Asura sat cross-legged on his bed, still humming with post-evolution energy.
His aura wasn't mana anymore — it was Aether, like someone had replaced his internal organs with star cores.
Then—
a knock at the door.
Precognition flashed.
[ FUTURE ALERT: Demon Queen // 3 seconds ]
Asura froze.
"Oh crap."
[ SYSTEM: Language. ]
[ AETHERBORN: Relax. Go into your Aether form. ]
"My… what?"
Aetherborn projected text across his vision — same style as the system, different font.
[ AETHER FORM: Phase into Aether. Your presence no longer resolves cleanly into this layer. Only beings attuned beyond conventional perception may notice you.]
"So… ghost mode."
[ AETHERBORN: Ghost mode but for higher beings. Not mortals. ]
Asura didn't have time to argue.
He willed it.
The world inverted.
His body blurred into white outlines — then vanished into a quiet absence of existence.
Right as the dorm door swung open.
In the doorway
The Demon Queen entered first — barefoot, obsidian horns, black dress trailing shadow.
Beside her, the Headmaster followed nervously, clutching tea he did not remember making.
They scanned the room.
Nothing.
Literal nothing.
Not a single mana trace.
Not a breath.
Not a heartbeat.
The Demon Queen narrowed her eyes, aura brushing the room like a searchlight.
"He's not here."
Headmaster cleared his throat.
"But— this is his dorm— surely he—"
"He is not here."
Her tone made reality agree with her.
She walked out.
Headmaster scrambled after her like a regretful duckling.
Door closed.
Silence.
Aether rippled.
Asura shimmered back into visibility, spinning until he face-planted into the floor.
"Ow."
[ SYSTEM: You phased into Aether without understanding orientation. ]
"I lost my gravity privileges?"
[ AETHERBORN: Gravity is optional. Try not to forget where 'down' is. ]
Asura rubbed his forehead.
"Alright. Serious question. Who can see me in Aether form?"
The Aetherborn projected a short list.
[ AETHERBORN — NON-EXHAUSTIVE OBSERVATION BRACKETS (PARTIAL) ]
• High Angels
• Fallen Angels (full-awakened)
• Creation Gods
• Destruction Gods
• Anything Made of Aether
• …Entities outside system-safe classification.
The last line flickered — intentionally redacted.
[ SYSTEM (warning): Do NOT finish that sentence. ]
[ AETHERBORN: Oh relax, I wasn't going to mention—]
[ SYSTEM: STOP. ]
Asura stood, stretching.
"So… I'm invisible to everyone except the strongest beings in existence."
[ SYSTEM: Correct, Host.
Please do not use this knowledge irresponsibly. ]
"Me? Never."
He was already planning irresponsibility.
"Alright, power test time." "But where?"
[ AETHERBORN: Try a dungeon. You'll learn monster mana patterns.
And if you learn their pattern, you can become them. ]
Asura lit up like a kid who just unlocked character customization DLC.
"I CAN COLLECT MONSTER FORMS!?"
[ SYSTEM: Please don't turn into a wyvern just because you can. ]
Asura was already imagining it.
He grabbed his jacket and headed for the window instead of the door.
Because doors are suggestions.
But the moment his foot hit the windowsill—
"Where. Do you think you're going."
Lucilla stood there with her arms crossed, fangs peeking.
Rhazor leaned on the railing, half awake, scales shimmering in moonlight. "Bro, it's literally morning. What chaos are you planning?"
"Dungeon run."
Asura said it like he was saying grocery store.
Lucilla blinked.
Rhazor's tail slapped the stone railing.
"DUNGEON—? As in— monsters, death traps, possible trauma!?"
"Yep."
"Cool. I'm in."
Lucilla sighed through her nose. "If you die I'm drinking you."
Asura hopped through the window casually. "Keep up."
They followed.
WHAM—
A glowing mana wall appeared in front of the three like a divine stop sign.
Mary stood there in a white nightgown, hair down, aura so calm it was terrifying.
She looked at them.
At the window.
At the three idiots caught mid-escape.
"Where."
Deep inhale.
"Are you three going."
Asura:
"Dungeon."
Rhazor:
"Field trip."
Lucilla:
"We can't stop him."
Mary stared at them.
Then turned.
"I'm coming too."
Asura blinked.
"You're… coming with?"
"Adult supervision."
Mary pointed at herself.
"Me."
Rhazor fist-pumped.
Lucilla groaned.
Asura grinned.
"Party of four. Dungeon raid. Let's go."
They all jumped from the window together.
The sun rose.
And the world quietly braced for whatever chaos they were about to unleash.
✦ Dungeon Trip / Confessions & Ghosts of Power
The four of them slipped through the forest trail, dew brushing their ankles, the horizon fading from violet into gold.
Birds stirred. Mana shimmered in the air like morning breath.
Mary walked ahead, humming — no shoes, nightgown fluttering like she was doing a casual grocery run instead of escorting three students to a monster-infested dungeon.
Lucilla and Rhazor stayed beside Asura.
They stayed beside him only because Asura slowed down to let them.
He could've been a kilometer ahead in seconds.
Rhazor finally cracked.
"Okay. Someone say it. The form you turned into… that wasn't just demon awakening, was it?"
Lucilla glanced sideways, voice soft but sharp.
"You were taller. Wings. Markings. Your eyes weren't yours."
Mary slowed her steps, looking over her shoulder.
"…and your aura stopped behaving like aura. It felt like a—"
She hesitated.
A weapon.
But she didn't say it.
Asura shoved both hands into his jacket pockets, not looking at them.
"I… don't know what that form is."
Rhazor stared.
"Bull. Even I don't believe that and my brain is 80% scale and instinct."
Asura stopped walking.
Pine needles crackled under his geta sandals.
"The normal demon awakening? Yeah. That's just instinct — demons tapping killing intent and power."
"But the other one… the long hair, markings, horns, the— whatever that was?"
"I don't understand it yet."
His voice wasn't embarrassed.
Just honest.
Lucilla studied him, expression unreadable — something complicated flickered there.
Mary folded her arms, voice slow.
"When it happened your aura wasn't… aura. Or mana. Even my Domain couldn't read it."
She swallowed like remembering a taste that scared her.
"It felt like existence itself shifted to make room for you."
Asura shrugged helplessly.
"Cool. I want to transform into it whenever I want."
Rhazor and Lucilla:
"THAT'S WHAT YOUR FOCUSED ON?!"
They resumed walking.
The path narrowed — cliffs rising on either side.
Mary's voice broke the silence.
"…You mentioned my awakening."
Asura nodded.
"Yeah. When you went… battle psycho."
Lucilla coughed.
Rhazor whispered:
"Battle lunatic is more accurate."
Mary didn't glare.
She looked down at her hands, fingers curling into her sleeves.
"It wasn't always like that."
The forest went still.
Even wind seemed to pause.
"When I was little, my magic was just… just sound. Songs. Music."
"But when I got older, the magic reacted to emotion. Especially intense ones. When I get too deep into combat—"
"—another me takes over."
Her voice trembled.
"She's everything I'm not. She's fearless. Powerful. Cold. I used to… black out. Wake up surrounded by—"
Her breath hitched.
She didn't finish the sentence.
Rhazor swallowed hard.
Lucilla looked at the ground.
Asura stepped closer — just a half-step — enough that she felt his presence but not crowded.
"You're in control now."
"No, Asura. You stopped me."
"No — you came back."
"I just whistled."
Mary blinked.
The reassurance hit her harder than any spell.
"I don't care what that other version of you is," Asura continued,
"You're the one who stayed to teach us. You're the one walking us to a dungeon at sunrise in pajamas."
Mary's eyes softened.
Her smile trembled.
Then—
Her brain clicked back into obsession mode.
"Speaking of aura— YOU COATED YOUR VOCAL CORDS?"
Rhazor tripped over a rock.
Lucilla stopped breathing.
Asura shrugged like this was normal.
"It sounded cool?"
Mary grabbed his collar, shaking him.
"THAT'S A HIGH-LEVEL TECHNIQUE KNIGHTS DON'T ACHIEVE UNTIL TIER IV!"
Rhazor flailed.
"YOU PUT A TIER IV TECHNIQUE — ON YOUR THROAT!?"
Lucilla stared like she wanted to bite him and demand answers at the same time.
Mary ranted:
"We didn't practice throat aura coating! We didn't even do finger coating yet! Do you have ANY idea how dangerous that is?!"
"One wrong push and you could have ERASED YOUR VOICE! FOREVER!"
Asura blinked.
"Worth it."
Mary screamed into her hands.
Rhazor finally managed words.
"Why were you even fighting Mary in the first place!?"
Mary answered instead — dead serious.
"He looked at me and said 'fight me.'"
Lucilla dragged a hand down her face.
"Of course he did."
Asura pointed defensively.
"She asked what my plan was!"
Mary:
"You said 'don't die' twice!"
They reached the cliff overlooking the valley.
Below them sat a black stone entrance, carved with ancient sigils.
The dungeon breathed mist.
Monsters howled from somewhere deep inside.
Asura's grin spread.
"We're here."
Mary stretched her wrists like she was warming up for a concert.
Rhazor's scales shimmered with excitement.
Lucilla cracked her knuckles and bared her fangs.
Four silhouettes stood at the entrance.
A reckless prodigy.
A battle-addicted Magi.
A jealous vampire.
A draconic swordsman.
The dungeon rumbled.
Asura smirked.
"Let's level up."
✦ Dungeon Entrance: Rumors, Evolution & Bad News
The dungeon entrance was chaos — a sea of humanoid monsters from different kingdoms, all crowding the massive archway.
Ogres.
Harpy scouts.
Dragonkin mercenaries.
Even a hobgoblin aristocrat wearing a monocle.
They were loud, confident, hyped for violence—
—until they saw Mary, in her nightgown…
…and three kids in pajamas follow her.
Silence.
Someone whispered:
"…what raid party is that…?"
Another:
"Is that… casual sleepwear meta?"
Mary walked straight past them with the energy of a woman running on caffeine fumes and trauma.
Lucilla and Rhazor bickered behind Asura.
Asura wasn't listening.
He was staring at a new system window floating only in front of him.
[ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ]
Reminiscence Codex — Rank: EX
Asura blinked rapidly.
"System… what does EX mean?"
[ SYSTEM: >Tier SSS. A rank that no skill should reach. ]
"Meaning?"
[ SYSTEM: Reminiscence Codex now bypasses conventional acquisition constraints. If a concept is sufficiently internalized, the Codex may reproduce, adapt, or hybridize it.]
Asura froze.
"So I can… recreate skills without the usual delays?"
[ SYSTEM: Correct. ]
A second, different text window overlapped it — sharp lines, silver font:
[ AETHERBORN: You break reality through nostalgia.
I like that. ]
Asura twitched.
"Are you… complimenting me?"
[ AETHERBORN: No. I'm Amused. ]
Mary glanced over her shoulder at him.
"Asura? You're muttering again."
"No I'm not— I'm strategizing internally."
Lucilla whispered to Rhazor:
"…he's absolutely muttering."
"He does it a lot."
They approached the towering dungeon gate.
Mary paused and explained:
"Dungeons form where mana pressure collapses into a singularity.
Monsters inside adapt faster.
Treasure manifests from ambient mana.
And whoever conquers one gets a world blessing or evolution catalyst."
Asura nodded… then got distracted again.
He stared at his status window.
[ STATUS — POST MAGI EVOLUTION ]
Race: True Demon Lord (Aether Vessel)
Mage Tier: Tier VI — Grand Magi
Knight Tier: Tier IV — Dread-Class
Asura pouted.
"Tier VI? That's the best I've got?
I evolved into a Magi. Shouldn't I be, like… Tier IX: God Mode Wizard Ultra?"
The system responded calmly.
[ SYSTEM: Magi is a race evolution, not a tier upgrade.
Tier is mana mastery, not power. ]
Asura stared blankly.
"So I'm strong but… uneducated."
[ SYSTEM: Extremely. ]
Aetherborn slid in next to the text like it was sipping tea.
[ AETHERBORN: Your body is Aether.
Your understanding of mana is a toddler with scissors. ]
"Hey!"
Crowd Discussion — Dungeon gate
Nearby adventurers continued gossiping:
"The Abyssal Behemoth Drake resurfaced."
"If it evolves into a Dragon, we're screwed."
"That thing could destroy kingdoms."
Lucilla stiffened.
Rhazor swallowed, scales paling.
Mary froze, eyes narrowing.
Asura blinked.
"Behemoth what-now?"
Rhazor explained:
"There's only one Dragon-class World Boss in the Demon Realm.
If a second one evolves… everything changes."
Mary's voice sharpened.
"World Bosses warp mana.
They shift the balance of nations.
Kingdoms go to war to control them."
Asura raised his hand like a student asking to use the restroom.
"Hypothetically… if someone punching it in the face at age four triggered that evolution—"
Lucilla and Rhazor both stared at him.
Horrified.
Silently judging.
Then, from his invisible companion—
[ AETHERBORN: Oops. ]
[ SYSTEM: DO NOT 'OOPS' A WORLD-ENDING EVENT. ]
Asura squeaked. "I caused that?!"
Mary blinked slowly. "…of course it was you."
Asura quietly asks:
"System… compare me now to that Behemoth back then."
A soft window appeared:
[ SYSTEM — POWER COMPARISON ]
Age 4 vs. Abyssal Behemoth = Survival 3%
Current vs. Abyssal Behemoth = Outcome trend: Favorable (Risk Extreme)
Asura grinned like a menace. "I CAN SOLO A WORLD BOSS."
Mary immediately grabbed him by the collar. "You will not solo a world boss."
[ AETHERBORN: Solo the world boss. ]
[ SYSTEM: No. ]
Lucilla: "He already decided."
Rhazor: "We're going to die."
Mary sighed. "Dungeon. Now."
The ancient doors rumbled open.
Black mist rolled out.
They stepped into darkness — unaware that this dungeon was about to regret everything.
✦ Descent Into The Dungeon
Dungeon Mouth — 6:04 AM
Crossing the arch felt like stepping into a lung. Air came humid and metallic, every breath tasting of iron and moss. Blue veins of mana pulsed under wet stone; torch-flames burned a cold, hospital blue that refused to warm the walls. The floor vibrated—tiny, steady—like the dungeon had a pulse and they were walking its artery.
Mary's nightgown whispered at her ankles.
Lucilla hugged her elbows.
Rhazor tried not to stare into the dark.
Asura just… smiled.
⦁ Omniscient Thought Process — ON
The world tessellated.
Goblins hiding in cracks snapped into wireframe: bones like runes, tendons as braided mana, hearts pulsing in signatures—each a different chord. The skill didn't just show targets; it printed their construction manual into Asura's mind.
Note: mandibular sigil → anger; spine lattice → balance; skin weave → color… got it.
He didn't shapeshift (not yet).
Instead, he tugged at himself—will + mana—just enough to prove the principle: iris halo tint, canine length, skin hue micro-shift across a knuckle. The change melted away before anyone looked.
[ SYSTEM: Signature comprehension: 41%.
Morphic mimicry via will+mana now viable. Recommend: store renders, do not demo. ]
[ AETHERBORN: He's learning your neighbors' faces so he can wear them. Charming. ]
Asura's mouth tipped.
Later, when I'm alone.
Floor 1 — Ash Corridor (Feral Goblins • Fire Trial)
They came like roaches: gray-green, bone knives, eyes bright with the simple arithmetic of kill/steal.
Asura raised two fingers.
Ignition Pulse (Lv. 5)
A compact detonation of heat flowed outward from his skin; the front rank flash-charred into lifting soot.
He walked through the ash.
A second wave climbed the walls and ceiling. Asura sliced the air.
Blazing Arc (Lv. 5)
A crescent of flame cut the tunnel; the arc carved goblins and left a glowing seam in stone.
A third pack leapt from behind—silent, clever. Asura didn't turn.
Cinder Step (Lv. 5)
He stepped once. Footprints of delayed fire winked… then thumped in chain explosions, catching the flank as it landed.
Lucilla flinched. Rhazor swallowed.
Mary watched, expression flat, eyes very awake now.
"Solar Lance."
Solar Lance (Lv. 5)
White fire condensed to a needle—then bored a clean tunnel through three bodies and fifteen meters of rock. Heat shimmered; water in the moss screamed to steam.
Goblins circled, then balked at the temperature shift as air fattened with oxygen.
Asura rolled his wrist.
Inferno Domain (Lv. 5)
A ring of precise draft-currents and oxygen bias formed a fiery boundary; anything crossing in sparked and ceased.
The corridor quieted. Smoke drew itself away like a curtain.
After the display of fire element skills Asura just did.
Asura was now focused on is system alert, explaining what it meant for Reminiscence Codex reaching the rank EX.
[ SYSTEM: Reminiscence Codex — EX State ]
EX discards prior constraints (usage, cooldowns, source-ownership, "world compatibility"). Acquisition paths unified: memory-first or muscle-first both bind a skill at competent baseline (Lv. 5)—no usage spent, no cooldown incurred.Reason: Prevents MAX-on-arrival exposure while avoiding Lv.1 fragility.Skill logic anchor: Codex writes a local-rule shim so foreign moves obey this world's metaphysics (no reality tears… unless you want them). You still can: Create / Evolve / Combine / Weaponize skills.Growth beyond Lv.5 requires practice, constraint-breaking, or fusing.
[ AETHERBORN: In simpler terms—your nostalgia now compiles directly to executable magic with sane defaults. Try not to speedrun godhood in pajamas. ]
Asura thumbed a grin.
No promises.
He pinged Omniscient Thought Process again—let a goblin corpse's signature unfurl—and quietly wove a full morph for a heartbeat inside his own skin: height shift, ear rake, pupil slit, dermal hue. He canceled it before anyone turned. The feel stuck—muscle knew it now.
[ SYSTEM: Render "Feral Goblin" stored. Morphic stability est. 93% upon next use. ]
Steps swallowed sound. Ceiling lowered; the glow-veins thinned. Air went colder and thicker, carrying a pressure that made thoughts drag. Mary murmured:
"Deeper floors test desire."
Rhazor: "What does this one want?"
Mary: "To drown you."
Floor 2 — Flooded Echo Cavern (Mutated Goblins • Water Trial)
A lake filled the chamber, black as space. The surface reflected nothing. Something breathed beneath.
Asura stepped out—
the water bowed up to hold his foot.
Lucilla gasped. Rhazor hissed. Mary's eyes narrowed, impressed despite herself.
"Let's try, water."
Aqua Thread (Lv. 5)
Blue wires flitted from his fingers; they stitched and sang, binding a wet blur—it fell apart in neatly severed joints.
Shapes broke the surface—long-limbed goblins, warped by dungeon feed. Omniscient Thought Process printed their aquatic lung pattern, webbing lattice, ocular oil—Asura copied these quietly, skin pressure and chest cavity flexing imperceptibly. He stored the morph; didn't show it.
[ SYSTEM: Render "Lake Mutant (Gbl)" stored. Amphibic exchange pattern learned. ]
"Down."
Tidal Crush (Lv. 5)
The lake rose as a pane and collapsed straight down. Bones popped like wet twigs under columnar pressure.
A runner bolted along the wall.
Hydro Bullet (Lv. 5)
One droplet. One hole. One body slipping into the water quietly.
Fog swelled.
Mist Veil (Lv. 5)
Sound damped, light diffused; Asura used the cover to test a face-morph—cheekbones, brow, skin sheen—canceled. Mary squinted through haze, none the wiser.
A ripple pulled at ankles.
"Abyssal Coil."
Abyssal Coil (Lv. 5)
Pressure inverted into a spiral; three swimmers thrashed as if an ocean trench had opened under them and then went still.
Water settled.
[ SYSTEM: Water suite stabilized (Lv.5). Morphic confidence: 96% for aquatic templates. ]
Mary exhaled.
"You learned hydromancy without a chant, on a moving surface, while balancing… and while thinking about something else."
Asura: "I was thinking about something else?"
Mary: "Yes."
(He absolutely was—about gill-angle aesthetics and iris glare in low light.)
Between Floors — Micro-morphs
On the narrow landing, Asura let Omniscient Thought Process hum at low power, sampling everything: lichens' mana respiration, cave-mite chitin patterning, the way goblin feet distributed weight. Will + mana nudged his own gait; his arch flattened, step-noise fell to nearly zero.
[ SYSTEM: Passive mimicry improving. You are beginning to "look like you belong" to the floor you're on. Useful. Dangerous. ]
[ AETHERBORN: He will wear a dungeon like a suit and ask for pockets. I approve. ]
Asura's mouth twitched.
✦ Dungeon Floor 3
The stairwell opened into a cavern of amber light. The air felt heavy—iron in the nose, dust on the tongue. Veins of ore glimmered through rock like molten rivers trapped mid-flow. Each drip of water echoed for miles.
Asura's eyes narrowed. Everything hums here.
Omniscient Thought Process — Active
Signatures burst across his vision: golems pacing slow, trolls lumbering between pillars, static-rich motes dancing near vents of compressed wind. Each creature pulsed a different pattern. Asura let mana thread through him, copying—not their shape yet, but the principle of how their mana flowed.
His muscles flexed; skin flickered stone-gray for a breath, then back. The mimicry settled under his ribs like a saved file.
Rhazor smirked.
"You know, we didn't come just to watch the show."
Asura cocked a brow.
"Then try not to die in it."
Mary rolled her shoulders, a faint hum building in her throat.
Lucilla licked her fang, drawing a bead of blood.
The air snapped.
Earth Trial — The Golems Awake
Three hulking shapes tore free from the walls—rock grinding against rock. Their eyes burned dull orange.
Asura leapt first, feet skimming falling rubble.
Stone Carapace(Lv.5)
Mana crusted over his arms mid-flip, stone and fire fused. A golem swung; Asura slid under the arm and kicked off its knee.
Pillar Break (Lv.5)
Spikes erupted beneath another golem, lifting and shattering it from below.
Lucilla blurred past him—blood threads spiraling from her wrists, slicing stone like silk.
Mary's hum deepened into a scale; each note launched mana ripples that cracked boulders on beat.
Rhazor dashed in, sword flaming red, cleaving through a collapsing torso.
Asura dropped, landing on his hands.
Graviton Soil (Lv.5)
The floor bent; debris and monsters slammed downward.
Tremor Pulse (Lv.5)
He snapped his fingers—vibration burst through the cave, finishing the job.
Dust rained down like dry snow.
Wind Trial — The Cavern of Hollow Vents
A side tunnel opened into a vertical shaft where air screamed through narrow slits. Floating platforms of debris swirled in a cyclone.
Mary's music shifted—sharp staccato; each note bent wind currents, letting them jump across gaps.
Asura spread his hands.
Pressure Wall (Lv.5)
Invisible steps solidified under his feet.
He sprinted straight up the shaft.
Rhazor followed with bursts of flame at his heels.
Lucilla leapt between them, turning her blood into whips that anchored her to the walls.
Mid-air, an eagle-shaped nightmare of mist dove for Asura.
He twisted backward.
Wind Razor (Lv.5)
Thin air blades sliced its wings clean.
He didn't land—he spun.
Gale Cannon (Lv.5)
A burst of compressed wind shot him sideways into another platform. He rolled, grinning.
"This place makes for great parkour."
Mary: "This isn't a playground!"
A shriek—another creature forming from vapor.
Lucilla and Rhazor moved first: flame and blood spiraling together.
Mary hit a high note, turning sound into a spear that burst the monster apart.
The gusts died, leaving still air and ringing ears.
Lightning Trial — The Troll Forge
They emerged into a forge-like basin: broken anvils, molten channels, and towering Troll Forgers hammering at phantom metal. Sparks hung mid-air like stars refusing to fall.
Asura's skin prickled. Static loved him.
He stepped forward; lightning arced to greet him like an old friend.
Static Field (Lv.5)
Electric halos formed around his arms.
Each punch threw crackling bursts.
Mary's melody synced—drums and thunder.
Lucilla sprinted along a fallen chain, blood whips grounding stray bolts.
Rhazor laughed, sword blazing, matching Asura strike for strike.
A troll roared, hurling molten slag.
Asura vanished.
Thunder Step (Lv.5)
He reappeared behind it, hair snapping upward, eyes bright gold.
One finger extended.
Chain Bolt (Lv.5)
Electricity ricocheted between trolls, jumping from enemy to enemy until the whole forge blazed white.
When silence returned, smoke coiled through the air like incense. The stone itself glowed faintly red.
Rhazor rested his sword on his shoulder, breathless.
"Okay… that was worth sneaking out for."
Lucilla grinned, fangs glinting.
Mary exhaled, lowering her hands.
Asura stood amid the ruin, sparks fading off his skin.
"Floor three cleared," he said softly. "Next one's going to be colder."
The stairway ahead glimmered with frost.