Leo sat up, memories of the just-ended battle flashing in his mind. That trial was damn intense… what was with that kick? He sighed deeply as the platform beneath him began to rotate again, setting a new path.
{Well, regardless… you have to keep moving. You did rather well, you know.}
Leo stood, brushing the dirt from his clothes, and stepped onto the bridge toward the next pillar.
The platform shimmered, and in an instant, he was no longer on the pillar. He stood in a shadowed plain, mist curling around him like living tendrils. The air was heavy, thick with the scent of iron and something far older.
Ahead, a figure emerged through the fog: an avatar, a spitting image of the Grim Reaper, tall and skeletal, scythe gleaming with an unnatural light. Hollow eyes seemed to pierce straight through him, promising to drag him back to hell.
Leo froze. Instinct screamed: run. And run he did, sprinting blindly across the shifting ground as the Reaper's scythe swung in silent arcs behind him. Heart hammering, breaths ragged, every step screamed survival.
But as he ran, the chilling truth sank in: running was pointless. The Reaper's shadow followed relentlessly. Moreover, he couldn't run forever—he had to finish this trial and regroup with the others.
With a deep, shuddering breath, Leo skidded to a halt and pivoted to face his pursuer. Fists clenched, knees coiled, he stood his ground for the first time.
The Grim Reaper lunged, scythe arcing in a blur. Leo braced for the strike… and just as it would have connected, the figure flickered and dissolved into mist, the scythe vanishing like smoke.
Leo stumbled back, chest heaving, adrenaline roaring. The trial hadn't required him to defeat the Reaper—only to confront his fear.
{Bravo. Running works sometimes… but standing your ground? Now that's impressive.}
Somewhere in the chamber, a voice muttered, "Courage is not the absence of fear, but the realization that there is something more important than what you fear." The Courage apparition had been observing Leo, alongside Wisdom, Potential and two others.
The mist thickened. Suddenly, Leo found himself strapped to a jagged, cold floor, ropes biting into his skin. Beside him, another figure struggled—Avril, his childhood crush. Panic flared in his chest.
Before them loomed a monstrous shadow, radiating despair. Its voice, cold and taunting, slithered into his mind:
"This is hopeless. You will fail. Your friends, your hopes… nothing will save you."
The ropes tightened, feeding on their fear. Sweat stung Leo's eyes; surrender threatened to crush him.
But then he noticed something crucial: the enemy didn't strike immediately. It lingered, waiting for despair to consume them. That hesitation sparked something in him.
Clenching his fists, Leo willed courage into his veins. With a roar, he twisted against the ropes, landing a fierce punch into the enemy's gut. Pain exploded along his arm as it retaliated, battering him. Yet he spat in its face, blood mingling with sweat, and yelled:
"You… can… never… make me despair!"
The illusion shattered violently, dissipating like smoke. Leo collapsed beside Avril, chest heaving. The trial had recognized his courage, forged in the heat of despair.
{Ah… now that's the courage I wanted to see. Took you long enough.}
'I'm not gonna lie, these trials or whatever maybe the end of me.' Leo responded to Primo's snarky remark.
The fog thickened again, chilling him to the bone. The pillar dissolved, leaving him suspended in an endless void. Darkness pressed in from every side.
'What now?' Leo wondered inwardly.
As if responding to his thoughts, a shape emerged: a twisted, nightmarish version of himself, eyes blazing with malicr. It mirrored every insecurity, every fear, amplified a hundredfold.
'What is this?' Leo asked his system.
{ It's a heart demon and if I remember correctly then you are in deep sh*t} Primo said with a strangely serious tone.
The heart demon's voice distorted:
"You are weak… you are nothing… you will fail everyone you care about."
Visions flashed before Leo's eyes: Avril trapped and abandoned. Himself failing the Elite 7. The system mocking him. Shadows of death and despair closing in.
For a moment, doubt clawed at him. Give up… you are not enough.
For a moment there it had clouded his reasoning to the extent he almost succumbed to the heart demon.
Then he remembered the lessons of the trial: the Grim Reaper, the despair with Avril, the mental battlefield. Fists clenched, heart pounding, he squared his shoulders:
"You… do not define me! I will not let you rule my heart!"
The Heart Demon chuckled, striking at his mind: 'You, a failure, someone who has been living a lie for 6 good years, think you can stand you ground against me. You are a failure and that is how it is going to remain.' Leo pushed back, anchoring himself to his conviction, memories, and reasons to fight. Protecting Avril and Alauna, stepping into the future he had dreamed of—these fueled him.
Leo stood in defiance to the heart demon's taunts. He took a deep breath and after a few seconds said "I have something more important to do than to waste time dealing with my insecurities. You are not the ruler of my heart and I will always remain true to my heart". Those words worked like magic.
The demon dissolved into shards of darkness that dissipated like smoke in the wind.
The void around Leo brightened, and he reappeared on the center platform.
{Well… I wasn't sure you had that in you. Not bad, kid. Not bad at all.} Primo chipped in, easing the tension.