[All Aspirants have successfully entered the Towers...]
[Innate traits of Aspirants have been awakened...]
[The trial will begin on 5...4...3...2...1...]
...
The endless white expanse vanished and all of a suddenly Len appeared under a pale sky with the cold wind hitting his face.
'I'm falling!' His eyes widened in alarm as he fixed his gaze at the distant ground.
'Shit! I still can't move!'
His body was still held fixed by the invisible force since he entered that white space and the ground was getting closer with terrifying speed.
'What do I do!?'
Alas! He didn't have to worry much as just as he was about to crash, the invisible force holding his body dispelled and his descent slowed abruptly.
He landed softly, his back gently resting on the cold uneven ground.
Letting out a deep breath, Len lay still for several seconds, staring at the dark grey clouds drifting aimlessly across a pale red sky.
Exhaling softly, he finally rose from the ground, eyes carefully scanning the area.
What he saw left him speechless.
"Damn... what the hell is this place?"
The next few steps ahead of him, all he could see were dead bodies of humans and strange grotesque creatures littered across the ground, their forms mangled and broken.
The metallic scent of blood was thick in the air.
"What happened here? It seems to be like a sort of battle occurred here?" Len muttered, his expression tightening for a moment.
Around the battlefield, large black crows with glowing red eyes feasted upon the dead, tearing flesh apart with terrifying ease.
His muscles tensed as he one of the crow lifted its head and stared directly at him for a moment, only for it to look away and continue with its meal.
"Better not get close to them," he mumbled, quickly stepping away from the nearest corpse.
His eyes soon drifted to a sword on the ground, causing his eyes to widen.
The blade's polished surface caught the light, reflecting his image back at him.
A young boy with unruly red hair clad in a black armour with stripes of white at the edges, a sword hanging at his side.
"Where am I?" His brows furrowed slightly.
"Is this a different plane? But how can a Tower have such powers? Is it really a fragment of the Divine powers? If so... just how powerful are they?"
"Damn. I can think about that later."
Leaving the area was his top priority right now. Who knows when more of those creatures would appear.
Walking away from the battlefield, he slowly headed towards the forest ahead. He continued going deeper and then stopped when he finally got under the twisted branch of a massive tree.
"Alright. Time to check my Innate Trait."Len muttered with a tinge of excitement, rubbing his palms together.
Thinking about it, a translucent panel popped up before him and the Tower whispered his profile to him.
Name: Len Ashborn
Race: Human
Rank: Unranked
Talent: X
Innate Trait: [Sword Summoner]
Grade: Ex
Soul force: Nil
Title: Nil
Attributes: [Fated hero card], [The Lost One]
Skills~
[Appraisal: A unique skill that allows the user to instantly grasp someone's current abilities and latent talent merely by looking at them]
~ Stats ~
[Strength: F+]
[Speed: F–]
[Stamina: F+]
[Vitality: F]
Relics: Nil
"This…"
Len was short of words after going through the profile. His fingers trembled madly as he tried to make sense of what was floating before him.
"X... rank... An... an X-rank talent! Is that even heard of?" He muttered, staring at the ground with a dazed expression, mouth slightly hanging open.
The world ranking system followed a straightforward path; F, E, D, C, B, A, S, SS, SSS, and EX rank. Though there were rumours about a higher rank, which was the coveted X rank, no one had been able to reach that level, be it in talent, Innate trait grade, Relics, and all.
Anything with the "X-rank" prefix was so hard to find that it mostly lived in the realm of myths and legends.
It was a rank filled with mysteries indeed.
"N-no way in seven hells! This is amazing!" The gears in his brain finally kicked in.
Was his luck finally turning after a lifetime of misfortune?
"This is fucking great!" He muttered struggling to stop himself from yelling towards the pale sky.
Of course he knew that was a stupid idea since that was like calling unwanted attention towards his position.
Finally gaining control of himself, Len's gaze fell on the tab on the status window... his innate trait.
"Sword Summoner... What does that even mean?"
The panel flashed before him once more, revealing more information.
[Sword Summoner: A Trait that enables the user to summon swords]
"Huh." He blinked, then stared at the grade.
Ex-rank!
The grade under it was EX!
"Hehe. Lady luck really is on my side this time around." His body was brimming with excitement after just going through the status window.
"An Ex-rank innate trait... of course, there's supposed to be something special about it, right?" Rubbing his chin softly, he was about to focus on the other tabs when another information flashed.
[Conditions met!]
[You've acquired the Great Gacha Wheel: Wheel of Eternal Blades!]
[Authority granted: Spin the Wheel!]
[You're able to claim a sword each time you spin the wheel...!]
[You've been granted free daily spin! The swords to be claimed range from F–rank to Ex-rank]
Len didn't know what to say again.
One thing he did notice, though, was that this wasn't meant to be part of his Innate Trait. It seemed to be the handwork of the goddess.
Not that he cared much. Just imagine summoning an Ex-rank sword on the go made his heart beat madly. He would be unstoppable. He thought, clenching his fist tightly in excitement.
An Ex-rank trait with an X-rank talent. It was too good to be true.
As much as he wanted to spin the wheel, he knew it wasn't the right time.
"Better find a safe place first."
Len pushed himself off the ground and continued forward, venturing deeper into the forest, his guard fully up.
Len being cautious was the only reason he heard it. The sickening crackling of bone.
And then he saw it.
A towering creature, its massive frame spanning over four metres.
Its body was covered in red chitin with big black spots.
Too many legs extended from its sides, each curved into a deadly scythe . Two long antennae extended outward from its head, holding its bulging red eyes at their ends.
The creature's eyes snapped towards Len's direction causing him to freeze.
"Dammit!" Len quickly drew his sword as it fully turned towards him, abandoning the mangled corpse it had been feeding on.
There, Len was finally able to see the last and most vital part of the creature.
Its mouth.
The mouth ran across its head stomach down to the bottom of its stomach. A maw filled with countless tiny razor-sharp teeth.
Slimy juice dripped from its mouth as it let out a piercing horrifying shriek before charging forward.
"Dammit! Pull your shit together!"
Gripping his sword tightly with gaze sharpening, Len prepared himself for the inevitable clash.
A clash that would decide his fate in the trial that had only just begun.