Chapter 5: The Bargain with the Void
The difference between morning and evening had long since disappeared in the depths of the forest.
Raijin had lost track of how long he had been training. His body was covered in sweat, dirt, and blood, but he did not stop.
With every strike, with every run, the same question kept circling through his mind—
"Who was he… and why did he give me this power?"
The Witness of the Mortal Realm.
That mysterious presence that had appeared, spoken to him, and then disappeared.
Raijin knew that it was no ordinary entity.
He closed his eyes and steadied his breathing. Then he focused his attention on his Nexus Seed.
Immediately, a faint pain rose in his chest.
"Still not enough…"
he muttered.
His body was changing, but his consciousness had not yet reached the level where he could control Etherea according to his will.
He stood up again.
Ran.
Jumped.
Struck the rocks.
And then collapsed.
But he did not stop.
This same routine had continued for several days.
Morning came.
Raijin ran.
He struck rocks.
He controlled his breathing.
Then he tried to sense his Nexus Seed.
And after every failure, he started again.
But now, a small change had occurred.
Where before he had felt nothing but pain, he could now sense faint streams of Etherea flowing through his body.
They still did not move according to his will.
Sometimes they reached his fingertips before disappearing immediately.
Sometimes they gathered inside his chest and suddenly spread throughout his entire body.
But Raijin had understood one thing—
His power had not returned.
He placed his palm against a broken stone.
For several moments, nothing happened.
Then a faint warmth began spreading beneath his hand.
The stone did not break.
But suddenly, a powerful vibration traveled through his body.
His muscles tensed, and his breathing stopped for a few moments.
Raijin closed his eyes.
For the first time, he understood that the power of the Mortal Realm was not simply an ordinary form of energy coming from outside.
It was using his body as its medium.
The stronger his body became—
the more power it would be able to withstand.
And if his body remained weak…
that same power could become his destruction.
"I don't need to gain more power first…"
he said quietly.
He stood up.
Obtaining the power of all four realms was no ordinary blessing.
It seemed that connecting with even a single realm was difficult.
Two realms were beyond imagination.
Three realms…
At that point, cultivation would become a test of existence rather than merely a test of strength. Even thinking about it sent a shiver through his body.
And four—
Raijin's gaze remained fixed somewhere in the distance for a few moments.
He remembered that dark fourth path.
"If that really is the Fourth Realm…"
he whispered.
"Then even thinking about it fills me with fear."
He paused.
"Perhaps no one has ever tried to master it."
For a moment, another thought arose within him.
Or perhaps whoever tried…
never came back.
Raijin immediately suppressed the thought.
He opened his palm.
"I need to understand what is in front of me first."
He returned to his training.
But after a while, a strange uneasiness began to rise within him.
He felt—
as though someone was watching him.
Raijin suddenly stopped.
He slowly held his breath.
The forest was silent.
Far too silent.
Even the sounds of the birds seemed to have disappeared for a few moments.
He turned around.
Nothing.
To his right—
only trees.
To his left—
empty bushes.
And yet, a cold sensation remained at the back of his neck.
It felt as though someone's gaze was fixed not on his body…
but on his soul.
Raijin slowly closed his eyes.
At that exact moment, a fleeting image flashed before him—
A black sky.
A gigantic eye.
And then—
everything disappeared.
He immediately opened his eyes.
His heart was beating rapidly.
"What was that…?"
There was no answer.
After a few moments, he calmed himself.
Then he remembered his previous world.
Spells.
Formulas.
Magical formations.
He had been a mage.
None of these things were new to him.
He drew a complex magical formation on the ground.
Every line was perfectly precise.
He tried to pour his energy into it.
The formation glowed for a few moments.
Then—
it shattered.
Raijin stared at it for a while.
"My knowledge isn't wrong."
he said quietly.
"It's just that this world's energy doesn't accept those rules."
He drew another line across the ground.
"This isn't mana…"
A faint light appeared in his eyes.
"This is Etherea."
"So I don't have to abandon my old magic."
He made a small adjustment to the formation.
"I just have to adapt it to the laws of this world."
His previous life had ended.
But his knowledge had not.
And perhaps that knowledge would become his greatest strength in the future.
---
On the other side—
Inside a dark and silent chamber, Sora was kneeling.
Lord stood before him.
The first sacrifice had been completed.
But its effects had not yet fully revealed themselves.
Sora placed a hand against his chest.
There was no pain there.
Only a strange emptiness.
He closed his eyes.
He tried to search for an old memory.
A face.
A voice.
The face of a girl began to appear in his mind.
But it was blurry.
He could not remember her voice.
Sora frowned.
"What have I lost…?"
Lord gave no answer.
Sora looked at him.
"Is this the price?"
"This is only the beginning," Lord replied.
Sora remained silent for a few moments.
Then Lord spoke quietly—
"If you continue down this path, the Dark Realm will notice you as well."
Sora's expression changed.
"The Dark Realm…?"
A faint smile appeared on Lord's face.
"Some places do not need to be visited in order to see you."
"Then how much do you know about it?"
Lord's smile disappeared.
"Enough to know…"
His voice became serious.
"When making a bargain with something from there, never think that you are the one deciding the price."
Sora asked,
"Why?"
Lord looked directly into his eyes.
"Because there, it is always the other side that decides what you truly gave."
---
Far away…
And even deeper below—
A crack opened within the darkness.
There was no time.
No direction.
No light.
Only endless darkness.
Several figures existed within it.
A voice echoed—
"One body is cultivating."
Another voice answered—
"The second is breaking."
Silence followed for several moments.
Then a third voice spoke.
"And the third…"
A faint laugh echoed.
"Still believes he is controlling the game."
Two eyes opened within the darkness.
"Let them grow."
"The higher they rise…"
The voice became quieter.
"The deeper their fall will be."
Then another voice spoke—
"And when all three reach their limits…"
The thin crack within the darkness widened.
"Then the Void will open its gate."
---
At the same time—
Raijin was training in the forest once again.
His breathing was steady.
His body was exhausted, but his will was not.
Then—
"Please… help us!"
Raijin turned his head.
Three people came running toward him from within the forest.
A girl was in the lead.
Sofiya.
She held a small broken sword in her hand, and her clothes were covered in dirt and blood.
Behind her was Ishan, whose breathing was extremely heavy.
The third person was Kade. One of his arms was injured, and he was clutching it with his other hand.
Sofiya stopped in front of Raijin.
"There's a Monster chasing us. If you—"
"No."
Raijin immediately cut her off.
His voice was cold.
"Leave this place."
He turned away.
Trust…
That word was almost dead to him.
He had witnessed too much betrayal in his previous life.
And after awakening in this body, he had also learned that the person this body considered a friend and brother…
was the very one who had betrayed it.
He saw no reason to trust anyone else.
But then—
BOOM!
The ground shook.
The expressions of all three changed.
A terrifying roar came from within the forest.
The Monster was very close.
Raijin took a step forward.
Then stopped.
He closed his eyes.
Something stirred within him.
"Is it still there…?"
He was annoyed with himself.
The Monster tore through the bushes and appeared before them.
A massive body.
Bloodshot eyes.
And a terrifying roar emerging from its mouth.
Sofiya stepped backward.
Despite his injured arm, Kade raised his sword.
Ishan's face turned pale.
Raijin slowly looked at them.
Then at the Monster.
"Move."
What happened next was not a long battle.
Raijin's suppressed anger suddenly exploded.
His fist collided with the Monster's body.
The ground shook.
The Monster was thrown backward.
It lunged again—
but this time, Raijin concentrated the power of the Mortal Realm into his fist.
One heavy strike.
And the Monster crashed to the ground.
A few moments later, its roar fell silent forever.
Raijin stared at it for a while.
His breathing was heavy.
Then he opened his fist.
Even he did not understand why he had saved them.
He could have left them behind.
He should have left.
And yet, he had turned back.
"Why did I do that…?"
A faint voice rose within him.
Perhaps it was compassion.
Perhaps it was habit.
Or perhaps it was the influence of some lingering emotion from the other consciousness within this body.
He immediately suppressed the thought.
"I don't care about anyone."
But there was no answer from within him.
And that was what bothered him the most.
Without saying anything, he walked away.
Sofiya watched his departing back for a while.
"That man…"
Ishan asked,
"What happened?"
Sofiya slowly shook her head.
"Nothing."
But a question remained stuck in her mind.
When Raijin had looked at the Monster…
there had been more than anger in his eyes.
It had felt as though he were looking at an old enemy.
"Who are you, really…?"
---
That same night—
In a small city, a girl stood alone.
Her eyes were swollen from crying.
She held a small object in her hand.
It belonged to Sora.
She brought it close to her eyes.
"You said…"
Her voice broke.
"That you would come back."
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
"If you really are dead…"
She remained silent for a few moments.
Then she clenched the object tighter in her fist.
"I won't forget you."
She did not know that Sora was still alive at that very moment.
But she also did not know that the Sora she had known…
was no longer the same.
He was slowly changing.
---
At the same time—
Sora was kneeling in a dark place.
There was nothing before him except the Void.
He closed his eyes.
"Give me power."
There was no hesitation in his voice anymore.
"I will accept any price."
The darkness did not answer immediately.
Countless blurred images began appearing before him.
Childhood.
Friends.
Laughter.
Tears.
Days spent with Raijin.
And then—
one by one, they began sinking into the darkness.
Sora's eyes widened.
"Wait…"
For the first time, fear entered his voice.
The darkness asked—
"Are you still willing to pay the price?"
Sora stared at those disappearing memories.
His hands were trembling.
But after a few moments, he closed his eyes.
"Yes."
His voice was quiet.
"Take everything."
A faint laugh echoed through the darkness.
"Then remember…"
"The power for which you sell your soul will one day force you to ask yourself whether there is anything of you left."
The next moment—
the light in Sora's eyes went out.
Dark energy spread around his body.
Something seemed to burn within his veins.
He tried to scream—
but no sound came out.
Fragments of his old memories shattered one by one.
And into that empty space, the power of the Dark Realm began to flow.
A few moments later, everything became silent.
Sora slowly stood up.
His face was the same.
His body was the same.
But his eyes…
were no longer the same.
---
Far away—
At a mountain monastery, Takashi suddenly rose from his meditation.
His heart was beating rapidly.
"No…"
he whispered.
"This can't be a coincidence."
He immediately opened an old chest in his room.
Inside lay a dust-covered book.
Takashi took it out.
There was only a symbol on the first page.
His eyes remained fixed on it.
"If this is the same event…"
Concern appeared on his face.
"Then I can't afford to be late."
---
But elsewhere in the world, unrest had already begun.
Three secret organizations had become active.
Aegis Covenant.
To them, Raijin was an abnormal existence—a threat that needed to be controlled.
Obsidian Veil.
To them, Raijin was not merely a person.
He was a mystery whose information was worth more than power itself.
And Crownbound Order, which served the king of the Leone Continent.
To them, this was a political matter.
"If Raijin truly had the ability to connect with all four realms, then allowing him to remain independent was unacceptable to the king."
The goals of all three organizations were different.
But one thing was the same—
Everyone wanted to reach Raijin first.
Within Aegis Covenant, orders were being written.
At an unknown location belonging to Obsidian Veil, every record related to Raijin was being gathered.
And inside the royal palace of the Leone Continent, an envoy of the Crownbound Order stood before the king.
"We must find him," the envoy said.
The king stared out of the window for a while.
"No."
Silence filled the room.
"First, find out what he is."
He slowly clenched his fist.
"It is easy to kill something we understand."
His eyes hardened.
"But something we don't understand at all…"
He paused.
"That is something we should fear."
---
And far away from all these activities…
another door had already opened.
A thin crack appeared within the Void.
There was no light inside it.
Only depth.
And within that depth—
a voice spoke Raijin's name for the first time.
"Raijin…"
Raijin, who was training in the forest, suddenly stopped.
He turned around.
There was nothing.
Only trees.
Only darkness.
But this time, he had not heard a voice.
He had felt it.
Very far away.
Very deep below.
From somewhere…
where the world's ordinary power might not be able to reach.
Raijin's eyes slowly grew serious.
A final whisper echoed through the darkness—
"You have only opened the first gate."