"You weren't strong enough."
The words echoed through the void, a haunting whisper that sent shivers through Eren's very soul. He tried to move, to speak, but his body felt as insubstantial as mist, trapped in an endless expanse of nothingness.Suddenly, a blinding light pierced the darkness.
It pulsed with an otherworldly energy that felt achingly familiar. As the light engulfed him, his eyes snapped open, his heart racing as he gasped for air.
The sterile scent of antiseptic filled his nostrils, a stark contrast to the phantom smell of ozone and impossibility that lingered in his mind.He found himself in a room that defied easy description. The walls seemed to shift subtly, as if struggling to maintain their form in this reality.
Medical equipment of both futuristic design and arcane nature surrounded his bed. Through a window, he glimpsed a sky painted with never-ending auroras, a constant reminder of the merged realms beyond."You're finally awake," a melodious voice cut through his disorientation.
A figure that could only be described as a nurse glided into view, her form shimmering slightly at the edges. Her smile was bright against the ethereal glow of the room. "You gave us quite a scare, young one. How are you feeling?"Eren blinked, his mind struggling to catch up with his surroundings. "I... where am I?" he managed to croak, his throat dry as the crystalline deserts of the Whispering Wastes.
"You're on New Terra, dear," the nurse replied, checking his vitals with a device that hummed with an inner light. "You've been unconscious for three days. Quite the adventure you had in a dungeon, from what I hear."Before he could ask for clarification, the door—a shimmering portal of energy—burst open.
Three figures strode in, their appearances a dizzying mix of the mundane and the impossible."He lives!" exclaimed the first, a lean man with eyes that seemed to hold entire galaxies. "The dungeon conqueror awakens at last.
"The second, a woman whose very presence seemed to bend reality around her, stepped forward. "How are you feeling, Valestrix?"At the sound of his family name, something stirred in Eren's mind.
Flashes of memory began to surface— a grand manor that defied architectural logic, the laughter of siblings echoing across dimensions, the weight of expectations that could crush worlds..."I'm... okay, I think," he replied hesitantly, his brow furrowed in concentration.
"What happened?"The third member of the group, a burly man whose scars seemed to writhe with a life of their own, exchanged glances with his companions. "You don't remember?"The woman held up a hand, and the very air stilled at her gesture. "It's not uncommon," she explained, her voice carrying the weight of eons.
"Sometimes, when Awakners return from the dungeons, especially after high-stress encounters, their minds need time to readjust to reality. Though," she added, her eyes narrowing slightly, "as a Valestrix, your essence should be more attuned to the Tower's fluctuations."As she spoke, more memories began to flood back.
He saw flashes of the Tower—that impossible monolith that pierced reality itself. He felt the weight of a sword that could cleave through the fabric of space-time, heard the unearthly shrieks of creatures that defied classification...Suddenly, without warning, a glowing window materialized before him, its edges crackling with raw possibility:
Status:
Name: Eren Valestrix
Trait: A Regressor's Return (X Grade)
Title: Goblin Slayer (+5 Strength, +6 Durability)
Quest: Major Quest - Reclaim Your Memories
Objective: Reach Floor 50 of the Tower to regain lost memories of your previous regression.Stats:
Strength: 15 (+5)
Vitality: 13 (+6)
Agility: 12
Intelligence: 10
Mana: 9
He blinked, his mind reeling from the implications of what he saw. A Regressor's Return?
The term felt alien yet intimately familiar, like a dream half-remembered upon waking. And why couldn't he recall anything beyond the chaotic clash in the dungeon?
"I... I remember the lower floors," he said slowly, his voice uncertain. "The goblins. I remember fighting. But everything else is... hazy. Like trying to grasp smoke."The lean man leaned forward, his galaxy-eyes glinting with excitement. "Fighting? Kid, you did more than fight
. You rewrote the very rules of the dungeon. Over a hundred goblins, all by yourself. For a newly awakened Awakener, that's... well, let's just say you've got the attention of powers beyond your comprehension."Eren's mind whirled with questions. How had he managed such a feat? And more importantly, why did he have this nagging feeling that he'd done this all before?
That somehow, impossibly, he'd climbed these floors in another life?"Well, Goblin Slayer," the woman said, a hint of a smile playing on lips that seemed to exist in multiple dimensions at once, "it seems the Tower has plans for you. Once you're back on your feet, of course."As the trio prepared to leave, promising to return once he had rested, Eren called out, "Wait! The Tower... what more can you tell me about it?"
The burly man chuckled, his scars forming patterns that told stories of countless climbs. "Eager, aren't you? Don't worry, kid. You'll get your chance to ascend soon enough. For now, focus on recovering. Something tells me you're going to need all your strength—and then some—for what lies ahead."As the shimmering portal closed behind them, Eren sank back into pillows that felt both impossibly soft and disconcertingly alive.
His mind was a maelstrom of confusion and unanswered questions. Why did everything feel so familiar yet so alien? What cataclysmic event had granted him this trait of "A Regressor's Return"? And why him, out of all the countless souls in the Merged Realm?The words that had haunted his dreams echoed once more in his mind: "You weren't strong enough."
A challenge. A taunt. A mystery that seemed to stretch across lifetimes.His fists clenched, determination mixing with his confusion. He might not understand why he'd been chosen for this impossible journey, but he was damn sure going to unravel its mysteries. This time, whatever had gone so terribly wrong before, he would make it right.As sleep claimed him once more, his mind buzzed with possibilities and questions.
The game had begun, and while he didn't know the rules or even why he was playing, Eren Valestrix was determined to conquer the Tower's challenges. It awaited, holding not just trials of might and wit, but answers to the enigmas that now defined his very existence.
As he drifted off, the Tower pulsed in the distance, its enigmatic energies reaching out to touch the dreams of the one who might just change everything.