Two months had passed since I entered the rifts and killed that group of humans.
I was standing in front of a mirror, staring at my reflection. My silver eyes had become colder, more indifferent than before.
My black hair had grown longer, falling messily over my shoulders.
I stared at the scars across my body, the result of everything that had happened.
"Huff…"
I let out a long breath as I recalled it all.
I had continued entering dimensional rifts every three to four days. That meant I had entered more than ten rifts during this time.
The biggest change… was my skills and stats, which had now clearly surpassed Rank E.
"Hehe…"
I smiled faintly.
Now… I was finally going to test the reward of these two months of hell.
I pulled out a green-colored potion from my pocket.
A vitality potion, Rank B. Purchased from a trusted potion shop, crafted by a skilled alchemist.
"Mmm…"
I had to be careful.
This evolution meant a complete reconstruction of the body… which meant unimaginable pain.
"And the excess vitality…"
I thought while preparing myself.
It was dangerous to take it. It could cause serious complications.
But I had no choice.
It was the only potion capable of healing my damaged mana core.
"No gain comes without loss," I muttered as I headed to my room.
This time, I placed a mattress on the floor.
For two reasons.
First—during evolution, the consciousness descends into the core of one's being.
Second—sleep is the state every awakened individual enters before evolution… except for higher ranks like B and above.
"Alright… it's time."
I sat down calmly, crossing my legs, and opened the potion.
"Good luck… me."
I raised the bottle and drank it.
"—Aaaah!"
Pain erupted through my entire body.
My muscles spasmed as I collapsed onto the mattress, twisting in agony.
"Hot… water… I need water…"
It felt like my body was being boiled alive inside a volcano.
"Hsss—"
Steam burst from my body—hot, suffocating steam.
"Damn!"
I gritted my teeth, staring at my hands.
Green currents were flowing beneath my skin.
Pain spread through me… reaching my very soul.
I don't know how much time passed.
But when I was about to reach my limit…
A blue window appeared before my eyes.
"Congratulations, seeker of power."
"Your evolution has begun."
My bones started to crack and break.
Various substances began to seep out of my body.
"And now… sweet dreams."
"Heh…"
A faint smile escaped my lips despite the pain.
Then my eyes rolled back—and I collapsed.
I opened my eyes slowly.
I was somewhere strange.
The pain… was gone.
" nothing?"
I couldn't feel the air I was breathing… nor the ground beneath me.
It felt like I was floating in space.
No…
Even my body didn't feel like a body anymore.
Only my existence was drifting.
I closed my eyes and let myself drift through the dark void.
Time passed.
Then something changed.
A pull.
An instinctive attraction toward something.
I opened my eyes.
A silver light.
No…
A moon.
Or maybe I should call it that.
"Moon?"
Confusion rose inside me.
And then—
A strange feeling spread through my chest.
Longing.
Yes… longing.
My entire being wanted to touch it.
I couldn't resist.
My body moved on its own.
Slowly.
Without even understanding how movement worked in this place.
"Ah…?"
Before I realized it… my hand was already reaching toward it.
"What does this mean…?"
I couldn't finish the thought.
My existence began to collapse inward—toward the moon.
I tried to resist… but it was useless.
"Damn it…"
The force only grew stronger.
And then—
I entered it.
A voice echoed.
"Grab the moon… and become the moon once again."
A familiar yet foreign voice.
It came from the void… or perhaps from my own mind.
I didn't know.
But I obeyed it.
And so—
"I became the moon."
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Huff… haah… huff…"
I gasped awake.
Cold sweat ran down my face, mixing with steam rising from my body.
"Damn… what happened?"
My mind was still spinning.
"What was that moon…? And that voice… what the hell?"
I grabbed my hair in frustration.
"I don't remember evolution being like this…"
I recalled what I knew.
Evolution was supposed to be like a trial… a test… or sometimes a vision.
Some people even changed completely after it.
Even the original protagonist had met the servant of the ruler during his evolution…
But nothing like a moon.
"Ugh…"
I shook my head.
It didn't matter.
I focused.
"My reward…"
"Status."
The familiar blue screen appeared.
And my eyes widened.
[Name: Raven Klainte]
[Status: Vitality Drain]
[Vitality: +D]
[Endurance: D]
[Strength: -D]
[Speed: +D]
[Mana: +D]
[Ability (1): Time Zone]
[Ability (2): Locked]
[Element: Silver Flame]
[Skills: Combat (5), Rationality (3), Mana Control (5), Swordsmanship (4), Firearms (4), Truth Eye (3), Spear Mastery (3), Dagger Mastery (3), Perception (3)]
[Rank: D]
"…What the hell…"
I stared at it.
A time-related ability.
I immediately understood.
Once an ability awakens… its user can naturally communicate with it.
I closed my eyes.
And I felt it.
When I opened them again…
They were white.
Not only that.
I grabbed the nearby ring and transformed it into a dagger, staring at my reflection.
Inside my silver eyes… there was now a faint shape.
A clock.
Barely visible… like a seal engraved into my gaze.
"Hehe…"
I understood it now.
This ability…
was lethal.
"…Old man." I smiled.
"I'm coming again."