Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

After reading the description of the skill, Vahn looked around and began inspecting everything around him. He could see a wavy particle in the air, and whenever he waved his hand through it, he realized it was the air itself that he could see. It was very similar to when Vahn saw a hot surface radiating heat, but now the entire airflow was visible to his eyes. When he turned his eyes to Evangeline and focused, he was surprised by what he saw. Her body turned into a 'negative' with all the colors reversed as he was able to briefly penetrate through the layers of clothes and skin on her body before looking into the interior and seeing a massive amount of compressed mana flowing through every cell of her body.Evangeline felt a chill run down her back as she turned to look at Vahn. She could see a subtle blue glow in his eyes that made her feel uncomfortable, almost like Vahn could see through her everything. She knew he had awakened something in his eyes, and now she suspected the use of the skill had something to do with 'seeing-through' things. If it weren't for the fact that Vahn's expression was of curiosity and contemplation, she might have slapped him silly for staring at her in such a manner.When Evangeline turned toward him, he wasn't able to see her expression easily because she was currently just a mass of shining blue mana in his eyes. Vahn stopped focusing his eyes and looked at the perturbed expression on her face as she asked, "Your eyes, what do they do?" Vahn could hear a mix of intrigue and a mild amount of inhibitions in her voice. After forming his thoughts in a cohesive manner, he responded, "As far as I can tell, it lets me see the magical elements in things like the air and people. I saw the massive amount of mana contained within your body and got a bit distracted. I'm sorry if I offended you."Though it was very subtle, Vahn was able to hear Evangeline sigh in relief before she turned back to her books. As she picked up her pen and started writing, she said, "For a moment, I thought you were able to see through my clothes. Do me a favor, and don't use those eyes when you're looking at me." Evangeline said the words plainly, but Vahn could hear the 'warning' contained within. He wasn't sure if she had seen through his explanation and hit upon the truth, but he decided it was best not to ask.After stretching for a bit, Vahn decided to continue processing materials to practice controlling his 'eternal flame' before he ran out of time. Though he had enough time to forge some standard equipment, he was more inclined to producing things like the [Dance of the Amazon] which he had created earlier. Since he didn't have enough time to dedicate towards the production of a high-quality item, he spent the remaining few hours preparing things for his next visit. It wouldn't be that long before his return, and then he'd have an additional three days to create more items.When there was less than an hour left, Evangeline put down her pen and spoke toward Vahn. In a somewhat emotionless voice, she said, "You'll be leaving soon, and I've used up a fair amount of mana maintaining this space. I also used quite a bit in my earlier display when I tested your weapon. Since you've obtained plenty of benefits in your time here, I'll be expecting more sweets and books in the future."Vahn had been listening to her speak and started organizing his tools as she stared at him with her icy blue eyes. The moment he placed down the last tool, he could feel his body become slightly weightless and he said, "I can move on my own, you don't have to force me." Evangeline ignored his words before dragging his body toward the bed and setting him down on top of it. She then crawled onto the bed before sitting in his lap and facing him with a blank expression on her face.Vahn stared into her eyes for a moment before closing his and relaxing with his arms loosely wrapped around her back. Evangeline placed her palms on his shoulders before bitting into his neck so that she could suck his blood. As it was the third time she had drained his blood, Vahn had made the proper mental preparations and wasn't affected by the initial bite or the warmth that started spreading in his body.Since she had learned her lesson from the previous incident, Evangeline didn't overexert herself by trying to drain Vahn's blood faster than he could replenish it. Instead, she drained his blood in a much slower fashion and drew out the time until just before Vahn was to be ejected from the orb.Vahn had been feeling pleasant for the entire process, so he didn't utter a single word or complaint till the moment his body began to dissolve. Since the process always started from his legs, Evangeline eventually fell slightly onto her butt when his legs disappeared. She looked at his vanishing figure with a blank expression and said, "Make sure you bring more stuff when you return. These books won't last for four years. I also want wine and other baked goods, not just cake."Vahn released a humorous sigh as he smiled toward Evangeline and said, "Don't worry, I won't forget, Evangeline." At this point, he had disappeared up to his torso, but right before Vahn completely vanished, he reached out his hand and pat the small girl on the head. She immediately frowned before knocking away his hand and saying in a sharp voice, "Don't treat me like a child, and call me Master! M-A-S-T-E-R!"In response to her outrage, Vahn just laughed as the last remnants of his body disappeared. He wanted to retort that, after his dream, he couldn't help but see her as anything more than a child that just wanted to be spoiled. Of course, though he kept this thought in his mind, he would never say it out loud. Vahn knew that her trauma had been caused by her long life and immature figure, and it would be the same as treating her tragic life as a joke. Since she was treating him better, he intended to find a few sweets that the other girls liked before bringing them back for Evangeline to try.Vahn opened his eyes back in the real world and looked around in a manner similar to how he had within the orb. The same as then, he could see everything around in an incredible amount of detail. Not only the air, but Vahn could see rainbow colored particles floating around if he focused his eyes. He understood that they were the elemental energies naturally present in the world, and he could even influence them a bit if he expanded his domain. Presently, he could easily manipulate the fire elements, but he only had a marginal amount of control over all the others.After focusing for a few minutes, Vahn felt like his eyes were 'swelling', like there was a pressure coming from the inside, so he decided to stop focusing his sight. He noticed that, the harder he focused, the more energy it took to maintain the vision. Vahn was a little confused about why, since it seemed to be the passive effects of the ability, it used energy and focus to maintain the effect. He attributed it to his inability to use the ability properly. With that thought in mind, Vahn decided to head toward the training area since it was still pretty early.Strangely, when Vahn left his room, Anubis wasn't present for the first time. Scanning his eyes toward her room, Vahn noticed that he couldn't perceive her aura like he had been able to in the past. Vahn felt a little worried, so he expanded his domain to cover more than 300m, which was large enough to encompass the entirety of the house. Closing his eyes to focus, Vahn realized there were no presences other than himself within his mind. Turning his attention to his minimap, the blue signals that would typically represent allies were also missing, which confirmed his suspicions. Presently, even though it was only around 7 AM, there was nobody in the house other than himself.Vahn looked around the property a bit and even investigated the two rooms where the children stayed. Seeing that there was no damage or signs of a fight, Vahn assumed nothing had happened, and they were likely taken out by Anubis early in the morning. Since it was the weekend and they had time off, Vahn didn't think it was beyond the realm of possibilities. He had just grown so accustomed to Anubis in the past few days that it was a bit unnatural for her not to be around.While he was walking toward the training area, Vahn realized he would have been able to detect if there was a problem due to the fact that he slept with his domain spread. Nothing had triggered throughout the night, and the time he had spent in the orb was actually only a few seconds in reality. He still had difficulty wrapping his head around the time dilation when moving to and from the space within the orb.After allaying his own concerns, Vahn focused his mind after arriving at the training area so he could recover the energy he had expended earlier. Once he had recovered to his optimal state, Vahn opened his eyes and wanted to try the active ability of his [Eyes of Truth]. The description was a bit vague, but recalling the birth and destruction of the cosmos from his dream, Vahn felt like there was a lot of potential hidden in the skill 'Oblivion'.Vahn spread out his domain to encompass the entire training field and focused his eyes on a large stone roller that had been set up for weight training. The colors of the stone inverted, and Vahn was able to see its internal structure which comprised of inert and earth elemental energy. It looked a lot like static, and it was difficult to keep his focus on the object because of the variation in its composition and depth. It was almost like his vision was able to sift through the object like he was visually pushing through particles of sand.Taking several deep breaths, Vahn tried to focus on an individual point within the rock as he activated 'Oblivion'. The moment he activated his skill, he was able to see a small light appear within the stone roller, but the moment he stared at it, it blinked out of existence and Vahn felt a painful headache as a large amount of energy was drained from his body. It took a few minutes, but Vahn was finally able to recover and stabilize his breathing.Vahn was confused about how to use the skill, so he kept reading the description while trying to make sense of some hidden principle he didn't understand. The light he had seen inside the rock was eerily reminiscent of the small light that had led to the birth of an entire universe, and Vahn actually hoped that wasn't the case. If he 'accidentally' created a cosmos within the rock, there was a chance he would destroy the entire record, himself included.Considering his current soul tier and the strength of his other Innate skills, Vahn assumed this wasn't the case, but he was still a bit unnerved by the tiny light that consumed nearly half of his energy in an instant. After recovering his energy, Vahn began analyzing the rock with his sight again to see if he could find any changes. No matter how long he looked, he couldn't find any changes to the structure and composition of the rock.Taking a deep breath to prepare himself for the large energy expenditure, Vahn tried to focus on a specific point of the rock as he recalled the description of 'Oblivion', which said, 'All things in creation are born from and return to oblivion.' Vahn felt like the keywords were 'born' and 'return', so he tried focusing on the aspect of 'return' as he directed his intent inside the stone roller. He had assumed that the light he saw earlier was 'birth', so now he wanted to apply the opposite principle.The moment the skill activated, Vahn could see a black, translucent sphere expand from the point where his vision was focused. Vahn could feel his energy begin to deplete rapidly the larger the sphere grew, so he stopped channeling the skill and noticed that the sphere immediately vanished. Releasing a long sigh, Vahn fell onto his butt and drew long breaths as he tried to recover his energy. Once his breathing stabilized, he crossed his legs and tried to meditate while focusing on the [Mantra of Eternity]. Though he had yet to understand a single part of it, Vahn had learned that focusing on the sound made his mental energy replenish faster.After recovering his energy, Vahn focused his eyes on the stone roller once again to see if there had been any changes. The moment his vision penetrated to the core of the roller, Vahn noticed that there was now a void within the interior of the structure. Curious, Vahn approached the roller and split it in two with a quick chop of his hand. With the [Fist Strike] skill he had learned from Tiona, Vahn was able to insert his energy into his hands and shape it during strikes. This time, he used his energy like a blade and bisected the stone roller with ease.As expected, Vahn was able to confirm that what his vision had seen was accurate. The entire inside of the stone roller now had a spherically shaped void which was previously solid stone. Vahn was able to confirm the second use of the 'Oblivion' skill, which seemed to give him the ability to 'return', or 'destroy', matter. There wasn't even any dust on the inside and the spherically shaped hollow was almost flawless as if it had been polished for hours.Now that he had confirmed the second ability, Vahn wanted to try using the first ability to 'birth' or 'create'. After a bit of consideration, Vahn decided to focus his vision on the air instead of the inside of an object. Since there was nothing for his vision to be drawn to, it was actually far more difficult to pinpoint his vision on a specific spot. After failing several times, Vahn finally managed to keep his vision focused long enough to trigger the creation ability of 'Oblivion'. Since he still had a bit of inhibition about accidentally creating an entire cosmos, Vahn tried to focus his intent on a specific material.In the middle of the air, where Vahn's vision was focused, a bluish dot appeared and slowly began to increase in size. Unlike the black sphere, the energy drain of the blue sphere was incredibly exhaustive. By the time the sphere had grown to the size of a marble, Vahn had nearly collapsed into a state of 'Mind Down'. After he cut off the ability, the blue light disappeared and a small metal ball fell from the air. Though he was still struggling for air, Vahn moved forward and picked up the flawless, silver, bearing that he had created from nothing. The material he had tried to create was Iron, and he had managed to make around a tenth of a gram at the expense of almost all of his energy.A/N: Pure Iron looks like silver, but is less reflective. Google is your friend.)(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Jiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-','Aggressively stares at nothing','Missing Puppers, please call the owner if found')

With the overexertion he felt, Vahn had to take a break for nearly two hours to recover his mental energy. By the time he had finished experimenting with [Eyes of Truth], it was near time for lunch and Vahn was a bit confused why everyone was still away. Since he was told not to do any work on the weekends, Vahn decided he would go out into the City before heading toward the Hostess of Fertility for a late lunch. Considering the time he spent in the dungeon, the nine days he was in a coma, and the six days he had been awake, it had been a long time since Vahn visited. A lot had changed in the time, and Vahn was looking forward to meeting Chloe again.After securing the formations on his house, Vahn made his way along the sidepath of Tsubaki's manor before stopping outside the entrance and heading inside. He hadn't seen Naaza and Lili for nearly a week, and now that he had time, Vahn wanted to talk to the two girls a bit and invite them to eat lunch. Strangely, the perpetually open front door of Tsubaki's manor was closed and Vahn realized the door was locked. Curious, Vahn expanded his domain and tried to sense if anyone was present. No matter how long he searched, Vahn was unable the presence of the three girls.Vahn frowned, unsure of what was going on for both residences to be empty. The only time Tsubaki would ever be away is if she was leading the Hephaestus Familia into the dungeon on an expedition. But, even if that was the case, Vahn was certain she would have informed him, and it didn't explain why Lili and Naaza were also missing. He began to suspect that there was something going on behind the scenes that he wasn't told about, but couldn't understand what would involve the members of both residences.After waiting inside Tsubaki's courtyard for nearly twenty minutes, Vahn heard a sound emitting from his stomach to indicate he was still hungry. Releasing a sigh, Vahn shook his head and decided there wasn't anything that could happen, especially if they were all together. Pulling out a piece of seasoned jerky, Vahn began making his way leisurely toward the Hostess of Fertility. Vahn also figured he could stop by Hephaestus's workshop and obtain answers directly from her.As he wasn't in a hurry, Vahn spent his time watching the people and taking in the sights of the City. Though it wasn't his first time walking the route, everything seemed new with his enhanced perception and eyesight. The auras of everyone were a lot more clear than they were in the past, and Vahn could now identify the approximate strength of people at a glance. He was even able to see some relatively normal people that had large auras, and Vahn knew they were likely gods and goddesses of low ranked Familia. Vahn had never realized how many strong auras were in the City, and it made him feel a bit more humbled regarding his own strength.Along the way, there were several girls that tried calling out to him, but Vahn just gave them polite smiles and a curt nod before continuing forward without slowing. Compared to the looks girls gave him in the past, Vahn could see a bit of a fervor in their expressions now and he was far more susceptible to their auras and spontaneous affections toward him. Though he knew none of them actually had feelings for him, Vahn was somewhat proud of the attention he was receiving. Even he had noticed how rapidly his looks had changed over the last week or so, and felt like he had hit a growth spurt and was maturing rapidly.After nearly two hours, Vahn arrived outside the Hostess of Fertility and paused outside the doors like he had done so many times in the past. The aroma coming from the slightly ajar doors made him feel nostalgic, and he somewhat missed coming here every day for dinner. It had been even longer since he came on his own, so Vahn was looking forward to seeing and interacting with Chloe if she was working today.Entering into the familiar pub, Vahn couldn't help but smile as he took in the sights that he had grown attached to in the past. However, his smile changed a bit as a curious expression appeared on his face when he saw the two new girls that were attending customers. Though he couldn't see Chloe around, Vahn did see two new, yet familiar faces attending to customers that he had been curious about in the past.One of them, a beautiful young woman with light-grey hair and light-grey eyes, noticed his appearance and gave him a curious look before she smiled widely and approached Vahn. He recognized the girl as Syr Flova, one of the main characters that had been present within the manga. Vahn had been curious where she was all the other times he visited, but could never breach the subject since it didn't make sense for him to know about her.Once Syr got near Vahn, she said in a cheerful tone, "Welcome to the Hostess of Fertility. Will you be dining in with us?" As she asked the question, Syr was giving Vahn an appraising look with a gentle smile on her face. Vahn was somewhat influenced by the atmosphere and returned her smile, but instead of answering her question, he asked, "Is Chloe not working today?"Syr tilted her head sideways with her index finger on her chin as she made a pleasant 'Hnnnnn?' sound before asking, "You know Chloe? Don't tell me, are you Vahn Mason?" When she asked the question, Vahn felt like she had a glimmer in her eye and he even noticed her aura expanded by a slight margin. The reaction had stunned Vahn a bit, because he had never seen such a large aura on a mortal girl before.Noticing the strange look he was giving her, Syr thought he was confused about why she knew who he was, so she explained, "Ah, don't misunderstand. I heard about you from the other girls when I came back. I had been visiting Melen to assist in setting up a different pub for the last few months. When I came back, I heard all kinds of rumors, not just from the girls, but from the customers as well. You're quite famous, Vahn."Hearing her words, Vahn felt his pride well up a bit as he asked, "It seems you know me, but may I ask who you are?" Vahn tried to be both polite while asking the question with a smile on his face. Syr was one of the people he had intended to meet when he came to the City, and now that he finally got to see her unique beauty, he was very satisfied. Every time he saw one of the characters from the manga in the flesh, Vahn always felt like he had reunited with someone he hadn't seen in a long time.Syr was a bit surprised with how 'familiar' and 'casual' Vahn was acting on their first meeting. Compared to most girls, she had an incredibly discerning eye, and for some reason, she felt like Vahn was strangely very familiar with her. Curious, she asked with a gentle expression and a warm smile on her face, "Have you never heard of me before?" As she asked the question, Vahn saw the same glimmer in her eyes that he had seen earlier.Vahn shook his head as if to deny her question, but he also said, "I had known there was a beautiful ashen-haired beauty that worked at the Hostess of Fertility, but I never had the opportunity to meet her." Vahn turned his eyes to the other woman he had seen earlier and continued, "The one I have truly never heard of is that elven girl." Though Syr had detected there was a bit of misinformation in Vahn's voice, she could also tell he was somehow being 'sincere', which was very confusing to her.Syr turned her head to see where he was looking at and saw the elf, Ryuu Lion, the girl that had accompanied her to Melen. With a smile on her face, she turned to Vahn and explained, "Hnn, that girl is named Ryuu Lion, and my name is Syr Flova, just to answer your question from earlier." When she introduced her name, she saw the 'familiarity' in Vahn's eyes increase as his smile widened and he responded, "It is nice to meet you, Ms. Flova."Hearing the way Vahn addressed her, and the strange emphasis he put on the words, Syr couldn't help but laugh a bit as she squinted her eyes at Vahn. Because of his apparent familiarity with her, it actually sounded strange when he addressed her with her last name. After she laughed, she showed a cheerful smile and said, "Please, Vahn, just call me Syr. I've already heard so much about you, that it already feels like we're close friends. Please treat me well in the future."Vahn nodded his head and, with a smile on his face, said, "Of course, Syr." Hearing the way he said her name, Syr almost laughed for a second time as she showed Vahn to a booth. Unlike the emphasis he placed on her last name, he spoke her first name with the same familiarity she had sensed from him previously. She had no doubts that Vahn had known about her, but she was somewhat curious about the source and reason why he would do so. No matter how she looked at him, there didn't seem to be a single malicious bone in his body; it was almost like he was a kid that had just recently found his way into the world.After taking his order, Syr tended to other customers and made polite conversation with everyone. Vahn had followed her periodically with his eyes, and he noticed she was incredibly popular amongst the regulars in the pub. She seemed to remember everyone's name and livened up the atmosphere of the pub on her own. There were a few times when he had been staring at her, that she would look back and make eye contact with him before showing her characteristic cheerful smile.Vahn had ordered the spaghetti that he had the very first time he visited the Hostess of Fertility, and it was a strangely nostalgic feeling as he enjoyed the savory meat sauce and delicious noodles. Meeting the remaining members of the Hostess of Fertility, Vahn began to think more about the original story and the plot that should take place in the future. He knew that he had irrevocably changed how events would play out, but he still had a bit of anticipation for what was to come.Though he had every intention of marrying Hephaestus and Eina and even planned to continue his relationships with other pivotal characters like Ais and Tiona, Vahn still had a few desires that he had possessed since the moment he arrived in this record. He still wanted to join the Hestia Familia, and he also wanted to meet Bell and adventure together. Though he was currently much stronger than Bell and had likely changed the events that would transpire, Vahn still wanted to associate with the protagonist of the original story. Vahn had always admired his character and thought they could be good friends in the future.Vahn had a happy smile on his face as he enjoyed the delicious food while imagining what would take place in the future. So much had changed for him recently, and there were now many things he wanted to see and experience in this world. While he was lost in thought, he could sense two auras approaching him and turned to see Syr escorting Ryuu who had a plain look on her face. Vahn could see that her aura was somewhat mellow, and there was a surprising lack of emotions in both her aura and on her face.Syr had been slightly pushing Ryuu forward as she began introducing the two, "Ryuu, this is Vahn Mason, the boy concerning all of the recent rumors. Vahn, this is Ryuu Lion, she has been working here for a few years and is quite a popular girl." As the two had approached, Vahn wanted to make a good impression so he stood to receive them.Since he had read several books on customs and traditions, Vahn actually gave a proper elven greeting as he bowed slightly toward Ryuu and held her left hand in his right palm and said, "It is good to meet you, Ms. Lion." Syr's eyes had widened when Vahn grabbed Ryu's hand, while Ryu herself stared at the touching palms before turning her face away slightly and saying, "It is nice to meet you as well, Vahn Mason."After she finished her words, she pulled her hand away from him and quickly returned to her duties. Vahn followed her back with his eyes and couldn't help but smile a bit after hearing the notification from his system. Generally speaking, whenever Vahn first met someone, they would have an affection value of 50(neutral), but after he had taken Ryuu's hand for the greeting, her affection had jumped 21 points in a single go. He didn't know how he was able to make such an impact on her in their first meeting but was glad he was able to do so. Though it never went over it in the manga, at least till the volumes he had read, Vahn knew Ryuu had a tragic past of her own. If he could, he wanted to help her overcome it in the future.Syr looked at Vahn with an incredibly curious expression on her face as she watched him stare at the back of Ryuu. She could see that he treated Ryuu with the same type of familiarity as he showed her, and it was an incredibly interesting and peculiar matter to consider. She even suspected that he knew about Ryuu's aversion to letting people touch her and that she had placed a certain significance regarding men that grabbed her hands. If it weren't for the clear eyes and naive face of the handsome young boy, Syr would have considered Vahn the scheming type. But, no matter how she looked at him, she didn't get that sense at all, and it made her interest in Vahn grow exponentially.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Poster Girls Appear','Where is Everyone?','Touching hands...LEWD!')If you'd like to support me on ******* so I can become a full-time writer, please follow this link~!https://www.*******.com/user?u=14397149I am currently at 237/640 of my goal of making this my actual job. I promise that, if I'm able to do so, I will be writing 50 chapters a week :D

Vahn felt a searing pain in his eyes as he floated weightlessly within a cold void. It felt like both of his eyes were burning, and he felt warm blood flowing between his palms as he tried using [Hands of Nirvana] to stifle the pain. However, no matter how much he willed himself to use the skill, it wouldn't activate and he could do nothing but gnash his teeth through the pain. Even his brain started to feel like it was melting, and Vahn thought he might lose his mind if things continued as they were.Suddenly, a cold sensation spread through his mind and began to combat against the debilitating heat radiating from his eyes. Vahn let out a gasp that was a mixture of relief and profound anguish. Even though the pain continues to wrack his body, the cooling sensation in his mind brought him some small comfort and allow him to protect his mind from losing itself to madness. After what seemed like several hours, the pain finally began to recede as the cooling sensation spread through the rest of his body, including his eyes which currently felt like coarse sand within his eye sockets.After several more hours, the cooling sensation returned the 'moisture' to his eyes, and Vahn no longer felt like they were compacted by hot sand. Mustering up a bit of strength, Vahn tried to open his eyes and immediately felt terrified by what he didn't see. Reaching his hands to his face, Vahn could feel that both of his eyes were opened, but he couldn't see anything. No matter where he turned, there was absolutely no light that could be picked up by his eyes. If he couldn't feel his body, Vahn would have suspected it didn't even exist.Vahn felt a sour feeling in his heart and could feel tears welling up in his sightless eyes. He tried seeking comfort by calling out to Sis in his mind, but even she didn't answer his call. Vahn felt terribly lonely at the silence and the fact he was no longer able to see. Imagining having to spend the rest of his life blind, Vahn felt a profound sadness overtake him as he recalled the faces of everyone that he had grown close to over the last few months. The idea of never being able to see their various expressions broke his heart. It wasn't the loss of his sight or his inability to fight that hurt him the most, but the fact that he would never be able to see the smiles of one of those he cared about.For what seemed like days, Vahn continued to cry as he floated weightlessly in a space that carried not a single sight or sound other than those from his own memory and body. None of his skills or abilities worked in this space, and even the system of 'The Path' couldn't be accessed. The only thing that kept Vahn from going crazy was the cooling sensation that was everpresent in his mind. He knew it was the influence of [Will of the Emperor] and found some solace knowing that he hadn't lost everything yet.After a long period of time, when Vahn had slowly started to let go of his thoughts and just allowed his body to float in space, he finally caught sight of something. Though he didn't react at first, when his mind finally processed what he had just 'seen', Vahn felt excitement well up inside of him. The tears that he thought had long dried up came back like a tidal wave as he stretched out his hand toward the tiny white light. It was so small, almost like a figment of his imagination, but Vahn knew in his heart it was real. He wanted to reach out and grab it so badly...Suddenly, the inconsequentially small light exploded with an irresistible force that quickly overtook Vahn's body. Though he could feel the explosion was more powerful than anything he could even conceive, the shockwave passed through Vahn's body without any resistance at all. Even though it was a cataclysmically devastating force, Vahn was entirely unaffected by its passage as he just bathed in the warm energies that penetrated through his body.The previously soundless and sightly space was suddenly awash with limitless colors that rapidly expanded from the origin point of the small light. Vahn could feel the energies spreading through his body, almost like they were reshaping everything that defined his previous existence. He could feel the passage of countless eons as he observed the formation of the nebula, stars, and even planets as they filled out the previously empty space that brought him so much sadness before.Vahn felt like he was watching the birth of the entire cosmos, and though he couldn't influence it in the slightest, it made him feel proud to have witnessed such a beautiful and awesome sight. The long years he had spent without a single light had impacted him deeply, and now everything within his vision brought comfort to his mind. Even the individual particles of cosmic dust that floated within the vast emptiness were infinitely interesting to him, and Vahn felt like everything had a beautiful purpose as his eyes overlooked their existence through the infinite passage of time.He had long forgotten how long he entered this space, but no matter how much time passed, Vahn was never lonely or sad anymore. Though he had a longing for something that he couldn't recall, he was satisfied with just observing the cycle of creation and destruction around him. At this moment, Vahn felt like there was order in all things, and an overwhelming sense of completion spread through every fiber of his being for having had the opportunity to observe everything taking place since its emergence from the tiny white dot.While Vahn was reveling in the sense of 'completion' in his body, all of the lights around him started slowly vanishing. Though he didn't mind it at first, as destruction was part of the natural cycle, after a large portion of the lights had extinguished, Vahn felt like there was something wrong. Looking through the void which was previously awash with an incredibly vibrant array of colors and sights, Vahn could see darkness encroaching from all directions. Though he desperately wanted to halt its advance, much like how he could do nothing to stop the spreading of the light, Vahn was unable to prevent the darkness from slowly reclaiming everything.Eventually, though an incredibly long period of time had passed, the darkness had claimed everything in what seemed like an instant. Vahn was suddenly overwhelmed by loneliness again as his eyes looked through the darkness, but could find no light. He knew that he wasn't blind, but that there was simply nothing to see at all. Even if he traveled through the void for an eternity, he may never be able to find another light like the one that had brought him so much comfort.A powerful sense of desperation welled up inside him as Vahn turned his focus to the inside of his body. Though he couldn't use 'The Path', or any of his abilities, it didn't stop him from being able to inspect the inside of his body. He was desperately looking for something, anything, which might be able to restore some of the light to this now perpetually dark world. Eventually, he found what he was looking for, deep within the core of his heart.Though he wasn't sure why it was there, Vahn had an instinctual understanding that he would be able to find it if he looked. Within his heart, or the area where he believed his heart to be, there was a small blue light very reminiscent of the white light he had previously seen long ago. Vahn wrapped his intent around it and slowly guided it along his body until the blue light emerged from his bare chest. Though there was nothing else in the space, the blue glow of the light gently illuminated his skin and his palms which cradled the light.Even though there was now a void in his heart where the blue light used to reside, Vahn felt happiness well up inside of him as he stared at the gentle blue light. Tears began to flow down his face as an image replayed itself through his mind from long ago. Moments before the original white light had expanded, Vahn had seen another figure illuminated by the white light which he desperately saw. Though he hadn't given it any attention at the time, now that he reflected on it, Vahn could see the eyes of another person reflecting the gentle white light as it looked toward him. Just as Vahn was about to reach out for the light, that was when the cycle of creation and destruction began.Now, Vahn held the gentle blue light in his hands in a manner similar to the unidentified entity from long ago. As he slowly raised up the light, he looked into the darkness and could feel a powerful sense of love spreading through his being as he saw the eyes of countless individuals peaking through the darkness and seeking out the light in his hands. They all looked sad and desperate, and they reminded Vahn of himself from a time long ago. The moment one of the entities got close, Vahn exhaled gently and the blue light in his hand exploded outwards with an irresistible force. Unlike the time when the energies had passed freely through his body, this time they tore Vahn apart, almost like the light was using his body itself to fuel the process of creation and destruction that would follow...The last desire Vahn had before he ceased to exist was a desire that his sacrifice would be able to resist the darkness for even a second longer than the white light that had brought him so much happiness.---Vahn awoke in the bed he had purchased for Evangeline and stared wide-eyed at the infinite black sky above. For a brief moment, he thought he was still stuck in that timeless place with no light, but when he felt the covers on his body he suddenly felt incredibly warm and safe. From his left, an annoyed, but gentle, voice spoke out, "Boys shouldn't be so quick to cry...you look like an idiot."Turning his head, Vahn could see Evangeline looking at him with furrowed brows as she had an expression of mock contempt on her face. However, he could see the concern in both her aura and eyes as she looked at him.Vahn couldn't help but feel happy to have some companionship after what seemed like a literal eternity of loneliness. Though he had experienced all of creation and destruction from the very beginning of time, even the 'completion' he felt then couldn't compare to a single moment of his interactions with those around him. Though he knew she would probably get mad, Vahn couldn't help but smile and say, "After what feels like an eternity, I can't help but feel grateful to wake up next to a beautiful girl."Evangeline immediately frowned at him before turning away and jumping off the bed. She spoke in an angry without looking at Vahn, "You've been asleep for almost twenty hours, aren't you supposed to be in a hurry to get better at forging? Don't waste my time with your shamelessness." Even though she was acting angry, Vahn continued to follow Evangeline's back as she returned to her desk. He could see that, when he complimented her earlier, her aura had become slightly chaotic and had a pink hue to it. For some reason, likely due to the fact she was only a memory, Vahn couldn't see the affection Evangeline had for him, but he assumed it wasn't as low as she pretended it to be.After collecting his thoughts for a few minutes, Vahn whispered out gently in his mind in a probing voice, ("Sis, are you there?") The moment the womanly voice began sounding with his mind, Vahn felt an incredible amount of relief wash over his body. Her presence had been one of the things he missed the most during his 'dream', and it wasn't until she spoke that he finally felt like he had returned. Though her words weren't very long, they brought a profoundly happy feeling to Vahn's heart as she said, (*Good morning, Vahn. I will always be here when you need me.*)Releasing a long and contented sigh, Vahn habitually inspected his system for any changes and found what he was looking for. As expected, Vahn had obtained an ability related to sight which had triggered at the moment when he was watching Evangeline's attack. It wasn't the first time the phenomenon of time slowing down had happened, so Vahn had some expectation he would develop a related skill eventually...[Eye of Truth]Rank: Innate (B) *Innate skills cannot be identified. Attempts to do so will result in a backlash.*[Passive]: Greatly increased perception and visual acuity. Absolute immunity to illusions depending on rank.[Active]: 'Oblivion'. All things in creation are born from and return to oblivion.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Dreams of Eternity','Vahn is so deep','Voyeurism')

Chapter 159: [Eyes of Truth]