The portal's icy grip yanked me through the void, my body trembling as the System's latest price sank in: Emotional resilience reduced. Despair clung to me like a shadow, heavier than any wound. I felt hollow, as if the fight in me was slipping away. Mira's name echoed in my mind, but without her memory, it was just a word—a cruel reminder of what I'd lost. Vyrn's threat lingered in the air as we were spat out into the next trial.
I landed in a dimly lit cavern, the air thick with a sluggish, oppressive haze. The ground was covered in a sticky, tar-like substance that clung to my boots, making every step a struggle. Massive chains hung from the ceiling, swaying lazily, their clinking the only sound in the eerie silence. Vyrn landed nearby, his armor scraping against the tar as he stood, his eyes burning with hatred.
"You're running out of lives, Sacrifice," he growled, gripping his sword.
The System flashed before my eyes:
Fifth Floor: Sloth Trial
Task: Face your sloth. Break the Chains of Apathy.
Reward: Tını Points +150, Ability Upgrade
Penalty: Eternal Stasis
Break the chains? I looked up at the massive chains dangling above. They pulsed with a faint gray light, and I felt a wave of exhaustion wash over me. My limbs felt heavier, my will to move fading. The System identified the challenge:
Obstacle: Chains of Apathy
Tını Points: 500 (Collective)
Warning: These chains feed on your lethargy. The more you give in to sloth, the tighter they bind.
Vyrn scoffed, already moving toward the nearest chain.
"This trial is a joke," he said, raising his sword to strike.
But as his blade hit the chain, the metal didn't break—it absorbed the blow, and a wave of gray energy pulsed back, wrapping around Vyrn's arm. He grunted, his movements slowing, his eyes glazing over.
"What… is this?" he muttered, his voice sluggish.
I felt it too—a creeping apathy, whispering in my mind. Why keep fighting, Kael? You've lost everything. Mira's gone. Your strength is gone. Just rest.
The tar beneath my feet seemed to pull me down, urging me to sit, to give up. My despair, amplified by the System's toll, made it worse. I wanted to stop, to let the darkness take me.
But then I heard a faint echo—Mira's voice, or what I imagined it to be.
"Don't give up."
It wasn't a memory anymore, just a fragment of hope I clung to. I forced myself to move, dragging my feet through the tar toward a chain. Each step felt like lifting a mountain, but I couldn't stop. I activated Humble Strike, the quiet strength surging through my hand, and struck the chain. The gray light pulsed, but the chain cracked slightly.
Tını Resonance Activated
Enemy Ability Copied: Apathy Bind
My hand glowed with a gray energy, mimicking the chain's power. I could feel its lethargy, but I turned it against the chain, binding its energy back onto itself. The chain shattered, and a rush of energy surged through me, pushing back the haze in my mind.
Tını Points: +50
Vyrn snapped out of his daze, his eyes narrowing as he saw me break the first chain.
"You think you can outlast me?" he snarled, shaking off the apathy.
He charged at another chain, slashing wildly, but each strike only slowed him further. The chains were feeding on his recklessness, his refusal to pace himself.
I moved to the next chain, using Humble Strike and Apathy Bind together. The combination worked—Humble Strike broke through the chain's resistance, while Apathy Bind countered its lethargy. But with each chain I broke, the tar grew thicker, the haze heavier. My despair was a constant weight, whispering doubts. You'll fail, Kael. You always do.
Tını Points: +100
Only one chain remained, but I was barely standing. Vyrn, now sluggish and panting, glared at me.
"I won't let you win," he said, his voice low.
He raised his sword, but instead of striking the chain, he aimed for me. I dodged, but the tar slowed me, and his blade grazed my leg. Blood seeped into the tar, and the System reacted:
Warning: Blood loss detected. Tını Resonance unstable.
The final chain pulsed, its gray light intensifying. I felt my will slipping again, the apathy overwhelming.
Vyrn laughed, his voice hollow.
"Give up, Kael. You're nothing without the System's gifts."
His words stung, but they also sparked something in me. I wasn't nothing. I'd made it this far, not because of the System, but in spite of it. I dragged myself to the final chain, my vision blurring, and struck with everything I had. Humble Strike and Apathy Bind shattered the chain, and the cavern shook as the gray light faded.
Task Completed
Reward: Tını Points +150, Ability Upgrade: Apathy Bind (Enhanced)
Total Tını Points: 535
The tar dissolved, and the haze lifted. But the System wasn't done:
Warning: A new price paid. Memory capacity reduced.
A sharp pain shot through my head. I clutched my skull, gasping. I couldn't remember… my childhood home. The streets I grew up on, the faces of my parents—they were gone. The System was erasing me, piece by piece.
Vyrn, still standing, smirked.
"You're falling apart, Sacrifice," he said.
"The next floor will be your end."
A new portal opened, its pull dragging us in. The System's voice echoed: