Before The Storm.

The world was quiet when Aiden woke.

The silence pressed down around him, broken only by the faint whisper of wind slipping through cracks in the broken hall.

His body screamed in protest with every small movement, muscles twitching under the strain of healing.

But against all odds, he was still here—still breathing, still himself.

How many times have I fainted in this damn place...?

He clenched his fists weakly, trying to summon strength back into his limbs.

His gaze drifted downward, to where his right leg had been torn apart not so long ago— and froze.

The wound was gone.

Instead, a fully formed leg—his leg—was there.

Regrown. Whole.

Aiden blinked, struggling to process it.

I need answers... now.

"Open," Aiden said firmly into the air.

Almost immediately, the familiar blue window shimmered into existence, floating patiently before him.

A line of text blinked onto its surface: "After all odds, you survived."

Aiden narrowed his eyes.

"Were you rooting for me?" he muttered, not really expecting an answer. After all, it was just a lifeless program, wasn't it?

The window pulsed once, and new text replaced the old: "Even if you had died here, there are many bodies nearby for you to take possession of."

A shiver ran down Aiden's spine.

That's... creepy.

Another flicker, another line: "Just ask your questions already."

Aiden shifted slightly, wincing at the lingering pain in his side.

Fine. If it was willing to talk, he wasn't going to waste the chance.

"What are you?" he demanded, his voice low, gaze locking onto the window like he could intimidate it somehow.

The response was quick: "Did you really expect such revelations this early?"

Is it... making fun of me?

His jaw tightened.

"What am I doing here?" he asked, pressing harder.

The window didn't hesitate: "fight."

Aiden let out a breath between gritted teeth.

"Less vague, maybe?"

Another beat. Then: "fight enemies."

"..."

Aiden stared at it, unamused.

He tried again, slower this time.

"Why me?"

The answer came sharp, almost amused: "Why not?"

Aiden's fists clenched.

"Stop that! I want real answers!"

The window remained still for a moment, then one final message appeared, crisp and clear: "Earn them."

Damn it!

He glared at the floating window, feeling the frustration burn hotter than the pain in his body.

"Fine... can I at least see the tabs again?" he asked, teeth grinding together.

The window pulsed once.

Another line appeared, almost smug: "Say, please."

"You..." Aiden's voice cracked, caught between rage and disbelief. "Damn you! You're a person, aren't you?!"

"Does it matter?" came the next line, cold and dismissive.

"Obviously it does!" Aiden snapped, his hands balling into fists. "You're not just some lifeless piece of god knows what. You're messing with me! Tell me what are you!?"

The blue text flickered briefly—almost as if it was laughing at him.

Then a new message formed: "Then buy this information."

Aiden froze.

"What do you mean, 'buy'?"

The window shifted without further explanation.

One of the tabs enlarged and brightened: Soul Market.

Before his eyes, a massive screen flashed into existence, listing lines of text alongside glowing numbers:

[Core Memory: 2 = 5 Coins] [World Knowledge (Basic) = 3 Coins] [Soul Contract Token = 7 Coins] [Minor Charon Upgrade (Tier 1) = 10 Coins] [Soul Communication Channel = 4 Coins] [Vision of the Void (First Level) = 20 Coins]

What is all that...?

At the top right corner, a small, merciless line read: Coins: 0.

Aiden sighed.

I know where this is going...

Before he could say more, another blue window snapped into view beside it, the familiar sharp text flashing: "Don't you dare!"

"What?" Aiden frowned, genuinely thrown off.

"This is only a tool to help you understand the nature of your capacity as the [Redacted]."

Redacted... great.

"And? It looks like a ga—"

"It does not! It's the simplest and most effective form! It's this or you get a parchment and good luck reading that!"

Am I seriously being yelled at by a floating blue box...?

"And to prove this isn't some cheap gimmick—" the text continued, "—the currency is human souls."

What?

Aiden froze, the weight of that sentence sinking in.

"What do you mean? I buy things with human souls? What kind of screwed-up system is that?!" he shouted, voice echoing against the empty stone walls.

The blue text didn't flinch: "Well, it didn't stop you from using someone's soul as a sword... and a leg."

"That was different! It was either me or the damn golem!" Aiden protested.

"For your own good, accept your new reality. You will do far worse in the future."

With that final, chilling message, the window flickered once—and disappeared entirely.

"Hey! Come back here!" Aiden barked at the empty air.

The Soul Market tab remained open, cold and indifferent, but the conversational text box was gone.

You damn coward!

It is a person...

Aiden shook his head, trying to process everything—and there was a lot.

First, he woke up... taking someone's body with the ability to regenerate. So magic is confirmed.

Then he met the brothers—Po and Ro. One of them guided them using a crystal... from a rat, of all things. Also called it a Sentinel... Still don't have many answers to that.

Then unlocking the Core Memory after gathering mana... Which raises the question: where the hell was it gathering mana from? The crystals? Was that tied to Po's death somehow?

It was unexpected... and I got blamed—and shot—for it.

Also, speaking of that... where did Ro even get a gun? Now that I think about it, this place is surely set far back, but still—confirmation needed.

He paused, glancing down.

Also... I took his brother's body. And used his soul to kill someone—or something. That... definitely needs more understanding.

The window mentioned something about Po's soul having low Will. I should find a way to inspect that properly.

I'm really playing with souls, aren't I...?

Aiden sighed heavily, his hand brushing against his lower back.

And also... that. The strange sensation when I first stepped onto the platform... It had something to do with Terry, right? Terry's power—regeneration. And yet, even after changing bodies, it's still here. That's... strange.

And it's crazy strong, too. It even regenerated my leg...

I wonder how much time passed since I blacked out after the fight. I need to get out of here.

Aiden shifted slightly, feeling the aching stiffness in his body. The golem had said something—something about granting him the right to leave this place...

His gaze drifted across the room.

Where the defeated giant should have been... There was nothing.

Only a deep slash carved into the stone floor, shattered pillars, and the scars of their battle. But no sign of the creature itself.

He definitely died... didn't he? He's not going to come back, right...?

Aiden glanced around cautiously.

Fine... the platform, then.

He stepped forward, back toward the elevated stone circle in front of the throne. The engraved runes and strange markings still covered its surface—illegible as ever.

I still can't read...

But then, to his surprise, the inscriptions began to glow. A soft, pale light flickered across the circle, spreading outward. The engravings lit up first, then the entire platform followed.

Okay... that's probably fine.

Aiden took a few cautious steps back. Just in case.

Then— it appeared.

A portal. Huge. Majestic. Towering almost as high as the pillars themselves.

A swirling gateway of white light, flooding the room with blinding brilliance.

My eyes... Is everything in this place designed just to annoy me?

But there it was. His possible ticket out.

Fine... just one last thing.

"Open," Aiden commanded.

The familiar blue window flickered into existence, and the three tabs waited.

He selected the Soul Gallery.

The grid of empty squares appeared again, stretching across the window— except for one.

Po's soul. Still there. Still waiting.

Aiden's gaze softened. Guilt tightening in his chest.

"I'll... try to do something about you. I promise," he said quietly.

Was he feeling guilty? Yeah... Probably should.

Po's death, one way or another, was probably his fault.

"Close."

The window vanished.

Okay... let's get out of here.

Aiden approached the portal. The brilliant light brushing against his boots.

He hesitated only for a second. Squinting against the glow.

Please be somewhere sunny.

He stepped forward— and the portal swallowed him whole.