Born In Ashes: The Enigma

Without making a sound, Azrael slowly sat up and picked up the pendant he had placed on the coffee table earlier.

The pendant was shaped like a light blue water droplet with a star mark at the center of it, and the chain was silver in color.

'It's good that I didn't wear it earlier, or it would have been difficult to explain why I passed out,' He thought inwardly, looking at the details of the pendant.

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---) Water Spirit Pendant (One Time Use Star Level Prop): Made using the solidified tear of a high-level star grade water spirit. Can save the wearer from one fatal attack by a star-level being or below.

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When Azrael had seen the pendant's details earlier, he immediately abandoned the idea of wearing it.

Although he wasn't exactly sure how powerful the so called star level beings were, he reasoned that if the pendant was strong enough to protect him from the pressure that had engulfed the area, it would have been strange for him to pass out even under its protection.

But now that he had safely escaped from his earlier predicament, he didn't hesitate any longer and wore the pendant without a second thought— adding an additional layer of protection for himself.

"A star level being… After seeing that strange monster in the garden and feeling the pressure that descended earlier, I was already certain that this wasn't an ordinary world— and this pendant just confirmed my guess," Azrael murmured, a strange glint flashing in his eyes.

"I wonder how strong the people of this world are… and if every single bastard who ruined my life is still alive in this world."

Azrael looked at his completely normal body and clenched his fist.

"When I destroyed them on Earth, I felt no joy from revenge. By then, I had already turned into a soulless marionette. But here…"

The temperature in the room suddenly dropped sharply as if he were standing in an ice cellar.

"I can feel everything once again."

He stood up from the bed and quietly walked toward the bathroom connected to his room.

Currently, he needed to address two major issues.

The first was the issue of information.

Even though he had pieced together a few things from what he had seen and heard so far, he was still far from understanding the full extent of the situation he was in.

For now, though, he had no way to fully resolve that problem.

The second issue was his body.

Earlier, the man who came to his room had assumed that he passed out from overusing his cosmic energy—but in reality, his body didn't contain any cosmic energy at all.

The burning sensation he had felt earlier was growing stronger by the minute, and he knew that if he wanted to solve this, he needed to use the Cosmic Energy Affinity Pill he had received earlier.

'I wonder what these prompts and this status window I can see actually are… And whether other people in this world have similar abilities?'

In addition to those two issues, another concern lingered in his mind—the status window itself.

If this system was a common feature in this world, then there would be no problem.

But if it wasn't, then he couldn't be sure whether the Cosmic Energy Affinity Pill granted through it wasn't some kind of trap.

The burning sensation he was experiencing wasn't unbearable yet—he could endure it for a few more hours or even days without much trouble as his endurance for physical pain was very high.

But if he didn't use the pill soon, and his body continued to lack cosmic energy that is completely different from normal people of this world, there was a high possibility that the man from earlier would come back to check on him and realize something was wrong.

Earlier, the man hadn't paid much attention to Azrael's cosmic energy due to the pressure that had swept through the area.

But if hours passed and his body still showed no sign of recovery, the man might suspect something—and might even call the healer they had mentioned.

'If this healer is anything like a doctor, then the chances of him discovering that my body has never come into contact with cosmic energy will be very high…' Azrael thought as he entered the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

'Well, the worst-case scenario is that the pill is a trap and I die… But I have long since stopped fearing death,' Azrael reflected.

He opened his status window again, this time focusing on the inventory section.

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---) Inventory [Locked]

[Please retrieve your reward — Cosmic Energy Affinity Pill — within the next twenty-four hours or it will disappear.]

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He thought about retrieving the pill—and suddenly, a deep blue pill appeared in his right hand out of nowhere.

He looked at the pill, and just like before, an information window appeared before his eyes.

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---) Cosmic Energy Affinity Pill: The highest-level cosmic energy affinity pill. Upon usage, the user's affinity with cosmic energy will reach its peak.

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The details were simple, but upon seeing the phrase highest level, Azrael couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"If the details that appear before my eyes are accurate, then using this pill shouldn't be dangerous," Azrael murmured—and the next instant, he tossed the pill into his mouth.

After tossing the pill into his mouth, he was about to use tap water to swallow it. But before he could even open the tap, something unexpected happened.

The moment the pill touched his tongue, it melted like cotton candy and slid smoothly down his throat.

As the bitter taste of the pill spread throughout his mouth, Azrael's eyes flashed slightly.

He recalled eating on Earth after escaping from that hell hole but never being able to taste anything because of his body condition.

'My sense of taste has returned, huh…' He thought, his expression remaining calm as he focused on observing the huge changes taking place within his body.