Rubbing his sore shoulders, Elias glared at the grinning fairy girl floating right in front of him.
She sat in midair with her legs crossed lazily, wings fluttering as trails of blue light drifted behind her like glowing moths.
"I'll go straight to the point, so listen up, you dummy," she said, flicking her fingers as a translucent interface appeared between them. "I am Elyndra — the cutest, most adorable, most amazing girl in the world."
Elias's eye twitched.
"This cute girl was obviously created because the Silent God knew you were an idiot with painfully low intelligence," she continued cheerfully. "And really, who better to guide you than this ravishing diva of a queen?"
She stretched with a wide yawn, completely ignoring the vein throbbing on Elias's forehead.
"So," Elyndra went on, voice lazy and drowsy, like she'd rather be asleep, "I'll explain a few things you should know. Listen quietly like a good boy."
Elias clenched his jaw.
"Unlike other Awakened, you possess a System Store," she said, snapping her fingers. "It contains Sonic Skills and Laments you can obtain by completing missions."
The interface in front of Elias flickered.
A new menu opened.
[System Store: Locked]
[Mission Points: 0]
Elias stared at it.
His eyebrow twitched.
"…Is this a joke?" he muttered.
"Oh, wow," Elyndra said, floating higher, her grin widening. "Would you look at that. You're so poor even the store locked you out."
She stuck out her tongue at him.
"Stop glaring at me, dummy. You don't even have enough points to buy the cheapest trash. Finish some missions first. Then maybe — maybe — the store will unlock."
Elias rolled his eyes and pushed himself to his feet, stretching his aching arms. His face was calm, but resentment simmered just beneath the surface.
Part of him really wanted to curse this little gremlin out.
Unfortunately, the pain shooting through his arms reminded him that now was not the time.
He clicked his tongue in annoyance.
One day, those cheeks were definitely getting a good swish from this mister — whether she liked it or not.
Elyndra's eyes narrowed.
The intensity in her gaze sent a shudder crawling down his spine.
"I can read your mind, asshole!" she snapped, her face tight with barely restrained fury.
"Uh—" Elias froze. "Uhmm…"
He rubbed his forehead, coughing lightly, scrambling for whatever scraps of dignity he had left. Then he turned back to the interface, jaw tight.
"This is unfair," he said quickly. "At the very least, I deserve a starter pack. You know, something to give me the necessary… uh… motivation to actually complete these missions. You should—"
The pain hit.
Hard.
His words died in his throat as a violent throb exploded behind his eyes. Elias staggered, breath hitching, and instinctively pulled up his Carrier Profile.
The moment he saw it, his expression twisted like he'd swallowed something rotten.
[Mental Strength: 0 / 1200]
'You've got to be kidding me.'
For someone like him — someone who possessed nearly four times the mental strength of a newly awakened Novice — this was complete bullshit.
A normal Novice barely broke 400.
And yet here he was, unable to speak a few damn sentences without his head feeling like it was about to split open.
Mental Strength wasn't just important — it was everything. The oxygen that fueled Resonance Strings. The lifeline behind Sonic Skills.
If something as simple as talking drained it dry, then he wasn't just restricted.
He was crippled.
Unless he learned how to keep his mouth shut.
It wasn't impossible.
Still… the thought of being forced to restrain himself because of some invisible system rule made his blood boil.
Elyndra stared at him, expression flat.
"You were given a Divine-grade Lament," she said through clenched teeth. "And you're still asking for a starter pack? You insufferable bastard."
Elias desperately wanted to curse back.
No — he needed to.
There was no way his pride could survive this many insults from a tiny flying gremlin without retaliation.
Unfortunately, the only response his body offered was a sharper, more vicious throb in his skull.
He knew she wasn't wrong.
Laments were godly artifacts — the kind that only dropped when Echoforms were slain. And even then, it was rare. Hell, even high-ranking Echoforms often left behind nothing. On the off chance they did drop something, it was usually the lowest grade imaginable.
So was he ungrateful?
Yeah. Definitely.
Did he feel guilty about it?
Of course not!
Elias prided himself on his thick skin. If Elyndra thought guilt-tripping him would work, then she'd picked the wrong man for the job.
He took a slow breath, forcing himself to calm down.
Then he spoke again — quietly this time. In his mind.
'What about the Tremor tab?'
His curiosity slipped through the mental channel instead of his mouth. 'It wouldn't exist unless my class allows me to acquire one.'
Tremors were different.
Unlike Skills or Laments, they were closer to sentient remnants — echoes of slain Echoforms that existed in a warped, altered state for Awakeners. Some of them could even manifest fragments of the abilities they once had in life.
Like that phantom bird-type Echoform the Launder guy had summoned back then.
Tremors like that usually took form based on the user's class — molded by resonance, compatibility, and influence.
But rarity?
Tremors made Laments look common.
Only a handful of classes could resurrect an Echoform as a Tremor, and even among those, success rates were abysmal. The difficulty alone filtered out nearly everyone stupid enough to try.
Elyndra scoffed.
She turned away, gazing out at the vast expanse before them.
Thousands of towering statues stood frozen across the land, some so massive their upper halves vanished into the violent cloud cover above — clouds that churned and exploded as if the sky itself was at war.
Elias followed her gaze.
His breath caught.
A terrible, unbelievable premonition began forming in his mind.
You don't mean…
"Don't get ahead of yourself, dummy," she said flatly, making sure to crush his delusions before they could fully form. "With how weak you are right now, you wouldn't survive awakening even the weakest Tremor here. You'd kill yourself."
Then she added, voice dripping with smug satisfaction, "Of course, you can try. The thought of you dying is… not totally unpleasant."
Elias rolled his eyes and shifted his attention back to the interface, his gaze settling on his String Type.
[String Type: Solitary]
Solitary Strings were rare, but not unheard of.
What did bother him was the next line.
[Class Rank: Mythic]
He frowned.
Class Rank measured potential — how far an Awakener could go if nothing held them back. There were five known ranks: Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary… and at the very top, Divine.
Divine-class holders like Saintess Myria of the Choir of Dawn — and a handful of Heroes registered under the Harmonic Council — were capable of becoming Verse Sovereigns.
Or more simply…
SS-tier existences.
Elias's thoughts slowed.
Then what the hell is Mythic?
Was it directly above Divine?
Or was it something else entirely — something beyond it?
He couldn't help himself.
Elias turned to the hovering fairy, one eyebrow raised.
"Don't ask me questions that are way above your pay grade," Elyndra said, flipping backward as she floated lazily in midair. "Wait until you get a little stronger and shed those spaghetti arms, okay?"
Elias's eyebrow twitched.
He turned back to the interface.
[Mental Strength: 200 / 1200]
It had recovered somewhat.
Enough that he could afford to talk for a little longer.
As for his Class… yeah, he had a lot of questions. But asking wasn't going to get him answers. The best way to find out what it could really do was simple.
Battle.
His gaze drifted toward the Mirroths scattered across the Realm, each shimmering faintly as if aware of him — as if calling to be chosen.
Something twisted pleasantly in his chest.
Elias grinned.
"How freaking insane!"