Adriel lay sprawled on the forest floor, chest heaving as he sucked in mouthfuls of air like a drowning man breaching the surface. His body screamed in agony—his legs numb, muscles shredded by fatigue. Sweat soaked every inch of him, sticking his clothes to his skin like a second layer. His vision swam, the world spinning slightly with every shallow breath.
He had been running for nearly five hours straight. No breaks. No mercy. Just raw survival instinct and speed.
"So… how did this happen?" Kayla asked, amusement dripping from her voice.
"…"
"I don't think he even has the strength to think, let alone answer," Ashley replied, calmly assessing him.
"Yea... so, what should we do with him?" Kayla asked.
"Wait for him to recover. He doesn't seem to have any serious injuries, thus his recovery shouldn't take much time," Ashley speculated.
"Sure…" Kayla grinned slyly and raised her wrist.
Click
A soft glow emitted from the Spectraband on her arm—a slim bracelet that acted as a high-tier multi-tool: camera, communicator, scanner, and more. It was linked to her aether signature, making it unusable to anyone else.
Though wristbands, smartwatches, and glasses existed with similar functionality, Spectrabands were the go-to device for adventurers due to their versatility and resilience.
After taking a lot of pictures and some videos, Kayla was finally satisfied, though the purpose of the pictures was still unknown.
Eventually, as Ashley predicted, Adriel's breathing steadied. He forced himself into a sitting position, wincing as his muscles screamed in protest. When he finally looked up, he was greeted by the two girls gazing at him like he was a rare monkey in a glass cage.
Kayla's jet-black hair framed her mischievous face, her toned frame full of lively energy that contrasted the dull forest around them. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity and chaotic fun.
Ashley, on the other hand, radiated warmth and power. Her reddish-brown hair caught the sunlight, and her dark red eyes seemed to peer into his soul. Her chest was— significantly huge. Way too big to ignore. And her ass— Sensational.
'How does she even fight with those things?' Adriel wondered absently.
"Are you better now?"
Ashley's voice snapped him back to reality.
He nodded. Barely.
Ashley continued, "What is your name?"
"Adriel... I'm Adriel," he replied.
"I'm Ashley, and that's my younger sister, Kayla," Ashley said, while Adriel nodded in acknowledgement.
"So how did you manage to provoke a mid Tier 2 beast?" Kayla asked curiously.
"A stone," Adriel said.
"Huh?" they both said in unison, confusion written all over their faces.
"I crushed a stone, it woke up, and chased me for over 5 hours," Adriel added.
The confusion on their faces turned to realization and then pure disbelief.
Bad luck.
A term used by many to make sense of events that feel unjust or unearned. It's a way of saying, "This wasn't supposed to happen."
And it was the perfect term for Adriel's story.
Who gets chased by a beast for 5 hours straight just because of a stone? And survives?
"So what is a Tier 1 greenhorn doing in the Dark Forest?" Ashley asked casually.
'There is no way I can tell them I came to awaken the system, so I need to think of a suitable answer.'
After contemplating for a while, Adriel finally replied, "I just came to fight some low-level beasts and temper myself," with the straightest face he could muster.
'He's lying,' Ashley thought.
'Well, everyone has their secrets, so it would be absolutely rude and suspicious to press further.'
"We will be taking our leave now," Kayla said while motioning to her sister.
"Sure, I just have one more request," Adriel said.
Ashley raised a brow. "What is it?"
He simply said, "Could Kayla please delete the videos and photos she took of me?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"What is your full name?" Kayla asked him out of the blue.
Adriel blinked. Alarm bells rang in his head.
'What the fuck does she want to do with my full name? She is definitely up to no good...'
There was no way Adriel was going to answer her.
Awkward silence.
"Adriel Goldhaven," he said, giving in to the pressure.
"Okay, see you later greenhorn!" Kayla said mischievously.
She grabbed her sister's hand as they walked away, disappearing into the distance, while Adriel, who couldn't do anything, just watched.
'I'm dead. My reputation's dead. I'm so fucking dead.'
Adriel wailed, finally realizing why she asked for his full name.
If his hunch was right, he would be turned into a meme on the starnet.
After 20 mins of resting, he got up and prepared to make his way to the energy source.
But before that, he wanted to make sure of something.
'System?'
No answer.
"The system has been quiet for some time now. I wonder if it is the lack of energy or some other factor," he muttered.
Luckily, he could still feel the strange instinct that pulled him to the source.
He made his way through the forest that slowly got thicker and denser.
He walked at a slightly fast pace while avoiding any trace or sign of life, human or not.
By chance or pure luck, he hadn't encountered any Ascendant beast of any sort. He suspected that the system intentionally chose the safest path for him.
As he walked, he started to feel the concentration of aether increasing, giving him the illusion of breathing in aether.
Just as the aether concentration was increasing, so was the invisible pressure that bore on him.
'If this was a game, I would definitely be notified that I have entered a high-level area and I should proceed with caution.'
'I've been walking for some time now. I think I have entered the inner zone… which means, any random beast can one-shot me to the underworld,' Adriel thought.
He looked around, finding nothing but a dense forest of ridiculously tall trees around him.
Without wasting time, he followed the system navigation, going towards the energy source—his footsteps serving as the only thing that periodically broke the silence.
He glanced at the sky and discovered that it was still bright.
'I've been here for close to 7 hours now, so it should be around 3 o'clock considering the fact that I arrived very early,' Adriel thought.
'Why do I feel like I'm forgetting something important?' He thought strangely...
Discarding the strange thought, he continued moving to his destination.
After a long walk through the woods, he finally saw what he was looking for.
The area directly in front of him was filled with thick mist—the type that would make one easily lose their direction.
He stopped at the boundary of the fog, preparing his mind for what was to come.
"It seems like the area ahead is my destination, or close to it at least." Adriel muttered.
"But what the hell is that fog?"
He had his suspicions and just needed to confirm it.
While he was about 5 metres away from the mist, he mentally asked:
'System, how long till the energy you need is fully absorbed?'
*DING*
[ CALCULATING TIME REMAINING... ]
[ 11 MONTHS, 27 DAYS, 3 HOURS, 46 MINUTES AND 58 SECONDS UNTIL COMPLETION... ]
[ SYSTEM HAS NOTICED THAT THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE HOST AND THE ENERGY SOURCE HAS REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY... ]
Adriel was pleasantly surprised since he didn't expect the system to even respond.
Pondering on the system's response, he noticed that the time had reduced drastically from the previous 2 years and 8 months, to the present 11 months.
'So if I can stay here for one year, the system would be filled with energy... that is if I can even survive for 3 days...' Adriel thought with a self-mocking grin.
'Now to the next phase of the test...'
Adriel approached the mist, each step slow and deliberate, his heartbeat thundering—not with fear, but with anticipation and a strange exhilaration, like something deep inside him was calling.
4 metres.
3 metres.
2 metres...
One—
He halted, the mist merely one metre ahead of him.
He inhaled deeply, steadying his mind, his body, and the storm within.
Then, without another thought—
He stepped into the mist...
'But why do I still feel like I'm forgetting something important...'