Rian opened his eyes to be floating in an endless space of blinding white dotted with the sigils he saw before, twisting shapes and unknown languages flew all around Rian creating an unreal scene.
He watched, captivated, as a massive, intricate rune spiraled past him. But as soon as his eyes tracked its shape, the knowledge slipped through his fingers like water. He couldn't hold onto them. The moment he looked away, the memory of the symbol vanished from his mind, leaving only a faint sense of awe.
"Man, this place is awesome," whispered Rian.
He let himself float, enjoying the weightlessness and freedom after his whole fight to the death arena.
Rian took a deep breath allowing his body to rest, after all, he nearly died! '
Wait a second'
Rian quickly ran a hand over his stomach, feeling only smooth, unbroken skin.
No hole. No blood. Not even a scar to mark where the Jester had reached inside him.
"I'm fully healed," Rian muttered.
The absurdity of it didn't escape him. One moment hedging brutally on the arena floor, the next he was completely healed in an alien-like space. It was a miracle, but it felt like a cheap one.
For a while, he just drifted. It was the first time in years he didn't have to hide or think about his next pantry raid. He thought about the manor, the endless sneers of his family, and finally, the Jester.
He had been a fool. He had wanted the exit so badly he had ignored the alarms going off in his head telling him not to go.
"I shouldn't have trusted that clown," Rian said, his voice flat. "I should've known better."
He thought of his brothers back home. They were cruel, but at least they were predictable. The Jester had been the same, just on a slightly bigger scale.
"From this point on, I'll be better. More shrewd."
He wasn't making some empty promise to try to make the world a better place, he just wanted to live.
Rian with newfound vigor pumped his fist, a new found drive filling him completely.
"Alright I am so ready, outside world you better watch out!"
…
…
…
"Outside world you better watch out!"
…
'Ok… how do I leave this place?' Rian thought sheepishly.
"Ahh whatever, the view is pretty good so I can wait a bit"
But as the minutes, or perhaps hours, stretched on, the novelty began to wear thin. The white void was unchanging, and the symbols, while beautiful, were starting to feel like a repeating loop.
"So uhh, is there a giftshop or something? Rian called out, his voice echoing into nothingness. "Can someone give me a sign or something?"
He began to somersault slowly in the air, his boredom manifesting as a restless twitch in his fingers.
"I'm getting bored," he muttered, his brow furrowing. "I just killed a Blight and blew up a literal psycho, I feel like I deserve some sort of prize rather than a timeout."
As if in on queue suddenly, the white space began to vibrate.. The drifting sigils stopped their aimless dance and aligned into a single, massive ring around him.
[Appraisal is over]
[Your Arcane Trial is over]
[Preparing Rewards]
Rian's eyes widened, this is what he's been waiting for. Honestly, this was easily the most excited Rian's ever been in his life.
Clearing a seeker trial was truly nothing short of a pipe dream for Rian but for it to be Arcane on top of all that was ridiculous to say the least.
'I wonder what I'll get'
[Ding!]
[Please initiate status]
In front of Rian a pulsing ball of black shook with a quiet intensity as if asking Rian to touch it.
Rian put his hand out and brushed against it, and it immediately exploded.
"Oi what the hell?"
It split into thousands of shards that slowly pieced together and materialized into a solid black screen.
***
Name: Rian Valcrest
Talent: Runeweaving (Arcane)
Talent Description:
[After overcoming the impossible, the lost knowledge of the world has seeped into your skin and fingers. The motto of the world is now ingrained in your very being: "Strength fades. Knowledge compounds."]
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Abilities [4 Total]
Runebound Status: UNLOCKED (1/13 Runes)
[By harnessing the power of runes, you may raise your physical self to levels unknown to man.]
Runes:
Vigor [Circle with three diagonal slashes. Activating increases physical strength greatly.]
Locked
Locked
Locked
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Vestiges
**Shadowfang** [Rank : Basic (Growth-Type)]
[Black straight-edged Chokutō lined with glowing white runes. Indestructible. Absorbs rune powers from its wielder. The runes hum faintly when magic or runes are nearby. Edge remains flawless under any impact.]
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Weapon Arts [Empty]
[No Weapon Arts unlocked yet. This section will display special techniques or abilities learned from weapons or combat training.]
***
"I can't believe it, I actually got an Arcane talent" murmured Rian.
Everyone who cleared a door received a talent equal in ranking to the door they entered, it was basic knowledge. Yet, seeing the word arcane on his status screen as something amazing to Rian.
Rian swept his eyes downward and took a moment to read his talent description.
"Knowledge of the world huh, that must be the symbols I saw earlier, I guess they're called runes. Runebound and vigor huh, that must be the skill I used against the Lycan."
Rian remembered the feeling coursing through his body during his fight with the Lycan and gave out a soft smile.
With power like that, the possibilities were endless.