Jade opened his eyes and found himself standing within an endless void.
Darkness stretched in every direction.
No sky.
No ground.
No stars.
Nothing.
For a brief moment, he instinctively wanted to ask the system where he was.
The habit had become natural.
Whenever something strange happened, the system always had an answer.
But this time Jade stopped himself.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"No."
He shook his head.
"I need to learn how to live without depending on it."
The words echoed throughout the void.
The system had returned.
His fate had returned.
His friends remembered him again.
Yet the lesson remained.
There might come a day when the system vanished once more.
There might come a day when fate abandoned him again.
If that happened, Jade wanted to stand on his own feet.
Not because the system supported him.
But because he was Jade.
The thought made him feel strangely calm.
Then exhaustion crashed into him.
His eyelids felt heavy.
Two days.
Two entire days of fighting.
Countless monsters.
Countless near-death experiences.
Even awakened warriors would have collapsed.
Yet he had somehow remained standing.
Jade rubbed his eyes.
The fatigue brought memories flooding back.
A memory from before the trial.
A memory from home.
A memory involving Nora.
He suddenly remembered one of the last conversations they had before he entered the First Trial.
His father had been speaking seriously.
Trying to explain survival tactics.
Trying to prepare him.
Trying to make sure he didn't die.
But Nora had completely ruined the atmosphere.
She had looked at their father before pointing at Jade.
"Dad, are you seriously sending brother into a dangerous trial?"
Their father had sighed.
"What now?"
Nora crossed her arms dramatically.
"What if he immediately enters the trial and kisses a girl?"
Jade nearly laughed remembering it.
At the time he had stared at her.
"What kind of question is that?"
Nora had pointed accusingly.
"If a beautiful monster disguises itself as a girl and tricks you into kissing it, don't come crying afterward."
Their father had immediately started laughing.
Jade remembered feeling embarrassed.
"Dad isn't teaching me that."
"Oh?"
Nora had raised an eyebrow.
"What is he teaching you then?"
"He is teaching me survival tactics."
Nora had nodded thoughtfully.
Then she had said something even worse.
"Well, if you accidentally kiss a monster, just blame Dad."
Jade had nearly thrown a pillow at her.
The memory ended.
Back in the void, Jade chuckled.
"Alright, sister."
He rubbed the back of his neck.
"I'll blame Dad for making me kiss Aviana."
His smile widened.
For the first time since entering the trial, he felt genuinely happy.
His friends remembered him.
His promise had been fulfilled.
And Aviana...
His expression softened.
She remembered him too.
Meanwhile, millions of kilometers away on Planet Diamond, Nora suddenly froze.
The luxurious spaceship quietly moved through space.
Outside the giant windows, stars drifted by like rivers of silver light.
Sophia sat beside her listening to music through headphones.
Mark and John were occupied with games provided by the ship's entertainment system.
Everything seemed peaceful.
Yet Nora felt strange.
Very strange.
A sudden memory surfaced inside her mind.
Jade.
The memory appeared without warning.
His face.
His voice.
His laugh.
Nora blinked.
"Jade..."
The name escaped her lips softly.
Sophia removed one side of her headphones.
"What?"
Nora shook her head.
"Nothing."
But something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
Why had she suddenly remembered Jade?
Why did it feel like she had forgotten him recently?
The feeling vanished before she could investigate.
Nora frowned.
Today had been unusual from the beginning.
Her visions were strange.
The threads of fate felt disturbed.
It was almost as though reality itself had shifted slightly.
Nora closed her eyes.
"Something is wrong with fate."
She whispered it to herself.
Then she forced herself to relax.
Her essence reserves were still recovering.
Thinking too much would only make things worse.
Beside her, Sophia stretched lazily.
"So, Nora."
She leaned forward.
"When we arrive at the spaceship terminal, where are we going first?"
Nora thought for a moment.
Then a mischievous smile appeared.
"We should visit the Transcendent of Outcome."
Sophia immediately froze.
"My mother?"
Nora nodded seriously.
"Your mother."
Sophia's eyes widened.
Then she looked horrified.
"Nora."
"Yes?"
"We traveled all the way from Asterion to Planet Diamond."
"Correct."
"To celebrate."
"Correct."
"And your plan is to visit my mother?"
Nora struggled not to laugh.
Sophia looked so offended that it was adorable.
The girl crossed her arms dramatically.
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
Nora finally laughed.
Sophia pouted.
Mark overheard them from across the cabin.
"Nora."
He pointed accusingly.
"We did not travel across planets to visit Sophia's mom."
John immediately looked interested.
"A Transcendent?"
His eyes sparkled.
"I've never met one before."
Mark groaned.
"Don't encourage her."
John ignored him.
"What's wrong with meeting a Transcendent?"
Mark pointed toward Nora.
"Because she will somehow turn a one-hour visit into an entire day."
Nora raised her hands innocently.
"I would never do that."
Sophia narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"You absolutely would."
Nora smiled.
"Maybe."
Eventually Mark surrendered.
"Fine."
He pointed at her.
"One hour."
Nora nodded.
"One hour."
Inside her mind she thought differently.
We're definitely staying longer.
Sophia immediately knew she was lying.
The problem was that nobody could prove it.
John laughed.
Mark sighed.
The argument ended.
Sophia returned to her music.
John returned to his game.
Mark returned to complaining about everything.
Meanwhile Nora leaned back in her seat.
The spaceship hummed quietly around them.
For the first time that day she finally had a moment to herself.
Her thoughts drifted toward her powers.
Toward her future.
Toward the path she wished to walk.
Slowly she closed her eyes.
Then she looked inward.
Into her soul sea.
Into the place where her legacy rested.
Golden threads appeared before her.
Thousands upon thousands of them.
They stretched endlessly like rivers of destiny.
At the center floated a massive book.
Ancient.
Mysterious.
Beautiful.
The cover was decorated with seven intertwined hands.
The symbol of her legacy.
The Thread of the Seven Hands.
Nora extended her hand.
The book floated forward.
Pages turned by themselves.
Countless diagrams filled each page.
Ancient symbols.
Forgotten techniques.
Methods for manipulating destiny itself.
Nora's heartbeat accelerated.
The knowledge was overwhelming.
Yet fascinating.
Then her eyes landed on a particular section.
Spirit Weapons.
A smile appeared.
"Perfect."
She had wanted to learn this for a long time.
Most initiates relied on ordinary weapons.
Others relied on relics.
But spirit weapons were different.
They were created from one's own essence and soul.
A weapon that grew together with its owner.
A weapon connected directly to destiny.
Nora turned another page.
Then another.
And another.
Her excitement continued growing.
The diagrams became clearer.
The explanations deeper.
A spirit sword.
That would be her first objective.
Not because she needed a weapon.
But because she wanted a companion.
Something that belonged entirely to her.
Something not given by the system.
Something created by her own efforts.
A weapon forged through destiny itself.
Nora smiled softly.
Outside the spaceship, stars continued passing by.
Inside the cabin, her friends enjoyed the journey.
And deep within her soul sea, the future Heir of Crimson Fate began studying one of the most important techniques she would ever learn.
The creation of a Spirit Sword.
And as she opened the next page of the ancient book, she had no idea that the knowledge waiting inside would change her path forever.