The doors creaked open with a heavy groan of ancient stone.
Jin, Lyrderu, and Serenya stepped forward in silence, the weight of their respective trials still lingering within them. They passed through the threshold, and froze.
The world beyond was unlike anything the dungeon had offered so far.
Instead of endless tunnels or darkened chambers, they found themselves standing at the edge of an old village.
The air was still and crisp, carrying the faint scent of woodsmoke and wildflowers. The sky above was a soft, muted gray, neither night nor day. Crumbling stone cottages and weathered wooden huts dotted the landscape, clustered around winding dirt paths that stretched into misty distance.
But it was the inhabitants that caught their breath.
Spirits, dozens of them, floated gently through the village. Wisps of translucent blue and silver, shaped like villagers of old: a woman hanging laundry, a blacksmith hammering at invisible iron, children chasing one another with laughter lost to time.
They moved in endless repetition, trapped in memories long since passed.
Every so often, a spirit would pause.
Turn toward the trio who are carefully advancing inside.
Silent, weightless gazes fell upon Jin, Serenya, and Lyr.
No anger nor welcoming.
Simply... acknowledgment.
A silent nod to visitors who did not belong...and yet, somehow, were expected.
Then the spirits would drift back to their ghostly routines as though nothing had changed.
- "This place... it's like walking through a dream." - Serenya clutched her staff closer.
Lyr's eyes scanned the surroundings, his tail flicking uneasily.
- "Not hostile. But... heavy."
Jin said nothing at first. His gaze roamed over the village...the cracked wells, the leaning fences, the faint outlines of life that once thrived here. A deep, familiar yet unseen sorrow pressed down on his chest.
He moved forward. The others followed; their footsteps silently on the mist-laden ground.
They wandered past the spirit blacksmith, the faded marketplace, a chapel with broken bells hanging listlessly.
No sound except the occasional creak of phantom doors.
Then, at a bend in the village path; a familiar shimmer materialized.
The spirit they had met at every floor appeared before them once more.
But this time, there was something different.
He looked less ethereal; more solid, more human. His robes were no longer a blur of colors but a tapestry of gold and deep indigo. His face, though still veiled by light, radiated warmth.
He bowed slightly at the waist, a gesture of surprising familiarity.
- "Welcome, adventurers," he said, voice carrying a deeper resonance than before. "You have walked the Paths of Curiosity, Discipline, and Reflection... and emerged whole. Congratulation for reached this place."
He gestured for them to follow.
Wordlessly, they obeyed.
Down a smaller path, past the edge of the ghostly village, they reached it:
A shrine, modest in structure yet emanating an undeniable gravity.
Built of old stones and weathered wood, the Shrine of Descension stood nestled beneath a crooked willow tree, its boughs heavy with spectral light.
Upon the shrine's outer walls—murals.
Faded, but powerful still.
Scenes of a boy's birth beneath the stars.
Of a child wielding both sword and spell in secret.
Of battles fought alone against rising darkness.
Of friendships forged and kingdoms dreamed.
Of sacrifice written not in words, but in blood and hope.
The spirit spoke again, softer now.
- "Here... the story of the first adventurer begins. The one who dared to defy fate... and paid the price to forge a new future."
Jin stepped closer, his fingers brushing the mural almost reverently.
Serenya knelt in silent prayer.
Lyr placed a clawed hand against the shrine's stone, his head bowed low.
As if waited for this moment, everything becomes twisted and the world changed…
When Jin opened his eyes, the air turned cool. Grass rustled beneath his bare feet. When he looked down, he saw he was no longer in his body—his hands were small. Child-sized.
He stood in a quiet village. Stone homes. Smoke rising from chimneys. Laughter echoed distantly.
In the reflection of a well, he saw a boy. Bright blue eyes. Pale silver hair. Curious and serious all at once.
Altherion.Solvane – It was the name that appeared in his mind when he was still confused.
It wasn't just a name...it was an identity. Jin could feel it. He was Altherion now.
He felt the heavy weight of confusion...the sting of isolation that clung to someone reincarnated into an unfamiliar world. Though he had been born here, the villagers whispered after his parents' passing: that he saw things others could not, that he bent water and fire as if the elements themselves bowed to his will.
He trained alone, because no one else would dare to go near him much less to train with him; wept alone, in the forest.
Then he heard a voice, not divine, but from within himself.
- "If I only am an outsider here, then why should I linger here any longer? I should leave and spread my wings onto the outside world. Maybe…maybe there will be a place where I belong out there."
That was when he first formed the idea.
A place where those like him could belong.
The village faded.
Now, Jin stood atop a rocky hill, years older. His hands calloused. His cloak torn. A broken sword clutched in one hand. Monster corpses lay strewn around him: giant wolves, chimeric lizards, skeletal knights.
He - Altherion - was no longer a child. He was a warrior now. Self-taught through real life and dead battles.
He wandered from one land to another, fighting monsters not to conquer, but to understand himself. Each kill taught him something. About magic, life and pain.
He helped people, those who are in front of him; those who from villages abandoned by kings; from cities ruined by war.
And slowly, others gathered around him.
A swordswoman from the west. An Elf mage from the south. A beastkin healer. A bard who wielded illusions like blades. And a blacksmith who forged weapons with soul fire.
His first comrades.
They called themselves adventurers; then established something called Adventurer Guild – a word may feel foreign to others, but not to him – who had been reincarnated into this world.
The illusion blurred through scenes: subjugation monster after monster; Ruins being explored; Relics found while bonds deepened.
They weren't just mere adventurers, they were family.
The vision then shifted.
Now, a throne room—not gilded in gold, but sculptured from sunlight and the breath of the wind, standing atop a hill where the first light of dawn caressed what was down below.
At the heart of it all, Altherion stood—tall and steady—beside his five closest companions. Brothers and sisters not of blood, but of will and dreams shared under endless stars.
- "We've come very far. We've built more than just a simple guild," Altherion said, voice steady, resonating like a hymn across the chamber. "We've built a future - a home where people can live together, sing together without fear; while children can laugh and play."
Below them, the first city unfolded like a living miracle - Radiant Solaria. A place where every race, every soul, stood equal beneath the sky. No chains of birth or blood dictated fate. Only merit. Only hope.
The Adventurer's Guild became the heartbeat of it all - a sanctuary of growth, of freedom, of dreams unfettered.
The illusion rippled with life.
Crowds walked the streets, banners of every color flying high. Laughter rang through alleys and open plazas. Children of elves, dwarves, beastkin, humans - all singing, playing, dreaming together. A city breathing of unity.
He changed his name: Altherion Solvane Radiant.
And then…darkness came.
The sky cracked. Shadows spilled from the heavens, spread wide and poured all over the world. Then in the middle of it all, a figure emerged. Blurred and indescribable. A pure malice given form.
Even Jin, watching through this illusion, felt the crushing pressure of that presence.
The world trembled.
Altherion and his companions flew out and fought fiercely, desperately.
But, only Altherion stood at the end.
His body was shattered. His friends were fallen. The creature smiled as if prepared to consume the world a whole.
Altherion closed his eyes.
From his heart beats, from the deepest soul of his being, something ancient awakened. Scales shimmered across his arms. Wings of starlight burst from his back. Horns curled upon his brow.
He…evolved into something like half human, half dragon; something divine like a demi-god.
He rose. Fought once more with the creature, weaken it even more before muttered his last spell.
He sealed the creature and blasted it back to the cracked in the sky.
Humanity had gained victory…with a cost of his life.
His body slowly dissolved into stardust, while his heart and weapon shone brightly before scattering across the world in streams of light.
The illusion ended.
Jin fell to his knees. Beside him, Serenya sobbed openly while even Lyrderu, hardened warrior of a proud tribe, stood silently, hand over his heart, eyes shimmering.
The spirit stepped forward once more; but this time, he looked different.
Silver hair flowing. Golden eyes. Wings made of galaxies.
- "Thank you," he said. "For listening."
- "Your majesty, Altherion…?" - Serenya's breath caught.
He smiled.
- "I'm neither king nor a guild master. I remained simply as a wandering spirit, watching, waiting… until those worthies could walk the same path."
He looked to each of them.
- "Someone who can protect the kingdom I loved."
His hand extended, glowing with warmth.
A golden light enveloped them.
[???? title evolving...]
[New title updated: ??? (Comprehension: 15%)]
Resonating…
[God Apostle title Seal partial unlocked...]
Skill Acquired: Purification (A)
Effect: Target / Area skill which can cleanse any miasma, unclean, evil spirits or abnormal states
Restriction: 100m diameter from caster.
Skill Acquired: Resurrection (SSS)
Effect: Resurrect a lost soul back to life with 50%HP.
Restriction: Can only be used one per week (unstackable); need to summon the soul and ask for permission before resurrected; Target resurrected will have 1 level deducted.
Skill Acquired: Soul Alteration (EX)
Effect: A skill which can help alter a target's soul or status board.
Restriction: Must obtain target consent; Target cannot exceed the current total stat points.
Beside him, Serenya and Lyr too – are enveloped with light:
[New title acquired: Holy Dragonkin – Legacy of Altherion]
Lyrderu's body began to shift; his already bulky frame growing larger, denser, every muscle tightening with newfound power.
Then, with a surge of energy, a pair of wings burst forth from his back, spreading wide from his shoulders in a display of primal might.
[New title acquired: Saintess of Radiant Light – Legacy of Altherion]
A soft light enveloped Serenya, glowing brighter for a moment before gently fading.
The remaining radiance gathered into her right hand, forming a glowing cross-shaped mark that etched itself into the back of her palm; like a divine seal left by the heavens themselves.
The light then faded.
Altherion's form flickered once more.
- "Go. The world has need of you. Not as warriors. But as beacons. I wish you all bright future ahead"
And then, he was gone.
The shrine dimmed.
But in their hearts—a fire never known before now blazed.
A new chapter had begun.