Inner Domain

I slept off with the system showing me a notification. A few moments later I appear somewhere that looks like Bridth.

'Ti-ting'

[You can only maintain soul form for 5 minutes]

[Time Left: 05:00]

This skill has annoyingly been activating on its own for the longest time now.

I can probably last three more minutes compared to last time because I was not transported to an astral plane.

Every step I take makes me move about 10 meters forward. When I step, it's like I'm moving so fast forward and everything around me scrambles then looks inverted for a second before coming back to place. It feels dizzying and nauseating.

I keep on moving, trying to get the hang of it.

I stop as I noticed a familiar face walk right by my side, it's Vivian.

I try to move close to her, but I move 10 meters forward and pass through a weapons shop.

I manage to get back to where she us, but she is no longer there.

I try searching for her by just glimpsing through the faces of people up yonder and see her enter a street at the left.

This time, getting there was the most heinous task I have ever received.

In this soul form, I can see a white ball of light from where the heart is supposed to be for individuals and everything else looks greyed out.

It is still easy to recognize people's faces, but everything apart from that ball of white light has a shade of grey.

I keep on passing through buildings upon buildings as I try to get to Vivian.

I just want to see her face one more time and maybe this feeling that I've been having gnawing at my chest that I am forgetting something or someone might just disappear. I don't even know if it's caused by Vivian but there's no harm in trying, right?

[Time Left: 02:34]

I don't have much time left, so I'll try moving properly using skill, instead of just randomly moving and hoping to get to my destination.

I lock on a ball of white light as my destination and focus on it, then step.

I successfully get to it, but does that mean that without people I can't move correctly?

I close my eyes to try to come up with another idea.

I start noticing multiple colours of light in the atmosphere that makes everything look like an aurora.

The colours are red, blue, green, yellow and white. The colours flow together but never mix.

I open my eyes and try to replicate the feeling, and I succeed in seeing the colours with my eyes open.

The colours flow like how they did, and now I can see specific colours surround individuals.

I try to use 9th Sense to get a better grasp of my surroundings and even see far away, but,

[Due to partiality of 9th Sense it is not possible to use this skill in soul form]

[Time Left: 00:58]

I focus on the slim white thread coming from my chest and moved along the colours as the thread switched lanes from one to the other to match my destination.

I get to the street she entered and saw a red cluster in that area.

I move forward with breakneck speed as I passed through buildings to get to where she is direct.

I arrive there and see six people wearing white hooded outfits that all varied but seemed similar. Each has bandages somewhere on their face to mask their identity and has deeper versions of one of the five colours surrounding each of them.

The three individuals I can notice stand out are deep purple, dark red, and dark brown with a black miasma encasing them.

Vivian is on the floor with small black metal bars in her body. I bent down despairingly in front of her hoping maybe I can travel with her or pull them out.

I felt a surge of energy behind me and I turned to look back.

The being only has thick black around his body and the darkest miasma among all of them. I can't make out his face, but I saw a giant sword strapped to his back.

He walks forward until he stops right by my side, then he reaches for his sword.

"CONNNSSSTTTAAANNNTIIIINNNEEE!" I shouted his name and he seemed to hesitate a little, but still,

'Stab!'

He stabs Vivian in her stomach.

"NOOOOO!" I screamed out loud but no one seemed to hear me.

I reach out to her, so she could grab my hand and I can maybe travel with her.

Vivian looks like she used all her strength to lift her hand to grab mine, but her hand just passes through mine.

"Vivian don't die!!" I cried profusely and begged until I started becoming more and more desperate.

"If you die I will never forgive you!"

"D-Do you want me to call you Miss Veronica?"

"Ok, I will! So please don't die."

"I beg of you please don't--" I couldn't finish before Vivian spoke.

"Be...a...good...kid."

'Are those her last words?' I thought to myself, crying and begging ten times harder than before.

"Vivian! don't die no matter what!"

"Vivian!"

"Vivian!"

"VIVIAN! DON'T DIE!! PLEASE!!!"

At those words, she gently closes her eyes and lets out a calm breath, I know it is her last.

"NOOOOOOOOO!"

I stood up with an anger a million times larger than any ocean.

I charged at Constantine and just when I was about to hit him,

[Time Left: 00:00]

***

Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

I used my hands to cover my face as I try to stay calm.

I can't stay calm no matter what. I just curse and plan my revenge on those people, on Constantine. After this there's nothing else I can do, only curse and dream of revenge, that's so pathetic.

'Ti-ting'

[You are now in the inner domain of the system]

I look up to scan my surroundings, but I can't see an end to the vast area.

I am sitting on the ground in what looks like... a red liquid similar to water in transparency. The water is shallow, and it stretches out as far as the vast area, where I can see no end.

I can see, but there is no sun or moon, only a black ball in the sky.

"You fool." I hear a voice behind me, so I turn around, but nothing was there.

I turn back to where I was facing.

'Splash!'

My chest was stepped on, causing me to fall on my back into the water.

The water is shallow, so me lying flat on my back still leaves my face out of the water.

I look to see who stepped on me and but all I could see was a blurred face.

"Just what is wrong with you?" The blurred face asks in a tone of disappointment and disdain.

"How many times will you keep on letting this happen?"

"Who... are you?" I asked him since I apparently can't see his face to use Omega Eye to inspect.

"I helped you get Excalibur and taught you Blink, yet you cannot do anything."

I didn't understand what he just said.

"You helped me get Excalibur and Blink?" I can't bring myself to believe that.

"What else? Do you think a kid that learned how to fight a little in a week can kill an A-Rank beast?" He paused, then continues, "So, you think just a few press-ups helped you kill an Evolved Grizzly Bear?" He says it like the idea sounds so illogical and non-existent.

"You're stupid and weak." He ridiculed me, but I can't say anything because I know it is true. And it hurts.

I just bite my lower lip in disappointment.

"I was planning to give you everything on a platter of gold, but now I've changed my mind."

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"You will suffer and strive ten million times more than others just to see yourself become one percent stronger than how you were."

I wanted to ask him why me but I start losing consciousness.

[System mode: Normal]

[Updating...]

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[System mode: Overdrive]