Step, step, another step.
Euler moved once more through the city's dreary streets,his empty eyes fixed on the ground.
One more step,and there he saw his house, one of many identical ones, but it was his. Though what did it matter? It was all temporary; sooner or later, everything would end.
Approaching the door,he slipped his hand into his pocket and felt the heavy bronze key inside. Of course, everyone had long since switched to using magnetic cards or, at the very least, opened everything with their Aspect, but he simply liked the old padlock and the heavy key that unlocked it. It gave a sense of reliability, even though it was just an illusion—any Nightmare could break it down without much effort.
Inserting the key into the keyhole,Euler turned it several times, unlocked the door, and stepped into his home.
Yes,he was lucky not to live on the city's outskirts, because he wouldn't have lasted long there. And he was lucky to have gotten an education and started working as a minor clerk for the government, though the salary was quite sufficient.
And even though he could have become Awakened by passing his first Nightmare,he didn't care. He didn't want to strive for it or resist it. Why? Everything was predetermined anyway.
But today he was especially tired.Drowsiness was pulling him under, forcing him to leave work early and stop pretending that he had finished long ago and was now just reading books.
Entering the living room,furnished quite nicely and minimally, he sat on the sofa, threw his legs onto the armchair, and began pulling off his boots. At that moment, his gaze fell on the screen, where a Saint was shown repelling an attack on the Gates and closing them, thereby saving people.
"Interesting,why did the Spell call them 'Saints'? A curious feature of the Spell. It seems to know human history and psychology if it uses such words. Or is it just the translation from the runic language adapting to human speech? Though, what difference does it make?"
At that moment,he was in a somewhat elevated mood, lost somewhere in his thoughts, with a grimly cheerful expression on his face. And then, without noticing, he began to sink into sleep.
---
[Candidate! Welcome to the Nightmare Spell. Prepare for your first trial...]
At that moment, he dreamt of the ruins of some city.
Destroyed little houses,shattered cobblestone streets, old skeletons visible here and there—the city itself was dead and gloomy. It was unclear what had destroyed it, but the destroyed northern part of the fortress wall, shattered to stones, hinted at unnatural causes.
And then Euler noticed the sun moving backward.Then the moon appeared, then the sun again.
The moon and the sun swapped places thousands of times while the city beneath the sky came back to life:first the wall was restored, then the streets, then the houses, and the skeletons disappeared.
And then everything stopped.
[Candidate! Welcome to the Nightmare Spell. Prepare for your first trial...]
He felt a wooden bench beneath him and something heavy on him.
Opening his eyes,Euler saw that he was sitting in a room, leaning against a wall. He was wearing a chainmail shirt, a breastplate, a round helmet, boots, gloves, trousers with knee pads, and had a shield and a sword.
He was sitting in a large stone hall,and he wasn't alone; others sat around him, some in similar gear, some in worse, and some in better.
And ahead of him,large oak doors were visible.
Euler looked around,turned his head, smirked indifferently, and said:
"So,here I am."
After that,he did what any other candidate in his place would have done—he summoned the runes by willing it.
---
Name: Euler
True Name:—
Rank:Candidate.
Soul Core:Inactive.
Memories:—
Echoes:—
Attributes:[Warrior], [Heartless].
Aspect:[Wandering Knight].
Aspect Description:[A knight who has dedicated his life to wandering the world. During this time, much has been seen and much gained. However, a wandering knight is a knight without a lord, and therefore, he is not trusted.]
---
Euler raised an eyebrow quizzically.
The Spell had given him a not-so-bad option.He could have ended up as some peasant on a battlefield or even... a slave.
But the last lines made it clear that things weren't all that great.
Euler stood up and stretched,testing his body. It turned out to be quite well-built, and it was clear that the sword and shield hanging from his belt and back were not an empty threat.
With a clang,he drew the sword from his belt, swung it a few times, and made a few practice strikes, testing his capabilities. Yes, all those years of training in swordsmanship had finally come in handy here.
However,two things remained unclear.
What,exactly, was he supposed to do?
And how useful were his attributes?
Euler summoned the runes again,and then the description of the attributes themselves:
[Warrior]
Attribute Description:"Tempered in battles, struggles, and hardships, the warrior is an impenetrable shield. He can withstand blows that no one else can, and his shield and sword will always help you resolve matters."
[Heartless]
Attribute Description:"Fear, rage, love, doubt—all of these have a weaker effect on one who has lost his heart. But nothing is given for free. Always be cautious, otherwise this very trait may fail you when you need it most."
After reading the description, Euler stroked his chin, frozen in thought.
As he suspected,nothing was given for free; otherwise, 100% of people would survive entering a Nightmare. However, he was lucky: he got attributes that were neither the worst nor the best, so maybe he would survive.
At that moment,the oak doors opened, and everyone in the hall, including Euler, turned their attention to them.
Several people entered the hall:two tall warriors clad in armor and a beautiful woman with long black hair, dressed in a white dress and with a neutral expression on her face. She gestured for them to follow her, then turned and walked out. Euler and all the others set off after her.
Passing through the doors,Euler was blinded for a few seconds by the sunlight after the gloom of the stone hall. Then, focusing his gaze, he saw a huge arena covered in sand and a giant Coliseum around it, filled to the top with screaming, jeering people.
They themselves had emerged into the center and lined up in a row.
Euler immediately grew wary and began to suspect what was coming.So, he moved slightly to the side, distancing himself from several opponents he deemed the most dangerous.
Namely:
· The warrior with a long sword and a huge rectangular shield, edged with metal and curved at the corners, and completely encased in armor, with only a narrow slit in his helmet suggesting he was human.
· Someone in a wooden mask and baggy clothes with a strange bastard sword that resembled a saw and evoked unpleasant sensations; he stood absolutely motionless and seemed dead.
· The girl in a red cloak with a spear in her hands.
· And the strangely smiling man in a black knee-length coat, trousers with mail lining, heavy boots, a belt, and brown gloves, along with a neckerchief; he had a short sword at his belt. He seemed the most dangerous.
He glanced briefly at Euler and then winked at him.
Euler shuddered.He was fairly good at controlling himself, but this man's very smile was dangerous.
While he was pondering who this man was,a figure appeared from the large box above.
He looked imposing,like a ruler, radiating an aura of power, and a beautiful, vividly red cloak on his back added to his appearance of might.
At that moment,the stands fell silent and stared at him.
He simply silently examined the arena and the people standing on it.
Then,after another pause, he said:
"So.You are all strong warriors who have passed the previous trials. And now you find yourselves at the end of this tournament. How you got here is unimportant—through betrayal, strength, or cunning.
Today,everything will be decided here, and only one victor will remain. You must all fight each other, and only one may remain."
Then he silently looked over all 100 people standing below,before saying:
"And now...Fight!"
Euler didn't hesitate and immediately after these words drove his sword into the head of the nearest opponent, splitting it at an angle. Blood sprayed in all directions.
[You have killed a Sleeper, name unknown.]
By this point, most had begun to understand what was happening, drawing their weapons and attacking others, but the bloody harvest had already begun, as Euler wasn't the only clever one—those few most dangerous opponents had also started killing right after the command.
Euler,watching all this, picked up a dagger from a fallen opponent and clutched it in his hand, hidden behind his shield.
One of the opponents,seeing the pensive Euler, rushed at him, but Euler reacted instantly, blocking the strike with his shield, then kicked him in the knee, and as the opponent buckled, Euler's sword plunged straight into his chest.
[You have killed a Sleeper, name unknown.]
Euler continued the battle, attacking the less dangerous opponents while simultaneously scanning the rest of the arena.
At that moment,he saw that most dangerous man killing opponents one after another.
And the girl in the red cloak had impaled the man in the wooden mask on her spear.
At that moment,Euler encountered the warrior completely encased in metal, with a huge shield and sword in his hands.
The warrior struck his shield several times with his sword,challenging Euler to fight.
Euler cautiously began to circle him.
He analyzed the opponent's weak points,and the only one he could see so far was the slit in the visor.
Realizing this,Euler launched several attacks at the warrior, who successfully parried them.
Then the warrior attacked himself.Euler blocked his cumbersome sword with his shield.
A stalemate had arisen:neither could break the other's defense, but Euler already saw a way out. He decided to try to deceive the warrior.
After another minute of fighting,he made his move.
In one motion,he abruptly tossed his shield aside and began attacking with his sword from the right. The warrior had to block Euler's attack with his sword, but at the last moment, he noticed that Euler had a dagger concealed behind the shield, which now plunged into the warrior's visor, killing him.
[You have killed a Sleeper, name unknown.]
The warrior stood for a few more seconds before collapsing, the dagger still lodged in his eye.
Euler calmly retrieved his shield and headed towards the two remaining opponents:the girl in the red cloak and that dangerous man.
The girl was gradually losing ground,as the man launched endless attacks, never stopping, and she was tiring.
Euler decided to finish off the man first,and then deal with the woman depending on the situation.
He attacked him,and the man parried, now fighting against two.
At one point,he abruptly shot out his hand and cut the girl's thigh, causing her to fall with a cry. She was out of the fight.
Now only Euler and this man remained.
"How astonishing,isn't it? I suspected from the start you were dangerous, but now it's just the two of us," the man said with a smile.
Euler didn't react and focused on defense.
Euler saw that the man was constantly attacking,and attack always costs more than defense, so Euler decided to simply exhaust his opponent, as he had patience and endurance in abundance.
Euler blocked another attack and saw an opening for a counter,but ignored it.
Now the entire Coliseum watched the battle of attrition,and it was unclear who would tire first.
After a couple of minutes,the man opposite stopped smiling. A couple more, and his movements began to slow, his attacks becoming slower. It seemed like it was time to attack, but Euler was no idiot; this man was too dangerous, so until he dropped unconscious, Euler wouldn't attack.
After another couple of minutes,the man's attacks became very slow, yet Euler kept waiting.
And then,the opponent's face twisted with fury, and he exclaimed:
"Just attack already!"
Euler remained silent,and suddenly the man's strength returned, and he intensified his assault again.
Euler continued to defend,though he was also starting to tire.
The opponent kept attacking and attacking,and Euler kept defending, and soon he noticed that the man was genuinely running out of steam. In one moment, he made another desperate attack, but stumbled and fell.
Euler could have finished him off,but he didn't move closer.
So,picking up the fallen woman's spear, he threw it.
The man dodged again and jumped up,enraged. He attacked once more, but this time Euler struck, and the opponent discovered with surprise that a sword was protruding from his neck before he collapsed, his eyes rolling back.
[You have killed a Sleeper, name unknown.]
[You have obtained a Memory: Stone of Wishes]
Euler ignored the newly obtained Memory for now and headed towards the last remaining opponent, the wounded woman. She was trying to get up but couldn't manage it.
Seeing this,Euler said:
"Just surrender.I don't kill the unarmed, especially since you fought honorably."
She made a fierce attempt to rise,but her legs gave way again, and after a few more tries, she gave up and said in a trembling voice:
"I...surrender."
At that moment,the stands erupted with a roar and shouts, and dozens of people ran out onto the arena, heading for the dead, while several went to the wounded woman.
Euler watched it all with detachment.
And then another woman approached him.Looking at him, she said:
"Well,you spared my daughter. If she had died, I wouldn't have pursued you, but she lived, so I decided to reward you for that."
After that,she touched his hand.
[You have obtained a Memory: Daughter's Garment]
She nodded with satisfaction, turned, and left.
Euler decided he would look at what he'd been given later,but he was already skeptical.
When all the corpses had been cleared away and the wounded woman carried off,the stands fell silent again.
At that moment,Euler was looking at the large box, and that same man emerged from it.
Stepping out,he looked at Euler, who felt a pressure upon himself.
Then,sizing Euler up with his gaze, he said:
"Well,you have proven yourself worthy. You defeated them all, you passed all the trials. Congratulations.
Now you are worthy of a prize.Tell me what you desire, and I will give it to you."
Euler thought.What did he want?
After a moment's reflection,he found nothing that interested him, so he said:
"I know you are a wise ruler,so I ask that you yourself reward me with what you deem I deserve."
The man looked at him,raising an eyebrow, then said:
"Very well,that is your choice."
At that moment,a white substance shot from his hand and, flying across the field, entered Euler's chest. Everything before his eyes grew dim.
[Wake up, Euler! Your Nightmare is over.]
I don't know how to upload an image to a piece, so I'll leave it at that for now. I'll figure it out somehow.