The chamber was alive with energy. The walls hummed with power as the obelisk at the center pulsed, casting long shadows across the stone floor. Rainey stood at the edge of the room, his grip tight around the sword, his heart pounding as the next trial began to unfold.
The beast in front of him was larger than the last—its dark fur rippling with energy, its glowing eyes locked onto Rainey with cold, predatory intent. It circled him slowly, muscles coiled, ready to strike. The air was thick with tension, and Rainey could feel the weight of the challenge pressing down on him.
His body was still buzzing from the strange energy the tower had given him, but he didn't fully understand how to control it. The system had mentioned Basic Energy Manipulation, but there had been no instructions, no guidance. He had no idea how to wield the power coursing through him.
And now, this creature—a being clearly stronger than the one before—was staring him down, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
The beast lunged.
Rainey moved instinctively, dodging to the side as the creature's massive claws sliced through the air where he had just been standing. His breath came in short, ragged bursts as he swung the sword, trying to hit the creature's exposed flank. The blade connected, but it only grazed the beast, the cut shallow.
It was fast—too fast.
The creature roared, its eyes blazing with fury as it rounded on him. Before Rainey could recover, the beast struck, its powerful body slamming into him with bone-crushing force. He hit the ground hard, the air knocked from his lungs. His vision swam as pain shot through his body, but he forced himself to move. Rolling to the side, he narrowly avoided the beast's snapping jaws as they slammed into the stone floor beside him.
Rainey scrambled to his feet, gripping the sword tightly, his mind racing. He needed to end this quickly. If the fight dragged on, he wouldn't last.
As the beast prepared to strike again, something deep inside him stirred. He felt the familiar hum of energy—the same surge he had felt when the system had activated his skill during the first trial. It was there, just beneath the surface, waiting to be called upon.
Energy Manipulation.
Rainey's thoughts raced. Could he control it? Could he use it to turn the tide of the fight?
There was no time to think, only to act.
The beast lunged again, and this time, Rainey held his ground. He closed his eyes for the briefest moment, focusing on the energy coursing through his body. It pulsed in time with his heartbeat, a rhythm that felt both foreign and familiar. He reached for it, willing the energy to move, to respond.
And it did.
A surge of power exploded from his core, and his body moved with unnatural speed. Rainey sidestepped the beast's attack with fluid precision, the sword in his hand glowing faintly with a blue light. The energy flowed through him, guiding his movements as he brought the blade down in a swift, clean arc.
The sword sliced through the beast's thick hide with ease, cutting deep into its side. The creature howled in pain, stumbling back as dark blood poured from the wound. Its glowing eyes flickered, the fury in them replaced with fear.
But Rainey didn't stop.
The energy continued to flow, filling him with a sense of clarity and strength he had never felt before. His body moved as if on autopilot, each step calculated, each swing of the sword precise. He struck again and again, each blow landing with deadly accuracy.
The beast tried to fight back, but it was too late. With one final, powerful strike, Rainey drove the sword deep into the creature's chest. The beast let out a final, agonized roar before collapsing to the ground, its body going limp.
Rainey stood over the fallen creature, his chest heaving as he gasped for breath. His hands shook, the sword still glowing faintly in his grip. The energy that had surged through him began to fade, leaving behind a sense of exhaustion.
The trial was over.
As the beast's body dissolved into ash, a new message appeared before him.
"Second Trial Complete. Tutorial Progress: 40%."
Rainey wiped the sweat from his brow, his heart still racing. He had survived—barely—but the trial had pushed him to his limits. The tower wasn't holding back, and each challenge seemed more dangerous than the last.
The message shifted, and a new set of words appeared.
"Reward Unlocked: Energy Technique—Wind Step."
Rainey frowned, reading the words carefully. Wind Step? He didn't know what it meant, but the name alone suggested something related to speed or movement. Could it help him in future trials?
Before he could process it, another message appeared.
"Energy Technique Tutorial: Wind Step."
Rainey's body tensed as a sudden surge of knowledge flooded his mind. It was disorienting, like receiving instructions through a blurred memory. The tower was implanting the information directly into his consciousness—teaching him how to use the new technique. He saw flashes of movement in his mind—his body moving at incredible speed, blurring through the air like a gust of wind.
He blinked as the visions faded, his heart still pounding. Wind Step. The technique was now ingrained in him, ready to be used when needed.
The chamber rumbled again, and the ground beneath him trembled. The walls began to shift, revealing yet another passageway leading deeper into the tower's depths. Rainey took a deep breath, steadying himself as he prepared to move forward.
He didn't know how much longer he could keep this up. The tower was testing him, pushing him harder with each trial, and the thought of what might come next sent a chill down his spine.
But there was no turning back.
With the sword still in hand, Rainey stepped into the passageway, the dim light of the chamber fading behind him as he ventured deeper into the tower's labyrinth.
As Rainey descended into the darkness, the air grew colder, the light from the glowing symbols on the walls dimming with each step. The passageway twisted and turned, the stone beneath his feet uneven, slick with moisture. Every sound echoed around him—his footsteps, his breath, the faint crackle of energy that pulsed through the tower's core.
His mind was still reeling from the fight. The energy manipulation, the new technique, and the messages from the system—all of it was overwhelming. The tower was giving him power, but at a cost. Each trial was more dangerous than the last, and he had no idea how many more were waiting for him.
But one thing was becoming clear: this was no ordinary tower. It was alive, in some way—aware of him, and of his presence. The messages, the trials, the power it granted—it all felt deliberate, as though the tower itself was guiding him, testing him for a reason.
And then there was the system. The tower's own interface had glitched, labeling him an anomaly, an error. He didn't belong here, at least not according to the system's design. But if that was true, why was the tower still granting him power? Why was it pushing him forward, deeper into its labyrinth?
Rainey's thoughts were interrupted as the passage opened into another chamber—this one larger than the previous two. The ceiling stretched high above him, and the walls were lined with more glowing symbols, but these were different. They pulsed with a stronger energy, the light flickering in time with the faint hum that filled the air.
In the center of the chamber stood another obelisk, taller and more intricate than the others. Its surface was covered in runes and markings that glowed with an intensity Rainey hadn't seen before. The energy that radiated from it was palpable, a force that pressed against his skin, making the air heavy and thick.
Rainey approached cautiously, his hand still resting on the hilt of the sword. The obelisk seemed to pulse in time with his heartbeat, and as he drew closer, a message appeared before him.
"System Update: Tutorial Progress 40%. Next Trial Locked."
Locked? Rainey frowned, unsure what that meant.
"Memory Fragment Detected."
The words hung in the air, and Rainey's breath caught. Memory? The system shifted, and suddenly, the world around him blurred. His vision darkened, and for a brief moment, he felt himself slipping away, as though the tower was pulling him into something deeper—something he had forgotten.