Free Web NovelChapter 61: Venturing into the Abyss.
"Arnold McCain."
The first Cadet was called out to the stairs.
Amongst the crowd, a boy shivered as he slowly walked out.
His expression was one of clear fear despite his large build.
He stopped in front of Raziel, though; he had barely made it halfway towards him.
The instructor looked at him with an expression that was absurdly satisfied.
"You should be scared, but nothing will change what will happen today."
The boy gulped at his words.
"Come."
And he obeyed.
As Arnold reached Raziel, he was handed a watch-like device by Torquad who stood next to him.
"Don’t scare the kids, Raziel." He said tiredly. "As for you, keep this with you at all times.
There is a map leading to the nearest Race Base as well as a Human Base.
It is your decision where to go as you will be spawned in a random location."
The boy nodded as he took it with shaky hands.
"Wear it immediately."
Anold obeyed without a word and put on his watch.
The rest just looked on with subtly varying expressions.
But their hesitation was prevalent.
No one even dared to speak the whole time.
Something Luca actually appreciated.
"Alright, Cadet Arnold. Good luck out there."
The boy nodded again and looked at the ominous black beam.
His head tilted upwards towards the ceiling where the beam phased through to reach the sky and then the bottom where he would walk through.
The beam must have connected to the Elderion Planet by now.
It was the reason the pressure had stabilised at the time.
He hardened his resolve. Grabbed his arms and rushed in with a battle cry.
The world watched as the first Cadet was swallowed completely by the beam they feared.
The cause of the great Umbral period– the gate of the Abyss.
Soon, name after name was called.
Cadets staggered to the front.
They were propped with the same item.
Instructed on various circumstances.
Some were too scared to go and had to be pushed in by Raziel, who was more than glad to do so.
A few were more than elated.
Be it fear or excitement, they walked in with raised shoulders and broad chests.
They would come back alive whether they liked it or not.
This continued for half an hour until...
"Lucamir Elaric."
The boy stirred.
He turned to his side where Taren was still waiting.
Both gave a nod at each other before he stepped out.
As he did so, a few Cadets murmured around him.
Something about seeing how his experience would go.
Luca didn’t bother listening.
Small talks were useless when death was no longer an option, but certainty.
As he reached the front of the stairs, he lifted his arm for the watch and was handed one.
He looked at it, observed its craftsmanship with slight intrigue and finally put it on.
"Does this simply tell us where to go?"
He asked.
Torquad raised a brow while Raziel frowned.
"Why would that be of concern to you?"
Luca turned to the tablets that Torquad and Orion held.
They had given them the watches after connecting them to the tablets. Or so he assumed.
’Must be some kind of life watch?’
They were common, so he didn’t think about it.
"Never mind."
He walked up the stairs and stopped at the front of the continuously surging beam.
Looking up, Luca gasped.
’What a sight.’
The Beam seemed endless, but all knew it ended up on the Elderion Planet.
As for the diameter, it was so large that ten adults would be able to walk through side by side and space would be enough for four extra.
Quite frankly, it was a sight to behold.
"Scarred, Elaric?"
Luca turned to find Torquad staring straight at him.
The young farmer shrugged.
And without a response, he walked through.
Immediately, the world became a blur.
A mix of black, red and something more.
As if the very fabric of reality was being pulled... and then the pull tugged at him.
It was like his body was rotated in a concentric pool, tugging at him before the beam pulsed and his body began to suffuse with it.
Just then, his vision which was filled with black suddenly throbbed and a voice echoed in his ears as he saw half a face with a wide grin.
"Took you long enough."
To the people outside, Luca disappeared.
For him, he had experienced transportation first-hand.
And for Torquad who held the tablet, it was a sign that something was terribly wrong.
The man’s eyes bulged as he glanced at the holographic screen.
An image of Luca’s profile next to the many he handed the same tracker to flicked off and on... until it turned completely off.
He glanced at Raziel.
The man was already staring at the same image.
Both looked at each other, a slight frown on their faces.
Then as if nothing had happened, they flicked his image clean from the holographic screen and continued the process.
’Too bad.’ Torquad sighed. ’He’s dead.’
*
*
*
Luca’s eyes bulged open as he felt his feet land on a cold, hard surface.
His vision grew blurry, until finally, it clicked.
Images formed in their rightful place and were registered in his brain quickly.
Luca turned around as he familiarised himself with the image.
He was surrounded by thick, ancient cemented walls made in slabs. Vines and roots grew across its surface while a soft blue glow illuminated the tight corners and hallways.
The ceiling was of the same texture and the ground was an uneven, black obsidian, polished to a dark sheen.
When he observed it, he could see the reflection of his own face and body.
’Interesting.’
[WELCOME EGOIST LUCAMIR ELARIC TO THE ABYSS]
Luca glanced at the familiar blood red insignia.
A shiver ran down his spine almost immediately.
"Reminds me of the Trance... I hope it’s nothing like that.’
[DUE TO YOUR FIRST ENTRY INTO THE ABYSS, YOUR INTERFACE WILL BE UPGRADED]
[FURTHER UPGRADES WILL BE DUE TO VARIOUS CIRCUMSTANCE]
’Oh? This...’
He had read about it, but it didn’t matter at the time and the so-called ’upgrade’ wasn’t much to note down.
[EGOIST HAS UNLOCKED THE RACE AND RACIAL UPGRADE STATS]
Luca immediately summoned his interface. freewebnovёl.ƈom
’It has been a while since I looked at you.’
Mostly because he didn’t need to until now.
Name; Lucamir Elaric.
Race; Human.
Archetype; Undefined.
Ego Rank; Explorer, 2nd Stage.
Ego Core; Particle White [70.8% => 75.8%]
[Human Race Core boost (5%)]
Ego Synchronization; 5%
Ego Manifestation; 25% => 28%
[Human Race Ego Manifestation Boost (3%)]
Null Resistance; 100%
Titles; First True Egoist[Divine]. Seven Sins[Celestial].
Bloodline; None.
Traits; Mercuryborne[Transcendent], Doggedness[Dormant-Mastery(7%)].
Talents; Identification Talent[Dormant-Mastery (30%)], Sword Talent[Dormant-Mastery (9%)], Core Talent[Dormant-Mastery (5%)], Bond Talent[Dormant-Mastery (0%)], Fist Talent[Dormant-Mastery (8%)], Focus Talent[Dormant-Mastery (0%)], Harmonize Talent[Dormant-Mastery (1%)], Stealth Talent[Dormant-Mastery (7%)]Beam Talent[Dormant-Mastery(0%)], Shield Talent[Dormant-Mastery(0%)].
Ego weapons; Trial Longsword <Yet to be named> [Dormant-Mastery (0%)].
Ego Accessories; None.
Bonds; None.
He nodded in satisfaction.
’I hear other races get better benefits... and even Demons obtain bloodlines.’
He shook the thought away and instead focused on the task at hand.
’It seems I was spawned in some kind of... cave?’
Behind him was a wall, though it was much broader than the narrower passageways ahead.
In fact, Luca guessed this place might be a safe zone with how tranquil it seemed.
’It’s fantasy-like.’
He concluded before marching forward.
As he strolled down the narrow pathways, he came to a stop at a junction with five pathways ahead.
Glancing around, Luca concluded that one of these pathways was the only way forward.
’Obviously.’
He folded his arms and observed.
The pathways were identical to everything he had already seen about this place.
It was a hallway– hallways.
Each with that ancient slab design and green moss that illuminated the surrounding areas.
It was a constant pulse from the living vegetation.
’Is this not a matter of which one of these is the best option?’
He picked up his watch and tapped it.
The watch pulsed. Its white light blinked on and off and suddenly shut off entirely.
Luca frowned.
’Weird.’
Just as he was about to drop his arm, a sudden, strange image caught his attention.
He yanked the sleeve off his right arm and widened his eyes.
’Tattoos? When?’
Stretched sparingly along his arm in a straight line were twisted, thick curve lines that ran along it.
Each curve was a distinct shade of black, extending from his wrist to his elbow.
Luca tapped them curiously, narrowing his gaze at the distinct shades.
’Greyish, dark greyish... weird, five distinct shades.’
He tilted his head to the side.
’Firstly, my watch isn’t working, and now this?’
A memory flashed in his head.
It was subtle, but it was there.
Half the face of someone he had seen by accident.
’What was it again, though? Was it a vision? I don’t remember.’
He glanced at the hallway and took a step forward.
’I’ll figure it out along the line. For now.’
His lips curled into a grin.
"Finally, The Abyss!"
