In the dimly lit room, crimson moonlight bled through the curtains, casting eerie shadows across the walls.
"....!"
Xavier jolted awoke with a violent gasp.
His expression darkened as he scanned his surroundings, eyes sharp and... wary.
His breath hitched as his gaze locked onto the floor- thick, scarlet liquid squirming across the wooden planks as if... alive.
Ba- dump! Ba- dump!
The sight sent a sudden surge of fear through him, his heart thundered in his chest, the sound echoing through the stifling silence.
W-What is that?" His breath hitched as he jolted upright, scrambling backward in a heartbeat.
His gaze remained locked on the wriggling liquid which he soon assessed to be:
A grim expression darkened his features.
Blood.
But what could possibly result in such an overwhelming amount of blood?
Only one answer ca to his mind. And the answer,
Chills~
Sent cold chills slithering down his spine.
And just then-
It ca.
BOOM~!
mories flooded in as a low growl escaped his lips, a violent pain coursing through him.
"Hu... Hu..."
He gasped for air, his eyes wide open in a desperate attempt to breathe. His vision blurred, swallowed by an unending agony.
But slowly, the pain began to fade, ebbing away into a bone-chilling wind that crept down his spine.
***
A cold, chilling realization settled within .
Silas- a colleague from the archaeological departnt at Lousian College, had been the one to seek out.
Through so unknown ans, he had co into possession of an ancient book from so long forgotten epoch. And the book or whatever it really was, was responsible for the deaths- or to be more precise, the suicides committed by the three fools who had attempted to decipher it.
’I... Silas and... Rhea.’
I exhaled sharply, fragnts of Lucian’s mories creeping into my mind like whispers from the abyss beyond.
Yet, none of that was the worst part.
Chills~
I shivered, a cold, deep sense of dread settling within .
No. The worst part was the words- those final, haunting words that had suddenly materialized out of nowhere, bleeding into existence in a psychedelic, crimson hue.
Every night, for the past week, the three of them had gathered, desperate to unravel the book’s secrets. And so far so bad...
All they had managed to uncover before their untily demise... was that it had to do with so sorts of seals.
And this only caused my frown to deepen.
"Ukh-!" I groaned in annoyance, a sharp throbbing pain pulsing through my head.
Seals.
I was no stranger to them. In fact, I knew them all too well. After all, seals existed for one reason alone-
My expression darkened.
To imprison things that couldn’t be killed. And anything that couldn’t be killed was, at the very least, a god... or-
Thump-! Thump-!
Sothing far worse...
’What the hell have I gotten myself into?’
The dilemma.
It pressed down on . The weight of the realization sinking in.
With a weary sigh, I slipped into a worn, dark-brown char, staring blankly into the space before .
Trying- desperately, to sohow co to terms with the nightmare that was now my current reality.
After a while, I eventually managed to regain my calm- if only barely.
With a quiet sigh, I rubbed my temples in an attempt to alleviate the throbbing headache. Yet, every ti I’d close my eyes. The bright red liquid would always appear:
’Everyone will die...!!! Including ...’
I shuddered, and with an exasperated sigh, I rose to my feet.
But just then,
"Haa..."
It clicked.
I should probably check the runes.
Summoning the runes, a bright incandescent glow materialized into existence.
_ _ _ _ _ _
Na: Xavier
Origin na: -
Origin rank: -
Rank: Aspirant
Soul core: Dormant
mories: -
Echoes: -
Attributes: -
Aspects: -
Innate ability: Foresight.
I stared blankly at the runes- at a loss for words.
"Ha-ah," I tried to say sothing, to sohow co to terms with how such a thing was possible.
But, no words escaped my lips.
And just then-
It appeared before .
The system.
[Main quest initiated:
[Complete the main objective of your Arcane Trial.]
[Reward: unknown]
I frowned at the blank states flickering before my very eyes.
"....?!"
I blinked. Perhaps I was dreaming- I hoped, yet when I opened my eyes once again, the nightmarish situation still remained the sa.
B-ut how?
Confusion marred my features.
I had never. And I an, never heard of anyone going through an Arcane trial without their attributes, at the very least.
The only thing that sohow managed to pacify the rapid, almost harrowing pace of my heartbeat was the fact that I still had my foresight ability.
Frowning, I tapped my hand against the edge of the brown table before . On top of it, one could see a small revolver glistening faintly.
I knew it was the sa revolver that had sent Lucian to hell. Though, I didn’t understand a few things about it.
For example, how could Lucian afford a revolver?
And-
My frown deepened.
Even if he could, on whose authority was he given the revolver?
"Ukh-! So many questions."
I groaned in dismay.
I should just take things one step at a ti. I noted.
First things first:
"Arcanist Status," I muttered under my breath, my heart pounding with intense ferocity, as though to break out of my chest.
Ba- dump! Ba- dump!
The sound echoed through the suffocating silence and then-
[Arcanist Status]
It materialized.
Na: Xavier
Origin na: -
Ethereal Core: Dormant
Ethereal Fragnts: -
Temporal Vestiges: -
Phantom Reflections: -
Aspect: sealed.
Innate ability: half-sealed.
Attributes: sealed.
’Just like I expected.’
Sohow, despite the dire nature of my current situation, I was able to maintain my calm.
"Huff..." exhaling sharply, I calmly noted:
It’s just like I thought. The runes couldn’t assess the entirety of my stats without making a few mistakes- if it could be called that.
But I was still confused about a few things. No, a lot of things actually.
Why were my attributes and aspects sealed, yet my innate ability sohow escaped the nightmarish fate- if only barely.
I pondered hard on it, yet no matter how hard I pondered, I couldn’t seem to find a reasonable explanation.
I just have to get more clues... one way or another. This was the only way to slowly piece everything together... one step at a ti.
"Hu..."
My eyes flickered to the constantly wriggling liquid on the floor, the sight stirring a deep sense of unease within .
I should probably clean that.
Though, the thought of nearing the mysticism-infected blood didn’t sound all too well to .
I had no other choice.
With a quiet sight, I rose to my feet, glancing out of the window where the crimson moon lood overhead, shadows moving across the desolate streets.
Despite the chilling realizations weighing on as though to crush , I had no choice but to press forward. I needed clarity—answers—if only to hold on to my sanity.
***
A good hour or so had clocked by, since I ca to this "world." And,
"Haa..."
Sweat poured down the corner of my face. The ground beneath now crystal clear and non, terror-inducing.
That’s it.
I nodded, a bright smile tugging at the corner of my lips.
Before long, I was done soaking the blood-stained cloth.
’Now what?’
I questioned no one but myself.
A thick stench wafted through the air and for a second there, I froze, my breath caught in my throat.
Slowly, my eyes widened in realization.
Don’t tell the stench is coming from... ?
Glancing at my sweat-drenched body and the stench that ca out with each dripping sound.
I nodded.
’Yeah. It’s definitely .’
With a grim expression, I slowly moved to the bathroom.
Entering the bathroom, I couldn’t help but frown.
Am I in the mysticism era?
Based on the gas powered nature of almost everything I’d seen so far. From the street lamps to almost everything. I was sohow certain that I was very much in the mysticism era.
I just didn’t know where exactly in the mysticism era. The first epoch or the third epoch?
Exhaling lightly, I decided not to think too much about it.
I was already here anyway. So whatever it was, I’d find out soon enough.
Drip-! Drip-!
The sound of the water pouring down on resounded through the still night, soothing and calming my nerves along with it.
"Haa... that’s it," I said with a blissful expression.
A while later-
I stepped out of the bathroom, feeling refreshed and better than ever.
’Haa..."
I headed to my small room and dressed up and before long, I prepared a nice and wonderful al and calmly waited while eating.
A while later-
Just as I took in the last piece of noodle.
I raised my head up, a dark smile tugging at the corner of my lips.
If I was right, they should be appearing anyti from now.
And—
Tok. Tok.
It ca.
A knock—so simple, yet harrowing.
It echoed through the still night, splintering the silence, and sending a cold chill slithering down my spine.
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