After a few seconds, he finally felt a change and slowly opened his eyes. The scene before him was astonishing—a beautiful, round planet floating right in front of him.
But before he could process what he was seeing, he felt himself being pulled toward the planet.
With each passing second, his speed increased, accelerating with every millisecond.
"This doesn't look good," he muttered, realizing he was hurtling toward the planet like a meteor about to strike.
The pull grew stronger, accelerating him faster and faster toward the planet's surface.
But he didn't feel fear—not even a flicker of anxiety. It all felt strangely natural, as if he knew, deep down, that even if he crashed, he wouldn't be hurt.
As he entered the planet's atmosphere, flames licked around him, burning bright as he sped through the thick layers of clouds. Yet he felt nothing—not a trace of heat, and even his clothes remained untouched.
It didn't take long before the clouds began to clear, revealing a view below.
But there was nothing—just endless mist stretching as far as he could see, a dense shroud over the landscape.
Then, with a deafening bang, he slammed into the side of a mountain, tearing straight through solid rock and leaving a massive cratere.
Dust and fragments of stone settled slowly around him as he lay at the bottom of the hole.
He climbed to his feet, surveying the damage—a jagged tunnel he had carved through the mountain itself.
"Well," he murmured, brushing the dirt off his sleeves, "I suppose that was one way to land."
Mist seeped into the crater, filling the air around him as he took his first steps on this strange planet.
Settling down, he folded his legs and took a breath.
[One more thing: there are conditions tied to your title, "First."]
[Title: First – Bestowed upon the first individual to successfully return from the Abyssal Threshold.]
[Effect: This title grants you the gift of Rebirth; no matter how you may die (e.g., killed by some weapon that makes it impossible to be resurrected or existence being rewritten), you shall be granted another chance at life.]
[Condition:]
1. Self-Interest Clause: The title only activates if your death was a result of pursuing personal ambitions, desires, or self-preservation. Sacrifices for others will prevent activation.]
2. Nearby Sacrifice Clause: Each time Rebirth is triggered, 1,000 mortals from the nearest inhabited world will die in excruciating and torturous pain to fuel the resurrection.
[If Rebirth is used more than once within a single lunar cycle, the number of sacrificed lives doubles with each use (e.g., 2,000 for the second use, 4,000 for the third, and so on). Only normal civilian mortals within the closest world are affected.]
"..."
He sat still for a moment.
"Is this passive?" he asked, finally breaking the silence.
[All titles are passive; they cannot be turned on or off.]
"..."
His voice, filled with disbelief, broke the stillness. "What in the heavens is the second condition? Not only does it kill 1,000 innocent people, but they die in excruciating and torturous pain!"
A pause, as if the voice was assessing his response.
[The price of Rebirth is steep, yes. It's a mechanism of balance; if you escape death, someone else must pay the price to ensure that balance is maintained.]
He let out a breath, rubbing his forehead. "Well, I guess Rebirth isn't free; it has its pros and cons. If I'm escaping death, then someone else has to pay the price to balance things out."
"...Am I right?" he asked.
[Correct. You cannot escape death within reality; it is one of the absolute concepts that every being must face. If you evade death, something else must pay the toll, and it will not simply disappear without taking a life in return.]
After his talk, his questions were answered, but one nagging doubt remained: What is this planet, and why is it cloaked in this endless mist?
Just then, a notification popped up in his mind:
_____________________________
[Mission Available]
Objective: Discover the source of the endless mist that shrouds this planet.
Reward: Mist of Depravity or Mist of Morality
Note: Upon completing the mission, you may select one of these spells. Only one can be chosen, The effects of each spell will be revealed upon completion..
_____________________________
"Huh, a mission?"
"Discover the source of this endless mist," he muttered as he read the objective.
"This is alright, but can you tell me how I can fly?"
"It would be much easier to explore that way."
[You can use your Authority of Unseen Chains. Summon them and step on top to fly.]
"Oh, right.." A grin spread across his face. "Let's give this a shot!"
He closed his eyes, focusing his thoughts on summoning the chains.
The air around him shimmered, and with a flick of his wrist, dark, ethereal chains emerged, coiling around him like serpents.
"Here we go!" he shouted, stepping onto the chains as they formed a solid platform beneath his feet.
With a surge of energy, the chains lifted him off the ground, rising above the crater he had created.
As he climbed higher, the view before him expanded, revealing a vast expanse of swirling fog that blanketed the land.
"Alright," he called out, adjusting his stance atop the chains. "Now, how do I navigate this thing?"
[To control your flight, focus on where you want to go. The chains will respond to your will.]
He concentrated, directing the chains forward, though he wasn't sure where he was heading—more like drifting aimlessly than moving toward any destination.
After about an hour of traveling in the same direction, he hadn't found a single sign of life. No creatures, no humans. Just endless mist, more forest, and a silence that pressed in around him.
"Wait..." he muttered, narrowing his eyes as he looked more closely at the ground below.
"Is that a...?"