Chapter 26: The First Lesson
Dawn came early, spilling molten gold over the arched windows of Moonlight Pages & Tea, staining the wooden floors with ribbons of amber and honey.
Dust motes in the air shimmered like fallen stars, swirling lazily past shelves of ancient tomes.
And for the first time in what felt like forever -
Fenrir woke up, without any nightmares.
No blood.
No screams.
No shadowy figures tearing through the streets.
Just the hushed stillness of the morning and the rich scent of jasmine tea.
He blinked, staring up at the ceiling.
Then he sat up.
Right.
Memories flooded back - the Rift, the Demon Giants, the Child of Ruin, the Last God Devourer.
Ancient entities.
People who feared him.
People who sought to end his existence.
"...I miss yesterday's problems."
[Statement Inaccurate.]
He sighed.
"Good morning to you too."
[Good morning, Host.]
Fenrir raised an eyebrow.
"...You can say that now?"
[Affirmative.]
"You're learning."
[Correction: Host is learning.]
"...Fair enough."
He pushed himself off the bed, noting the strange comfort of the room - the bookshelves, the desk, the large bed he was laying on, the window overlooking the Midnight Exchange.
For some reason...
it felt oddly familiar.
A knock sounded at the door.
"Come in."
The door opened, revealing Yuna.
Her white fox ears perked up in happiness as she skipped inside, her nine fluffy tails swishing behind her.
She set a tray of tea, toast, and pastries on a small table before beaming at him.
"You made breakfast?"
She puffed out her chest proudly.
"I did."
"...Should I be worried?"
Her smile turned into a glare.
"Rude."
"You're smiling too much."
"I'll have you know I'm an excellent cook."
"...Why does that sound threatening?"
Twenty minutes later...
Fenrir sat at the table, his plate empty.
"...You really are."
Yuna grinned triumphantly.
"I know."
"By the way."
He glanced up at her.
"Aetherion wants to see you."
"...That sounds ominous."
"It usually is."
A few minutes later, Fenrir found himself in the main room of the bookstore, surrounded by Aetherion, Seraphina, Elena, Kael, Adrian, Raphael, and even the dwarves.
The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife, and Fenrir felt unease coil in his gut.
"...Did I accidentally erase a continent?"
"No."Are ancient entities attacking?"Not yet."
"Then why does everyone look like someone died?"
Silence.
"We need to talk."
That was Aetherion, speaking.
Which was even worse.
The old man set a scroll on the table, revealing a strange map.
Fenrir blinked, taking in the strange markings.
It wasn't a map of Earth - the continents were oddly shaped, and there were floating islands scattered across the vast oceans.
"It," Aetherion began, "is the hidden world."
Silence.
"It's much larger than Earth."
"...How much larger?"
Raphael gave a small smile.
"Several thousand times larger."
"...Excuse me?"
"It's complicated."
"No," Fenrir said firmly. "That's actually very simple. You're saying Earth is a pebble."
A few people chuckled.
Aetherion gestured to the map.
"The Midnight Exchange is here."
He pointed to another location.
"...And this place is three days away from us."
"The people living there... vanished."
Another spot was indicated.
"Two days ago... there was a city."
"Yesterday..." Another location. "...a fortress."
"...What happened?"
Nobody answered.
"We don't know," Seraphina said eventually. "Entire settlements simply... disappeared."
His blood ran cold.
"Gone?"
She nodded.
"No bodies. No survivors. No signs of battle or even a struggle."
Silence.
"...Nothing?"
She gave a small, sad nod.
Elena stepped forward.
"The only thing found in every location..."
She looked at him.
"...was this."
A small crystal, black and cracked, pulsed with strange energy in her hand.
The moment Fenrir saw it, his blood ran cold.
Danger.
No.
Something worse.
Annihilation.
Even OBLIVION was silent, which was even more terrifying.
"What is that?"
Adrian shook his head.
"No idea."
"But it's old."
"Very old."
Kael frowned.
"And it smells wrong."
Fenrir looked at him.
"...You can smell evil?"
"Yes."
"That's horrifying."
"It really is."
Raphael's expression darkened.
"The reason we're telling you this..."
He looked at Fenrir.
"...is because the latest discovery was found near here."
He pointed to another location on the map.
"Less than two days from the Midnight Exchange."
The room was silent, tense.
"...Are you saying..."
Fenrir swallowed hard.
"...whatever did this might come here?"
Nobody spoke.
Which was answer enough.
Raphael sighed.
"If it arrives..."
"We may not be able to stop it."
Silence.
"...You're joking."
"No."
"But you're all incredibly strong."
"Thank you."
"That wasn't a compliment."
A few people chuckled.
Aetherion smiled.
"And so, we come to today's lesson."
Fenrir frowned.
"...Lesson?"
The old man nodded.
"You want to become stronger."
"Yes."
"You need to survive."
"...Also yes."
"Then today..."
His smile widened.
"...your training begins."
Silence.
Fenrir studied the old man's expression.
"...I don't like that smile."
"You shouldn't."
An hour later, Fenrir found himself in a large field just outside the Midnight Exchange, with the others watching as Kael cracked his neck and grinned.
"...Why are you smiling like that?"
"Simple."
The werewolf's grin widened.
"I'm your first instructor."
"...No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"I refuse."
"Too late."
Aetherion raised a hand.
"First lesson: combat begins with understanding your weaknesses."
Fenrir nodded.
That made sense.
Then Kael appeared in front of him.
BOOM!
A fist smashed into his gut, sending him flying.
The world spun end over end before he landed, twenty meters away, face-first in the grass.
Absolute silence fell over the group.
"...What was that?!"
Kael blinked.
"The lesson."
"You punched me!"
"Correct."
"WITHOUT WARNING!"
"Combat rarely sends invitations."
"...I hate this already."
A few people chuckled.
Even Elena had to look away, hiding a smile behind her hand.
The dwarves were already placing bets.
"Three punches before he cries."
"Five."
"I say seven."
"I CAN HEAR YOU!"
A translucent screen appeared before his eyes.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[You have suffered severe damage.]
[Predator's Instinct has activated.]
[Minor Adaptation Initiated.]
[Physical Resistance +1]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
"...Did I just level up from getting punched?"
[Affirmative.]
"..."
He looked at Kael.
Kael grinned.
"Oh no."
"No?"
"Oh yes."
BOOM!
Fenrir flew again.
Twenty minutes later, he was sprawled on the ground in a crater, his clothes torn, his hair a mess, his dignity long since gone.
A screen floated before his eyes.
Level: 10 → 11
Strength +2
Vitality +3
Physical Resistance +4
"...I don't know how to feel about this."
[Host is growing stronger.]
"I'm being abused."
[Technically correct.]
"You're supposed to support me."
[I support your growth.]
"...Traitor."
Kael crouched beside him.
"Get up."
"I can't."
"You can."
"I don't want to."
"Fair."
He grabbed Fenrir's leg and began dragging him.
"HEY!"
"Training continues."
"I'M IN PAIN!"
"Excellent."
Laughter erupted from the group.
Even Seraphina had to stifle a giggle behind her hand.
Yuna nearly fell over laughing, and the dwarves looked positively delighted.
Adrian was grinning from ear to ear, while Raphael looked like he regretted every decision that led to this moment.
Even Elena's shoulders shook with silent mirth.
For some reason, seeing everyone laugh so hard at his expense lightened the pain.
"...And so I conclude my lesson."
Aetherion's voice cut through the sound.
The others fell silent.
"...What is it?" Raphael asked.
The old man's smile had vanished, his gaze locked onto the distant horizon.
"...I felt something."
A hush fell over the group.
"What kind of something?"
Aetherion said nothing, instead looking toward the distant horizon - beyond the Midnight Exchange, beyond the hidden world.
"...Something woke up."
The wind picked up, growing colder.
Kael frowned.
Seraphina's expression darkened.
Elena's golden eyes narrowed.
Aetherion closed his eyes.
"...And I don't think it is friendly."
Far away, deep within the ruins of an ancient temple, two crimson eyes opened.
The shadows around the temple trembled, ancient chains clinking ominously as a smile graced the creature's lips.
"Interesting..."
"The Child of Ruin..."
A long pause stretched between them.
"...Perhaps..."
"It is finally time."
The creature rose to its feet, sending shockwaves across the cosmos.
Stars dimmed, galaxies trembled.
Something impossible had begun to stir.
Something that would reach Earth.
And Fenrir Endarth.
Elsewhere, upon an endless battlefield of snow, a lone sword stood, buried in the frozen ground.
The wind howled, swirling the snow into thick blankets.
A woman, her silver hair flowing like water, slowly opened her eyes.
Ancient, beautiful eyes regarded the sky for a long moment before a small smile graced her lips.
"Interesting."
Then she closed her eyes once more, returning to sleep.
For now.
But soon...
Very soon.
The fate of both would intertwine.
Back in the field, Fenrir pushed himself up off the ground, wincing.
He looked toward the horizon, his instincts screaming at him.
Something was coming.
Something horrible.
He didn't know what, and he didn't know why.
But for the first time since waking up, he felt it.
A storm.
And somehow, he knew.
Something extremely dangerous was approaching.