[174 . . . ␣␣'s memories will be not meddled with, but will stay in such a position that a trigger will be needed.]

 

[238 . . . memories relating to this vestige will not be unlocked until the relic is—once again, in acquisition.] 

 

Zane's eyes snapped open when he felt a sharp sting underneath his feet. He blinked drearily to get the fuzziness out of his eyes as he trudged ahead. The scene in front of him was as blurry as it could get, a foggy sight and the silhouette of a person in front of him—and then so on—

 

The sensation of the restriction of his wrists made him blink out of his reverie, looking at his bound hands—shackled by a rusted metal chain that extended out in front of him and from in between his feet to behind him. His vision was too dragged for him to figure out where on the route he exactly was, but considering that he was barefoot, he could vaguely recall the area. It had been almost a decade ago, and the scene in front of him was just so… reminiscent. 

 

Zane paused briefly, glancing over his shoulder. He met the weary eyes of another slave, gazing up at him with urgency, he then glanced past the man, and the seemingly endless silhouettes of cuffed slaves walking from behind. 'Right,' he thought, blinking profusely to get the blurriness in his eyes to disappear. 

 

He scrunched his nose at the scent of sweat and metal that wafted in the air—he could feel roots prick at his feet from where his sandals didn’t cover, and he just had to question—why? Had he not chosen at what period to come back? He inhaled sharply, and suddenly winced, his head pounding as a small message from the system tried to make contact with him. 

 

Before he could process more of the situation, he groaned when something snapped against his back, making him stagger in his path. He could feel his eyes sting along with the pain that settled after the hit. He turned to his side to see a man—in the uniform of a soldier looking down at him with a grim expression, eyes glowering. 

 

“Don’t make our work harder, slave,” the soldier hissed, raising a neon purple whip in front of Zane’s face, as if threatening him. Zane forced himself to stand straighter, ignore the pain in his back and glower back at the man at once. He eyed the whip, seeing the way a small crackle went down its making. 

 

<Purple Kindling> or <Wisteria> was what it was known as. Zane glanced at the originating point of the whip. It was a black ring, and it was sitting coiled on the man’s middle finger, not held the way it was supposed to. Zane’s eyes flicked from the man’s hand to the whip, if he could get an opening, and maybe if his body recovered a little, he’d attempt to snatch it. 

 

On top of that, if his memory served correctly, he was sure the <Vasten Plains> were ahead, which were covered in mist from the many waterfalls present in the area. It would be easy there. He bit his lower lip. 'Slave.' How ironic. Just because his past self had thought the Church was wrong, he was thrown into thirty years in prison.

 

<The Church> had been one of the superior and highly-respected areas in the whole of Silver Moon. They were known to gift, purify, and execute evil doers. Most of the people in Silver Moon worshiped them, prayed to the great Reverie Gods, and in turn they blessed the people. ‘Although a scam. Such paradises always had dark sides.' Zane licked his lips. 'The increasing numbers of Challenges and Unmarked Armageddons had caused more people to join the damn system, and through that they were making contracts with certain <Watchers>.

 

Other than serving as a temple, the Churches had control over the Militaries, shared powers with the Emperor. 'Killing when necessary is alright.' He swallowed, comparing the morales years ago to now.

 

〈"Killing is a sin. It's atrocious. As a Church, aren't you ashamed?"〉

 

Zane pushed forth while tugging the weight of the person behind him, who grunted and stepped ahead. "Retard," the soldier said before he walked back and whipped another person. The ground under his feet pierced through the excuses of the sandals he wore, and the linen on him barely protected him from the cold. 

 

'They're yet to receive the warning,' Zane thought to himself. Now he needed some sort of initialization. He narrowed his eyes. According to the relic that Zane had utilized to travel back in time, mentioned that he would return to a significant memory. Perhaps after this was when his life had started getting better?

 

—Kaw. Kaaw!

 

A crow passed above the people, only a black shadow visible through the mist. Zane gazed up with scrunched eyes. With the very few skills that Zane had during these years, he picked <Naturist Communication>. 

 

[Crows] were the communicators and omens of evil. They were used by many people to communicate when an armageddon was ahead. He waited for a familiar sound to resound in his ears, but after a few moments of walking, nothing came. ‘Fuck. It's not triggering.’

 

He tried thinking of it multiple times, maybe that was how he’d done it? 

 

'Trigger Naturist Communication Level 1.'

 

'Naturist Communication Level 1?'

 

'Work Naturist Communication?'

 

He stopped guessing and stared at the crow. A fragmented memory came back to him.

 

〈"Everything requires a sacrifice"〉

 

During this time, he wasn't capable of using any skills, regardless of what they were. He wasn't sure what the first sacrifice was.

 

〈"What a pity. But it's a too priceless curse."〉

 

Just then, a faint recollection came to him. In his past life during <Level 48> he was cursed by the <Watcher> Zadkiel for breaking one of the vital rules of <Elysium>. The curse was that he would no longer be able to use species to use his skills, nor could he sacrifice anything other than the purest liquid. ‘Blood.’ 

 

Zane bit down on his lower lip with one of his canines, grimacing at the pain. The whole system would understand his mindset. A droplet of blood dribbled down his chin.

 

[Sacrifice has been received!]

 

[Activating Naturist Communication Lvl 1]

 

[K-keook! K-kra-!]

 

Zane winced at the sharp piercing cries of the bird, and after a moment, they dissolved into comprehensible words. 

 

[Yuis' are gathered! There are too many! Turn back batch 83!]

 

—Kaw!

 

The crow passed their heads, and Zane realized, 'It is too late.'

 

"A-ah!" A scream echoed, and he deactivated the skill. Echoed? They weren't in a cave. Just then, he realized, ‘ah. How can someone be so stupid?'

 

[Chain reaction has been set off.]

 

[61 unregistered members are forced to join in the Massacre of Yuis']

 

'Perfect.’ This should give him a chance to regain the weapon he wanted. 

 

Suddenly, an unknown force tugged on the chains, and the line of slaves found themselves being pulled into the presumed Mist.

 

[3 more registered players have been added]

 

Zane landed on the ground with a harsh hit, the chain that connected the slaves together breaking as most of them were thrown on the narrow terrains that led up to the <Vasten Plains>. "Gah!" he winced unconsciously, his eyes glassing as his abdomen collided with a rock. 

 

Screams and shouts echoed as the [Yuis] attacked, most of them were inhumane roars that made goosebumps spike up Zane’s body. With his hands still tied, he pushed himself to roll a few times before hitting something hard.

 

He gasped in pain, before regaining some consciousness and pushed himself to sit up and glared at his situation. 'My hands are still bound.’ He scrunched his brows in frustration and his body bled from various parts, but he could care less about that. 

 

As he looked around, golden sparks flew here and there in the mist, and panicked shouts began echoing all of a sudden. Purple slashes of lightning were whipping in the thick mist as soldiers who couldn’t wield the Wisteria began attacking. Most of the slaves were helpless. Deprived of knowledge and knowing nothing other than to fear the leaders and the whips. 

 

'This is the only chance. The Yuis will get more brutal over time.' Zane staggered, but stood up and took the support of a giant boulder. Only if he had 'Pain Resistance' with him would things have been easier. He grumbled, and ran into the mist in front of him, humid air filled his lungs, and the man looked around—unable to see through the dense cloud-like fog.  'Dammit it's too thick.'

 

—Srk.

 

Zane ducked instantly as a small sound echoed in his ears. Maybe what his uncle told him about developing intuition worked. He turned around to look at the source of the sound and saw a large creature with cute eyes, which stared back at him. It looked cute.

 

But….

 

The Yuis leaned in close, bending a third of Zane's height. Zane’s heart lodged itself in his throat and he took a step back and stared into the large, black beady eyes on the lizard-like creature. The creature seemed just as cautious as him as they held eye contact for at least an agonizing minute. Then it opened its mouth.

 

From inside the mouth, an appalling-looking yellow flower with buds of red presented itself. It had rooted itself inside the Yuis’ upper jaw and into the creature’s throat. The Yuis weren't as deadly as themselves. What was deadly was the flower that spread like a virus in between the Yuis. It was known as <Onyx Myrmidons>, the carnivorous flowers that grew in the creatures due to unfortunate situations.

 

Zane remembered having to deal with them in Silver Moon, and when he was going to Land of Runes. He took in a deep breath as he thought of what to do. If he ran, then the creature would attack him by running after him, if he stayed—yellow sparks and the warmth of a flame blew at his face. 

 

Zane instantly lurched out of the way and a yellow light fell out of the Yuis’ mouth and on the land he previously stood. Where the fire had hit, burnt on the spot as if it was some sort of acid rather than a flame. 

 

'I need my hands unbound. Now.' Zane took a step back slowly with both his hands raising in a placating manner in front of him. Just then, the sound of whipping caught his ears and he realized what he could do. The metal chains wouldn’t break unless they were broken by an item of at least some mana. 

 

He could just try to use the acid like flame of <Onyx Myrmidons> but the chances of the creature lodging him its mouth were far more likely than him being unbound. So Zane made up his mind and turned on his heel as he dodged another fire attack.

 

However, he tripped on a slippery flat pebble, and caught the sight of a slope before he collapsed, as his body suddenly picked up an acceleration as it tumbled down the hill and reached a flat plain, a sickening feeling filled his throat as he took in the site before him. 

 

The grass under his feet was burnt along with many of the surrounding trees, and most of the fog had dissipated and given rise to the scene before him. Human bodies lay scattered in the field, belonging to slaves and the soldiers alike. Originally, he'd be a traumatized person ducking among these people while 'she' continued beating the Yuis'.

 

— Clack

 

Zane turned around, feeling somewhat light headed. The Yuis were unexpectedly in a low number. Fifteen or so and yet the crow had called it a massacre. Perhaps it was referring to the slaves rather than the creature.

 

The sight of a purple lighting being struck caught his attention again and this time, Zane quickly made his way to the area where it came from. As he approached it, the sight of an injured soldier caught his attention. The soldier was striking the Yuis with Wisteria, holding the weapon so irregularly that it limited the electricity that it produced. 

 

Zane slowed down as he saw the Yuis, which seemed barely harmed. “Die! You filthy thing!” The soldier yelled as he struck the Yuis again. “Die!”

 

However, the moment the Yuis opened its mouth and revealed <Onyx Myrmidons>, the man fell back and scampered to right where Zane was standing. Zane didn’t know who the man looked more afraid of when he saw Zane standing above him, but he flinched regardless. “Kill that thing!” he screamed, and Zane’s brow twitched. “You’re a slave! You listen to me—”

 

“I’ll leave,” Zane said immediately and the soldier screamed and grabbed hold of Zane’s leg. 

 

“Do not leave,” the soldier spoke, and Zane noticed blood dribbling down his chin. 

 

“Uncuff me,” Zane demanded, relenting the slightest. 

 

The man’s eyes widened. “No!” he exclaimed, but the both of them jumped when the Yuis let out a loud growl. “Can you kill it?” 

 

“Not unless you uncuff me,” Zane said, and held his cuffed hands out in front of the soldier. The soldier looked at him, the cuffs, and back at the Yuis before he stood with the support of the tree and uncoiled Wisteria from around his ring finger. He then snapped it on the ground before taking a whipping stance. 

 

[The Hermit grunts at the misuse of his item!]

 

The soldier whipped Wisteria towards Zane’s cuffs. The first hit only landed a crack, and the second broke only one of the chains. By the third hit, the shackles fell to the ground and Zane was left staring at his blue-green wrists. 

 

[Someone has broken a contract!] a voice spoke in his ear and seemed as though the soldier heard it as well. His face paled and he screamed loudly. [Penalties will be faced by the player <Yusef Gramier>]

 

Soldiers weren't trained to fight in Armageddons, as much as they should be, hell, Zane didn’t know why they were even leading them through the <Vasten Plains>. The soldier in front of Zane stared at him with rage, and before he could move, <Onyx Myrmidons> had spewed flame at him, causing his body to disintegrate. 

 

Zane looked away from the scene in disgust, but suddenly caught sight of a ring that lay in the burnt ground. 'Not the way I expected,’ Zane thought and ran towards the burnt body of the soldier to pick the Wisteria. The moment he touched the ring, a white holographic appeared in front of him.

 

[You've earned an item!]

 

[Wisteria has been earned!]

 

[Magic Type: Faux

Uses: Offensive/Defensive, (can be innovated)

Producer: The Hermit (??)]

 

The screen disappeared.

 

He glanced up.

 

Yuis looked at him. It tilted its head innocently.

 

'Cute.' Zane thought and slowly took a step back as he put the ring on carefully. When it slid down his index finger, he mentally groaned. The ring was too big for his finger. 'Damn these soldiers and their physique.'

 

The Yuis reacted by taking one step, and it was far bigger than the one Zane had taken. He tried to remember what he was missing. As far as he recalled, Wisteria produced a form of electrical exuberance that was triggered by some incantation.

 

The Yuis took a step ahead and Zane turned around. His legs worked on their own, and he began running somewhere depending solely on intuition.'Ah fuck! What were the incantations?'

 

If only his memories weren't so cracked. As he ran through the vast lands, sick crunches echoed behind him. 'Activate Wisteria?'

 

Shit, he forgot about the curse. Blood for gain. Zane bit down on his lip again. He pressed hard and turned his jaw, waiting for his canine to slice the corner of his lip. The Yuis was catching up to him—how did he think he could outrun it in the first place?

 

He fumbled with his hands, twisting the ring on his index finger. After a moment, blood finally dropped from a small cut. That moment Wisteria crackled, a shock of shivers ran down Zane's spine.

 

[The Hermit has granted your Wisteria faux magic!]

 

'Now… ' Zane used a tree to pause and stretched his palm out. A purple whip unwound out of the ring like a coil. Any moment.

 

Another Yuis tore down a tree nearby, the carnivorous flower consumed a dead body that was on the ground. 'Shit.' The Yuis turned around and licked its mouth at the sight of Zane.

 

[The Hermit is willing to help you.]

 

[You've earned a skill!]

 

[System is confused]

 

[Skill already exists.]

 

[Guidance Lvl 1 has been activated!]

 

A ghostly presence of a hand rested on Zane's hand. It manhandled him just as the two Yuis began charging at him. 

 

 

Chapter 1: <Vasten Plains> (1) > Fin.