Arisa Valenhart opened her eyes, gasping for breath. The air was heavy with smoke and ash. The sound of crackling flames roared around her, and the heat was unbearable. She looked around wildly, her vision spinning, trying to process the disaster.
The cathedral was collapsing.
She clutched the old, battered manuscript tighter in her arms, the leather warm against her skin. It had taken her years to find it—every ounce of strength, every connection she had, every risk she dared. And now, as if the universe itself was mocking her, the very place meant to house her salvation was turning into her grave.
Her legs trembled as she tried to stand, coughing violently as smoke filled her lungs. "This can't be happening," she choked out, staggering toward the only exit she could see.
Before she could take another step, a deafening crack echoed through the chamber. The ceiling collapsed, and burning debris fell like rain, cutting her path off entirely.
"Damn it!" Arisa screamed, stumbling backward. Her body felt weak—too weak. She dropped to her knees, her vision fading.
As darkness began to consume her, she heard a voice. Deep. Resonant. Calm.
"Arisa Valenhart. Do you seek to survive?"
Her eyes snapped open. The voice didn't come from around her—it echoed directly in her mind.
"What…?" she rasped.
The manuscript in her hands began to glow, its pages flipping open on their own. Symbols and glyphs spilled out into the air, burning themselves into the space around her.
"You stand on the edge of eternity. Answer, mortal. Do you seek to rewrite your fate?"
System Activation
Arisa's heart raced. The heat of the fire vanished. Her body floated in a void, weightless, surrounded by golden threads that stretched infinitely into the darkness.
[System Detected.]
[Analyzing Host Suitability…]
[Host Match: 94%.]
Screens of text appeared in front of her, glowing faintly. She tried to touch one, but her hand passed through it like mist.
"What is this?" she whispered.
The voice returned, louder this time.
"Time is not a tool for mortals. Yet you sought it. You sacrificed everything for a fragment of its knowledge. I offer you more: the power to command time itself."
The glowing threads began wrapping around her body, burning into her skin. She screamed as golden markings carved themselves into her arms and legs, spiraling toward her chest.
"With this power comes a cost. Every second you use it, a part of you will be consumed. Are you willing to bear this burden?"
Arisa clenched her fists. "What choice do I have? I don't want to die!"
The voice was silent for a moment. Then:
"Very well. Synchronization will now begin."
The pain intensified. Her vision blurred as a massive clock materialized in front of her, its hands spinning wildly.
[System Activated: Eon Chronos.]
[Chronomancer Class Initialized.]
[Anchor Points and Chrono Abilities Unlocked.]
The Forest of Time
Arisa woke with a start, her body slamming into the ground. Grass? She pushed herself up, groaning. Her surroundings were unrecognizable—a dense forest bathed in a violet glow, the sky streaked with golden cracks.
"What the hell…?" she muttered, looking at her arms. Glowing markings pulsed faintly along her skin, matching the symbols she had seen in the void.
Before she could process anything, a translucent screen appeared before her.
[Quest Generated.]
[Trial 1: The Flow of Time.]
Objective: Eliminate all enemies in the area within 20 minutes.]
Reward: Time Manipulation Skill Upgrade.]
Failure: System Reset (Death).
Her blood ran cold.
"System reset… death?" she muttered.
Before she could even think, a low growl broke through the eerie silence of the forest. Her head snapped toward the sound. Emerging from the shadows were creatures unlike anything she'd ever seen—wolf-like beasts with bodies made of black smoke and glowing golden eyes.
The screen flickered again.
[Enemies Identified: Temporal Wraith Beasts.]
[Combat Tip: Utilize Chrono-Stasis to neutralize multiple targets.]
Arisa stumbled back, her breath quickening. "You've got to be kidding me."
The first wraith lunged, its claws aiming for her throat. Instinct kicked in, and she raised her hand. Without fully understanding how, she activated the system.
[Chrono-Stasis Activated.]
Time itself rippled. The wraith froze mid-air, its body locked in a golden glow.
Arisa stared, wide-eyed. "It worked…"
But there was no time to celebrate. The other wraiths advanced, their growls vibrating through the ground. She staggered back, raising her hands again, but the translucent screen interrupted her thoughts.
[Warning: Chronomantic Energy at 80%. Stasis duration limited.]
"Limited?!" she yelled, glancing at the frozen wraith. Already, cracks formed around the golden glow.
The remaining wraiths circled her, and panic surged through her veins. She had no weapons, no combat training—just this bizarre power she barely understood.
Focus, Arisa. If you panic, you're dead.
Taking a deep breath, she planted her feet and analyzed the situation. The wraiths moved in sync, circling her with precision. Their bodies flickered like flames, blending into the shadows.
[Insight Skill Activated.]
Her surroundings slowed. Golden lines outlined the wraiths' paths, showing their intended movements.
"So… I can predict them?" she whispered, her voice trembling.
The nearest wraith lunged, and she sidestepped just in time. A second one followed, but she anticipated its movement and ducked, grabbing a fallen branch from the ground.
[Anchor Point Set.]
Without fully understanding why, she felt compelled to activate another ability.
[Rewind Activated.]
The scene reversed. The wraiths returned to their original positions, and the frozen one reset in mid-air. Her body moved back two seconds, perfectly repositioned.
Her grip on the branch tightened. "This is insane…"
The beasts lunged again, but this time, she was ready. Using her Chrono-Stasis, she froze two wraiths at once. When the third lunged, she swung the branch with all her strength, slamming it into the creature's head. It let out an unnatural screech before dissolving into black mist.
[Enemy Defeated: Chronomantic Energy Restored by 5%.]
Her chest heaved, adrenaline coursing through her. She turned toward the frozen wraiths, their golden stasis starting to crack.
"No time to rest," she muttered, charging forward.
By the time the last wraith dissolved, Arisa collapsed to her knees, drenched in sweat. Her arms throbbed, the glowing markings pulsing faintly.
[Quest Complete.]
[Reward: Time Manipulation Skill Upgraded. New Ability Unlocked: Temporal Blink.]
The translucent screen flickered as the clock in the sky reset, its hands spinning back to the starting position.
"Blink?" she whispered, but her words trailed off as the forest around her began to fade.
The violet glow dimmed, the ground beneath her disappearing into nothingness.
[Congratulations, Chronomancer. You have passed the first trial. Prepare for the next.]
Her body felt weightless again as she was pulled into the void.
Arisa opened her eyes to find herself standing in a new location—an expansive city square bathed in golden light. Massive gears floated in the sky, turning slowly as if keeping time itself in motion.
Her chest tightened. "Where am I now?"
[Welcome to the Temporal Nexus.]
[Prepare to face stronger trials and uncover the truth behind the Eon Chronos System.]
She clenched her fists, staring up at the gears in the sky. She had barely survived the first test, and the system was already throwing her into the next.
"Fine," she muttered, her fear slowly giving way to determination. "If this is the power I've been given, I'll master it. No matter what."
The gears turned, and the clock began ticking once more.