Embracing the empty white void, Arin came to see a shimmering figure in the middle of emptiness. He was drawn towards it as if it was calling for him. Walking to it, everything around him started changing, slowly being filled in by a dark and dreary shade.

With each step, the white void morphed into something much more tangible, even forcing his very reality to change. The shimmering entity was enshrouded by a thick layer of darkness, preventing him from getting any closer.

Reaching his hand out, he touched this ominous layer. It felt soft, welcoming even.

“What is this?” Arin couldn’t help but marvel at how alluring this entity was. It was as if he managed to claim it then he would be able to achieve what he desired.

With this semi-transparent black fog stopping him, Arin could only watch as it weakly glowed. Observing the figure within it, he could tell that it was a baby, a child no older than two months old.

The black fog started changing, shifting its dark color into something more… sinister. The baby was stuffed inside a vat of unknown green liquid. The poor child was subjected to scrutinous testing as an overtly oppressive figure gazed towards it.

Looking further out, this child wasn’t the only one here. There were tens… no, hundreds of other tubes that also had a child within it. They were all held in stasis as they were classified by an unknown metric. Following the connections between all of them, it all siphoned something out of them into one other gigantic vat in the middle.

As Arin tried to gaze at what was being nourished, everything suddenly cut off. By the time he opened his eyes, he was directly at the beginning of the Maze-level Trial. He checked his arms and legs to see that they were still restrained just like the last time.

Looking around, the once previously bland and empty cell was now decorated with a muddy red substance. Observing closer, it seemed to be some kind of tar mixed in with blood. Looking at the previously metal bars, they have now turned into solidified animal bones. Every sense of technology seemed to have disappeared as everything returned to its prehistoric state.

Tearing apart the restraints took a lot more force than last time. If he hadn’t gained such an improvement from consuming five grams of Essence then he would’ve struggled breaking free. After shattering the bones locking him in, the expected sense of distorted time didn’t appear.

Previously, when he escaped with his restraints, he would’ve been sent back in time, in this respective Trial. Now, that didn’t seem to be the case at all. This was the first major change that occurred, which meant that he wouldn’t be able to redo it at all. He only had one chance.

Looking down, the corpses of the soldiers from last time were nothing more than ashes. They were burned to a crisp. Even the prisoners locked within their cells weren’t spared at all.

Exploring this place further, he tried to examine one of the prisoners’ cells. It was the same guy who had shown him the way out from the last Trial. Seeing his corpse still intact made Arin a little interested.

The young man’s corpse was face down with his body clearly still simmering from the heat. The smell of burning flesh assaulted his nose.

Turning it over, Arin noticed one key detail that enlightened him about one of the problems he initially had. The young man’s eyes weren’t burned at all. At the very least, he wouldn’t be restricted from looking at it at all.

Arin checked this cell in full detail. He wasn’t the most thorough person around so he might miss some kind of vital clue that would aid him in succeeding here. Checking his bed, Arin tore it apart, trying to find something hidden inside.

Once the mattress was torn in half, an odd-looking metal rod fell down making a clanking sound as it made contact with the floor. Arin picked it up and observed what made it so special. It wasn’t made of any normal metal at all, feeling the sensation of such an item, he could tell that this was sturdy, extremely sturdy.

Wanting to know its limits, Arin slammed this metal rod down to the wall, creating a giant crack on the wall. He was satisfied with its performance, if he were to compare its toughness, it would be equivalent to a Fragment in its durability. It had no special attributes to it other than its brute strength.

Tracing his steps, he explored this area. Seeing nothing of note, he finally arrived at the Warden’s office. There, the key for the restraints was lying there, free from any grime that the current prison had. Surprisingly, another interesting item appeared right beside it, a small book.

Reading the contents, Arin assumed that this must have had some clues as to what he could get to help him complete this cruel Trial.

“Foustin had his bed make some creaking sounds keeping the rest of the prisoners awake. The prisoners have started reporting that they want it gone or they’ll riot. Do convicts really think they deserve such luxury? Hah! Don’t make me laugh…” Arin skipped ahead to read an entry that seemed to be quite interesting.

Holding the metal rod in his arms, Arin grinned. “I get it. So that leads to this rod. Let’s see if there’s any other secrets that’s hiding here.”

Reading further on, Arin started noticing a few patterns emerge. These had shown that there were a few oddities that shouldn’t normally happen. Some were disguised as playful occurrences while others were said to have been weird coincidences that were on the edge of being rare.

“There’s a hole that appeared out of nowhere right below the circular staircase. Apparently, a Pravum had decided to camp there. My men went to it and tried to get rid of it but it turned out to be quite the sick bastard. It surged out of its hole and ate everyone. We’re low on manpower right now cause of that freak! No matter, as long as we manage to appease it then it should leave us alone. Who knows if we get lucky enough to get rid of it?”

If it was Arin’s previous self then he would’ve rushed in without even hesitating to wonder if there was anything else he could do. Restraining himself from rushing forward, he continued reading the entry.

“It’s called a Blacksmith’s Star. It turns whatever it eats and turns it into its treasure. Whatever it spits out is good enough to be used as a weapon on its own. Due to its weird gastronomical pathway, whatever it produces is in the form of a sharp shard.”

Arin looked down at the metal rod that was slightly taller than him. He immediately understood what it wanted from him.

“A spear, huh?” Arin gripped the metal rod tightly. Going to the circular staircase, he could hear grumbling sounds as the Pravum within it hungered.

Opening the door, he could see a hole directly below the staircase. There was no light emanating from within it, creating a sense of unease for the unknown.

“Now how do I lure it out?” Walking ever closer with a vigilant look on him, Arin approached it. There were a few times that the Pravum had created a few unsettling sounds that even caused him to stop in his tracks.

As Arin managed to hover right above the hole, he could see a faint sleek hide showing the back of this Pravum. This helped him create the image of it in his mind.

Fortunately, it wasn’t some kind of gigantic monster that was capable of eating him whole. Rather, it was a bug that resembled a beetle. It continued eating whatever it had around him, growing hungrier and hungrier by the moment.

Feeling its source of nutrition dwindle, it suddenly felt irked wanting to scout for more things to consume. As it looked above the hole it was in, it saw another bag of meat for it to consume.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

The scuttering noise of a high-pitched creature jumped out of the hole. Arin took this threat seriously, and he jumped away, running out of this enclosed area. He wanted to have the mobility of the open hallway to fight against it.

The Pravum rushed out, wanting nothing more than to eat the prey before it. Arin took his stance, using the metal rod in his hands with firm determination. He wasn’t about to shy from something new.

As this Pravum flapped its wings, its speed tremendously increased to the point that it had already reached Arin’s strike zone. Seeing just how nimble it was, Arin couldn’t back off anymore, he needed to fight it at once.

Gathering all his strength, Arin turned and twisted his body, generating so much momentum that halfway through his attack, the air around him started to break apart. The force behind this attack would easily turn normal people into a bloody pulp.

Even the Pravum wasn’t able to properly react as its mind was filled with greedy hunger. Arin’s strike had easily hit its hard carapace, sending it to the side. The walls weren’t as tough as the Pravum’s shell, making it crumble apart as it met with something much stronger than it was.

The Pravum sounded extremely feeble as if it was at the last of its legs. It instinctively wanted to run but its stomach was still full of the contents it previously had eaten. Wanting to escape, it expelled everything from within its stomach to lighten itself as much as possible.

A crystalline shard made from a mix and match of different materials dropped down on the floor. Arin finally saw just how high-quality this shard really was. If he touched it with his bare hands then he would undoubtedly bleed.

The Pravum quickly reoriented itself and tried to fly away. Normally, a Solver would either instinctively kill it to prevent any future troubles or just let it be for they have no need for it anymore. Well not for Arin.

Seeing that such a high-quality material came out from the Pravum with nothing more than common bricks and human meat, an interesting idea popped up in his mind.

He had overestimated the Pravum’s strength since it had nearly died to a single strike from him. Taking the metal rod from his hand, he shoved it down its mouth. The Pravum tried to escape Arin’s grasp to no avail. It had flapped its wings vigorously yet it only served to annoy Arin. Ripping those away with his bare hands, it could only struggle to eat the metal rod.

Contrary to how strong this metal rod was, it easily ate it and digested its contents. It had turned away its meek head as it was already full. Half of the metal rod had already been eaten at this point. Seeing it stop, Arin grabbed ahold of it tighter and continued force-feeding it even more.

The Pravum had already satiated its hunger yet it now had an even bigger problem, it was now stuck to be used by Arin. It tried struggling to escape one more time despite its wings being ripped apart. Arin’s temper had reached the point where he grabbed its head and ripped apart its eyes.

The Pravum screeched in agony as its mobility and eyesight were taken away. The only sensation left was struggling to consume everything against its very will. It suffered greatly.

The metal rod was fully consumed by the Pravum. It took a short while before the long metal rod was compressed into a small shard. It expelled it from within its system in an odd motion.

It seemed to have suffered as there was a green liquid popping out from inside it. A crystal shard dropped down alongside this green liquid. It was safe to assume that this was the Pravum’s blood.

Now that the Pravum no longer had any use, Arin took it with two hands and ripped it apart, coloring the floor green. Now that it had outlived its usefulness, Arin got rid of it.

The newly created shard was much more vibrant than before. It was leagues sharper than the previous one yet unfortunately, it was much more jagged. If Arin wanted to use this weapon with his bare hands then he would undoubtedly bleed. There might even be a chance that he could lose his hand.

“If anything’s going to kill that creature then it's this!” Arin used the half-broken carapace of the Pravum and scooped this shard up. Even if he was going to use this weapon, it didn’t mean that he needed to hurt himself this early on.

Taking out the Warden’s diary, he continued reading on to check what else he could use. After reading a few mundane occurrences within the prison, Arin discovered an interesting entry.

“Luther was just sent in after betraying the Greedy Emperor Kald’ish. He’s to be given the bare minimum of supplies for survival. There’s no said execution, no punishments, no nothing. Every other prisoner here has an execution date except for him. This is very odd.”

Arin read this with an odd expression. This didn’t aid him in doing this Sephiral Trial nor did it give any sudden revelation about the past. This was just an odd circumstance that made him feel as if there was something else going on.

Reading on, Arin discovered another entry that talked about some kind of cursed equipment that siphoned the life of the user in exchange for being able to use Malum. It was a unique Secret Fragment that demanded a heavy price for barely any power.

“That… that shouldn’t be the case, though? I don’t get it.” Arin didn’t understand why this was here. This didn’t feel right at all. For as long as he survived, the Trials always had a determined rule set in place that let them classify each one properly.

Maze-level Trials could let a normal person reenact the same actions and motions and they would get the exact same results each time. There would be no variability in how they approached it. This meant that if someone managed to get a Perfect Clear using one method, they would be able to get the same Perfect Clear in another run.

The next category and difficulty would be a Bind Trial. This worked exactly the same as Maze-level Trials except for one key difference, there would always be a Fragment that acts as the catalyst for the Trial. This made the use of Malum be mandatory.

For a Fragment to appear here meant that this was no longer a Maze-level Trial, it was now classified as a Bind Trial. Arin immediately started feeling the pressure rise to an unbelievable amount. He vividly recalled that this was considered a Maze-level Trial when he entered this.

This wasn’t something he could just ignore. This was a serious issue. The sheer difficulty of a Bind Trial was leagues above what a Maze-level Trial could possibly have. Dangers that even he hasn’t faced yet would appear.

“I have to make sure. If it's really a Bind Trial then I need to get out as soon as possible.” Arin determined the location of the so-called cursed equipment. It was hidden behind a small opening that no normal person would be able to get through.

To unlock the full passage, he first needed to find three different levers that unlocked it. The first was directly below the Warden’s office. That lever was easily activated. The second lever was slightly more inconvenient for Arin but was doable. It was within another area deeper in the prison underneath an inconspicuous jail cell. This one was relatively harder to get but with time, Arin managed to activate it.

The last lever was a little bit more dangerous to unlock. It was still within the prison but it was hidden behind reinforced metal. There was a trap that would force you to fall down within a pit trap if not handled properly. Luckily for Arin, he still had the shard that he got from the Pravum.

This razor-sharp shard cut through the reinforced barrier like a hot knife through butter. He easily activated the last lever in place and went back to get the cursed equipment. Seeing the previously unpassable barrier finally open up, Arin traveled inside.

The musty cave was filled with fauna that made it seem extremely detached from the prison. It was as if this place was hidden underneath for millennia without anyone disturbing it at all. There were glowing vines that led Arin the way.

Getting closer to his goal, he was stopped in his tracks by an ominous shifting set of runes blocking his way. This was the very set of shifting runes that was used as the language of the Trials.

The indecipherable words turned into something that was all too familiar to him.

Sephirah Trial: Uncovered Malice

Difficulty: Bind

Participants: 1

Restrictions: None

Goal: Kill the Intruder

Rewards: Personalized Secret Fragment

Sephirah: -681

۝̷̙̤̥̊͑́Ꞡ̸̛̥̖̱̯̈́͜ꝸ̴̦͐̏̿̕Ꙟ̵̤̰̲̤̈́̀͊̾ꓶ̸̨̠̫̰̘̽̋͌̑ⱴ̵̗͈͙̥̑̈́̋̃͗ꭁ̷̩̪̽̒̄͒̔ͅꭁ̸͇̜̀ἒ̴̹̲̳̺̥́̂̆͘͝ễ̴͔̞͂̅̎̀ج̵̻̇̒̀͊ݨ̸̗̺̪͗͒̽̿̕ڠ̸̬̖͊̊ջ̷̹͈̏͛̂͋͝ͅ۝̴̫̮͈̍̔͊͂̒

֍̸̰̫̮͖̇̇͐́̈́̂́̔۩̴͍͖̮̙͙͑̑̇͌́̓̎̒̾̉͋̆͝ͅڠ̶̡̰̞̩̟̬̪̭̫̬͖̹͈̋̅̃̅̈́̈͝Ⴟ̸̰̜̮̋͌̄̀̿͘ڀ̴̧̛̥̻̟̟̮̣̈́̂́̏̌͛̍̐͐͝ͅᴥ̶̨̢̯͙̪͙͓̬͔̿͛̍ﮮ̷͇̟̻̰͇͌̿͌͋͒́̋͊̐̊̈̌̚ͅﯚ̵̛̜̣̬̎͊͒͆̌̎̾̍̅ﺹ̸̢͖͚͉̤̖͉̬̟̭̈́̅ჭ̷̡͔̤͎͐̆͌́͗̄̅̍̚Ⴕ̵̼̱̘̫͙͆̆̈́̍͝֍̵̢͎̥̻̯͐̊̈́̿̽͆́̅́͝

Ѻ̴̢̭̪͔̤͈̳̩͍̥̥͓͙͛̃͝ԩ̶̧̱̟̣̣̻͖̖̹̭̗̇̈́̓́͝₰̴̤͍̰̦͕̲̬̐̐̇̅̈́́͂̕͝͝ꙮ̸̡̱͓̦̇͐̉̒͠͠ͅⴊ̷̛͓̟͍̗̼̟̯̦̪͓͇̇͛̀͋̀͛̓̈́̌̕ⴆ̴̢̨͈͕̩̙̮̳̳͖̀̾̄͘ᾈ̸̣̙̼̏͝Ꚍ̵̨̧̼̖̮͎͕̲̘̃͂͋͐̾͛̈́͛̕͝ﬨ̶̯̬̥̮̥̳͙͛̓͛͒́͆͒ﷺ̵̢̧̜͚̫̼͓̭̥̣̞̌̑́̐̿͜͜ﮃ̶̢̻̮̓̿ꜳ̶̢̣̜͇͎͙̣̰͚͓̱̱̙͒̒͒̀̊̍̊̏̆̅̒̔͠א̶ָ̧̳̣̼̗̘̒̉͜ﮋ̸̨̧̢̗͎͖͕̹̲̙̞͕́̌̚ͅპ̷̡̦̻̱̘̪̘̰͎̙͚̬͐̏̚̚͝Ჱ̵̡̢̻̲͔͙̿͋̈́́͋̆́ڄ̴̢̆̾͌̏Ყ̶̧̞͎̫̭̞̜̱͚̩͗͆̈́̊̆͆͐̑͂Ჱ̴̡̖͚̜͇͍̓̄͒͂̾Ә̵̛̛̟̹̭̙͔̣̟̲̬̽̀́̈̐̿̇͗͠Ԗ̷̨̪̻͉̯̮̻̉̈́ǂ̵͉̩̜̔̉̀̌ʢ̶̨̺͔͓̮͔̞͚͕̻̮́̇͌ͅ҉̷̡̢̯̩͓̖̘̫̦͍͎͚͋̃́̀̄̀͑͆̒̾͆͠

A set of words that reflected the change in difficulty.

These runes were blocking his way from the set of armor that was before him. He knew that if he walked forward then he would be forced to haphazardly increase the difficulty to the likes that he had never seen before.

“Even I know my limits.” Arin turned his back, his head was full of questions that he desperately wanted to know. A Sephirah Trial was far too otherwordly for him. It completely changed the current rules he had always believed to be absolute.

He wasn’t about to go and take this absurd increase in difficulty no matter how tempting the rewards were. If he was already required to kill a nearly absolute enemy while it was a Maze-level Trial then what kind of insane challenge would a Bind Trial give him?

He might be arrogant and egotistic but he still knew what he can and cannot do. But…