After returning from the grocery store with Talia, Nova decided to freshen up and head to the library. His body was still aching from the morning's training, and a part of him wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep. Unfortunately, he had already spent enough of his life doing absolutely nothing, and he wasn't going to start wasting his mortal life now.
Studying anything and everything was important, especially mathematics and physics, since both concepts governed the four realms. Without them, even the most basic laws of nature would make little sense. Of course, Nova already understood those laws far better than any mortal scholar, but understanding how this world had developed around them was an entirely different matter.
There were also things he needed to learn about the American Guild, the Adventurers, and most importantly, the process of awakening. If he wanted to enter the tournament on August 20th, he couldn't afford to remain ignorant.
He got into the shower without hesitation, letting the water run over his sore shoulders. Even lifting his arms to shampoo his hair was unpleasant. He scrubbed himself clean, dried off, and began dressing in his signature attire: a fitted black shirt, partially unbuttoned to reveal a silver chain necklace with a cross pendant. Over it, he threw on a sleek, jet-black leather jacket with sharp, angular shoulders.
His pants were slim, black, and reinforced, complementing the rest of his attire. He considered wearing his obsidian-black armored boots, the ones streaked with glowing red cracks, but eventually chose his sneakers instead. After three hours of exercise, his feet had suffered enough.
Before leaving, he checked on the kittens. They were nestled together in their box, occasionally stretching their tiny paws or moving against one another for warmth. Their food and water bowls were full, enough to last until he returned. Smudge, the little black kitten with the white paw, stirred when Nova approached.
"You lot have it easy," Nova whispered. "Eat, sleep, complain, repeat. Meanwhile, I have to learn how to earn money and somehow become an Adventurer."
Smudge opened his mouth in a sleepy meow.
"Exactly. You understand."
Nova gave the kittens an exaggerated air kiss, grabbed his keys, and left the apartment.
The library wasn't far away. It was a squat brick building with wide windows and a sign advertising free Wi-Fi near the entrance. Inside, the air was cool and quiet. There was the familiar smell of old books, mixed with the faint hum of computers running in the background. A few people sat at tables reading, while others worked at the computers or wandered between the shelves. Nova approached the front desk, where a librarian with glasses balanced on the bridge of her nose was sorting a stack of returned books.
"Hi," he said, his voice a little rough from exhaustion. "I'm looking for books on the American Guild. And maybe something about awakening?"
The librarian looked up and raised an eyebrow. "Guild stuff is in the reference section, aisle twelve. As for awakening, do you mean the actual abilities or something spiritual?"
"The actual abilities," Nova answered. "There's a tournament coming up, and I've heard people with the potential to awaken might be able to participate."
"Ah, you're interested in joining the Guild."
"I'm interested in what it takes," he answered.
She considered his question before setting the books aside. "You'll find information about the Guild in aisle twelve. Try aisle eight as well. That's where we keep some of the books on awakening theories and metaphysics, though I should warn you, some are more reliable than others."
"Do you have a library card?"
Nova shook his head. "No. I just moved here."
"That's fine. It's free. I only need you to fill out this form with your name and address."
She slid a form toward him, and Nova leaned over the counter to complete it. His handwriting was rather messy, partly because his arms were still sore and partly because he hadn't spent much time writing with his own hands recently. The librarian checked the details, prepared a card, and handed it over.
"There you go. You can borrow books with this. Just remember to bring them back."
"I will. Thank you for the help."
Aisle twelve contained books on the American Guild, from dry historical accounts to manuals explaining its present structure. Nova selected one titled The Guild: Structure and Purpose, followed by Awakening in the Modern Age. In aisle eight, he found a worn paperback called The Path to Power: Unlocking Your Potential.
The third book looked rather questionable, especially after what the librarian had warned him, but he took it anyway. He settled at a table in the corner with the three books arranged before him. The library remained mostly quiet, interrupted only by the occasional tapping of keyboards, the turning of pages, and conversations carried out in hushed voices.
Nova opened The Guild: Structure and Purpose first.
The introduction described the American Guild as an organization established during the 2000s, but the history leading to its formation interested him far more. According to the book, strange monsters had begun appearing across Earth in 1980, nearly fifty years before the present day. Their sudden arrival had thrown governments into confusion. At first, countries accused one another of conducting secret experiments or deploying weapons they refused to acknowledge.
Then the attacks grew worse.
Ordinary firearms and tanks proved largely ineffective against many of the creatures. Even monsters classified as E-rank were dangerous enough to overwhelm conventional responses, leaving entire communities at the mercy of something they didn't understand.
Two years later, in 1982, another extraordinary event occurred. Humans began awakening abilities of their own, allowing them to fight back against the monsters. The phenomenon became known as the Surge, and it changed the direction of human civilization.
He already knew how the Circle of Pillars had come into existence and why dungeons had begun appearing. There was nothing especially mysterious to him about those events. What interested him was how the mortals had responded. They had been terrified, outmatched, and forced to adapt, yet they had slowly developed an entire system around their new circumstances.
About twenty years after the Surge, guilds began forming across the world. People had noticed similarities between their new reality and the video games they once played for entertainment. Terms such as guilds, clans, Adventurers, and Players gradually entered everyday use. The book went on to explain how the Guild organized awakened individuals according to their combat specialties. Some were classified as mages, others as battlemages or swordsmen, and there were numerous additional categories depending on an individual's abilities and fighting style.
Then came the section on tournaments.
Some competitions were private, with the Guild inviting specific Players to demonstrate their abilities. Others were open to the public, offering people with awakening potential the opportunity to participate, display their talents, and possibly earn recruitment. Nova's interest sharpened immediately.
Unfortunately, the book described the tournament system in far greater detail than it explained how someone was supposed to awaken. It was useful information, but it didn't answer the question he had come here for.
He closed the first book and opened Awakening in the Modern Age.
This one was considerably denser. It explored theories about the Surge, from genetic mutations and cosmic energy to extraterrestrial intervention.
Nova snorted at the last explanation.
"Aliens. Right."
The absurdity wasn't that beings existed beyond Earth. He knew perfectly well how many civilizations inhabited the four realms. What amused him was the confidence with which the author presented speculation as though it were almost established fact.
Still, he kept reading. The real issue wasn't how the Circle of Pillars worked or why the dungeons existed. Nova already knew those things. What he lacked was an understanding of how to awaken an ability while living within his self-imposed mortal limitations.
Before his reincarnation, he had possessed his Divinity of Destruction and spent an extraordinary amount of time refining his power. He hadn't needed to experience a mortal awakening. His strength had existed on an entirely different level, and the circumstances through which he had attained it offered little guidance now.
According to the book, awakening often occurred under intense stress or extreme concentration. For some, meditation appeared to help. Others awakened in combat, while still others experienced the change during a moment of overwhelming fear or a near-death experience. There was no single method guaranteed to work for everyone.
Nova frowned at the page.
Great. Just what I need. More near-death experiences. Like being broke as hell wasn't enough.
Now even an ordinary workout left his muscles aching. If he pushed too far, he wouldn't simply recover because he was the Supreme God of Destruction. His body had limits, and the pain he had felt since arriving on Earth was a constant reminder of them.
By the time Nova opened the third book, his eyes were beginning to burn. The Path to Power: Unlocking Your Potential was far less academic and much more enthusiastic about making promises.
Visualize your inner spark.
Embrace your destiny.
Become one with the energy sleeping inside you.
Nova stared at the page.
"What does any of that even mean?" he muttered.
He tried one of the exercises anyway. Sitting upright, he closed his eyes, relaxed his shoulders as best he could, and focused on his breathing. The book instructed him to imagine a hidden source of power deep within his body and gently draw it toward the surface.
He inhaled slowly, exhaled, and waited for the hidden energy the book described.
Nothing happened.
Instead, his stomach growled.
Nova opened his eyes and looked down at himself.
"Fantastic. My inner spark is hunger."
He sighed and rubbed his eyes. The exercise might have helped him relax, but it hadn't brought him any closer to awakening. He wasn't surprised, exactly. He was simply growing frustrated with how little he had learned about the one thing he needed most.
Still, the day hadn't been wasted. He now understood more about the Guild, the Surge, and how Adventurers were classified and recruited. When he finally checked the time, it was 3:30 PM.
Between his morning training, the grocery trip with Talia, and his time in the library, he'd been moving almost constantly. His body was begging him for a break, and his concentration had begun to suffer. There was no point staring at the same page until the words stopped making sense.
Nova gathered the three books and returned to the front desk. He showed the librarian his new card, checked out the books, and tucked them carefully under his arm.
"Find what you were looking for?" she asked.
"Some of it," Nova answered. "The history was interesting. The actual awakening part was less helpful."
"That's usually how it goes."
He glanced down at the third book. "Especially this one."
The librarian recognized the cover and gave a small laugh. "I did warn you."
"You did. I thought I'd give it a chance anyway."
"Well, good luck with the tournament."
"Thank you. I'll need it."
Outside, the afternoon air felt considerably warmer after the cool interior of the library. Nova adjusted the books against his side and started walking back toward the apartment.
For now, however, he had only one thing in mind.
He wanted to get home, put the books down, and sleep on his bed for a while.