Rode felt immensely embarrassed. He secretly glanced at the Sister Miss. Her cheeks were flushed, her head was bowed, and there seemed to be tears shimmering in her eyes.
He didn't know what to say, so he quickly took off his shirt and lay face down on the bed.
A little while later, he felt a slight coolness on his back. The Sister Miss's soft, slightly cool little hands were placed on his shoulder blades, beginning to stroke gently, accompanied by warm droplets falling onto his spine.
A strange warmth rose in his body. Her movements were as soft as clouds in the sky, and as gentle as a distant dream.
The faint incense smoke curled around his nostrils. It was only then that Rode's mind completely relaxed. The unknown, the fear, and death, along with the anxiety, sensitivity, and melancholy they brought, truly receded from him.
He felt as if he were lying in a gentle water town, his soul completely unfurling.
A soft singing voice drifted into his ears.
"I bring fresh sweet rain, from river, from ocean, for the parched flowers; I wield the hail's flail, beating the green fields till they are clad in silver attire..."
...
Amidst the dreamlike, ethereal singing, Rode felt his soul burning, his body becoming light, as if floating in the boundless cosmos. His soul soared upward, rushing toward the vast, empty, and infinite darkness.
However, in the next instant, his headache suddenly intensified. He clearly felt a tearing agony accompanied by a dull, heavy impact.
Rode cried out, falling to his knees, clutching his head. The pain was so distinct, like the moment the anesthetic wore off during a tooth extraction—every detail of the doctor's tweezers touching the bad tooth was reflected in his brain, causing his nerves to shatter.
With superhuman willpower, Rode stood up, forcing himself to open his eyes, only to find that he was no longer in bed, and the Sister Miss had vanished.
This was a world that felt more like a dream.
He stood in a gray, dim mist. Under his feet was pale, faded-looking dirt. There was only this mist and dirt all around, stretching endlessly, as if without boundaries.
"W-what is going on?"
Rode felt his head was a mess. The intense agony started to blur his thoughts. He instinctively walked forward and soon discovered the only object existing in this empty world.
An obelisk.
In a world without any reference points, it stood as if at the very center of existence. It was about three meters tall, square in shape, gradually narrowing from bottom to top, like an Egyptian obelisk. The surface of the stele was covered in cracks.
Directly in front of it, a human-shaped black shadow was violently striking it. With every blow, the dull pain in Rode's mind appeared simultaneously. They were so synchronized, as if the obelisk was his nerve itself.
Before Rode could fully register what was happening, the black shadow noticed him, spun around, and lunged with astonishing speed.
Almost instantaneously, he was tackled to the ground. The black shadow squeezed his neck with one hand and slammed its other hand against his forehead.
The survival instinct made Rode struggle desperately, but the black shadow's strength far surpassed his. Every blow brought a soul-shattering agony. It had no features but only two terrifying red lights, giving off a sense of twisted hatred and an urgent need to kill him.
Under the continuous assault, Rode's will began to scatter. Death was closing in. His vision blurred, the world grew dark, and he gradually couldn't breathe, as if a heavy reality was crushing him.
Yet he still resisted, though it was useless.
Is this the end for me?
In the midst of the searing pain, only this thought remained in Rode's mind.
Is this my destiny? he thought in despair.
Just then, a golden light tore through the darkness, shining out from the black shadow's chest.
Rode instinctively raised his hand and touched this sliver of golden light.
In the next instant, as if a primal instinct was triggered, Rode violently grasped it, as if gripping a sword of light. Without hesitation, he fiercely pulled the blade out.
The black shadow's chest was ripped open. It had no features, but its expression was one of extreme pain. It made no sound, yet a screeching sound seemed to transmit directly through his soul.
The next moment, the black shadow shattered, turning into countless black dust particles that dissipated into the air with a strange, wailing sound.
Only when the last trace of blackness vanished into the gray mist did Rode regain his composure.
He lay there for a while longer before slowly getting up, surprised to find no wounds and no blood on his body.
"What was that all about?"
Rode was slightly bewildered and still shaken.
He looked down. The golden light was still in his hand.
"This... Am I really not dreaming?"
Rode held the golden light up to his eyes, examining it closely. It was somewhere between matter and illusion, like solidified jelly, yet also like melted gold. It was irregularly long, like a section of intercepted sunlight.
"Amazing... Is this some kind of weapon?"
This gave him a bit of courage. He took a few steps forward to the obelisk, surprised to find that it was self-repairing. The greenish-gray stone surface was healing, and countless cracks were disappearing.
And as the obelisk recovered, the excruciating pain in his head also receded, like a receding tide, soon leaving only a slight lingering ache pulsing in his nerves.
"What exactly is this thing? Where am I?"
Rode felt like he had turned into a "ten-thousand-whys," his head full of questions.
"Why does this obelisk seem to be synchronized with my mind? Am I in a micro-world, and are my nerves this massive? Am I actually far smarter than Einstein?" "Hmm, that possibility isn't completely ruled out..."
Rode cautiously reached out and gently touched the obelisk.
The next instant, the stele's surface became deep and profound, like a night sky. Tiny dots of light dotted the background, like fireflies under the night sky.
"What's this?"
Rode curiously observed these light dots. They were very faint, almost extinguished. Only the one in the center was slightly brighter. It emitted a dark red light, like a pile of newly extinguished embers.
When Rode focused his attention on this dark red star, many tiny characters appeared within the red light.
But he didn't recognize a single one.
Damn it.
Rode made up his mind: he would definitely get rid of his illiteracy the moment he had a chance.
Since he couldn't read, Rode reluctantly shifted his gaze. However, the other light dots did not respond. They were too small and dim, disappearing if he wasn't careful, almost like an illusion.
Rode watched for a while but found nothing new.
Just as he was about to retreat, his peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of a slender dark red flame at the base of the obelisk.
"Huh? When did that appear?"
Rode moved his gaze. The moment he looked at it, a line of information appeared directly in his mind.
[The Flowers on the Shore of Rin, the Soul of Prince Haegor of the North]
"What is this? A soul?"
Rode watched for a few seconds, then moved his attention back to the dark red light dot.
"Is there a connection between them?" "Hmm, both are dark red firelight. If I add this in..."
The next instant, Rode watched in astonishment as the flame floated up, flew toward the dark light dot in the obelisk, and merged into it, being completely consumed. The dark red light dot brightened. The star seemed to be boiling, as if it were on fire.
A strange sensation rose in Rode. The obelisk began to shine, and the entire world felt different. The golden light in his hand suddenly shattered, turning into countless golden points that merged into the obelisk.
"...What happened?"
Rode was completely confused. Just as he was about to study it closely, he suddenly felt a heavy pressure beneath him, accompanied by an intense sensation of falling. Everything before his eyes blurred.
When he regained consciousness, he was back in the dim room, still lying face down on the bed. The Sister Miss's singing was still echoing in his ears.
"...But I silently laugh at my own empty tomb. Drilling out of the rain-filled cave. Like a baby being born from the mother, like a ghost flying away from the grave..."
But her soft, boneless little hand was not very well-behaved. It lightly slid over his waist, tracing down his spine. A tingling, electric sensation shot through him.
CRASH!
The door was violently thrown open.
A woman easily three meters wide rushed in, roaring:
"CONFINEMENT! SEVEN! YOU ARE CONFINED!"
... ... ...