[Second Trial: Prologue - The Awakening.]
[Details: Azadin Sullen, once known as the weakest among the Sullen Family, started his days as a talentless individual. Lacking strength, skill, or potential, he was constantly mocked and ridiculed by others, both at the Star God Academy and within his own family. His peers saw him as nothing more than a failure, and even his own parents had given up on him. For years, Azadin lived in the shadows, isolated and powerless, with only his sister showing him any support.
But everything changed when Azadin came into possession of a mysterious Dark Fragment. This fragment was unlike anything he had encountered before. The moment he touched it, his body and soul experienced a transformation. The Dark Fragment "awakened" something deep inside him.
With the awakening, Azadin's body and mind were utterly changed. Even the way he used to think and do things changed. He was no longer weak or helpless. His once-barren potential exploded into life, and with it, dark and powerful abilities began to manifest.
Azadin's strength allowed him to rise rapidly, surpassing those who had once laughed at him. However, a significant change always comes with a great price.]
[Task 1: Live Azadin's life but make your own decisions. Will you follow the same path Azadin took, or will your choices prove that Azadin could have chosen differently and avoided the dark events that followed him?]
[Task 2: Will you live to die or will you die to live?]
Eryx's face changed as he read the details of the second trial. He hadn't expected the content to be like this. In this trial, he was given two tasks. The first task seemed clear enough—he had to live as Azadin and make his own decisions. But the second task confused him greatly.
"Will you live to die or will you die to live?"
What did that even mean?
Eryx couldn't figure it out.
Did it mean that every choice has a cost?
Did it mean he would have to sacrifice something to survive, or that he might have to give up his life to achieve something greater?
He wasn't sure, and the more he thought about it, the less it made sense.
Since he couldn't understand it, Eryx decided not to waste more time on it. He would focus on the first task for now.
He turned his attention back to the details of the trial. The first task seemed to be about living Azadin's life but with the power to make different choices. Azadin's original life had taken a complete turn after he came into possession of the mysterious Dark Fragment. That fragment had transformed him completely, giving him great strength and dark abilities, but it also came with a heavy price.
At this moment, Eryx realized something important. He didn't seem to have the Dark Fragment right now. In Azadin's original life, his encounter with the fragment had been a turning point. If that moment hadn't happened, Azadin's life might have gone in a different direction.
In other words, Eryx understood that the next big event in this trial would be his encounter with the Dark Fragment. How he handled that moment could change everything.
Eryx took a deep breath to calm down.
After that, he tried to summon his own system, but the system still did not react. Now, he was sure that he could not use the system during the trial.
What Eryx didn't know was that he was completely wrong. He had yet to truly understand the nature of his own system. Had he understood the nature of his system, he would know the system was still there, with him.
The first thing Eryx did was organize his thoughts. He sat down and carefully went through Azadin's memories again. He needed to fully understand the life he had now taken over.
After a while, he realized that staying locked up in this house would do nothing for him. If he wanted to change anything, he needed to step out. The best choice was to go back to the academy. That was where everything had started going wrong for Azadin, and maybe, it was where he could start changing things.
With that decision in mind, Eryx went to take a cold shower. The cold water hit his skin, making him shiver at first, but soon, he felt refreshed. His body felt lighter, and his mind cleared.
By now, he had fully accepted his new identity as Azadin.
After accepting the identity, he was certain about one thing. He just knew that Azadin was not just anyone. Otherwise, this world would not have been called Azadin's World by the mechanical voice.
After his shower, Eryx got dressed and stood in front of the mirror. He observed himself closely.
"Damn... This guy sure is handsome!"
Although his skin was pale, there was no denying that he was incredibly handsome. His sharp facial features made him look elegant yet cold. But what stood out the most were his purple hair and purple eyes. They gave him a strange, eerie look to his handsomeness that made him seem different from ordinary people.
After admiring his new self's reflection for a moment, Eryx shook his head and turned away. There was no point in wasting time.
Eryx left his room, took the elevator down the building, and stepped outside. He then boarded a flying shuttle that would take him straight to Star God Academy.
As he sat in the shuttle, looking out at the futuristic city below, he was again reminded of Earth.
Perhaps, after thousands of years of development from his time, Earth would also have entered the interstellar era.
Eryx admired the futuristic city below. He also marveled at the towering buildings, glowing roads, and countless flying shuttles moving in perfect order. The city looked advanced, filled with bright lights and advanced technology.
But soon, the scenery below changed completely.
The beautiful city disappeared, and what replaced it was a land of destruction. Eryx saw a huge ruined city, Almost all the buildings of this city were shattered and covered in dust.
From Azadin's memories, Eryx knew that this place was once a prosperous city. But now, it was nothing more than a graveyard.
This city was destroyed during the battle against the Asura Army. The Asura were an alien race that suddenly invaded this world two hundred years ago. That battle had been terrifying. Countless brave experts and the entire Asura Army had perished in the war. The final result was the destruction of three cities, but the Asura Army was completely wiped out as well.
As the shuttle flew over the ruins, Eryx observed the wreckage closely.
The land below was filled with broken metals and shattered structures. Giant robotic arms and damaged armored suits lay scattered across the ruins. Almost everything was half-buried under the debris.
He could also see rusting and lifeless old weapons, laser cannons, and destroyed mechas everywhere. There were also fragments of flying shuttles. Their once strong bodies were now nothing but scrap metal.
This sight was eerie to witness. Eryx felt as if this land was like a battlefield frozen in time.
Eryx silently stared at the ruins, thinking about the history of this world. So many had died here.
After about half an hour, the shuttle finally reached Star God Academy.
As Eryx stepped out of the shuttle, his breath caught for a moment. In front of him stood the magnificent academy.
Even though he had already seen the academy in Azadin's memories, experiencing it in real life was completely different. The academy was gigantic, far larger than he had imagined.
The entrance had tall silver gates, glowing faintly with energy that seemed to travel continuously in patterns.
Behind the gates, the academy stretched far into the distance. Eryx could see towering white buildings with surfaces shimmering under the sunlight. There were also floating platforms and flying shuttles moving between them. Eryx knew these floating platforms and flying shuttles were carrying students and teachers.
The academy also had lush green gardens, training arenas, and massive research centers.
This was Star God Academy, the place where the strongest students trained to become powerful warriors.
And now, he was back.
"Everything begins here!"
Eryx took a deep breath and clenched his fist tightly. As a student of Star God Academy, he encountered no obstruction along the way.
Very soon, he reached a platform packed with nine students. As he closed in, a blue light shone on Eryx's body, scanning him up and down. Then the light suddenly turned green.
This was the signal that Eryx could climb the platform.
When Eryx climbed, the platform suddenly lifted up. It moved in the air and brought everyone to a building located far north. The distance between each building was huge, and the flying platform took ten minutes to bring everyone here.
Azadin's dorm was inside this building, however, that was a thing of the past. It has been an entire year since he last came to the academy. He first needed to register to access his dorm again.
He was not here to stay in the dorm but to collect the belongings that the original Azadin had left behind.