"At last, I got the salmiak pie."
A boy in his late teenage years was sitting in the corner of a candy shop, in front of him the sweet he had longed for after the hard work he had endured.
He raised the fork in a clumsy way resembling that of children, divided the pie into equal triangular pieces. He lifted one piece and put it entirely into his mouth. A disgusted expression appeared at first, but in the end he began to enjoy the taste.
"By the saints, this is the worst thing I've eaten in my life!"
Golliner was a boy who had lived his entire life as a drifter, moving between jobs. He had no home; he had lost it since childhood. The last things he remembered were curses and abusive words thrown at him.
Yet he did not lose his will to live. His life as a wanderer was not that bad; he learned when to hide, when to leave.
Golliner finished the pie, and a smile shone on his face. Customers and workers in the shop were surprised by the smile of the child as he happily ate the salmiak.
A waitress approached him with a glass of juice to erase the bad taste from the child's mouth.
"Here, have this drink. It's on me."
She cast a quick glance at the boy. His appearance did not seem good or bad; some signs of exhaustion and the dark lines under his eyes were becoming clear.
Golliner took the drink and said to the waitress, the smile still not fading, "Thank you, miss."
He began drinking the juice. The waitress did not leave; she remained standing still for a few seconds. The boy's gaze did not shift from the drink or the pie.
After a moment of silence, she spoke in a surprised tone.
"Boy, you're the first person to eat this pie and still be happy!"
She paused for a moment, averting her gaze from the boy, then continued speaking.
"I'm curious—why do you eat this filth and still smile?"
The boy stopped eating the pie and cast a look at the waitress, staring at her with his gray eyes lined with black shadows.
The waitress did not know how to react; sweat began to trickle down from the top of her cheeks, until she started to stammer as she tried to apologize.
"I'm sorry… for my bad… manners."
She bowed at a thirty percent angle. Golliner was slightly surprised to see Eastern customs here.
"Please, raise your head…"
The waitress straightened up; her confused features dominated her face.
Golliner's tone slowly faded after his words, which made the shop fall into silence.
"I'm a drifter. I've never seen or tasted any sweets in my life, not even proper food. I was busy earning some Linkent to find rooms in the outskirts to shelter from the rain and storms."
Silence prevailed after the shop had been noisy. Golliner continued his speech in a familiar chant.
"Salmiak pie… in fact, I remember that I used to eat it with my family, but I honestly don't know anymore. I even lost my memories over time. It was dear to me, but now…"
Golliner's voice broke off; no sound came from his mouth. He tried to speak, but he could not. Fear extinguished the features of the boy's cold face.
"But… now I must face the ordeal…"
He looked toward the girl, a bitter smile appearing on the tired boy's face.
"I'm not sure I'll survive."
Lartesh is known as the Ordeal, where the Tower imposes it upon certain people who suffer its symptoms: exhaustion, weary features, insomnia, and suggestive impulses.
It is where a person, at the beginning of their life as an Aser, enters the first stage (power rank), the Bearer. The person must be subject to the regional constraints they are in when undergoing Lartesh.
It must take place under physical, material supervision when the astral projection—also known as the astral body—is drawn by the Tower.
There were cases where people failed to complete the ordeal and turned into deformed creatures, no longer human, carrying no remaining will—just a mass of flesh thirsty for evil and blood.
Silence spread after the words left his mouth. They sympathized with him; it was a dreadful ordeal that could cost one's life. The gazes of the customers carried pity and sorrow.
After that, Golliner stood up. He took out everything in his pocket of Linkent and placed it on the table.
"Thank you for the food. It's time."
He regained his poker face once more. Before he exited the shop door, the waitress shouted.
"Good luck! Make sure you survive—I'll prepare the best salmiak pie for you!"
"…"
A faint smile formed on his lips.
**
Golliner walked through the wealthy district, heading toward the towering gate that stood in the center of the city.
He truly did not care about the whispers he heard along his way from some passersby.
His thoughts were far from those opinions that never benefited him. He planned to survive even if luck was not on his side, even if his chance of survival was zero.
The Ordeal is something created by supreme powers to confront the horrors that come from those same powers.
He had read some books that spoke of the mythology of the Tower in the safe havens—that the Tower appeared thousands of years ago for reasons still unknown.
Some said wars, some said the will of a supreme force, but the true reason was never known.
Golliner wandered through his thoughts until he reached the Ordeal Building, where one who faces Lartesh undergoes special monitoring.
He opened the door of the massive building; it was of a traditional design. A gentle voice echoed throughout the building.
"Welcome. Please state the reason for your visit."
He found no one in front of him and was astonished at where the voice was coming from. For a few seconds, then he answered the voice.
"I came according to the general laws of the global Lartesh Ordeal."
"…"
For a period of time, there was no response.
Suddenly, one of the closed doors opened. They were silver doors, seemingly made of stainless steel.
"Alright. Please enter the designated room number 078."
The gentle voice was calm as usual—and cold. The boy, Golliner, took his steps slowly to enjoy the interior view of the building.
He soon reached room 078. There was nothing in it except a bed resembling those in the outskirts' rooms.
He went inside the room, then heard the sound of the door closing behind him. The echo of the gentle voice returned.
"Welcome again, Golliner. I wish you good luck."
Golliner sat on the bed. After a few seconds, the room began to grow cold and fill with a harmless sleeping gas.
The boy sank into sleep.
Until he heard a voice.
[Welcome, the Tower welcomes you.]
…