Sorath had a dream. It was right after he fell asleep on the sofa.
His consciousness floated, showing him the scenes in a third-person POV.
First, he saw a boy kneeling in defeat and crying in agony in a room with a blurred detail.
The scene flickered. Now he saw the boy locked himself in a room. At the same time, Sorath heard noises coming behind the door. People were knocking and calling the boy's name with concern, their voices weak and worried.
It flickered again. This time, the setting looked like it was happening in a dungeon. That place was so spacious and huge that Sorath couldn't see the ends of the giant pillars that disappeared into the darkness above.
The floor beneath him was worn and carved by the footsteps of countless souls. The walls, adorned with faded murals of mystical beasts, whispered echoes of long-past history.
In the center of this enigmatic space stood an altar, its presence commanding attention. Hewn from the same ancient stone that formed the room, it bore the weight of time with an unwavering grace.
Surrounding the altar, rested a statue of a serpent dragon. Its sinuous form coiled and pulsated with a lifelike grace, frozen in time, as though it was a real creature transformed into a statue.
Around the base of the altar stood dark, enigmatic figures behind the two individuals. One of them was the boy, kneeling in front of another dark figure sitting on top of the altar.
After a few moments, the scene flashed, revealing a piece of another scene. However, the scenes this time changed in every second. All of them exposed numerous chaotic events done by the boy. By the end of the dream, he saw the boy, who had grown into an adult, confronted by seven winged individuals whose form was made of radiant light.
Before Sorath was pulled out of the dream, he heard something along this line.
"We shall end your defiance and put you in Eternal Prison."
…
Sorath woke up from his short sleep. The first thing he saw was neither a blinding light from the light bulb nor the sun, but a face of an angel. Her snow-white hair caressed his face like cotton, soft and smooth.
The fragrance gently entered Sorath's nose, carrying with it the familiar essence of violets. It was a soft, powdery scent, delicate and refined, like a whisper of springtime in full bloom. The fragrance wrapped around him, evoking a sense of subtle elegance that seemed to mirror the angel's presence before him.
'This familiar smell…'
Putting a force onto his elbow, Sorath transitioned into a sitting position and looked at the angel, which turned out to be Atri, his fiancee.
"The scent of violets, I heard that's your favorite fragrance."
Atri looked at him, her eyes full of suspicion. But, she quickly put the thought aside.
"Again with the 'I heard'," she sighed.
Feeling the wind grazing him, Sorath looked around. No matter how far he looked, he could only see an endless expanse of green fields. No trees. No mountains. The horizon could easily observed from any position.
On the other side, he found hundreds of people grouped up and talking to each other, their voices got mixed up and resulted in inaudible chatters. Even someone with good hearing would find it impossible to discern what they said unless they go and talk at a close distance.
Suddenly, Sorath heard a voice talking to him in his head.
[Welcome aboard, Sorath Shedever.]
At the same time, everyone froze, and the chatters stopped abruptly, their face displayed a different expression. From the look of it, they seemed to hear the voice inside their head too.
[You are currently on the first floor of the tower.]
After the second voice, a few people began to make a noise.
[We have been informed about your qualification to awaken. Thus, we take you here to see if you're worthy to receive the power you deserve.]
A few more chimed in. The crowd began to make a move, bringing a rumble upon the green field.
[Awakening Phase. That's what we call the trial. To receive the power, you must climb the tower and complete all the trials. There will be a total of 8 trials, and you are given 100 days to complete all of them. However, don't worry if you can't do it. We will still reward you accordingly!]
During the Tower's speech, everyone started to demonstrate their skills. Starting from the basic swing of swordsmanship to the full technique of every profession available, they began to demonstrate their respective moves using an imaginary weapon made of empty air.
It was so chaotic and cramped. They could have dispersed and distanced themselves from each other first to avoid trouble, but they chose not to. In the end, discord occurred among them.
From a warning call such as…
"Hey! Watch out!"
An insult to one's technique…
"What is that? That's so lame, haha!"
Or a battle of pride between two individuals…
"My technique is better."
"No. Mine is better!"
All of them caused a fight between the candidates. The involved parties fought against each other, while the other watched and treated them like a circus — monkey fight.
"What a mess…" Atri commented.
She had that determination etched on her face. It was crystal clear she wanted to stop the discord. As she was about to go there, Sorath stopped her.
"You will just make it worse."
Atri glanced at him. She complied without saying anything but staring at the mess.
Sorath shrugged.
"It's not like they will die. Also, they will eventually stop even if you didn't do anything."
[If you are ready to take your trial…]
Just as Sorath said, the discord ceased immediately as the earth beneath them tremored violently.
They panicked. "What is happening?!"
To the north, the direction Sorath was facing, a giant door emerged from the ground.
[Feel free to enter that door.]
It stood firmly, towering over the candidates like a fortress wall. The door was made of unknown, otherworldly materials the candidates had never seen before.
The candidates were bewildered by the appearance of the door. They couldn't help but open their jaws in awe. While most of them behaved like that, it was not the case for one particular candidate whose already walking toward the door wearing ragged clothes.
Seeing that candidate, Sorath smirked.
"There you are."
A ragged-looking boy, his blond hair fluttered in the wind, carrying nothing but determination in his eyes, stood at the very front of the candidates, waiting for the door to open.
[Now, go on. Show us that you are really worthy to receive the power that could change the course of your life!]
With that, the great door welcomed its first guest.