was more to her calm self.
In the end, lvin reached a quiet conclusion.
Keth... resembled the girl who had saved him in his previous life.
Maybe she wasn’t the sa person. But the resemblance was enough to cause sothing new to take root in his heart.
He did not know how strong Keth was or would beco in the future. She might even grow into soone far beyond his reach.
But one thought remained. He suddenly felt like he wanted her to stay safe all the ti. He wanted to protect her. He wanted to make sure that she was going to return with him after they ventured into the Silver Spire.
It was going to be her first ti... anyway.
***
Now the five days had passed.
lvin lay on his bed with both hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling of his dorm room. Morning sunlight stread gently through the window.
Today was the day the other Climbers would return to the Academy.
When lvin stepped outside later that morning, the usually quiet campus was filled with activity. Students were arriving from a single direction but diverging into different areas in the expansive space of the academy.
So were dropped off by sleek cars. Others walked through the academy gates carrying backpacks, bags, and equipnt. Many "parents" stood nearby, giving last-minute advice or reluctant goodbyes to their wards.
There were hugs.
There were worried faces.
There were forced smiles.
Everyone knew what tomorrow ant. The Crimson Moon would appear before dawn; hence, they more or less had a few hours before a forthcoming dangerous adventure.
The journey into the Silver Spire would soon begin.
lvin stood among the crowd as the scene unfolded before his eyes. He watched as people who originally shouldn’t have known they existed entangle themselves into embraces, acting as one.
Everything looked so normal, like it was original.
lvin grimaced, with his face to the ground. When was he going to have such a feeling of oneness even when they were more than one? Would he...
He shook his head. It was better not to think of things now.
Suddenly, a strange mix of emotions crept into his mind. Was it fear? Excitent? Or anticipation?
His fingers slowly tightened.
"What does the future really hold?"
The question slipped quietly from his lips, and after standing for a while, he turned and began walking towards the eastern section of the academy.
Reviews
All reviews (0)