[Energy fusion complete.]
["User's Inner World" registered.]
[Resetting laws… conducting final evaluation.]
The light surrounding Arian began to fade.
The feeling inside him—of greatness, of creation, of unity—slowly slipped away.
Everything around him was unraveling:
the mountains he had forged, the gray sea, the small spirits he created…
all dissolving like a dream sliding through his fingers.
The voice of the Unknown Master echoed softly:
> "The trial is over… and only the decision remains."
Arian looked around and said in a trembling voice:
> "Decision? What decision?"
> "Are you prepared to return to a world that still doesn't understand what you are?"
Before he could answer, the void split open,
and white light engulfed everything.
---
⚙️ The Tower's Voice
> [Stage Fifteen completed.]
[Final performance analysis underway…]
[Result: 0% compatibility with external power standards.]
[User Rank: F – the lowest recognized level.]
[The Tower rejects the user from the system.]
> [Farewell, failure.]
The final words struck him like a slap.
In an instant, Arian was dragged out of the void and hurled downward.
---
🌫️ Return
He hit solid ground—
the central courtyard of the academy.
Sunlight shone brightly,
and students gathered around him, staring in confusion.
A faint gray residue drifted off his skin,
like dust from a distant dream.
One of the students laughed:
> "That's him? The guy who supposedly spent two weeks inside the Tower?
Looks like he came out of a gym session, not a trial!"
Another sneered:
> "Rank F? Did he enter a Tower or a play center?"
Their laughter tore through the silence,
but he didn't really hear them…
The echo of the Unknown Master still lingered inside him:
> "Let them laugh… ignorance is a burden not punished, but surpassed."
---
🪶 Falco Arrives
Suddenly, a familiar voice called out:
> "Aro!!"
Arian turned and saw Falco sprinting toward him,
wearing his dark coat, worry carved clearly into his eyes.
Falco grabbed his shoulder:
> "I lost connection with you after Stage Three!
What happened? The Tower refused to send any data!"
Arian gave a faint smile and whispered hoarsely:
> "Not here… let's go somewhere quiet."
---
🏚️ The Inn
They entered a small room in the academy inn.
Arian sat calmly on the bed, lifted his hand, and said:
> "What I saw in the Tower… I can't explain it easily.
But there's something you need to witness."
He closed his eyes for a moment.
Behind him, a small gray point appeared in the air,
spinning slowly like a vortex of light and mist.
The air grew heavier.
The room's lamps dimmed.
Suddenly—
he appeared.
A towering figure,
his shadow stretching across the floor,
white hair flowing, gray eyes without pupils.
A deep voice emerged from the void:
> "You are his friend, so you must know…
no one leaves the Tower without leaving something behind."
Falco froze, sweat beading on his forehead.
He stammered:
> "Wh-who… is this?!"
Arian looked at him with steady eyes and said quietly:
> "This… is Ethreos."
The entity smiled faintly:
> "Training is over, my heir…
the time of revelation begins."