⚔️ Chapter 44
"When the mind becomes a battlefield, the enemy you fear the most… is yourself."
💤 Scene: The Unseen Invasion – Inside Aeren's Mind
After the fight, Aeren collapsed outside the dungeon's edge. His body remained still, but inside—his consciousness was pulled into an unknown realm.
The space was dark, yet constantly shifting. Memories floated like glass shards—some real, some completely unfamiliar.
"Where… am I?"
His voice echoed a thousand times around him.
Suddenly, the world bent—and three figures appeared, cloaked in black smoke. Their faces hidden, their eyes glowing white.
"We are the Dreambinders," said one."We are here to test your soul… and twist it, if necessary."
They lunged forward—not with fists, but with memories.
🌀 Scene: The Labyrinth of Echoes
Aeren found himself inside a twisting maze made of his own memories.
He saw:
The day his parents disappeared.
Anshi smiling in the rain when they were kids.
Himself… but not really. He was older, colder, crueler—ruling monsters like a king.
The Dreambinders whispered:
"Truth or illusion? You must choose. Choose wrong, and part of you dies."
They weren't just testing his strength—they were trying to manipulate him, to rewrite his memory, to seal his powers forever.
"Why… are you doing this?""Because you are not supposed to awaken. Not yet."
🧬 Scene: The Bloodline Reacts – Power Surge
As his mind began to fracture under the dream-assault, his core bloodline awakened further.
The mark on his back pulsed with radiant heat.
Unlocked: Chrono-Spatial Memory Guard
Grants immunity to false memory implants
Reflects dream-based mental control
Activates a time-loop safety core to restore lost consciousness
In an instant, the illusions shattered.
The Dreambinders screamed—not in pain, but in confusion.
"He's resisting. That's impossible!""No mind can deflect the Labyrinth completely!"
The shadows were pulled into the void as the memory maze collapsed.
🧍♂️ Scene: Awakening in Reality
Back in the real world, Aeren's eyes flew open.
Gasps.
Anshi was at his side. The teachers were just arriving. The forest was finally secured.
But no one could understand what had just happened.
"He… he had marks all over his face like ancient script," one silver-tier seeker whispered.
Aeren sat up, silent.
"What did you see?" asked Anshi.
"…A future that doesn't belong to me," he whispered.
But deep inside, a voice still echoed.
"You passed the first threshold. The mind is now yours to rule… or destroy."
🗝️ Scene: The Aftermath – Hidden Observers
In a hidden surveillance room far away, a cloaked man with mechanical eyes watched the footage.
"So the boy resisted the Dreambinders…"
Another figure stepped out of the shadow—a silver-haired man with one hand made of black crystal.
"What do we do now?"
"Let him rise. Let him shine. Because the higher he goes…""...the louder he will fall."
🏆 Scene: Tournament Update – The Final Round Approaches
The academy issued the next announcement:
"Top 15 Teams Qualify for the Final Seeker Trial!""Battle for ranking, honor, and possible ascension to next-tier seeker ranks!"
Aeren's team—Team 13—barely survived the last trial. But now, with new instincts, powers, and something unknowable awakening inside him, he stands on the edge of something legendary.
Even if he doesn't know it yet… the world is watching.
🧩 Coming Soon – Chapter 45:
"The Crimson Labyrinth and the Crownless Throne"
Final team battles begin inside a legendary moving dungeon
The Hollow Chain begins hunting other awakened seekers
Aeren begins to hear whispers from a sleeping god... calling his name