"Is this really how far we've fallen?"
Ruel Elmond lay flat on his bed, his face on his arms as he looked out the nearby window with a solemn expression.
He was a young man who had just hit 18 years old, his hair golden and his eyes green.
Today, he had failed to meet his expectations — awakening a D-rank Talent, Cold Touch.
Awakening a Talent was good, but what his town needed right now was more than this.
Positioned at a fairly good part of the town where the children came to play, he watched the sun dip in the horizon.
He didn't even bother thinking — he just let himself go.
He was barely aware of time passing, until a gentle knock broke the silence.
After a while, a gentle knock on the door called his attention.
"Ruel, it's me," A young sweet voice said.
Standing up and looking at the door, Ruel said, "Come in."
A black-haired, grey-eyed girl, standing five-foot-six and a few months younger than Ruel, walked in.
This was Ruel's girlfriend, Anna Sinclair.
She looked at Ruel with a slight smile, pulled a chair from the corner of the room closer, and sat down.
She held his hand and looked him in the eyes.
"Ruel, how are you?"
Ruel's hands shook a bit as he bit his lips.
Looking at him, Anna's eye softened as she smiled.
"So what if it's D-rank? You've always found another way, haven't you? It's not like you're the majority that didn't awaken a talent at all."
She continued, "There's still the body or mage path.
"You're a man who can't be stopped. For years now, you've been pushing despite the limitations. That's part of what I… what we love about you."
Closing the distance between them, Anna hugged him as she asked again.
"Ruel, how are you?"
Ruel seemed to falter as a tear dropped before he smiled.
"I… will be fine." But even as he said it, the words felt hollow. He wasn't sure if he believed them himself.
Anna pushed him back and glanced at his face.
"I'll take that, for now."
She pursed her lips and kissed his forehead.
"I'll leave you to yourself now. Don't stay holed up for too long, okay?"
Ruel nodded and smiled. "Thank you, Anna. Tell everyone I said I'm sorry for making them worried."
Anna put her tongue out and replied playfully, "Bleeh! We know you, we're not worried!"
Waving, she left the room, leaving the room bathed in orange glow to Ruel.
He slumped on the bed and stared at the wooden ceiling, his flames reignited.
"Thanks… Anna," he muttered as he smiled and clenched his fists.
"Maybe I'll just rest for now."
He did as he said and drifted off to sleep.
In his dimly lit room, a sound echoed, causing Ruel's eyes to flicker open.
[You have gained access to Enma!]
[You have obtained access to the Enma System!]
[You are now a Tier-1 Citizen!]
[You have obtained 50,000,000 En!]
[You have obtained a Quest!]
[You have been linked to the Haven, Hollowwood!]
Ruel heard various dings, followed by a weird screen that told words he failed to understand.
"What is all this? Enma? I've not heard of that before…"
As he muttered, he heard a reply.
"That's not surprising. Enma is only known by few beyond its world. You are now amongst that few."
Only then did Ruel notice a translucent figure hovering in the air behind him.
It was a young female with long yellow hair and bright green eyes wearing a plain white gown.
With a lazy face, she also stared at the various screens that Ruel saw.
Ruel skillfully darted away from his bed and reached a corner of the room, extending his fist to the spirit.
"What…who are you?" he asked.
"Calm down," the spirit said with a bored look. "If I wanted to harm you, I wouldn't reveal myself."
Ruel's alertness softened as he saw her point, prompting her to add:
"I'm linked to that glowy thing in front of you. It's not a coincidence I appeared the same time it did."
"Okay," he said, "That doesn't tell me what or who you are. And what's this thing in front of me?"
Sitting down in the air, the figure looked at him and said, "I am your ancestor. Actually, a being made from a fragment of your ancestor's soul."
Not giving him a chance to talk, the figure continued.
"If I'm appearing today, it must mean you recently went through a sort of Awakening, you must have awakened something low-ranked."
Ruel's eyes shook, assuring the spirit that she was right.
"Well, the reason for awakening this is related to this thing.
"Most of the essence that was supposed to be used during your awakening has been used to obtain access to Enma and other things."
As understanding dawned on Ruel, he cursed,
Ruel's fists trembled as he stood up. "What? You halted my opportunity for this?"
But the spirit remained unimpressed, floating like mist in moonlight.
"You have a temper issue," the spirit said. "Don't make noise. Attracting attention right now might be problematic."
Ruel gave no damn about that and was about to release his repressed anger, but he shut it when he heard Spirit say calmly:
"You can upgrade whatever rank you got if you listen to me silently."
'That's possible? There's hope?'
Ruel stayed still at a corner, nodding for a continuation.
"Through this System you have just acquired, you have access to a new world with resources that you wouldn't normally have access to in this world.
"Also, your ancestors have granted you a lot of money to assist you.
"In fact, a situation like yours was expected and they've prepared ways for you to attain power asides from the upgrade I mentioned earlier."
'Thinking logically, if what this being said is true, it's only natural that I traded my True Talent for something of equal or greater value,' Ruel thought.
"I have a question," he said. "What is this other world? And what exactly does all this have to do with my Ancestor?"
With a smile, he added, "it was two questions actually."
The spirit smiled as she saw he was acting less stressful.
"Regarding information about the other world, it's easier to experience.
"Don't worry, it won't be dangerous. If you go through the information on those screens, you'll see where it states you're linked to a Safe Haven where you'll be transported to."
Her smile turned a bit solemn as she recalled some of the past.
"For your other question...
"Firstly, let me ask.
"Has your family fallen from grace?"