"What?"
Seven mumbled.
The trees and the environment around him warped and it took seven seconds for it to stabilize.
Looking around, he looked for any movements, change of zaen flow, or any other sign of presence.
Nothing.
The beat of his heart was loud, but the training ground was ghost-quiet. Just the faint rustling of leaves passing through his ears.
"Urrkkhh…"
But before he could think much about it, his left eye throbbed violently, in which he clutched it and felt a liquid spilling down to his cheeks.
Blood.
The pain forced him towards unconsciousness, but he tried his best to stay conscious. But before he knew it, the scene changed.
He was now standing in the middle of nowhere with no light or whatsoever.
Hff…
His breathing hitched.
Void?
Domain?
Abyss?
Seven could not name it.
All he knew was it was empty, except for the thumps of his heart, the sound of shallow breaths, and the gentle ripples of water beneath his feet.
He opened his mouth, but he could not speak as the words refused to leave past his lips.
'Where am I…?'
He thought.
The burning sensation intensified, and a small ray of light sparkled beyond the horizon like a dying sun.
There stood a silhouette.
Alone.
Slowly, it turned to face him.
And as it did, a pair of eyes abruptly emerged from the darkness. A colossal pair of celestial eyes hovered right above the silhouette.
It gazed right through his eyes, and his body shuddered. His breath caught inside his throat, and the silence echoed loudly in his ears.
A system interface then glitched before his eyes.
|| Whεn yo͠u g̴a͞ze ɨnt͟o t͡h͠e 𝔞b𝖞ss, t̷he 𝒂by͡ss g𝓪z͠e̐s b̡a̴ck i̔n̑t̷o 𝕪𝓸𝓾 ||
Seven stumbled back, as if the gaze of the colossal eyes pushed him.
Step.
The silhouette took a step.
Forward.
Towards him.
Step. Step.
Step. Step. Step.
Sweat trickled down his temple. He was not scared, or was he? Even Seven himself could not describe what he felt at the moment.
All he could describe was that it would mean a bad thing if the silhouette reached him.
Thus, he crawled backwards.
Blink.
But as he blinked, the void, the abyss, or the pitch black darkness disappeared.
Instead, he found himself back in the training grounds, standing before the unconscious body of the twins that lay sprawled on the ground.
Haah…
His breathing staggered as he stared down at his pale white knuckles.
"What was that…?"
He mumbled.
But he knew that the training ground was not an ideal place to ponder about what just happened, given that the twins suddenly fainted along with that strange darkness.
And so, he rushed towards the mansion.
Step.
He climbed upwards the stairs and ran towards his room without any hesitation.
Creak.
He pushed the door open.
Iria was kneeling on the floor, sobbing. But the moment he entered, she immediately scrambled to her feet and rushed into Seven's arms.
Iria hugged him tightly.
"Iria? What's—"
"I'm sorry, Young Lord. I'll clean it. I promise. I'll take care of everything."
"Iria…"
Gently, Seven pushed her away.
Though he wanted to embrace her a little longer, now was not the time. Also, he vowed not to get too close to anyone.
"Calm down and explain what's going on."
He asked in a straightforward manner, but Iria did not respond.
She just kept sobbing.
On the floor, a tray lay shattered, rice and tofu scattered in a messy heap.
His gaze flicked to the window where a bloodied crow was pinned as its wings splayed awkwardly. An arrow that seemed to be made from ice had pierced straight through it.
"Iria."
"Young Lo—"
"Prepare some tea."
He said, then glanced at the mess without much interest.
"Bring another breakfast.
"Mop the floor.
"And fetch a fresh set of clothes while you're at it."
"B-But Young Lord—"
"Just go."
"Young Lo—"
"Iria."
She froze at the weight in his voice. For a moment, her lips parted as if to protest again, but the look in his eyes left no room.
Reluctantly, she gave a small nod.
"…I'll be back, Young Lord."
Step.
Wiping her tears away, Iria stood up and rushed out the room.
The mess was not her fault. She was just surprised by a sudden crow that was pinned on the window as she entered the room to place the breakfast.
…Is what Seven thought about what happened.
But in all honesty, he did not care about the tea, breakfast, or for Iria to mop and clean the mess.
All he wanted was for her to be safe as right now, he could feel an intense amount of zaen energy directly below the window: the training grounds.
Step.
He walked towards the window.
Slowly, the arrow began to melt, and the water caused the window to slide open.
Thud.
The lifeless crow fell to the floor.
Below, still sprawled on the ground lay the twins, unconscious. But now, beside them, stood a figure that Seven immediately recognized.
Eden Hart.
As if sensing his gaze, Eden looked up, and their eyes met.
Then, she raised her left hand, and a magic circle, the same color as her eyes, crackled around her wrist.
Oceanic blue.
Muttering an inaudible word, the windowpane shattered; or rather, it melted. Then the walls of Seven's room crumbled and transformed into ice that formed a downward staircase.
Step by step.
A total of seventy-seven steps.
It grew from frost, stretching downward from him to the training grounds where Eden stood.
'Sister…?'
Oozing from the frost staircase, cold air seeped into the room.
'What is she… doing here?'