She opened her eyes, the veil of dizziness slowly lifting off her. Finding herself in a dark and misty room, she was seated on the throne atop a slightly elevated platform. In front of her was a full-length mirror, and inside this mirror she saw herself - or at least a version of herself.
Unlike her true self, who had pitch-black hair and was seated on a silver throne, this version of herself had streaks of white in her hair, and she was lying in a pool of blood, motionless.
A while later, a ton of fear washed over her, and she got up, left the room, moving to her right. Meanwhile, in the mirror, the image of herself began to flicker before eventually disappearing, followed by the pool of blood. Finally, a cloud of mist obscured the entire mirror.
Meanwhile, outside, she did not know how she had managed to get out of the dark room, but she had. The sky was tinted a shade of grey and crimson. The clouds were dark, and amongst this darkness - it was like darkness within the darkness - the patterns of the sky were all scattered, like tiny voids against the dark, and the moon's light gave off seven colors of aberration and ominous grace. Such a change would have instantly been noticed by any other person; however, for Lunara Harper, she couldn't have been more blind to these changes.
Memories of the past few days were jumbled and disoriented. It was as though someone had opened her head and filled it with countless fabricated pieces of information, which mixed together with the real ones in the mindscape of her psyche, to the point that she could no longer tell which were real and which ones were fabricated.
However, what she knew for certain was that she had a husband and a son, a family that lived on this street.
At this moment, all she wanted was to see her innocent child and her lovely spouse. She could not be bothered to think of anything else - and that also involved the translucent screen in front of her.
The translucent screen hovered silently before her, its light was pale, visible and reflective at the same time, as if afraid to intrude on her thoughts. Words surfaced one line at a time, steady and uncaring in a sense, indifferent to the fear knotting in her chest.
---
[SYSTEM INITIALIZATION — PARTIAL SYNC COMPLETE]
Host Designation:
Lunara Harper
Age:
28
Gender:
Female
Constellation:
None
(No astral patron detected)
Moral Orientation:
Not Selected
(Warning: Moral alignment influences Path resonance)
Lives Remaining:
3 / 3
(Irreversible upon depletion)
Potential:
???
(Evaluation failed - data obstruction detected)
Magic System:
Not Selected
---
A faint distortion rippled across the panel, like glass viewed through water. Then the next section unfolded.
---
[AVAILABLE PATHS - INITIAL SELECTION REQUIRED]
1. Cultivator
Threefold Refinement
• Body
• Soul
• Qi
(Progress through discipline, accumulation, and transcendence)
---
2. Arcane Practitioner
Spellcraft & Mana
(Knowledge-based manipulation of reality through structured incantation)
---
3. Ritualist
Potions, Symbolism & Transmutation
(Power derived from preparation and consumption of mythical characteristics and potions, ritualistic sacrifice, the Prima Materia, and true meaning)
---
4. System User
Interface Optimization
(Direct enhancement through gamification, quantified progression, and external directives)
---
5. Divine Path
Faith & Blessings
(Borrowed authority through your unwavering devotion and covenant to your Sancta Ecclesia)
---
6. Martial Myth
Deeds & Legend
(Power grows through feats, renowned reputation, ontological hierarchy, and narrative weight)
---
7. Anomaly
???
(No relevant information pertaining to this Path)
(Classification error detected)
(Causality unstable)
---
At the bottom of the screen, the text dimmed, then flared crimson.
---
[NOTICE]
Failure to select a Magic System will result in RANDOM ASSIGNMENT.
[Time Remaining: 2:48]
---
The numbers ticked down in silence, but Lunara did not read past her name in the status profile, which she had only recognized by a glance.
Oblivious to any warning signs, ambiguity, or cause for unease buried beneath the sterile text. The system waited patiently and absolutely in the small designated corner of her vision - an action which she had achieved subconsciously.
While her thoughts were already elsewhere, racing down a familiar street toward a home she knew was hers.
Toward a husband whose face she could almost remember, but just barely.
Toward a child who must, at this very moment, be waiting for her to return - oh God, she hoped.
In the next moment, at the turn of the junction, it was there she found it.