Just a quick heads up. Anything in the chapter which is underline l͟i͟k͟e͟ t͟h͟i͟s͟ i will be giving my thoughts on that line at the end of the chapter. To explain a few things or just why i decided to make it that way.
Anyways i hope you enjoy.
When I opened my eyes, I found myself floating in a black void lit by a scatter of distant stars.
"Huh? Where am I?" My mind was foggy, like I had just woken up from a deep sleep.
This wasn't a place I recognized. The most logical conclusion was also the most ridiculous one.
"…Wait. Is this some kind of isekai bullshit?"
No matter how many isekai stories people read, they never actually expect to end up in one. I was no different. Still, I'd be lying if I said I hadn't imagined it once or twice… or a hundred times.
Then, before I could convince myself otherwise, something shifted. It was like a mental slap that wiped away any lingering doubts about where I was or what was happening.
[Dreamer Talion, Receive your boon!]
'Wait wait wait... I've seen this before!'
The realization hit me a second before the voice spoke again.
[You have been bestowed a True Name: Grave Walker.]
A True Name. There was no denying it now — I was in the world of Shadow Slave. And judging by what the Nightmare Spell was saying, "I" had apparently completed my first Nightmare.
But wait, Talion wasn't my real name... So it made things more clear i wasn't even in my own body this was someone else, Now I just hoped whoever's body I was in wasn't ugly. Not for any particular reason i just didn't want to be in the body of a random ugly npc.
But i had just received a true name, So this guy must have struggled a lot to get it, And now here I was, reaping the rewards.
Oh well. I'd use it properly.
[Your Aspect is ready to evolve. Evolve aspect?]
'What happens if i say no?' I didn't have the guts to test that out, though.
'Let's leave that kind of risk to someone else,' I thought, then said clearly, "Yes."
[Dormant Aspect Blood Scribe is evolving...]
'Blood Scribe, huh. Sounds ominous. Cool name though.'
[New Aspect acquired.]
[Aspect Rank: Divine.]
"Let's fucking go!"
Even though I'd received a True Name, I still wasn't sure if that automatically qualified me for a Divine-ranked Aspect. For all I knew, maybe even Sacred Aspect holders could get one too. Not that Sacred ranked aspect's were unwelcomed — seven cores just sounded way better than one.
[Aspect Name: Death's Fortune.]
'Good name, I guess?' Death had a nice, powerful ring to it. It definitely raised my expectations.
I summoned my runes and began to read.
Aspect:[Death's Fortune.]
Aspect Rank: Divine.
Aspect Description: [You carry the blessing of death itself. Where others see only ruin and silence, you find opportunity and growth. Death does not stalk you as an enemy — it walks beside you as your greatest ally.]
Innate Ability: [R͟e͟t͟u͟r͟n͟ b͟y͟ d͟e͟a͟t͟h͟].
Ability Description: [Moments are quietly marked along your path, glimpses of what may come flashing before your eyes. When your life ends, you awaken at one of these points, given a chance to endure where you once fell. Each survival reshapes the moments ahead, silently preparing you for what is to come.]
I skimmed the Aspect description. Most of it sounded poetic and vague. From what I understood, my Aspect was somehow tied to death. Beyond that, I wasn't sure.
However continuing onwards my gaze landed on the innate ability: Return by death.
"What the fuck?" I muttered. Unlike those cliché, stupid characters, I wasn't the type to just mutter my thoughts out loud — but I think this situation was surprising enough to warrant it.
I could already tell what my ability did just from the name alone. I mean, only an idiot wouldn't.
Still, I read through the description anyway.
Yeah. Royally fucked — that's what anyone sensible would call this situation.
I honestly didn't know whether to be happy or miserable about getting an innate ability called Return by Death, of all things.
Some would call it a blessing, others would call it a curse.
I was leaning more toward the latter.
Even though I hadn't experienced it myself, the pain of death is no joke.
So, after consulting with an "adult" — which was just me — I came to the conclusion that simply not dying was the only thing I could do.
It wasn't going to be that hard, right?
…Yeah, I wasn't naïve enough to believe bad situations wouldn't happen.
Most people feared death for three main reasons:
First, losing everything they owned. All the progress in their lives would amount to nothing once they died.
Second, the uncertainty of what happens after. Would everything just stop existing, or would they end up in heaven or hell?
And third — obviously — the pain of dying.
"Well, in that regard, I only have to worry about the last part. Not that hard, right?"
That wasn't funny…
[The First Seal is broken.]
[Awakening dormant powers…]
In the momentary silence, the Spell decided to speak up again.
Then something just… snapped. Something inside me. I didn't care anymore. I didn't care about be-
Originating from my chest, a feeling I'd never felt before spread out toward my limbs.
I felt like my body was getting stronger, faster, healthier.
It was euphoric. Still a bit disturbing. Just because it felt good didn't mean I liked suddenly feeling it out of nowhere. It even felt like something out of my control — and that was never a good feeling to have.
My attention was suddenly drawn to the star hanging above. That was my Soul Core, wasn't it?
Three orbs rotated around it. Three memories from my first Nightmare. Pretty cool.
[Awakening Aspect Ability…]
'Finally, the moment of truth.'
While my innate ability was terrifying to think about, the Aspect ability was what really mattered — it would decide whether I'd ever need to use that thing or not. Preferably, it should be something combat-related; otherwise, things were going to get difficult. Though, a good support-type ability for direct combat wouldn't be bad either.
Wait, no — I take that back. If I ended up alone in the Forgotten Shore, then having an ability with actual combat application would be way better. Something that could augment me while also giving buffs, like Nephis's.
[Aspect Ability acquired.]
[Aspect Ability Name: Harvest of the Fallen.]
Yup, that didn't tell me shit. I quickly summoned my runes to see what I had actually gotten.
To make things a bit more exciting, I decided to start reading from the top — saving the Aspect ability for last.
Name: Talion.
True name: Grave Walker.
Rank: Dreamer.
Soul Core: Dormant.
Soul shards: [0/1000]
'No weird core like Sunny's? I guess it doesn't matter much anyway…'
I had kind of expected something fancy — like a Death Core or something, considering I had a Divine Aspect too. But then again, Nephis and Mordret also have Divine Aspects, and they still used regular soul cores. So maybe that was just how it worked.
Memories: [Pain Eater] [Sword of vengeance] [Ranger's Cloak]
Echoes:
'So these were the three memories I had… guess I'll have to check them out later.'
I made a quick mental note of it and moved on.
Attributes: [Scholar's vision] [Crimson Ally] [Titan's Corpus] [Aesthete]
I wanted to check out the four attributes I'd gotten too, but the excitement of reading the Aspect ability description was stronger — so I decided to leave the attributes for later.
Aspect: [Death's Fortune]
Aspect Rank: Divine
Aspect Abilities: [Harvest of the Fallen]
Aspect ability description: [Those you kill do not vanish completely. You can claim their body as your own, or bind them to serve you.]
'Uhh, okay…'
Luckily, the Aspect ability description was simple enough to understand.
Putting morality aside for now, I tried to think logically.
So—if I kill something, I can take their body? Transfer myself into them? Does it work only on humans, or on Nightmare creatures too? Or maybe both.
The other part was straightforward as well: I could make them my… slaves, in a way.
Before I could dig any deeper, the Spell interrupted.
[All power has a price.]
[You have received a Flaw.]
[Your Flaw is: …]
'Please, nothing too bad..'
___
I opened my eyes.
Above me was a ceiling — probably of a police station. At least, it looked like what Sunny had described in the novel.
Before I could think any further, a voice cut in.
"So… you're finally awake?"
I looked ahead. A man, maybe in his late twenties, was sitting on a plastic chair beside my bed. Black hair, a casual smile on his face.
"Yeah." That sounded awkward.
I grimaced internally, imagining all the ways I could've just screwed up the conversation.
…Though, realistically, I hadn't. It was just the situation making it feel weird.
"Disoriented from your first Nightmare, huh? Well, anyway. I'm Awakened Roy. Congratulations on completing your first Nightmare, Sleeper Talion."
___
Yup i know some of you might get triggered by finding out that he has an ability 'known as' Return by Death. I understand, while rbd might work in rezero world it really doesn't make sense when you take it in shadow slave world. The only thing i can say is.... Read properly, Yeah idk what else to say. Though i think its for the better that mc thinks the ability works like Return by Death. Its better for his mental health, Trust.
Anyways, This is actually a soft chapter in a way. I was originally considering writing a full arc then uploading it to make sure i could change things along the way giving me more flexibility. But this is just chapter one which i uploaded as an experiment of sorts. I would really like to know if you liked it even though there isnt much going on right now.
Thanks for reading, See you next time.