Ayan walked into the dark room, the door sealing behind him with a soft click. Almost immediately, the room became absolutely dark so deep that he couldn't even see his own hands in front of his face.
"Hello? Anybody here? I'm here for the training. What am I supposed to do?" Ayan shouted, his voice reverberated for a while but he was greeted by the eerie silence.
Feeling lost, he decided to slowly scout his way forward one step at a time with utmost caution. The more he stayed here, the creepier he felt.
Slowly, he felt an ominous feeling as if locked on by ghostly apparitions or specters. He felt uncomfortable as if something invisible is crawling up his body, giving him chilling and sinister sensations.
Instinctively, he brushed his hands around his body, half-expecting to feel something. But there was nothing as if the feelings were an illusion—yet disturbingly real.
Unknowingly, his thoughts became sluggish and he failed to resist. Before he could grasp what was going on with him, he suddenly fainted.
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After waking up, Ayan blinked groggily at the soft glow of a light bulb hanging on the ceiling. He sat on the bed looking around. The room was simple with a sturdy bed, a table, a chair, and a closet giving him a sense of familiarity—like his own room. For a brief moment, he felt an unknown sense of peace.
Then, the door slowly creaked open and a beautiful lady walked in. The room was immediately filled with a sweet and alluring fragrance, wrapping around his senses. Her movements were graceful and her presence strongly pulled at Ayan's attention. Her limpid blue eyes, deep like the sea, gazed softly at him and a gentle, inviting smile played on her lips. Her face and eyes gave him a sense of familiarity and affection that tugged at the edges of his memories.
"Are you… the girl from my dreams?" he stuttered with half a breath. A sense of yearning and adoration appeared on his face when she nodded.
"Ayan," she breathed, her voice mellow, filled with tenderness. "You've been through so much… Aren't you tired?"
Ayan felt a strange heaviness in his body as if her words were entwining themselves with his thoughts. Her dainty legs were moving in a slow and deliberate rhythm, inching closer towards him. Her delicate fingers grazed his arm like the first touch of rain, sending a tingle up his spine.
Ayan's heart raced as the atmosphere in the room felt warmer, thickening the air until it was almost intoxicating. Despite the tender atmosphere, an unsettling feeling gnawed at the fringes of his awareness. He tried to focus on his disturbing thoughts but her close touch and her all-encompassing presence dissolved his thoughts.
She stuck closer, her warm breath lingering on his neck. "Don't you want to let go? Relax?... Let me take your burden away."
Ayan felt himself dissolving in a soft embrace. The atmosphere around them seemed to vanish, leaving only the two of them in a cocoon of shared warmth and passion….
BOOM!
A deafening explosion shattered the illusion, waking up Ayan, gasping for breath. His body screamed in pain, and he found himself inside a half-destroyed capsule-like machine, naked, with several electrodes attached and needles painfully sticking inside his body. He struggled to get up despite his weak and battered body, but the capsule suddenly tumbled to the floor, sending him rolling with it for a few meters like a ragdoll.
From the distance, his blurry vision caught sight of massive machines in half-destroyed states with several parts thrown all around. He also saw strange fluids leaking from it, appearing like blood with a metallic smell spreading in the air before he lost consciousness again.
A door opened and Dr. Frostwind hurried inside, frowning at the mess of the room.
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Ayan slowly regained his consciousness lying on a similar bed with simple furniture around. The door opened and a lady walked in.
Recalling the experiences he had before, Ayan became cautious and alert.
This time, it was a familiar lady who greeted him with a warm smile and slowly came closer. "How're doing today? Feeling better?"
Watching her come closer, he became nervous and blurted, "Sister Rowen… are you here to seduce me?"
Her eyes widened in disbelief, her jaws nearly fell to the ground from his words and guarded attitude.
"What the hell are you cooking up in your head?" she sputtered, clearly caught off guard. "Your hairs haven't even grown yet! And you're already thinking about such things?"
Flustered, she added, "I just came to see you after hearing you had an accident in the training. Looks like you're feeling better than ever, considering you have such perverted thoughts going in your head."
She stormed out, shaking her head in frustration.
He looked dumbfoundedly as she left. He regained his composure as he realized the bed and the surroundings were different from the illusion. The bed was real, the injuries were gone and he was back in his dark-blue robe.
The distant sounds of people moving and their clamor reached him. Ayan peeked out the door and saw participants returning, looking tired and exhausted.
Camilo looked at him and waved. "Hey, Ayan! You're finally back on your feet?"
Ayan nodded and came outside. "Just got out of bed today."
A red-haired guy sneered. "Tsk, pretending to be sick to avoid the hardship. Why even bother coming here if you can't handle it?"
Ayan was startled by the sudden accusation but before he could explain, Camilo shot back. "You think the doctors and researchers are stupid like you, red squirt? They can't even identify if someone was faking sickness"
"Who knows if his abilities allow him to fake his condition, green moss?" The red-haired boy retorted. "Being a friend of yours, I guess he also specializes in running away."
The red-haired guy looked at Ayan in disdain. "If you've got guts, come to training tomorrow before the weekly rankings. I'll show you how pathetic you really are."
He left with the group of others to their own rooms.