There was no more time. The guards were about to burst into the square. If they found Kaen, not even the Void would save him this time.
He turned and began to run in the opposite direction.
Kaen and Riven had spent years working in the mine and had learned every tunnel, burrow, and hole in the walls almost by heart. Since they were children, they had enjoyed playing hide-and-seek and teasing the other miners.
Drosven Hollow was a small village at the bottom of a valley. The buildings and various other structures grew in height. At the lowest level stretched the huge quarry of Mana Crystals, like an anthill.
The village was built mostly from recycled excavated materials and the rock from the quarry itself. There was no clear boundary between the mines and the settlement. One only needed to know a few tunnels used by the miners to access most of the area.
Kaen skirted the square's wall while running. A few meters ahead, manholes at the foot of the prison wall collected rainwater to prevent it from pooling.
-------------------------------------
[WARNING]
[Hostile presence getting closer]
[Mana Density Nearby: ZERO]
-------------------------------------
"I know where to go! Let me fucking do it!" Kaen thought in a low voice, responding straight to the Void System interface.
When he reached the manhole, he placed his hand in a slot, opening the iron grate. He slipped inside, closing the grate behind him.
With his hands resting on the grimy, sludge-covered walls, Kaen let himself slip into the sewer system of Drosven Hollow. Although his heart was still racing from the death of his brother and his encounter with the Void, his mind was clear, and he had a sharp memory.
Putrid water from the sewers covered his feet and ankles. Making his way through a maze of garbage and excrement, Kaen walked in total darkness, illuminated only by the occasional patch of light from manholes peeking through the streets.
He turned first right, then left, and then slid down and continued seemingly straight ahead. Once he was far enough away from the guards' chatter, he stopped to catch his breath.
"Fuck, what the hell happened to me?" he muttered, looking at his hands and arms as if slowly realizing what he had been capable of: The broken spells, the reaction of the crowd, that bizarre woman, and the strange symbol carved into her flesh. Was it all real? Maybe he was dead, and this was just a strange nightmare.
"Show me my inventory of fragments again" he said. His voice boomed through the sewers.
-------------------------------------
[Mana Density Nearby: ZERO]
[Void Resonance: 1%]
[Humanity: 99%]
[Fragments of Mana: 4]
[Fragments of Null: 1]
-------------------------------------
The HUD responded promptly by showing the main data.
"You said that Fragments of Mana are for learning new 'skills' and I understood that to get them, I have to break or deflect spells. How many Fragments do I need?"
A loading symbol appeared in the center of his field of vision. In a matter of seconds, the HUD updated with new information.
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[For your current Resonance level, it takes five to ten Fragments of Mana to unlock new skills. Would you like more information about your current level and unlockable skills?]
-------------------------------------
"Yes," Kaen replied, still unable to believe he was talking to himself in the sewer tunnels.
-------------------------------------
[Resonance Level: I - Awakening]
[Available Skills:]
[Mana Flare Inversion: (possessed) Reflects basic magic such as darts, magic projectiles and direct spells. - Cost: 0]
[Null Sense: Allows you to sense Mana flows in the environment and living/inanimate bodies. - Cost: 5 FoM]
[Void Sight: Reveals weaknesses in magical beings or constructs - Cost: 6 FoM]
[Void Skin: Confers minor resistance to magic (10% magic damage reduction). - Cost: 7 FoM]
[Void Shield: Creates a small shield made of Void on the forearm resistant to both physical and magical attacks. - Cost: 6 FoM]
[Void Splinters: When a spell is successfully cancelled, Void splinters are released near the container, causing AoE damage. - Cost: 7 FoM]
[Silent Break: Silences nearby spellcasters for 3 seconds (1 usage/day). - Cost: 8 FoM]
[Null Anchor: Creates a magical power reduction in an area of 50 ft2. - Cost: 9 FoM]
[Void Blast: Activates a Void blast when the container takes magical damage, damaging the surrounding area and reducing the damage received for a short period of time (30 sec). - Cost: 10 FoM]
[Would you like me to outline the skills for later levels as well?]
-------------------------------------
"Um, no" Kaen replied.
He couldn't believe his eyes. The Void System had a talent tree and unlockable abilities! With dozens of unlockable abilities at each level, there was only one question left unanswered:
"How many Fragments of Null do I need to unlock the second level of Resonance?" he asked.
-------------------------------------
[Fragments of Null: 1]
[Points needed for Level II - Rejection: 100 FoN]
-------------------------------------
Ken's eyes widened. Earlier, he had killed a mage and gained one FoN. He would need a hundred to level up!
He clenched his fists and tensed his muscles. For a moment, he squinted and thought back to his brother, Riven. His face full of pain and his head stolen by the Archmage.
Kaen didn't care how many mages he had to kill to increase his power. He was determined to increase his resonance with the Void. By gaining greater power, he would end magic's hegemony over Aetherra.
He pulled his shoulders away from the wall and started hurrying along his way. His expression was serious, and his jaw was clenched. His goal was now clearer. If the Void had chosen him as its "Vessel" he could not waste that opportunity.
After walking for a little over half an hour and passing a couple of forks on his path, Kaen reached a dry tunnel with no water or excrement at the bottom.
He rested a hand on the wall and realized he had entered the mine.
From there, he could easily make his way to the surface. However, the Grey Mantles' problem remained. Guards were surely patrolling the entire area, looking for the fugitive in every corner of Drosven Hollow.
In the village's history, no one had ever escaped a public execution.
"I have no choice. I have to get out of this hellhole".
Kaen realized that the only way to escape the guards and achieve his goal was to leave the village and go as far away as possible. He had to go so far away that he would be unknown to everyone.
The Veyrad region was divided into five major areas: the Veyrad Empire, the Fragments of Nocth, the Shattered Belt, the Suspended Lands of Emerah, and Ashmarch. Each area had very different characteristics and hazards.
Drosven Hollow was within the borders of the Veyrad Empire. Although it was called an empire, it was actually ruled by Mages, not emperors.
Despite never having access to school or any other kind of education, Kaen was very smart and perceptive, especially when his father recounted the ancient legends of Veyrad to him and his brother, Riven.
Through these stories, passed down from generation to generation, Kaen and Riven learned the geography and names of many important places in Aetherra.
He would be able to leave the empire in the direction of the Fragments of Nocth.
Was it the right direction?