A faint buzzing in the back of James' head made him remember the flask of water. He opened his status notifications, and there it was:

{Congratulations! From your efforts, you are rewarded}

{Small Bottle of Clarifying Water (Ashen)}

{Congratulations! Your reward is Upgraded!}

{Small Bottle of Enlightening Water (Saffron)}

If there was anything James needed now more than ever, it was clarity. The darkness around him was oppressive, overwhelming, almost sentient in its persistence. It was as if the darkness was more than a mere absence of light—it was a presence in and of itself, one that seemed to weigh heavily on his thoughts and emotions. James could feel its influence, pulling at the edges of his mind, whispering to him about despair, about isolation, about giving up. Clarity, true clarity, seemed so distant that it almost felt impossible to grasp.

The feeling of being lost wasn't just a physical sensation—it was something that seemed to resonate deep inside him, something that felt intrinsically tied to this strange new world. James couldn't help but think back to when he first entered this rift, when the very essence of the place seemed to change his perception of reality. It was different from the world he was used to in the small town—where magic existed but not in such raw, unrefined forms. This rift was strange, disorienting, and the very air hummed with untamed power. And as he fought the salamanders, their energy seemed to feed the rift itself, like everything here was connected in an intricate web of essence. Tellemoria from what he recalled was very bare of this kind of experience.

When James had eaten the enchanted donut earlier, he remembered feeling a rush of energy, a revitalization that couldn’t simply be explained by hunger or fatigue being relieved. There was magic to it—a magic he couldn't quite put into words but one that felt tied to something deeper, something primal in this world. It felt like his senses had been heightened, like he was seeing the world in higher definition for a brief moment. If a mere crumb could do that, what might a bottle of Enlightening Water do for his perception? He could barely fathom it, but the hope of that power thrilled and terrified him.

The flask was small, and it felt oddly heavy, like it contained more glass than water. He wondered why that was. Did it mean the liquid was incredibly dense, or perhaps it was imbued with something else, something beyond the ordinary? Everything in this world seemed carried weight beyond its physical mass—a sort of existential gravity—and this flask seemed no different. He turned it over in his hand, feeling its weight shift, and he imagined the layers of meaning hidden inside.

James hesitated. There was an inherent risk in using something he couldn’t fully understand. He wasn’t foolish enough to believe everything he found in a rift was beneficial—he had heard enough tales from adventurers about traps disguised as treasure. He could almost hear the stories whispered in the darkened corners of the hall—those grim voices recounting how a friend of a friend had drunk a potion that turned their insides to ice, or how a chest of glimmering treasure turned out to be a mimic. But, then again, this was a reward for defeating those salamanders. The SYSTEM itself had presented it to him, and while he was skeptical of its motivations, he believed there wasn't any malevolence behind each reward. This world seemed to operate on rules and intentions, even if they weren't always clear to him.

And purpose was what James desperately needed right now. The pressure in the cave was mounting, and the desperation of his situation was pressing down on him like a suffocating blanket, reminding him that in this world, any advantage could mean the difference between survival and death. He had nothing else to fall back on, and for the first time in what felt like hours, he found himself hoping. That small ember of hope spurred him on.

Steeling himself, he tried to enter the same meditative state that had helped him accept {Battle Strategy}. That moment had been one of true insight. It was like his mind had opened up, the haze that typically clouded his thoughts lifting, if only briefly. He needed that clarity now more than ever. James understood that finding clarity in this moment wasn’t just about surviving; it was about finding control, about having a sliver of power in a situation that felt utterly chaotic. In a world where he was constantly buffeted by forces beyond his understanding, clarity was the one thing that allowed him to keep moving forward.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to push away the encroaching fear and chaos of his surroundings. His fingers traced over the smooth surface of the flask, searching for a way to open it. The smooth glass was cool beneath his fingertips, almost soothing, and for a moment he let himself just feel it, let himself be anchored by the physical sensation. After a few moments, he found a small protrusion—some kind of cap, perhaps. He tugged at it, but it wouldn’t budge. Frustration bubbled up, a familiar sensation in this world that seemed to delight in blocking his progress, and he tightened his grip on the trident, using it as leverage. He struck the nub sharply, breaking it open with a loud crack that echoed through the cavern. The smell of the liquid wafted up—slightly sweet, almost floral—and it calmed him, if only a little.

This was it. He tipped the flask to his lips, swallowing the contents in one go, ignoring the spill of cool liquid that trickled down his chin. The taste was surprisingly pleasant, sweet with an undercurrent of something metallic, like rainwater collected after a lightning storm. It felt old, in a way, as though it held a fragment of something timeless. James barely had time to contemplate the flavor before he felt it—a sudden shift, a change deep within him. It started slowly, a gentle cooling sensation that spread from his throat down into his chest, and then it began to intensify, filling his body with an almost ethereal chill.

It felt like time was slowing down. With no external stimuli to orient himself, it was hard to say if it actually was or if it just felt that way. But James could sense something different—his thoughts felt sharper, his senses more attuned. It was as though the world itself was vibrating at a slightly different frequency, and now, for the first time, he could hear it. He could feel his heartbeat in his chest, feel the air moving through his lungs, the dampness of the cave pressing in on him. But more importantly, he could feel the essence around him.

It was like a pulse, a rhythm that he hadn’t quite noticed before. It had always been there, but now, under the influence of the Enlightening Water, it was like he could finally see the strands that connected everything—the subtle movements of essence in the air, in the ground beneath him, even within his own body. It was as if the water had removed a veil, allowing him to perceive something fundamental about this world. The way the essence moved felt like a secret language, one that he was just beginning to understand. He could feel it in the air, a thrumming, a vibration that spoke of potential and purpose.

James closed his eyes again, but this time it wasn’t just darkness he was met with. He could sense the currents of essence flowing through the cave, like invisible rivers, threading through the rock and water and even the emptiness around him. It was almost overwhelming, like trying to see a thousand things at once, but he forced himself to focus. There was something here, something he could use if he could just understand it.

He realized that essence was not unlike the atoms he remembered from his previous life as Frank. Everything had a structure, and the essence seemed to fill that structure, giving it form and strength. Manny's words echoed in his mind, reminding him of how essence was the very foundation of this world—atoms in this reality, in constant movement, keeping everything connected, keeping everything alive. The Enlightening Water had granted him a glimpse of this flow, and he felt as though he was standing on the edge of an immense understanding. If that was true, then maybe—just maybe—he could use it to see.

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The thought filled him with a sudden determination. He knew that what he was attempting was a gamble. Everything in this world had been a gamble from the moment he awoke in it. Every decision, every battle, every moment had required him to make a choice without fully knowing the consequences. But the worst thing that could happen was death, and he had already faced that. He was no stranger to the fear of death, and while it still terrified him, he had grown used to walking beside that fear, feeling its cold breath on his neck, reminding him of the stakes, keeping him alive.

He needed to understand more, to see more. The potential of what he could do with this clarity was almost tantalizing. He could navigate this darkness, find Joey, and understand the rift in a way that might give him an edge. With that thought, James marshaled his mind, trying to keep himself from becoming overwhelmed by the essence. It was like trying to grasp smoke with bare hands—it kept slipping away, eluding his senses, but he could feel himself getting closer. There was something just beyond the barrier, something he needed to reach. He took a deep breath and chose the skill {Swimming}, feeling the essence surge within him.

If it had been like a swelling tide before, now it was a veritable deluge. James could see it, could truly see it, flowing into him, shaping his lungs, his limbs, even his mind. It moved through him like a living thing, a force that was both internal and external, and he tried to follow it. He focused on the essence not just within him, but around him. He wanted to see it all, to break through whatever veil still obscured his understanding.

The more he focused, the more he began to notice the patterns of essence in the world. They flowed and ebbed like tides, moving in response to something he couldn’t quite comprehend. There was an intricacy to it—a beauty that left him in awe. It felt like he was finally beginning to glimpse the underlying machinery of the world, the clockwork that kept everything turning. But if he could follow it, if he could see where it led, maybe he could use it to navigate through the darkness. It felt right, like he was on the cusp of understanding something profound, something that would change everything for him.

And then, in his concentration, he lost track of his surroundings. He was so deeply focused on following the newfound sense that he didn’t even notice when he drifted, following the flow of essence until—bang. His forehead collided with a stone wall, the sudden pain ripping him out of his meditation. The jarring impact left him reeling, his head throbbing. He stumbled backward, gasping in pain, the clarity he had felt slipping away like sand through his fingers.

James dropped to the ground, his hands trembling as he tried to regain that state of focus. He was so close—he could feel it, just on the edge of his awareness, a whisper of understanding that was tantalizingly out of reach. He couldn’t let it go now; he had come too far. He could still sense the essence moving, the currents ebbing and flowing like a river he needed to cross. His heart pounded in his chest, each beat reverberating in his ears as he pressed his palms against the cold stone floor, grounding himself, reminding himself that he was here—alive, fighting, and on the verge of something great.

He closed his eyes again, this time with renewed determination, blocking out everything but the sensation of the essence around him. The pain in his forehead from striking the wall, the dull ache of his muscles from the battle with the salamanders and the rapids, the fear in his gut—all of it faded to background noise as he reached deep into himself, searching for that stillness, that point where he could truly connect. The cooling sensation from the Enlightening Water still lingered, and he latched onto it, using it as an anchor, letting it pull him back into that meditative state.

He took slow, deliberate breaths, each inhalation filling him with a renewed sense of purpose. He imagined the essence flowing through him like water through a stream, filling every vein, every cell, until it poured out of him and connected to the world around. In his mind's eye, he could see the faintest flicker of light—like the first stars appearing in the night sky. It was faint, almost imperceptible, but it was there. And with every ounce of his focus, he leaned into it, allowing his senses to expand, feeling for the edges of the essence that made up everything.

There was a rhythm to it, a pattern that had always been there but had remained hidden until now. James could almost visualize the dance of energies—how they moved through the air, through the rock beneath him, through the very fabric of his being. He could sense the currents, flowing together, mingling and separating, responding to unseen forces that shaped them. It was like watching a vast tapestry being woven in real time, each thread of essence contributing to the greater whole.

As James continued, he began to notice more details in the currents of essence. They weren't just simple streams—they were made up of smaller rivulets, complex, interweaving strands that twisted and turned with an elegance that defied easy understanding. He felt himself growing fascinated, his awareness extending further, following those delicate pathways. The essence didn't simply move—it danced. It spiraled in graceful arcs, threaded through the stones like roots of a tree, pulsing with energy that reminded him of the heartbeat of the earth itself. It was beautiful in a way that words could never truly capture.

James's body began to relax, his trembling hands stilling as the tension slowly drained away. The pain in his forehead dulled to a background throb, and all that mattered was the essence. He focused on the faint glow, willing it to grow, to become clearer. He had never felt anything like it—this sense of being connected, of being a part of something far greater than himself. He could feel the stone wall in front of him, the solidity of it, but he could also feel the essence flowing through it, giving it its form, binding it together. It wasn’t just a wall; it was a part of the world’s essence, part of the intricate web that connected everything.

Slowly, he felt the barriers that had kept him from understanding begin to give way, as if the veil that separated him from the true nature of the world was thinning. He could feel the essence growing brighter, its movements becoming more distinct. It was as though he was learning a new language—one that had no words, only feelings and sensations. He could sense the interplay of energies, the way they swirled and shifted, forming eddies and currents that moved in harmony.

His perception expanded, and he began to sense not just the obvious things—the rocks, the cave, the air—but even the less tangible. He could feel faint echoes of something deeper, as if there were memories etched into the very essence that surrounded him. This rift, this cave, had a history, and in his heightened state, James could almost perceive it. Moments of conflict, the reverberations of battles fought long ago, the life force of creatures that had once lived and died here—all of it left traces in the essence, whispers of a past that had never been fully erased.

He let out a slow, controlled breath, feeling the cool air fill his lungs. His senses expanded outward, the darkness receding as he began to perceive more than just the physical world. He could feel the rocks beneath him, the chill of the cavern air, but more importantly, he could feel the presence of the essence itself, like a vibrant, living pulse that filled the entire cave. It wasn’t light in the traditional sense, but it was a way of seeing, a way of understanding.

James knew he was at a crucial point. He could feel himself standing at the threshold, ready to step into something entirely new. He concentrated harder, pushing his awareness even further, reaching for the essence, willing it to reveal its secrets to him. He focused on the currents flowing through the stone, following them as they twisted and turned, and he began to see the intricate network that tied everything together—how each piece of essence touched another, creating a web of energy that spanned the entire cave.

And then, suddenly, it happened. The veil lifted, and James felt a rush of understanding unlike anything he had experienced before. The essence came into full view, not just as a vague presence but as a vivid, glowing force that outlined everything around him. He could see the shape of the rocks, the air currents swirling in front of him, even the lingering traces of essence left behind by the salamanders they had fought earlier. The darkness was no longer an impenetrable void—it was filled with life, with movement, with purpose.

The realization hit him like a wave, and James felt a surge of exhilaration. He had done it. He had managed to break through, to see beyond the limits of his physical senses. He could see the essence, feel it, understand it. He could navigate this darkness now—truly navigate it—not just with his trident and his instincts, but with a deeper understanding of the world itself.

{Active Skill Acquired}

{Accept? Y/N}

- Essence Sight (Saffron Level One)

- See the flow of Essence in the world around you.