Spark

A slight sliver of light shined through Felix's eyelids, and he grumpily sprung up while rubbing them. He yawned and scratched his neck, and while he was looking around, he started recalling that weird dream he had. Something about a false God, a Line, superhumans... Crazy stuff! His eyes still weren't accustomed to the insane amount of lights, which was weird – his small apartment wasn't exactly in a sunny area of the town. This much sunlight was quite uncommon...

As he kept rubbing his tired eyes, somewhere in the area, he could hear someone doing... something. He wasn't quite sure what – Felix just couldn't put it into words – but he knew that someone was doing something rather physically tasking, as he could hear some grunting and... swinging? Felix's hands immediately stopped rubbing his eyes and left the vicinity of his face in world record time as his eyes squinted in the direction of the sound – only for him to remember... that he didn't need glasses, and that squinting was useless.

He grunted and fell back to the ground, punching it, as he let out a prolonged "Fuuuck..." in annoyance and disappointment the second he saw Kim swinging his sword around at some training dummies inside the Resting Grounds. Felix grunted once more and actually got up this time, stretching a bit as he walked over to where Kim was training. Kim wiped some sweat off from his chin and he stuck his sword in the neck of a dummy, letting it rest there. As Felix walked in his direction, scratching his behind, Kim couldn't help but chuckle as he spoke, "You're just missing the slippers and blue tracksuit."

"I ain't in the mood for your attempts at jokes, Kim..."

Felix sighed and ran his hand through his scruffy hair, as he looked up at the ceiling. Weirdly enough, it was just the whitest thing he'd ever seen – not a single spot of dust could be seen on it. When looking back down at Kim, who had resumed training, he couldn't help but fall silent. Did they... really survive that whole Boss encounter? They actually beat Qaart?

"Blank."

As Felix spoke, in front of him appeared a blue window that flickered, and instead of displaying his stats, it just kept loading and loading. Felix grunted, and a few seconds later, the Blank finally flashed red as a warning appeared on it – [Calculating rewards. User Blank is currently inaccessible.]

Felix took in a big breath, and after considering punching something nearby – and deciding against it – he turned to Kim, annoyed as he spoke, "Kim, is your Blank working?" to which Kim promptly responded with a "Yes. I've already checked it. I'm level seven."

Felix – who, once again, decided against punching something – couldn't help but wave his hands in the air chaotically, clearly not pleased that apparently the only malfunctioning Blank belonged to him. After calming down, and checking his Blank two more times with no further progress, he decided to give up and let it "calculate the rewards" or whatever it wanted to do. Kim was still training, swinging his sword mercilessly on the poor wooden dummies – who weren't getting damaged, for whatever reason. Felix walked ever so slightly closer, and picked up a wooden sword sitting around nearby.

Kim noticed that, and couldn't help but ask, more annoyed than curious, "What are you doing?"

"I wanna... uh, train?"

"...You?"

"Yeah, me! I need to learn how to use one of these if I wanna live, don't I?! So... teach me!"

"Why would I ever—"

"Because you said so!"

Kim fell silent, with a sour look on his face. He did recall telling a weak looking guy that he'd train him, yes, but Kim never thought he'd actually make it this far. And Kim could feel it – even in this short amount of time, Felix changed, even if just a bit. With a sigh and several grunts of annoyance, Kim stuck his real sword in the straw neck of a dummy once again, and he too picked up a wooden sword sitting against a wall. He took on a defensive stance, with his sword pointed high at the ceiling and one hand behind his back, and then did a little nod to the left – signaling Felix to "Come at me."

Felix wasn't dumb – he knew that the best training was through actual experience. He learned that back in high school... He just didn't think he'd transition from wooden pencil to wooden sword this fast and suddenly. He gripped his fake sword and started charging towards Kim, ready to experience this "training" of his. Each step got Felix closer and closer to the swordsman, and as soon as he reached him, he tried swinging to the right horizontally. Kim's hand immediately raised then fell, as his sword stood sideways pointed downwards, blocking the attack with ease. Felix jumped back – or, at least he thought he did, as it was more of a sloppy slide – and tried again. He was now going for an upwards vertical slash which Kim blocked with the hilt of his sword without even looking down. He raised his sword high and kicked Felix's sword out of the way – yet not out of his hands – and swung down.

As Kim's sword was closing in on his head, everything seemed to be going slower and slower – as this seems to be something that just happens when Felix is in danger. Felix knew this was just training, but... he could see it, he could think clearly... He could dodge it! His foot slightly raised although time was running short as Kim's sword was closing in on his head. Well then, if he can't dodge it... he might've just had a back up plan. Time seemed to pick up again and Felix swung his sword down at the ground full force, and as the tip of it stuck to the floor, he used the fake sword as a walking stick while his left foot – the one he had slightly raised earlier – swung right at Kim's head.

Kim's wooden sword stopped right by Felix's hair, and Felix's foot stopped right as his shoelace touched his neck. Both of them were slightly panting – as this was considered combat, so their stamina was being drained – and they both were still locked onto one another, ready to pick up where they left off any second. Instead, they both jumped back – Felix actually doing it properly this time – and they recomposed themselves, fixing their stances and restarting the training. Kim gripped his sword tighter this time around, and his stance changed – from the casual hand behind the back, he was now holding it in front of him and the wooden sword was pointed at Felix rather than at the ceiling. He was gonna be slightly serious now.

Felix's stance also changed. Before, he was just copying what he saw Kim do when fighting the goblins, but it didn't feel right. It felt forced and unnatural. So, he clenched his fist tight and held the sword pointed downwards instead – like a dagger. Kim couldn't help but let out a "Hoh?" at this, yet his stance didn't falter whatsoever. Felix leaned in more, crouching slightly and making his frame smaller. The two stood silent for a hot minute, as no sound could be heard in the Resting Grounds whatsoever – not even the two's breaths nor heartbeats. Soon, a single drop of sweat fell down from Kim's face, and the second it hit the ground, the two charged at each other.

The difference in skill between the two was obvious, and while Felix definitely knew that, he wanted to make up for it in explosive, weird and unpredictable bursts that could maybe throw Kim off balance, even if for just half a second. Kim swiftly and quickly thrusted his sword straight at Felix's chest, but because of how Felix was positioned he managed to slide his own wooden blade on Kim's and he spun around, swinging at his head. Kim blocked it with no trouble and just tried again and again, switching from thrusts to slashes to anything he could think off as he got used to Felix's style. Felix was still blocking and dodging, but barely.

And so, the wooden swords clashed. Again. And again, and again, and again, tirelessly and without fail. After an unknown amount of time had passed, the two stood surrounded by countless broken wooden swords, and they were down to their last ones. This was the final duel. The two clashed swords once again, as Kim was still holding steady while Felix's hands were trembling worse than a jet engine. Still, he didn't give up – he tried applying pressure, just like he was "taught," and he saw it... For just a moment, there was a slip in Kim's footing. Immediately profiting off of it, he ducked below as he let Kim's sword swing free above him, going in for a thrust attack straight for the swordsman's neck.

Kim just barely ducked in time as he managed to kick Felix away mid-crouch, and as the two took a small breather while they fixed their footing and grips on the wooden hilts, Kim chuckled a bit and he spoke up for the first time in a while, "C'mon now, Felix... Show me... how exactly did you manage to finish that Boss off?"

Felix chuckled too, holding his sword tight with his roughed up hands as he answered, "Fine by me, then... Let me fill you in..."

The two charged at each other again, for the final time. They were both ready to finish this training off in style as Kim finally went on the offensive fully, leaving plenty of holes in his defense but having so much aggressive attack power, it barely mattered. Felix was barely blocking the attacks with his trembling hands and sword as Kim was swinging relentlessly and endlessly, and Felix felt his foot slightly slide on the ground... meaning his stance had just been broken. Game over.

Right as Kim was about to take the last swing to finally finish the training off, time seemed to have slowed down for a second time – except, as always, only for Felix. He didn't understand why this kept happening, until finally, he heard a "Ding!" right behind Kim, and he slightly smirked as he saw the message casually sitting behind his current foe.

[Skill Activated - Clear Vision!]

Though, that wasn't all. More "Ding!" sounds followed, but Felix already had what he wanted. He didn't bother reading them – as this seemed to be a bad habit of his. Yet, once again... just because he's not reading them doesn't mean they're any less true.

[Rewards calculated successfully. User's Blank is back in function!]

[Increasing levels according to Boss Clear rewards and Bonus rewards...

Congratulations!

Level Increase – 2 » 10!]

It's showtime.

Although, in Kim's point of view, he had fully won this. He had just taken the final swing, but at the very last second before the hit connected, Felix blocked the attack and spun around holding his sword tight, transferring all of the spin's momentum into one singular sword horizontal swing. Duck. What was this...? Kim's eyes widened. Duck. He wasn't expecting this from nobody, especially not Felix. Duck. As Felix slowly – or, technically, very rapidly – spun around and his eyes became more and more clear, Kim could only see one thing in them. Killing intent. Duck. Was Kim even fast enough to react to that? He was confident in his speed, yes, but... Duck! He wasn't sure if he could dodge that. Duck! And so, all of his instincts were yelling at him to—

{"Duck!"}

At the very last moment, Kim managed to go below the attack, as Felix's wooden sword just gave him a mild haircut. As Felix missed, Kim could see the death glare fade from his eyes, yet he could still see something else in them – a small hint of a green streak shadowing wherever his eyes moved to. Without missing a beat, Kim put everything he had into the next swing and stopped his sword inches by Felix's neck. The two froze like that, both panting heavily, and after a few seconds of holding that position, both of them fell to the floor, exhausted. The intense "training" was over. Final score: 6-0 for Kim. Four draws.

After the two sat on the floor for a bit just breathing heavily, the combat state they were in cleared out and their stamina started regenerating at an incredibly fast pace. Both of them got up with one last huff. Kim couldn't help but look down at himself as he noticed that his pants were in a sorry state, only for them to regenerate in front of his eyes back to their original state. He just shrugged it off, uncaring – after all, he lost a leg and he was just fine. He threw the wooden sword somewhere behind him randomly as he walked past Felix who was still halfway through actually getting up, and he reclaimed his actual sword from the dummy's neck. He sheathed it back in its scabbard and started putting on his shirt – as even the sweat that was on him seemed to simply disappear into nothingness.

Felix just stood there, seemingly still tired while he held onto his knees while slouched over, as he tried to calm down his heartbeat. He definitely wasn't used to that much moving around – but it's not like he wasn't a fan. As he regained his composure, he also went to throw his sword somewhere in a random direction – following Kim's lead – but he stopped right before it left his hand. He brought it closer to his face and analyzed it for a bit, confused. Was it just him, or was the tip of the sword glowing gree—

Suddenly, a very dressed and ready Kim tapped Felix on the shoulder, as he jumped back a bit. He also let out a small yelp as he did so, and he dropped the wooden sword from his hands. Felix sighed as he spoke, "Don't do that, man... You'll give me a heart attack..." to which Kim responded coldly, with a "You've been staring at that sword for five minutes. Let's go already."

"What five mi— Wait... Go where?"

Kim, instead of responding, just pointed in a direction that Felix's gaze followed. Soon enough, Felix saw something that he didn't notice before... Or, rather, something that wasn't there before. And so, the two made their way over... Over to a big door sitting quietly and proudly in a corner of the Resting Grounds. Once they reached it, they started inspecting it slightly – as they had no idea where exactly it would lead them. Kim looked it up and down while Felix took on a more technical approach, attempting to open his Blank. The second he spoke up, trying to open his Blank, a blue window instead appeared right on the door, visible for both of them – or, that's what Kim thought.

{Floor 2 – Going Further}

"Felix... Do you see that?"

"Uhm... yeah..."

"Good, then. It's the second floor. I assume 'Going Further' is... its nickname? Childish, if you ask me."

"Yeah, yeah! Because we're going... further... Yeah..."

Kim shrugged and pushed the door open by himself, surprisingly, and blinding lights came through the crack of it. The two stepped through the white as soon as it was wide enough, and at one point, the door closed behind them as they disappeared into the light... and they've officially entered the second floor – Going Further. Or, at least, that's what Felix was informed of, as... he wasn't exactly sure. For some reason, he judged against telling Kim his Blank was... different than his. And that it didn't read what his did in any way, shape, or form. Rather, it read—

[Advanced Tutorial.

Difficulty - Easy (Based on Team AVG. Lvl).

Godspeed!]

Felix might've also "forgotten" to tell Kim his Blanks weren't blue anymore.

Although, as this was happening, somewhere on the other side of the Line stood three other travelers – a short boy with a staff, a woman with pointy ears and a bow, and a tall man with blue hair, holding onto a sword tightly. The short boy had just finished casting {Thunderbolt} and the archer just shot out a number of arrows at the humongous beast they were just fighting. As the man with blue hair pulled his sword out of the boar's dead head, all three comrades fell back and they began a self check-up.

"Leaf, Day, are you both alright?"

"Yeah, Haru, we're fine..." responded the elf, Leaf, as she was counting her arrows. She continued, "I mean, what was this Gaart thing anyway? Wasn't it way easier than what we used to fight back home?"

Haruko wiped the blood off of his sword with a clean piece of cloth, then put it back in its scabbard. He nodded in agreement as he spoke, "Right. This truly wasn't a challenge, even for its size... And yet they call this oversized hog the 'Demon King's Pet,' Qaart...? Something fishy is going on here..."

Before the short boy, Day, even got to speak up to the other two, all three of them blinked and found themselves in a completely different, white room filled with all different kinds of training and quality of life equipment. As they were all confused, rambling and mumbling to themselves in shock, two Blank screens appeared in front of all of them – Blanks that they could all see together.

(Congratulations on reaching the Resting Grounds! You are the most efficient Team yet – keep it up! Good luck!)

(Reach the Fifth Floor, 'The Queen's Ball,' and have a fight against all the other Liners to reach the Queen! The first Liner to find the Queen amongst the hundreds of royal guests and other Liners will get the exclusive Floor reward! Good luck!)

Haruko clenched his fist as he read the two windows over and over – he was more than ready to conquer this Line and all of its floors. He walked past the Blanks – as they glitched momentarily when he passed through them – and past all the readied rooms too, heading for a seemingly blank, white wall. When he reached it, Haruko did nothing more than reach out for it, and without missing a beat, a door erupted out of the whiteness of the wall. Haruko pushed the door open as he turned back to his companions and spoke, "The second floor, guys. It's waiting for me... No, for us! Let's go!"

But now, going back across the Line to two men walking through pure whiteness, Felix couldn't help but feel he might've... missed something important while he was knocked out. And he also felt like while he was surrounded by the green Blanks in his dream – or, depending on how you look at it, nightmare – he saw something that stuck out like a sore thumb... Something blue. A normal Blank, maybe? If so... he didn't have any clue what it could've told him, as he never got the chance to read it. And he knew for a fact Kim couldn't help him this time, as he was knocked out too. Felix could only hope they didn't miss anything important when they were sleeping, as the two finally started to see a dark room at the end of this pure white that filled their vision.