[Prepare for appraisal…]
Konrad found himself in a space between dream and reality. It was an endless black void illuminated by a myriad of stars. Between those stars, countless strings of silver light were woven into a beautiful and inconceivably complex net, forming various nexuses and constellations. It was truly breathtaking.
From his previous life Konrad knew that he was seeing the inner workings of the Nightmare Spell. He also couldn't help but think that it looked a lot like the celestial equivalent of a neural network.
There is a question that countless people, people of both worlds actually had been asking themselves for the past few years if the Nightmare Spell alive or not. The best answer they had come up with was that there was no way to know. The Spell was neither alive nor dead; neither sentient nor mindless.
It was more of a function than a creature.
Konrad stood in the nothingness awaiting his appraisal
The Spell was still appraising his performance. However, the first reward had nothing to do with it.
[You have received an Attribute: Thunderheart.]
[You have received an Attribute: Stygian Talons.]
'Yes!'
Konrad felt a bit elated as receiving attributes from the nightmare spell is a very rare phenomenon. Although his mind was broken from the dreadful revelation he had forgotten of it. So his mental state improved and he could feel joy.
After all getting an attribute was a stroke of incredible luck and a matter to be celebrated.
He wanted to take a look at his new attribute and what does it do, but there was no more time. The Spell was done with its appraisal.
Here in the void, its voice didn't sound subtle and familiar anymore. Rather, it seemed like the universe itself was speaking. Konrad held his breath, listening.
[Aspirant! Your trial is over.]
[A nameless child ascended the Black Hollow Mountain. He crawled out of pit and chased by the Nothing. Fearful, he entered the manor of the Prince of the Underworld and receiving the destined blessing of the Goddess of Dark Skies. He meet the Choice, saw the Destiny and made his own Choice. He became a damon, no less, with the body of a boy but the expression of an old man, its eyes black and cold as obsidian.]
[You have defeated an Transcendent Titan: Stygian Lord.]
[You have received the Storm God's blessing.]
[You have achieved the impossible!]
[Final appraisal: glorious. You made your choice or the choice made you.]
That final part was not really necessary, as far as Konrad was concerned, but he wasn't satisfied with the comment from the Spell. He is brave. The Deamon of Choice had said it. He felt like his chances of evolving his Aspect to an divine rank was granteed as he received storm god's and deamon of destiny's curse? Blessing? Backhand? What ever!
Though his overall power was still dependent on the rank of his soul core, which would remain dormant until much later, but the rank of the Aspect itself would do wonders for his overall potential.
[Dreamer Konrad, receive your boon!]
He was an Aspirant no more. Konrad grinned. He definitely lost some screws.
[You have been bestowed a True Name: Night Haunter.]
His grin became wider. A true name! He had received a true name! Never in his wildest dreams did Konrad's dream of becoming one of the chosen few to accomplish such feat — and in his very first nightmare. After all Konrad knew his limits. He almost felt it is undeserved.
But the rewards kept coming.
[Your Aspect is ready to evolve. Evolve Aspect?]
'What kind of a question is that?! Maybe some idiot declined it.'
Konrad looked at his nails and said "yes".
[Dormant Aspect Haunted is evolving…]
[New Aspect acquired.]
[Aspect Rank: Divine.]
"As expected." Konrad nodded to himself.
[Aspect Name: Night Haunter.]
"My true name and aspect name is the same? What?"
Konrad rechecked the runes. There were some difference, but the meaning is same. Well there was other meanings such as Haunted by Revelation, Traveler in the Storm and Abyss Wraith.
Confused, Konrad summoned the runes and found the lines describing his aspect.
Aspect: [Night Haunter].
Aspect Rank: Divine.
Aspect Description: [ From the Abyss of despair, emarges a demon, a wraith, a watcher. It is both deadly and dreadful. It brings dread but as well as a filcker of hope. It is the storm that is approaching, a disaster, a darkness, a tide and a guidance. It awaits the inedible destiny of hopelessness.]
Innate Ability: [Paradox].
Ability Description: [You are an outsider. You shouldn't exist and yet, you do. Destiny is uncertain, but it is yours to decide. There are countless choices and you will erhaps truly have choices... Not just the illusion of it.]
That was… a lot to digest.
First of all, Konrad felt his heart beating faster. He heard it right! All the suffering and horror he had experienced in the First Nightmare paid off in the end. A divine Aspect, he had received a divine Aspect! Anything above Awakened was rare and immensely valuable!
People with Ascended Aspects were rare enough to be fought over by various factions. The factions themselves were built around singular powerhouses with Transcendent or Supreme Aspects. And as far as he knows there are only one Sacred and three Divine aspect holder.
Now, he, an ordinary person is the fourth one. He knew his limits. But who knew fate would give him so much. Though there is no free lunch in the world. He will have to pay for this in the future.
But he grinned, driven half-mad by joy and arrogance. However, his jubilation was a little muddied. After all, there was a price to pay. Of course, he had no intention of paying it. But fate will take it with interest. To hell with that!
But it wasn't that bad.
"I will pay when the time comes. It will not be a problem... at all." Konrad thought hopefully.
If the Spell had the ability to laugh, it would surely do so after hearing his thoughts. However, it didn't. Instead, it began to speak again:
[The First Seal is broken.]
[Awakening dormant powers…]
Konrad felt something waking up inside of him. He clutched his chest and stared into the darkness, trying to understand what was happening. The feeling was not painful or unpleasant, yet it was like nothing he had ever experienced. It was as though his soul was being shaken awake, infused with strange new energy.
Konrad had never felt something like this before.
However, that energy did not come from some outside source. Rather, it was coming from within, as though it had always been there, sleeping.
The energy filled every fiber of his being.
Konrad felt his emotions becoming clearer and sharper, his mind lighter. Then, his body began to change, too. He felt as though a miniature star was burning in the center of his chest: waves of heat were radiating from it, slowly reaching his stomach and shoulders, then his arms and legs, then his hands and feet.
Under that heat, his bones, muscles, organs and blood vessels were being rebuilt and revitalized.
Konrad felt like he was being reborn. He was becoming stronger, faster, healthier.
It was euphoric.
With each second, his transformation was becoming more profound.
New kind of confidence settled in Konrad's heart. He was not a weak, powerless mortal anymore. He was not as vulnerable against the horrors that awaits him within the dream realm and maceration of the Nightmare Spell, as his mortal self was.
After some time had passed, the star burning in his chest finally cooled down. The heat was replaced with a soothing warmth. That warmth washed over Konrad's body, taking away all the aches and discomforts that had been accumulated there over the years. Then it moved up, reaching his brain and, finally, his eyes.
His vision strangely doubled.
He could still see the void populated by an endless pattern of stars. But he could also see something different.
A rumbling sky filled with strom clouds and a lonely orb floating at the eye of the storm.
From his previous knowledge, Konrad knew that this was his so-called Sea of Soul. But he also knew that it was supposed to look quite different.
For starters, it was supposed to be much more stagnant.
The star hanging above — the visual representation of his soul core — was supposed to be burning with bright light, filling the Soul Sea with a warm, blinding shining.
However, Konrad's soul was turbulent like storm brewing. But his soul sea was flooded. He was submerged within the water... Some kind of liquid.
He took a look at the radiant sun at the eye of the storm. At a closer examination, it actually turned out to be transparent. The star appears to be as turbulent as his heart. Storm clouds were spiraling around the soul core. Thunder was flickering within the dark clouds. It was like a giant celestial eye looking down upon from the high heavens. Forever unreachable.
He looked around himself. All around him was water, endless water, a boundless sea. He looked down below, it was heavy, dark, foreboding and fathomless. It was a depthless abyss. He felt a sense of doom from the abyss. Anyone who will get swallowed by this abyss cannot come out of it again.
Konrad turned back to the only celestial body in his soul sea. He tried swim upwards to the surface. But he couldn't. No matter he how hard he tried, no matter how mush he swam, he couldn't swim up to surface.
A subtle smile appeared on his face. Then he laughed...
"Hahahaha! It looks like I am condemned to forever stay in the abyss, forbidden to reach for the vast skies."
The Spell's voice suddenly pulled him out of the Sea of Soul.
[Awakening Aspect Ability…]