The timer ticks down as Stark and Sora were inside the memories museum, and once it reaches zero, both of them lose consciousness, being transported to the third trial.
Stark wakes up in a black void, with nothing in view.
“…”
Of course, this place was all too familiar to him, and so his doppelgängers appeared, this time not two, but three.
“That guy is…” Stark mumbled.
“Incubus,” the third doppelgänger, who had a purple aura, as well as a tail and demon horns, smiled.
“Right,” it made sense, since Domination hadn’t absorbed this one.
“Anyway, good luck,” the three of them shrugged.
“That’s… all?” Stark raised his eyebrows.
“What did you expect, a cake?” Domination shook his head, and once he snapped his fingers, the three of them disappeared, leaving Stark alone with a new panel appearing before him.
Ding!
[Third Domination Trial]
[Name: Corpse Festival]
[Number of participants: 15]
[Difficulty: Death]
[Good luck!]
Stark’s vision blurred as he fell unconscious again.
‘Death difficulty again… huh…’ he thought, already having expected that.
A Death difficulty on the first trial had been hell, each guardian taking one of his companions, and in the end he managed to win by sheer willpower.
The second trial was even harder, forcing him to go through 5 floors and defeat an extremely powerful boss: the Warden, which killed him twice before he finally managed.
And now, the third, with the same difficulty as the previous two, was happening, surely this would be bad.
…
“Hah…”
Stark opens his eyes as he gets up, his vision blurry, but soon adapting.
[Welcome to the ‘Corpse Festival’]
“Finally, the sleepyhead got up.”
“That guy’s dying first for sure.”
“Hahaha…”
Stark was currently in a circular square, slightly raised above ground, and once he looked up, he saw that the other participants were all already awake, also standing in one of these very same ‘zones’.
They were all circling some sort of giant altar.
Ding!
[Everyone has woken up!]
[The trial shall start!]
Everyone was on edge as they saw the crimson text appear above the altar.
[Name: Corpse Festival]
[Difficulty: Death]
When Stark looked around, he realized that he was in a village square, the middle of a village that looked abandoned.
[You are currently in the ‘Death Village’.]
[Your goal for this trial is simple.]
A crimson arrow appeared out of nowhere, and then it placed itself right in front of a massive tower that could be seen in the distance.
[Objective of this trial: be the only survivor, and climb to ‘Moon Tower’ to be the winner.]
[That is all, no boss, no nothing.]
[Of course, there are powerful monsters, and advantages you can get by doing tasks, but if you felt like it, you could kill everyone in this square right now and climb to the top to win.]
[The tower is set at the very end of “Termina”, a massive city infested with moonscorched monsters you will have to go through after getting rid of the others.]
Instinctively, Stark turned his head toward Sora, who was looking at him with a determined look.
“…” Stark’s eyes grew so bright with his crimson aura that you would be able to see it from kilometers away.
[But…]
Another panel appeared.
DING! BOOM! BOOM!
In the sky appeared three massive moons, with a single pupil in each of them, looking at the participants.
[This is the ‘Crimson Moon Trio’, they moonscorched the earth here, transforming everything into the hell it will be for you.]
[If you manage to defeat them, which is impossible, don’t even try, they are level 600 and ranked ‘Immortal’, then the trial will instantly end, no matter what.]
[If you beat them right now, all 15 of you will pass.]
Stark’s gaze shot up to the sky, narrowing on the three monstrous moons that hovered ominously above.
The vast, crimson orbs floated in the void, casting an eerie red glow over the “Death Village.”
The single pupils in each moon stared down, unblinking, full of malice and apathy.
They radiated such immense power that Stark could feel the weight of their presence bearing down on him.
“Level 600… Immortal rank…” Stark muttered, shaking his head, “That’s foolish,” he smiled, “You can’t beat me.”
Around him, the other participants were stirring as well.
Some exchanged glances, others tightened their grips on weapons or flexed their powers.
The tension was palpable; everyone knew the trial had begun in earnest, but none looked brave—or foolish—enough to challenge the moons outright.
The moons’ impossible presence seemed to be more of a psychological barrier than an actual obstacle.
Their immense level made them unapproachable, forcing the participants to focus on the more pressing task at hand—surviving each other.
Unapproachable… except for Stark, who already knew what he needed to do.
Even if it took killing every single one of the others, he would go up to these things and kill them, no matter what.
The trial was deceptively simple.
Fifteen participants, one objective: be the only survivor and reach the “Hollow Tower.”
Stark glanced at the tower looming in the distance, its jagged spires cutting into the blood-red sky.
The path ahead would be grueling, and every step was guaranteed to be filled with danger.
Monsters were already lurking beyond the village, waiting for anyone foolish enough to make an early dash toward the tower, or enter “Termina”, which is the main stage of the trial.
But that wasn’t Stark’s biggest concern.
No, it was the other participants.
He scanned the crowd quickly, noting their postures, their expressions, and the dangerous gleams in their eyes.
Some stood confidently, exuding an aura of deadly intent.
Others seemed nervous, eyes darting from one person to the next, likely calculating their chances of surviving the imminent bloodbath.
One of them was a woman, and she was currently… meditating? What?
[Code Name: Lilith; Real Name: Lina Silent]
Beside her, was a businessman, smoking on a cigar that had been in his pockets, he was currently speaking to two other people beside him.
[Code Name: CEO; Real Name: Miles Molkov]
Right next to Stark was a tall guy with short white hair reaching his neck, with bags under his eyes and wearing an artist-like costume, he also had two brushes in his hands.
[Code Name: Artist; Real Name: Kai Algren]
There were many people, but Stark didn’t have the time to observe all of them, he would do it later.
Stark locked eyes with Sora across the circular square.
Her determined look was mirrored by his own.
They had survived one trial together, but this one was different.
This was a deathmatch, and only one could walk away alive—or so it seemed.
“…” but Stark already knew what he needed to do.
Before he could linger on the thought, a new panel appeared in front of everyone, and the silence was shattered.
DING!
[The trial will begin in…]
[5…]
[4…]
[3…]
The countdown was ticking down fast, and Stark could feel his heart rate increasing.
His hands twitched instinctively, ready to summon his powers at a moment’s notice.
[2…]
[1…]
[Begin!]
For a second, no one moved.
It was as if the entire square was holding its breath, waiting for someone else to make the first move.
[Oh, and by the way, there are items and quests that can help you kill someone stronger than you are placed randomly, so if you have no confidence, go get those.]
The trial was unfair when humans faced monsters and traps, but when it was about killing one another, it became the fairest of trials ever.
The [Moon Trio] was also looking down on the humans, and even with one single eye, you could see that they were pleased, and excited to see the humans kill one another.
At least, that is what they believed.
“Alright,” Stark was the first to speak out loud, bringing the attention to himself, “Let’s do this.”
But instead of running toward a participant… he stared at the moons.
“Just need to take the three of you down, don’t I?” he smiled.
