[Evaluating those summoned to the Trial of the Abyss...]
[Assigning appropriate difficulty...]
[The Trial chosen by the Abyss, after evaluating the strength of those summoned, is the "Forgotten Forest."]
[Survive in the "Forgotten Forest" and reach the end of the forest, where the final monster awaits; defeat it to complete this Trial.]
Noctis slowly opened his eyes; he did not find himself looking at a beautiful landscape or vast skies, but rather the interior of an old train car, covered in grime and rust.
He peered out of one of the windows, only to encounter massive trees. Ancient trees. Their trunks were meters in diameter; the bark was covered with moss and bioluminescent fungi that pulsed faintly.
The treetops were lost in a greenish mist that floated among the branches like the breath of something alive.
He hadn't expected to be sent to a forest. In the days before his awakening, he had researched the places where the Abyss Trial usually sent the Awakened.
But he had never heard of a place like this...
Did that mean he was the first in this area?
Noctis hoped to be sent to an area with other desperate newcomers like him, where they could form a group and grow stronger safely.
But who would have thought that he would end up in a completely new area, where he would probably be the only one.
Shaking his head, he decided to open his status window, which was activated upon entering the Abyss test.
"Status window."
[Status]
Name: Noctis Vale.
Race: Human
Class: No Class
Items: —
Level: 1
Strength: 5
Dexterity: 6
Constitution: 5
Mana: 7
Skills: [Skill Creation]
Stat points: 0
As he checked his Status, Noctis' expression darkened, especially when he read the [Class] section. He had hoped to obtain a class that the awakening crystal would not detect.
However, it was just a useless fantasy.
He sighed and continued.
Until he reached the skills section, there, Noctis's eyes widened. He had a skill, so without further ado, he moved on to see its description.
[Skill Creation] Skill description: "You can absorb cores from defeated monsters and fuse them into a single structure. The result is a new skill whose nature depends on the quality, affinity, and quantity of the cores used."
[Skill Space: 0/1]
[Absorbed Cores: 0]
'Skill Creator.'
Noctis had never heard anything like it... not even among the fragmented memories of the original body was there anything similar; that could only mean...
'Only I can create skills.'
His smile widened; it seemed that fate hadn't been callous to him after all. At least he had something to strengthen himself with.
However, there was one problem: to obtain cores, he had to defeat monsters.
...He didn't have a weapon, but this wagon was perfect for getting one and defending himself from the monsters.
He moved forward between the seats until he saw the metal bar protruding from the side wall of the car, part of the internal structure, barely exposed by a crack.
'Perfect, this will do.'
Noctis grabbed it with both hands and pulled. His arms began to shake almost immediately. The effort burned his muscles, and he had to let go before the pain became unbearable.
He tried again, this time bracing against the wall, using his weight. He rocked the bar from side to side, trying to loosen it. He heard a squeak, and the bar popped out.
He slammed into one of the hard seats, a grimace of pain on his face. He stayed there for a few seconds, breathing heavily.
Noctis looked at the bar: it was bent, heavy, and not ideal. But it was just what he needed.
'With this, I can protect myself a little better... and maybe survive.'
Having obtained a magnificent weapon, he left the train car.
Once outside, there was no sign of the monster, but he wasn't going to be so careless; with what little he had managed to find out about the Trial of the Abyss, any carelessness could mean death... especially for someone as special as him.
Noctis glanced at the mission objective: reach the end of the forest and defeat the final monster.
As he made his way through the thick trunks, he heard some sounds nearby. His steps became more careful until all that could be heard was his controlled breathing... even though his heart was pounding like a drum.
He passed the log and then saw the first monster.
Small screens floated above it, as if taken from a video game.
[Shadow Goblin – Level 3]
He had dark skin, as if covered in shadows; pointed ears; several missing teeth; eyes like a toad's; and a long, crooked nose. He was barely covered by a piece of cloth that hid his private parts.
'It seems luck is on my side.'
To Noctis, that creature was one of the weakest. Even so, he had no intention of confronting it directly.
He grabbed the bar with his left hand, his dominant hand, and concentrated all his strength into a single movement.
He threw the bar.
It shot out, cutting through the air with a slight whistle. The shadow goblin, hearing the noise, turned around and, just before the projectile could kill him, hid inside his own shadow.
"...!!"
His eyes widened, and he immediately moved away from his position.
Sweat ran down his forehead as he tried not to be detected by the monster, which reemerged from its own shadow and looked around, on high alert.
'Shit!'
He didn't expect the goblin to be able to hide within its own shadow.
Noctis had to think quickly of a way to retrieve his weapon as he moved between the trees. Crouching down, he picked up a branch from the ground.
He threw it with all his might at the shadow goblin.
The monster immediately shrank back, merging with its shadow once more.
Noctis took advantage of that moment to change direction and move toward the bar while the goblin remained hidden.
However, before he could reach it, the monster reappeared and, without fully revealing itself, leaped toward one of the trees.
Noctis began to notice the pattern.
The goblin seemed to possess some intuition that warned him of danger, forcing him to take refuge in his shadow every time he was attacked.
'Okay... let's try this.'
He picked up another branch, a thicker one, and threw it like a javelin.
The goblin hid again.
Noctis began mentally counting the seconds that the monster remained hidden, while grabbing an even heavier branch.
He positioned himself carefully.
'Five... six... seven... eight...'
The goblin emerged from the shadows.
At the same time, Noctis threw the branch with all his might.
This time, the monster couldn't hide.
The branch slammed violently into its face, piercing one of its eyes and killing it instantly.
[You have defeated a Shadow Goblin – level 3]
[Level up!]
[Level 1 → Level 2]
[Shadow Core absorbed]
"Ahhh..."
Noctis collapsed onto a thick root, breathing heavily. He had killed a monster.
Adrenaline was still coursing through his body, causing his hands to tremble slightly.
He sat up, drenched in sweat, and approached the corpse. He stared at it for a moment, as if expecting it to move again.
Cuando no ocurrió, tomó su barra y continuó avanzando, adentrándose aún más en el bosque.