Chapter 13: Protagonist isn't omnipotent (2)
After forcing down the squirming centipede, Nafees was led to a small, dimly lit room. A simple bed sat in the corner. no blankets, no pillows, just the bare minimum. Yet to him, it was heaven.
The warmth of the meal settled in his stomach, and exhaustion finally overcame him. As he sank into the coarse sheets and closed his eyes, his breath began to slow. The chaos of the day dulled into a distant haze.
As Nafees lay on the rough bed, eyes fixed on the ceiling, the silence around him stirred memories he had tried to bury beneath fear and confusion.
He began to recall what had happened to him in the past.
He had plunged into the river, glimpsed a being beyond comprehension ,something that dragged his soul across dimensions. Then, as if fate were mocking him, he was abducted the very day he arrived in this unfamiliar world.
Cramped in a low-lit room reeking of blood and vomit, time had lost all meaning. But here...here, at last...he had found silence. And for the first time since his descent into madness, he slept.
When he awoke, the quiet remained. Nafees stared at the ceiling, unsure if this peace was real. His mind, once frenzied, now felt strangely clear.
Ding!
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…70%]
A faint, glowing window appeared above him, floating in the air. Its edges were smooth, and its dark green color looked like murky water under the moonlight.
'What is this now! It appeared the day when i was sent to this continent. But then it was Red colour and now it's Dark Green'
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…97]
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…COMPLETED]
"!!!!"
After the system finished initializing, Nafees saw something that made him quickly jump up and sit cross-legged on the bed, like a lotus
After the system finished initializing, Aether saw something that made him quickly jump up and sit cross-legged on the bed, like a lotus.
The dark green window shifted, displaying new text.
[Synchronizing Soul Shell: Complete]
[STATUS — UNLOCKED]
Name: Aether Noctvain
Age: 17
Origin: [Forgotten G##]
Title: Tharot's Master
Condition: Stable
Thread of Fate: ERROR_OF_FATE.EXE
Nafees narrowed his eyes.
That wasn't his name… was it?
"Age : 17 ?" he muttered.
"My age is also wrong… I'm 21 this year."
He stared at the floating window, unease crawling up his spine.
"Does that mean this system is broken… or is it hiding something?"
As the words left his mouth, a strange thought surfaced.
Wait…
Now that he thought about it, his body did feel lighter—almost like it had shed something heavy. The constant ache in his back was gone. His limbs moved more freely. Even his breathing was smoother, as if he'd gone back in time.
He looked down at his hands. His skin seemed tighter, his fingers more slender like a younger version of himself.
"…What the hell is going on?"
As he tried to process the changes, another soft ding echoed in the room.
[Due to the desperation to live, a new skill has been unlocked.]
The window shifted, lines of glowing text unfolding one by one.
[Skill: Will Against Fate]
Type: Passive
Description: The body adapts under extreme stress. When near death, the user gains enhanced physical resistance, slowed bleeding, and heightened reflexes. Can activate subconsciously.
Rank: ??? (Evolving)
Condition: Triggers during life-threatening situations.
Aether stared, his breath caught between awe and dread.
"A skill born from sheer desperation…"
He clenched his fists.
Nafees blinked, confusion deepening in his eyes. He sat up straighter and addressed the floating window.
"System… who am I in this world?"
The window flickered and new lines appeared:
Name: Aether Noctvain
Father: Count Aether Noctvain
Mother: Countess Alice Noctvain
Aether's breath caught at the weight of the name and title.
"Huh…" he muttered, still trying to grasp it all.
His mind raced, questions bubbling to the surface. He turned his gaze back to the floating window.
"System… why does it say my name is Aether Noctvain? Am I really him? Who am I, then?"
The screen pulsed softly before responding.
[RESTRICTED]
Nafees narrowed his eyes, a knot forming in his chest. That answer or lack of one only deepened the questions spiraling in his mind.
He began to ask the system a barrage of questions, one after another, desperate for clarity.
And the system answered.
Line by line, its responses filled the dark green window. Some were coldly direct. Others flickered… then vanished before his eyes.
It answered some.
And avoided most.
The more he read, the more his unease grew.
There were things it refused to tell him—truths sealed behind [REDACTED], responses hidden under [ACCESS DENIED], and data that simply glitched into static.
Nafees leaned forward, his voice low.
"…What are you not telling me?"
The window didn't respond.
Only the silence remained.
Nafees stared at the flickering text near the bottom of the screen.
Then he saw something
[FATE THREAD: "ERROR_OF_FATE.EXE"]
His brow furrowed. The phrase looked like it belonged to a corrupted file, not a person.
"What is this… Error_of_Fate.exe?"
The system responded—but not with clarity.
[Thread anomaly detected.]
[You are currently bound to an unstable fate thread.]
[This thread does not exist in the original weave.]
[Classification: Unknown Error]
[Warning: This thread may interfere with predetermined destinies.]
Nafees swallowed hard.
"…So I'm not supposed to be here?"
The window blinked.
[Correct.]
His hand twitched.
He didn't understand what this was.
But something deep within him...something ancient, something wounded...whispered:
You were never meant for peace. You were meant to survive.