Mana flowed through him, not as a rush, not as fire tearing through veins, but as if an old, forgotten stream had simply remembered its course.
It began behind his eyes, a soft pulse that sent terror lancing through him. He had felt pulses before... false hopes, failed grafts of mana that ended in searing pain and temporary blindness.
His body stiffened, waiting for the agony. Waiting for another collapse.
But the pain never came.
And then he saw.
The vision reflected in his eyes was impossibly clear now. If he had to compare to his previous sight... it would be like switching from a blurry image to the highest possible resolution.
It was like he was seeing another world altogether.
"Pretty neat, huh?" Dorian's jovial voice rang beside him.
"...Yeah," he could only agree absent-mindedly.
He never realized how much agony and pain he was in until some of his damaged circuits healed.
Now the constant stings had lessened, and his eyes could spot the smallest details with complete clarity.
Too bad the rest of the circuits on his upper veins were still a wreck.
'No, I can't be that greedy... this is already more than enough as a gift... the rest, I'll figure it out myself,' Ashen thought resolutely.
'...And this isn't even the end of surprises, it seems...' He mentally summoned his status's innate powers screen.
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[4. Abilities]
Innate Powers:
—Beholder's Eyes
—Twin souls
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It went from ##### Eyes to Beholder's Eyes, now carrying a name. He noted.
He tried to mentally recall the eye's previous description so he could make the comparison later... and surprisingly, it actually popped up, despite it being outdated.
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##### Eyes
Once the eyes of an entity that shaped destiny, now stripped of their primordial power and dormant ego. A new consciousness has awakened within them; a nascent will that sees its host as parent and master.
Current State:
Boundless Evolution: The eyes grow according to their host's will and actions, adapting infinitely, though their roots in time and fate nudge their development.
"A god's eyes reduced to a seedling—yet what grows may eclipse the original."
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'This thing even has a history option now...?'
Anyway... Let's see the real deal now... Ashen pulled up Beholder's Eyes' detailed description with thoughts bubbling in anticipation.
==============================
Beholder's Eyes
Once mere remnants of a god's vision, these eyes have been reborn through the union of divinity and truth. Their nascent will now hungers not only to grow, but to know.
Current State:
Boundless Evolution: The eyes grow according to their host's will and actions, adapting infinitely. Their roots in time and fate still shape their path.
Truth's Gaze: When suffused with enough mana, the eyes may open a Fragment of History, a construct of a pivotal moment where destiny turns.
Fate Resonance: Truth's Gaze triggers only in the presence of one whose destiny is tightly bound to the host. This companion is drawn into the fragment alongside them. The trigger is not immediate; it occurs only when fate aligns.
Worldstride: Within the fragment, the host may act by inhabiting a key figure of that era or manifesting in their own body to bend events to their will.
Fate's Reward: At the fragment's end, the host and companion receive a boon, shaped by how far they altered the course of that history and its effect on the fate of the possessed, whether for better or worse.
Fatal Consequence: The fragment is no dream. Pain is real, and death within it claims the body and soul alike. Those who fall here leave nothing behind.
"Eyes that no longer merely see; they behold. What they witness, they may change. What they change, they must survive."
==============================
Ashen was flabbergasted.
When the eyes had been described as boundless evolution, he hadn't expected the claim to be this literal. Yet here it was, absurdly proving itself true.
With so many new features, he had no choice but to acknowledge it.
As he sifted through the additions, a rough picture began to form.
First, Truth's Gaze. It seemed to stem partly from the Whisp's conceptual power to see the truth, and partly from boundless evolution still being tethered to time and fate. Or so Ashen guessed.
'It seems time took the lead in this… past time, to be precise,' he mused.
But the thought of such an outrageous ability didn't bring him joy. Ashen had long since learned that nothing in this world came free. Everything had its price.
His eyes skimmed further, searching for the cost... and it didn't take long.
Fatal Consequence.
'So if I screw up, I die… even if it's just a projection, not real in any way.'
Ashen wasn't disappointed. He had already drilled the truth into his skull: just as a coin has two sides, so does everything else.
Power, people, rules; every one of them hid something sharp beneath the surface.
This, at least, was comforting. Now that he knew the penalties, he could wield the power without fearing hidden traps along the way.
Which led him to the abilities that defined that power—the other side of the coin.
'Worldstride… and Fate's Reward. Sounds promising. Probably born from my craving for more strength,' Ashen concluded.
Lastly, Fate Resonance...
Ashen felt complicated as he read this part, because he was pretty sure it came to be not out of his own will, but his dormant twin's will somehow affecting the evolution direction of the innate power alongside him.
Boundless evolution was first and foremost guided by the host's will. And the older self was as much a host as the younger self, with twin souls in play.
Fate's resonance had probably manifested due to his older self's intense yearning not to leave his loved ones behind... Not to watch them die again.
With this, he could at least give them a better chance at fighting against their fate.
Ashen was glad that this manifested this way. Even if it was objectively a massive downgrade, since now, he was unable to trigger the ability at will.
At first, when he heard the regressor's tale... how all his loved ones died one by one, leaving him the last to stand in a ruined world... he was shaken, but he still didn't grasp the true devastation hidden in those words.
He had never experienced them, after all.
No matter how estranged he was with his family, with Alice... they were still alive and well.
But that all changed after experiencing that nightmare.
"You seem pretty deep in thought there... is everything okay?" Dorian's curious voice pulled him out of his inner thoughts.
The man was content to stay silent, lightly chilling on that broken chair, like he was sunbathing on a sunlit beach.
"Yeah, sorry for spacing out there. I was checking the gains..." Ashen grinned cheekily.
"Oh? You seem pretty happy... somethin' nice happen?"
"You could say that. Wanna know?"
"Hmm... Nah, not interested..." Dorian waved carelessly.
"...Really? That plant was your gift, you sure don't wanna know how it turned out?" Ashen raised an eyebrow in surprise.
He then shook his head. "Well, it doesn't matter. Thank you, uncle. I really mean it—this may not only help me but also those close to me... if there's anything you need..."
Ashen spoke with complete sincerity, but was forced to stop upon seeing Dorian's particularly weird expression.
And it was getting weirder by the second.
"...Kid, I don't think you understand... to you, such things may look great, incredible, even... But..." Dorian cast him a helpless look. "To me, it's more of a father afraid his kid will hurt himself while picking flowers out in the garden, so he just brought him some safety gloves..."
He then cast him a really gentle look. "So now you can go out and play to your heart's content on Seravelle... uncle here is finally relieved to let you go without any problems."
'...Gotta hand it to him when it comes to messing up heartfelt moments...' Ashen felt a vein throb on his temple.
He really wanted to bash his face in.
"damnit, uncle, you're as insufferable as ever. I'm outta here~"
Dorian loudly sighed and shook his head exaggeratedly as he watched his retreating back. "Ahh~ today's kids... they bolt the moment they get their grandparents' gifts! No tact at all, I swear!"
"Is that your attempt at making me feel guilty? Gotta try harder, old man!"
"Bah! You can scram for all I care... shoo shoo..." Dorian flipped his tune and started shooing him away.
Ashen didn't even turn back as he waved his hand in farewell.
Dorian's voice rang again as he reached the barely hanging door. "...Ashen."
It was surprisingly somber, with none of the earlier playful energy.
Ashen turned his head back, curious. "...Yes?"
"I'm sorry for vanishing for so long... I didn't mean to."
"..." Ashen froze for an instant before the feelings he had held since their meeting burst forth.
It wasn't resentment or bitterness; it was happiness at being reunited with a person he considered family, at last.
Dorian's apology was what allowed the stubbornness holding them back to finally dissolve.
"No need for apologies between us, uncle... I'm just... glad that you're back," he grinned.
"If you say so," Dorian returned the same grin.
"Well, I'll return in six months then," Ashen spoke meaningfully.
"I'll be here waiting, don't worry. So go on, son, show them hell," Dorian spoke, giving a gentle nod, sounding genuine for once in his praise.
Ashen could only manage a silent nod as he walked out, afraid that any more would let a tear drop.
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