"Damn," I muttered, staring at my own body lying motionless on the ground. It had been a desperate move—but one that actually paid off.
[NAME: ???]
[SPONSOR: The Fallen God - Omithar]
[ABILITY: Variant (Cooldown: 1:23:32)]
[LIGHT: 80 / 1000]
[CURRENT POPULATION: 632,039 / 1,000,000]
What the hell?
It's dropped another hundred thousand people?!
Sigh.
I looked at my palm again.
"I should have died," I whispered.
I should have.
At first, I found something to hold up one of the rocks—making direct contact with my skin could turn everything against me. But I needed a second rock as backup.
I didn't know what to do, but then, in that frustrating moment, I stared at the panel and remembered…
Variant.
It took a while, but I was eventually able to activate it—creating an alternate version of myself. Something was wrong with it, though. Since it was pulled from an alternate timestream, it wasn't sentient. It was more like a clone—able to move only by command.
But I noticed something—it had its own Light. I couldn't see its profile, but I guessed it was the same as mine.
We somehow managed to pry another rock from the wall with great effort. The clone carried one, and I carried the other. I was the one who threw the first rock at the creature, which it grabbed. Then, on my command, the clone hurled the second rock straight into its mouth. But it seemed to drain all the Light from the clone in the process.
Sigh.
Well, all's well that ends well.
I walked toward the creature's corpse—but then, suddenly—
"SCRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
I had never heard a sound like that before.
So terrible, it made my soul tremble.
I felt overwhelming dread.
Death.
It felt like Death itself was staring me in the face.
"Haa… haa… haaah…" I panted, collapsing as hands—numerous hands—began emerging from the ground. They were nothing like human hands. Dead, decaying things—blackened, rotting limbs I couldn't even comprehend.
And then I remembered.
The Woeful.
They drag the soulless into the Nether Realm.
Slowly, the hands touched the creature's corpse—and then, an ethereal body began to manifest. The moment it did, the screaming grew worse.
"AERGAHHHHHHHHHSGHHHHHHHHH!"
It came from all the creatures being dragged away—rebelling, refusing to be pulled into that cursed torment of the Nether Realm. My mind felt like it was splitting apart. I held my ears tightly.
"Fuck!" I cried as the pain tore through my mind.
And then—
Silence.
Profound silence.
"Haah… haah… haah…" I panted, down on one knee.
I looked around.
The alternate version of me was still there—so was the creature's corpse.
Seems the Woeful only take souls.
Since they didn't go near my alternate body… it must not have one.
"Status," I said.
[NAME: ???]
[SPONSOR: The Fallen God - Omithar]
[ABILITY: Variant (Cooldown: 0:53:45)]
[LIGHT: 920 / 1000]
[CURRENT POPULATION: 615,039 / 1,000,000]
Hm.
Barely a hundred thousand left.
Looks like this'll be over soon.
The Light…
I frowned, remembering what I had initially read in the system.
You can steal Light from everything.
I looked around.
So… what now?
With a sigh, I sat on the ground.
Waiting might be the smartest move right now.
Sigh.
I leaned against the wall.
Damn.
I can't use that skill again.
I looked at my palm once more.
It feels… strange.
Like the moment that alternate version came into existence, I lost something.
Omithar…
Tch.
What exactly is he taking in exchange for this power?
At first, I thought it was just the price of survival.
But after summoning that first alternate version… that doesn't seem to be the case.
He took something.
I feel… tired.
Not physically. Not mentally.
A strange kind of tired. One I can't explain—like something is seeping out of me.
What is this?
"Ah," I tried to speak.
But—
I couldn't.
WHAT THE HELL?!
I looked around.
My vision was going blurry.
Crap!
I tried to stand…
I couldn't.
Hah.
Oh well.
The trial should be over soon anyway.
Kind of a letdown.
I expected something more climactic.
But I guess the system was right.
These first trials are just to weed out the weaklings.
Heh.
But I am a weakling.
Well, that just means brute strength isn't the only thing that defines survival.
I wondered if the second trial would be this easy.
I tried to focus on the glow of the rock across from me.
But even that was becoming difficult.
Calm down.
I exhaled slowly.
It's… been a long time since I just sat and thought.
The constant missions have broken something in me.
Aren, Leo, Klaus, Amado, Shinji, Floyd, Jonathan, Eddy…
So many names. So many lives.
I can barely remember the one I used to call mine.
It's all a blur.
I hate this.
I hate it.
I hate this lack of identity.
I hate this helplessness.
It feels like something is amplifying my emotions.
Maybe… by creating an alternate version of myself—one pulled from another timeline—I took on the burden of its emotions.
Maybe… even its soul.
Hm.
Maybe that's why this version didn't feel alive.
It had already lost what made it alive.
Its soul.
"Damn," I muttered.
My eyes grew heavy.
I have a feeling that when I wake up… this trial will be over.
Hm.
Didn't even do anything.
What a waste.