They entered, and what they saw inside, what no short of absolutely jaw-dropping.
When they entered, they were met with a room of metal walls and ceiling, and there were things etched into the walls, seemingly on purpose, that symbolised what seemed like odd mythical creatures and strange structures, and banners with writing written in strange letters.
In front of them lied a front desk, with someone tending to those entering the inn with a smile, and staircases that were much like escalators, on both sides of the room.
"Welcome, visitors!" The female at the front desk said, it was likely she was also one of these Spirit Hunters, as it was shown through her physical appearance.
The instructor went and talked with the lady at the front desk, and thankfully, the were able to rent out most of the rooms in the inn.
He showed them their rooms, but since there weren't enough individual rooms for all the students, some of them had to share, and, of course, this included Nathan, who had to share it with Aiden, and a blonde, long-haired female.
"Whew.."
Nathan entered the expansive room and fell on his bed.
"Do you really have the time to be relaxing? There's a planet devouring beast lurking out there." Aiden said, he wasn't really trying to spook Nathan, but what he said had indeed frightened him a little.
"That's true..!"
"I.. I can't afford to die now!" He panicked, yet he was still too tired to the point where his speech was slurred, so he remained with his face inside the pillow, fearful of the possibility of the Titan Beast targeting the planet.
"Urgh.."
The blonde-haired woman looked upon Nathan with a spiteful expression on her face.
She seemed to have carried around a katana at all times.
"…? The Titan Beast isn't a threat to us at all, since most of the planets found in this galaxy that are apart of the Great Barrier Alliance must be dealing with it at this very moment, as it's known as a [Level 5 Threat]." Aiden said, "So, I was just joking."
"You were.. joking?" An embarrassed expression appeared on his face as he slowly realised, but he also realised that Aiden joking with him could also be considered as him acknowledging Nathan as someone he knows properly.
A smile replaced the embarrassment that he had just experienced just a moment ago.
Most of the hatred Aiden had of Nathan had dispersed after their fight, but that didn't mean that they were close buddies now, in fact, Aiden was still awaiting the day that they would get to fight again, so that he could see it to the end this time.
"Ha.. if only I still had my phone with me.." Aiden said, "I could've been able to record that stupid face of yours."
"Your phone? I didn't know phones still existed in this place."
"Of course phones exist, they are the galaxy's most common form of communication,"
The blonde-haired female said, "How do you not know even that?"
"I.. uh.." The blonde girl didn't know that Nathan had lost his memory yet, so it was pretty hard to explain, "I lost my memories.."
"Really? When?"
"At the qualification test to enter the academy.."
"Hm."
"Wait, but I thought you lost your memories, how do you know what phones even are?" Aiden asked.
"I.. I only lost some of my memories, since some of them eventually came back to me."
He managed to come up with an excuse just in time, before they started to suspect him.
"Also, we're you supposed to pass the qualification test to enter the academy? How were you able to pass regardless of that fact?"
She shrugged her shoulders, "You ask a lot of questions. It's better to keep your mouth shut."
He glared at her.
Unaware of the rising tension in the room, Nathan yawned, but only then did realise what was happening.
"Uh.. ehe.. how about we introduce each other, so we can get to know each other more." Nathan suggested awkwardly.
He was looking for a way to reduce the tension, yet, the atmosphere only seemed to worsen.
"..I'm Scarlett."
"I'm Aiden."
"I'm Nathan."
They introduced themselves, although it was a bit of a stiff introduction, it succeeded in lessening Nathan's apprehension that something bad could happen.
Nathan yawned again.
"I'm pretty tired, so I'm gonna.. head to sleep.."
He was far too tired to hear their responses, and he slowly drifted off to sleep.
…
"…This place again..?" He awoke, and as he had expected, he awoke in that strange void, but this time, there was an object floating around in this space too.
"What's that? A lotus flower?"
It was indeed a lotus, yet it's colour was unique, and unlike anything he's ever seen before.
He reached out and grazed it with his fingertips, and suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his head.
"This.. feeling..!"
He blinked, and saw strange, golden droplets flowing and dancing around himself, and, oddly enough, more and more droplets spawned every second.
It was not until it formed a vast, golden river that the droplets stopped spawning.
"You.."
"I don't think I've experienced such a feeling.. in a millennia.."
A voice resonated throughout this entire space, making their presence known, and even Nathan could easily tell, that this being, was divine.
"You have formed a River of Creation inside your consciousness.. by complete accident. You managed to comprehend the essence of Creation, in it's finest form."
"The feeling that I feel right now.. right, I believe it is called, astonishment."
"Are you the same person who's been speaking in my dreams this whole time?"
"Yes. I believe I have already given you a hint as to who I am."
"A hint? I don't think I've received any hints at all about who you are though?"
He was puzzled, but he also knew that she had all the answers, so he needed to gain as much as he could from this.
"No matter."
"You now have an entire Sea of Creation in your hands, something that even a being that has transcended the skies cannot grasp."
"I knew that you were special, yet I could not speak with you properly due to your special circumstances, and the fact that the Everlasting Gods had placed a special seal on you, that has been weakened for some time now."
"Huh? So that was what that Celestial meant.. but, why would they place a seal on me?"
"Because, you, are destined to become a transcendental god, and not only that, but one that has the power to change fate itself."
"This universe is special, as the influences of the Everlasting Gods and the Celestials have breached this universe, yet, in ways that even I cannot explain, these influences have also affected you, and, they are also the main reason why humanity in this universe has managed to advance this far."
"How? Was that why this universe was so technologically complex yet, from what I could see, alike to that of a fantasy world?"
"Your life essence, as well as your divine essence, are both unique, so perhaps the influences of these divine beings were attracted to it."
"Due to your ability to change fate itself, my interference cannot protect you, so you will have to rely on your power from here on out, and especially when [they] learn of my actions."
"So, let me leave with you, my final gift, and only then shall we part ways."
Nathan wondered what the final parting gift would be, until, he saw the lotus rapidly expand in size, until it reached an unfathomable size.
A strange energy that seemed to represent a multitude of different combinations of colours leaked out the lotus flower.
This strange energy surrounded Nathan, turning into a cocoon.
"What..! No! I'm going to die if I'm trapped in here…!" He shouted, yet the voice ignored his cries for help.
"Five-Spirit Shadow Lotus.. once you come into contact with it's immense power, you will either die, or transform into a powerful "monster" that will grow stronger at an incredible rate, to the point where even your personality will change."
"I wonder what would happen if it was to come into contact with the Sea of Creation."
"…I'm afraid it is time we say goodbye."
"We shall see each other once again, after you have overcome the many painstaking obstacles that will come your way."
…
Meanwhile, it was already the next day, yet Nathan had yet to awake, and instead, the beaded bracelet he had seemed to have been revitalising him, the golden droplets of Creation coursing through his veins, as if it knew what he was going through, at this very moment.
It was more than likely that it would take at least a few days before Nathan could fully transform.