[SYSTEM NOTICE: YOU FAILED]
Nyx had failed his Trial.
He should have been dead.
No exceptions. No loopholes. No second chances.
And yet... he was alive.
He stood still — utterly motionless — in a place that defied understanding. A vast, colorless expanse stretched endlessly in every direction. Above him, the sky shimmered like torn auroras stitched together with strands of code and bleeding ink. Below, the same — a mirrored void reflecting stars long extinct, constellations swallowed by time.
And in front of him...
A figure. Still. Silent. Watching. Unreadable.
But before we continue...
Let's turn the page back — just a little.
---
Eight Years Ago
That was when everything broke.
The Calamity — the day the first Trial appeared.
No one knew why. No warning. No prophecy. One moment the world spun quietly, and the next — it was in complete chaos.
Because of Trials, reality fractured. Cities vanished. People screamed as dimensional scars tore open, vomiting unknown creatures — corrupted monsters we called Anomalies.
They called the breach zones Trials —
Dimensional distortions, portals to story-fractured spaces called Trials.
In response, humanity evolved.
At the age of eighteen, if you were chosen by the system...
You entered your first Trial.
A brutal, surreal crucible meant to awaken your potential — tied to your Aspect, Attribute, Artifact, and Echo.
Clear the Trial and return stronger. Awakened.
Fail... and the world erases your name.
---
Now Back to Present – Nyx's First Trial
The moment Nyx stepped through the gate, the system ignited.
Dozens of holographic screens exploded to life, a cascade of glowing code floating before his eyes.
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
[NAME: NYX]
[CORE: —]
[ASPECT: —]
[ATTRIBUTE: —]
[ARTIFACT: —]
[ECHO: —]
"What the...?" he muttered.
Nothing. No Aspect. No Attribute. No gear. No powers.
Not even a title. Just… his name.
Then—
[ERROR DETECTED]
[ACCESS: DENIED]
[STATUS: REJECTED]
His stomach dropped.
[YOU HAVE FAILED]
[TERMINATION IN PROGRESS…]
"Wait—what?! I didn't even do anything yet!" Nyx shouted, heart hammering. "I didn't even get to try!"
The world around him flickered. Glitched.
The floor vanished.
The walls fragmented into static.
His vision didn't fade like sleep — it was more violent... like death.
Then — everything fell into silence.
Total, complete, suffocating silence.
---
But suddenly, a moment later...
His eyes shot open.
A ragged breath escaped his lungs — sharp and painful. The air tasted like light and broken memories. It shouldn't have been breathable.
"Am I... alive?" he whispered, confused.
"Yes," said a voice behind him. Smooth. Calm.
Amused.
He turned sharply.
A man stood before him — tall, composed, cloaked in ink and contradiction. His presence bled unreality.
Nyx's gaze swept the surroundings.
A world with no edges — sky and sea blending into a mirrored infinity. A dreamscape of starlight and shadows.
"...Where am I?" he asked, warily.
"You're in the Void," the man replied. "The place between life and death."
"Void?"
"Yes. And I'm the one who brought you here."
Nyx narrowed his eyes. "So... who are you?"
The man smiled faintly.
"Me? I'm the Author."
That earned a frown.
"The Author?"
"Correct."
"Why am I here?"
"I revived you."
"..."
"So... I really died."
"Yes."
"...Why did you revive me?"
His voice was steadier than he expected.
The Author tilted his head. His eyes held galaxies... and boredom.
"Because," he said slowly, "you are the only one the system has ever rejected before a Trial even began."
He paused. "That's never happened before. And I found that… fascinating."
He stepped closer.
"I want to see what happens when someone like you plays in a system that refuses to recognize them."
Then — he raised a hand.
[REINITIALIZING…]
Light shimmered across Nyx's body, wrapping around him like silver thread.
"I'm giving you a second chance," said the Author. "Not out of mercy — but curiosity."
"And because," he added with a glint in his gaze, "if the system won't make you anything... maybe you'll become something it can't define."
Nyx tried to speak—
—But the world vanished in light.
---
Back in the Trial
He gasped.
His boots scraped against cracked tile.
He was back — same ruined chamber. Same blinking interface.
Except...
His left cheek burned.
He touched it — a faint sting.
A mark, seared into his skin. It was special. Not given by the system.
He stayed still, letting silence fill his lungs. Calculating.
The interface remained empty.
No Aspect. No Artifact. No Echo.
Nothing had changed.
Except him.
And the mark.
He whispered to himself, eyes narrowing.
"...What was that?"