Days had gone by, and Astra had been adapting, if one could call it that..to his newly found blessing.
The first few hours after meeting the mysterious devil had been deceptively calm. He had felt… fine. Unchanged, even. But then, gradually, the unease began to surface. His body no longer felt like his own. His soul pulsed strangely, his perception bending, his thoughts fracturing and reforming like reflections on rippling glass. By the end of that first night, he could barely stand. By the second, he couldn't walk at all.
Bedridden, drenched in sweat, Astra spent his days caught between feverish wakefulness and fragmented meditation. Each breath burned. Each pulse of mana sent sharp, searing pain through his mind, like a thousand needles piercing the space behind his eyes. The migraines came in violent waves so intense that even sleep felt like drowning in starlight and noise. He meditated not to find peace, but to survive it.
It was during this haze that Saint Satalus came to see him or a projection of him.
The man entered quietly, robes heavy with the faint scent of incense and iron. His gaze lingered on Astra not with pity, but with understanding. He said little at first, only observing the faint shimmer that coiled around Astra's form, the aftertaste of something not meant for mortal flesh.
He had received a debriefing of it and knew the circumstances.
The saint's tone was measured, but beneath it lay a restrained awe. He admitted the power fascinated him, though he also feared it.
He spoke then of the Kingdom of Stars a sacred realm said to belong to a long dead god. According to him, it was the only place where Astra might one day confront or purify this blessing. To be able to rid himself of this intricate level of mana , however, he would have to ascend far beyond his current strength. He would need to become a demigod, a Rank Four, capable of bending celestial realms to his will. Only then could he hope to command the latent divinity that slept within the Kingdom of Stars and perhaps, with it, free himself.
But as Astra listened, something within him resisted the thought. The idea of ridding himself of this power felt distant, uncertain. Because even in its pain, there was allure a pull he couldn't quite name.
Each passing day, he began to sense things he shouldn't. The texture of the world around him changed. Shadows whispered at the edge of his thoughts. Light bent when he breathed too deeply. And beneath it all, there was that persistent hum like a quiet melody from somewhere between stars and memory.
He didn't know if it was madness or revelation. Perhaps both.
Later, when the pain finally dulled to a manageable ache, Astra sat up and reached for his Mana Coin. Its surface pulsed faintly, light spreading through the engraved veins of metal until a new tab appeared before his eyes.
The words shimmered into view, clear and unyielding:
[Blessings & Curses]
His chest tightened as he opened it, and within, something darker awaited.
[Name:] Blessing of Curiosity][Bestowed By:] Unknown][Nature:] Blessing / Curse][Rank:] VI][Tier:] VII][Effect:] You are blessed with the curse and blessing of curiosity.
"How simple," Astra thought darkly. The words carried an unnerving calm, a false modesty. He knew power of such rank and tier was never simple.
His gaze drifted to the final section, where the coin's faint light pulsed like a heartbeat:
[Description:]Curiosity sparks the endless pursuit of truths and knowledge. Thus blessed and cursed with this burden, you shall forever seek what lies beyond the veil.
Astra exhaled slowly, the weight of the words pressing against him.
Knowledge and truth two things that had always driven him forward. But now, they felt like chains.
And as the coin dimmed in his palm, he wondered not for the first time whether curiosity was the beginning of wisdom, or simply the first step toward ruin.
"Knowing my self..probably ruin." He scoffed
Astra sat still, his fingertips still tingling from the coin's touch. His mind raced beneath a flood of sharpened sensations. The darkness of his room seemed to breathe; shadows drew crisp edges, corners deepened, the air itself trembled with unseen life. He could feel the faintest pulse of mana weaving through everything the silent current of the world, always there, now unmistakable.
And then something else.
Threads.Invisible strands interlaced through the air, luminous and impossibly fine. They pulsed faintly, connecting everything, like veins in the skin of existence itself. Fate? Destiny? He couldn't tell. But he could see them threads stretching across the room, whispering, alive.
His breath hitched. He couldn't look away. His mind tugged at them, reaching instinctively for understanding. Dangerous. Too dangerous.
Still, curiosity clawed at him. What are they? What would happen if I pulled one? If I could see more?
Just as he was about to peer more into these secrets, his intuition went haywire and then everything snapped.
His head was assaulted by a short wave of indescribable pain and he collapsed to the floor instantly. He hadn't even managed to glimpse into the threads and this was the result of his action!
When he awoke, it felt as if he'd been torn from the seams of the universe. His body trembled, drenched in cold sweat. His head pounded like a fractured drum. The room was still dark, but wrong muted, hollow. The threads and currents had vanished, or perhaps they still lingered, just beyond reach. The memory of them pulsed faintly at the edge of his mind, haunting and incomplete.
He sat up slowly, breath ragged."What the hell was that…" he whispered.
His mind felt stretched thin, as though he'd glimpsed too much. The hunger for knowledge remained but now it carried teeth.
"I'm an idiot…" he muttered, pressing a hand to his face. The temptation to look again still simmered beneath his skin, but instinct screamed against it. He wasn't ready. Not yet.
Still, even as he steadied himself, he could feel them threads brushing against the corners of his awareness. The abyss was no longer distant. It hovered close, patient, whispering.
Curiosity still gnawed at him. But now, Astra knew the cost of feeding it.
He leaned back against the wall, pulse still quick, the taste of mana thick in the air. His fingers twitched unconsciously, feeling the current flow through the space around him alive, vibrant, undeniable. The world itself hummed beneath his skin.His soul, too, had changed refined, sharpened. The colors of the room bled with strange clarity, every detail vivid beyond reason. He could see the veins of the stone, the faintest flicker of motion in the shadows. Reality itself seemed thinner, almost translucent.
Curious, a thought whispered, and Astra scoffed at the irony.The Blessing of Curiosity had done more than alter his perception it had cracked open something within him. Something thrilling. Something perilous.
"I feel like I can see through lies and illusions," Astra murmured, eyes drifting toward the window and the dim streets below. "Like I can see the truth of everything even hints of what's hidden."His gaze hardened."It's… kind of like Shadow Sword."
He thought about his blade the way it sliced through the world, weaving shadows, cutting through the dark. This felt similar… but far more intricate.
Astra could sense shadows and now partially souls to a certain range. About half a miles length if he fully exerted himself. But with this blessing, it was different as if he'd been enhanced and altered, he could sense far more than shadows, he felt as if he could fully dissect a person just by looking at them.
He could see it now the true motions of the people on the streets below, the rhythm of their bodies moving in quiet synchronicity, like strings tugged by unseen hands. He could almost feel their fates straining against destiny's pull, their lives intertwining in ways too complex to follow. The crowded streets, the soft twilight, the fireworks blooming overhead it all seemed so fragile. So impossibly delicate.
The fireworks flared again, scattering color across the dying light. Yet even as they painted the horizon in brilliance, Astra saw more the subtle shifts within the crowd, the hesitation in one person's step, the hurried stride of another drawn forward by an invisible force. The illusion of choice, the dance of strings it was all laid bare before him.
"This is gonna suck," Astra muttered under his breath, a crooked smile forming despite himself. The weight of his new awareness pressed against his mind, relentless. The hum of mana, the pulse of movement, the tangle of fate it was constant, unyielding, overwhelming.
He couldn't afford to lose himself to it. Not now. Not with everything at stake.The tournament loomed ahead a tempered plot years in the making and he could either use this opurtnity for personal gains or be left behind. Astra had made his own agenda after all.
"Did house shadow really think they could plop me in the middle of a tournament for so called personal gains." Astra scoffed. "No. Hell no!"
They wanted Astra to win sure but Astra planned to do more than that, even if he so lost, he would be given a stage to the entire world to all the realms and its billions of inhabitants. He was going to use it!
"I need to get adjusted fast," he whispered. "I've got to ascend and get the best gains possible!."
He exhaled sharply, forcing the chaos back into the depths of his mind. Focus. He needed focus.
The shower's water hit cold against his skin, shocking him back to the present. It ran down his shoulders and spine, carrying with it the static hum of his thoughts, the residue of that cursed blessing. For a moment, beneath the steady rush of water, the world went quiet. But even then eyes closed, body still he could feel it: the subtle vibration of existence, the silent threads beneath all things. It lingered, patient, waiting.
When he stepped out, his body felt alien, as though it wasn't fully his. The hum of power still thrummed deep within him, refusing to sleep. He collapsed into bed, muscles aching, mind still whirring, but exhaustion crept in and dragged him down.
His last thought before darkness took him was a simple oneTomorrow will be different.
....
Astra awoke from his slumber. He had expected the ever persistent headache of the blessing to make it self be known again yet he found himself strangely refreshed and invigorated. "Finally?" He thought both a celebration and question.
He rose from his dark silk sheets as he finally opened his eyes. his vision was fully different now. In the past few days it had been evolving and changing constantly, at times he'd see threads that lead to infinity at times he'd see the colors mute and dilate and at times he'd see them explode in vibrancy. His curiosity would sometimes roar like an insatiable desire and sometimes it would he as quiet as a serene saharan desert night.
Today however his vision was normal yet it was more. "Strange" He thought curiosity welling inside him instantly in an insidious manner. The room ever so opulent and ominous felt deeper. The shadows inhabiting the soundings were even darker and the lights illuminating the concerns of the room brighter, the colors of the bed frames and paintings as well as the flowers on the desk were more vibrant and the mana inhibiting the air felt ever so closer.
Astra shifted his vision and he saw subtle threads, clues to who had been in the room, past mana and soul signatures and even information welling up at his brain regarding the simplest to most complex tasks. It seems every time Astra would look at an object and wonder due to his curiosity his brain would instantly try to find him an answer making his memory seem even deeper and more clear than ever before.
He sighed. "Finally. I have a tournament coming up, a church to lead and scheme against and a major house's subtle influence to subdue."
Astras goals remained the same. Rise in power and ranks, Gain full control of the church and more importantly the kingdom of stars and not fall into any schemes where he would find himself dead or captured.
Right now he had a tournament to win and a statement to make, Astra had decided wholeheartedly the best way to increase his influence with the church of night and its people as well as the followers of the night god. He needed a bold proclamation, To rise as a star wielding divine power as he proclaims his cause.
He smiled darkly as he thought about his plans ahead, unbeknownst to him the blessing had also made him sharper, his plans instantly shifted and adapted as he saw an even bigger picture.
Astra stood up and as he did the light shifted. A nice warm spring breeze flew in from his opulent window the violet skies illuminating the ground with a dark hue.
His eyes lingered for a moment as he slowly readjusted himself. Astra decided to busy himself with stretches and mana exercises.
....
In a realm uncharted by mortals or saints, a realm suspended beyond the Six, the sky was nothing but a lattice of golden threads stretching into eternity. They glimmered like the veins of a sleeping god, humming with secrets too old for language. Between them hung a silence that felt ancient, patient, and watchful.
At the center of this endless weave rose a single spire of bright white marble. It pierced the heavens like a blade, its surface swallowing every glimmer of the golden strands that dared drift too close. No reflection lived upon its walls; the tower was a wound in creation, a monolith that refused to belong to the tapestry around it.
Within its highest chamber, a room of onyx floors and suspended crystal lights, an angel and a devil sat opposite one another, a polished marble table between them.
A board lay on that table.Jesters and Knights.A game played by mortals and the divine alike. Invented by Atlas himself after the Age of the Gods.
The Angel of Shadows, rested one hand lightly upon the edge of the board. Darkness wrapped around his form like a living cloak, its whispers too soft for even devils to hear. His features were sculpted with a celestial severity: hair like night's first fall, skin pale as moonlit marble, eyes so profoundly dark they seemed to pull the world inward.
With a graceful flick of his fingers, Veylith slid his bishop piece forward, intercepting the devil's blasphemer with perfect precision.
Across from him, the devil smiled.
He wore tattered cloth the color of desert smoke, as though he had wandered through storms that did not belong to this world. His eyes shifted hue with every blink — emerald to sapphire, sapphire to molten gold — never once deciding on a single truth. His posture was effortless, almost lazy, the kind that belonged to someone who could tilt reality with a whim.
He exhaled a sigh that was half amusement, half disappointment.
"You still play like a obedient shadow, Veylith. Straight lines, rigid choices."
He nudged his demon piece forward. The movement was deceptively gentle.
The consequence was not.
Every shadow in the chamber recoiled. The golden threads outside the spire vibrated like plucked strings. Even the symbols etched into the marble table trembled.
The devil leaned back, eyes flickering with a bright, merciless certainty.
"Checkmate."
The angel paused, considering the board with a long, deliberate silence. He finally lowered his hand and allowed a faint, resigned smile.
"I yield. The match is yours."
The devil's laughter burst out in a bright, ringing tone.
"Of course it is. I have already seen the ending. Fate placed this victory in my hands long before your first move."
The Angel of Shadows rolled his eyes with the weary dignity of one who had heard this claim too often.
"Fate is not a chain, devil. It can be broken."
"By mortals, perhaps," the devil replied, "but not by you."
The room grew still.
The air thickened.
The shadows coiled around Veylith as though sensing the shift in his mood. His eyes darkened until they were twin abysses.
"You overstep. The boy belongs to us. Yet you interfered. You branded him with curiosity. Explain yourself."
The accusation struck the chamber like a divine judgment.Even the eternal threads outside faltered.
But the devil simply smiled.
"You call the heir of Night your asset? How narrow your view remains." His eyes flashed with cruel amusement. "Even now, after millennia, you cannot see the breadth of his fate. And you call yourself a pinnacle-tier angel."
The insult hung in the air, sharp as a blade.
The devil placed one clawed hand upon the board and whispered, almost affectionately:
"The boy's path may eclipse the designs of your entire House. That is why I touched him. That is why I dared."
He raised one of his seven fingers toward the shimmering heavens. Each finger glowed with a different light, as though each one belonged to a different being entirely.
"I am the a devil the Harbinger of Truths. In these fractured realms, not even the gods dare place chains upon me."
The Angel of Shadows gaze narrowed.
"You do not speak your true name anymore. And for all your boasts, you sound like someone posturing to hide his fear. Harbinger of twisted truths… I think you bluff."
A slow, cold smile spread across the devil's lips.
"Then test me. I have grown far more since that encounter with Lord Bizzaro."
Inwardly The Angel of Shadows was at awe. He knew that the Harbinger of Twisted truths had clashed with the God Lord Bizzaro, but the rumors were that the devil barely managed to escape with his life after encountering a avatar of the God in an unknown realm searching for traces of a godhood, this caused the rank seven Sin to personally descend from his unholy realm and clash with the devil!. A rank six being of pinnacle tier can escape certain gods if they are lucky, it has happened before, but a rank six having rank seven-godly battle strength was unheard of, it had perhaps happened once or twice in the last ten thousand years!
"Never the less, win or lose I must see his true strength, he needs to be gauged for future schemes" The Angel thought in an instant, he was confident in his strength to escape even gods, he feared not a devil even if he potentially bore rank seven godly battle strength.
The Angel of Shadows rose from his seat. Shadows rose with him, unfurling like wings. The devil stood in turn, the air around him rippling as if space itself recoiled.
The golden threads outside the tower began to shudder and twist.The spire groaned.The realm trembled under the weight of the power gathering.
The devil snapped his fingers.
Reality folded.
The angel and devil vanished.
And the world of threads convulsed, shaking as though some primordial beast had awakened at last.