The figure's presence distorted the space around it.
Kyle sensed it—a sideways twisting of gravity, a denial of the air to transmit sound. His own heartbeat echoed in his ears louder than any footfall, louder than the wind that no longer blew.
The cloaked figure took a step forward, another, slow and deliberate. Its sword, silver-black and curved, seemed to shimmer not with magic—but with recollection.
"You're not part of the system," Kyle snarled, low, calculating.
The creature nodded.
"And yet here I am." Its voice was double—like two voices speaking over top of each other, one old and patient, the other young and furious. "You triggered more than just the Gate."
Kyle's grip on his sword tightened.
System Message:
"Warning: Unregistered Entity Detected."
"No available data."
"Combat outcome: Unpredictable."
It was the first time the system had been uncertain.
Kyle squinted. "Who are you?"
The figure didn't answer directly. It raised its hand and snapped its fingers. With that single gesture, the world altered once again—runes burst in the air, the gold tunnel blinked out of existence, and Kyle was pulled into a void of stars.
Not transported. Pulled into something additional. Beyond the Gate.
The figure floated over from him now, its cloak flowing out like ink in water.
"You possess too much potential," the figure finally said. "And not all of it is from this time."
Kyle had no opportunity to respond before the fight began.
No countdown.
No warning.
Just movement.
The Watcher—if that's what this creature was—was quicker than anything Kyle had fought. Not only speed, but angles, appearing behind him before space had time to register. Kyle barely parried the initial attack, stumbling backward as his system labored to react.
System Update:
"Skill Unlocked: [Instinctual Guard Lv.1]"
Kyle's eyes stung. The burning in his arms from the last parry was warning enough—this opponent wasn't just stronger. They were alive. Real. Unscripted.
And they were playing with him.
Every blow from the Watcher came with words—not spoken, but leaking into Kyle's mind.
"What will you become, Kyle?"
"Will you defy your Fate?"
"Or be a pawn to something greater?
He blocked, parried, counterattacked. His sword swept against the cloak—only to find it empty inside. He spun and shoved off a shard of floating rock, attacking again.
They traded blows once more.
Then—
The Watcher vanished.
Gone in an instant.
System Notification:
"Entity Disengaged."
"Temporal Rift Sealed."
"Partial Data Fragment Recovered."
Kyle dropped to one knee, gasping. His sword fell from his hand to clang on the ground beside him. Sweat fell from his face, and blood—he didn't know whose—fell from his shoulder.
And then there was a message. No system box. Just carved into the black void.
"We'll meet again. When you reach 60%."
Suddenly, the world snapped back into form. He was in a stone corridor again, lying on freezing tiles, alone. The air stank of dust and rust.
He stood up slowly.
System Message:
"Trial Progression: 47%"
"Gate Authority Fragment (2/3) now within range."
The Trial wasn't over.
Whatever that had just happened—it wasn't part of the plan. But it had.
Kyle bent down, retrieved his knife, and moved forward.
This time slower.
This time more carefully.
And with a new thought seeded in the back of his mind:
He was being watched. Not just by the system. Not just by the Gate. But by something entirely else.
Something old.
Something curious.
And possibly… displeased.