And so, morning came.
Sable shifted beneath her blanket, feeling her limbs ache from staying in one position for too long. Not to mention, her neck gave a small crack when she sat up too fast.
"Ngh... how long was I out?" She muttered to herself, rubbing her eyes.
The massive rulebook lay beside her, face down where it had hit the floor.
Her notepad of scribbles was still tucked under her pillow, open to a page that simply read: Rule #647: Don't sneeze during breakfast.
She groaned softly.
"Who even writes this crap? Like seriously!?"
Still wrapped in her blanket, Sable slipped off the bed and padded barefoot toward the sink in her bathroom.
With a low groan, she turned on the faucet to cup some water in her hands and hit her face with a slap.
"Man… I wish I could sleep some more! Today's gonna be a pain in the ass." Turning off the faucet, she looked at herself in the mirror.
Her hair was tangled with dark bags under her eyes, and a blank expression.
She was too tired to look motivated.
"Look at you, Sable, no wonder you don't have a girlfriend or boyfriend kissing all over you…"
Walking out of the bathroom, she moved to sit back down before her eyes hovered over the mattress where the Book of Spells was buried in her briefcase.
"…Dad."
She touched the bag with a groggy movement.
"I'll do my best, until the very end. When I get my Arcane Sigil, I can finally finish the Book of Spells, and access those libraries of hidden knowledge!"
After a few minutes or so, Sable grabbed her clothes from her briefcase and changed into a new outfit. It was nothing special, just a black t-shirt, blue jeans, and Converse.
Stretching her arms above her head, she loosened up her muscles and freshened up. Brushing her teeth, combing her hair, and skipping the shower for now, she was ready to head out.
"Now then, let's see what I missed last night." Approaching the door, Sable took a deep breath to ease her anxiety, though she stopped in her tracks, remembering something. "Oh wait, we have a map!" She turned around, glancing at the dresser next to her bed. "I'm such a dumbass… how could I forget? I read that about that stuff in the rule book. Not a great start from me…"
Jogging toward the dresser, she opened the drawers, seeing the map folded neatly inside.
"Sweet! Don't mind if I do." Grabbing the map, Sable hastily moved to the door, opening it to step outside.
The hallway outside was unnervingly quiet.
The Watercraft was massive. Practically a fortress of magic. But it for some reason felt like an abandoned cathedral right now.
Walking down the corridor, she looked around. Every step Sable took echoed throughout the hallways. How creepy.
"This is some shit you'd see in Nightmare on Elm Street… hopefully I ain't dreamin'!"
She joked to herself, opening the map in her hands to take a tour around the ship.
"Hmm, so we're on the first floor of the ship? I see." She held the map closer to her face. "Down below us is where the supervisors are, probably monitoring the candidates to see if they're following the rules."
Candidates of the Sorcerer Exams were unaware of the Scry Orbs.
Only a few of them, who were participants in the past, were aware of these magical contraptions.
One was currently hovering behind Sable, following her every move. Needless to say, it was one of the supervisors.
Sitting at a table with multiple holographic displays in front of her, Avleen was focused on the Hasteheart.
"The second trial has begun." Standing beside Avleen was Vordera, watching with her arms crossed.
"You think she'll find out?" Asked Rolkav, standing on the other side of Avleen.
"Hmph, who knows?" Said Vordera with a smirk. "Last Sorcerer Exam, half of the candidates failed this trial, it's pretty difficult."
Sable suddenly came to a stop as she looked up from her map, glancing around.
Something was off.
"I've been walking for a few minutes by now and not a single person has shown up. What the hell is going on?" Sable folded the map in her hands, stuffing it in her pocket. "Maybe I am dreaming…?"
She walked forward, now cautious of everything around her.
"This doesn't feel right…"
"You're stuck within my domain now, Sable Blackheart."
A voice echoed from behind, reaching Sable's ears in an instant.
Immediately freezing in place, she widened her eyes before turning around.
"Who the hell are you?!"
Standing at the far end of the corridor was a figure with their arms crossed behind their back, smiling.
They wore your average suit and tie, and appeared formal than most supervisors.
"My name doesn't matter, but do know this: You're currently stuck within my dimension."
"Huh?" Sable widened her eyes, frowning at the mysterious figure. "What do you mean stuck?! Is this part of the Sorcerer Exams or are you some dickhead trying to eliminate me?"
"Bwa ha ha! Oh no! It is indeed part of the trials, but the 1,000 rules do not apply here. Instead, you must escape before nightfall."
Sable controlled her anger, hearing it was a trial, but her confusion remained apparent.
"Okay, okay! It's still a trial, good!" Huffing a deep sigh of relief, she proceeded to scowl at him. "Alright, can I at least get an idea where I'm at? Or something at least."
The figure nodded his head.
"Currently, you're asleep."
"Eh??" Sable widened her eyes, the confusion immediately vanishing. "Huhhh??" She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
Her first assumption was right!!
"I was kidding on the whole dreaming thing… holy shit… uh… so…" She scratched her cheek, looking around. "I just gotta escape, right? Is that really it?"
The figure nodded his head.
"Why yes, but it is easier said than done. I am the Elufray Spirit of Dreams, Morpheus, and by nature, I embody the fear of dreams itself."
He turned around, facing the other way.
"I've seen your nightmares, Sable, and in order to escape, you must overcome those nightmares and reach the waking world once more."
"T-That sounds…" She hitched her breath, unable to finish her sentence. "Man… this is gonna be tough…"
Elufray Spirits were abstract entities born in the Spirit World. They represented fears of the collective unconscious; those who are afraid of darkness will give rise to the Elufray Spirit of Darkness. Those afraid of fire will give rise to the Elufray Spirit of fire.
Most, if not all, can never manifest in the physical world without the help of another Sorcerer. Usually, Sorcerers make contracts with Elufray Spirits and could use their abilities. It was common across the Magic Continent, Arcana.
Even Sable knew about them.
"Good luck, Sable, may the Spirit of Light Guide you to your destination."
Sable smiled nervously, trying to get her act together.
"Thanks, I'll need it."
Morpheus walked away, vanishing into thin particles.
Sable stood there with her arms crossed, leaning into a wall beside her.
"It's safe to assume that everyone is stuck in their dreams right now. I wonder how many people made it out?" Sable rested her head against the wall, staring up at the ceiling. "Morpheus must have a contract with one of the Supervisors of the Sorcerer Exam. They're probably watching my every move right now, even if I'm in a dream."
Sable pushed herself off the wall and took a few cautious steps forward.
"Being forcibly transported into a new world reminds me of that Isekai World Online incident that happened not too long ago."
The hallway stretched into unfamiliar territory now, feeling much longer than before.
Suddenly, she heard something.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap…tap…tap—
It was footsteps, but it wasn't hers.
They came from the corridor behind her, as if someone was stalking her.
Sable's breath caught in her throat as she turned her head slowly, feeling her spine stiffen.
"What the…?"
There was no one there.
"…Oh God! Don't do this," she whispered to herself. "Please don't do the horror movie thing…"
She started walking again, but much faster this time, however, the footsteps behind her started again too.
Tap. Tap.
TapTapTap—
She broke into a jog.
"Fuck this shit!"
A chill washed over her neck before she could see a door just up ahead.
"Hell no!"
Without thinking, she ran toward it and flung it open, slamming it shut behind her and locking the latch.
"Haaah… man!" She frantically catched her breath. "I'm a horror fanatic… but actually being in one? There's no way!"
Trying to calm herself, she took a few deep breaths—breathing in through her nose and out through her mouth.
Everything was only going to get worse from here on out.
+
Staring at the holographic display in front of them, the Supervisors were utterly baffled.
On one of the Scry Orbs, in the waking world, they could see a familiar face walking from their room into the hallway.
"She… wasn't affected?" Mumbled Avleen in shock.
"That monster…" Whispered Rolkav.
"I can't say I'm not surprised…" Said Vordera.
Standing in the corridor was none other than Adelheid Schäfer, the troublemaker.
With her usual droopy eyes and sly smile, she looked up to face one of the Scry orbs, as if mocking the supervisors.
"How can she be immune to Morpheus' spell?" Asked Avleen, facing Rolkav.
"It's pretty simple..." Said Rolkav, furrowing his brows. "Adelheid has no fears." Rolkav closed his eyes, exhaling from his nose. "The spell only works on those with fears, but she lacks them. She's a fearless killing machine."
"She is nihilistic." Added Vordera. "She doesn't care about her own life, so she doesn't fear anything. It's hard to scare a psychopath."
Everyone went quiet, staring at Vordera.
"Tsk…" Rolkav sucked his teeth, taking his leave from the monitoring room. "At this rate, she'll ace these exams, then we'll have a coldblooded killing machine in the Wizard Association."