—

After unlocking the Eye of Discernment in his left eye, Kieran found that his understanding of this Immaterial Plane had somewhat changed. The change was finite in scale, but it still made Kieran marvel.

The previously monochrome Lamented Mystic Embodiments became a variety of colors. Although they remained outside his understanding currently, Kieran felt he could easily change that now that he knew where to begin looking.

From Kieran’s point of view, he saw black, dull grey, white, pale blue, and deep blue. But aside from these colors, he also saw what could only be perceived as a warning sign. Some of those hues exuded a friendly signal, and others gave off an unapproachable feeling.

‘So this is what it means to discern,’ Kieran inwardly thought.

It had never dawned upon him that Wykins perceived the world differently. Aciayla’s initial words went over his head without him delving deeper into their meaning.

Aciayla revealed that Kieran’s words were genuine by reading his energy.

Now that Kieran understood how to discern, he rose from his seated position and swept his gaze through the Rune Necropolis. “I guess the black lights are the decayed Lamented Mystic Embodiment that can no longer be assimilated. That would mean the ones of deep color are the best rewards.”

After concluding this fact, Kieran smiled thinly.

Compared to the black and dull grey, the white and blue motes were spread far apart and felt quite unusual, which led Kieran to believe that although he could discern, the challenge was far from over.

Kieran naturally aligned this feeling with the Rooted Mystic Tether, something he relied upon to remain safe inside the Ancient Rune Oasis. “If the tether can decay, can it also be overwhelmed or repaired? It’s worth a shot to try it out.”

While he moved, Kieran focused his attention on his left eye, using it to see everything since his right side was virtually useless in this current setting.

His earlier actions proved the human eye couldn’t distinguish mystic presences.

After approaching a white cluster of energy the size of a quarter, Kieran picked it up, which caused it to dissipate a moment later, flowing into his body rather than the ground.

As soon as this occurred, he received a string of notifications.

〈System: You have absorbed an acceptable «Lamented Mystic Embodiment» with minuscule amounts of mystic essence.〉

〈System: The Discernment portion of the Trial of Ancient Mysticism has been updated. Discernment: 0.05%〉

〈System: The stability of your «Rooted Mystic Tether» has increased after absorbing a «Lamented Mystic Embodiment». Stability: 96.04%〉

After looking at the notification, Kieran blinked with an incredulous expression. The completion rate was quite terrible, confirming that relying upon the white Lamented Mystic Embodiments was not ideal.

“So the stability can be reinforced by absorbing the energy here, but that somehow doesn’t make me feel good. That merely means the rest of the trial will become even more difficult if I can replenish lost stability,” Kieran murmured, shifting his gaze beyond the Rune Necropolis.

Now that his ocular ability had improved, Kieran could see the vague outline of another zone far in the distance. From the objectives, Kieran reckoned it was related to Masked Runic Garth.

‘Although the trial said I have seven days inside this place, there’s no telling how long seven days actually is. Fatigue isn’t a concept inside this place, so it’s all a matter of understanding. I have no reason to stop,’ Kieran decided.

Afterward, he approached the depths of the Rune Necropolis, where energy density noticeably increased. This increase in external energy resulted in a drastic rise in the destabilization of his Rooted Mystic Tether.

“As I suspected, nothing is ever as easy as it seems. Seeking the fast alternative will always come at a cost,” Kieran thought.

Fortunately, he didn’t step too deep into the Rune Necropolis after noticing another issue. Despite having the Eye of Discernment, the Lamented Mystic Embodiments leading to the center of the graveyard regained a shrouded exterior.

The sudden change clearly indicated that this Eye of Discernment was not ready for the challenge, which was tied to the completion percentage in his Trial Interface.

‘Patience is a virtue in this place, I suppose. Rushing would lead to a sloppy result. As long as my efforts are precise and productive, speed becomes a relative concept,’ Kieran thought, retracing his steps.

Kieran retreated until he found a sweet spot where the energy was dense, but the shroud was nonexistent. Once this spot was located, Kieran combed the area, quickly absorbing the mystic energy to fortify his tether and eye.

Because of his steady pace and fluid actions, the meter in his Trial Interface continued to increase as he avoided the hostile embodiments to the best of his ability.

If he mistakenly touched one, his progress with his eye and tether would decline according to the energy present inside the hostile embodiment.

Such a situation led to Kieran expanding his ocular range when possible, which alerted him to the early presence of a hostile Lamented Mystic Embodiment in his vicinity.

Several hours passed before Kieran felt confident enough to venture into the depth of the Rune Necropolis once more.

Unlike his previous attempt, the shrouds covering the embodiments were more translucent, and Kieran could even sense which ones would deliver exceptional bonuses.

“This eye is truly marvelous. If it operates the way I think it does, classes that rely upon mana traps will be neutralized in my presence,” Kieran murmured, finding his current situation quite surreal.

As a True Berserker, it never dawned upon Kieran that he would be partaking in a trial centered around matters that escaped the physical.

It was initially unnerving to feel so weak and vulnerable again, but this type of vulnerability exposed Kieran to a new kind of growth, so he wasn’t averse to the idea.

After spending what seemed like days inside the Rune Necropolis, Kieran received a message.

〈System: Your Discernment progress has reached 70%, enabling you to move on to the second part of the trial: Unveiling.〉

After reaching 60%, the progress slowed to a crawl, which startled Kieran slightly. He had almost reached the center, but even the deep blue embodiments didn’t supply enough energy to offset the stability decay completely.

Although the system revealed that he could move forward, Kieran didn’t want to.

Passable was not a word in his dictionary.

Either he would excel and succeed, or he would fail. In Kieran’s opinion, settling was one of the worst things a person could do because it undermined their worth and demeaned their character.

If one didn’t push themself, were they genuinely trying? This was a question Kieran posed to himself several times. He had no intention of letting doubt and regret run rampant in his mind, poisoning his outlook.

Thus, rather than walk the brightening path leading into the Masked Runic Garth, Kieran stepped deeper into the Rune Necropolis, where he suddenly stepped to the side and ducked.

After entering this part of the Rune Necropolis, Kieran found that the Lamented Mystic Embodiments could now move, and their only focus was him as if attracted to his tether.

Once he connected the link between the tether and the behavior of the previously inactive embodiments, Kieran arrived at a revelation. “I’m not the only thing tethered in place.”

Kieran made this guess because of the “stars” above. Their current position differed from when he entered the realm, and the discrepancy was unnatural, mimicking the route he walked inside the graveyard of mystic energy.

“I felt it some the moment I stepped in this place. It’s like those stars are trying to attract the thing that tethers me in place. Like any other trial, the hope is that the challenger fails,” Kieran remarked, stepping aside once more.

When he analyzed the embodiments that were drawn to him, Kieran learned they were all hostile. On the other hand, the cordial embodiments avoided him as if they were terrified.

Whenever the hostile embodiments moved, the cordial ones retreated, which begged the question.

“Could they essentially neutralize one another?”

One only moved in fear when in the presence of a threat or assumed there was a threat.

Since his curiosity overwhelmed his need to complete this part of the trial momentarily, Kieran lured a hostile embodiment into colliding with a cordial one, only to learn the embodiment’s sentience was destroyed.

〈System: You have discerned a hidden interaction between «Hostile» and «Cordial», resulting in a drastic increase in your Discernment progress.〉

It wasn’t the outcome Kieran suspected, but it was one he welcomed.

In Kieran’s opinion, he thought the energy would return beneath the graveyard as it did with embodiments he failed to assimilate.

Nevertheless, amidst his curiosity, Kieran found a way to absorb both the positive and negative without necessarily experiencing the unique effects attached to both aspects.

Meanwhile, as the notification revealed, Kieran’s progress increased from 70% to 85% in the blink of an eye. And that was without absorbing the suspended cluster of energy before him.

Once he absorbed the cluster, it neared 90%, but the stability of Kieran’s tether fluctuated.

“The beginning isn’t terrible, but reaching this stage is less forgiving,” Kieran said.

However, Kieran held a slightly indifferent smile as he gazed at the spiraling Lamented Mystic Embodiments.