The black sky wept. One by one, snowflakes fell into the crimson liquid spreading across the ground.
Collapsed buildings. Fire burning through debris.
Cars smashed against walls, their drivers slumped over steering wheels, motionless.
Claw marks gouged into the buildings, the asphalt... not by slashing, but by dissolution.
The neighborhood was in total chaos, looking like the aftermath of a violent hurricane.
A deathly silence hung over everything.
Amidst the wreckage, a presence stood.
A child, barely seven years old, knelt in the middle of a pile of blood and severed flesh surrounding him. In his hands, he clutched two others: the hand of a man and the hand of a woman.
His eyes were filled with hatred. An ocean of hatred so boiling and dense that it had lost its liquid state.
Then, his expression suddenly snapped into an eerie calm—as if the surface of that boiling ocean had been frozen solid by a terrible, quiet frost.
The child's pupils vanished, leaving only the whites of his eyes.
A silhouette entered his field of vision at the very last second before he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
A blanket suddenly shifted in a dark bedroom. Remedy woke up, once again, with a start.
Cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
He clearly couldn't find sleep.
He stood up but didn't turn on the light. It was as if the darkness of the room was a sanctuary. He stretched slightly, and then a wave of dizziness hit him. He swayed from side to side before regaining his balance.
He shook his head. Accumulated fatigue?
Meanwhile, a massive eye hovered right behind him.
But Remedy didn't seem aware of its presence. Or rather, it was as if the very existence of the eye was fake.
[...Host Awakening in Progress...]
Suddenly, Remedy felt his senses slip away. It was as if he were being swallowed by a dark, pitch-black void.
Immediately, roots appeared around his neck. Black roots. They seemed to emerge from deep within him, as if they had always been there, lying dormant.
A searing pain struck Remedy.
He opened his mouth. No sound came out.
The pain felt as if it were being ripped directly from his very soul.
The roots expanded from his neck, wrapping around the back of his head and rising upward, forming a crown that floated above him. An organic, black crown, almost alive. Broken horns pointed upward. Shards floated around it.
In the center was an empty space.
Then, the vertical violet eye slotted itself right into that void.
It wept a dark-purple liquid energy that coursed through the crown, the branches, and into Remedy's own eyes.
[Host Awakening Complete...]
Then, everything vanished. The crown, the branches, the eye. Leaving only tattoos that mirrored the shapes of the roots etched upon Remedy's neck.
He didn't understand what had just happened. To him, it had only been a momentary disconnect of his senses.
An extreme fatigue washed over him, and he collapsed onto the floor, fast asleep.
An error had been created in the perfect lines of reality.
And the world was not ready.
***
The morning light filled Remedy's room. Beams of sunlight fell across his face.
He opened his eyes, raising a hand to block the brightness.
His room was spartan: a simple futon on the floor, a rudimentary desk, dumbbells in a corner, a jump rope, boxing gloves...
He sat up.
By instinctive reflex, he ran his hand around his neck.
Immediately, a black interface screen popped into existence right before him.
His eyes widened in surprise and utter disbelief.
He blinked. The interface was still there.
As he reached out a finger to touch it, a voice echoed inside him. A voice that felt both familiar and alien, though he couldn't pinpoint why. It sounded as if it were reading the text displayed on the interface.
[Hello, Host.]
Huh? Is that in my head? he wondered, shocked.
[Yes, Host.]
Who are you? And what are you doing in my head? No, wait, is it even normal for something to be in my head?!
[Do not panic, Host. My name is... Ely. And i am your guide.]
Ely? A Guide? Are you some kind of system-guide?
[WARNING: i am not a system. I am Ely, your guide. The system you see before you has been granted to you in accordance with this world's standards.]
Remedy fell silent for a moment, his face returning to its usual neutral mask.
He had just confirmed it. This thing calling itself his guide had a plan that involved him. So, he didn't waste time.
If something goes wrong with your plans one day, will you hurt me, Ely?
[...]
Do you wish me harm?
[No.]
But could you hurt me one day, if it served your plans?
[...]
Are you my enemy?
[No.]
Will you involve my family in your plans?
[No.]
What are your real objectives?
[...]
You say I'm your host. Can I get rid of you if I want to?
[No.]
Heavy silence hung in the air.
Remedy sighed, his expression smoothing out. He stepped into the shower.
You say you're my guide. Are you going to give me powers, then?
[No. I am here to help you understand and utilize your own powers.]
Remedy, who was brushing his teeth, froze. The brush scrubbed too hard against his gums, tinging the white foam a faint red.
Me? I have powers?
[Yes.]
It was news that Remedy had never dared hope to hear.
What are they for? And how can I use them?
[The Host is still too weak, and the other conditions have not been met. The Host is not yet ready to assume his powers. Nor his responsibilities. The Host's primary Class is therefore sealed for now.]
Remedy's eyes drifted back to the interface, wary.
I can't use my powers, and I can't evolve. What am I supposed to do, then?
[CORRECTION: The Host can now evolve. Another Class will be given to you.]
Then, the Status Interface materialized before his eyes.
═══ STATUS WINDOW ═══
Name: Remedy
Lineage: Human
Tier: 0 — Ordinary Human
Level: 1
EXP: 0% (To next level)
Health: 100%
Energies:
• Mana: 100%
═══ CLASS ═══
• Primary Path: Sealed
═══ SKILLS ═══
• None
═══ INNATE TALENTS ═══
• ???
═══════════════════════════
Remedy scanned the interface with a single glance, barely paying attention to the stats.
There was only one sentence occupying his entire mind: "The host can now evolve."
As if completely detached from reality, he didn't say another word.
He threw on his clothes as fast as he could and rushed out the door, leaving only a quick note on the living room table.
Out on the street, his deadly serious face had only one objective. He crossed the road blindly, causing a car to brake violently.
"Hey, watch where you're going!" the driver yelled.
But Remedy didn't even hear him. Phone in hand, he went straight to the Guild website. With every single scrap of savings he possessed, he booked a solo dungeon run. He didn't even bother to check if he had his supplies or his strong alcohol.
Arriving in front of the gate guards, he shoved his approval screen into their faces.
"Alright, you can enter...?"
The guard hadn't even finished his sentence before Remedy bolted inside.
"What's up with him today?" his colleague asked.
"Uh... how should I know? Maybe he forgot something in there."
Remedy stopped in front of the dimensional rift. His breathing? Perfectly calm. Not a single drop of sweat on his forehead. His fingers, as he drew his daggers, didn't shake. It was as if he had just walked a few steps, not sprinted across the entire city.
He stepped into the dungeon and, the moment he entered, dropped his bag onto the floor.
Daggers in hand, he instantly lunged forward.
The first monster didn't even have time to close the distance before a dagger was buried deep into its flesh.
The monsters were attacking too slowly today. Apparently.
Before the monster's corpse even touched the ground, Remedy was already there to yank his dagger back. He heard the chiming sound of experience points being earned.
[DING...]
But that wasn't what he was looking for.
Two other monsters flew at his flanks. He spun like a whirlwind, slicing through them with his blades. He was even more efficient today.
Then, he hurled a dagger into the air at a monster flying directly above him. Blood sprayed. The creature's body slumped onto his head as Remedy stood frozen, unmoving.
His body suddenly glowed. He felt his muscles tighten and refine, as if he were receiving months of grueling physical training in a single, condensed heartbeat.
[DING! LEVEL 1 → LEVEL 2]
He dropped to his knees.
His shoulders trembled. His free hand came up to cover his eyes. When he pulled it away, his lashes were wet and glistening.
"Finally..." he whispered, his voice cracking.
"Finally, I too... can evolve."
End of Chapter 3