In a vast, dark landscape; the stench of death heavily lingered in the air.
Roll…
Fractured, thin skeletons of human remains rolled on the ground, creating a disturbing harrowing atmosphere.
In the middle of the place, a fainted young man with black hair slept unconscious, while on his chest a silver pendant slowly shone brightly, bringing luster to the dark surroundings.
The pendant gradually shone brighter and brighter until it completely lighted up a wide radius of the place.
Woop—!
However, as soon as it brightened up completely, the light was suctioned inside the fainted man's body.
Afterwards, the pendant lost its luster and its bright shining light vanished completely. It was a mystical scene witnessed by no one.
At that moment the fainted youth suddenly trembled, his thin eyelids slowly opening.
After a few seconds, the black haired young man fully opened his eyes, staring at the surrounding situation in utter disbelief and incredulousness.
"Huh..? Where am I...?"
Lucas thoughtlessly asked while laying on the ground, eliciting no response from his surroundings.
He instinctively raised his arm, locking his gaze at his thin hand with mixed confusion and perplexity.
"I'm alive...? If I was not mistaken, shouldn't I be in an eternal coma right now...?"
"Or could this be the legendary after..life?"
The after-life was a mere legend. A sham perpetuated by the zealous. He didn't believe in it the slightest.
But how was he alive if that was the case?
Suddenly, his eyes widened in disbelief. His hands trembled, reaching out towards his chest as he grasped his flesh tightly.
He could feel it... the heartbeat, not only that but...
"I'm... alive? And the curse that has been plaguing for a lifetime is gone? What... happened?"
He was struck in disbelief. For a moment, he couldn't think straight. No thoughts came into him that could stop the immense euphoria he felt surging inside him—it was akin to a prisoner finally escaping his torture.
The curse that binded his death and destiny was now gone.
Lucas couldn't restrain the smile on his face.
However, before he could even think things throughly, a strange and bizarre screen suddenly projected in front of him, causing him to flinch slightly.
[Analyzing... Soul Origin... Soul Structure...]
[Verifying User Existence...]
[Confirmed! Guest of Oversoul...!]
'Oversoul...?'
Lucas furrowed his brows in confusion, staring at the blue screen in front of his face. He tried touching the blue screen... only for his hand to go through it.
"What...?"
At that moment, the mystical blue screen suddenly projected numbers and letters in quick succession.
===
Oversoul System:
Name: Lucas Aillard
Age: 18 (25)
Soul Path: Path of the Darkvoid
Soul Rank: Rank E- (0%)
Soul Purity: A++
Soul Sockets: N/A
Oaths: N/A
Soulcraft: Darkness
Soul technique: [Void Circulation Mantra] • [Voidshadow Iris] • [Void Extremity Senses (Passive)]
Soul Arts: [Void Plunge]
Soul Structure: [Demon Soul]
===
"Oversoul System...?"
Lucas muttered in bewilderment.
The blue-screen remained static and lifeless, unresponsive to his muttering.
The letters and numbers on the screen felt familiar and unfamiliar at the same time; while it was completely foreign, it was also easily understandable.
In all his life, there were only a few times he was this shaken beyond belief. What was happening right now shattered his own concept of reality—it was bizarre, strange, incredulous, and... magical.
After a long while of silence, Lucas let out a long-suffering sigh.
He certainly knew—absolutely, nothing about what he was seeing even with his decades of sagely knowledge.
Lucas suddenly deeply breathed, his eyes closing.
At that moment, a wave of calmness entered his mind and softened his expression. A serene and tranquil air hovered around him, granting faint clarity to his subconscious.
To recover from calmness so quickly encountered by a bizarre, mind shaking situation was direct proof of his great mastery over his mind.
In truth, it was less of mastery of mind but more of a technique.
The technique he was using was something he personally learned from the bastardly Sage.
It was a profound technique capable of putting the subconscious in a clear, blank state of oblivion through meditation.
After a while of meditation, he opened his eyes once more, this time his pupils contained immeasurable wisdom and calmness within it, making him appear wise beyond his age.
Lucas shifted his gaze, examining the blue-screen in front of him.
"This blue screen seems to be displaying my information. The name is correct, but why is the age showing two different numbers?"
After he was put into an eternal coma, he was already twenty five years old. However... this time, the age written down was eighteen years old. How did that make sense?
[The age shows two different numbers; the first is the age of your current body, and the second is the age of your previous physical body.]
Lucas nodded in understanding. So there was a difference between the age of the soul...
As if realizing something, he blinked twice and opened his mouth in surprise.
"Wait... you can answer my questions all along?"
[Affirmative.]
"...What are you then?"
Lucas asked, his brows rising in interest.
The blue screen disappeared for a moment before reappearing a few seconds afterwards.
[The Oversoul System is the sentient-conscious guide of all qualified living beings. Its whole purpose is to record, analyze, and display a being's existence. It monitors the users soul to help the user in navigating their own self-existence.]
'All qualified living beings...?'
Lucas thought, staring at the mystical blue screen.
That was a weird choice of words... Regardless, this was perfect. If the system was a sentient guide then he could ask about the things he didn't have a clue of.
"Very well, then. Before everything, where I am then?"
Calming himself down, Lucas asked with a frown as he looked at his surroundings.
[The Oversoul System is not authorized to answer that. Its only purpose is to record, analyze and display the inner soul of the user. It can answer questions, but only those which are related to its functions and display.]
Lucas narrowed his eyes before nodding. Well, that was that.
He looked at the display silently, thinking of a question before continuing to ask.
'Let's start with these unfamiliar terms then…'
Deciding to do that, Lucas asked straightforwardly:
"Very well. Tell me what these... terms mean, starting from Soul Rank."
[The Soul Rank is the strength or level of the users soul...]
As the Oversoul System answered, Lucas listened to it attentively, his focus all directed at the blue screen.
After receiving the answer, he asked another question.
....
After a while or so, Lucas stared blankly at the air as the blue screen gradually lost luster and vanished.
"I see... I see how interesting."
Lucas muttered, his lips curling into a smile.
The information he had received from the Oversoul System was very interesting... to say the least. His smile stretched longer, as if wanting to laugh to its heart content, however he restrained himself.
He can't act careless for now. First, he needed to confirm the words of the Oversoul System before everything else.
Despite his amazing control over his mental state, It still took a while before he managed calmed himself down.
After calming his fluctuating emotions, Lucas stood up, his thin and light body standing up from the ground.
First before anything else, he examined his own body thoroughly, checking if there was any difference compared to his previous one.
There was a huge difference; his body was that of an eighteen year-old, youthful and slim, giving off a regal energetic aura.
It was also his appearance when he was eighteen.
Lucas nodded, satisfied. He didn't really care what age of his body he was going to occupy, but if he had a choice, he preferred to be in this young adult state.
It had a mixed balance between youthful energy and a mature air, perfect for any kind of activity.
'In any case...'
Lucas smiled slightly. The Gods must really had felt bad for him and thus granted him another life...in another world. From the Oversoul System, he was able to surmise a small hypothesis.
From the unfamiliar terms, strange blue screen and the answers he received from the Oversoul System; he figured that he was no longer in his world. Instead, he was in a completely different world with a different set of rules.
He was transported into another world, without the damned curse or disease that plagued him. Without the limiting lifespan to worry about. He was truly, in a sense, finally... free.
However, freedom came with a price. That, as a master of man, he knew too well.
"The most troublesome issue is..." Lucas muttered, his eyes narrowing. "I don't know this world's own rules. What if I accidentally break one of them and I die? Wouldn't that be a waste of a new life?"
After thinking for a while, he let out a reluctant shake of his head. They were valid concerns, but what could he do about it? It was not like thinking about it with no basis of information was going to solve anything.
Afterall, the greatest answers came from a pool of information. But unfortunately, he had no pool of information—only a guide that answered fixed questions.
Speaking of this guide...
Lucas stared at the air in front of him.
"...Oversoul System."