"Didn't expect my day to end like this when I woke up this morning." Sylas muttered to himself as he looked at his surroundings. Standing alone in a vast cavern, darkness stretched endlessly around him.
He let out a long sigh as memories came rushing back to him—blinding white light, an irritatingly calm voice, and the wrinkled face of the man responsible for his predicament.
~
"Haha… you're joking right." Sylas looked at the old man currently standing in front of him, "If I were dead, could I do this." He tried to scatter the things on the old man's desk, only for his hands to pass right through them.
The old man let out a knowing sigh as if he expected this to occur, "I know it's hard to accept," he said slowly, "but you can't return to the world you once knew."
Sylas's normally neutral face slowly began to fall. "How did I die?" he paused, "I didn't do drugs, I had a healthy lifestyle, I was barely gonna turn nineteen, so how…"
"Actually about that," the old man scratched the side of his head, "That's actually why you're here," he continued, "I accidentally blinded a driver, and he hit you when you were crossing a street. I know this sounds bad but—"
"It was your fault?" Sylas slowly looked up, "You mean you're the reason why I'm dead."
Gulp
Seeing the look Sylas was directing his way, he quickly got to the point. "You have two options now." He cleared his throat, "Option one: you reincarnate on Earth. New body. New life. No memories of who you were before. A fresh clean slate."
Seeing no response, he continued.
"Option two: you may travel to another world. The destination will be random. However, you will retain your memories, and your current body. Because I was the reason you perished, you will receive a power of your choice as compensation."
Sylas leaned back slightly, folding his arms. "I have two questions," he put up two fingers, "One: How do I pick my power? Two: What type of world am I going to travel to?
The room fell into dead silence before the old man rubbed his beard and spoke. "For your power all you need to do is think about the power you want and say confirm in your head, as for the world," he shook his head, "I can't tell you."
Sylas sighed, "Guess I'll take option two then."
Before another second could pass—the old man snapped his fingers.
~
[Present time]
Sylas opened his eyes and stared at the cavern walls, the alien landscape stretching endlessly in every direction.
"…Yeah," he muttered dryly. "Just my luck."
Curious to see if the old man lied to him, he slowly clenched his fist, feeling something shift inside him. A gentle warmth bloomed beneath his skin, subtle at first, then spreading outward, as though a dormant muscle he'd never known existed was suddenly responding to his will.
"Ten."
Aura spilled out from his skin, wrapping around him like an invisible veil. For a split second, the air grew heavy before settling back to normal.
A laugh burst from his chest, half in disbelief, half in exhilaration. "I'm a Nen user!"
Before he could fully savor the moment, something slipped from his pocket, fluttering slowly to the ground. 'A folded note.' Looking at the brown piece of paper he carefully picked it up as slowly began reading what it contained.
————————————————————
Dear Sylas,
I'll keep this brief.
As you can likely feel by now, your body is capable of unleashing aura, what you choose to do with this power is completely up to you.
Your gift includes basic mastery over the four basic principles of Nen: Ten, Zetsu, Ren, and Hatsu. Additionally, I've adjusted your body's talent and growth ceiling as an added bonus.
Lastly, check your other pocket. You'll find a sealed glass cup with a green leaf attached to it.
Good luck.
—God of Earth
————————————————————
Sylas stared at the note for a long time, before crumpling it up, popping it into his mouth. "Better to get rid of the evidence," he thought calmly.
…
Reaching into his pocket, his fingers brushed against what felt like cold glass.
A small, sealed glass cup appeared in his palm, surprisingly intact. Tied to its rim was a thin string, and attached to it—a single, vibrant green leaf. Its color was unnaturally vivid, standing out sharply against the surrounding darkness.
"…Water Divination," Sylas murmured.
Checking his surroundings, he made sure nothing was around before he crouched down and carefully set the cup on a flat piece of rock. The water inside was clear and perfectly still.
Cracking his knuckles, he spoke quietly. "Alright. Let's see what I am."
Just like before, he focused inward—toward that warmth coiled deep inside his body.
"Ten," he called out, as a thin controlled layer of aura wrapped around his body. The pressure around him stabilized evenly.
Once he was done stabilizing his aura, he moved onto another one of the basic principles. "Ren." His aura surged, as it flooded out in a violent rush, bursting outward like a dam breaking free after too much pressure had built up.
Dust skittered across the stone floor, pebbles trembling as the air visibly distorted around his body. Sylas clenched his fist as he fought for control. "Easy… easy—" he told himself.
Gradually, the aura stabilized—still massive, but no longer exploding outward in a wild manner. Sweat beaded on his brow. "So this is Ren," he began talking to himself, "No wonder most normal people can't survive when their aura nodes are unlocked forcefully."
Ten (Shroud/Point): The fundamental technique of keeping aura nodes open, allowing energy to flow through and around the body, creating a protective shroud. It stops aura from leaking away, increases defense, and slows aging.
Zetsu (Supress/Tongue): The technique of completely closing aura nodes to stop the flow of energy from the body.
Ren (Enhance/Temper): The method of outputting a larger amount of aura than Ten, intensifying one's will to increase strength and durability. It is used to generate a large pool of aura for techniques.
Hatsu (Release/Act): The personal expression of one's Nen, used to create a unique, specialized, and supernatural ability. It dictates how a user manipulates their aura based on their specific Nen type.
Leaning over the cup, Sylas carefully guided his aura into the water. At first, nothing seemed to change.
Then suddenly, the leaf twitched—slowly bending as its edges curled inward. The veins darkened, as if ink were bleeding through them, while a faint, unnatural shimmer spread across its surface.
The cup vibrated softly in his hand as tiny cracks formed along its surface, spiderwebbing outward.
Before he could stop the glass shattered into tiny bits. Water splashed across the stone as the deformed leaf fluttered uselessly to the ground.
Sylas stared at his soaked hands, then at the broken glass, before finally looking back at the leaf. "Am I…" He hesitated. "Am I a specialist?"
The Water Divination test identified six categories based on changes to the water and leaf:
Enhancer: The volume of water increases, causing the glass to overflow.
Transmuter: The flavor or taste of the water changes.
Emitter: The color of the water changes.
Conjurer: Impurities or objects appear within the water.
Manipulator: The leaf moves across the surface.
Specialist: Any other phenomenon that does not fit the above.
To be Continued…