When Havon awoke, he found himself in a dimly lit room, once again his only source of light being a crimson glow that originated from some unknown source.

Similar to the room he was in before, it seemed to be a sort of stone prison, though it lacked the elegance of the prior room's marbling as the walls here were made of dull earth.

It was about the same size as a football court, though it was hard to see the wall on the far end as it was cloaked by the room's shadows.

~I suppose these are the testing grounds those two men were mumbling on about,~ Havon thought to himself, as he got up to his feet.

He did a quick assessment of his body to see if he had sustained any damage and found that whoever was holding him captive had been kind enough to clothe him.

They were simple yellow garments, strangely similar to prison uniforms, with the number 221 written across his chest.

~Hmm, then I suppose everyone here is some sort of prisoner as well,~ he thought to himself, noting the several dozen people on the ground all around him. Most of them were still unconscious, with fewer than five people, excluding him, already on their feet.

Those who were conscious leaned against the walls, their gazes staring off into nothing. The fact that they had not turned their attention to him even slightly since he got up pointed to the fact that they might not be able to see anything at all.

~After all, my eyes are somewhat special, aren't they,~ Havon thought to himself, a jolt of excitement running through his body.

He who had worked so tirelessly to be a main character in his old world was now being handed things left right and center.

Whatever test they were going to conduct here, he was going to make sure to outperform everyone else. Though he had yet to find out anything solid about this world, he could surmise that the people here were in trouble, based on what the old man had said about horrors and beacons.

And the fact that he had been summoned probably meant that this was some sort of test for the fighters of this world, much like the web novels he had written and even read about.

~None of that hiding power bullshit, today we test our limits,~ he thought to himself, almost breaking out into laughter at the excitement of it all.

As he waited for the people in charge to start whatever it was they were about to do, he decided to walk toward one of the corners as well so that he would be protected from two sides.

After waiting for several minutes, most of the other 'prisoners' had gotten to their feet... and chaos ensued.

~It seems I was right; everyone else is in complete darkness,~ he thought to himself as he watched several prisoners panic and run into each other.

Several small skirmishes broke out as everyone fought to protect themselves from the strangers that surrounded them. And during all this, Havon watched on, a happy smile on his face.

~At this rate, I won't even have to try. Everyone will be injured before we even begin,~ he thought to himself, as he watched a massive man punch a woman unconscious.

~Though it seems everyone here is human... or at least human-looking. It would've been more interesting if there were different races,~ he thought to himself, right as a bright light appeared at the centre of the room.

It seemed like a miniature sun, its light too powerful to look at directly.

[You have all done well to pass the trials of the soul, and your awakened vessels are proof of your resilience.]

[However, before we can allow you into the House of the Awakened, you must pass one final trial.]

At this, several of the people in the prison began shouting questions at the strange sun, a few were even disoriented enough to try an approach.

A terrible mistake.

Several prisoners were turned to ash, as beams of light shot out at anyone who stepped too close. This instantly deterred any troublemakers, as everyone in the room waited silently for the sun to continue.

[These are the testing grounds, where your Mental Fortitude will be pushed to its limits in preparation for the task you will face as Umbrastriders.]

~Umbrastriders?~ Havon thought to himself, as several others around him verbally raised their confusion as well.

[Your one task shall be to survive. Those who make it till the end shall have their soulflame sparked, and their journey past helpless humanity shall begin.]

~Soulflame huh, I suppose that means manacore in this world?~ Havon thought to himself.

Although he had a wide pool of fictional knowledge to draw from, he decided not to jump to any conclusions.

After all, these things were actually happening, and the stories he had read were no more than the ramblings of crazed authors.

[The horrors you will face today are not real, but rather phantoms of the mind. They cannot harm you unless you let them in. Pay them no mind, and this task shall be simple. However, falter, and it shall be your doom.]

~That's rather bleak,~ Havon thought to himself, as he noticed the people in the prison begin to move towards the walls. Sadly, many others had already thought about this, and several small fights broke out as people tried to squeeze their way in between others.

[May the Gods be with you.] the sun said finally, before turning to a crimson color.

An uneasy silence descended upon the room, broken only by the expectant breaths of the onlook prisons.

A moment later, a cloud of black fog began to disperse into the room. It moved oddly, almost as if it were alive, rushing straight for the areas with the most people.

Soon, the entire room was clogged with it, and it was hard to see the crimson light coming from the sun at the center.

Havon attempted to hold his breath; however, he could only do it for so long, until finally giving in.

The fog felt cold in his lungs... filling almost. A shiver ran down his spine, and his mind began to feel numb.

"Havon, why did you kill me? Your own father," a voice called out.

Havon looked around and found that he was no longer in that strange earth prison, and was instead back on earth, in his room.

Gregory standing right in front of him, the rusted knife still in his throat, and his eyes gouged out so that all that remained were two bloodied voids.

"Tell me why, why have you done this," he moaned.

Havon looked at him, a look of terror fraught on his face. However, that was only for a moment. His terrified expression was slowly replaced by that of excitement.

"How interesting," he whispered to himself, before moving forward.