"Through paths of shadow and sorrow, a spark shall emerge. One who defies the fire of illusion and the fangs of doubt is supreme. What is life, is infinite. Hills and valleys are sure to come. However, he who proves himself fit to be king will earn the throne. When all else fails, and the world turns to fog, ambition alone will guide the path to salvation." The deep and ancient voice said. It took its time, lengthening each word to its liking. It added sly stops to some sentences and horrifying amplifications to the middle of long words.
By the end, Midas was speechless. He didn't know exactly why, but he felt each one of those sentences had a deeper meaning.
He didn't know what to make of what the voice said yet, but he noted that it sounded similar to what Dorian had been talking about. Supremacy, and whatnot.
Midas exhaled, a light in his eyes as he smiled. He grinned, in fact, walking forward.
He looked down at the scroll, three feet in length with large wooden purple handles on both sides, and an old, wrapped paper in the center that was stained by age.
"The Nine Breath Circulation technique..." Midas muttered under his breath, "You are finally mine."
...
Midas stepped out of the door as the bright sun rays bounced off his eyes. Yet, he did not close them.
'I have been in the dark for far too long.' He said in his head.
He didn't mean this literally, but he had been enclosed in this trail for so long that he had not yet looked up once into the bright sky with a smile on his face.
It felt like being able to freely breathe again after months of not being able to do so.
"Midas!" Gool's voice shouted out at him.
Midas instantly looked down at the marble floor and saw Gool running toward him before stopping at the center.
"What happened... in there?" Gool questioned under his breath as he saw Midas's face. By the looks of it, he guessed that it was all already over. A concerned look glimmered in his eyes as he stared at Midas. He hoped with all his heart that Midas had not changed. That Yemo's words didn't come back to haunt him.
Midas smiled, "Gool! It's so great to see you again after so long!" He ran up and grabbed the goblin like a child. He spun around in circles while embracing him before throwing him up into the air and spinning.
"Hahaha!" Midas laughed, "Hahaha!" Midas rejoiced. For he had escaped hell.
"Wha--what the hell are you doing!? I know it's been a few hours, but this is a bit too much! Let me go at once! I am not a child--hey! Hey, stop throwing me! What are you--"
Midas stopped laughing, finally putting the goblin down after a couple more tosses.
Gool fixed his collar as if to maintain decorum and keep his dignity. He looked Midas up and down, 'I knew it...' He said to himself inwardly, grimacing.
"You've really lost your mind... haven't you?" Gool asked with a concerned look in his eyes. "What happened in there?" This time, he spoke this question aloud.
"What happened inside? Oh... nothing." Midas said, nonchalantly walking out of the monastery with a large scroll holstered onto his back.
"Lost my mind?" Midas said, "What a silly thing to say. My mind isn't something I can lose. It's not a coin or trinket." He smirked.
Although hearing these words didn't fully confirm to Gool that Midas was okay, it was enough for a smile to tug at his lips.
"Fine... this is good enough for me," Gool said, following along. 'I can serve someone like this.'
After a few minutes of walking, the two had arrived a few hundred feet away from the small goblin base near the monastery.
In the distance, a goblin trudged back and forth along the entrance of the basecamp.
Narrowing his eyes, Midas noticed that it was Yemo, the goblin king.
Yemo looked to have a worried expression. He was biting his fingernails, his mouth muttering odd whispers.
"It's impossible. Impossible, I say. There isn't a mind that can do it. No way... who would have enough willpower to not refuse the challenge? No.. it can't be. Surely, he will not return." Yemo was saying all this, yet he was waiting impatiently outside the village.
Then, he glanced in the northern direction and saw two figures slowly approaching from afar.
His eyes widened and lit up, his mouth gaping slightly.
"Gool? There's another..." Yemo began sprinting toward the two. "It can't be... no way." The goblin's entire body seemed to be shaking as memories of his trail in the Ashen Hollow flashed back into his mind.
Seeing Yemo approach, Gool grinned widely. He glanced at Midas, who was also smiling.
'Why shouldn't I smile?' Gool said in his head, 'After all... It's a great occasion.' He looked at the scroll.
"Player!" Yemo yelled as he arrived before the two, panting slightly. He was nervous to speak.
Right now, he was going to get the answer to whether Midas lost his mind or not. Would this player be his pawn? If not... how? How could someone escape that treacherous hell with their sanity?
"What... is your name?" Yemo said, his eyes flashing with fear as he lowered his chin slightly. 'Please... please don't say death.' He stared into Midas's eyes.
Just then, a flash of memories came flooding into Yemo's head.
Many years ago, Yemo had escaped the Ashen Hollow with his sanity. This fate, however, was not the same for many of his comrades.
"I..." A goblin beside Yemo said, "Am death." His eyes were dull and lifeless.
Yemo gasped with shock and horror as he stared at this goblin. This was one of the goblins he had known since birth. A close friend who had traveled far with him.
"I... am death."
"My name... is false."
"My true name... is death." Several goblins began to speak like corpses all around Yemo.
All the goblin king could do was watch as his closest friends and family mindlessly wandered into the forest, never to be seen again...
'It's impossible... no one should ever enter that place. If I had also done what they did... the fate would have been the same for me. It's impossible to overcome!' This thought was burned into his mind ever since that day.
In the present moment, however, Yemo wanted more than anything in the world for this player to simply say his name.
'Let me believe that it's possible to return from that state, Midas...' Yemo said inwardly. He was searching for hope against a foe that had defeated him long ago.
"My name?" Midas said, "It's Midas. Midas Kyrios Stars."