Chapter 20: The Awakening of the Abyss

The Abyssal Wildlands were silent.

Not because the creatures within feared the Magus-Knights—no, it was something deeper.

Something ancient had stirred.

Aldric stood at the center of the carnage, his breathing ragged, his body still pulsing with the dark-red glow that had erupted from within him. The remains of the Abyssal Devourer lay in pieces at his feet, its bones shattered, its blood sizzling against the corrupted ground.

Orin, still gripping his weapon tightly, stared at Aldric in disbelief.

"What... the hell was that?"

Aldric didn't answer immediately. His gaze was unfocused, as if he were listening to something beyond the realm of normal perception. His fingers twitched, his muscles still thrumming with an unfamiliar energy.

Valerius, watching through his observation array, leaned forward slightly.

"Interesting."

Leonidas smirked, arms crossed. "Looks like our little brother is finally catching up."

Tiberius remained silent, but his eyes reflected deep contemplation.

This was no ordinary advancement. Aldric had triggered something far greater than the standard Magus-Knight fusion.

And that meant one of two things:

He was evolving beyond what they had predicted.Something within the Wildlands had responded to his existence.

Both possibilities were equally dangerous.

The Mind of the Beast

Aldric barely heard Orin's question. His mind was drowning.

It wasn't pain.

It wasn't confusion.

It was a voice.

A whisper, ancient and primal, clawing at the edges of his consciousness.

"You are more than flesh."

"You are more than steel."

"You are the will of the abyss."

Aldric clutched his head, gritting his teeth. Images flickered in his mind—visions of ancient battles, of beings not human, not beast, but something beyond understanding.

He saw warriors with bodies woven from darkness, their eyes glowing like dying stars. He saw Magus-Knights from forgotten eras, their flesh reforged by something greater than magic alone.

And then—

A single phrase, burning into his soul.

"Evolve... or perish."

With a gasp, Aldric staggered back to reality.

The glow around him faded, but something had changed.

His heartbeat was slower, more controlled. His senses sharper. His body no longer merely human.

The others watched him carefully.

Orin frowned. "Aldric… what did you—"

Before he could finish, the ground beneath them shook.

Something was coming.

Something that should not have awoken.

The Abyss Calls

The trees trembled. The air turned thick with mana, suffocating in its intensity.

And then—

A howl tore through the Wildlands.

The Magus-Knights froze.

Orin's blood ran cold. "What the hell was that?"

Aldric didn't answer. He felt it before he saw it.

Then, from the depths of the forest, it emerged.

A colossal entity, its form shifting between solid and mist, its body composed of shadow and bone, void and steel.

Its eyes—if they could be called that—were pools of endless darkness, absorbing the light around them.

It was not a beast.

It was something far worse.

Leonidas, watching from the observation array, tensed. "That's not part of the usual trials."

Tiberius, for the first time in years, narrowed his eyes in concern.

Valerius… smiled.

"This is perfect."

Leonidas gave him a sidelong glance. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Valerius didn't deny it.

If Aldric could truly evolve, then this was the best way to prove it.

Survive the abyss… or be consumed by it.

The Final Test Begins

The entity lurched forward, moving with an unnatural grace, its form shifting with every step.

Orin raised his blade, sweat dripping down his forehead. "We can't fight that thing."

Aldric didn't move.

He was still staring at it, his eyes reflecting something strange.

It was no longer fear.

No longer confusion.

It was understanding.

The whispers in his mind returned, but this time… they did not consume him.

"You are not prey."

"You are not weak."

"You are meant to ascend."

Aldric took a step forward.

The others stared.

Orin hissed. "Aldric, what are you—"

Aldric vanished.

Or rather—he moved so fast that reality struggled to catch up.

In the blink of an eye, he was above the entity, his fist already descending.

A normal strike wouldn't have done anything.

But this was not a normal strike.

The moment Aldric's blow connected, the world rippled.

The entity howled in pain.

It was the first time in eons that something had hurt it.

Aldric landed, his body trembling with power.

He exhaled slowly.

His transformation was complete.

And the abyss… had accepted him.