Chapter 24:
CHAPTER 24 — The Sixth Veil: Trial of the Unknown
The Human Who Challenged the Heavens
The moment the Fifth Veil shattered, the world around Ivan didn’t fade—
It collapsed.
Reality cracked like broken glass.
Light leaked through the fractures.
The golden thread wrapped around Ivan’s wrist pulsed, trying to protect him, but even it trembled violently as if terrified.
A whisper, trembling and distorted, echoed around him:
“THE SIXTH VEIL… CANNOT BE DEFINED.”
Ivan braced himself.
“What does that mean—?”
The answer came instantly:
“IT MEANS… ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.”
---
FALLING INTO NOTHING
Ivan dropped—Not down, not up, not sideways.
Just… dropped.
Like space itself forgot what directions were.
Colors he didn’t recognize twisted around him.Shapes that weren’t shapes crawled through the air.Whispers of languages that should not exist filled his ears.
His stomach twisted.
His body flickered—blurred—transparent—solid—something in between.
“Guh—!! W-what is this place…?!”
No response.
Not even the Trial’s voice dared to speak now.
Ivan felt the golden thread pulse again.
Trying to anchor him.
Trying to keep him existing.
Then—
A sound tore through the chaos.
A heartbeat.
Not his.
Something else.
Something ancient.
Something awake.
Ivan felt every hair on his body rise.
A whisper scraped across the void like claws:
“A… human…?”
Ivan froze.
Someone—something—was here.
In this place no one survived.
---
THE BEING IN THE VOID
A silhouette walked out of the distortion.
Tall.Thin.Human-shaped… at first.
Then the shape glitched—fractured—shifted—as if reality couldn’t hold it correctly.
Ivan tightened his grip on his sword.
“Who are you?”
The being tilted its head, face shifting like smoke.
“I…don’t remember.”
Ivan frowned cautiously.
“…How long have you been here?”
The being laughed softly.
Not insane laughter.Not evil.Just… empty.
“Long enough that time stopped meaning anything.”
Ivan took a step back.
“Did you… pass the Sixth Veil?”
The being’s voice cracked.
“I never passed.I never failed.I just… continued.”
Ivan’s chest tightened.
“What do you want from me?”
The being lifted a hand.
Reality around it warped like melted glass.
“I want… to remember who I was.”
It pointed at Ivan.
“And you, human…carry a fate-thread.”
Ivan’s eyes widened.
“You want it?”
The being nodded.
“That thread…would let me exist again.”
Its hand stretched toward Ivan’s wrist.
Golden thread pulsing with warmth.
Ivan stepped back quickly.
“No.”
The being’s voice cracked with longing.
“Please…let me borrow it…just once…just a moment…”
Its eyes suddenly shifted—human for a second—filled with unbearable loneliness.
“I don’t want to fade alone…”
Those words hit Ivan’s heart like a hammer.
But he didn’t lower his guard.
“I’m sorry…but this thread is my only path back.Someone is waiting for me.”
The being’s voice echoed with sorrow.
“I see…”
Its body shifted again.Less human.More distorted.
Then it whispered:
“…then I will take it.”
---
THE UNKNOWN’S FIRST STRIKE
The being vanished.
Instantly.
Ivan’s instincts screamed.
He barely blocked—
CLASH!!!
A twisted blade—that wasn’t metal—that wasn’t anything from this world—struck his sword.
Shockwaves cracked the void around them.
Ivan skidded back, boots sliding on nothing.
The being glitched forward, attacking again—and again—each strike bending reality.
Ivan countered, slashing his sword—
The being twisted around the attack like a liquid shadow.
Then—
SLICK—!
Its blade grazed Ivan’s arm.
Not cutting skin.
Cutting existence.
A chunk of Ivan’s arm flickered—glitched—disappeared for half a second before reforming.
“Ghh—!!”
The being whispered:
“I only need a small piece of you…to replace myself.”
Ivan’s eyes widened.
“You want to overwrite me?!”
“Yes.”
Its voice was gentle.
Apologetic.
“But only because…I want to live again.”
Ivan roared and swung his sword—
SPARK!!
The being caught the blade—with its bare hand—and its palm didn’t bleed.
Instead, reality around its hand fractured like a mirror.
“Ivan…”
It whispered softly.
“I envy you.”
---
THE GOLDEN THREAD AWAKENS
The being lunged—going for the thread.
Ivan dodged—rolled—thrust upward.
CLANG!!
The being staggered—for the first time.
The golden thread around Ivan’s wrist suddenly glowed—bright—powerful—alive.
Ivan felt energy surge through him.
His eyes widened.
“This thread…is protecting me.”
The being hissed.
“That is why you must lose it!”
Reality cracked—exploded—and the being unleashed a scream that shook the Sixth Veil.
The unknown attacked wildly, desperately, longing for existence.
And Ivan—
fought back.
---
THE FINAL STRUGGLE
His blade slashed—the thread glowed—the being lunged—
For a moment, reality froze.
Ivan saw the being’s eyes.
Lonely.
Terrified.
Begging.
He whispered:
“I’m sorry.”
Then he drove his sword straight through its chest.
The being didn’t scream.
It looked down at the blade—then at Ivan—confused.
“…So this… is the end…”
Its body flickered—faded—broke apart into shining dust.
“I hope…you reach the one who waits for you…”
Ivan’s throat tightened.
He whispered:
“I will.”
The being smiled faintly.
Then disappeared forever.
---
THE VEIL COLLAPSES
The entire realm shook.
Threads whipped around wildly.
Colors exploded.
Reality folded inward.
A voice thundered—
finally returning:
“THE SIXTH VEIL…HAS BEEN SURVIVED.”
Not passed.Not broken.Not defeated.
Survived.
Ivan floated upward through collapsing light.
Breathing hard.
Body trembling.
Eyes burning with determination.
“Elen…I’m close…”
The final Veil waited.
The Seventh.
The last gate.
The one no mortal should ever reach.
The Trial of Ascension.
It collapsed.
Reality cracked like broken glass.
Light leaked through the fractures.
The golden thread wrapped around Ivan’s wrist pulsed, trying to protect him, but even it trembled violently as if terrified.
A whisper, trembling and distorted, echoed around him:
“THE SIXTH VEIL… CANNOT BE DEFINED.”
Ivan braced himself.
“What does that mean—?”
The answer came instantly:
“IT MEANS… ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.”
---
FALLING INTO NOTHING
Ivan dropped—Not down, not up, not sideways.
Just… dropped.
Like space itself forgot what directions were.
Colors he didn’t recognize twisted around him.Shapes that weren’t shapes crawled through the air.Whispers of languages that should not exist filled his ears.
His stomach twisted.
His body flickered—blurred—transparent—solid—something in between.
“Guh—!! W-what is this place…?!”
No response.
Not even the Trial’s voice dared to speak now.
Ivan felt the golden thread pulse again.
Trying to anchor him.
Trying to keep him existing.
Then—
A sound tore through the chaos.
A heartbeat.
Not his.
Something else.
Something ancient.
Something awake.
Ivan felt every hair on his body rise.
A whisper scraped across the void like claws:
“A… human…?”
Ivan froze.
Someone—something—was here.
In this place no one survived.
---
THE BEING IN THE VOID
A silhouette walked out of the distortion.
Tall.Thin.Human-shaped… at first.
Then the shape glitched—fractured—shifted—as if reality couldn’t hold it correctly.
Ivan tightened his grip on his sword.
“Who are you?”
The being tilted its head, face shifting like smoke.
“I…don’t remember.”
Ivan frowned cautiously.
“…How long have you been here?”
The being laughed softly.
Not insane laughter.Not evil.Just… empty.
“Long enough that time stopped meaning anything.”
Ivan took a step back.
“Did you… pass the Sixth Veil?”
The being’s voice cracked.
“I never passed.I never failed.I just… continued.”
Ivan’s chest tightened.
“What do you want from me?”
The being lifted a hand.
Reality around it warped like melted glass.
“I want… to remember who I was.”
It pointed at Ivan.
“And you, human…carry a fate-thread.”
Ivan’s eyes widened.
“You want it?”
The being nodded.
“That thread…would let me exist again.”
Its hand stretched toward Ivan’s wrist.
Golden thread pulsing with warmth.
Ivan stepped back quickly.
“No.”
The being’s voice cracked with longing.
“Please…let me borrow it…just once…just a moment…”
Its eyes suddenly shifted—human for a second—filled with unbearable loneliness.
“I don’t want to fade alone…”
Those words hit Ivan’s heart like a hammer.
But he didn’t lower his guard.
“I’m sorry…but this thread is my only path back.Someone is waiting for me.”
The being’s voice echoed with sorrow.
“I see…”
Its body shifted again.Less human.More distorted.
Then it whispered:
“…then I will take it.”
---
THE UNKNOWN’S FIRST STRIKE
The being vanished.
Instantly.
Ivan’s instincts screamed.
He barely blocked—
CLASH!!!
A twisted blade—that wasn’t metal—that wasn’t anything from this world—struck his sword.
Shockwaves cracked the void around them.
Ivan skidded back, boots sliding on nothing.
The being glitched forward, attacking again—and again—each strike bending reality.
Ivan countered, slashing his sword—
The being twisted around the attack like a liquid shadow.
Then—
SLICK—!
Its blade grazed Ivan’s arm.
Not cutting skin.
Cutting existence.
A chunk of Ivan’s arm flickered—glitched—disappeared for half a second before reforming.
“Ghh—!!”
The being whispered:
“I only need a small piece of you…to replace myself.”
Ivan’s eyes widened.
“You want to overwrite me?!”
“Yes.”
Its voice was gentle.
Apologetic.
“But only because…I want to live again.”
Ivan roared and swung his sword—
SPARK!!
The being caught the blade—with its bare hand—and its palm didn’t bleed.
Instead, reality around its hand fractured like a mirror.
“Ivan…”
It whispered softly.
“I envy you.”
---
THE GOLDEN THREAD AWAKENS
The being lunged—going for the thread.
Ivan dodged—rolled—thrust upward.
CLANG!!
The being staggered—for the first time.
The golden thread around Ivan’s wrist suddenly glowed—bright—powerful—alive.
Ivan felt energy surge through him.
His eyes widened.
“This thread…is protecting me.”
The being hissed.
“That is why you must lose it!”
Reality cracked—exploded—and the being unleashed a scream that shook the Sixth Veil.
The unknown attacked wildly, desperately, longing for existence.
And Ivan—
fought back.
---
THE FINAL STRUGGLE
His blade slashed—the thread glowed—the being lunged—
For a moment, reality froze.
Ivan saw the being’s eyes.
Lonely.
Terrified.
Begging.
He whispered:
“I’m sorry.”
Then he drove his sword straight through its chest.
The being didn’t scream.
It looked down at the blade—then at Ivan—confused.
“…So this… is the end…”
Its body flickered—faded—broke apart into shining dust.
“I hope…you reach the one who waits for you…”
Ivan’s throat tightened.
He whispered:
“I will.”
The being smiled faintly.
Then disappeared forever.
---
THE VEIL COLLAPSES
The entire realm shook.
Threads whipped around wildly.
Colors exploded.
Reality folded inward.
A voice thundered—
finally returning:
“THE SIXTH VEIL…HAS BEEN SURVIVED.”
Not passed.Not broken.Not defeated.
Survived.
Ivan floated upward through collapsing light.
Breathing hard.
Body trembling.
Eyes burning with determination.
“Elen…I’m close…”
The final Veil waited.
The Seventh.
The last gate.
The one no mortal should ever reach.
The Trial of Ascension.
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