Sora focused on a spot in the grass ahead of him. A dark wooden chest sat half-buried in the vegetation, its polished metal fittings catching the sunlight and throwing back flashes of gold against the green of the meadow.
He approached carefully and dropped to one knee. His fingers traced the surface of the chest, feeling the grain of the wood and the cold of the metal beneath them.
When he lifted the lid, a burst of golden light spilled out, briefly lighting up his face before fading to reveal three items laid out neatly on a bed of dark cloth.
In the center sat a wooden mask, carved with plain, austere features and a smooth surface that still held the faint smell of fresh varnish.
Below it, a heavy black coat lay perfectly folded.
The third item was a narrow-bladed dagger, the metal a flat matte gray, with a leather grip shaped to fit a closed hand.
Upon entering the Spiritual Realm, a person first awakened their class and their unique skill. Then came a common chest, carrying the items that would see them through the beginning.
They were usually basic things, made for newcomers.
"Mmm, not bad, I guess," Sora said calmly as he looked over what he'd gotten.
A light breeze drifted through his black hair while his eyes moved over the items with quiet curiosity.
"Maybe it's time to try out my skill," he said.
Sora had put in a lot of work leading up to this day. He'd trained his body, learned to control his spiritual flow, and absorbed everything he could find about classes and their skills.
He'd watched countless streams from other Players and read entire books on existing classes, all to be ready for this moment.
In the end, fate had rewarded him with a skill that let him put all of that to use.
"[Akashic Records]," he said aloud.
The moment the words left his mouth, the world began to blur, as if the boundary between reality and fantasy were fading.
Purple fractals materialized out of thin air, rewriting the space around him and giving shape to an architectural construct of impossible scale.
Shelves of dark wood rose from the ground in endless rows, climbing toward a ceiling that didn't exist, each one packed with books and tomes that creaked like old paper and worn leather under pressure.
The sunlight was swallowed by a violet luminescence radiating from the very structure of the ethereal library.
At the same time, the air around Sora filled with a faint hum. Amethyst-colored cards began to orbit him in concentric rings, each one bearing a stylized silver "F" on its back, glowing with a dim light.
Their circular motion left trails of luminous streaks that wound around him.
Sora was in awe of what he was seeing, though not confused. He already knew which skill he was going to pick, and he extended his right arm toward the swirling cards, reaching with certainty for what he wanted.
His fingers closed around one card mid-flight.
The instant he touched it, the connection to the library snapped. The crystallized vision, with its infinite shelves and violet light, collapsed in an instant, as if the veil between the real and the imagined had been pulled back into place.
But the card was still there, intact and gleaming between his fingers.
"Wow... that was," Sora said, pausing to catch his breath. "Intense."
With that, he wasted no time and turned the card to face him.
On its surface was an illustration of a blue sphere made of digits, framed in amethyst.
At the bottom of the card, written in silver: [Basic Analyze — Rank F]
Sora knew that skill. It was a basic ability used by certain classes: sages, scholars, alchemists, that kind of thing.
As he read the name in his mind, the card burst into silver flames that danced until the card was consumed entirely.
[You have acquired: Basic Analyze — F Rank]
Basic Analyze — F
The user can expel spiritual energy from their fingertips as waves capable of flooding a specific target and analyzing its structure.
The user can then read and interpret that information after the analysis, which takes longer or shorter depending on the complexity of the object.
C.D: 5s
___
"Yeah, exactly what I wanted," Sora said with a smile, pleased the skill had worked.
This wasn't a dream. He really had an EX-rank skill.
He reached out and picked up the mask carefully, feeling the smooth surface between his fingers, and activated the skill.
The process felt natural. A faint tingle ran through his fingertips, and a blue screen appeared above the object.
___
Wooden Mask — Uncommon
An uncommon wooden mask made to conceal your identity. The mask will fit the user's face perfectly, staying in place without any need for straps.
The mask also hides the wearer's username, keeping their identity a secret.
The mask will not obstruct the user's vision.
[+1 Int]
[Requirements: None]
___
Sora read through the description carefully. Nothing impressive, but decent enough for a first item.
On top of that, the ability to hide his username would be pretty useful early on. You could only set your username once you became a Player, and an Awakened wasn't considered a true Player until they cleared their first Ascension Temple.
Once you cleared one, you could pick whatever username you wanted and begin your "real legend."
That was a problem for Sora, though, since his last name drew attention wherever it went.
There wasn't a person alive who didn't know the name Idris Sieghart. Being tied to his father would only bring trouble, so the mask was a stroke of luck.
He placed it over his face, and just as the description said, it fit perfectly.
"Nice," he said, then reached back into the chest and pulled out the coat and the dagger.
He slipped the coat on in one smooth motion and tucked the dagger into his pocket.
"Alright then," the boy announced as a smile spread behind his mask. "Let the hunt begin."